The Cloud-Raised Brave Man's Travels

·Dividing line·

This dramatic Hero Festival was held as scheduled. It was obviously just a temporary idea with only half a day of preparation time, but its popularity seemed to have surpassed the long-running Monster Festival. It turns out that human nature is to get bored with the old and love the new.

Eight arenas began simultaneously. Koya's match was scheduled later due to a late registration period. Nearly a thousand people signed up for this tournament... While the number of participants might seem high, the elimination rate was incredibly fast. This was because Ganesha and his team had established a rule: if a match in an arena didn't end within three minutes before the round of 16, both teams would be eliminated.

This rule not only limits the time of the competition but also forces the adventurers to fight desperately—

[Ring Number One: The Soma Clan advances!]

[Ring No. 2: No one advances]

[Ring No. 3: The Soma clan advances!]

[Ring Number Four: Loki's Familia advances!]

The man in the fourth ring was an acquaintance of Koya's, the mercenary who had worked the hardest while carrying bricks for the Loki Familia. Given his hard work, it was no surprise that he advanced this time. As the competition progressed, an unexpected dark horse emerged: the Soma Familia...

This clan, famous in Orario for its divine wine, shocked everyone in this competition with a promotion rate far exceeding that of other clans. These Lv.1 members of the Soma clan were fearless and brave, fighting as if they were facing the murderer of their father. Moreover, their combat proficiency was also very high, at least stronger than most Lv.1 members.

Koya was no longer sitting in the audience. He was standing on the ring, looking at his opponent curiously. Coincidentally, his opponent was an adventurer from the Soma clan. His eyes were bloodshot, and he stared at him intently, which was a bit creepy.

"Wine...wine...wine..."

This guy's condition is very abnormal, Koya thought silently in his heart.

"Game start!"

"Ahhhh-"

After hearing the referee's words, the Soma clan member rushed towards Koya like a mad dog out of a cage, sword in hand and howling, but... the gap in strength cannot be made up by momentum alone.

Koya unceremoniously kicked him on the shoulder, then dropped him directly onto the ring. How should I put it? Koya didn't really want to win in such an insulting way, but the guy in front of him looked like a madman, so Koya didn't want to get entangled with him and wanted to end the fight quickly.

The moment Koya's longsword pierced the neck of this strange adventurer, the referee of Freya's family raised the flag in his hand and announced -

[Ring No. 3: Hestia's Familia advances]

As the elimination rounds progressed, the matches grew increasingly bloody. Perhaps it was the atmosphere that forced them to use more force, or perhaps it was a change in their mentality. Although no deaths had occurred so far, the members of the logistics and medical families were increasingly busy. However, in the city of Orario, as long as someone wasn't dead, they could generally be saved. Even a broken limb could be healed by magical means.

Soon the second round, the third round...

[Ring No. 4: Hestia's Familia advances]

As the sun faded over the city walls, the light of torches and magic stone lamps illuminated the Colosseum, and the top sixteen of the Heroes Festival were finally announced. Of course, Koya was among them, but the other fifteen contestants were all strangers to Koya. The only mercenary he knew was eliminated in some round.

Chapter 36: Keqing is so fragrant

Of the sixteen strongest, six belonged to the Soma clan. They looked at everyone, including their fellow clan members, with wariness and hostility. The Soma clan had been a major force in this Hero's Festival, but the gods soon understood the reason: it was all due to the divine wine.

These members of the Soma clan usually fight in the dungeon without regard for their lives in order to collect enough money to buy the divine wine. Of course, this group of people are not really looking for death. They only hunt monsters crazily on the upper level. But even so, their combat experience is not comparable to other adventurers of the same level. This time the bonus is enough for them to drink the divine wine for a long time, so naturally they are fighting for victory.

But no matter what the reason is, the strength of the Soma clan this time has indeed made many people take notice. After all, in the city of Orario, low-level adventurers of Lv.1 are the majority.

However, none of this matters to Koya. His current strength is comparable to that of a Lv.2 adventurer. If he activates the Brilliant Dragon Transformation, he will at least be as strong as a veteran Lv.2 adventurer. In this Lv.1 arena, two words stand out - invincible.

I don't care about martial arts or combat experience at all, as long as I can crush them with my hard power!

For example, right now, Koya was fortunate to be among the first to enter the ring in the round of 16. His opponent was a young woman from the Takemurai clan. She wore a rather daring outfit that covered all her vitals. Despite her risqué attire, she exuded a sense of righteousness, her tanned skin giving her a healthy appearance. Her weapon was a long sword Koya had never seen before. Unlike the straight double-edged swords common in Orario, hers had a slight curve and a single-sided blade.

