After that, Astrea gently lifted Argus, cradling his limp body in her arms. She quickly created a space hole, intent on getting them away from the site of the tribulation. The intensity of the event could attract unwanted attention, and staying in that place would only lead to trouble.
Without hesitation, Astrea poured her energy into their escape, opening the portal. Her destination was clear. She headed straight for the secluded waterfall cave, a place where they could hide and recover safely.
Not long after, several Awakeners arrived at the scene. Their eyes widened in shock at the destruction left by the tribulation. The once lush, green patch of grass was now completely scorched, replaced by charred earth and deep craters. The ground itself was cracked and blackened, as if the very life had been drained from it. Jagged fissures spread across the landscape, while the air still crackled faintly with the residual energy of the heavenly lightning. Trees nearby were either uprooted or reduced to ash, leaving the area barren and desolate, like a scar on the land.
"What happened here?"
Asked one of the young Awakeners, his voice filled with curiosity.
"Did you really not know?"
"Yeah, I really don't."
One of the Awakeners shook his head, disbelief clear on his face.
"Someone or something experienced a tribulation here, and this was the result."
Answered a middle-aged Awakener, his voice steady with experience.
"Then… A treasure was born here?!"
The young man's eyes lit up with excitement.
The middle-aged man shook his head.
"We don't know until we find traces.
However, since the area is small, it's likely some kind of spiritual plant or kind monster undergoing tribulation."
The first batch of Awakeners who arrived immediately began searching the area. They scoured the ground, trying to find any clues or hints about what had caused the tribulation. Many were certain that this must have been due to a treasure being born.
More and more Awakeners arrived as word spread. They too joined in the search, hoping to uncover something valuable. However, despite their efforts, nothing concrete was found. Even the place where Argus had stood gave no clues. The ground there had formed a deep crater, its center utterly scorched, leaving no trace of the event.
Theories swirled through the gathered crowd. Some believed a rare beast had ascended to a higher form, while others insisted a hidden treasure must have triggered the tribulation.
But as time passed, frustration grew. With nothing left to go on, the Awakeners' hopes of finding something of value slowly faded.
One by one, the Awakeners left the area, giving up hope of finding any treasure. Only an unnoticed old man stayed behind, holding a rectangular box. He was the last to arrive, yet no one saw him, even with so many people around.
The old man looked at the center of the crater for a while. Then, he turned his gaze in another direction—the place where Argus was resting, hidden.
At the same time, Astrea was worried, watching over her unconscious Master. She didn't feel the old man's eyes on their hidden spot.
A small smile formed on the old man's face as he looked away. He turned around and disappeared without a sound.
Meanwhile, Astrea remained in distress, unable to take her eyes off her master. Argus's body was in a far worse state than after the second wave of the tribulation. His charred skin had blackened completely, with cracks spreading across it, revealing scorched muscle underneath. His internal organs, though still functioning, were severely damaged, and his bones felt brittle from the repeated lightning strikes.
Argus's body convulsed from time to time, releasing small arcs of heavenly lightning that crackled on his skin. The lingering lightning within him continued to wreak havoc, preventing his regeneration from working properly. Until it was fully expelled, his body would slowly heal.
Though Argus was not in immediate danger of dying, his condition was still serious. His body was badly injured, worse than after the second wave of Heavenly Lightning. The last wave had stopped his healing, and his body kept convulsing as lightning continued to be released from within.
Astrea also noticed that Argus's stats did not increase after the tribulation. Normally, reaching the Core Forging Realm involves forming and upgrading a core. Each upgrade should increase an Awakener's stats and power.
But Argus's case was different. Even though his core was upgraded, Astrea saw that his stats and power did not increase at all. Despite surviving the tribulation, there was no change. Astrea was worried.
"What's missing?"
Unlike other Awakeners, Argus's breakthrough seemed incomplete. His cores survived the tribulation, but he showed no sign of increased power. Normally, after such a trial, a Core Forging Awakener would become much stronger, but Argus remained the same.
Astrea felt a heavy sense of uncertainty.
"Is there another step? Something only Master needs to do?"
