Final Goodbye

With even the wall being swiped clean, the treasury was truly reduced to nothing, and Minos couldn't help but feel satisfied.

After double checking to make sure he had everything, he headed back upstairs, finding Venix waiting patiently by the entrance.

"Done?"

"Mhm, let's leave before they get any clues." Minos replied.

"You go ahead, I'm still not done here." Venix said, his eyes still slightly dark.

"Well, I'll wait for you by Abyss Cliff." Minos said, knowing that Venix wasn't yet complete with his revenge.

He wasn't worried that he couldn't handle himself, after all with the patriarch dead, Venix had no more enemies.

And if there really was another Inner Heaven Realm in the sect, well then to be honest, Minos at his current strength wouldn't be much help, instead just getting in the way.

He was self-aware enough of his current strength, so he left things to Venix, confident in his abilities, before leaving the sect, not saying goodbye to anyone.

Making his way to Abyss Cliff, Minos couldn't help but think over this past year. His realm had broken through, he had learned a bunch of new sword techniques, and he had even somewhat mastered the art of puppet refining.

Not much time had passed, yet he had accomplished a lot, and he was steady making his path down the immortal road.

Arriving at Abyss Cliff, Minos took a seat by the edge, looking down at the Abyss Forest Range as he waited for Venix to finish his work.

At the same time, he couldn't help but reach over to his face, forcefully ripping the mask off, revealing his true appearance.

With the mask releasing from his flesh, Minos also felt his entire body slightly shift back into its normal shape.

His height shot back up, not only that, it even increased a little more, clearly having grown again over this past year.

Standing up, Minos flexed his joints a bit, enjoying this feeling of freedom. He hadn't noticed before, but after going so long in Merth's body, he had forgotten how good it felt to just be himself.

His body felt much lighter and flexible, like a weight had been lifted, and he also realized that his height had changed from 185cm to 190cm, growing by another 5cm.

He was also officially sixteen, a man by all standards, but even then, he couldn't help but feel like his height was a bit abnormal.

He still felt healthy, and stronger than ever, so he just shook his head and ignored his ever increasing size, thinking that his development was close to ending anyways.

He also reached over to his long white hair, which had also grown all the way down to his waist over the past year.

He didn't have a chance to properly cut it while disguising as Merth, so it seemed it had grown slightly out of control.

After thinking it over for a moment, he decided not to cut it, thinking he might as well try out a new style now that it was here.

Spending the next few hours slowly stretching and getting used to his body, Minos waited patiently, and soon enough Venix arrived, drenched in blood, but a smile hovering on his face.

The contrast was quite morbid, but given the circumstances, Minos knew exactly why he was so happy.

"This is the first time I've ever felt so good." Venix said with a laugh.

"Congrats on your revenge, your future cultivation will be much smoother now." Minos replied with a smile, feeling happy for this good friend of his.

"It's all thanks to you Minos, had you not helped me set everything up, it would have been so much more difficult. Thank you…" Venix said with his heart.

"Hahaha, no problem, after all, we're friends." Minos responded, not thinking much of it.

"Here, I want you to have this." Venix spoke, as he pulled a book from his spatial ring.

Minos took the book into hand with interest, before reading the title 'Pure Nux Ascension' which was an Inner Heaven grade cultivation technique.

And more than just being a Four-Moon technique that could only get one through the first three layers of the Inner Heaven Realm, it was a complete manual that could help one reach the peak of Inner Heaven.

He had also gotten an Inner Heaven cultivation technique from the Thousand Split Sword Sect's treasury, but it was a mutilated Four-Moon cultivation manual, only allowing one to reach the second layer at most.

"Seriously?" Minos couldn't help but say with wonder, knowing the incredible value of this thing.

One has to remember that the patriarch of the Thousand Split Sword Sect, who was only at the first layer of Inner Heaven, was capable of lording over thousands of miles, so you could imagine the kind of strength and influence a peak Inner Heaven held.

