Immortal Kingdoms

Purified energy ceaselessly poured into Leonardo's body, saturating his millions of cells. With one energy pocket full, the circulation would drive the energy to the next, and the next, and the next until all of them were fully satisfied. Once that was done, they would simultaneously contact and implode, signifying Leonardo's advance from one level to the next.

Nine consecutive muffled explosions rumbled through Leonardo's body within varying intervals, each explosion violently shook Leonardo's figure for a few breaths.

Level 42…

Level 43…

Level 44…

Level 45…

Level 46…

Level 47…

Level 48…

Level 49…

BOOM!

With a final muffled bang three days and three nights later, the illusory images behind Leonardo began to fade as the immortal chanting that filled his mind began to settle down.

Leonardo's domain of desolation also began to retract into his body along with the images, leaving him seated atop a high cliff with his white robes flapping chaotically under the influx of the raging energies in the ambiance.

Leonardo's eyes fluttered open, two black pearls akin to a depthless abyss swirling within his irises as glints of crimson and grey danced inside.

Leonardo slowly stood up and faced the direction of the thunderstorm, a frown on his face. From his observations, a massive ring of thunderstorms ought to have encircled the deeper regions of the Sky Mountains Domain, where energy is most concentrated.

The density of energy on the periphery barely brought satisfaction to his hungry cells to advance to the ninth layer of this cycle, and this influx of energy is barely enough to allow him a guaranteed advancement to the second cycle.

"That'll probably hurt a lot," Leonardo muttered to himself as he made sure that a layer of dense desolation essence enveloped his body tightly. Then, just as he was about to recklessly rush into the region of the thunderstorm, he thought he might as well use this lightning to stimulate his reflexes against magical techniques.

His eyes glimmered as this region of thunderstorms was similar to a massive natural domain, and Leonardo could treat it as though an enemy was trying to kill him. With that thought in mind, he wouldn't be blindly charging while tanking the lightning bolts, but he would be actively trying to maneuver around them by utilizing the movement technique exclusive to the Fourth Dimension Immortal Scripture.

Of course, the movement technique was also split into four dimensions respectively; Lunar Eclipse, Solar Eclipse, Starry Eclipse, and the Void Eclipse.

The first volume represents eclipsing heaven and earth with the phasing of the moon, silent and ephemeral.

The fluctuations of the desolation essence around Leonardo's body shifted subtly, no longer a chaotic lump of energy arrayed in protective layers that stacked on his body, but they followed a profound circulation path that gave the illusion of the brilliance of a waning moon.

Like a silent ray of white light, Leonardo shot into the region of thunderstorms without a second of hesitation.

…

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

A massive metallic claw the size of a house descended through the vast expanse of dark clouds, lightning, and thunder wreathing along its edges. Despite the ridiculous size, this claw's movement was beyond the capabilities of what a normal eye could perceive,

This claw was attached to some hideous dark talons, and below this claw was a pair of gigantic bone broadswords that were charred black from thunder. However, following a strike from the claws, the charred bits fell off to shocking reveal that the bone broadswords were actually fine.

A seven-foot tall man was blasted into a cliffside far in the distance after this clash with the claw, causing the entire ground to shake and the sky to rumble.

A sharp avian cry echoed in the air as a pair of massive black wings could be seen flapping among the clouds before the entire creature was submerged in the darkness.

Pfffft!

The man climbed out through the rubble and spat out some dust, debris, and blood. He propped himself up on his two massive broadswords and roared to the sky in defiance, only to receive an even sharper shriek of disdain and derision from the beast in the clouds.

Not too far away on a high hill facing the direction of the battle, a group of three youths was watching the conflict with interest. There were two girls and one man.

All of them wore primitive clothing that concealed their vital parts such as the crotch area for the men, while the women hid both their crotch and chest with a wrapping of tightly bound cloth.

The women were tall, and the men were even taller.

