Chapter 57: The Transcendent Gathering

Right where Ryuji was drinking, he noticed a rather eccentric table of people. They were sitting in a corner on the second floor. Although they clearly did not know one another and even seemed quite wary of each other, they were eating and drinking together. After finishing their drinks, they would turn their wine glasses upside down on the tabletop.

If it were just that, Ryuji might have glanced at them and dismissed it. However, the very next instant, when Ryuji looked back over, he found that those people had simply vanished.

This situation made Ryuji's eyes light up. He trusted that his memory would not fail him, but what kind of situation was this? Could it be that this place, much like the great trench, possessed some sort of hidden mechanism?

With so many people watching the scene, however, Ryuji could not simply walk over to investigate what had just happened. He merely projected a trace of his spiritual energy to inspect the table for any anomalies.

At that exact moment, the exact same thing happened again. In a corner not far away, another table of people vanished just like that under Ryuji's spiritual surveillance.

This development made Ryuji's heart tighten. Recalling the situation at the previous table, he realized that they too had inverted their wine glasses on the table after finishing their drinks.

Could this be some sort of secret code? Several thoughts flashed through Ryuji's mind, and he copied those people, inverting his finished wine glass onto the tabletop.

Events proved, however, that this method was completely useless. Ryuji drank several more cups, yet not a single different reaction occurred.

Just then, Ryuji heard a voice from nearby: "Look at that guy, acting like he's out of his mind trying to become a transcendent."

"Indeed. Who knows where he dug up those clothes; he thinks throwing on that pelt makes him a mortician, but he doesn't even bring an undead creature when he goes out. Thumbs down."

"With his attitude, he still wants to go to the gathering. Who knows where he even picked up the rumor..."

Following the direction of the whispering voices, Ryuji saw four figures at a table slowly fading away. It was evident that they were leaving via some form of teleportation effect.

Seeing this, a hint of a smile flashed across Ryuji's eyes.

No wonder they chose a tavern as a transit zone. When eating sand last time, Victor had mentioned to him that teleportation spells could be used in the Southern Swamp plane, but absolutely never inside a room where space was compressed.

If one forced it, the spaces would conflict, and in the end, both the sender and the receiver would be affected by the spatial distortion, potentially being sliced into pieces.

With this realization, Ryuji understood the situation here. He roughly figured out that he had stumbled upon the entrance to a transcendent gathering, only he did not yet know the password to enter.

Thinking of this, Ryuji raised his head and beckoned to the waiter who had guided him in earlier.

The waiter walked over and, upon looking down, noticed that Ryuji had removed his hand from the tabletop, revealing a piece of gold cloth resting right where his palm had been.

"They chose your place as an entrance for a reason, I suppose. Since your observation skills are so sharp, could you tell me how I should go about joining that gathering?"

"Sir, I cannot speak carelessly of such things. I do know the kind of gathering you speak of, but it really has nothing to do with our establishment."

"There is no harm in discussing it. Although transcendents are not officially recognized, discussing them is not strictly forbidden either."

As Ryuji spoke, he gave a slight wink.

The waiter raised a hand, and the gold cloth slipped into his grasp. Then, with a helpless expression, he said, "Very well, I will tell you. There is a tiny magic array at the bottom of every cup. After drinking the wine, turn the cup upside down and activate it with your own spiritual power, and you can cross over. However, the teleportation array on the other side requires you to provide your own mana, which is why they always gather at a table to travel together."

Ryuji pressed down on the tabletop, estimated the situation, and then, right in front of the waiter, drank another cup of wine.

Without hesitation, he flipped the wine glass upside down. The moment the glass touched the table, his spiritual power activated the magic array at the bottom of the cup.

Immediately after, Ryuji felt a powerful suction pulling him toward another location.

Lifting his head, Ryuji was somewhat surprised to find that he had been sent to an entirely different space. This space was clearly located inside a hollow deep beneath the swamp, and looking straight up, one could still see the dense traces left by countless tree roots.

Upon entering, Ryuji noticed that most of the people present had prepared black cloaks or similar garments to conceal their faces. A few who looked somewhat powerful did not bother doing so, yet an imposing aura emanated from them, making others reluctant to approach.

Ryuji thought for a moment, looked down at his own attire, and ultimately pulled his scaled-leather raincoat tightly around himself, hiding half his face.

His appearance caught the attention of several people, and Ryuji heard a few more jeers.

"Look at that newcomer, he looks so foolish."

"Looks like a total rookie. Should we..."

Ryuji glanced in that direction and discovered several men and women dressed in punk attire staring right at him. Seeing him look back, far from being intimidated, they made various gestures, as if provoking him.

Right at that moment, someone walked up to Ryuji's side. "Don't go near them. They are very close to the owner of this place. If you start a fight with them, the owner will intervene on their behalf, and they've taken advantage of this trick quite a few times."

Ryuji turned his head to look at the person who had pulled him back, discovering a short-statured man. He appeared human, yet for some reason, his pupils were vertically slit.

"You noticed, didn't you? I possess lizardman ancestry, but it's no trouble at all—it lets me run much faster through the swamps. I've roamed all the nearby marshes. By the way, I found a few good items out there; I wonder if you might be interested."

With those words, the man pulled open his coat, revealing a few bone-crafted spears concealed underneath.

"Let me tell you, these are genuine treasures. They're specialized equipment used by a necromancer's servants, and I had a terribly hard time retrieving them from a battlefield."

One look was all it took for Ryuji to realize that those items were merely fashioned from ordinary flesh-lizard bones and had clearly been crafted very recently. He held no interest whatsoever in such shoddy goods.

Nevertheless, considering the man had just offered him a friendly warning, Ryuji smiled and replied, "No need, those are of no use to me."

To his surprise, the man instantly flared up. "What? We practically agreed on a price, and now you won't buy? That simply won't do. Go ask around outside and see whose crew Squint-Eye Kerry belongs to."