by Yuri Ajin
The Heavenly Throne
The Path through the Heavens
Yuri Ajin
Lit Orange
Copyright © 2020 Yuri Ajin
All rights reserved
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.
Introduced by Lit Orange
Translated by Nevena Markovich
Edited by Sanja Gajin
Edited by Marina Zikic
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
PROLOGUE
Chapter 1
CLOUD TRIAL — TEST OF WILL
Chapter 2
CLOUD TRIAL — TEST OF TALENT
Chapter 3
CLOUD TRIAL — TREASURE HUNT
Chapter 4
CLOUD TRIAL — TREASURE HUNT 2
Chapter 5
CLOUD TRIAL — AIVE HIDDEN VALLEY
Chapter 6
THE END OF THE CLOUD TRIAL
INTERLUDE
THE PORTAL, PRINCESS, AND BLACK HEART
Chapter 7
THE CLOUD ABODE
Chapter 8
THE GROUND FLOOR
Chapter 9
ALCHEMY LESSONS
Chapter 10
THE ALCHEMY SHOP
Chapter 11
THE ALCHEMY SHOP 2
Chapter 12
THE ALCHEMY SHOP 3
Chapter 13
KNOW YOUR WEAKNESSES
Chapter 14
THE GREAT PACK
Chapter 15
ABODE’S FIRST LESSON
Chapter 16
ON MY WAY TO CONQUER THE CLOUD ABODE
Chapter 17
MEETING AT THE GATES
Chapter 18
PREPARING FOR A DUEL
Chapter 19
THE WEAKEST IN THE CLOUD TEN
Chapter 20
THE SPECTACLE OF ICE AND SAND
Chapter 21
SEARCH FOR ENLIGHTENMENT
Chapter 22
SIX MONTHS IN THE ABODE
Chapter 23
CONTINUING THE EXPERIMENTS
Chapter 24
A BUSY DAY
Chapter 25
FINAL PREPARATIONS
Chapter 26
THE ELUSIVE ONE
Chapter 27
NO CHOICE
Chapter 28
A DEAL WITH THE DEVIL
Chapter 29
THE STRONGEST ONE OUTSIDE THE ABODE
Chapter 30
A FIGHT IN THE SANDS
Chapter 31
A FIGHT IN THE SANDS 2
Chapter 32
A FIGHT IN THE SANDS 3
Chapter 33
INSIDE THE DUNGEON
Chapter 34
A TRUE MASTER
Chapter 35
ESCAPE FROM THE DUNGEON
Chapter 36
THE BEGINNING OF THE GAMES
Chapter 37
DUELS OF THE STRONGEST
Chapter 38
THE THIRD
Chapter 39
REVENGE
Chapter 40
REVENGE 2
EPILOGUE
Thank you for reading!
The Heavenly Throne Book 6
The Path through the Heavens
The light of Heaven will guide you to a place of great power. Listen to the flow of energy in your body and the echo of Forces in your soul, and they will lead you even in darkness.
The closer one gets to Heaven, the cruel and harsher the worlds and their inhabitants become. But Kai was never the type that gives up easily.
He broke free from his shackles, healed all his wounds, and traveled far from the city of slaves in which fate had tossed him as if to test his skill and will.
After a successful and very cunning scheme, Kai and his team reached the Cloud Abode. There, they’ll have to either prove their worth as cultivators or perish.
But their troubles won’t end there.
The Cloud Abode is no place for those weak in spirit or strength. Power and skill are everything to those who got this far and they won’t tolerate cowardice or weakness.
In this merciless world, in this kingdom of warriors, all that matters is your strength and level of cultivation!
PROLOGUE
Perfect facial features. Flawless white skin. Long emerald hair. Luxurious black dress, tightly wrapped around the perfect curves. And mesmerizing lilac eyes...
The stunning elf was walking along the spacious, empty corridor. As gorgeous as a rose and as pure as a white lotus, she always stood out. It didn’t matter who or what was around her, she was in the center of everyone’s attention.
However, today, Mia Eswix, the heiress of one of the most powerful families of the Holy Kingdom of Tael, had gained the right to walk along this corridor not because of her divine beauty. No. There was only one way to earn such an honor — by proving your strength and talent.
And Mia did. She was born an aristocrat, so she had been preparing to become a cultivator since early childhood. The rarest Spirit Fruits, the best alchemy, the highest quality artifacts and arrays, she had it all. That was why, as soon as the girl turned ten and her connection with energy activated, her development progressed in leaps and bounds.
By the age of twelve, she had completely hardened her body and gained significant experience in cultivation, learning from the best masters of the Eswix clan. At the age of fourteen, she reached the peak of the Mind Endurance Stage, and at fifteen — the Opening of Acupuncture Points level.
At nineteen, Mia finally became a true master — an Exorcist. From that moment on, a new chapter in her life began.
She got into the Cloud Abode.
For nineteen years, she felt like a goddess. Servants, peers, and even masters bowed to her, recognizing her unprecedented talent. No one dared to doubt her uniqueness.
