ULEA

Because of that, even though all the information he obtained was in an alien language, he could still make sense and understand it.

'I was right! This is no mystery!' Minos thought as he finally made sense of some of this newly acquired knowledge.

'Put into my language, this device is called a Ulterio Luxigrem Efeknot Aexylion, which I'll just call ULEA for short.'

'Like I had already predicted, the ULEA seems to be some sort of extreme version of the Compo, capable of exponentially more advanced calculations.'

'If I could understand this device and learn how to properly use it, it would help my own research tremendously. Not to mention, it's very likely that there's all sorts of advanced information stored within it that I could make my own!'

'I've always been worried about how exactly to leave this planet, but if this device contains advanced knowledge about space travel, maybe I won't need to worry!'

'This may be my key off this planet, my hope to reunite with Rinka!' Minos thought excitedly.

Going through the information acquired by his Omniscient Eyes for a little longer, Minos soon figured out how to activate the device, the only problem left was the others.

While he could activate it now, he wouldn't be able to monopolize it, and it would only be a matter of time before stronger forces took over, possibly torturing him for the information he had.

All things considered, now wasn't yet the time, and Minos had to first increase his own strength before he could come back here.

Realizing that, his excitement quickly died down, his eyes returning to normal as he went back to 'analyzing' the Eternal Enigma like the others were.

After an hour or so of putting on this act, Hyth called for everyone to gather, discussing their findings.

But just like usual, no one had anything of value to share, the Eternal Enigma remaining 'Eternal' for the time being.

"This much was to be expected. Anyways we still have a day here, so we may as well absorb as much as we can before leaving." Hyth said with a sigh, unsatisfied.

"Don't be too disappointed. Once we get the Star Seeking Sect to agree, we may finally break the secret." Jylum replied, more optimistic.

"That's if we can get them to agree." Ryft immediately added.

"I'm sure we can, after all this is a big deal!" Sophia said confidently.

"Whether they agree or not will only be known in the future. For now let's use the time we have to gather as much intel as we can." Kendra spoke.

As per usual with intellectuals, the talk was short and the study was long, Kendra's words once again kicking the team back into work.

Knowing he had to play the part, Minos spent the next day pretending to put his full effort into his research, the others being none the wiser.

With them all being cultivators, they didn't sleep a single moment these past 24 hours, every waking moment being dedicated to the Eternal Enigma.

Soon enough, it had been around 30 hours or so since they had first arrived, hitting the limit Hyth had previously set.

"Alright, it's about time we headed back. Though the safe period lasts about 48 hours, there's no point taking any risks."

No one in the team was stupid, so they all naturally agreed with Hyth's statement, so after packing up their tools, they were ready to go.

"Wait a minute… Something's wrong." The first guard suddenly said, spooking the team into freezing.

"What is it?" Sophia asked, her hands shaking slightly.

"Haven't any of you noticed that it's been quiet for quite a while now…?" He asked.

"Not really, I was focused on my research." Jylum answered.

"Me too." Added Kendra.

"Actually, now that you say it, it has been quiet for longer than usual." The second guard said, only now noticing the abnormality.

"What are you two implying?" Hyth asked, not in the mood for riddles.

"We're saying… F***" The first guard swore, immediately pulling his sword from its sheath and holding it up firmly in front of his chest.

Almost immediately after he got into his offensive position, a group of about a dozen Hell Beasts emerged from the darkness, each of them much larger than a normal specimen.

"1-12 Hell Beasts!" Sophia nearly shouted.

"Aperture Opening Realm one's at that…" Ryft couldn't help but add calmly, though internally, he was sweating in horror.

"I know you hired us to protect you, but I'm afraid we're not capable of that anymore. It's everyone for themselves now." The second guard said, quickly taking the first guard's side.

"You can't do that! It's against your contract!" Hyth shouted.

"Contract? This isn't the civilized world anymore, not to mention life and death are at stake. I'm afraid that contract's worthless." The second guard replied as he glared at Hyth, scaring him into silence.

"Dammit, what do we do?" Jylum said, turning towards the group.

"What else? We each run in different directions and pray to the heavens." Ryft responded.

"No, we can't do that! Right now we need to stay together as much as possible!" Hyth said in a feeble attempt to unite the group.

Unfortunately, the threat of death that lingered only a few steps away made everyone jittery, their eyes glancing around at one another erratically, knowing they couldn't trust each other anymore.

None of them were stupid, and they knew if push came to shove, sacrificing a partner meant nothing, making the weaker members of the group especially wary about the stronger ones.

"Hyth, I appreciate your wisdom in such a time, but by now it's clear that our short stint as a team has come to an end." Jylum replied.

Looking at all this, Minos wanted to salvage things, but unfortunately both trust and distrust were much deeper emotions that he couldn't yet manipulate, so he could only watch on from his corner.

Besides, beyond Hyth, he didn't really have much of a relationship with the others here, so if he could save them, fine, but if he couldn't, that was also fine.

With that in mind, Minos decided to give them the option, whether they took it or not was up to them.

"If you guys trust me, just follow my lead." Minos suddenly said, causing all eyes to immediately gather in his direction.

"I barely know you, why should I trust you." Ryft responded instinctively.

"You may not, but I do! I know you're a smart man, Minos, much smarter than me, so I'm willing to follow your lead." Hyth said, the first one to make his stance clear.

Unlike the others, he had experienced Minos's wisdom first hand, not to mention the man had always given him an extremely deep feeling, like he was an ocean hiding countless mysteries.

"Me too!" Kendra added, the others slightly shocked at her decision.

While none of them could understand her logic, it made perfect sense to her, her memory instantly going back to her first meeting with Minos.

Seeing him help that mother and son, despite not having too, had left a deep mark on her, and she knew a man as kind as that wouldn't likely betray them.

"If sister Kendra trusts you, then I trust you as well!" Sophia said, going wherever her big sister went.

"With three people already agreeing, I'd be a fool to be left out." Nolin said, already having a good feeling from Minos anyways.

"Well then, I suppose I'll trust you as well." Jylum smiled.

Out of everyone here, it was clear that Jylum was the most stable and logical, always making the most rational decisions.

In his mind, since the majority of the group decided to trust Minos, it only made sense that he trusted him as well, besides, his chance of survival would increase if he escaped with a larger group.

Soon enough, it was only Ryft left, but it seemed his deeply distrustful nature made it hard to persuade him.

After some internal struggle, he ultimately decided not to join, figuring that with such a big group to act as a distraction, his odds may be better.

"I'll wish you all luck then." He said, disappearing into the darkness.

Shaking his head, Minos just watched as he left, not interested in pursuing him more than he had already done.

"Let's not waste anymore time then." Minos said, turning towards the guards who were caught in the middle of a siege.

While their fighting definitely helped them, nearly half of the Hell Beasts weren't actually interested, instead slowly stalking Minos's group.

Their cautious nature made them patient predators, which was actually a good thing for Minos at this moment.

He needed time to think, figure out a safe route out of here, so using the time they had blessed him with, he activated his Omniscient Eyes and split-souls at full power.

With his eyes analyzing and his brain processing, Minos quickly came up with dozens of plans, filtering through them for the most likely to succeed.