Chapter 94: The Grand Camp of Two Sects

Casually strolling through the forest, An suddenly turned his head toward a shadow cast by the intersecting branches.

"Stop right there!"

Suddenly, a voice came from that very shadow.

'Hmm? He's practically paralyzed with fear just from seeing me... Looks like they've already run into demonic groups.'

"Stopping." An halted and raised his hands in the air.

"W-what are you doing?" Seeing the suspicious young man raise his hands, a wary, uncertain voice came from the shadow.

"Oh? You said stop, so I stopped. And if you're asking about my hands... I'm showing you I'm unarmed." An turned his head and looked directly into the shadow where someone was hiding. 'Cultivation at only the eighth layer of Qi Condensation... He's one of the meat shields? Surviving this long, not bad... And judging by the information from his Qi, he's about my age, maybe a bit older.'

"H-how did you find me? Huh?! Are you using demonic tricks?! Answer me!" Seeing the cultivator turn his head and look directly at him, his voice tightened like a bowstring, ready to snap at any moment.

"Um... First: I can hear where your voice is coming from because you're not using any concealment technique. Second: what makes you think I'm from the Demonic Path?" Tilting his head slightly, An nearly rolled his eyes. 'Even if cultivators below the Golden Core can't see Qi flows, they can still sense demonic energy due to its specific characteristics. Essentially, as Elder Shoa explained: only Qi programmed to physically alter reality is visible to cultivators because of the concept of environmental change. At the same time, Qi that returns to its origins, existing in harmony with the environment, doesn't need visual representation. In other words, a cultivator using a technique changes and disrupts the structure of Qi, making it visible to others, unlike the neutral Qi in the environment, which is essentially part of the world itself and exists in harmony with everything.'

'...Only cultivators who have begun to delve deeper into the study of Qi, who have grasped the next layer of Qi itself, starting from the Golden Core, can truly sense Qi and interact with it...'

"Hey! I'm the one asking questions here!" Just as he began to get angry and was about to step out of the shadow, he was interrupted by a voice.

"You're not a demonic follower. Judging by your robes, you're from the Heavenly Soul Sect. What are you doing here?" A girl with black hair and green eyes appeared on the branches. With a cold, detached gaze, she examined him from head to toe.

'Ho? Isn't that the Arrogant Lady? What was her name... Lia Kult? Hmm... Early ninth layer, not bad... Almost two years ago, during the alchemy tournament, her cultivation was at the sixth layer, if I remember correctly...' Looking at her, An pondered and let her question go in one ear and out the other. 'If I think about it, Elder Shoa said it would take me about ten years to go from the fifth layer to Foundation Establishment. And somehow, everyone around me is cultivating way too fast... It took me almost three years to break through to Foundation Establishment. Mo Fan is already at the peak of the eighth layer, and his circle isn't far behind... Even that coward in the shadow is clearly younger than Lia Kult and already has eighth-layer cultivation...'

"Hey? Can you hear me? What's with the silence?" She wrinkled her nose, seeing the young man ignore her.

'Maybe he wasn't just talking about cultivation, maybe the fact that breaking through to Foundation Establishment depends on pills and techniques. You're tied to the Sect in that process, and without their permission, you can't break through to the next realm… You could try, but your chances are almost zero. Especially after I went through the process myself. For cultivators who can't see Qi and haven't studied it deeply, such a breakthrough would almost certainly end in failure... Even though the old woman talked about the chances of breaking through alone without pills, without elder assistance, it's all nonsense...'

'So Elder Shoa was right: reaching the peak of the ninth layer took almost three years in my case. Accumulating contribution points and building connections... Essentially, for years, you have to lick everyone's boots just to get a chance at that pill... Absolutely grim.'

"Hey! Did you fall asleep there?" Standing on the branches, Lia Kult was growing uneasy from the silence and placed her hand on her belt, ready to draw her sword at any moment.

Finally paying attention to her, An looked up again. "Hmm? Oh! My apologies."

Smiling slightly, he continued, "To be honest with you, I'm not sure what you mean by 'here'. I was just walking forward, heading toward the Central Ring."

Hearing his answer, the guy in the shadow couldn't hold back. "Miss Lia, I think he's lying! No! Not just think, I'm sure he's lying!" Shouting, he nearly fell off the branches, making a lot of noise as broken twigs and falling leaves rained down.

'Judging by her emotions, she's not aggressive, just wary...' Looking at her, An didn't forget to monitor the Qi flows emanating from her body.

"How do you know which direction to go?" Taking a step forward, she stepped onto a branch closer to him.

"When I was still on the ship, approaching the Sacred Land, one of my brothers showed me a map of this place. Knowing the map and sensing the increasing concentration of demonic energy, I moved forward... Though just going by concentration alone would be very difficult." Smiling, he scratched the back of his head.

"Why did that disciple show you the map?" Frowning slightly, she kept her hand on her sword hilt.

