Hidden on a tree, Jonhan held a greedy glint in his eyes as he stared at Himo. He immediately jumped out of the tree and sprinted toward the child, dumbfounding the latter.

As Himo tried to understand if the man had gone crazy, he saw him taking something out of his storage ring.

An emblem.

Presenting the pattern of a black flame, the silver emblem emitted a blinding light. A single word was printed on it, entirely in gold. Arasis.

Puzzled, Himo was about to ask what was happening, but Jonhan’s words interrupted him.

"Are you interested in joining the Arasis sect? We will give you a high-earth cultivation technique and countless resources to cultivate. I believe that someone as talented as you won't be mistreated—with your talent, you may even become the top of our sect!"

Ah, that. Knowing the reason for the other party’s behavior, Himo sighed in relief. But he shook his head slightly. "I appreciate the invite, but I have to decline. I have no intention of being under anyone, I want to be free to do what I want, devoid of constraints from being part of something I have no control of!" After thinking for a moment, he then added, “Said that, I don’t mind having a friendly relationship with your sect.”

Jonhan was dumbfounded. It was one thing to refuse, but for a single person to propose a friend status with a sect… did Himo believe to be on par with a sect? Or, was he talking by thinking of the future? Was it plain arrogance, or did he actually have the capabilities to reach such strength?

“There is no need to rush a decision.” Himo grinned. “You still haven’t seen my real strength.”

[The User talks as if killing that bandit boss didn't require all your effort. If it wasn't for the scythe, it would've been a really hard fight, if not an impossible one.]

That might be true, but with this new technique, my strength will increase manyfold… Walking deeper into the jungle, Himo giggled quietly by himself.

Seeing how the child began to laugh creepily without warning, both Seji and his master felt a shiver slid down their back.

-----

Over the sky, the sun stood at its highest, brightening the whole area.

Reaching the proximity of the hidden remains, the sight of countless tents greeted the trio.

Every tent was brimming with cultivators, each from a different sect. Even the less crowded ones held over five people. Some groups wore uniforms, others did the reverse. From gowns to shirts, there were a variety of clothes far superior to the one Himo had seen in the capital—even when counting the nobles.

All of them waited for the exploration of the remains, which would happen on the following day. Anyone who tried to sneak inside prior to the time got killed without exceptions.

The coming of the trio stirred a slight interest in the crowd. With an elder and just two disciples, success in the hidden remains was but a dream—in there, a high number of disciples was needed to explore the area. And yet, no one voiced those words. They knew that some sects wouldn't hesitate to fight even for petty provocations, so they wanted to avoid needless conflict.

But like everything in existence, there was an exception.

“You have finally arrived! We waited for you for so long!” A blond cat-girl greeted them. She was followed by fourteen disciples like her, each of them with a smile on their face. On their chest was a silver emblem presenting the pattern of white water flowing to the side. On it, a single word stood out. Veridas.

Himo was initially surprised to get such good hospitality, but he felt that Jonhan and Seji behind him were furious. Puzzled, he glanced at the two. He waited for a moment, but they didn't say anything. Instead, what cleared his doubts was a voice coming from amidst the fifteen.

“Oh! Poor Arasis sect!” It was a wolf-man. “To bring just two disciples, you’re truly worsening each year! You even had to bring a Meridian Strengthening phase here, and it’s a child at that! Is this some sort of joke?” Laughing, he pointed a finger at Himo.

Himo blinked. Is this the typical arrogant group that dies after a few arcs? He stared at the wolf-man for a second, then shook his head. “Hey, I don’t know who you are, but I’ll give you a piece of advice.” He smirked and stared straight at the wolf-man’s eyes. ”The most arrogant ones are always the first to die.”

Seji and Jonhan widened their eyes. Aren’t you the most arrogant one here?! They remembered clearly how the child compared himself to a whole sect.

Hearing those words, the wolf-man was fuming. Never had he thought that a child would dare to lecture him. “Damn you!” Letting out a yell, he threw a punch toward Himo.

It was a simple punch, devoid of any technique. Noting that, Himo stopped it with a hand—with little to no effort.

The wolf-man widened his eyes. He wanted to say something, but a strong pull from his arm sent his words back to his throat.

Suddenly, both his and Himo’s figure vanished from the fourteen’s view.

“Where are they?!”

They all panicked, searching for their ally. When they had first seen that their opponent was just a child, they had all relaxed. Not expecting such a sudden movement, their eyes couldn't follow the two in time.

“What…” A shocked voice resounded from amidst the group.

“Have you found them?” The others turned to the voice’s source.

“Above…” Pointing at the sky, the man’s jaw fell to the ground.

Hearing the man, everyone hurriedly turned their gazes at the sky. Dumbfounded looks spread on their faces.

Spinning in the sky, Himo swirled the wolf-man around until puke fell out of the latter’s mouth. With a dislocated and broken arm, the rotating wolf-man could do nothing as Himo threw him down. Like a meteor falling from the sky, he plunged toward his fourteen comrades.

The fourteen paled. Were the wolf-man to crash at that speed, only a splattered corpse would remain. Knowing that, they didn’t hesitate. Predicting where he would land, they all positioned to soften his fall. Soon, the wolf-man was saved, but he fell unconscious.

Dropping from the sky, Himo laughed. “You’re quite lucky!” He stepped on the ground and looked at the wolf-man. “Arrogant people are always the first to die, but… it seems that today you survived!” He then waved at them as he began to walk away. “Take this as a lesson, or the next time all of you will be flying too!”

Seji and Jonhan followed behind him without saying a single word. They were both frowning.

Standing still in place, the fourteen and the onlookers stared dumbly at the leaving trio.