"I'm not exactly sure, but east it is, I guess".
Without further ado, he leaped into the sky and flew into the night. The fierce rain didn't diminish in the slightest and continued to pour heavily.
It was to the point that whatever had been the original outlook of those corpses could no longer be discovered if one were to look at it now.
Almost like the heavens were trying to keep it a secret, apart from who it was originally intended for.
As for the origin of those corpses and how they came to be like that, Larson didn't know and quite frankly, he didn't intend to bother knowing.
He had a vague feeling that he was somewhat responsible for their deaths. Perhaps he had killed them directly.
No matter.
Even if he killed them, he didn't feel the need to dwell on the situation. After all, they were already dead, and feeling puzzled and regretful would do nothing to change that.
As for if he truly felt anything towards their deaths, only the heavens would know.
The heavy rain continued to fall under the darkness of night, but the area didn't stay calm for long. After some time had passed, a group of silhouettes suddenly appeared far away.
These silhouettes, if looked closely upon, were actually people. All of them rode on horses as they galloped under the heavy rain, their faces covered in darkness.
The horses rode forward until they appeared in Lars previous location. Drawing to a halt, a figure dismounted from his horse and walked towards the multiple corpses on the floor.
The figure belonged to a female with a solemn expression as she surveyed the area. She wore tight-fitting purple robes and her large-sized chest area had a logo embroidered on it alongside the word 'Li'.
From this, it was clear to see that she had relations with the group of dead bodies before her.
After a few minutes of inspection, she turned around with an ugly expression.
"Dead! They're all dead. Not only that, they died in cruel and horrifying ways. Not one of them had a complete corpse".
As soon as she finished her words, the others who had ridden here with her all had grave expressions.
Although they had expected such a thing, the fact that they were murdered so brutally had shocked them.
"Every single member of the scouting team is dead? How unsightly".
"I agree. Elder Li Futian's party was either extremely unlucky or they were deliberately targeted".
"How can this be a possibility of bad luck? Those responsible for this tore the majority of them limb from limb. This is definitely a planned attack, probably by the other tribes".
"There is still the possibility that this was the work of a terrifying beast. At this point, it can't be casually dismissed".
The group of men and women conversed together as they took in the frightful scene. Some even took in some audible gulps that were drowned out by the rain due to the brutality.
It couldn't be helped, even for some shrewd ones among them.
The dismounted female didn't say anything else apart from that. She turned her attention to a male figure wearing dark robes and stood at the forefront of the group.
With traces of white among his head full of hair, his cold eyes didn't show a trace of emotion as he looked at the scene.
"How many are responsible?" Drops of rain fell from his hair that was curled up into a small ponytail with a pin through it, and the rainwater dribbling down his face made him look a little scary.
His hoarse voice sounded for the first time in a solemn tone yet the fury within could not be concealed.
"....... F-from what I could find…. It looks like… Just one". The female said hesitantly. She hesitated even more before finally opening her mouth.
"Furthermore, I couldn't find any tracks leading elsewhere. Judging from the movements, it seems as if the target just... disappeared". The female said, her voice getting lower at the end.
Everyone's expressions morphed. It looked like they took in a mouthful of dog food while some let out exclamations of disbelief.
This news was too shocking.
For one person to wipe out elder Li's hunting party, how tragic. However, no one uttered any words rejecting the notion, as they had already expected something like this.
The black robed elder narrowed his eyes and looked backward. Not just him, all the few dozen horse riders turned their heads to look at a certain direction.
About a few days ago, there was a terrifying earthquake that had rattled all the Aurora kingdom. Days later, the news had spread that an ancient ruin had appeared at the edge of the kingdom's border and the outermost edge of the Ever dark forest.
The appearance of such a ruin had spread like wildfire through multiple leaks, making the Aurora royal family unable to contain this news, no matter how hard they tried.
The value and importance was a colossal matter that could lead each kingdom to go to war with each other to secure the riches within.
The benefits to be gained could raise the strength of any kingdom by several levels if grasped right.
