novelsmap Chapter 406 - 354: An Audience with Great Elder Gu and Residency Rights in the Giant City-State
Chapter 406 - 354: An Audience with Great Elder Gu and Residency Rights in the Giant City-State
Kado turned around and asked the Giant Warrior, looking a little embarrassed.
"Um... can I bring my brother with me?"
The Giant Warrior followed his gaze to Raylo.
He didn’t think much of it. The world of Giants didn’t have the same strict, hierarchical rules as human society. Besides, the Great Elder had always been kind and wouldn’t bother with such trivial matters.
"Yes."
He nodded.
Having received his confirmation, Kado excitedly waved at Raylo.
Crossing a massive plaza and walking down streets paved with single blocks of stone, Raylo and Kado followed the warrior to a towering stone spire at the very center of the Giant City-State.
The tower looked as if it had grown directly from the earth, carved from a single, monolithic block of stone. Its surface was covered in ancient, time-worn patterns, and it radiated a vast, profound aura.
The inside of the tower was a world of its own, the space far vaster than it appeared from the outside.
The top of the tower was open to the sky. Sunlight poured down, illuminating the figure before them.
He was a truly ancient Giant. His skin was like cracked rock, etched with deep ravines, and his white beard hung to his chest, woven into several thick braids.
Though ancient, his frame was still immense and powerful. Just by sitting there, he gave off the illusion that he was one with the mountain range itself.
’This must be the Great Elder of the Hill Giants, Gu.’
"Great Elder."
The warrior who had led them bowed respectfully before retreating to the side.
Gu’s slightly cloudy eyes slowly opened. His gaze fell first on Kado, then shifted to Raylo beside him.
When his gaze swept over Moonlight, feigning sleep on Raylo’s shoulder with its paws tucked in, and the curious Coal Ball, who was looking all around, a faint ripple seemed to stir in his otherwise placid eyes.
’It seems cats don’t exist in this world.’
A flicker of doubt crossed Gu’s mind, but he didn’t dwell on it. His voice, like a great bell, resounded within the tower.
"Kado, I saw your fight."
Kado tensed and straightened his back.
"Very good."
Gu’s praise was simple and direct.
"Your combat skills are excellent, especially your ability to fuse your Domain Power with your fighting techniques. You are a Giant who thinks. That is good."
Hearing praise from the Great Elder himself, Kado was so excited his face flushed red, and he didn’t know what to do with his enormous hands.
"Unleash your Domain. Let me see it," Grand Elder Gu continued.
"Yes!"
Kado took a deep breath. With a mere thought, an invisible force field spread out from him.
Raylo felt the air suddenly grow heavy, as if an immense weight had been dropped on his shoulders.
The dust inside the tower ceased to swirl, firmly pressed to the ground by a powerful force.
Gu felt it quietly and nodded.
"A Gravity Domain... Pure, and very powerful. It is indeed one of the most suitable types of Domain Power for us Giants."
As he spoke, Gu slowly raised a single finger and said to Kado,
"Use your Domain. Attack me with your full strength."
Kado took a deep breath and hesitated no longer.
His eyes narrowed as he poured his entire focus into his Domain.
"HRAA!"
With a thunderous shout, he pushed the power of his Gravity Domain to its absolute limit.
A terrifying pressure, like the sky itself collapsing, crushed down upon Grand Elder Gu!
Yet Gu merely sat there. Faced with a force that could flatten a mountain, he simply extended his wrinkled finger and tapped lightly at the air before him.
There was no earth-shattering impact, no explosion of energy.
Kado felt his Domain Power was like a stream flowing into a boundless ocean—instantly dissolved, neutralized, and gone without a trace.
It was as if the terrifying pressure from moments ago had been nothing but an illusion.
Kado stood frozen, his face a mask of utter disbelief.
"Your Power is sufficient, but its application is too crude."
Gu said, casually waving a hand.
A piece of rubble at Kado’s feet suddenly floated up, defying all logic. An invisible force then squeezed it inward, twisting and contorting it until, with a soft *POOF*, it disintegrated into the finest dust.
