Noah closed his eyes to savor the moment. Axia's silent death filled the separate space with an energy that he didn't hesitate to absorb, but his focus was on the growth of his potential.
The energy gained after the battle couldn't compare to the increase in his potential. Noah sensed his ambition grow significantly as another face appeared on the dark energy radiated by his existence. He could feel his dantian expanding even if his companions' pressure still pressed on its edges. He experienced a wave of power like never before, and the feeling was almost intoxicating.
'Maybe I can do it now,' Noah thought before snapping back to reality and sending a simple order through the mental connection.
Shafu's immense figure had almost filled the entirety of the empty chunk of the sky created by the battle, but it suddenly disappeared. Noah appeared in its place, and his expression didn't flicker when the whiteness fell on him again. His mind remained immersed in the incredible sensations caused by his recent victory, but that mental state didn't prevent him from studying his surroundings.
King Elbas was fighting against one of the liquid stage cultivators, while Sepunia and the dragon were handling the other expert. They both seemed to have the upper hand over their enemies, but they interrupted their battles when they noticed that Noah had reappeared. Surprise and delight even seeped into their expressions when they saw that Axia didn't come with him.
The two liquid stage cultivators remained speechless. They understood that it was already too late. Noah had won against a privileged expert. He was only one step away from seizing the battle prowess that only worlds at the peak of the cultivation journey could wield.
The event allowed King Elbas, Sepunia, and the dragon to take their opponents by surprise, but the cultivators seemed to have lost the will to fight. The two experts ran away and hid inside the sky, where they continued their retreat.
King Elbas, Sepunia, and the dragon wanted to chase them, but they didn't have time to waste. They were still in the middle of the sky, and their escape route had long since crumbled. However, the empty area created by their battle was immense and gave them the chance to resume their escape without meeting hindrances.
Noah and the others regrouped and shot downward without needing orders. They instinctively resumed their escape and launched attacks once the white surfaces of the sky appeared on their path. None of them dared to hold back or retrieve their empowerments in that situation. Even Noah continued to release his ambition to keep his companions at their peak.
Night had to retreat inside the separate space due to the injuries suffered during the battle, and Shafu's immense size would only slow down the escape, so it also avoided coming out. The parasite consumed too much energy, so Noah forced it to return inside his chest, but the Cursed Sword, Snore, and Duanlong remained among the whiteness as they helped open paths through the sky.
Duanlong limited itself to absorbing all the energy that the destruction of the sky released into the environment, and Noah held back from relying on the Cursed Sword too often. Instead, Snore revealed the incredible power obtained after the breakthrough by carving immense tunnels with destructive beams. A single attack of the snake could allow the group to fly without stopping for a long time.
The whiteness around the group intensified, but their defenses kept them safe. Their powerful attacks also destroyed the sky quickly, so the stormy regions grew close as they continued to advance. The experts would soon get out of that dangerous environment, but Heaven and Earth eventually decided to shatter their hopes.
The sky flashed with blinding light, and a series of figures appeared in the experts' vision once the glow dimmed. Crackling avatars and cultivators stood in a battle formation on the group's path, and their powerful auras forced the escape to an end.
Noah and the others couldn't help but show dark expression in front of the sheer number of assets sent by Heaven and Earth on the scene. Most avatars and cultivators were in the gaseous stage and lower tier, but they had stronger experts leading them. Some were also familiar faces.
The dozens of crackling avatars and cultivators had a series of liquid stage experts in their lead. Most of them had borrowed their power from Heaven and Earth, but a few clearly expressed their privileged state.
Dinia was among the three privileged cultivators that had appeared on the scene, but his shocking presence didn't manage to claim his opponents' attention. There was someone far more powerful among that army, and Noah and the others couldn't help but fix their gazes on him.
Caesar stood behind the army, and his solid stage cultivation level was impossible to miss even among those many auras. Still, his behavior was odd. He had his legs crossed, and a hand supported his chin as he inspected the area. He almost appeared annoyed to be in that situation.
"Don't mind me," Caesar shouted when he noticed that his four opponents had focused on him. "Heaven and Earth have sent me here to oversee the situation, but I have no intention to intervene. Just ignore me and do your thing."
Noah and King Elbas exchanged a meaningful glance. They didn't know how much they could trust Caesar, but the cultivator had always been relatively reliable, even if in his odd way. Sepunia also nodded when the two experts looked toward her to ask for her opinion. She seemed to trust Caesar's words.
The promise didn't change the situation too much. Noah and the others still had a powerful army before them, and they had barely overcome their previous fight. Noah knew that he couldn't handle three privileged cultivators in the liquid stage on his own. He wasn't even sure his ambition would last long enough to defeat one of them.
The group instinctively turned to return deep into the sky, but the array of attacks that flew in their direction revealed how escaping was impossible. Nothing hit the experts directly, but the shockwaves released by those abilities managed to reach them. Noah and the others inevitably slowed down to disperse that power, but that gave enough time for three figures to appear in front of them.
"Did you really think that you could escape my perfect self?" Dinia shouted as a cold smile appeared on his face.
The other two privileged cultivators were at his sides. The trio had surpassed the group and had blocked their path toward the deeper parts of the sky. Noah and the others found themselves in a trap that they couldn't avoid.
"How could you predict this outcome?" Dinia asked as white inscriptions began to shine on his figure. "This is the sky, and you aren't strong enough to face it."
Noah sensed a series of gazes falling on him. King Elbas, Sepunia, and the dragon looked at him, hoping that he had a plan ready. Instead, Dinia and the other experts on Heaven and Earth's sides had clearly decided to focus their offensive on him.
Winning was impossible unless something changed, but Noah felt no fear. The sky and Axia had already given him what he needed. Everything else would depend on his potential.
Dinia's eyes flickered when he sensed the ambition radiated by Noah's figure disappearing. Snore and the other companions also went back inside the separate space. The fiendish armor wasn't an exception. Noah remained among the whiteness barehanded and defenseless.
However, an even stronger wave of ambition soon surged and spread inside his aura. Noah's cultivation level rose slowly. His dantian had already touched the limits of the eighth rank, but it crossed them now.. He had finally accumulated enough potential to push his center of power to the next level.