The Rise of the Black Plain

A few days later...

That afternoon, Minos' party had finally gotten close enough to their destination to see the silhouette of the old Obsidian City.

But their group was no longer the same. With their losses in the battles of the past few days, only nine of them had reached this place.

Of those killed in the last few days, one was a native of the Spiritual World, one was a member of the Armhands, and all the others were allies of Minos' group.

Minos and Ruth were still there. She was still suffering from the consequences of sacrificing her Flashdrain. At the same time, Minos suffered serious injuries to his body that would have killed others. However, given his strength and resilience, he was still strong enough to carry his wife in his arms.

The other members of the group were equally bad or worse. Of the Armhands there, another had managed to use his flashdrain parasite to gain power and help the group, so he was in the same situation as Ruth.

So far, Minos' surviving allies have used every weapon in their arsenal, even losing the powerful artifacts they obtained during the group's first exploration of this region.

Such artifacts might have saved some of the remaining lives at that point!

Anyway, now they were finally within reach of the Obsidian City. Upon arriving there, they quickened their pace, anxious to enter this sanctuary as soon as possible to avoid further casualties.

...

After a few minutes, Minos' group entered Obsidian City under the gaze of other aliens who were already there to rest or cultivate.

But not only these beings watched them as they walked through the first streets of this long abandoned place. The last few individuals who had been chasing them watched them enter the place and couldn't help but show their hatred for the 'cowardice' of this group.

The monsters who arrived there didn't leave the area and soon settled down to wait for the moment when Minos' people would leave their hiding place. Meanwhile, the competitors who were in the area to take advantage of the opportunity entered the city just after Minos' group.

Minos noticed this, but he didn't care. While they were under the gaze of those already in the city and the newcomers, he led his people to an area where they could cultivate in peace.

Even though everyone there could feel the value of what they were carrying, they couldn't threaten the members of Minos' group while they were inside the city.

With this in mind, Minos soon occupied one of the local plazas, one of the best places to cultivate in the area.

He placed Ruth where she could cultivate and watched as his group settled in while his enemies approached and tried to talk to them.

"Give us what you have. We'll make sure you're safe enough to leave the area." Said a level 102 alien who had chased them there.

Minos approached this being while allowing his group to start cultivating in the area. He looked at the level 102 Sovereign and the others who were interested in what he had and said. "If you want something from me, you must fight for it. I won't give anything to anyone here."

This individual tried to punch Minos in the face. Still, something stopped him, making his movement so slow and weak that even if he hit the guy in front of him, it wouldn't do any damage.

Minos laughed to see how true the rumors about this place were.

He turned his back on them and said, "I'm going into seclusion now. I advise you to look for opportunities elsewhere. I've heard that the Obsidian City has very powerful artifacts for cultivators who are willing to face the city's challenges. Instead of waiting for your own death when I finish my cultivation, do something useful with your lives."

"Arrogant wretch!"

Minos ignored the curses in his direction and quickly sat down not far from Ruth and the rest of his group.

As he closed his eyes to meditate for the first time in weeks, he felt his special heart beat differently as he sensed the rich energy of the area.

This place was even better than any place he had ever known!

Hell, even if one combined all these places into one and added up all their phenomena, this place would still beat all the others.

Minos had only come to rest and escape from some immediate dangers, but when he started cultivating there, he couldn't help but be surprised.

'Tsk! Zocarro is truly a fantastic place. The opportunities in this world are unparalleled. I'll bring Gloria and Abby here in the future.' He thought to himself.

Soon, however, he would focus entirely on absorbing the energy in his surroundings and channeling it into his wounds and his soul.

He would need a period of seclusion just to recover his physical condition. Only after a long process of recovery could he attempt to meditate in search of spiritual improvement!

...

In the blink of an eye, 19 months had passed since Minos' group had arrived in the Obsidian City.

That had been enough time for most of the group to recover from their conditions and start cultivating, seeking improvements in their spiritual levels and understanding of cultivation.

But it took Minos all that time to recover from his injuries and the sacrifice of Flashdrain. The greater the effect of that worm's sacrifice, the greater the remaining effects.

After more than a year and a half in this place, he would finish recovering and return to his best state before the sacrifice.

Having reached the best state to cultivate his soul and seek improvements in terms of understanding, Minos ignored the enemies watching him in this area and began his meditation in search of level 99.

As it was, he thought that if he were at the Armhands' headquarters, it would take him six and a half years to become a level 99 Grandmaster. However, in this place, he thought that he could achieve the same result in less than 4 years.

There were still a little over 6 years left before The Obsidian Shore returned to its previous state of chaos when those in the area would have to leave or hide for the next few thousand years.

That was enough time for him to move on and leave the area safely, so he intended to stay there for the time being.

Ruth and their companions would meditate while he was in seclusion, but the first of them to complete their progress would try to take advantage of the opportunities this city offered.

As reliable as Minos was, it would be better for everyone if they had methods of leaving The Obsidian Shore without having to rely on him so much!