So, when the other kingdoms learned about such a development, any sane person could guess what happened next. Under the threat of the baring fangs of three different kingdoms, the Aurora royal family was forced to make a concession.
They opened the restricted area to the public by controlling how many spots each kingdom as well as different powers could obtain. This was already as far as their bottom line would reach.
After all, the strength of three kingdoms ganging up against one was no laughing matter.
Their Li tribe had been one of the few forces who were given a few quotas for exploration. However, they weren't exploring alone, but were going to be merged along with various other tribes as part of the royal family's exploration army.
Elder Li Futian, one of the core members within the Li tribe, was given the task to go ahead of them to confirm their place within the exploration.
However, they soon received news that the entire few dozen team members had already been wiped out, unable to reach their destination.
This news was brought to them by the only surviving member of the party, which was now the focus of their attention.
At the center of the team as a pitch-black horse, on which sat a young woman who looked to be in her mid-twenties. Feeling the attention of many elder level gazes in her body, she couldn't help but shiver slightly.
"Looks like she wasn't wrong in her report". The blacked robed elder said, the fury had transformed to gloominess. Originally, everyone had been skeptical when she said that a single person had slaughtered the entire task team.
Although Elder Futian wasn't the strongest among them, he was still a genuine Third level Qi Spirit realm warrior. If a ranking was created in the tribe, he was good enough to reach the upper middle level. More importantly, he was just a few months away from clocking fifty.
It could be said that his talent was high enough to make him highly valued. The black robed elder himself was a fourth Level Qi Spirit warrior, yet he had already surpassed a hundred and fifty years in age.
If the entire team had been slaughtered, then how was she, the weakest one among them, the only person that survived?
However, her words were basically confirmed now.
"You remember the appearance of the one who did this, right?" The black robed elder asked coldly. The fact that the Li tribe's escort team had fallen was a blow to their tribes' strength.
They had lost several Qi Spirit realm warriors in a row, and all at the hands of one person. This not only weakened their strength, it was also a slap to their face.
Numerous Qi Spirit warriors, with the strongest at the third level. This was only possible if someone was at the Fourth Level Qi Spirit realm.
In such a desolate area with poor resources, the resources required to raise a Qi Spirit warrior was astounding. They weren't called the backbone of every single force for nothing, and losing several of them in a row was enough to severely sting.
If other tribes learned of this matter, then their Li tribe would definitely have to go through several years of suppression from their enemies.
The female nodded heavily. Even if her memory was wiped away, she doubted if she could forget the face of that man.
She, Li Yanran, would probably never forget that face which was completely drenched in blood. His terrifying actions could be likened to a brutal maniac.
She opened her mouth slightly and seemed to want to say something before ultimately deciding to keep quiet.
It couldn't be helped. How was she supposed to explain to the elders that the one who single-handedly took down their escort was a young man who didn't even seem to be over twenty?
For someone so young to possess such strength, the elders would probably think she was speaking nonsense, right?
The black robed elder snorted heavily as he tried to release his pent-up anger. The dismounted female didn't utter another word and got back on top of her horse.
Even though her strength was relatively on the weaker side among those of the same cultivation level, her natural senses were definitely a notch higher than the rest. This was due to the nature of her talent and the cultivation technique she practiced.
With heightened five senses, a faint sixth sense as well as a natural scouting and tracking ability, she could be considered as a natural ranger. Despite that, she still couldn't discover where the enemy had disappeared to.
This fact puzzled her greatly. It was almost as if he had flown away or disappeared on the spot.
However, she didn't think too much of it after some time. She attributed her inability to uncover the enemy's tracks due to the heavy rain. Maybe, he was also a master of tracking and concealment, just like her.
"We can't stay here anymore or bother with this at this time. If we don't arrive at the ruins soon, it might cause misunderstandings to arise with the royal family".
The black robed elder said.
He turned his horse around and flicked the reins, causing it to dash forward.
