The atmosphere shifted again as alcohol and various spiritual dishes were served endlessly. As time passed, people grew increasingly inebriated, acting much like regular mortals overcome by drink.
This was entirely due to the nature of the wine. Because of its potent medicinal properties, the system did not process it as a negative substance, meaning it was never naturally purged. Looking at the intoxicated state of his seniors, Calum suddenly suspected that inducing this exact hilarity was the Saint's primary goal when creating the brew.
Naturally, Calum remained completely unaffected. After all, had anyone ever seen a treasure get drunk? More seriously, his body was now a unique oddity. Despite everyone present being thousands of times stronger than him, he guessed very few could rival his physical resilience. It was, after all, a fundamental difference in the order of life.
"You! Are you drinking? It seems this junior brother has a high alcohol tolerance. If that's the case..."
Suddenly, an extremely drunk senior walked over, swaying from left to right. Seeing that Calum looked only slightly flushed rather than hammered like the rest of them, he was stunned.
"Senior, I am drinking. Merely this junior's constitution is a bit special," Calum replied with a wry smile. Even he was surprised by his own resilience.
Yan King looked at him and snickered. True to form, the people Yan King favored were always unordinary. Naturally, as one of the seven strongest disciples present, he wasn't hammered either. When he had invited Calum to drink until they passed out, he had been joking—at least, it was impossible for someone of his caliber to lose control against his will, let alone against this kind of alcohol.
Refusing to believe he could be weaker at drinking than a newcomer, the drunken senior challenged Calum to a drinking contest. Sadly for him, his defeat was a foregone conclusion. He passed out beneath the table, his fiery red hair tumbling messily across his face. His thunderous snores shook the table with their raw vibrations.
Calum, having just finished his cup and attempting to pour himself another, stared dumbfounded at the man passed out beside him before glancing at Yan King in askance.
"Don't worry, his name is Lion. He has a quarter of demonic blood in him, which is why he is so wild and unrestrained. At least, that's the excuse he gives every time he wakes up the next morning, thoroughly embarrassed after losing a drinking challenge," Yan King explained, noting that at every one of these gatherings, Lion would invariably drink himself into an alcoholic coma.
"Ignore him, he's fine. Come, let's continue drinking." Yan King raised his cup in a toast. Grinning, Calum met it, and both downed their drinks.
It was now midnight. Having started in the morning, the banquet was still going strong. Suddenly, Senior Luo stood up and tapped rhythmically against the rim of his cup. The dazed looks in most of the participants' eyes cleared instantly.
"I am grateful to see all of us gathered here, as we do annually. Now, the second part of the banquet begins. Bring the coliseum!" he commanded, placing heavy emphasis on the final word.
The Coliseum?
A servant materialized seemingly from thin air, presenting Sun Luo with a circular disk engraved with ferocious beast motifs.
"Are you curious? This is the second event of our banquet. Luo took that nasty habit from the Saint of capturing demons he finds unpleasing to the eyes," Yan King tsked softly.
Demons!
The flush had vanished from Calum's face, replaced by rapt attention as he stared at the disk in Sun Luo's hands.
"Now, let us begin!"
Sun Luo tossed the disk upward. It began glowing with a mystical light as the beast engravings writhed as if alive. A flash of familiar sensation made Calum's eyes light up—it was the unmistakable feeling of teleportation, one he had grown accustomed to inside the Three Realms Steps treasure.
When his vision cleared, he found himself seated in a spectator's chair. He was inside a coliseum, though a peculiar one: the spectator stands were conventional, but the fighting ring itself was completely absent.
Looking down at where the arena should have been, one saw only billowing clouds.
Oh? It seems the coliseum floats above a sea of clouds. With my consciousness, I can feel powerful auras hidden within that expanse. Wait... is the cloud sea itself the fighting ring?
Awe colored Calum's pupils as he grasped the inner workings of the treasure.
"Impressive, right? This treasure has been passed down in the Luo family since ancient times, but it's only in Sun Luo's generation that its true mechanics were unlocked and finally utilized. Of course, it was activated by Sun Luo himself," Yan King explained from the seat beside him.
"Indeed, very impressive," Calum nodded in agreement.
"Now, who wants to challenge the coliseum? I have captured demons ranging from rank 4 to rank 6," Sun Luo announced to the gathering.
"Whoa! Brother Luo, you've become even more formidable, capturing living rank 6 demons," praised one of the Devil Duo—the pale-skinned, frail scholar.
"You're too generous with your praise, Brother Blood Devil," Sun Luo replied with a faint smile.
The sight stunned the ladies in attendance. Smiles from Sun Luo were rarer than a total solar eclipse, and he clearly took a measure of pride in the achievement.
The other five powerhouses wore grave expressions.
This abnormal fellow... they cursed silently. He's gotten even stronger!
"Senior Brother Luo, this humble one has made some progress in cultivation and would like to test his mettle," a valiant-looking youth with light-yellow eyes stepped forward to accept the challenge.
"Terrific. Let us see Junior Brother's performance, then." Without wasting any time, Sun Luo declared the event underway.
The valiant youth nodded, leaped over the barrier, and plunged straight into the cloud sea.
Sun Luo waved his palm, sending a ripple through the air. Moments later, a grand projection materialized, showcasing the valiant youth navigating the expanse of clouds below.
Suddenly, the clouds parted, and a three-meter-tall humanoid figure strode forward. A crushing menace radiated from it, palpable even through the projection. It resembled a human in shape, save for its aberrant size, scales that covered its skin like heavy armor, and gigantic bull horns protruding from its temples.
Battle intent flared in the valiant youth's eyes. He flicked his wrist, summoning a battle-ax into his hand. Intricate inscriptions pulsed across the weapon's body, confirming it to be a true treasure.
The demon had been furious for a long time. It had been minding its own business in the Great Wilderness when this arrogant human had trespassed on its territory and captured it without a word, leaving it trapped in a confusing cloud maze ever since.
Now, thinking it had finally found an exit, it came face-to-face with yet another human. One could readily imagine its boiling rage.
Crackle!
The demon bellowed toward the sky, and jagged lightning surged across its entire body.
Without hesitation, the valiant youth swung his ax in a ferocious downward chop. The phantom projection of a colossal ax descended from above, looking as though it intended to cleave the heavens themselves.
"Hmm... Junior Brute's Heaven-Cleaving Art has reached the Completion level. No wonder he volunteered for the challenge," murmured another senior nearby.
So he's called Brute? Well-fitting! What raw power! Calum thought with a quiet inward chuckle.
"Unfortunately, that demon carries the bloodline of a Sky Lightning Sacred Bull. Otherwise, that single strike might have been enough to gravely injure it," Yan King observed, his eyes growing abstrusely distant, as if perceiving something far beyond the physical hall.
As if prophesied, Yan King's words came true instantly. The demon met the incoming blow with open defiance, thrusting its horns upward. Surging lightning coalesced above its head into a gigantic horn of pure energy. The fluctuations rolling off it were staggering, pushing dangerously close to the Completion level of the 6th state of foundation.
The valiant youth's expression turned grim. He swiftly formed a series of hand seals and spat a mouthful of blood directly onto his ax blade, causing the weapon to flare with the brilliance of a miniature sun. Wielding the empowered ax, he met the demon's counter-attack head-on.
Boom.
When the two titanic forces collided, a cataclysmic explosion rocked the space between heaven and earth, clearing the sea of clouds for a hundred kilometers around them.