Chapter 76
Summary
It's 7 days before the rings in Joseph melts. Lisa Lisa reveals the Red Stone of Aja to Joseph and decides to tell him and Caesar the history behind it. The three Pillar Men are beings of unknown origin, though reports say they appeared in human history 5,000 years ago. They were the creators of the Stone Mask, a device they tested used on hundreds of thousands of humans as test subjects. The pillar men's primary goal was to wear the mask themselves, so they could withstand the sunlight. By doing so, they would become perfect life forms.
In another area, Kars is sitting at a table contemplating. He explains that the bone spikes of the stone mask can push human brains to their limits, but are unable to puncture the brains of themselves. Only by infusing a stone mask with a perfect red stone could they hope to advance. Apparently, the Roman emperor had such a stone long ago, which was now in the hands of Lisa Lisa.
Back at Venice,Lisa Lisa ,Joseph and Caesar are riding a boat back to Air Supplena Island. At this point, Lisa Lisa demonstrates the power of the stone by holding it up to the sun and charging it with the ripple. A beam shoots out from the stone and hits the boat, causing the rear end to explode. Lisa Lisa explains that the ripple warriors from long ago learned about the stone and the Pillar men's goal. After numerous battles, the clan was wiped out, but they managed to keep it safe. Joseph demands that they should simply break the stone, which would discontinue the Pillar Men's efforts. They are unable to do this however, as Lisa Lisa explains that there is a legend that states that destroying the red stone would make defeating the Pillar men more difficult. After finishing her explanation, the boat nears the island and she tells Joseph and Caesar to prepare for their final test.
Joseph walked down the path to the arena where his final test awaits. Both him and Caesar had spent 3 weeks training and now must fight their respective masters: Joseph vsLoggins, and Caesar vs Messina. The time is right before dawn and the sun is almost gone. Joseph enters the courtyard, only to find Loggins hat on the ground covered in blood and a mysterious figure standing on top of a statue. After focusing on the figure, Joseph realizes that their are two people and one of them is carrying the other with a single leg. The one impaled on the other's leg was the corpse of Loggins and the one who had killed him was none other than the Pillar man, Esidisi.
