"You're also a Skylord, aren't you?" the young man asked.
"Yes." Aegis said nothing else.
Like others, Aegis approached the bottom of the tree.
The Tree was colossal, large enough to house hundreds of floating islands alone. Its branches and leaves were so big that humans looked like ants compared to it.
A human was even seen jumping onto one of the leaves, yet the leaves didn't budge.
"Do you need help?" The young man beside him asked, offering help with a warm smile.
Aegis looked at him and shook his head. "No. Focus on your own climb."
Saying that, Aegis manipulated the water around him, creating water propulsion on his legs.
The water propulsion smoothly took Aegis upward, leaving the young man stunned.
"Water magic? Isn't that Aegis' specialty? Could it be him?" the young man thought.
This young man also had a green halo over his head, marking him as another Skylord.
This was [DesertFox], the same person who was practically Aegis' fan.
And realizing he had just met his idol, he was over the moon.
He immediately chased after Aegis, climbing by holding onto the thick burls with his sharp claws.
Like an agile monkey, DesertFox climbed fast, leaving most of the competitors in the dust.
"Wait up, Aegis! I am DesertFox. I want to talk to you about something," he shouted.
Meanwhile, the other participants' foreheads were covered with sweat as they climbed using ropes and other equipment.
Seeing Bella, Aegis, DesertFox and few more others climbing so efficiently, their eyes widened with speechlessness.
"Damn, why are there so many monsters here?"
"No kidding. These Skylords have it so easy."
"Did you see that guy with water magic? Could he be the legendary Water Tycoon?"
"Water Tycoon? Who the hell is that?" one woman asked, oblivious.
"Where do you live? You don't know the Water Tycoon, Skylord Aegis?"
"Aegis? I know him. Isn't he the guy who frequently comes up in global announcements?"
"Sisters, I have found our husband. Come quick!"
"I want to become Skylord Aegis' follower!"
The revelation of Aegis being present here caused a small ripple among the thousands.
Those who remained up-to-date with the Sky Real. already knew Aegis.
And now they wanted to meet him in person.
But some secretly harbored ill intentions.
Aegis wasn't a kid. He understood everything clearly.
So he deliberately kept his distance from other Skylords.
The guy calling himself DesertFox didn't get any response from him either.
"I don't have time for this. I need to go faster. Faster than her," Aegis muttered, picking up his pace. To save his energy, he sometimes took a break on the branches.
The fruits and treasures were still very high up. The sunlight was struggling to enter through the massive canopy.
The fruits on the very edges were practically glowing, promising excellent treasures.
Just then, he noticed something.
Bella, who was above him and focused solely on her goals, encountered a threat.
It wasn't a human.
It was a beast. A massive monkey, about 30 meters tall.
"Ku ku ku... A aah aah..."
Not just one. There were numerous.
[ Target identified: Giga-Ape ]
[ Power Rank: Baron (D) ]
[ Ability: Extreme Agility, Stone Fist ]
"Baron Rank?" Aegis and Bella almost muttered simultaneously, shocked.
They realised Giga Apes were the real threats here.
And these primates clearly didn't like the intruders.
The Skylords were about to face their first serious obstruction.
Bella turned sharply toward Aegis.
"Hey, you. I can tell you're the strongest one here. Come with me. If we work together, we can take them down."
Without waiting for an answer, she stepped forward, charging straight toward one of the Giga Apes with her Ice magic.
Aegis did not even glance in her direction. He neither slowed nor acknowledged her command.
That indifference instantly ignited her anger.
"Didn't I tell you to come with me?" she snapped, "What, are you trying to play the hero and face one of them alone?"
Still, Aegis remained silent.
Water began to swirl around his hand, rotating in a calm yet terrifying rhythm as he walked toward one of the larger Giga Apes.
The beast towered over him. Its muscles were bulging and its roar was shaking the ground beneath their feet.
Yet Aegis did not stop.
His body suddenly released a chilling aura.
The surrounding temperature plunged in an instant as he manipulated the water molecules, forcing them down to sub-zero levels. The flowing water condensed rapidly, solidifying into multiple razor-sharp ice blades that hovered in the air around him.
"Blades of Frozen Mist."
His voice was low and emotionless.
The ice blades shot forward, tearing through the air and slamming into the Giga Ape's hardened body.
For a brief moment, time itself seemed to freeze.
Every gaze turned toward Aegis's back.
Even Bella was staring at him now. Her expression change to one of surprise. She had not expected him to wield the Ice element as well.
What she did not know was that Aegis's Water Manipulation was an Ultimate Skill. Ice was merely another state of water. To him, shaping it into a weapon was effortless.
As the Ice blades struck, the Giga Ape's massive body shuddered.
The ice blades pierced straight through its thick skin, burrowing deep into muscle and bone.
From the points of impact, frost began spread across its body like a living curse.
In the blink of an eye, the Ape was completely encased in ice, its roar cut short, frozen in a grotesque, silent scream.
Then— "Crack" It shattered.
The frozen body exploded into countless splinters of ice, dispersing into the air as a cloud of glittering, icy mist. The mist drifted slowly across the gigantic leaves like sparkles that dissolved into nothingness.
All of sudden, silence ensued.
Everyone felt a bone-deep chill reaching up to their spines, as if the cold had seeped straight into their souls.
Even those far below the impact zone shivered uncontrollably.
Their faces turned pale.
For a moment they wondered what would have happen if they were in that Ape's place.
Bella's eyes also widened. Her unstoppable confidence shook for the first time.
That was not just strength.
That was dominance.