The First Legendary Beast Master

"Well, it looks like my human form needs some work. But this is me without any transformation or disguise magic. I guess a few skills made some changes, and I never noticed, because I never look like this."

Dana looked him over and shrugged, "It's not bad. You still look like I remember, other than the eyes. But that beard. Who knew that it would keep growing while you were in another form?

That thing is definitely Dwarven, I've never seen a human who could grow a beard down to the middle of their chest."

The older Immortals laughed at her surprise. "That's fine too. Dwarves might be uncommon, but they're far from Rare in the Immortal Realm, including on this world.

You may get some strange looks as a Half Dwarf, especially from other Dwarves. They don't often marry humans. But as far as blending in goes, you should be fine.

Now, this is the training ground. If you step into the runic circle, it will activate barriers so that your skills don't travel out of the practice zone. It can and is also used for duels between trainees.

Try not to offend anyone the first day, the rules of the Clan are not forgiving.

Challenges that can't be settled with words are settled with blood in the training area. You are both new, and that grants a bit of protection, but only from those much more powerful than you.

Full members are not allowed to challenge trainees to a duel in the arena without an Elder's approval for their reason. It helps cut down on bullying, and increases our training success rate.

Not like some of the cultivation Sects, where it's a total free for all."

"What sort of clan is it?" Karl asked.

"We are a Merchant Clan. We train guards, assassins, mages, and the merchants themselves. I know that you have a crafting skill, and while we don't specialize in that here, it is still a relevant skill to a Merchant, and if you could produce a requested product overnight, many would respect your connections and efficiency.

That said, the easiest place to start is either as a domestic servant of the Clan, or a Guard Trainee.

I doubt that either of you is going to volunteer for domestic service, especially as you're married, and don't use a Succubus style technique to grow your power. Though that's likely secondary to the fact that Mortals tend to view themselves as above cleaning up after others when they have reached Immortality.

Many end up in that position eventually, but only after their spirit is broken, and they have learned how things really work.

So, we will place you with the influx of guard trainees that will be coming soon.

You are skilled fighters, right?"

Dana nodded. "Yes. I am a Mystic Blademaster by class, specializing in Golems and bladed combat. If it's about a Duel, I should be alright, as I have an advanced parrying skill."

Karl shrugged. "I might have mostly relied on my brute strength to keep me stronger than others in the Mortal World, but I have a fair number of skills specifically for combat.

However, I mostly specialize in training beasts, and large area damage. So, I'm not nearly as skilled at duels, I'm just very hard to injure."

The Immortal laughed, "That's a skill of its own. The one who can remain undamaged when others try to mess with them often does better than the one who can hit the hardest.

There are may who specialize in body enhancement related techniques and Fundamental Rules here.

In order to properly fight at the Immortal Rank, you will need to imbue the rules you understand into your attacks, and use them to overpower your opponent.

Fortunately, you both comprehended greater rules, so you have an advantage in that way. But Mana Manipulation is more of an assassin's tricky way of fighting than a brute force rule like crushing or destruction."

Rae laughed from her space. She was going to like this place. As soon as she managed to advance, she would definitely be working on some of those combat related Fundamental Rules she had never gained insight into before.

She had been quite confident in her skills before, but she could sense many dangerous creatures here. Both sentient and Immortal Rank mindless beasts.

It was a beautiful hunting ground.

"Could you tell us a bit more about the Immortal Realm? The Knowledge of this place is limited where we come from, and while I am told that there are Ranks among the immortals before they reach the status of Supreme, I don't know what they are." Karl asked.

"That's simple enough, and you'll learn it soon anyhow. The first step is Spirit Immortal, ones who have a complete Immortal Spirit, which will allow them to reincarnate even if their body is fully destroyed.

The second step is Void Immortal. To comprehend the void is to comprehend the true nature of mental discipline. To reach the peak of the Void Stage, the Immortal Spirit must be transformed.

For the Cultivation types, it's by meditation, for System Users, it can come in a hundred different ways. But the result is the same, the Immortal Spirit becomes something other than a ghostly presence.

After that is the Ascendant Immortals, ones who can solidify Immortal Energy, effectively creating a body within their body, and massively increasing their power.

It's not a simple doubling or progressive increase at that point. The further you are into Ascendance, the greater the exponential growth. Even if someone you meet has only touched on the basics of Ascendance, they will be far beyond your ability to deal with, no matter how well you are trained at the lower Ranks.

Then there are the True Immortals, or the Peak Immortals.

They have fully Ascended, and they are working on the nature of Supremacy, the complete dominance of the Immortal Realm. We won't get into that here, too many would love to know the secrets to reaching Peak Immortality, as I have.

But rest assured that the Clan Elders, the Ascended and Peak Immortal members, are not pushovers.

Welcome to the New Home Merchant Clan. We look forward to seeing your progress, young Immortals."