Performing a mission in the sky required many steps, and King Elbas and Noah explored the entirety of Sepunia's memories before starting planning them.

Sadly, the sky wasn't something that the group could predict. Sepunia's memories confirmed that Heaven and Earth could modify their home freely, so part of her knowledge was useless.

The three experts couldn't only move their focus on different aspects of that mission. They couldn't barge inside the sky and hope that everything went well. They had to do their best to keep their invasion a secret, which had to start from inside the stormy regions since Heaven and Earth were already aware of their intentions.

The dead zone was a good starting point since Heaven and Earth's control was relatively weak there. The experts could set up workshops inside the dark world and prepare items that could keep their presence hidden even after leaving that safe area. Heaven and Earth had to lose track of the group even before they approached the sky to avoid facing powerful defenses.

A universal item wasn't enough when it came to such a difficult mission. Noah, Sepunia, King Elbas, and the dragon radiated different auras, which could cause issues if the cloaking devices didn't suit them perfectly. Still, the beast had an innate advantage now that it had become Heaven and Earth's enemy again. The creature could cover itself in its dark liquid to hide its presence, so its preparations ended there.

The situation was far different for the three experts, but they had enough time to develop a solution carefully. King Elbas developed a special powder, Sepunia fused the black metal with part of her mental waves to give her illusions the same properties, and Noah relied on the dark matter to copy those features.

Of course, that simple project took years of studies and tests. The experts' only advantage came from the black metal itself since it wanted them to learn its properties. Yet, the group had to understand how powerful their methods actually were, so they invested a long time exposing themselves to the whiteness.

The testing phase obviously informed Heaven and Earth about the project, but the experts didn't care. They couldn't evaluate their cloaking methods without exposing themselves to the sky, and they believed that the rulers would have learnt about them anyway. That knowledge wouldn't matter as long as the trio succeeded in the task.

Confirming that they could hide their presence from Heaven and Earth was only the first part of the preparations. The experts had to develop defenses and weapons that used the dark metal's unique properties, but they felt easier to create, at least part of them.

The three experts built disposable devices that didn't use the unique signature of their auras before approaching more specific creations. King Elbas used the dark metal to invent runes and spears that relied on pieces of his existence to express their power. Sepunia used her abilities to make an ethereal organ that could add the material to her world if necessary. Instead, Noah stored part of the substance inside his black hole to mix it with his techniques if the situation required it.

Each defense or weapon forced the group to perform countless tests. Everything had to be perfect before approaching the sky. Noah, Sepunia, and King Elbas even had to predict what Heaven and Earth could throw at them to create something that could save them.

It took a while, but the group eventually felt ready to start the mission. They had enough black metal to continue building protections and weapons for entire millennia. Still, they couldn't invest so much time in the preparations since Noah and King Elbas eventually started to experience the heavy drawbacks caused by their power.

King Elbas' body had grown unstable during those years. The cracks in his existence had continued to expand, and his methods couldn't delay the process any further. He had to complete his world, or his whole being would shatter into a mass of final energy.

Noah had it relatively better, but he wasn't in a good spot either. The Cursed Sword and Night weren't a problem, but the parasite made it hard for him. Its constant absorption wasn't something that his centers of power could withstand on their own, and the stormy regions weren't a suitable energy source. He would have to travel constantly to satisfy the plant, but that was only a temporary solution.

The parasite required so much energy that Noah had to come out of the dark world to feed on the storms to make sure that his level didn't fall. That fuel didn't even improve his centers of power. The plant was hindering his growth, and his condition would only worsen once his other companions stepped in the ninth rank.

Only a proper breakthrough of his centers of power could solve the issue. Noah didn't know how strong he would become after completing his world, but he felt sure that he wouldn't have problems withstanding his many assets. After all, the latter had reached such high realms due to his insane standards.

Once the preparations ended, the group activated their cloaking devices and rushed out of the dark world. Noah wore his fiendish armor, King Elbas had dark runes shining on his skin, a dark halo covered Sepunia, and a dense layer of the dark liquid enveloped the dragon as they flew across the storms.

The group flew for many years to make sure that Heaven and Earth couldn't predict their starting point. They didn't speak nor release energy that could reveal their current position as they avoided every magical beast they met to reach a random area.

The experts stopped after they felt that they had put enough distance from the dead zone. They exchanged a meaningful glance and reaffirmed their resolve before starting their ascension. The sky grew brighter in their eyes as they approached its white surface, but they didn't dare to waste time studying it.

King Elbas stepped forward once the group reached the sky's edges. A dark rune appeared on his palm as he stretched his arm toward the white layer. Cracks slowly opened on that material until a proper hole took form and allowed the experts to enter that bright location.

Teleports and other formations would only reveal their starting point. King Elbas could come up with something that used the dark metal, but the whiteness would eventually deplete it and reveal his formations. The group had long since accepted that they couldn't prepare escape routes, so they didn't hesitate to enter the sky and begin their mission.

Initially, the group saw nothing more than whiteness. King Elbas and Noah couldn't help but find similarities with their mission into the void when they used one of the natural holes in the sky. Yet, something soon changed in their vision.

The hole eventually opened into a large area that resembled the separate dimension where the group had found the improved cultivators. Noah and the others found themselves in an immense tunnel that enveloped them in a blinding white light. The pressure on their minds there was tremendous, but the dark metal in their techniques protected them.

It was clear that the sky wasn't a place for rank 8 existences. Noah and King Elbas could sense how their centers of power struggled to exist there even when the dark metal protected them. Still, they soon noticed how Sepunia and the dragon were in a similar situation. Heaven and Earth's home naturally suppressed those that didn't belong to their system.

The group had to reevaluate their initial predictions about the consumption of dark metal, but that wasn't enough to make them abandon their mission. They silently adjusted their calculations and refilled their cloaking devices before proceeding in a random direction.

The tunnel felt alive but also empty. Noah couldn't sense anything even when he relied on his superior awareness, but the environment eventually changed again.

The tunnel opened into another immense area that made the group stop in their tracks. Countless tall buildings unfolded in their eyes, and multiple crackling avatars stood above them.. The city had an army of rank 9 creatures, and some of them even touched the upper tier.

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