"After we arrive, get her to draw down the image and post a bounty. Moreover, send word back to the patriarch. If this is truly the work of the other tribes, then we need to plan our moves carefully".
The group didn't linger any longer and rode back towards their original direction. No matter what happened now, the matter of the ancient ruins was much more important than this matter.
If Lady luck decided to shine in them, it could probably bring rise to the Li tribe's future.
However, this grievance was definitely not forgotten.
....
Cloudhaven city. The distance Lars had flown to get here was least at 356 kilometers at the roughest estimate.
With large city walls which looked sturdy enough to resist a tide, eight towers and a twenty-foot standing. It was twelve times bigger than the tiny Moon wind town and could be considered a major location in the Aurora kingdom.
Lars flew down a couple of miles in the distance and travelled the rest of the way by foot. If random people saw him flying, he would attract far too much unwanted attention.
Although he had nothing to fear, who would want to be pestered by lice?
Another reason for his actions was because the city had a flowing river a few miles away from it. This was where he had landed, and he gratefully took the opportunity to take a bath.
After a few minutes, a new set of clothes casually withdrawn from the shadow realm were going donned on his body.
The shadow realm he controlled was virtually endless. Lars had taken the opportunity to stuff in countless things he would probably find handy, turning it into his very own storage ring.
At least, until now, he hadn't seen the ends of its storage capacity. It was like an empty, dark dimension that stretched in for eons.
And now, these clothes affirmed him that his choice was a good decision. As the rain had finally stopped an hour ago, Lars walked out of the forest towards the city.
Along the way, he saw several carriages carrying different people. Some carried commoners, while others carried merchants or cultivators. Of course, there were some cultivators who didn't take carriages or horses and ran towards the city instead. Nevertheless, Their destinations were the same.
"Cloudhaven City huh. If I'm right, I should still probably be in the Aurora kingdom. However, I'm thousands of miles away from the Starfall Valley. How odd".
Lars said inwardly
The Roca kingdom and Aurora kingdom shared close borders, and Starfall Valley could be considered somewhat in close in-between.
He had actually moved so far. Approaching the gate, Lars was surprised to find that the whole city was on lockdown.
The whole gate was seven meters tall and a few feet wide. From the outer look and structure, it was probably made with Zero steel, one of the most expensive metals in the Outlands.
'How lavish' was all Lars could say. He noticed straight away that, standing at the city gate, there were multiple guards with powerful auras. Even the weakest among them had a strength of first Level Qi Spirit realm.
Larson's lips twitched a bit. His understanding of this city had increased to a entire new level. To actually place Qi spirit warriors as guards, lavish..... Lavish indeed.
Of course, this was just his quiet inner monologue.
"Halt!"
He could hear the sounds of the guards as he got closer. A line had gradually formed outside the city, causing the movement to slow down to a snail's pace.
After a while, it finally reached his turn.
"Halt!" A guard shouted straight at his face. A bit of spittle flew out of his mouth, nearly planting itself on Larson's nose. Dodging slightly, he gave a slight frown as he looked at the guard in front of him coldly.
The guard didn't seem to notice his expression, his Qi surged out vigorously as he intended to play out what could only be described in Larson's eyes as an intimidation tactic.
This was.... Odd.
The guard took out a large poster. On the white poster was the drawing of a certain someone.
Larson looked at it with interest. It was the face of an old-looking man with one half scarred on one side while the other was wearing a dark mask. In the drawing, the mask looked absolutely menacing, and the picture could probably be used to frighten children to death with a look.
The minds of anyone who saw it would most likely have only one word. Hideous!
However, Lars facial expressions suddenly turned strange. The situation was truly strange indeed because at the bottom of the page was the name of the menacing looking old man.
'Wanted criminal: Dozen Blades Yufang'.
Lars was very familiar with this name. Not just the name, although the picture was a little exaggerated in some places and underwhelming in others, he could recognize the man in the picture anytime, any day.
"Uncle Yufang?" That's right, the man in the picture was none other than one of Larson's guardians back at the exiled region.
