Dimensional Keeper: All My Skills Are at Level 100 Chapter 1435 A Different League!

Max paused momentarily right at the edge.

The contrast between the end of the initial pillar and this dividing line stood out sharply. Here, the ideas of flame weren't scattered anymore. They appeared thicker, more cohesive. The wild nature grew fiercer, while the urge to destroy grew keener.

In front, the hovering displays revealed that the top disciples ahead had already entered the second pillar. Their shapes looked like dim outlines shifting inside a richer red radiance.

Max no longer focused on the heavy warmth bearing down on him, or on the even breaths from Carl and Laura next to him. Instead, his stare lifted to the screens hovering far up in the dome.

A single display seized his complete attention.

Across it, a form dashed like a flash of fiery brilliance along the golden route. Waves of flame creatures rushed at him, but they crumbled to nothing before touching. The encircling blaze that hindered many others appeared to split naturally in his path.

He showed no delay. He didn't ease his speed. He pressed on as if the Path to Eternal Flames existed just for his ease.

That form belonged to Zain Heron.

As Max and his companions lingered at the first pillar's edge, and as the foremost batch of elite disciples had barely started navigating the second section, Zain Heron had already traversed the whole third pillar.

The display indicated him nearing the fourth's gateway, where the fires had turned into a thick red inferno throbbing with ruinous purpose.

The disparity proved immense.

Max's gaze tightened a bit while he studied the scene. Zain's motions flowed smoothly but burst with power, each stride matching a burst of fire that seemed to stem not just from his heritage, but from his entire form. The blaze nearby didn't oppose his presence. Rather, it blended seamlessly with it.

"Could this stem from the Blazing Dragon Sovereign Body?" Max pondered silently.

Even from afar, the harmony between his sacred build and the Source Bloodline shone through. Zain avoided expending effort to fight the fires. He drew them in and channeled them, boosting his forward drive.

On the display, his Dragon Scales Transformation shimmered for a second, serving not as frantic protection but as an innate part of himself. It felt like the Path to Eternal Flames accepted him as kin.

Carl and Laura traced Max's stare skyward.

As soon as they spotted the screen with Zain Heron, their faces shifted dramatically.

Carl's breath hitched briefly. Laura's eyes expanded without thought.

They knew the tales. All in the Black Dragon Palace knew of Zain Heron. The mightiest outer disciple across the Thirty Six Halls. The one with the Blazing Dragon Sovereign Body. The contender who'd crushed rivals in tournament after tournament.

Yet tales and actual sights differed greatly.

Watching him close in on the fourth pillar while they geared up for the second brought a chilling truth crashing down.

The divide wasn't minor.

It loomed vast.

Zain Heron performed at a tier that left most outer disciples far behind. His speed surpassed others' not just in quickness. It crushed them. No doubt marked his progress, no effort showed in his stance. The fires that crushed foes appeared to empower him.

Carl gulped softly, the prior resolve in his eyes fading a touch as truth took hold.

Laura gripped her hands lightly, her stare hardening while she fought to stay steady.

If any disciple in the Thirty Six Halls could match him evenly, it could only be one.

The Saintess in training, Isabella Lumin.

Just she held the promise to challenge his rule. Just she bore the Imperial Bloodline that might one day surpass even the flawless link of the Blazing Dragon Sovereign Body.

"Where's Isabella Lumin?" Max whispered under his breath as his eyes darted from screen to screen. The dome brimmed with views from parts of the Path to Eternal Flames, every display tracking various disciples' advances through the stages.

Several screens highlighted Zain Heron's form, his fiery shape slicing the third pillar with unstoppable force.

"She ought to be close to Zain Heron," Max went on, his tone hushed yet reflective. "But her shape doesn't show up anywhere."

Carl and Laura tracked his look, their gazes sweeping the glowing views overhead. They jumped from display to display, hunting for any sign of the Saintess in training. Blazes thundered on the screens. Disciples battled on, some pushing forward, others stumbling. Yet Isabella Lumin remained absent.

"Odd," Carl remarked with a faint scowl, his forehead creasing as he mulled it over. "Has she already gone past Zain Heron somehow?"

"That's not possible," Laura shot back right away, her voice steady. "Isabella Lumin hasn't completely roused her Imperial Bloodline. Lacking the full emergence of that heritage, she couldn't overtake a figure like Zain Heron. His Blazing Dragon Sovereign Body already syncs perfectly with his Source Bloodline."

Her logic held firm. Zain's superiority rested on ideal fusion. Isabella's promise loomed larger in concept, but it lay partly asleep.

Max held off replying at first. His focus intensified as he scrutinized the screens closer. He spotted a faint trend.

He scanned the area around and the screens once again before voicing it deliberately.

"These screens don't show figures at random," he stated. "Almost every disciple in the trial appears except us and some in our 100 mile vicinity."

Carl's eyes flickered as he absorbed Max's observation. Laura's widened a fraction.

"So that implies…" Carl started.

"Since Isabella Lumin isn't visible near Zain Heron, and she's missing from the front groups in the second pillar," Max finished softly, "she has to be in our present area."

"Are you referring to me?"

The tone stayed composed, crisp, and startlingly near.

Max whipped his head around.

A lithe shape approached them down the golden trail, her pace relaxed but firm. The surrounding flames didn't erupt wildly. They pulled back a bit, as if yielding to her. The golden ground under her gleamed gently with every footfall.

It was Isabella Lumin.

Her face held peace, her breaths measured, and no tension marked her bearing. A soft shimmer of draconic power hovered near her like a faint aura, even without her projecting her essence aggressively.

Carl and Laura automatically drew themselves up as she neared.

The Saintess in training positioned herself in front of them, neither leading with Zain Heron nor lagging, but strolling steadily in their midst.

Max's gaze locked with hers.

This near, he perceived it plainly.

The Imperial Bloodline inside her moved subtly, not forceful but immensely profound. It resembled an old stream running under still waters, held back yet endless.

And briefly, the latent craving in his own heritage stirred again.

Yet now, Max's face stayed unchanged. He refused to let the craving rule him.