The Exalt [Cultivation Fantasy]

Oscar gazed around the vicinity. There were several overgrown vines wrapped around ruins of buildings and structures from time immemorial. But the most prominent was the large gate that stood before him, an incredible wooden structure laid in an arc format with a blue swirl.

If anyone wished, they could exit at any time, but doing so before finishing the task would mark them in disgrace and live on in shame. Around the area, Oscar only saw a vast forest that reminded him of the Spiraling Willow Forest but without the vast darkness that permeated each inch of its area, replaced by a soothing verdant light.

Tranquil. The only word Oscar had for this place was the feeling of tranquility that permeated the air, and even the other students began to relax their tense faces once entering this place.

He gazed around and saw Celestina waiting at the front, observing their surroundings and waiting for everyone to come through. After all the Pavilion's efforts, they reached around 500 Elite Exalt students just in time for Ashen Grove. However, Oscar felt even 500 Elite Exalts might not be enough for the daunting goal ahead.

Oscar unfurled the note given to him by Celestina during their handshake to find out what she wanted from him.

'Oscar, I'm sorry for putting this on you. But with the power of Reis and advanced Prinstyct, you are one of the best Lower Elite Exalts in our forces. I want you to help out our other Lower Elite Exalts. Please be careful and take care of yourself. I know you will be a great asset when the time comes.'

Oscar stared at the words on the note, written in Celestina's handwriting. He sighed at the large task given to him, but it was what Celestina wanted.

Frederick and the others had already advanced to the Middle Elite Exalt, so he was left alone as they had to go into the middle regions of Ashen Grove. Oscar groaned at his bad fortune, but someone came to him.

"Oscar, what are you planning to do?" Austin came up to him. He was still in the Lower Elite Exalt realm due to his blank period in prison and time spent in military training. "Let me accompany you."

"Don't worry about me." Austin rubbed his eyepatch. "I'm ready for anything."

Once the last of the students stepped through the portal into Ashen Grove. Oscar glanced at Celestina, who stood atop a large boulder to address everyone.

"The gates cannot be destroyed, so there is no fear of anyone cutting off our retreat, but it will be hard if others claim the area around our gate. The Lower Elite Exalts shall remain here and gather as many resources as possible. The others will push onward with me." Celestina stared ahead, but not before glancing at Oscar, who nodded. "Ashen Grove remains open for one month, and the temple will open itself in the last week. Most of us must converge on our base in the inner region for the last week; some will remain behind to defend."

"Set out!" Charles shouted.

Gilbert rushed ahead with an entourage of other Greater Elite Exalts; he was their forward man, the one who would go headfirst to the inner region while Celestina and Charles would make sure to secure a pathway. Celestina and Charles rushed out after him with the rest of the Greater Elite Exalts and Middle Elite Exalts. Oscar caught a glimpse of his friends within the mass, hoping for their wellbeing.

"We should set out as well." Austin took out his dagger, making sure it was sharp by gently caressing his finger on its edge.

Oscar took out his bulwark and latched it on his back. He glanced around at the other Lower Elite Exalts, who had divided themselves into groups. Some groups wandered the close vicinity of the gate, laying down a large formation to help protect it, securing a base.

"Move to the right." Oscar rushed into the verdant lush forests of Ashen Grove with Austin behind him. After a short sprint, Oscar came upon a set of ruins wrapped in overgrown vines, but their stone structures could still be seen. This structure was not on the map, but Margaret Ward mentioned how the places changed each time, except for the temple in the center.

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Oscar turned to Austin with a slight tilt toward the ruins, gesturing for his opinion. Austin's hand gripped his dagger in response, and he disappeared, followed by a groan behind Oscar. Whipping his head around, Oscar saw Austin had stabbed his dagger into the head of a strange creature.

The creature looked like a person made up of roots, vines, and branches. Their faces looked like wooden carvings of elderly faces. Oscar did not hesitate and followed up with Austin, entering the Adamasreis state, and slammed the creature with a 'Shattering Wave' flowing from his Reis-forged bulwark.