The one who had left about three years ago to look for a primeval grade bloodline essence for Larson's cultivation. Larson didn't have a way to communicate with the people back in that area unless it was an emergency, so he still didn't know what was his current status quo.
Now, it seemed like he would finally get some answers.
The guard inspected Larson's face and figure. He couldn't help but be stunned at first for a while. It couldn't be helped, Larson was truly born handsome.
Looking at the poster again, the guard sighed and shook his head. His eyes had developed a slight hostility, and he opened his mouth and said.
"He doesn't look anything like him. Clear! Move along now kid, Next!" The guard said coldly as his qi surged. He seemed to be trying to pressure him with his Mana Qi causing Lars to be momentarily dumbfounded.
'Brother, we just met. Why do you have such hostility towards me?" However, he didn't think much of it, as an even more important matter was at hand.
"They are looking for uncle Yufang. Something's wrong, definitely wrong. That old coot probably got himself into more trouble again". Larson said. His time carried a lot of exasperation.
This situation he encountered wasn't natural and would only happen when the city lord gave an order. The guards would either be waiting to greet an important guest, or they were searching to apprehend a wanted criminal.
You should know that not just anyone was worthy of such a treatment. Only those top-notch criminal figures who had gone against multiple powers and even possibly the royal family of a kingdom were qualified to receive such treatment.
Most importantly, that criminal must have been sighted recently and made a big move. This was probably a bounty that was as good as a kill on sight order.
Lars thought of it and nodded inwardly. His Guardian Uncle Yufang was definitely a character that matched all those descriptions.
The only thing missing was what exactly had he done to receive such attention this time. Taking a guess, there were most likely similar situations happening in all the cities in the Aurora kingdom.
Walking forward, another guard stood in his way.
"Entry into the city requires 10 silvers per person". The price caused Lars to raise an eyebrow. Doesn't entry into cities usually cost 1 silver per person? What's with the tenfold spike in price?"
Still, he didn't think much of the situation and placed his right hand in his pocket. Accessing the Shadow realm in a split second, he felt a metal appear in his hand as he drew it out.
The guard's indifferent look had a noticeable change as Larson placed a gold colored metal on his hand.
Gold! Did he actually take out a gold coin?
Lars didn't even bother to look at which metal he handed over. He stepped forward with large strides as he walked into the city's interior. The shadow realm had nothing short of gold coins as currency, which he placed in.
The riches he had found within the ruins wasn't something to scoff at. One measly gold coin was nothing to him.
As soon as he stepped through the city gates, he could feel the oppressive atmosphere within the city. There was an air of gloom around the area which couldn't be felt by normal people.
"Shit! That dude actually dropped a gold coin!" Huh? Larson frowned slightly as he heard a voice in his head.
"Is he a noble? No, he can't be. Nobles wouldn't walk when they could ride carriages. So, an itinerant cultivator then? But he's too young. I didn't even sense a silver of Qi from him".
The voice sounded again. Larson, surprised and confused, turned around only to see that the guard was alternating his gaze between him and the gold coin in his hand.
Seeing him looking, the guard turned around and maintained a poker face.
"Move it, you are blocking the path for others. You know the rules, no fighting, no making trouble. Get your ass out of here".
A different guard yelled at him arrogantly.
Larson's frown deepened. He turned around and walked away, but not before giving the arrogant yelling guard a second look.
The latter suddenly shivered as he felt goosebumps come over him. His gaze shifted in multiple directions as he felt weird. Almost like some kind of impeding disaster was upon him.
Meanwhile, the first guard looked at one of his teammates and signaled towards the leaving Larson with a nod. He got a nod as a reply from the other, who quickly took an excuse and rushed away from his post.
...
"What's wrong with me? My senses have always been sharp as long as I can remember, but this..... this isn't my enhanced senses. I heard that voice directly in my head".
Lars walked smoothly on the Cloudhaven road. His footsteps were light and one couldn't even hear a sound from them.
