19- Entering the Second Step Beasts' Tunnel.
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"So you're saying we could have sneaked in sooner, undetected, and avoided all this chasing after us?" Katrina's irritated tone caused Adel to raise an eyebrow, unsure if she had heard his entire words...
"Yes... right? I said it used a lot of energy, didn't I? I could only use it if I had a steady supply of Ki energy..." Adel described how the spell worked to her, but she was unaware that it was a Tier 6 spell that consumed all energies.
He repeated it again, affirming that if he hadn't had an energy source, he would have been drained long before entering...
It was also a half-truth. He could cast the spell, but making it last for a longer amount of time would tire him.
Katrina pouted, still irritated by something, but she didn't say what.
Katrina was well aware that Adel was telling the truth. But all she needed was a little more time to advance one more stage before he moved on to the next step, which she wouldn't be able to achieve anytime soon.
She didn't want to stop him, but she did want to slow him down because she was worried about the consequences of cultivating this fast...
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Adel had finished assuring her that he would be safe despite his constant usage of the [Misinterpretation] spell to hide from others a dozen minutes later.
Even if they did locate him, which is unlikely until he ran out of energy, in which case he would have to return to Katrina, who would be in greater danger than he.
Adel tried to persuade her to accompany him, but she refused. He didn't press her to join him if she didn't want to, so she was free to stay.
But, of course, while the [Misinterpretation] spell was active, keeping her safe during the time he wasn't with her...
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Katrina was eager to accompany him on the 'date' that her younger sisters had informed her about. She didn't want to be left behind by Adel, though.
After all, she knew he wouldn't take long to reach the third step at his present cultivation speed. No, it's likely that it's even higher.
Adel had obtained something to make his cultivation pace quick in all three cultivation pathways, but she wasn't sure what it was.
He was, after all, formerly a mortal a while ago. So, when he initially came to her clan, he had only just begun cultivating, making her wonder if her talent was simply average in comparison to Adel's.
But she hadn't put in as much effort on cultivation as she had previously, which made her shake her head. She was a genius in comparison to her peers. Adel, on the other hand, was... something even more?
So she stayed behind to get additional advice from the 'senior sister' who had been helping her in her dreams, in order to become stronger quicker. Nonetheless, she had to keep an eye on her foundation's stability...
But, unbeknownst to her, the Anteater enhanced her talent roots by leaps and bounds. In all cultivation pathways, she can now almost match Adel's cultivation pace. Almost.
She just accepted her fate and resolved to keep the body cultivation system going. She couldn't care less if Adel approved or not. Strength comes first now, and persuading him comes second.
Though, she was more talented in the soul cultivation pathway than the other two, so she would have it one step ahead of the other two...
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He silently stretched out to Katrina after doing the [Misinterpretation] spell and drew closer to her.
He began silently hopping around and drawing faint lines in the air.
But, in the end, they all failed, and they all fell to the earth before returning to the energy's origin...
'What a pain! So God's universe's array methods are useless here? What about alchemy? I'll have to double-check it when I get back to the clan...' Adel made a mental note before leaving with a disappointed expression on his face.
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Adel eventually reached the end of the tunnel after an hour...
He looked for the one that went to the second step beasts before entering...
Even though they couldn't see the second and third step beasts on their boards for purchase with clan points, they could still see the two tunnels, forcing them to work hard to improve their rank in the hierarchy system—from outer, to inner, to core, and eventually seed rank—in order to obtain access to the tunnels.
They were not hidden by the higher-ups. What would they do if they saw them, after all? Run into them?
That's what disciples would do if they weren't aware that everything was encircled in formations capable of identifying anybody below the third step.
But they didn't try to make the formations any stronger. What would a fourth-step cultivator do in a region populated by second or third-step beasts?
They didn't really think there was somebody with sixth step soul energy who could avoid being detected by such formations with a wave of his hand.
He had to employ fourth step soul energy while still on the first step, so he had to rush and use the [Cankili] martial art to beat-*cough-fight the animals...
In terms of the procedure, it was simply a conversion from the first step's energy all the way to the energy level required to crack the formation.
It was also the reason why he didn't push too hard to bring Katrina with him, because it would need twice as much energy, and he'd have to rely on the [Cankili] martial art to sustain energy...
And he didn't want that, because he had come here to apply his soul battle experience to his physical body. Of course, not all of it, but even tiny improvements would help.
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Adel eventually arrived to the tunnel's entrance after another hour.
And, as one could expect, it wasn't overrun with disciples like the tunnel of the first step beasts. It was completely devoid of people.
Adel was welcomed by the same massive forest as he entered. That, too, seemed to be unending, with clouds forming all over the place.
This time, though, there were no beasts wreaking havoc. But rather beasts seen here and there at the start of the second step, causing Adel to sigh with relief...