Being accepted into the legendary Cloud Abode didn’t change much. There was a mob of adoring fans around her there, too. People knew who she was. However, she never paid attention to them. Her focus was only on climbing further up on the path of cultivation. And there...
There were real monsters — true geniuses among the cultivators. The Cloud Abode was where she tasted defeat for the first time. And she didn’t like it. It tasted like weakness.
Although she hated it so much, she was able to recover from the shock pretty quickly. It was then that her second rise began. Mia didn’t care about all the privileges she got upon entering the Abode. She wanted only one thing — to reach new heights. So, she kept taking risks.
Time passed and Mia gained more and more combat experience in duels with the greatest in her generation. Four years later, she reached her first serious milestone — she became one of the hundred strongest students of the Cloud Abode, and thus set a new record.
On the List of Ten Thousand, her name turned gold.
Mia’s accomplishment seemed unimaginable. Few people had dared to dream of achieving something like this in such a short time. Usually, even the most talented cultivators needed about ten years, and the majority didn’t even have a chance of getting in the Top Hundred at all.
But after that incredible achievement, Mia’s progress practically stopped
. For three whole years, her development stood still, not moving beyond the ninety-third place.
The members of the Top Hundred were too tough for the young cultivator. Her potential opponents were older and more powerful. They had far more experience in fighting other protégés, and most importantly, all of them were peak-level Exorcists.
However, three years later, everything changed. Mia finally became a mid-level Exorcist and successfully completed the deep enlightenment that came to her during the breakthrough. The transition to a new stage helped her improve her understanding of the Forces. She also created her own special technique, which became the reason for her lightning-fast rise in the ranking.
As a result, after the breakthrough, it took her only six months to rise from the ninety-third place to the ninth, and then, a year later, to the third, where she currently was.
That was why Mia Eswix was now proudly walking down the corridor leading to a hall where the meetings of the strongest members of the Cloud Abode were held. They were called the Cloud Ten and they had a tremendous influence over all other students.
Reaching the huge gate, Mia saw her little brother — an elf with short dark green hair and the same lilac eyes as hers. Not only was Tassarion Eswix really handsome, he was an Exorcist too, a genius alchemist, and the fifth on the List of Top Hundred.
“I knew you’d choose this corridor.” He winked at Mia.
“Let’s go.” She nodded in response and then approached the gate.
Putting her hand on the huge doors, she poured energy into them. Tassarion did the same, and both were enveloped in a flash of light.
They were teleported into a small dark tunnel, a stone-wall cul-de-sac, where the second transfer array was embedded. And, in front of it, just a few feet away, there were stairs leading directly to the assembly hall, from where the voices of the other members were already coming.
Having walked up, Mia found herself in a gloomy high-ceiling room, decorated with numerous columns that magically illuminated the whole space. In the center of the room was a large round obsidian table, around which ten chairs were levitating. Five of them were already occupied.
Tassarion quickly sat down in one of them while his older sister walked slowly toward hers, watching those present.
Her gaze first fell on Guts, nicknamed the Loner. He was a sylph of average height, belonging to the family of Winds. His connection with this element made his eyes (including the whites) and his hair bright blue.
Guts was an end-level Exorcist. He was ranked sixth in the Cloud’s Ten and had a rather capricious personality, which anyone could immediately notice. Brazenly putting his feet on the table, he carefully wiped his pipe, not paying attention to anyone. He was nicknamed the Loner purely because of his character, as he still had his own faction.
Guts was also famous for his unprecedented stubbornness, since, even after having lost to Lightus Sixt, the highest-ranking student, eleven times in a row, he still refused to obey him. Fortunately, there was a solution for every problem, and this one’s was money. Guts gladly accepted coins, for which he’d complete any difficult task.
Mia’s gaze moved to a tall, broad-shouldered dorgan with prominent tiger-like features. Yukie of the Voracious Raptors clan occupied seventh place in the rankings and her signature feature was an explosive and aggressive personality.
In the seat next to her was Mikasa. She was also a dorgan. Small horns, unusual white freckles, and strange ears gave away that she was a member of the Wise Forest clan — the descendants of the divine doe.
She was the eighth, which was why she always teased Yukie, who wasn’t the type that tolerated anyone’s bullshit. It was their voices that Mia and her brother heard when they were walking up to the hall.
The ninth place was occupied by a young dwarf named Kenji who was also an end-level Exorcist. He was considered the best artifact maker among the current generation of cultivators, thanks to which he was able to rise so high in the ranking.
Almost reaching her seat, Mia turned her gaze to her brother, or rather, the figure behind his chair. There stood a tall, dark-haired half-elf, half-dorgan. His name was Ranmaru, and he was Tassarion’s personal slave. He was unlucky enough to lose his freedom to Mia’s brother. Despite his current status, he was incredibly talented as he managed to reach tenth place in the rankings.
Finally sitting in her chair, Mai turned her head to the right. Looking at the empty space, she slightly raised her gaze.