This was a subconscious reaction due to years of training with his third guardian, Sister Emile. When she originally taught him this skill, his initial reaction was that it would be mostly better suited for thieves.
The posture, as well as nimble steps, would make anyone who learned them light on their feet and ready to react to any situation they may suddenly find themselves in.
It could be in a bar fight or a prison, or even surrounded by a hundred enemies.
"Such is the life of a good assassin". She would usually say with a girly grin on her face. She also wore that grin when she split one of her former subordinates in half with her short sword.
Larson shook his head to get rid of the distracting thoughts. His handsome features were still locked in an uneasy frown.
"Is it possible that... I maybe..... read his thoughts?" A sudden thought popped into his head. After which, he couldn't stop considering the possibility, no matter how much he tried.
[Telepathy] The power to listen to the thoughts of others without the other party being alerted.
Of course, that should only be the most basic use of the ability. From what he knew, the theories explained that the true power hidden within was much more sinister.
If he truly had telepathy, then the whole issue was solved. As for why would it be solved, you ask? Well, he wouldn't find it strange in any way.
He already had an outrageous physique that granted him what he could only call Super strength and Invulnerability. Not only was his constitution impervious to the sharp edges of beast weapons, but his body didn't even react to extreme temperatures of cold and heat.
Hell, even poison was useless against him. Believe me, Old Pill Bill had tried. Of course, as to what degree of immunity, no one was really sure.
There were very few poisons that worked on cultivators, but the fact that such poisons didn't work on him even when he was just a mortal was already astounding.
Even he didn't know how powerful his physical body was at the moment. Moreover, it seemed to be continuously... growing at every moment.
Larson looked at his surroundings. The people around were plentiful and moved in different directions. Yet, Larson wasn't able to hear any of their thoughts.
"Was I..... wrong? Or is there something I'm missing?"
Larson pondered as he kept walking around. He asked for directions a few times before he finally came towards a large, dazzling building.
Haven Inn.
One of the best hotel lodges in all of Cloudhaven. That's what the residents he inquired from said, at least. Truth be told, the building was beautifully made and had a certain appeal to the eyes.
After the events of the day, Lars felt like getting a room to take a rest for the night. He still had to make plans properly, so he could decide what to do next.
"... Umm! Big brother.... are you looking..... Um… For a place to stay by chance?"
At that moment, a soft, seemingly cute voice sounded from afar. Lars looked to his left to see the figure of a little girl walking towards him.
".... A Loli?" Lars was stunned. What was this little girl doing out here? And why was she asking him such a question? He didn't remember knowing her from anywhere".
Larson examined the little girl with interest. Her left hand held the hem of her worn out brown skirt, while her right hand held her left arm.
Her hair was somewhat messy, her clothes faded, and her shoes had holes in them. However, her face was clean and spotless.
She had full pink lips and bright, emerald eyes that she used to stare at Larson with curiosity and a little wariness.
The aura of an innocent little girl was wrapped around her, and her aesthetics would let anyone know that she would be a beauty when she grew up.
"My father and me..... We have a small inn not too far from here. Only… Our inn isn't too famous and its facilities aren't too... great. We don't get enough customers, so I go out looking for customers every day".
The Loli bit her lips and lowered her head slightly. She kept silent for a while, but seeing that Lars wasn't saying anything, she continued.
"I saw you standing in front of the inn and... If you are looking for somewhere to stay, would you consider my dad's old inn? Don't worry about the price… We don't charge much and the food and service is also good".
The little girl suddenly looked at him. Her small face was a little red and her eyes carried a speck of hope and anticipation.
She looked totally harmless and naive.
However, Lars expression, at this point, couldn't get any more unnatural. This was because he had finally confirmed that he truly did have telepathy, and there was probably a requirement for it to be activated.
As for how he knew? Well, he could currently hear the Loli's thoughts.
"Hehehe... this one actually looks pretty good. What a waste of fresh meat. Maybe I can play with him a little if Skull lets me"
A sinister cackle rung in his head.