She wondered, her mind racing with questions. Astrea thought for a while but couldn't find an answer. She was brought back to reality by footsteps coming from the cave. She turned and saw Ying Zhu, holding Sylvan in his hands.
"You're back. Did you find anyone nearby?"
Astrea asked. She had sent Ying Zhu and Sylvan to patrol outside and check for any other Awakeners.
"We didn't find anyone nearby, not even any monsters."
Ying Zhu replied. He looked at Argus, who was unconscious, and knelt beside him.
"Is Master alright?"
Astrea nodded.
"He's out of immediate danger. The heavenly lightning remains in his body, which has slowed his regeneration, but it shouldn't be a major problem."
She gazed at Argus and gently touched his scorched face.
"His body is trying to expel the heavenly lightning. Master's regeneration skill will gradually return to its peak."
Ying Zhu was relieved to hear this.
Sylvan, who was being held by Ying Zhu, asked to be placed on the ground. Ying Zhu set Sylvan down next to Argus.
Sylvan began to grow and reshape himself into a bed-like form beside Argus. Astrea retrieved a thick, soft blanket. She then spread it over the bed Sylvan had made and then carefully placed Argus on it.
Astrea let out a deep sigh, her thoughts heavy. "To think Master would face a Heavenly Tribulation when simply breaking through the first realm... It was unexpected."
She felt disappointed, not because Argus had triggered the tribulation, but because she couldn't help him. Anyone caught within the range of someone else's tribulation would be seen by the heavens as a helper, and they too would face their own trial, based on their current realm. No one could interfere, not even her, no matter how much she wanted to.
Sighing again, she could only wait for Argus to recover. She glanced at him lying still, his breathing steady but his body still showing signs of the ordeal.
"At least he's out of immediate danger... Ying Zhu"
She called out, breaking the silence.
"Don't go near the place where the tribulation happened. There might be others interested in that area. If you want to hunt, go in the opposite direction."
She knew Argus needed time to recover, and just Sylvan tending to him would be enough. Having Ying Zhu around might be too much, especially since he could use the time to grow stronger.
Ying Zhu nodded in understanding. He glanced at his unconscious Master, his gaze full of determination, before heading out to hunt.
'I need to reach the peak level of my realm before Master wakes up. He'll be pleased to see my progress,' Ying Zhu thought as he vanished into the forest, not forgetting Astrea's warning.
Astrea watched him leave and then turned her attention back to their surroundings. "I should patrol around," she muttered to herself. The chances of someone finding their hidden location had increased after the tribulation. Even if the risk was small, she couldn't afford to be careless, not while Argus was still in a fragile state.
A day passed, and Argus still hadn't woken up. However, his body appeared to be fully healed, as if back to its peak condition.
The second day...
The third...
During these past few days, Ying Zhu had also stopped returning to the cave and focused on hunting nonstop. Astrea grew worried, fearing he might encounter another dangerous beast like the mother bear, so she kept an eye on him at intervals.
Astrea noticed that Ying Zhu would occasionally fight F-rank beasts, but only those with Blue-Red cores.
On the evening of the fourth day, Ying Zhu happily returned from his hunt, telling his sister that he had reached the max level of his current realm.
Seeing his master still in a coma, Ying Zhu's excitement quickly faded, replaced with a somber mood.
There were only four days left until enrollment, and Argus remained unconscious. Astrea was no longer concerned about his health but worried if he would wake up in time for the enrollment or miss it entirely.
***
Darkness, that is the first thing Argus saw when he opened his eyes.
"Hmm? Am I dead already? No! That's impossible! Then where is this?"
Argus was slightly shocked but calmed down immediately. He thought it was no use to panic. He observed his body and noticed that he didn't have a single injury. He also noticed that his body was slightly transparent.
"Am I in a dream-like state or something? Like in those books I read? But it's so dark in here."
Argus looked around, but he could only see darkness. He tried walking around to find a source of light.
An hour passed, but nothing changed. He still saw only darkness.
Two hours...
Four hours...
Half a day passed and still nothing. Argus continued to walk in a straight line, but still nothing.