"Let's stop here," the woman in the grey cloak said after traveling some distance away from Duncan's spot.
"Why, senior sister?" the young man beside her asked in confusion.
"There is no use in continuing further," the woman shook her head. "The information he gave was false."
"What? Who gave him the guts to lie to us? Let me go back and beat him up. Let's see if he dares to lie to us again!" the young man raged as if someone had punched him in his face.
"There is no need for it. He didn't have any valuable intel. He just wanted to inconvenience us," the woman said as her eyes flashed slightly in anger.
"Are we going to let that little punk get away with that, senior sister?" the young man asked aggrievedly.
"Our mission is more important than teaching an impudent junior a lesson. Let him be for now. If we come across him after we finish our mission, we can teach him a lesson. I don't want to create conflict with Heavenly Demon Sect at this point," the woman said furrowing her brows.
"This isn't like you, senior sister," the young man grumbled.
"Don't worry, we don't even know if he will live to see the next sunset," the woman said a little deviously. "Did he think taking my stuff is that easy? The spirit fruit I have left him with has a unique fragrance. It is highly desirable to Level 2 demonic beasts. By this time tomorrow, he would be food in the belly of a demonic beast."
"That's the senior sister I know," the young man smiled happily. "I can't wait to see him being hunted by Level 2 demonic beasts."
"No, we will not be in this vicinity when that happens. I don't want anyone to link us to his death. After all, he is the disciple of the Wind Demon. That old monster is difficult to deal with," the woman said decisively causing the young man's smile to dim.
"What if he somehow survives?" the young man said a little petulantly.
"Then, it is even better. We can play around with him on our way back. We just need to make sure we don't kill him outright," the woman chuckled causing the young man to smile happily.
"What are we going to do about Shen Wulong, senior sister?" the young man asked after a few minutes.
"I don't know," the woman muttered indecisively. "He had somehow managed to suppress the poison I left in him. I didn't think he would be able to do that. The only trace I found was the blood we found in that spot."
"What if we go in the opposite direction that uncouth barbarian indicated?" the young man asked eagerly.
"There is no need for that. When the Grotto Heaven appears, it will be surely visible. It is best if we enter immediately before the Heavenly Demon Sect is alerted. That's the reason I left the poison in Shen Wulong. I wanted to track him and find the opportunity to enter the Grotto Heaven before other variables appear," the woman said thinking aloud.
"Right now, we are near the entrance. We just don't know the exact spot like Shen Wulong does. When he opens the Grotto Heaven, we would be able to sense it at this distance. We can enter immediately after him before other variables appear. So, let's find a place to rest for now and prepare ourselves. We need to be careful. This Grotto Heaven might be dangerous. So, it is better to be prepared."
"Senior sister is right," the young man nodded.
Suddenly he paused as if he thought of something and looked at his senior sister in confusion.
"Senior sister, what if that barbarian also managed to enter the Grotto Heaven? After all, he is also in the vicinity," the young man said a little unwillingly.
"Don't worry about him. If he survives tomorrow, he better stay away from the Grotto Heaven. In there, I don't need to worry about the Heavenly Demon Sect. I will kill him the moment I lay my eyes on him," the woman said with a dangerous glint in her eyes causing the young man to smile widely.
"If we come across him in there, leave that barbarian to me, senior sister," the young man said hurriedly. "I have long wanted to teach him a lesson."
"Whatever, come let's find a place to rest," the woman said nonchalantly and moved. The young man followed her like a lost puppy.
*****
A few hours after the grey-cloaked duo left in the direction he pointed to them, Duncan felt another presence coming toward his spot. Duncan opened his eyes from meditation and looked in the direction of the presence and muttered.
"This spot seems to attract a lot of people. I better vacate this region and go somewhere else."
The approaching presence was unlike his two previous visitors. Unlike them, this person was radiating his presence in a dominating manner as he approached his location.
Whether it was Shen Wulong or his fiancé, they had kept their presence restrained and didn't even leak a bit of their aura when they approached him. This person was doing the exact opposite.
Soon, the person came into view. Duncan was surprised to see that he was wearing the Heavenly Demon Sect uniform. For a moment, he was stunned and joy started blooming in his heart.
Duncan was glad that he had found another disciple of the sect at last. By tagging along with this person, he can head back to the sect. He could finally find his way back. He was already fed up with running into strong existences that made him feel really weak.
"Senior brother," Duncan greeted the man amicably once he came near him.
"Don't call me that. I am ashamed to call a weakling like you my junior brother. I don't know what master was thinking taking such a weakling as his disciple," the man grunted as he neared Duncan.
The amount of hostility in that man's voice almost made Duncan rear back in shock. He however controlled his reaction to a mere flinch and looked at who was supposedly his master's disciple clearly in the moonlight.
The man had a long scar that was running across his face. It made him look really sinister. Coupled with the blood on his robes, the man painted a ghastly picture in the moonlight.
Not that Duncan had much to complain about. His shirt was already being used as waste cloth and he was bare-naked with his upper torso. The number of scars he had accumulated recently wasn't small either.
"Did you see a grey-cloaked duo coming this way?" the man asked gruffly.
"Yes, they came asking about another stranger I had met a day earlier," Duncan replied succinctly.
"Oh, which way did they go?" the man asked eagerly.
"That way," Duncan pointed in a completely different direction to which he had sent the grey-cloaked duo at.
"Good, I am leaving. Get stronger soon and don't embarrass our lineage," the man said impatiently and prepared to set off.
"Senior brother, I am lost. Can you point me back towards the sect?" Duncan asked hurriedly.
"Of course you are lost," the man snorted. "Master knows about your predicament. He will send someone. Until then, survive here. This will at least teach you a lesson."
The man said carelessly and prepared to set off once more.
"Senior brother, are you going to chase after the grey-cloaked duo? They felt really powerful," Duncan cautioned a bit.
"Everyone will feel too powerful to a weakling like you. I am a Golden Core cultivator. You and I aren't on the same level," the man said bitingly.
"Oh, is Golden Core above the Nascent Soul realm?" Duncan asked curiously.
"What are you blabbering about? Of course, Nascent Soul is above Golden Core. What are you, dumb?" the man said irritatedly.
"Oh nothing," Duncan said smiling at the man. "I was just a little confused. Senior brother, since you are busy, can you spare me some of your wine?"
"Didn't stealing wine land you in this predicament? Haven't you learned anything from that? Here, take this. Be careful, this is a bit potent," the man said throwing a gourd over.
"I hope you die out here. Instead of coming back and embarrassing our lineage," the man muttered and walked toward the direction Duncan had pointed at.
Duncan watched him go with a scowl on his face.
"I should have sent you in the right direction," Duncan grumbled opening the wine gourd and taking a sniff. "Shen Wulong is at Nascent Soul realm. Even he suffered at the hands of his fiancé. If you run into her, you will surely die."
"Look how much of a good junior brother I am. I am even saving your life after you insulted me. If master asks I can tell that I purposefully sent you in the wrong direction to save your life."
"Anyway, I got a good wine out of this ordeal. I need to change places soon. If I stayed here one more night, I don't know who I will run into," Duncan grumbled and took a sip of the wine.
"Ah, this stuff is as good as the one the other senior brother gave me," Duncan mumbled happily as he savored the wine. "Now I can create more blood wine. Finally, something good is happening to me."
*****
A/N: Hey folks!
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