Sam didn't have time to dodge. Donner is that fast. So, he tried to block the attack with all his might as he activated the earth elemental fusion.
But even before the fusion could be completed, he felt the heavy impact on his chest throwing him off.
Sam felt his bones crack and lungs shake as he spat a mouthful of blood.
Donner didn't even bother to follow up with that and took the weapon fragment on the ground before running into the city.
He ran towards the temple and all the three of them could see a streak of lightning. Arman who is already injured was also about to use the blood art, but Sam stopped him as the three of them took off in the car as they followed Donner.
Sam was really impressed by Donner's speed because he is almost as fast as the Hover car, which should have been basically impossible normally, but with the blood art, it is possible.
Donner's use of lightning is a bit different. While Arman has the chaos under control and used it precisely, donner let it have a free reign as it liked. It can even be seen in the way he is running with the help of lightning and it actually suits his battle style using the hammer.
Soon they entered deep into the city and are moving towards the temple.
Meanwhile, back at the hostage exchange point.
"Why are there more humans here? Are they not supposed to be only two? Where did the other two come from?"
The Queen asked the priest.
"I don't know. Nobody noticed anything odd at all. We didn't even suspect anything before much less know that they are here."
"Are they from another city?" She asked while she channeled the dark elemental energy into her sons' bodies to ease their pain.
"I don't know. But if they are really from other cities and they already got the weapon fragments, wouldn't that mean…"
He trailed off at that and looked at the city where the lightning is rattling constantly.
While they are contemplating something, the chase in the city already entered the temple. Donner is aiming for the back entrance so that he could leave the city and be on his journey to the forest.
When they are in the central hall, Sam involuntarily looked at the familiar place and the majestic statue in the middle, and when his eyes landed on the base of the statue, he felt that something is odd. But he still continued the chase.
But just when they were about to exit the temple through the rear exit, he stopped the hovercar and thought of something, he forgot because of all the frenzy.
He turned the car around back to the temple to take a look and when he looked at the surroundings, he remembered many things he saw in the Silva temple and the Central temple. He couldn't help but smile.
Arkiv and Arman are a bit frustrated and anxious that they would let Donner slip.
"Don't worry, we would get the weapon fragment, sooner or later. But I think I found something crucial here."
With that, they stayed there for over half an hour.
When Sam was doing his thing, Arkiv and Arman were surprised by his actions and what he got.
By the time they are finished, the forces of the feathered are already coming to the temple. The three of them once again took off in the hovercar and zoomed into the forest.
"Can we catch up to him?"
Arkiv asked as he looked around. His eyes are glowing weirdly. This is his very own eye technique.
He is an archer after all.
"I think we will. You should know about blood art better than I do. He is bound to be exhausted sooner or later."
"Yeah, he would. But he is really good at hiding.
In the past two weeks, while we are working, he not only managed to avoid the transcendent stage feathered and other forces, he also managed to hide from us."
Arman replied from the side.
"Well, you don't have to worry about hiding in this route. The beasts wouldn't let you hide even if you want to. They are annoying.
As they spoke, both of them got caught up with Donner who is fighting with a bunch of beasts.
Arkiv opened the door of the hovering car and climbed to the top of the roof with his bow.
He started shooting Donner while taking advantage of his perilous situation.
But Donner is no soft persimmon, he just broke through the deadlock and diverted the beasts towards the car and Arkiv.
They clashed continuously and the rest of the journey continued in similar circumstances.
Donner would go forward and clash with the beasts, Sam and the team tried to attack him and he would either attack them back or let the beasts hinder them while he escaped.
This made the journey which is supposed to be over in forty days to take sixty days.
Now, they are in the middle of the seventh month by the time they reached the central temple.
Donner entered the temple hurriedly and took a battle stance as he looked at Sam, Arkiv, and Arman who came out of the car.
"We are already at the temple, so leave me alone. The fragment is mine."
Sam just smiled and said.
"Sure."
With that, he left the place and went to one of the temple halls along with Arkiv and Arman.
In Silva city's temple which is completely covered with rubble and almost destroyed, Sam saw some intricate inner mechanisms that could lead to something. An entrance, a defensive system, or something. But he didn't think much as he couldn't understand it too much because of its destroyed state.
At most he thought it was just normal secret storage or locker, just like the place they stored the weapon fragment.
After he came to the Central temple, he roamed around the temple for around fifteen days and set up many traps here by taking advantage of the architectural structures of the whole temple and in the process, he entered many small temple halls that are here.
The temple halls have various sculptors and engravings depicting many things. Some showing Nike's might, some showing her stories with Zeus and her devotion to him, and some showing the process of the temple construction.
But the one thing that made him interested the most is the exact replication of the temples.
The small temples within the temple grounds here are the same as the temples that are in the six cities.
The temple grounds are structured in such a way.
That there is one larger temple and six smaller temples surrounding the large one and some temple halls and other structures surrounding these six smaller temples.
At first, he didn't care much about the six smaller temples and the engravings on them. But now that he saw the temple in the Rata city, he understood the resemblance.
That is why he halted in his tracks to check some things in the temples and revelations astounded him and his friends.
Now that he learned these six smaller temples resemble the ones in the cities, he wants to see what he could find.
So, he went to the temple that looked similar to the one in the Rata city and started moving the statues and other things.
There are many secret levers and cogs that he moved and rearranged some.
Arman is sitting on the steps at the entrance with a saber as he looked at Donner who is meditating far away.
He is wary of him. Because the sounds coming from the temple are extremely loud and it would be weird if Donner didn't become curious.
After Sam worked for an hour or so, the whole setup moved and a secret door was opened which has stairs leading to an underground area.
When Sam entered, the tunnel which was completely dark was illuminated all of a sudden as the formation is activated.
When he entered the cave, there are some engravings of words and images all over.
He carefully read all of them and finally, he arrived at the large opening this place led them to.
Inside there is a book glowing brightly.
Sam picked the book up and looked into it.
RATA.
The word was written on the cover page. When he opened the book, there are a few lines on the first page.
"If you are not from the Rata branch of the feathered. This book has no use for you."
After some examining through the book which described a cultivation technique that he couldn't practice, he looked around in the room and finally found something. An engraving.
There are a few more words written there.
"This book is the property of the Rata branch of the feathered race.
This is the lost secret art of the race which was placed here by Nike. If you are here, then that means, you are not from the feathered race. Nike placed a curse on this world and this path can only be accessible by people that are not from the feathered race.
But this book has no use for you no matter who you are. It can only work in the hands of the Rata Feathered and the art can only be learned by them.
So, if you don't mind. Please hand this book over to them."
The plaque is destroyed and only pieces of it were left which compiled this message.
Sam was a bit confused. But he threw the book into his divine dimension and left.
He wanted to see if he can find out what is inside the other temples. But thought was bugging him.
If it was this easy to crack the code of the temple, why didn't the feathered race obtain this book earlier?
