The Rise of the Black Plain

After making his last move, Minos ended the military exercise, eliminating the few remaining soldiers.

The fight had been quite busy, and that young man had felt much more difficulty in this event than when he had competed in the Spiritual Tournament.

It had been about 8 minutes fighting, and despite having won, Minos had received several blows. Consequently, he now had several bruises on his arms, back, and chest, with some parts of his clothes, torn and stained with blood.

But those were only superficial damage, things that would heal in less than three days due to his current strength. Other than that, the main point was that he was almost out of energy at the end of the fight.

And the fact that his opponents knew how to fight him had greatly influenced the battle, as the soldiers tried to avoid as much as possible being under the influence of the Devouring Art.

Because of this, he had expended a little more of his energy than he would have done if he were against enemies who didn't know him.

On the side of the soldiers, most of them were with minor injuries due to the blows that they received. Minos had attacked them with force just beyond what they were capable of receiving so that they would feel the pressure of a real fight without risking their lives.

But that still hurt a lot, and some of them had even passed out during the match.

Finally, the terrain in that place was now full of craters, with soils of different colors visible to the naked eye. There were some rocks here and there, while mud had formed at specific points.

It looked like a typical war scenario, missing only the bodies and the smell of blood.

And quickly after the battle ended, several other soldiers watching the place, and Dillian's group began to approach that area.

The exercise was over, and now these soldiers needed Dillian's medical support and spiritual pills. And as for Minos, he wouldn't need such a thing.

...

While Dillian supported the most wounded soldiers, Minos, Abby, Elen, and Elena were heading back to the mansion in the center of the Dry City.

Abby had already taken her leave from the army, as she and Minos would be leaving for the Kingdom of the Waves in a few days. As a result, she was already off from the army's activities on the wall and also finished taking care of her affairs at headquarters.

She had finished organizing the army's leadership training division. With this, in less than a year, this division would begin to function when the elite squad would also be chosen.

Even after this final selection, there was still a lack of members for the army to start such a project. So, that was left for the future when there were more qualified soldiers.

And by finishing her services, Abby could follow Minos' match against the local soldiers.

Anyway, as they walked back to the urban region of this place, the group was talking with each other.

"You have grown so much stronger!" Elen commented with a smile on her face as she walked beside him and Elena.

Elena then bit her lip and told him. "I didn't think you would be that strong!"

"Thank you, hehe."

"But your soldiers are also powerful! If not for their low level, they could even fight a Spiritual King!" Elen began to speak from this point, remembering the work these individuals had caused to Minos.

Elen understood that if it was someone else in young Stuart's place, even a level 52 Spiritual King might not be able to defeat a group like that!

Running away would not be difficult, but eliminating the opponent would be. And this could already be considered a significant advance for the Black Plain!

From a vulnerable location where the average strength was below level 30, and the strongest barely reached level 40, this location can now defend itself against low-level Spiritual Kings!

That was admirable, and Elen was happy to be part, even if indirectly, of this local evolution.

"That's nothing. In the future, some soldiers will be even stronger than that!" Abby commented vaguely, eager for the formation of the Elite Squad.

"I don't doubt..." Elena nodded as she looked to Minos and Abby's side.

"It's a shame you have to travel as soon as we arrive. But I understand that it's inevitable for you to have to make these trips…" Elen was saying when she suddenly suggested something. "If you want, I can give you two, my spiritual beast, so that you can travel faster. Do you want?"

Minos then shook his head in denial and said. "There is no necessity. Abby and I will travel on her beast, and although land travel isn't as fast as flying, it won't make much of a difference."

"I'm not worried about arriving at my destination a week sooner or later. I want to use this trip to train and learn a little about the Kingdom of the Waves. I knew there is a lot of diversity in that place."

"Oh?" Elena understood Minos' point. After all, she wanted to venture out herself, but she had no such opportunity given the Allen family spies. "If it weren't because Elen and I have to be 'missing' for a while, I would go with you…" She commented quietly.

Elen then said, looking at Minos. "Since you want to explore that place, I have several maps that can help you."

"Oh? That's good. I don't have any, hehe." He replied with a slight smile on his face. Minos intended to do like previously when he travels with Ruth to the Cromwell Kingdom, buying maps along the way.

But if Elen were going to help him with that, then that would be better!

"I know you already have a formidable strength, but be careful where you go. Some areas are dominated by tribes of beasts that even have creatures at the 6th stage of cultivation."

"OK, I understand. Thanks for that."

Minos naturally only knew the essential characteristics of the Kingdom of the Waves. After all, at the spiritual academy, he only learned the basics of external geography, and Henricus Longus' memoirs referred to millions of years ago.

So, Minos didn't know much about what things were like outside the Brown Kingdom.

"Let's talk a little about this..."

After that, their group arrived at the government mansion, going directly to Minos' residence.

First, they chatted a little about the information about the Kingdom of the Waves while the young ruler ate various spiritual fruits. Soon after, Minos went to cultivate to recover his energy and the minor damages in his body.

As for the three women who accompanied him, they stayed around his residence, talking about some details of that state. Abby knew a little more than Minos about that state, but the Nash and Miller families had different information.

Hence, it didn't hurt that she and Elen exchanged information so that she and Minos could make better use of their time.

...

Time passed fast, and it was time for Minos and Abby to leave for the Kingdom of the Waves.

In the three days that had passed, all the soldiers who had fought against Minos had already recovered and returned to their duties.

As for Minos, he had already resolved all his issues locally even before those three days. In fact, he had only stayed here to protect the city while his soldiers rested from the injures of the military exercise.

And after those soldiers recovered, he could leave this place under Dillian's command once more.

There were many things to happen in the Dry City, and Minos had already left his orders. However, many of these projects would take several months to be prepared and did not demand his daily presence here.

There were already many things in his city that would only need time to develop without the constant supervision of the local leader. Among them, the army itself. The selection had just taken place, and many of the new soldiers have to undergo rigorous training until they can keep up with those older individuals in this organization.

And the time Minos would spend away would be enough for that!

With the plans left by him, the young sovereign hoped to find a much more powerful Black Plain Army, with new Sergeants and perhaps a Spiritual King.

Eda had recently reached level 49, but she could reach Dillian's level in less than seven months due to her talent and the efficiency of this woman's cultivation technique.

Anyway, surely Minos' forces would improve in his time away. Then, in the following military exercise, things would be even more exciting!