Noah dived at full speed and stomped his feet on his opponents' chest. The two hybrids spat mouthfuls of blood after the impact, and traces of "Breath" leaked out of their figures when they sensed Noah's killing intent.
Their instincts were reacting to Noah's dangerous area. The two hybrids felt compelled to release their "Breath" to defend against whatever was about to come.
"Enough!" The team leader in the distance shouted, and Noah shot an annoyed glance in his direction.
Noah had enough of that façade. His black hole put his species above the hybrids. In his mind, testing his strength was a useless procedure.
The leader seemed to understand that Noah was far stronger than the average hybrid with a body in the middle tier. Still, he wanted to know how powerful Noah actually was.
"Jordan, go," The leader said toward one of the solid stage experts.
Noah showed a surprised expression when he saw the expert descending from the short mountain and walking toward him. It didn't matter how strong he was. He didn't have the power to face an existence in the solid stage.
His thoughts ran quickly, and his legs bent. Countless ideas on how to escape that situation surged in his mind. The hybrids were still under his feet, so he instantly decided to use them as hostages.
"You can use your "Breath" and mental energy," The leader suddenly said. "She can't."
Noah froze at those words. Hybrids weren't much different from magical beasts when it came to their physical prowess. The leader was basically asking him to defeat a creature in the upper tier.
'Can I do it?' Noah wondered while he studied his opponent.
His opponent was a tall young-looking woman with long brown hair and green eyes. She seemed slender, but her large gray robe hid most of her physical features. Noah couldn't even see her hands due to her clothes.
Yet, his mind barely managed to memorize her aspect. Jordan was quite beautiful, but Noah could only focus on her cultivation level while watching her getting closer.
Divine Demon stopped drinking but didn't lower his cup when the hybrid waked in their direction. A tinge of interest appeared in his expression, and his eyes darted between Noah and that new opponent.
The Demon felt quite curious about Jordan's battle prowess, but he also wanted to see what Noah would do in that situation. After all, Noah had the upper hand there since the two hybrids were still under his feet.
Before Noah could even make a decision, his legs relaxed, and he stepped off the two hybrids who immediately stood up to shoot in the distance. His desire to test himself had triumphed over the danger that he felt. He wanted to see if he could defeat that powerful existence.
Divine Demon exploded into a laugh and finished drinking his cup. He then turned toward Noah and Jordan before pouring more wine. He didn't want to miss that battle.
Noah didn't hold anything that could improve his physical prowess back. Corrosive smoke and dark matter came out of his skin to create the fiendish armor, and his higher energy also filled his black vessels to boost his strength.
Black flames flowed out of his mouth as if they were a river falling from a cliff. Noah didn't want to attack his opponent with them. He only wanted them to be in the environment in case he suffered severe injuries.
Noah arched his fingers to create to transform his left hand into a claw that he pulled back as he leapt backward. Jordan seemed to understand what he wanted to do, but she limited herself to raise her hand and reveal her open palm.
There was no arrogance in Jordan's expression. She was simply conscious of her superior power. Also, she had acknowledged Noah's prowess, so she didn't want to risk injuring him.
That exchange suited both of them, so they didn't complain nor retreat. They remained silent as they prepared and waited for the attack to begin.
Noah shot forward. The world in his vision became blurry, but he never lost sight of Jordan's palm. His figure morphed and transformed into a black sword that reached his opponent in an instant.
When the sword hit Jordan's palm, Noah's figure replaced the black weapon, and a loud shockwave spread in the environment. The ground under the two of them cracked and shattered, and the same went for the terrain behind Jordan.
Divine Demon laughed again when he saw Noah's sharp energy coming out of Jordan's back and flying in the distance. The attack had definitely hit, and its might was quite outstanding for an existence in the liquid stage.
Jordan kept an aloof expression until her feet began to slide on the ground, and a pinch-like pain reached her mind. Noah had managed to push her back, even if only slightly.
She pulled back her hand to stare at her palm. A minute cut had appeared at its center, and a drop of dark-red blood flowed out of the wound. Noah had also managed to injure her.
"Testing him any more is pointless," Jordan shouted as she raised her injured hand to show it to the leader.
The hybrids in the liquid stage remained speechless at the sight of that minute wound. Noah had used spells and martial arts, but that wasn't an easy feat nonetheless.
The upper tier of the seventh rank wasn't a level that existences near the bottom of the liquid stage could affect. The fact that Noah had managed to piece Jordan's skin revealed how his battle prowess was off the scale.
"You and your friend have earned your meeting," The leader said before retreating on the other side of the mountain.
"I'm not only a friend!" Divine Demon shouted while the rest of the hybrids followed the leader behind the mountain. "He is my heir! I'm the Master here!"
The hybrids ignored him, but Jordan gave voice to a short laugh before moving her eyes back on Noah. She studied the fiendish armor and followed the trails of smoke that came out of it when Noah called it back before fixing her gaze on his reptilian pupils.
Jordan's pupils changed when they met Noah's eyes. They sharpened until they became two fissures. She also had reptilian eyes, but she kept them hidden.
Noah's instincts became alert, but they didn't sense any danger coming from the hybrid. Jordan exuded a strange aura that made him feel protected. It was as if they were natural allies.
"You earned this," Jordan said before revealing her palm to Noah.
The drop of blood was still there, and Noah glanced at Jordan before bending to lick her palm. A surge of energy suddenly entered his body, and his black hole quickly absorbed it to begin the purification.
"How daring," Jordan said as a smile appeared on her face. "You could have used your finger."
Noah didn't say anything and only watched as Jordan released a happy laugh and turned to join her team. In less than a minute, the hybrids had gone on the back of the mountain. Only Divine Demon and Noah remained in the area.
"Well done, my heir!" Divine Demon exclaimed as he stood up and stored his wine. "I told you it would have been easy with you here."
Noah ignored him as peculiar thoughts rose from his mental sea. It had been a long time since he had interacted with another hybrid, and he had to admit that it felt quite good to be among similar existences.