His tone shifted, his voice growing serious.
"Your application of the Domain is still too rudimentary. You only use it to ’crush,’ to enhance your own Power and suppress your enemies. That is the most superficial way to use it."
The excitement on Kado’s face faded, replaced by a look of intense concentration as he absorbed the lesson.
"You must remember, a Domain is the fledgling form of a law. Developed to its peak, it is the key to your ascension to the Heavenly Disaster level."
Gu’s voice was filled with boundless wisdom.
"Gravity isn’t just about ’crushing.’ It can ’pull,’ ’twist,’ ’repel,’ and even ’fold.’ When you throw a punch, Gravity can accelerate your fist. When an enemy attacks, Gravity can distort their trajectory. Why not try making the Gravity beneath an enemy’s feet suddenly vanish, causing them to lose their balance? Why not try using Repulsive Force to fling yourself away when you need to dodge?"
Every word from the Great Elder was like a heavy hammer, striking Kado’s very soul.
He felt as if a brand-new door was slowly opening before him, revealing a vast world beyond his wildest imagination.
’So... this is how you can use a Domain!’
"Thank you for your guidance, Great Elder!"
Kado’s eyes lit up instantly, as if a bolt of lightning had pierced the fog in his mind.
Grand Elder Gu’s few words and simple demonstration had elevated Kado’s understanding of his Domain Power to an entirely new level.
He could vaguely feel himself touching the barrier that had been holding back his progress.
Seeing Kado lost in thought, on the verge of an epiphany, Raylo knew his moment had come.
He stepped forward and bowed to Gu on the stone throne.
"Respected Great Elder, my name is Carlo. I am Kado’s brother."
Gu’s gaze shifted from Kado to Raylo.
"My brother and I hope to settle down in the Giant City-State."
Raylo said with calm confidence.
"Kado has found a path forward here. I wish to stay to accompany and support him on his journey."
His words were sincere and got straight to the point.
Everything was for the sake of Kado, a young Giant with immense potential.
Gu watched him quietly, his murky eyes betraying no emotion.
After a long moment, a faint smile touched Grand Elder Gu’s majestic, mountain-like face.
"The Hill Giants never turn away their own kin. There is an unused stone house in the city’s East District. Tidy it up, and you may live there."
A flicker of joy went through Raylo, and he bowed again.
"Thank you for your generosity, Great Elder."
’A stable base of operations, just like that.’
When they came out of the tower, Ug and his companions were waiting outside. The moment he saw Kado, a wide grin spread across his rugged face.
"How did it go, Kado? What did the Great Elder say?"
Ug’s booming voice rang out as he strode forward and clapped a hand the size of a cattail fan onto Kado’s shoulder.
Kado was still lost in his newfound understanding of Domain Power. The slap brought him back to his senses, an irrepressible excitement still on his face.
"The Great Elder... he showed me the path forward."
"I knew it!"
Ug broke into a wide grin.
"Just look at you! I can tell you gained a lot. Next time we spar, don’t just slam me to the ground in one move, alright?"
Raylo spoke up from the side.
"The Great Elder gave us permission to stay in the Giant City-State."
Ug’s smile grew even wider, genuinely happy for his friends.
"That’s fantastic! Really, that’s great! Now I can come visit you often!"
The market’s trading had concluded, and it was time for Ug and his group to return to their tribe.
The group said their goodbyes. Kado and Ug pounded each other on the chest, promising to meet again.
Watching Ug and his companions’ retreating figures, Raylo said,
"Come on. Let’s go see our new home."
「The East District of the Giant City-State.」
The roads were as wide as riverbeds, and the buildings on either side loomed like silent cliffs, casting immense shadows.
The stone house the Great Elder had mentioned was easy to find. It was in the most remote part of the East District, a simple structure of stacked boulders.
It had no distinguishing features. Its only real quality was its size—it was large enough to house several more Giants without feeling crowded.