Koya knew about the Takemurai clan because the clan's chief deity was a close friend of Hestia's. When Koya first discussed wanting to improve her martial arts skills with Hestia, she had mentioned this deity. So, this young woman's martial arts skills would probably be very sophisticated...

If it weren't for the damn time limit, Koya would have had a good fight with the girl, but the three-minute limit forced him to end the fight quickly.

As the referee's voice sounded, Koya stepped forward directly. The next second, he was in front of the girl, his left hand was on the hilt of the knife at her waist, and then he swung her hard.

Honestly, Koya found this Hero's Festival a bit boring. He yawned, his opponent's long sword in hand. The moment the girl steadied herself, the weapon she should have been holding was already resting on her shoulder. From the referee's announcement of the start to the end, only thirty seconds had passed.

·Dividing line·

"His strength is roughly the same as the captain of the Thousand Rocks Army. He's not as strong as the holder of the Eye of God, but he's much stronger than an ordinary person. Is the power of grace really that strong?"

[Gifts depend on talent. They simply unlock a person's potential. A gifted person might reach Level 5 in ten years, while others might spend their entire lives unable to break through Level 1. That's why Orario is truly amazing. The gap between the upper and lower limits is truly enormous.]

"Are the powers of those gods the same as our gods?"

"You're underestimating them. The gods of Orario are at best at the level of your world's laws of nature. Your Seven Gods would probably only be considered subordinate gods compared to them. And Hestia is even at the level of a major deity. She could easily burn your world to ashes."

'...'

[Don't overthink it. Worlds like Orario where many gods dance together are rare after all.]

"Can the gift make ordinary people become gods?"

Keqing didn't care at all how powerful those gods were. Her focus was always on the magical gifts and the adventurers fighting in the arena.

"You're actually thinking that... Yes, you can. When you reach Lv. 10, you become a demigod. If you raise the divine fire and break through to a new level, you become a new god."

The system's tone was filled with emotion. Keqing truly was a remarkable girl. She had lofty ambitions for the future, yet she kept her feet firmly on the ground, moving forward steadily. She understood that no matter how powerful the gods of Orario might be, they held no relevance to her. On the contrary, what Liyue needed most at this moment was the miracle of grace.

【光说等级你或许没有啥实感那我就拿你世界对比一下吧。你们世界的七执政大多都只有Lv.10，岩风二神有些特殊他们是Lv.11,天理是Lv.12,而欧拉丽的众神，不擅长战斗如酒神苏摩之类的也是Lv.12。而稍微强大一点的神系主神、武神如赫斯提亚、建御雷之类的皆是Lv.15，更强一批的神王、神后如奥丁、宙斯、赫拉则是Lv.16。】

'Is there any way I can get this gift?'

[There's an item called an invitation ticket in the store, which allows you to invite Keya to your world. However, it's not currently unlocked in the store. It's meant to be used to strengthen your relationship once the favorability system is fully unlocked. Right now, the only way to get Keya to your world is through a contingency plan. Unfortunately, your world's energy level is a bit low. After I signed the decoupling agreement, it will take at least a year for the contingency plan to be activated.]

"Then why was the doctor from the other Terra world able to activate the emergency plan so easily?"

[Because she was surrounded by high-energy polymers at that time, the Originium mines in a city were enough to activate the emergency plan.]

"How do I open the favorability system?"

[It will be activated once there are five subsystem owners and a certain amount of spending has been achieved. We've reached that level of spending now, but we've only activated three subsystems, so we'll have to wait. When the favorability system is fully open, the chat group template will also be activated, and you'll be able to communicate with people from other worlds. Once ten subsystems have been activated, Keya will also join the chat group, but at that time the system mall will undergo a comprehensive update, and most items will be removed from the shelves.]

"To prevent Keya from asking us directly for goods?"

[Almost. So if you have any items you want, buy some now. After all, the items you buy for Koya will be synced to you in the end. However, rewards purchased by others will not be synced. For example, Koya's most relied-upon talent [God Rewards Diligence] is only available to Jizi, and the Black Dragon Template is only available to the Professor.]

'...'

Keqing was silent for a while, then sighed helplessly.

You've successfully convinced me. I can't resist this temptation. Put your products on display.

