Cultivation Through Artifacts

A huge gust of wind erupted from Marx's weapon as the ruby nest below his weapon formed huge cracks while sending different-sized ruby bones and organs into the air.

"Screech!!"

Thanks to the Sea Dust Orb that exploded right before its body, the Ruby Beast's movement speed became slower by a huge margin, but even like this, it was still able to avoid Marx's attack just in the last moment.

"Watch out!" shouted Merlyn with fear as she watched the Beast appear before her brother with a crimson flash.

"!?" Marx realized his frame was too big to dodge while also had no time to parry, so the only thing he could do was to raise his weapon as a way of defense hoping it would save him. However what he didn't expect was that out of nowhere, Khal's figure would arose and protect him from the Beast's assault with his entire body!

*CLANG!*

Watching as Khal took the Ruby Beast's attack head-on without any difficulty for the second time, a wide grin formed on Marx's face and swung his axe once again, "Thanks Junior Brother!"

The Ruby Beast was shocked to see that Khal appeared before it once again, and exactly this slight hesitation brought its demise as Marx's weapon appeared right above it.

With a swing that seemed as fast as a glint, Marx's Mountain Divider appeared atop the Beast's body and in a blink of an eye like a verdict from the heavens, it smashed its figure down.

"Scree-"

*BAM!*

With great explosion, Marx's weapon smashed into the bird's body from above like thunder, chopping its body into two before shoving both the axe's edge and the Beast deep into the nest's surface below.

"You did it!" Merlyn and Asur looked extremely happy as they approached the two from behind the moment the Blood Reaper was killed.

"You okay?" Merlyn turned her gaze at Khal after noticing that the Ruby Beast's body slowly turned into a yellow substance and began to hover in the air.

"I am perfectly fine, yeah." nodded Khal as his skin turned back to normal, but the following second his complexion turned confused, "Wait. Why is that this Beast turned into Essence but the Alpha's body didn't?"

The question was a reasonable one and even Merlyn and Marx turned confused; until this moment they too didn't notice this but now that Khal pointed it out it was truly weird.

"Maybe it used its own ability to transform its body, but I don't seem to find a purpose for that." guessed Asur as he too found this issue bizarre.

Khal turned his gaze at the huge carcass and activated his Heaven's Eyes. Immediately after, the sight in his mind and eyes turned crystal clear while at the same time he was able to see everything around him in a 6 meters radius.

"Who should consume the Beast Essence?" asked Merlyn while Khal began to examine the carcass with slow steps.

"It should be Junior Brother! Without him, I wouldn't have the chance to kill the Beast this easily!" exclaimed Marx loudly, but Khal shook his head gently as a reply, "No, the same goes for me also. Without your Sea Dust Orb and your Fourth Stage strength, even if I was able to defend against it I wouldn't have what it took to kill it. Also, I was the one joining your Group Mission, so naturally, this benefit goes for you guys."

On the side, Asur touched his chin and while pondering with an indifferent face he nodded, "Well, if you say so... Marx, then you should consume it. You were the one who killed it so it's obviously yours."

"Sure." Marx didn't refuse the offer and began to consume it without hesitation; if Khal didn't want it, then he will gladly accept it!

While Marx was consuming the Beast Essence in his lotus position, Khal walked around the Ruby Beast's corpse slowly, examining it as carefully as he could.

"Hm?" and just as he thought, it wasn't long before his right brow suddenly rose as he noticed something extremely odd, "Now that I watch it, the Beast's corpse seems like it tried to protect something before passing away... But what?" 

The way the beast was lying in a half curved posture was similar to how a creature would try to protect something from others without moving. Khal went around and examined the place where the Beast's abdomen and chest should have been, but strangely, there was nothing.

"Hmm... Odd... There is nothing here. Maybe others have already taken the thing away that was here." thought Khal as he examined the carcass, but just as he was about to walk away, his Heaven's Eyes noticed something.

"What is this?" taking a few steps forward right before the Beast's huge ribs, Khal crouched down and extended his arm, only to grab something from the ground, "An orb?"

Khal picked up a ruby 'stone' from the ground and began to inspect it. Its size was similar to an adult's fist with color and surface akin to ruby, while its shape was strangely oval.

As Khal turned it here and there slowly, he knitted his brows together then the next second his eyes popped out with shock, "It's an Egg?!?"

The hard realization that the thing in his hand could be an egg that the Alpha left behind before dying hit Khal like a train and didn't know what he should do.

However, even before he could think about anything else, Marx's loud voice appeared inside his ear, "What? Only 11 Beast Essence for a Ruby Beast? What the hell, did my luck went sour today or what?"

And just as his voice fell, another voice appeared, but this time it wasn't filled with confusion or shock, but fear.

"Guys... What is that?" asked Merlyn with a trembling voice as she pointed toward the sky.

Right in the distance, a crimson cloud was flying toward their direction, making Khal's eyes widen with shock while his face paled in fear.

"A flock of Ruby Beasts!" shouted Khal, and without hesitation put the egg away and began to run, "Fast! We need to get out of here!"

Asur, Merlyn, and Marx naturally understood the approaching danger and not wasting any time followed Khal. But what they didn't expect that instead of descending with the vines' help, Khal simply jumped down.

"Did he go insaaaaaneeee!!! Hey, Marx! The hell you doing?" asked Merlyn with shock and fear as she watched Marx pick her and Asur up and jump out of the nest right after Khal.

"We have no time to descend slowly!" said Marx with a dead serious face and watched Khal's figure crash into the ground below.

"Did he die?" asked Merlyn, but the next second her eyes widened, and watched as Khal was safe and sound and began to run away with insane speed.

Falling in the air while watching as they approached the ground with rapid speed, Marx clenched his teeth and without thinking kicked into the mountain wall.

*BAM!*

Just like a cannonball, using his Talent to the utmost limit, Marx's figure was blasted forward, leaving a deep and huge pit in the mountain wall.

"!?"

Asur and Merlyn held Marx's body with firm grips and watched as with a single leap jumped and landed hundreds of metes away from the mountain wall, right beside Khal.

"Don't stop! Run or you will die!" shouted Khal as blue light enveloped both his feet and like a bullet, burst forward into the distance the next second.

"Damn he is fast!" was what Merlyn thought before Marx's legs bulged with insane strength, revealing thick greenish-blue veins from below his skin, and roared loudly.

"HAAAAAA!!"

*BOOM!*

Pushing his feet against the solid ground, Marx's feet left a wide pit as his body exploded with a momentum no slower than Khal's!