There Leo stood, basking in the seemingly unending stream of energy. Unfortunately, the pain he was experiencing didn't allow him to enjoy this moment. Just as he was about to faint from the pain, the stream of energy stopped.
Revealing the crater formed by this event, inside the crater, the residual energy seemed to take the form of liquid. It was there within the crater, Maya herself was also within the crater, greedily absorbing the residual energy, as it seemed Mother Earth wasn't stingy in imparting her gift.
After the baptism he had just gone through, Leo could feel information flooding his mind. Remembering what Maya said about the possible ambush, he quickly used his soul energy to isolate the information. When he gets back to the village, there will be plenty of time to process it then.
Quickly regaining his composure, he looked around and saw Maya busied herself with the remnant energy which had formed a spring.
Seeing Maya greedily soaking up all the remnant energy, the scarred man's eyes shone with greed as he lunged forward, unleashing a devastating technique, his inky black odachi lurching forwards.
Leo, seeing Maya's state, felt anger well up within him. "Not again!" he thought. She was doing it again—going into meditation when she knew her surroundings weren't safe. She was dumping all responsibility on him.
Actually, he could just leave her and go, but right now he needed her. He would be needing accommodation and a source of income, and Maya was his best bet right now. After all, he refused to believe that she would let him go without trying to recruit him.
Now, with her pulling this stunt, he was going to have to protect her. As Leo was busy thinking, the scarred man had already launched his attack.
Leo was pulled from his thoughts as even Maya had awakened because of the attack launched by the man. Right before their eyes, the once bright, cloudy day had turned dark, as the sky was blotted out by an inky black cloud. Seeing this phenomenon, Maya scowled as she knew this attack could only be launched by powerful made gods of the House of Night. Quickly warning Leo, "Run! I'll meet you at the village," Maya ran, not giving the remaining energy any more thought. Her life was more precious to her, after all.
Leo, delighted by the fact that she had awoken, had already started running before she warned him. Unfortunately for him, he was the main target of the attack. He froze, not out of choice—this phenomenon was called attack locking, used by experts to prevent their attack from being evaded.
Leo stood there, still in his running posture, as it came. From the inky black cloud, a giant black lightning bolt struck Leo with its full might.
Leo could feel the wild energy from the lightning bolt as it ravaged his body, burning him from the inside out. Landing beside the crater, the scarred man inspected the remnant spring. Seeing that it was still intact, he sighed in relief. It was because of the energy that he had allowed Leo to run so far. Quickly taking out a device from his pocket, an oval-shaped trinket, he activated it as it sucked up what was left of the spring.
Putting the device away carefully, he flashed towards Leo's location—or what was left of him, as Leo had already been turned into a charred mass of burnt meat. Quickly examining him and seeing that he was still alive, he grinned at the thought of the reward the elders would present him for bringing such a gem.
Leo could only stay still, with the slightest hope that the scarred man wouldn't outright kill him. He didn't need to be told; Leo was very sure this man was a very powerful expert. He couldn't hope to match his level.
Looking at Leo, the scarred man put on an amiable smile as he spoke, "Young one, you don't need to be scared."
Leo was cautious, seeing the man's smile. His smile seemed creepy, and the act of him smiling wrinkled his scar, making the already creepy smile more haunting. Leo was scared. Was this another scientist? Was he going to be locked away in another lab? These thoughts scared Leo. After all, no matter the changes Leo had gone through, he was still a child who had been kidnapped and put through all manner of experiments. Even though he had grown and these things had happened long ago, they were still recent in his memory.
Looking at Leo, who was paralyzed with fear, the scarred man shook his head. It seemed he wouldn't be able to communicate with the boy for now. Then he reached for Leo. Carrying him, he vanished from sight, a testament to his speed.
A few seconds later, he appeared at another location. Dropping Leo's body, he reached into his coat and pulled out a tiny remote. Directly pressing it, a small flying pod came into view. The scarred man directly threw Leo into the pod and entered it himself. The pod automatically closed behind him, and they took off. Finally, Leo was about to enter the city, but not on his terms.
......................
At another corner in the forest, we see Maya running, her eyes filled with guilt. She knew what she did. She was well aware that whatever expert was hiding in ambush for her, his priority would change upon seeing a person who was bestowed a heavenly blessing.
That was why she decided to run separate ways. She sighed. There was nothing she could do. That was a dimensional grandmaster, a very powerful made god. Though she felt guilty, she knew deep down that she couldn't fight such an expert, which was why she chose to run.