Asher left the room and walked toward the main hall of the castle.
The guards at the door bowed slightly when they saw Asher, offering little hindrance. Almost everyone in the castle knew he was one of the Land of Shadows Queen's most beloved disciples. Therefore, Asher entered the main hall unimpeded.
The Land of Shadows was surrounded by natural barriers on all sides, enclosed by seven castles, each protected by seven sturdy walls. Nine wooden fences circled the castles, with a head impaled on every wooden stake of each fence. These heads were called "watching stones."
Each watching stone was carved with three human faces. Scáthach would occasionally stand before the castle and gaze at these heads. Through them, she could foresee certain events yet to come.
Ancient large birds of prey occasionally spread their wings and soared above the castle, their giant shadows sweeping across the sky and the grounds below.
Asher had long since grown accustomed to these giant shadows. He proceeded straight into the hall.
Cú Chulainn sat in a chair, legs crossed, holding a spear in his arms, while Scáthach sat on the throne at the very center. The two seemed to be deep in conversation.
"Yo, finally woke up, brat?" Cú Chulainn quickly noticed Asher entering the hall and raised his hand in greeting.
"Good evening, brother Cú Chulainn," Asher replied politely. "Why do you have time to come here today?"
About three years ago, a man named Cú Chulainn came to the Land of Shadows. He studied skills here and left shortly afterward. Among the disciples of the same period, Cú Chulainn was definitely the strongest.
"What? After completing my training, I can't come back to see my old Shishou?"
Upon hearing the words "old Shishou," a spear was fiercely thrown from the throne, cutting through the air toward Cú Chulainn.
"Watch out behind you!" Asher shouted quickly.
But Cú Chulainn stood motionless, only raising a hand to steadily catch the spear, casually throwing it back to Scáthach.
"Brat, didn't I tell you not to worry about my safety?" Cú Chulainn reached out and ruffled Asher's hair into a bird's nest, grinning. "How have you endured Shishou's temper for five years?"
"I think it's alright…" Asher replied softly.
Unlike Cú Chulainn, he still had to live in the Land of Shadows in the future. If he made Shishou "remember" him now, his days ahead wouldn't be easy.
Cú Chulainn put an arm around Asher's shoulder, a malicious smile on his face. "Tell me the truth, I'll guarantee your safety."
Asher rolled his eyes, thinking: Have you forgotten so quickly how you were ravaged by Shishou's Rune magic and superb martial arts a year ago, barely able to stand?
Guarantee safety? If I say it, we'll probably be lying on the ground together tonight.
Thinking this in his heart, Asher wasn't too nervous.
Usually, although Scáthach trained him strictly, she wouldn't use such devilish methods. It was Cú Chulainn, due to his unruly nature, who often made Scáthach get serious and rub him on the ground.
"Although the training is quite strict, Shishou is usually very good to me," Asher replied.
"Tch, coward, are you that afraid of Shishou?" Cú Chulainn released Asher as if bored, sighing with his hands behind his head. "How boring."
Asher glanced at the tall, mighty man beside him and asked, "By the way, why did you specifically come to the Land of Shadows today?"
"Ah, just came to find this woman for the final trial to prove my strength," Cú Chulainn said. "That old geezer insisted I couldn't be considered truly trained because I still couldn't defeat her."
"Old geezer... are you talking about King Fergus?" Asher pondered for a moment and looked up.
"Who else could it be besides that old man?" Cú Chulainn "tched" unhappily. "Clearly, I could have just left with Emer. Why did I have to do this?"
Emer was Cú Chulainn's lover. He had come to the Land of Shadows to become a disciple a few years ago at the request of Emer's father, King Fergus. Only by passing the trial could he marry Emer.
"Because you wanted to gain the other party's approval, right?" Asher said with a smile.
"Well, that's about the meaning," Cú Chulainn said, turning to look at Scáthach on the throne. "Come on, let's have another fight. The current me is much stronger than before!"
"Even after two years, this violent temper hasn't subsided much," Scáthach said from her high throne. "You can have a match with your little junior brother first."
"Him?" Cú Chulainn glanced at Asher and sighed. "Wouldn't it be bad if I accidentally hurt this little brat?"
"Spears and swords are inherently ruthless. Even if he gets hurt, there's nothing to say. It only means his strength is insufficient," Scáthach replied indifferently.
"Heh," Cú Chulainn let out a mocking laugh.
"When I hurt this little brat back then, the force you used against me was much heavier than usual, biased Shishou."
In the past, whenever he fought Asher and thoroughly defeated him, he would inevitably be thoroughly defeated by Scáthach afterward. Without a doubt, this woman was simply protective of her own. Although he didn't understand why she was so fond of Asher in particular, this point was definitely true.
Scáthach raised an eyebrow. "I won't be biased because of others. On the contrary, you… your so-called coming to me for a trial is just a side matter, isn't it?"
"Then you're wrong. I just came for the trial, and by the way, to give this thing to this little brat," Cú Chulainn gave a dashing smile, pulling something that looked very much like a skull from who knows where.
"Here." As he spoke, he casually threw the skull in his hand toward Asher.
"This is...?" Asher quickly caught it. When he saw what was in his hand, he almost dropped it but barely managed to steady himself.
"Magic cauldron," Scáthach said with a faint smile. "It should have been stolen from the depths of the Trial Forest. If you put water into the cauldron, some mysterious magic power will harmonize the water inside. Drinking it can gradually regulate your body."
"Speaking of bias, you're much more biased than I am, Cú Chulainn," Scáthach said, looking at the still casual Cú Chulainn.
"Heh, just picked it up on the road and gave it to him as a gift. Anyway, I don't need this kind of thing," Cú Chulainn waved his hand nonchalantly. "Come on, when will you let me have the final trial?"
Scáthach pondered for a moment. "Come to the main hall to find me at noon tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?" Cú Chulainn thought for a moment and nodded lightly. "That's acceptable. Then I'll go rest first. My room shouldn't have been cleaned out, right?"
"Asher goes to help you clean your room every week, saying that you will definitely have a day to return."
Cú Chulainn was stunned, then looked at the somewhat embarrassed young man and put an arm around his shoulder. "Brat, well done."
It was this kind of attitude that made Cú Chulainn like Asher so much. Unlike most of the disciples of the same period, the others either feared his power and avoided him or fawned.
Cú Chulainn wore a pensive expression.
After all, Asher's poor stamina was innate. Even if he desperately tried to compensate for it later, he still couldn't make up for much. This was also why he gave the magic cauldron to Asher.
Cú Chulainn picked up the spear in his hand. "Alright, let me see how much you've improved in the past two years. Let's spar, Asher."
"Eh?!" Asher was taken aback, then quickly waved his hands. "That's impossible. How could I possibly beat you?"
"If you think you'll lose before even fighting, then you've already lost," Cú Chulainn pointed the spear at Asher. "Come on, pick up your weapon."
Looks like I have no choice but to fight...
Seeing Cú Chulainn's eager look, Asher took a deep breath, handed the magic cauldron to Scáthach, picked up his spear, and looked directly at Cú Chulainn.
Cú Chulainn scanned Asher and then nodded in satisfaction. "Good eyes. Looks like you've made a lot of progress these past few years."
Scáthach gently caressed the magic cauldron, looking down at the two disciples below from her high position.
Although she didn't have much expectation for the final outcome, she could see how much Cú Chulainn had improved in the past two years.
"Then, let's begin."
---
Author Note:
Many modified settings will appear in this story, so don't dwell too much on some details. I will modify them according to my own ideas...
--------More Bonus Chapters!!!!
Every 300 power stones = 1 Bonus Chapter