124 Need for Speed

[Looking at the average level of these arrays, they should take two days of persistent effort to crack open.]

Van scanned all of the treasures once more with his spiritual sense before landing on a desirable target. It was a pair of leather sandals with a metallic symbol on the heel. They gave off ethereal aura that caused Van's heart to beat erratically when he looked at it. These sandals were hidden behind a strong array that seemed to have been cracked slightly already.

Van guessed that a previous participant had found it and spent several days attacking the array to create that crack but unfortunately, they could not finish the job as the monster waves got too strong for them to endure. Despite the crack, this array was one of the strongest in the treasury, requiring at least ten days of continuous effort if it had been without flaws.

It was a good thing Van had the two 9th rank Ghost Guard Captains under his control!

Jet saw the sandals through Van's eyes and spoke excitedly.

"A pair of Palladium Wind Nymph Sandals! They grant the wearer the ability to flee from the fastest of foes, multiplying your natural speed by at least ten times. It can even allow you to achieve flight by gliding on the wind currents. The Palladium Wind Nymph Sandals is only one of three treasures that can grant cultivators below the Sea Establishment realm the ability to fly."

One of three treasures capable of granting flight to those below Sea Establishment! They would also increase his speed to insane levels. The red-haired youth gulped the saliva that suddenly accumulated in his mouth.

That pair of worn-looking leather sandals with the palladium symbol on the heel were actually such a powerful treasure. There was no way he was letting them go now!

Van lifted his palm and a burst of flame attacked the array.

Weng!

A silvery blue glow emanated from array as the array fought back. Van was pushed slightly backwards from the force. The red-haired youth watched the array heal the damage he had just created.

"An attack from a peak 7th ranker only caused the light to glow a little bit. It's a good thing someone tried to open this array before. The crack means that this should take me two days only."

Van appeared in front of the chest that contained the Palladium Wind Nymph Sandals. In the few moments that had passed, the effect of Van's burning fist was already nowhere to be found as the array had healed itself.

Hut!

Van pushed his fists forwards and a powerful jet of flame attacked the array, causing the table that held the chest to sway slightly with the impact. Once more a silver blue glow emanated outwards.

Van thrust his fists forwards once more but this time the flames that emitted out were streaked with blood red and a bright amber color – this was the effect of pulling on the Tri-Divine Blood Flame and the Abyssal Storm Flame to power his martial arts.

WENG! WENG!

Van's attacks weren't fast but they were powerful and carried the weight of his half-step 8th rank cultivation and the backing of two powerful flame essences. The red-haired youth could feel the will of the flames in every palm he exchanged. The array glowed bright and dimmed after each of Van's blows.

The array would heal itself and negate some of Van's work but on the overall, the array's power was dropping slowly.

Naturally, Van's stamina was limited. He called out the two 9th ranked Captains of the Guard and the two giant golden suits of armor swung their weapons at the array, greatly whittling away at its power.

In the blink of an eye, night time fell. With the sunset came the monster hordes. This time there were five rank 7 golems and five rank 6 golems. This was the strongest monster horde any of the participants had seen so far but Van's expression barely changed.

"Kill!"

With a single sentence, the two golden 9th Ghost Guards charged forwards.

BANG!

CRASH!

SLICE!

The overwhelming strength of two 9th ranked doctors was enough to completely subdue the monster hordes.

In the blink of an eye, two days had passed.

A few hours before sunset on the third day –

CRACK!

A brilliant kaleidoscope of blue and silver tones burst outwards as Van's fiery palm impacted the sides of the array. The two Ghost Guard Captains halted their movements as the array finally broke after two days of continuous attack from one half-step 8th ranker and two 9th ranked demon beasts – it was clear that this treasure was heavily protected.

Van's expression turned to joy as he rushed forwards and cradled the sandals in his arms. In his arms they were lighter than they appeared. The palladium logo was of a Pegasus with its wings extended.

[Well?! Try them on!]

Van placed the Palladium Wind Nymph Sandals on the ground, took of his own rough shoes and then slid his feed into the sandals. The sandals were softer than expected and immediately resized themselves so they fit Van's feet perfectly.

[Now insert your spiritual power] Jet ordered.

Van concentrated and inserted his spiritual power in the sandals along with his spiritual sense. Suddenly, the sandals emanated an ancient aura. Van felt the wind start rushing below his feet and whip his hair.

Van looked down and saw that he was actually hovering 2 to 3 centimeters above the ground.

"I'm not touching the ground – this is amazing!" Van enthused.

"Time to test the speed boost."

Van concentrated and rotated [Scattering Smoke Steps.] While the movement skill was activated, Van could actually feel a huge increase in the speed at which his afterimages could appear. He now appeared randomly at millisecond intervals.

As [Scattering Smoke Steps]' primary weakness is that it is focused on absolute evasion rather than absolute speed. This means that it is very good for battles but very bad for escaping enemies.

Van was not someone who was ashamed of running away when the situation called for it.

Shua!

Van kicked the ground and felt the world rush by him at top speed. His figure flashed and appeared several meters away in the treasury.

[With this if I had to fight the Ghost White Rabbit again, I might actually be able to outrun it.]

Now that Van had achieved his goal he was naturally elated, but he hadn't forgotten his original reason for attacking the Manor – he needed materials that would help him level up to the 8th rank!