Chương 54: Go with Flow

Sector A High Society Residency, Faith City. Amidst a sea of pristine glass structures stood a towering, thirty-story building constructed entirely of black marble. The rising sun's rays pierced through the glass doors of a luxurious apartment on the twenty-fifth floor. In the center of the luxurious hall, a middle-aged man sat entirely alone upon a plush sofa. He stroked his beard and mustache every few seconds, behaving as if he were under an immense amount of pressure.

His foot tapped incessantly against the floor; he simply could not control his deep agitation. Suddenly, the main doors slid open. An elderly man entered the room, his hands firmly clasped behind his slightly hunched back.

"Father," the middle-aged man immediately stood up, swiftly moving towards the old man.

"Speak," the elderly man ordered in a perfectly calm tone, completely devoid of the restlessness that plagued his son.

"The rumors are true. Dejan Pleasence has already entered the Trail. Other families are also attempting to take part. We must prepare ourselves immediately; we have very little time left," the middle-aged man rapidly reported. The old man slowly walked over to the center of the hall and seated himself upon the plush sofa. Leaning back against the cushions, he softly closed his eyes and fell into a profound, silent contemplation.

"we will not participate in the Trail," the old man said. Hearing what his father had just said, the middle-aged man's face turned solemn. He simply stared at his father in silence for a while, before bursting into rage.

"What are you talking about? This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It is happening on our territory, so we should take advantage of it before others do. If we wait for a while, even people from other cities will invade here to participate. You are saying we should do nothing while other families take part in it? Such an action will put our family to shame, setting us a hundred years back compared to the other families.

We will be nothing once the Trail finishes," the middle-aged man said, his eyes turning crimson. The old man did not say anything. He simply turned his face towards his son, staring at him. That stare alone put the middle-aged man in his place, turning his face to the ground. The anger and frustration from before were nowhere to be found.

"But, why has our family been working hard for generations, yet we still lack the reputation to stand at the top? This is a God-given opportunity for us. If we enter, we will not only gain reputation, but wealth and power," the middle-aged man pleaded. The old man looked cross-eyed at the face of his son. It was not a disgusted reaction, but it was even more than disgusting. The middle-aged man's face turned pale, devoid of any emotions. Only blankness existed.

"Son, tell me all the things you know about this Trial." The old man pushed his body out of the sofa and slowly walked towards the window as he looked down at Sector A.

"Father, this is a Concentric Trial. Once one entered into the Trial, they were bound to go through seven sections, and each section increased in standard. Once one reached the seventh, they would face an Omega Standard monster, and whoever defeats it will exit the Trial with overwhelming power and wealth," the middle-aged man said. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

"Is that all?" the old man turned around.

"No, Father. There are plenty of things other than that," the middle-aged man said.

"Whatever you know about the Trial, it does not amount to even ten percent. Of everything there is to know, only thirty percent has ever been disclosed by the highest society. Another twenty percent is known only to those who willingly prepare to enter it. As for the remaining fifty percent... it is completely unknown," the old man said in a firm tone.

"The Hallam Family will not participate in the Trial," he said in the same tone. Afterward, he gave one final look at Sector A of Faith City, then turned around, walking away from the hall. Meanwhile, the middle-aged man stood silently without saying a word.

Arthur woke up just as the sun peeked over the horizon. Due to the uneven ground, his sleep was far from pleasant. He often jolted awake from his dreams. However, he had managed to rest enough to think clearly. Before he could even sit up, his stomach growled from hunger. He had not eaten for a long time. Following which, he exited the small cave. Coburn stood dutifully, guarding the entrance. Arthur did not know the location of his hunting party.

He needed to move away from the crater, as this was the regular hunting ground for the Underground people. Sooner or later, he would be found. If that were to happen, with his current strength, he was bound to die. He did not know if the Notebook would revive him if he were to die again. Hence, he had to treasure this opportunity and act cautiously to survive until he became strong.

"Coburn, lead me to the hunting party," Arthur commanded. Coburn started to walk deep into the crater, while Arthur followed behind. Currently, he did not see any monsters on the trail they were taking. The hunting party might have hunted them all throughout the night. While walking, his mind started to revise his previous plan. Originally, he intended to hire a Skeleton Debuffer with a Master Status to fight back against those people.

In reality, however, considering all the things that had happened, especially the nonchalant behavior of those people that still nagged at his heart, he threw his previous plan away. He needed to think of a new plan. Currently, however, he severely lacked knowledge of this place. Arthur called out the Nether-Realm Marketplace. He selected the [Others] tab, searching for an Occultist or a Scholar Skeleton that possessed knowledge regarding the secrets he lacked. A multitude of results loaded on the page.

However, Arthur quickly added a filter, bypassing the need to check everything he could not afford at this place. After the filter was applied, a total of 5 results were displayed. [Worker Status] Name: Judd Designation: Scholar Specialist: Language Professional Status: Beginner Monthly Maintenance Cost (MMC): 1000 Credits Contract Payment: 100 Alpha Standard Mutated Monster Corpses Arthur rejected this skeleton worker without hesitation. A specialist in Language was not something he currently needed.

Following which, he rejected two more Beginner Skeletons that specialized in Inscriptions and Poems. [Worker Status] Name: Gene Designation: Sage Specialist: Wisdom Professional Status: Beginner Monthly Maintenance Cost (MMC): 7500 Credits Contract Payment: 7 Knowledge Crystals Arthur was disappointed after reading through the workers. He did not have the contract payment for those that could be useful, whereas the ones he could afford would not help him a bit. The final result would not help him, either.

Its designation was an [Oracle]; not only did he have no use for it, but he was also unable to offer the payment. Arthur simply closed the translucent screen. He could try at some level; if he could not find a solution, he was not going to bang his head on the wall. He decided to hire as many combat-related Skeletons based on the resources he could find in this place. Once he had done that, he would decide what to do next. With that thought, he discarded the notion of knowing everything about this place.

They walked for ten minutes before they heard a commotion. It was the hunting team, fighting against three monsters that possessed razor-sharp scythe claws and mouths. Maan and Dolph did not struggle much. This was because the monsters were Alpha Standards, whereas the Skeletons were Expert and Intermediate. Within a few seconds, the monsters had fallen. From a blind spot, the Skeleton figure, Antrae, stood up. Since the monsters had fallen, it was now his time to start the work.

Antrae did not take much time to skin the three monsters and extract all the necessary resources and materials. Once he was done, Bathory collected all the meat and materials, taking them into the Nether-Realm.