Chapter 836: 836. Daniel

The strategy to disable the seven giants wasn't too hard to perform and didn't have strict requirements, except for the need of cultivators with seven different aptitudes.

To deactivate the Elemental formation, the seven cultivators had to attack the source of the giants at the same time through specific items that would destabilize their form. The power of the attack didn't matter too much, even simple rank 4 cultivators would do, and the Elbas family would also take care of the creation of the items.

The only issue was in making those attacks land on the castles while the troops of the Empire defended them. Yet, the invading army had more cultivators, so creating a path was feasible. The hybrids had died too, so the Empire had lost one of its defensive methods, meaning that the next assault would lead to fewer casualties.

Noah wondered how an inscription method with such an evident weakness could have survived until the current era after hearing the explanation. However, the truth was that the Elemental formation was quite outdated, according to the standards of the Eblas family, at least.

Also, the Elemental formation wasn't inherently weak. It was hard for a single organization to put together a team made of cultivators with different aptitudes, especially with the elitist political system that most forces had.

It was a case that three of the most potent forces in the world were fighting together to take down the strongest one and that there were cultivators with the rarest aptitudes on the invading side. Without that, the attackers would have to face and defeat those giants with their heroic assets, which meant using seven rank 5 cultivators in the solid stage.

"How is it?" Elder Julia asked Noah when the explanation ended. "Do you think he is up to the task?"

Noah didn't answer. He knew what the Elder wanted to know, but he wasn't in a position to confirm her doubts. Only Daniel could answer that question.

"I'll make a trip back to the southwestern coast," Noah said as he stood up. "I have the feeling that I should be the one to offer him this mission."

Elder Julia nodded and turned to discuss the specifics of the plan with the other leaders when Noah set off to return to his dome.

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Daniel had faced his fair share of setbacks in life.

As the heir of one of the wealthiest noble families in the Utra nation, he had always been quite privileged. His aptitude then pushed the nurturing of the Udye family to a higher level, which eventually made him become the hope of the Cause.

Yet, Noah's appearance had forced him to reconsider how talented he was.

From the events in the Bare Dungeon to the raids in the Utra nation, Noah had always managed to be a step in front of him, until he became an existence that he couldn't hope to reach.

Daniel knew that there were monsters in that world, but he had initially believed that he was one of them. It had taken him the banquet in the headquarters of the Hive to realize that anyone could have reached his level of power with the backing of a wealthy family and a rigid training schedule.

In short, Daniel had realized that he wasn't really talented. He was just lucky.

Of course, that wasn't true at all. Daniel still stood among the geniuses of his generation, but his lack of experience had ultimately made him fall behind his peers. It had reached a point where everyone was surpassing him.

However, after his privileged status began to fall apart and the dreams of his family vanished, he had started to understand his path. He realized that the political obligations placed on him since the discovery of his aptitude had blinded him for all his life.

It had all started from his conversation with Noah when he pointed out how Daniel's strength originated from his family. Then, it continued during the raids and culminated with the Hive accepting the entrance of the Udye family in its ranks.

Daniel had felt defeated for most of that period, and he had even reached the point where he wanted to stop cultivating because of the countless losses that he had to endure through the decades. He was continuing to train out of habit, but his individuality was regressing due to his lack of willpower.

Yet, seeing Noah returning from the new world as a complete rank 5 cultivator made him understand how meaningless all those titles and achievements were.

The length of the journey didn't matter. Surpassing other cultivators didn't matter. There was only the finish line and the path to reach it.

Daniel lost interest in the political matters of the world after that realization. His family wanted him to play an important role, but they were all cultivators striving for the sky in the end.

A setback was nothing. A defeat was nothing. Death was nothing. Only the willpower to keep walking toward the higher ranks mattered, and he had almost lost it because he was too busy comparing himself to his peers.

So, Daniel had decided that his willpower would become a light able to purify life from all those useless things. The other cultivators could either choose to follow his example or remain entangled in the messy political struggles of the various forces.

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Noah returned to his dome after a long trip and didn't hesitate to dive inside the mansion of the Udye family. After all, that region was under his control, so every building inside it was technically his.

A series of servants and cultivators bowed when they saw him walking through the corridors of the mansion in the direction of the training areas placed underground.

Noah reached the reinforced rooms and waited in front of one of them for the cultivator inside it to open it. His consciousness seeped through the walls and inscriptions on them and studied the whiffs of aura that filled its insides.

He couldn't understand much since the formations around the reinforced rooms were hard to pierce, but the Udye family had never needed to upgrade them. Only Amos had been able to reach the fifth rank, and he had a suitable training area already.

So, Noah could sense that there was a rank 5 cultivator inside the room.

The door of the training area opened, and Noah saw a cultivator with long, white hair throwing a series of materials in a large cauldron that trembled due to the substance brewing inside it. A white radiance shone under the cauldron, which heated it and forced the substance inside it to release its impurities in the form of gray smoke.

"Daniel Udye at your service, Demon Prince," Daniel said without moving his attention from the cauldron.

Noah didn't mind his behavior and gave a short explanation, followed by an order. "The Hive needs your element to disable a formation. Follow me to the army. You'll join the war."

"Perfect," Daniel said, "I needed to express my individuality."