The branches and roots that made up the strange creature's body snapped and tore apart into shreds. The creature let out a painful low groan, but Austin sliced in rapid succession, cutting the creature apart.

Oscar pulled a green core from the mess and placed it in his space pocket. Staring down, Oscar witnessed the dead creature visibly rotting like a fast forward of a tree dying in fall. The lush greenness of its body became brown, and the leaves that covered it fell.

"Grovekeepers," Oscar recalled the names of these strange wooden men. These creatures were Exalt Beasts but resembled the features of humans and inhabited Ashen Grove as their home. In the records that Oscar read, people have tried to communicate with the Grovekeepers but were only met with savage retaliation like any beast. "This one was not a strong Lower Elite Exalt. Strange, where is its group? They fight in groups."

"They're here." Austin brandished his dagger again with a cold face, summoning his anima.

Oscar readied with his bulwark to defend against any foe. His eyes darted from side to side, seeing a group of ten Grovekeepers, their wooden legs creaking as they moved around. Oscar activated his Prinstyct and pierced through their eidolons, seeing a movement of Ein before it happened.

At the same time, Oscar and Austin jumped up as roots suddenly sprouted from the ground and wrapped around, forming a pod. If they had been a step slower, the pods would have trapped them like a chick within an egg, and their fates uncertain. Oscar chuckled with a warrior's smile and summoned his deer anima.

'Silver Star'

His deer anima charged ahead and impaled a Grovekeeper with its sharp metallic antlers. Oscar's 'Silver Star' burst across the air with the force of Reis and the empowerment of Ein, exploding another Grovekeeper's head. However, Oscar did not let up and shot several more 'Silver Stars' into the headless Grovekeeper, tearing off its limbs.

The Grovekeepers had a strange ability to regenerate even after losing their head. The only way to completely kill them was to split their bodies into tiny parts, incinerate them, or remove their core. Oscar killed one by tearing it apart with several shots of 'Silver Star', and his deer anima swung its antlers around to break apart its foe.

'Adamasreis'

'Shattering Wave'

'Silver Lance'

Oscar rushed in before another set of entangling roots attempted to capture him. He had enough experience of annoying roots from his battles with Eleanor Shaw. His lance stabbed into another Grovekeeper and the 'Shattering Wave' rendered it into a pile of wooden scraps.

The battle continued for several minutes until the last Grovekeeper finally fell before Oscar and Austin's coordinated attack. Oscar wiped the sweat from his brow and collected the cores into his space pocket.

"You're pretty strong," Austin said. His eyes contained a bit of shock from seeing how powerful Oscar was; the way the Grovekeepers broke apart was still fresh in his mind.

"These Grovekeepers didn't have too much power. Their regeneration, numbers, and roots are what they depend on." Oscar sat down to meditate and recover his Ein.

Austin shook his head. In his opinion, Oscar was being too modest. They were both at the peak of the Lower Elite Exalt, but he knew Oscar outmatched him.

After a brief period of meditation, Oscar and Austin went toward the ruins they spotted, taking slow steps while constantly observing their surroundings. From his initial observations, Oscar noted the ruins to be the size of a small town, but most of the buildings were collapsed and overtaken by the forest. Some buildings even hung down from the trees.

One by one, Oscar and Austin checked each wreckage, cutting apart trees and clearing away the plants, but found nothing of worth.

"Oscar." Austin's voice lowered.

"I know." Oscar sighed.

They instantly kicked off the ground and attacked a group of Grovekeepers lying in wait. Their sudden counter-ambush caught the wooden men off-guard, and they made short work of them. Oscar picked up the cores and noticed words engraved in a torn piece of a wall.

"Austin, look over here." Oscar traced his fingers across the grooves and lines resembling words. "It's too muddled. Can you make it out?"

Austin stepped forward and squinted to see harder, but he shook his head and took out his dagger. His dagger carefully scraped against the torn stone wall, and a corrosive acid began to melt down the dirt, vines, and others. However, he held back on its potency to avoid melting the stone itself.

Soon, the words became clearer, but only one became eligible. Oscar's eyes gleamed at the now-clear word.

"Vault."

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