"Not entirely sure. I think out of guilt? We had a conflict once. That disciple apologized and also showed me the map. Oh, and yes, that disciple is part of a core disciple's support group..." An decided not to go into details. Besides, he wanted to end this interrogation quickly. He was getting tired of it. 'Maybe I shouldn't have come out to them... I could have just hidden in some cave. Sigh...'

Suddenly, Lia Kult looked at him differently. "I remember you now. You were an assistant at the Alchemy Tournament. You served several participants, including me... What's your name?" Remembering that they had met before, and that this was territory controlled by the Heavenly Soul Sect, one of the Four Alliance members, she exhaled, finally relaxing a little.

"Hu Yu. My name is Hu Yu." An just smiled innocently.

Hearing his response, rather blunt and impolite, without any pleasantries toward his conversation partner, without even a hint of respect, Lia Kult frowned, realizing this young man's clan was likely not of noble standing.

Snorting, she turned toward the shadow in the branches. "Escort him to the main camp, show him around, and don't forget to tell him the rules."

With that, she didn't even glance at An. Leaping from branch to branch, she pulled out a flying sword and soared into the air, disappearing into the thick foliage.

'Did she just get offended? Was she expecting me to praise her for her great memory or something?' Without changing his neutral expression, An looked toward the trees. "Are you going to stay in the shadows? Weren't you told to lead and show me around?"

Without waiting for a reply, he slowly headed toward the main camp.

"H-hey! W-wait!" Seeing this insolent man just walk past without waiting for him, the cultivator in the shadow jumped to the ground and blocked his path.

The guy had a foolish face and a huge body, but was very short. Dark hair, brown eyes, wearing white robes with a single black dragon pattern.

Looking An up and down, he scratched his head. "Ahem! Follow me!" Turning, he slowly led him along a winding path toward the main camp.

"By the way, what did you say your name was, Hua Wua? Hmm... Whatever! Listen up! Since you're an outsider, you have to follow our rules! Don't get involved in other people's fights! Don't start your own! Follow orders given to you! Don't you dare ignore orders given to you! When you see core disciples from both Sects in our camp, show them proper respect! And don't forget, you're just... an outsider here, so behave appropriately in any situation! Got it?! Of course you do, why wouldn't you!" Walking and shouting through the forest, startling small birds, the short cultivator continued reciting rules he was clearly making up on the spot, all while waving his spear, which was nearly twice as long as he was.

….

In a massive cave, about twenty cushions were laid out across the floor near the exit, arranged in different spots with plenty of space between them due to the enormous size of the cavern.

"She's back." The air had been boiling with discussion around a large table surrounded by many disciples. But upon hearing the words of the cultivator at the head of the table, everyone fell silent.

Entering the cave and slowly making her way through the cushions toward the table, Lia Kult nodded to a few of the disciples.

If An had seen who was present in this cave, he would have recognized some of them.

"Miss Lia, what was the matter?" Asked the cultivator at the head of the table with a pleasant smile, his golden eyes fixed intently on her.

"A disciple from the Heavenly Soul Sect. He wandered into our camp by accident. He said he'd seen a map and was following it toward the Central Ring." Saying this, she slowly approached the table and took her rightful place.

"Ho? How did he wander here... And who is he anyway?" Crossing her arms over her chest, a girl with faintly visible tattoos starting at her neck and extending downward, judging by her low-cut top and rolled-up sleeves, her entire body was likely covered in them.

"He said his name was Hu Yu... As for how he wandered here... Honestly, I completely forgot to ask about that." She suddenly remembered that because of his strange behavior, which had thrown her off completely, she had forgotten to ask how he'd ended up all alone.

"So, Miss Lia, all you know is his name... What if he's a spy sent by the Demonic Sects?" Frowning, the cultivator at the head of the table looked at her with a piercing gaze. His smile vanished instantly.

"Eleo May. He's not a spy. I can guarantee that. A few years ago, I met him during the Four Nights Festival. And I'm certain he's not a spy." Without looking away, she met his eyes, not backing down for a moment.

"Enough! It doesn't matter. Even if he is a spy, so what? Their successful reconnaissance already tells them where we are and how many of us remain! What we need right now is to figure out a plan that will get us to the central ring without significant losses!" Interrupting them all, a cultivator with white hair tipped with gold and golden eyes leaned on the table and pointed at a map laid out before them.

"Ruste Zen is right. We should focus on what's truly important right now." One of the cultivators in blue robes, with a rough voice and a broad frame, clearly a body cultivator, supported Ruste Zen, seeing no point in focusing on the topic of some stray spy.

"Khm, Junior Brother Ruste is right. Then let's return to what truly matters now." With a warm smile returning to his face, Eleo May nodded toward Ruste Zen and turned his gaze to the map. At the same time, an imperceptible coldness flashed through his eyes. 'Upstart from a dead clan... Give me a moment, and I'll bury your corpse in the ground where your family has long been waiting for you...'