Yes, Keqing is so attractive... Although she said she didn't care how powerful the world of Orario was, the clear level division instantly broadened her horizons. If she didn't want to rely on the Geo King, then she had to be stronger than the Geo King!

There are pictures here, which can be viewed after the updated version

————————Seeking monthly tickets and recommendation tickets——————————

Chapter 37: The Winner of the Brave Festival

Unlike fake rich women like Ji Zi and Dr. who seem to be very rich but actually spend their money elsewhere, Keqing's funds can be mobilized at any time. Even if she does not use the family assets, just using her own small treasury, Keqing's funds are enough for her to buy most of the products in the mall. Of course, I am talking about the kind of products that only buy the same.

Now Keqing has set her eyes on something that really suits her taste.

[Become stronger even in dreams]

The name is so easy to understand, it even directly reflects the product's effect. Keqing is Liyue's well-known "Book King," a 996 real-name recommender. If she could, she would even want to be 007. Unfortunately, the human body doesn't allow Keqing to do that. Now this product perfectly makes up for her regret. From now on, she can open a book even in her sleep!

[Keqing...you're really quite the pushover.]

The small system sighed sincerely, but this is good, it likes this kind of host!

The skill "Strengthening in Dreams" simply means that after falling asleep at night, your consciousness enters a special realm of awareness where everything you dream of can be realized. Whether you're exercising or reading or practicing calligraphy, the effects will be fully reflected in your body. It's a simple and powerful effect, but for the King of Scrolls, it's an absolute masterpiece.

While Keqing was browsing the system mall, Koya had already finished several games. Although there was no time limit starting from the quarterfinals, the opponents he met were not as good at martial arts as the girl from the Jianyu Lei clan, nor did they have any special skills or magic. Koya did not have the time to play with them and resolved the battle quite easily.

Speaking of which, due to the time constraints of this Hero's Festival, the adventurers who had persisted until now were actually running out of energy. Fighting over ten battles with all their might in an entire afternoon was even more tiring than going into a dungeon. Would a finals contested by such adventurers really be a good one? Of course, that wasn't Koya's concern; he wasn't tired anyway.

However, Koya's heroic performance still aroused the suspicion of many people. Several adventurers who had fought with Koya jointly questioned Koya's true level. After all, his performance was not like that of a Lv.1 adventurer, and the gods also saw this.

However, the storm died down before it even started because the guild directly brought Koya's registration records. He came to Orario a month ago and joined the Hestia Family a week ago. He was an adventurer who received the gift a week ago... Instead of being Lv.1, they would find it strange. As for why Koya was so strong, it was easy to explain. Maybe it was because he was already very strong before joining the family.

He wasn't overly strong, more like a Level 2 adventurer. While the gods were impressed by Hestia's good fortune, it wasn't anything to marvel at.

The finals took place as scheduled, but most of the audience who had watched from beginning to end had already guessed the outcome, and newcomers had also silently made their own judgments just by looking at the two people standing on the ring. On the right side of the ring was Koya. His clothes were not fancy, but they were neat. His whole demeanor gave people a sense of spirit. But what about his opponent?

His clothes were tattered, and his chest armor had a large hole in it, a mark left by his opponent's magic during the semifinals. To the uninitiated, one might have mistaken him for a life-or-death struggle in the dungeon. As a Level 1 adventurer, who would have bothered to prepare an extra set of armor at home? So, he wore this. This adventurer, who had finally made it to the finals, was already panting slightly just standing there. The constant fighting had drained his spirit.

Koya has some respect for this contestant. Not every adventurer has the same opportunities as himself. Being able to reach this point shows that he is a hero among millions.

Interestingly, the opponent wasn't a member of the Battle Familia, but a Battle Blacksmith from the Hephaestus Familia. He crafted all his equipment himself. As a blacksmith, he probably had plenty of money. He likely entered this competition simply to promote his own gear, and he managed to make it all the way to the finals...

"Game start--"

The referees of Freya's clan remained as aloof as ever. After he came on stage, he didn't waste any words and announced the start of the game as soon as he stood firm. Koya once again took the lead in attacking. His speed was at Lv.1 and no one could reach him. Just like when he fought with Ais, his physical superiority had already established his victory, so Koya liked to use the tactic of first attack, and it worked every time.

Only this time—with a ding, his attack was blocked.

"Heh—it seems I guessed right."

The giant sword in the blacksmith's hand blocked Koya's attack route very accurately. He seemed to have placed the giant sword here at the moment Koya launched the attack.

"Although I can't see your movements clearly, I can see through your habits completely!"

