Oli didn't have much time to think. He was being pressured nonstop by the baboons slowly closing in on him.
He always changed directions seemingly at random and did his best to obstruct their path using the underbrush, but his pursuers handled it all without too many issues. They all had reached the first level of cultivation.
When they first started to chase him, he thought he should try to head deeper into the valley but not aiming for the center.
Oli thought that he may be able to scare them off due to the threat that revealed itself to everyone earlier, but he also didn't want to get near it if he didn't have to. His reasoning was simple.
What's more dangerous? Three clear opponents a level higher than him that sought his doom or a supreme beast that would view him as less than an ant and may not bother to even glance his way? Oli was betting on the latter.
After five minutes of chase, he was only a couple dozen krin in front of the baboons, with them gaining on him.
The once excited baboons now had faces of anxiousness and worry. They had expected to quickly capture Oli and drag him back to Zetro with pride because the one who caught him would be guaranteed one of the gorilla's mortal cores. To their dismay, they only felt frustration and the target of that frustration was this tiny ape.
One of them began calling out to him, "Hey, little buddy! No need to run. We just want to talk. All of us juniors can't do much here on the battlefield, so we just wanted some company is all."
"Yeah!" another joined in, "Besides, this place is dangerous. You should stick with us. We'll look out for each other."
"You've got to be careful out here, yeah? Who knows what you might run into? It's much safer with us big bros. We'll take good care of you," the third finally added his two cents.
This back and forth continued for quite some time but Oli never once responded. He had his goal in mind and wouldn't let anything stop him from escaping. Oli trusted in the strength of Rathe and his father, but he didn't know if he could last long enough for them to save him.
"Hey, little bro. Let's head back, it's dangerous out here."
"Your parents are probably worried, too."
"Hey brat!" one finally snapped, "Hurry over here! We gotta take you back. You want to see mommy and daddy, right? Well if you don't hurry back you may never see them again!"
"Yo kid! We're gonna be in trouble if we don't bring you back. You don't want that right? Come on," the others gave in to impatience as well.
Oli became even more tense, trying to tap into more latent potential in the face of danger. With all the effort he could muster, his pace quickened as he zoomed through the jungle with all his might. His body was already at its limits, if he ran for much longer, he could very well collapse from overexertion.
ROOOOOOOOOAAAAAARRRRR!!!
A blaring roar flew past their ears and shock stabbed into each of their hearts. All of a sudden, a bright red fireball came into view.
Trembling, they all came to an immediate halt. The fireball melted away their hope to survive as is sped towards them.
Bracing for impact, the three baboons fell to the ground cowering behind each other. Oli just stood there leaving it all to fate. His fur started to singe as the blazing fireball flew just past him and crash-landed in a plume of flame between him and the now pitiful baboons.
A few moments of heavy breathing passed as those baboons peeked out to see Oli on the other side of a massive crater, covered in burnt fur.
Terrified, they had hoped he would have at least died from the blast. But to their astonishment, he turned and ran towards the fireball's origin. Their eyes welled up, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. They would fail their only task if they gave up the chase, but they would surely lose their lives if they continued. Reluctantly, they turned around and made their way back. They had no desire to be anywhere near this place.
Oli looked back with a smile on his face as he finished distancing himself with the vanishing baboons. He sat down against a tree and took his time to gather his breath and thoughts. "Finally! I almost passed out from exhaustion and fright from that fireball. But why did the fireball come from over here? I thought the expert was at the valley's center… "
"Brak… you'll never… while I'm…"
In the stillness, Oli heard someone talking far off but couldn't make out what they were saying. He assumed it must be that expert looking for something perhaps.
"… Trada, give it up… you know that…"
Hearing the second voice sparked curiosity in Oli, because if that was the expert even Rathe was afraid of, who on earth would be willing to face them? He thought to himself, "Well if they're busy talking… maybe I could sneak a peek at them. I may never have a chance to witness such experts again."
Oli still didn't have a core or the ability to sense other cultivators' auras. If he did, he never would have been able to convince himself to run this way.