“Will the meeting start soon?” she asked Raiden who was standing next to Lightus’ chair.
The end-level Exorcist, who occupied the fourth place, slowly turned to her.
“Master should be here any minute,” he replied, observing her with his pale, almost empty gaze. Due to his bluish skin and lanky build someone might’ve taken him for a sick elf, but the System and its message above Raiden’s head made it clear that he was an undead. Perhaps the only one in the Cloud Abode.
And since he was Lightus’ personal bodyguard, he believed that he had every right to stand next to his seat.
Nodding in response, Mia leaned back in her chair and waited. It was Lightus who invited them here today, so the meeting couldn’t begin without him.
In a minute, everyone in the room instantly felt the spatial vibrations that formed after the array was activated. However, before anyone had time to notice, the seat of the strongest student was already occupied. Once again, none of the Ten could even see or feel when he appeared in the hall.
Lightus Sixt was here.
The fair-haired elf looked at everyone present.
“Four, Ten, sit down,” he said.
“Yes, Lord Lightus,” Raiden replied obediently.
“Go on,” Tassarion said, allowing his slave to sit down.
“Well, since everything’s in order, we can begin.”
Everyone present recognized Lightus’ monstrous strength. He was only twenty-six years old, and an initial-level Exorcist, but this didn’t stop him from defeating every member of the Cloud Ten and taking first place in the rankings in less than six months. Almost seventeen times faster than Mia.
Fifteen minutes later, the discussion of the usual topics ended, and Lightus finally moved on to a new one.
“The Cloud Trial has begun. According to the available information, at least two hundred and thirteen cultivators will be eligible to enter the Abode, if we only count the aristocracy. Which means that the number of useless people that we’ll have to get rid of will be much higher this year,” he said calmly. “Your task is as follows: divide them among yourselves and accept them into your factions. There should be no more than ten cultivators per faction. Put everyone else on level zero. We don’t need them here.”
“Isn’t that too cruel? Didn’t we accept all newcomers before?” Guts asked, relaxed, his feet still on the table. Usually, the insolent sylph didn’t even take part in the discussions and simply ignored everyone around him, which was why the members of the Cloud Ten, who had gotten accustomed to his behavior, were even a little surprised when he suddenly spoke.
“Are you dumb, or what?” Tassarion looked condescendingly at Guts. “We’ve just discussed the current problems of the Abode. Where were you?”
“Shut your mouth.” Guts grimaced, glancing at him. “Your squeaky voice was the reason I wasn’t listening.”
Yukie smiled. Mia frowned slightly. And Tassarion didn’t so much as blink. Although Guts’ words didn’t get to him, he wasn’t going to be silent. He was about to answer when a monstrous power fell on their shoulders.
“Let me explain one more time, Guts,” Lightus said with a radiant but distant smile. He was the source of the pressure. “Once every few centuries, overpopulation occurs in the Cloud Abode. In the distant past, this wasn’t a problem since frequent wars between races reduced the number of cultivators coming here. However, now we live in peaceful times, and the rules of the Cloud Trial haven’t changed. Thus, every year, at least one hundred new disciples enter
the Abode. But, the Abode’s resources aren’t infinite. I’m not talking just about alchemy but also about access to the ancient scrolls and training zones. Students sign up for training sessions months in advance. This is why we need... a cleansing. The first step is to get rid of the mediocre newbies. After that, we’ll have to go through the ranks of our own factions and cut the numbers there. Lastly, we’ll hold a ‘tournament’ that’ll further reduce the number of students. That will be a good enough solution while we’re in charge... The next generation will have to figure it out on their own. Do you understand now?” he asked and removed the pressure.
“Yes, Lightus!” Guts smiled, putting his hands behind his head.
“Are there any more questions?”
“Lord Lightus, what are we gonna do with Two?” Yukie asked, squinting at the only empty chair. “Will we continue to tolerate his behavior? He ignores our meetings. Ignores us, and most importantly — you! He’s breaking the Abode’s rules! I know that you’ve told us not to bother that bastard, but how long can this go on? No one even saw his fights and how he came to be number two! I bet he cheated. So please...” Yukie rose sharply. “Let me challenge him! This brat has no right to be one of us!”
“I think she’s right!” Mikasa instantly added. It was, perhaps, the first time that she agreed with Yukie about something.
Mia looked at the two dorgans, noting their adoring gazes directed at Lightus. In the past, he had defeated both girls. Mikasa twice and the stubborn Yukie eight times. He obliterated them. Though this would break many, these two reacted differently — they fell in love with him.
And now they literally wriggled looking at him. Even though he was two stages below them, Lightus was still able to defeat them, after which their bestial blood took over. They were drawn to him, wanting to be with him, and even unite their bloodlines.
Pathetic, Mia chuckled to herself. Those bitches don’t even have the right to look at Lightus. After all, he’s mine and mine alone.
“My order still stands. Forget him. He’s to be ignored as long as he doesn’t get in our way. That’s my final decision”