The giant sword in the blacksmith's hand changed from blocking to sweeping and rushed straight towards Koya's face, but the same sentence still applies... when the difference in physical size is too great, everything is just an illusion.

After this day's battle, Koya's abilities had grown significantly. The blacksmith's efforts were indeed commendable, but the greatsword he wielded seemed to Koya to be crawling at the speed of a snail. His free left hand slammed directly onto the blade's spine, instantly disrupting his balance. The blacksmith was completely powerless to resist this force. Just now, his arm had been pulling the greatsword, but now it was dragging him to the ground...

The blacksmith sighed helplessly as he looked at the longsword that had already been thrust into his eyes. The referee beside him yawned in boredom and announced—

"Winner: Hestia's Familia, Koya Constantine."

"Oh oh oh oh-"

Although the referee seemed a little listless, the audience still gave him face. Most people are strong-willed by nature, commonly known as champion fans, and Koya's crushing record along the way fits the term "strong man" in their minds. Although he is only Lv.1, Lv.1 is the majority in Orario!

In the minds of most audiences, Koya deserves the title of hero, and the most important thing is that Koya is very handsome. Even many goddesses in the audience have begun to boldly express their love to Koya.

Koya and the blacksmith walked back to the audience seats together. There was no award ceremony for this brave fight. As soon as their battle was over, Ganesha couldn't wait to go on stage and began to announce the perfect end of the festival. The next time belonged to the gods. They were going to hold a banquet, which was the most important thing for them.

Koya didn't care about any of this. He only cared about when the prize money for this competition would be distributed...

Chapter 38: Expedition

Three days passed, and during these three days, Koya realized that another system owner had purchased a skill for him. Now, every night when he fell asleep, he would face various enemies in his dreams. One night, he was even slaughtered by the Black Dragon for an entire night...

He wasn't idle during the daytime hours of those three days either. Every day, Ai Si would pester him to the city wall for a sparring match, only to be brutally beaten. Even when he activated his Brilliant Dragon form, the outcome was the same, or even worse. He didn't know why Ai Si couldn't stop herself from fighting Koya in his Brilliant Dragon form, and once, she knocked him unconscious. However, after he fainted, he could rest his head on Ai Si's lap, which was one of Koya's few happy moments during those three days.

After these few days of training, Koya felt that his endurance was absolutely off the charts! He wasn't exactly strong, but a knife wouldn't even leave a mark on his skin if it was scratched. However, his biggest gain from these three days was indeed his combat skills. Koya felt that if his attributes were the same, he should be able to defeat three of his former selves.

"What... Today is Lefiya."

Although Lefiya's white stockings are also very good, they are far inferior to Ais's plump and attractive thighs.

"Miss Ais is training Miss Hatsune, and if you're awake, get up quickly!"

During these three days, the relationship between Koya, Ais and Lefiya has made great progress. Otherwise, the tsundere elf Lefiya would not let Koya sleep on her legs.

Even though she had experienced this several times before, Lefiya's face was still red. It was obvious that she was still very shy in her current position. She grabbed Koya's head with her little hands and wanted to throw him off, but how could Koya let her do that?

"By the way, Lefiya, are you and your Loki family going on another expedition?"

"Well, it's probably been in the last few days. The guild members have come to the Familia several times to urge them to come back, and Loki can't delay any longer."

"Are you going too?"

"Of course! I'm the much-anticipated rising star of Loki's family."

"Then be careful and stay safe. You idiot, you still haven't gotten over your fear of monsters. You must hide behind others during battles, otherwise you won't even dare to resist when the monsters rush in your face."

"Well...I know."

Lefiya patted Koya's head unhappily. Although she was indeed afraid of monsters, it was a bit too much for a Lv.1 adventurer like you to educate a Lv.3 adventurer like me.

"By the way, Koya, has construction of your clan's headquarters started?"

"Yes, construction started yesterday. Lady Hephaestus only asked us for 10 million faris and gave us a huge piece of land. The remaining 40 million was given to the Daedalus family. Lady Daedalus is also very familiar with Hestia, so he only charged us a friendly price."

"Do you have enough money? Do you need me to lend you some?"

Lefiya's first reaction was that it was so cheap. You know, the maintenance cost of her wand is 10 million each time, and Diona, who doesn't take good care of her weapons, needs 50 million fari each time to maintain her weapons, plus the maintenance cost of her armor... It was the first time that Lefiya realized that 50 million fari could do so many things.

"Why, you still want to support me?"