In another part of the city, a group of men was moving quickly.
In the middle of them, a blonde young man was advancing with a frown in his face.
It was Gerald, the city lord's son.
"How long until we reach her?" Gerald asked.
"Five minutes, young master. Don't worry, I left two of my men watching her." One of the men replied.
Gerald nodded.
When the city lord learned that Liu Ying had separated from Bloed and Regina, he instantly sent some of his men to catch her under Gerald lead.
Gerald and his father could not believe that an opportunity like this had come. They had already almost given up on getting the demigod artifact, but this opportunity fell from the sky.
But Gerald was a bit nervous. He was still not sure about this operation. However, his father told him last night that Bloed was most probably not related to any known demigod.
Of course, there was the possibility of him being mistaken or Bloed using a fake surname, but his father was just one step away from becoming a demigod himself. With that artifact, he had a high chance of becoming a demigod.
Although he would antagonize an A-Rank practitioner to get it, the city lord thought that the opportunity was worth taking the risk.
While Gerald was thinking about the plan in his mind, one of the people in their group stopped abruptly.
Gerald was startled. He looked back only to realized that it was Sara.
Strangely, she had turned completely pale.
"What happened?"
"… My sister. I lost contact with the people guarding her. Wait a moment, I'll contact someone nearby!"
Sara grabbed a communication stone put mana into it, but thirty seconds later, she stumbled back in fear.
"… They are dead… The people guarding Gina are dead, and she is not there!"
Gerald wrinkled his brows. 'Damn it, at this timing!'
"No, something happened to her!" Sara said with an anxious look. "I must go back!"
"Sara!"
"I'm sorry, young master, but my sister is first!" Sara said firmly. For some reason, she thought about the dream her sister told her a few days ago.
'The shadows…'
Sara had a bad feeling. Her instincts were warning her that she must do something before it's too late.
But when she was about to leave–
"Sara, I forbid you from leaving!" Gerald ordered coldly.
Sara's scowled. She looked at Gerald with so much killing intent that he turned pale and took a step back.
However, he knew he could not let her go.
"Sara, you are an important part of this plan! You must stay! Besides, even if you go, how are you going to find your ister!?"
Sara ignored him. She turned around and ran in direction of her sister.
But–
"If you leave, my family will stop supplying the medicines for Gina!"
These words froze her in her steps.
It was the reason Sara was working for the city lord. Because the city lord was the only one with the channels to supply the medicine her sister needed.
Sara could manage to get the medicine one of two months by herself, but eventually, she would fail to get it. The city lord, on the other hand, had the resources and means to get the medicine each month.
Seeing that Sara stopped, Gerald sighed in relief.
"… I'm sorry Sara, but I can't let you go. However, I can send two B-Rank men to check the situation. If something truly happened to Gina, they will manage."
Sara bit her lips. Her instincts were screaming to her that something was wrong. She wanted badly to go to find her sister.
However, her reason was telling her that Gerald's way was the best way.
At that moment, she recalled the dream of her sister.
'Could it be...? Yes, that is possible…'
In the end, she bit her lips and gritted her teeth.
"… I understand."
"Wise choice." Gerald sighed in relief and patted Sara's back. He then signaled something to two of the B-Ranks in his team.
With a nod, the two men departed towards the place where Sara left Gina.
As for Gerald's group, they continued towards Liu Ying's location.
…
Liu Ying felt her blood boiling. Every time she threw a punch, something inside her body seemed to awaken.
The blood, the screams, and the roars in the surroundings combined to create an atmosphere of danger and fear. She could see how many of the people around her fell under the fangs and claws of the monsters, and at the same time, she reaped the lives of all the beasts around her.
Many of the people that were beside her when the battle started had died. Liu Ying saw how the old guard that teased her not long ago had his head bitten by a bird. He also saw how a young mage was taken into the air before his body was torn apart.
However, she continued fighting. Her punches always found a target, her gloves gave her strength to defeat her enemies, and her armor protected her from the monsters' attacks.
Every time an enemy's attack was stopped by her armor, Liu Ying could not help but think about Bloed. She wondered if he was alright and how he was doing now. Was his situation as tough as hers?
Liu Ying did not know, and she did not have the leisure to think about it.
Because the monsters were becoming more and more.
She could feel some very powerful auras around her. The strongest powerhouses of the city were trying to kill the A-Rank monsters while the A-Rank monsters killed the adventurers nearby.
More than once, Liu Ying felt the A-Rank monsters moving near her and killing people in her surroundings. But fortunately, she was never attacked.
At that moment, Liu Ying saw a small girl cowering nearby.
The young girl of honey-colored hair was squatting on the ground looking at the monsters in fear. At the same time, she was looking around as though searching for someone.
And suddenly, her eyes met Liu Ying's.
The girl's eyes brightened.
'Gina?' Liu Ying was surprised, but suddenly, one of the monsters noticed the defenseless girl.
*Screech!* The eagle-type monster screamed in delight. It extended its talons to grab the young girl.
Gina's face paled.
Liu Ying, however, was not going to allow it.
"I will not let you!"
With a cry, she kicked the ground. Her body broke through the sound barrier for an instant, and she appeared in front of Gina.
Then, taking a deep breath, she tensed her body like a bow and finally, released a punch.
*Boom!*
The powerful punch turned the eagle into bits of flesh that rained in the surroundings.
Liu Ying panted heavily. Although she managed to kill the eagle, she burdened heavily her body.
But when she turned around to scold the honey-haired girl, she saw a pair of eyes looking straight to her.
"Sister Liu Ying, I finally found you! We need to hurry up, Bloed and you are in danger!"