"Of course, you're my best friend, and I want you to become stronger. This technique is quite unique, in the fact that it has no attributes." Venix explained.

"Attributes?" Minos asked, still not aware of the intricacies of the Inner Heaven Realm.

"Yes, just like Nux exists in all forms, the Nux energy that we absorb also depends on the cultivation technique. Some favor fire, others earth, water, etc."

"As you can guess from the name, Pure Nux Ascension absorbs all Nux, returning a pure Nux that has no strength, but also no weakness."

"It's also this special nature of absorbing all Nux that makes it so you can cultivate it in all places, compared to attribute Nux which is better absorbed in certain places, like a volcano for fire or the ocean for water."

"It may seem bland, but actually it's the best when it comes to building a solid foundation, that's why I chose it for you." Venix said, having clearly thought this through.

"Thank you man, I won't forget it." Minos said genuinely.

"Look at you, now you're acting like I was." Venix said with a laugh before speaking again.

"Well I better head off now, while I had just gotten revenge, my journey only starts here." Venix said with a big smile.

"Then I'll meet you in the stars." Minos said, the two embracing in one final hug before Venix walked away, heading off on his next journey.

Minos couldn't help but let out a small sigh as he watched Venix walk off, his mood a bit low. Rather than just going home directly, he sat by Abyss Cliff, looking as the sun set, the final rays of the day glimmering down on the forest below.

Having a sudden whim, Minos pulled out a sheet of paper from his spatial ring, along with a brush and some paint.

Picking up the brush, Minos got to work painting his feelings away. He didn't move fast, but each stroke was intricate and planned.

It was only when the sun had completely dipped beyond the horizon, that Minos gently laid his brush down, revealing a portrait of him and Venix standing on Abyss Cliff smiling at each other, the endless forest range just beyond them.

Letting out a smile, Minos slowly rolled the portrait up, before tucking away all his tools back into his spatial ring.

Getting up off the floor with a stretch, he couldn't help but give one final wave to the Thousand Split Sword Sect, before disappearing into the foliage, finally going back home after a year away.

…

After spending the night at a nearby town, Minos woke up refreshed. He proceeded to eat breakfast before buying a horse and making the return journey.

The Thousand Split Sword Sect was a couple days' journey from Underwood City, and Minos wasn't in any sort of rush, so he took this time to enjoy the scenery, truly getting a feel for the surroundings.

This world was so beautiful, but Minos seemed to always be rushing, so it was rare for him to actually appreciate the smaller things.

Another day passed by in calm, Minos's mood having not felt this peaceful for a long time. Realizing the sun was about to set, he quickly sped up his horse, attempting to reach the nearby village before night came.

While he wasn't afraid of common beasts, who would want to sleep in the open? Besides, with his map in hand, he already knew that something was close by.

Just as the sun dipped below the horizon, Minos's horse pulled up on the small village, quite similar to the one he had grown up in.

His good mood suddenly took a slight plummet as past memories came to mind, but after fiercely shaking his head, he dispersed those negative thoughts.

"Who is it?" A village person shouted, torch in hand.

"Sorry for the intrusion, I was just looking for a place to rest for the night. I naturally won't rest for free." Minos said, before tossing a couple silver coins to the man.

For most mortals who didn't interact with cultivators, Nux Crystals were actually useless, so using regular silver was a much better payment.

Taking the handful of silver, the man's suspicion immediately turned into happiness, seemingly not caring about Minos's true intentions at all.

"Uhmm, give me a moment to speak with the village chief." The man said, before running back inside.

Soon enough he came back with an old man in hand. The old man seemed quite weak, and each step was a struggle, but his eyes still shined with a glint of wisdom.

"You're the one who wants to stay the night? Well, that's alright, follow me."

Nodding his head, Minos dismounted his horse, handing it off to the other villager before following the chief inside. The interior of the village was completely dark, and it seemed everyone had already gone to bed.