They had dark skin, deep black eyes, and long silver hair. The woman had their hair smooth and sleek, while the men had their hair rough and unattended, as though the aftermath of an electrical shock.

As for their weapons, all of them held either massive broadswords or heavy sabers. Specifically, the man had two broadswords stabbed into the shape of an intersecting 'X' behind him where he leaned against them. As for the two women, each had a heavy saber swung across their shoulder in a domineering manner, their eyes coldly watching the ongoing battle.

"Tsk, Little John's skin really is thick, he actually survived that strike unscathed," The young man spoke with a rough and hoarse voice, clicking his tongue.

The two women continued watching silently and intently, careful of encountering any mishaps. Thus, they didn't respond to the man.

The man felt awkward about getting ignored, and he sneaked a glance at these two fine women of his tribe. However, he then noticed something in the distance behind them.

Rubbing his eyes, he muttered softly, "Am I seeing things?"

RUMBLE!

The clouds in the distance churned as lightning bolts rained down on the land, startling the man.

The two women seemed to have realized something and so they also turned to look, surprised.

"Who is so idiotic to actually circulate worldly energy in the thunderstorm regions? Wouldn't that attract the wild energies and the thunderstorms all around?" The man was confused.

In the doctrine of their tribe, it is absolutely forbidden to cultivate the energy and spirit in this region of absolute destruction. There are a few hidden rural tribes in the depths of these lands, and they baptize themselves in thunder and allow the various energies to temper their fleshly bodies to extreme levels.

Only then would these warriors be allowed to travel above ground and hunt the beasts that have also grown accustomed to the harsh environment over thousands of years. However, no one with a lick of energy is allowed to traverse the desolate lands because they will draw the attention of chaotic energies and thunderstorms, much like the phenomenon ahead.

"Is it a child from another tribe?" One of the women asked, her brows creasing.

"Am I seeing things or is that person headed in the direction of Little John?" The man rubbed his eyes and began to estimate the distance and direction of the incoming thunderstorm.

This time, the two women didn't ignore him, as they had also noticed this grave situation. Although Little John's body had been baptized and tempered enough to go outside, it wasn't yet at the level of surviving a frontal confrontation with a thunderstorm.

"This is bad! You two go and get Little John away, I'll check what's the matter with that fool!"

One of the women spoke, and without warning, her thighs exploded with fierce strength as the ground caved beneath her feat. Following a sonic explosion, she relied solely on her physical strength to blast through the sound barrier and rush in Leonardo's direction.

Shockingly, this output of power is no less than an actual saint with their worldly energy coursing through their bodies.

"Fuck!" The man cursed, as the thunderbird must have sensed the incoming danger and began to act recklessly, its fighting style going from toying with Little John to actually attempting to kill him and flee.

The thunderbird wasn't a complete fool, and it didn't dare kill this little human because of the presence of those three powerful humans in the distance. However, now its instincts were screaming that an even more frightening presence was approaching this location, and it didn't wish to die here.

Thus, it changed its pattern of combat, almost reaping Little John's little life in that last exchange.

WHOOSH!

A massive bone broadsword cut through the space between the thunderbird and Little John, prompting the thunderbird to retract its extended talons and the dangerous claw that almost tore Little John in two.

As Little John fell from the sky, a tall woman caught him by the arm and continued streaking past, heading in the direction of a high cliff nearby.

The thunderbird took advantage of the three powerful humans getting distracted, flapped its wings, and directly tore through the sound barrier and escaped into the distance.

"My prey!" Little John shouted in frustration, his face quite immature despite his bulky stature.

"Shut up! Go underground now!"

The woman smacked Little John across the back of his head, sending him tumbling down a narrow cave in the cliff. Then, the woman and the man blasted through the sound barrier and charged in the direction of the incoming storm to help divert the person responsible to a different location.

RUMBLE!

Thunder blazed the sky black and blue in the distance, sending a chill down the pair's spines as they anxiously followed their companion who went on ahead.