Death... and me

Weren and Tuve's attention shifted to Calina, or 'Freta,' in this case.

"I knew it. Roan asked us such a strange request, and it just so happened to be while you were here with us. Speak, what's your relationship with the Imperial Family?"

Calina then brought a token out of her clothes and showed them. It was a token representing the Imperial Family forces.

"I was one of the princess subordinates. Unfortunately, the enemies were too numerous and strong. In the end, I was the only one able to escape, thanks to the help of Rean's group. However, I can't be the one reporting it. Nor can I let Rean's group, which has only Foundation Establishment members in their midst, do that. I needed people who would have a realistic chance of seeing what happened and the same realistic chance of being able to escape."

"And why don't you report it yourself?"

"Because I have to avoid everyone's eyes. I need to go back to the capital to report it directly. Otherwise, chances are that I will be taken care of first since I was also part of the Princess' group. But in your case, you have no relation with the Imperial Family whatsoever, so no one will bother with you. I need others to think that I'm also dead."

Weren shook his head.

"Those 'men in black' saw you escaping, right? They know you're alive, so what's the point?"

'Freta' shook her head.

"Don't worry, they will definitely think I'm dead as well. That's because I will not come out of the Profound Abyss."

Weren and Tuve were taken aback.

"Are you planning to stay here? Then you'd be dead for sure!"

'Freta' didn't seem to mind.

"Don't worry, I have a few tricks under my sleeve. Don't forget that I'm a member of the Imperial Family Forces. It was the Imperial Family that prepared the Profound Abyss, after all. Anyway, this is an almost no-risk job with huge payment. Will you take it?"

Calina might have said 'almost no-risk job.' Still, Weren and Tuve knew that any mistake would possibly have them buried outside, so it was a hard decision to make. The key point was that they wouldn't say they saw the 'men in black' killing the Imperial Family Members. Instead, they were supposed to only say that they saw them 'being attacked' before running away. It was a completely different concept.

"Sigh... Fine! Give us the map."

Calina smiled as she threw them two jade slips identical to their own. Still, Weren couldn't help but ask.

"Rean, Roan, what is there in it for you two?"

Rean laughed before saying.

"What else could it be? Our little friend here promised quite a few good rewards to us since we helped kill her pursuers, so the rest don't know what happened to her. Our only objective now is to help keep her alive until the day the Profound Abyss closes. We will then follow our own paths after that."

One didn't need to think much to understand that it was Roan who told Calina to say those words. There was no way for the twelve years old girl to come up with this deep scheme by herself. It's just that Rean's transformation made her look a lot older, so Weren and Tuve honestly believe that it was her plan instead of the kids.

"Very well. However, we will wait outside the Profound Abyss until it closes completely. We will only report this once we confirmed that you didn't come out."

Calina, or 'Freta,' nodded.

"That's what I need from you two exactly. It seems like we have a deal then."

Tuve and Weren nodded before getting up once more.

"Very well. In that case, we are going to go separate ways from here onwards. By the way, there are only two Vermilion Pools to be found in this specific cave maze. Or at least, that's what the map shows us. We are going to take the right one, is that okay?"

Rean's group nodded.

"No problem. We are only four here. A single pool should be enough for us. That being said, we will take the left one."

Weren and Tuve nodded before leaving straight away. They had to use their time the best they could since once they separate from Rean, there would be no Light Element to help anymore.

Once Weren and Tuve disappeared in the middle of the Decaying Fog, Calina finally decided to ask.

"Is it really okay to trust them? As far as I know, they can simply pretend that they didn't hear anything."

Roan wasn't concerned about that.

"They will. You might not know this, but Rean and I have a certain special status in the Sect. It would be for their own good that they don't go back on their words. Besides, if they aren't idiots, they should know that this favor might bring them lots of advantages in the future."

Calina nodded. For some reason, she felt a lot more reassured when Roan talked. Maybe it was his demeanor that inspired trust. Malaka and Rean seemed to always trust his words when it came to these complicated things.

Without any surprises, Rean was the first one to fully recover from his injuries. He was better than Roan in the Light Element to start with. Not to mention that he didn't lack Spirit Stones to recover his Spiritual Energy either. After that, he touched Calina's face once more before closing his eyes and focusing on keeping her features the same way.

Roan finished healing himself around ten minutes later.

"Alright. We are still around two days away from the Vermilion Pool. Let's go. Also, be careful. Because of the Earthquake, the Decaying Demon Beasts retreated deeper into the caves. They will be a lot more packed now."

Calina, Malaka, and Rean nodded as their group immediately restarted their journey.

Sure enough, it was just as Roan had mentioned. They began to find bigger packs of Decaying Demon beasts as they pressed forward. Especially since the caves they selected had a higher concentration of Decaying Energy. Let alone the fact that they were in the middle of the Surge.

Still, that wasn't all bad. Roan simply used a luring strategy, separating the mobs into smaller groups for them to fight. It helped him and Rean get their battle experience and further stabilize their cultivation. At the same time, Roan could force a more rigid training onto Malaka and Calina as he wished.

By the time they finished every battle, Calina and Malaka ended in a sorry state. Still, Roan ignored that and forced even more Decaying Beasts over them. Of course, he didn't take it easy on himself or Rean either. While he left the Initial and Middle Stage Three Demon Beasts to Malaka and Calina, he and Rean took care of all Late and Peak Stage Three ones.

Calina finally understood why Malaka trembled every time Roan talked about training, especially 'special treatment.' She felt she got close to death several times.

There was even a one-time event where they found a Stage Four Demon Beast. Fortunately, they noticed it fast enough, thanks to Kentucky. Kentucky seemed to have a keen sense for these Decaying Demon beasts. Or, to be more specific, their Demon Cores. When the Stage Four one approached their group, Kentucky immediately stopped moving and entered a guard mode. The only time he did that in the past was when Rean and Roan found the other Stage Four Demon Beasts attacking another group on the surface.

That being said, their group also stopped and retreated without even thinking. On the way to find another path, Rean couldn't help but say.

"See? Bringing Kentucky here was a good idea, after all! Hahaha!"

Roan snorted in response.

"Obviously. Otherwise, becoming fried chicken would be the only outcome for him."

Kentucky couldn't understand words well, but he still felt a chill that made all his feathers puff out at once. Immediately, he ran behind Malaka, seeking protection.

*Chiiick!*

"Roan, stop bullying Kentucky!"

Roan shook his head and simply ignored the two.

Rean, on the other hand, had a doubt in his mind.

"Why don't you do those 'Mighty Cries' when you are not battling? This chick, chick, chick sounds kinda lame."

Surprisingly, the one to refuse Rean wasn't Malaka, but Calina. She immediately hugged Kentucky before saying.

"How can you say that? Can't you see that that's Kentucky's charm? You don't understand anything!"

*Chick! Chick!*

Even without understand anything, Kentucky seemed to agree with Calina for some reason.

Seeing that, Rean couldn't help but ask Roan while narrowing his eyes.

'Why do I have the feeling that he is doing that because of the girls?'

Roan's expression didn't even change as he responded.

'You think?'