Valor felt an intense pressure bearing down on him, unable to even move. With hope fading, his mind began working every possible way to find a way out of this predicament. "This shadow is what's causing the pressure... Is it one of the lords of energy? The pressure is intense, which means it's at least at the second level... It seems he's looking for Rian, maybe he means that boy from yesterday?"

When his thoughts reached this point, he tried signaling with his eyes toward the dark part of the cave, hoping that it would save him. It seemed the shadow noticed his signal, and the pressure on him eased slightly. The shadow spoke in a deep, dry voice, "Speak."

Valor took a few seconds to catch his breath, then quickly bowed towards the shadow, pleading, "Ha... Ha... You mean the boy with the tattered clothes? He's tied up inside the cave... Please, spare us, honorable sir."

With a swift, chilling sound, the shadow disappeared in front of them, seemingly merging into the surrounding darkness and moving into the cave's depths. Valor sighed in relief and looked towards Darin.

"Ha…" Darin took a deep breath, his body covered in sweat, his eyes darting wildly, fearing the return of that being, as he truly felt like death was upon him.

---

In the inner part of the cave, Rian was already feeling uneasy, especially after hearing the screams. He felt genuinely hopeless, trapped in a place where he had no control over his fate.

Before him, the darkness shifted to reveal the form of a human shadow. The shadow looked at Rian with a mocking smile, releasing part of its aura to toy with him.

"Ah…" Rian's muscles tensed from the pressure, and his breathing grew heavier and heavier. An idea crossed his mind: "This person is powerful... Maybe he even killed the cannibals outside. He came here looking for me... Does he have a connection with Oliver? Could he be the one who…"

Before he could complete his chain of thoughts, the shadow raised its left hand toward his neck, instantly knocking him unconscious. It transformed again, blending into the darkness, and spread its form around Rian before they both vanished from the cave.

---

A few seconds after their disappearance, Valor and Darin entered, looking at the place where Rian had been.

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Darin sighed, saying, "At least he left and spared our lives." He was genuinely grateful the ordeal had ended here.

As for Valor, he said thoughtfully, "Who would've thought that meal had such a powerful backer? I can't imagine what would've happened if we had actually eaten that boy." A cold shiver ran down his spine.

Darin thought aloud, "I guess tonight's meal is already taken care of, with both Fikhai and Davidi. Hehehe... It's been a long time since I had a decent meal." Then he looked at Valor and asked, "What was that thing? Was it human or one of the mutants?"

Valor replied, "I think it came from the Abyss Forest in the north, or maybe one of the surviving experiments from Arcadia Kingdom." His eyes seemed distant, lost in thought.

Darin asked suspiciously, "What is this forest you're talking about? I don't know much about this world other than the hot desert and the harsh mountains nearby."

Valor gestured to him, saying, "Come first, let's deal with the bodies of Fikhai and Davidi, and I'll tell you more." He continued walking toward the cave entrance, saying, "All I know is that this world is made up of one continent called 'Ardona,' surrounded by water in all directions."

Darin replied skeptically, "Hmm... Where did you get this information? You seem quite confident about it."

After walking for a while, they found a viscous liquid covering the rocky cave floor, and nearby, a severed head was lying.

Valor said while observing the place, "These are records I found when I used to travel everywhere before I ended up as this cursed cannibal." He looked around at the blood, then pulled out a sharp tool from one of the pockets in his old robe and walked towards the head. As he approached, he found it was Davidi's head.

He continued, "That continent is divided into three vastly different regions in terms of environment; each place feels like a world of its own. In the north is the Abyss Forest, filled with mutants, in the middle is the Great Marondra Desert where most of the surviving humans live, and in the south are the mysterious Aiganor Mountains." He grabbed the head by its light green hair and looked into its frightened eyes.

Darin, who was standing behind him, was taken aback by the amount of information he received, taking a moment before asking, "If that creature is from the Abyss Forest, as you say, then how could it have the intelligence to sever the head in this way? Aren't all mutants supposed to be mindless?"

Valor pondered, "Those forests are different. In one of the records I read, the forest land was once part of the desert, but after the rise of the kingdoms, it became an exile for those who couldn't control themselves after taking the Nucleus Injection."

Sighing, he said, "Forget about it for now. We should start moving if you don't want to sleep on an empty stomach again."

"You are right, these things are not important. What matters is the way to survive in this savage world," Darren said as he walked toward a nearby corpse. He began to examine it carefully, staring at the corpse while feeling the cold skin. His hands moved with primitive skill around the bones and flesh, but doubts crept into his mind about the amount of information that Valor possessed.

He wondered inwardly, "Where does all this come from? All that knowledge seems far removed from the life of a savage creature in such a harsh place."

When he reached the chest area, he paused for a moment and glanced at Valor with a fleeting look. Then he tore open the rib cage to reveal the dark liver. He held it in his hands and contemplated it for a few seconds before leaning in and biting into the soft piece with appetite. Drops of blood trickled down his mouth as he continued to gaze toward the dim light coming from the cave entrance, his eyes shining with determination and a desire to live.

"I wonder about this a lot. What is the point of living as a being that is neither human nor a beast? Mere primitive desire for life is not really a reason to live. Death is not frightening; rather, what is frightening is the inability to find a good reason for life," Darren said as he devoured the food eagerly.

Valor cast a quick glance at Darren's tragic figure, then gripped the knife in his hand and stabbed it into his chest, muttering, "Perhaps this is salvation."