Chapter 27 - When the Heavens Trembled
In the mysterious palace, the surroundings were mystical, filled with a cloudy rainforest, floating rocks, and an abundance of rare and rich resources. Within this legendary place, a mysterious man, whose figure was blurry, sat enjoying tea. Suddenly, his brows furrowed as he stared into an unknown space and muttered,
"Hm, he indeed died. What a pity. He could have been a genius capable of reaching the peak, but alas..."
He touched his temple calmly, then continued,
"Hm, let's see who severed your fate, young lad."
His voice blended with the air, and moments later, his eyes shone with a blue light as he began to probe for every bit of information regarding the secret realm.
An hour later, he opened his eyes and coughed up blood. His face paled, and his trembling hands wouldn't stop shaking as he muttered in disbelief,
"This…?"
He stared at the firmament with wide eyes, his breath unstable, and then whispered,
"It seems you were truly unlucky, young lad… cough..."
Sweat trickled down his forehead as he leaned back in his chair, feeling dizzy. After a long moment, he exhaled deeply to calm himself and murmured,
"I can't see their fates… It seems the geniuses of the 90th Heaven have met their match."
A slow smile formed on his lips as he looked forward to the day when an unknown talent would shake the heavens.
Meanwhile, inside the secret realm, Ella and Olivia were still organizing their loot. Jun handed over 3,258 storage bracelets, most containing primal energy stones, while the rest held low-level artifacts. Many lesser gods had been reluctant to part with their treasures, but under Jun's pressure—and Ella's unwavering gaze—they had no choice but to hand them over.
"Here are the rest, young sister. Take them."
Jun handed everything to Ella politely, maintaining a warm smile to avoid angering her.
After collecting everything, Ella allowed him to leave but suddenly spoke, making Jun stop in his tracks.
"Johnny."
Jun's face twitched as he turned back.
"It's Jun, young sister. It's Jun. As the heir of my clan, I was named as such."
Ella cleared her throat and waved her hand dismissively.
"Jun, if you have any thoughts of reporting this to your clan, I'm sure you know what would happen. My background is far beyond what your clan could even dream of. I'm only reminding you because I cherish our transaction, so consider this a warning in advance."
Her voice was solemn, carrying a weight that made Jun's heart tighten. Then, she casually dropped a hint about her true background.
Jun was stunned. His body stiffened, and for a moment, he was about to bow, but Ella stopped him.
"You just need to convince these people that they better not have any bad thoughts about us. Can you do that?"
Her mysterious tone made Jun's back break out in cold sweat. Realizing the depths of her power, he immediately nodded and said,
"Leave it to me, young sister. My family has a vast network in the 18th Heaven, with various branches in different places. You can rest assured."
Ella nodded in satisfaction.
"By the way, how many days until the secret realm closes?"
She was eager to break through, especially since the system was about to upgrade. She wanted to return home first before initiating the upgrade, so she asked out of impatience.
"Young sister, it's about two weeks until the secret realm closes. A merchant from the 70th Heaven provided this information, and they usually have accurate details."
Ella frowned. That was too long.
However, for the lesser gods of the 18th Heaven, two weeks was nothing. They had already lived for thousands of years, making time seem fleeting in comparison.
Even so, Ella felt uneasy. She had miscalculated.
She turned to the system and asked,
"System, how many kneeling points do we have?"
Ding!
[System Notice: Your Kneeling Points have reached 5,100.]
[Upgrade to System Version 2.0 is now available.]
▶ Would you like to initiate the upgrade? [Yes/No]
Seeing this, Ella hesitated.
She feared being interrupted during her breakthrough, but at the same time, delaying it made her uneasy. Something in her gut told her that she and Olivia might face danger if they waited too long.
Currently, no one in the secret realm was their match, which was a relief, but what about during the breakthrough?
Not wanting to take risks, she immediately called Jun back.
"Jun, guard us and inform those lesser gods about our background. Make sure they don't do anything stupid."
Jun nodded eagerly, seeing this as a chance to prove himself to Ella. Without hesitation, he intimidated the lesser gods using Ella's name, and it worked.
Many lesser gods scattered in fear, their faces pale at the thought of offending her. Others took this opportunity to search for more treasures, ensuring they didn't waste time while Ella and Olivia prepared for their breakthrough.
Ella exhaled slowly.
"This should be enough."
Even though she still felt nervous, it wasn't because she feared anything. It was because she could not afford to be careless with Olivia's safety.
No matter how fearless she was, Olivia was her one weakness.
That was why all these precautions were necessary—to ensure no old monsters took advantage of their vulnerability.
"Are you ready, Vivi?"
She turned to Olivia, who was still half-asleep.
Olivia gave a slight nod.
Moments later, Ella spoke.
"System, upgrade."
Ding!
▶ You have used 5,000 Kneeling Points to upgrade the system.
▶ Your remaining Kneeling Points: 100.
▶ System Upgrade Complete! The system has advanced to Version 2.0.
▶ New Feature Unlocked: Enhanced Probing – You can now access detailed information on realms up to three levels beyond Horizon Realm.
▶ New Feature Unlocked: Celestial Summoning Field – You can now summon chosen individuals into a controlled divine space.
▶ Breakthrough Achieved! The Twin Hosts have awakened their Infernal Mantle, attaining complete mastery over all forms of fire.
Suddenly, the entire air trembled.
Abyssal black flames surged from Ella's body, emitting a chilling aura.
Olivia, on the other hand, radiated pure white flames, causing the surroundings to pulse with life—as if creation itself was forming around her.
Jun backed away instinctively, his face filled with disbelief.
"W-What in the world?! Is this Inferno Realm?!"
His mouth hung open as he trembled, unable to comprehend the sheer grandiosity of their breakthrough.
Even the Grand Arena felt the disturbance—their platforms trembled under the force.
Meanwhile, a merchant from the 70th heaven and his daughter watched the breakthrough intently.
"It's my first time witnessing something like this…"
The young woman's voice was filled with awe.
"If they had broken through in the 18th Heaven, it would have alarmed even the higher heavens."
The father, sweat beading on his forehead, spoke with a grave tone.
"Those greedy gods of the 78th Heaven won't ignore this once they sense it. If they see them as a threat, they won't let them live."
The daughter bit her lip.
"What should we do? Should we warn them?"
The merchant took a deep breath, his eyes flickering with undecided caution before murmuring,
"We'll watch for now. We need these twin geniuses. I'll inform Her Majesty before anyone else moves against them."
With that, they focused all their attention on the twins—completely immersed in witnessing their heaven-defying feat.