Hearing himself called ‘Junior Brother’, Ruste Zen frowned, taking it as an insult. <"This Eleo clan heir is clearly plotting something. Be careful around him."> Hearing the old man's voice in his head, Zen nodded slightly and, calming down, unconsciously touched the ring on his hand.

.

"After two intense clashes with demonic groups, we've lost over a quarter of our people... If we don't decide which path to take and keep sitting here, we might face an attack from their main force." The body cultivator in blue robes took a deep breath, exhaustion and hatred evident in his voice.

"Brother Saua is right. If they decide to attack, the battle will be at least one against two, not in our favor..." The tattooed girl looked at Brother Saua and nodded.

"Those damn dolls made from dead bodies... And those monks with their coordinated battle formations..." One of the cultivators at the table frowned, clenching his fists until they cracked.

Remembering how they had endured both attacks, rows of dead puppets marching toward them, feeling neither fear nor pain. How just fifty demonic followers had inflicted devastating losses on them.

Everyone at the table fell silent, understanding they were in a very difficult position.

"What about the other group? The Heavenly Soul Sect and Primordial Purity Sect?" Finally, Eleo May broke the silence with a question.

"Not long ago, they managed to send a message that due to certain circumstances, they were forced to split into two groups. One is moving toward us and will arrive in less than a day. The second group decided to stick to the original plan and is heading toward the prearranged meeting point, where they'll wait for us." Leaning on the edge of the table, a girl with white wavy hair tipped in black that covered her face and piercing red eyes, wearing leather clothing that stretched and revealed every curve with every movement, adjusted the massive double-sided axe strapped to her back, speaking in a bored, lazy voice.

"Haa? You couldn't have said this earlier? Because of your silence, we've wasted so much time!" One of the cultivators with patterns of three red dragons on his white robes immediately flared up, throwing a furious look at her.

"What? Did anyone ask me? You can't get a word in around here... Pfft!" Lazily looking at him with a frown, she spat on the floor directly at his feet.

"How dare you! You goddamn whore's daughter!" Some of the spit had landed on his shoe. Seeing this, he immediately boiled over and, with a reddened face, shouted.

He activated his Qi and, with one motion, drew two short swords from his ring, shrouding them in Fire Qi.

"I'll tear out your tongue! Filth!" The moment she heard the mention of her mother, she lunged toward him in a single motion, already swinging her massive axe through the air.

BOOM!

Both had attacked with pure physical force, without techniques, and upon impact, they both felt something was wrong. The sensation of contact was too strange. With dust and debris rising, they didn't immediately realize what was happening. Both tried to swing again but found their weapons held in place.

"Who?!"

"What?"

As the dust finally settled, they saw Ruste Zen gripping both weapons by their blades with his bare hands. With a calm expression and no sign of discomfort, he had caught both weapons shrouded in their Qi.

'He stopped my attack with just one hand?' They both thought the same thing simultaneously.

.

"Who would have thought, only at the eighth layer, yet already matching physical strength with Dego Two Strikes?"

"He stopped Senior Sister Nea's sword... She's almost at the peak of the ninth layer... And her attack was effortlessly stopped with one hand!"

"This is what it means to be the Seed of the Sect and the personal disciple of the former Sect Leader!"

Everyone around, seeing this, was amazed. At this table stood the best of the best, core disciples, or those on equal footing with them. The very top of two Sects, their future. And seeing Ruste Zen effortlessly stop the attacks of two geniuses who were a full cultivation layer above him, only one word came to mind: Super-genius. A talent definitely not seen in a millennium.

<"Well done, boy. You need to show them what you're capable of, to win them to our side."> Hearing the old man's voice in his head, Ruste Zen replied, <"Thank you, Master!">

"Well, have you calmed down now?" Releasing both weapons, Zen looked from one to the other.

"Hmph! Don't get cocky! And you! This isn't over!" In a hoarse, cracking voice, Dego Two Strikes put both short swords back into his ring and returned to the table.

"Hmm, listen, you're not bad you know. Enough strength... And your face is even quite something." Stepping closer to him, Senior Sister Nea lightly touched his chin with her fingers and looked into his eyes. "And your eyes, very captivating... I'm Nea Emmia. But you can call me Best Sister Nea, or Beloved Sister Nea, or even Lovely Emmia... With a face and eyes like yours, you can call me anything you want…" Without releasing his chin, she continued staring into his eyes, admiring them.

"Sigh... She's at it again..."

"That strange, even frightening, personality of hers..."

"Yep, her personality is the embodiment of her dominant Water and Fireelements..."

"Quiet, you! Or she'll start smashing everything again!"

The cultivators, brothers and sisters of Nea Emmia from the Five Sacred Lives Sect, who knew her and her character well, seeing her invade someone's personal space without any qualms, didn't even seem surprised. They were long accustomed to such things.