Despite Kai's fears that something would go wrong and prevent their arrival, it looked like nothing else would stand in their way. Rosemount covered the horizon now and there were ships moving all around them. Everyone had acted like the continent was a constant lethal threat, but the sailors just seemed to be going about their work, no matter what species they were. He didn't see how any new disasters could stop them, even with his terrible luck.
They could actually have arrived already by docking at Crescilor City, the capital of the trade nation, but Omilaena had said it would be too risky. Instead they sailed further south, aiming to reach the coast at a gentler port. Since he had no expertise, Kai accepted her judgments about all that.
Even though their gambit to brave the Blood Current had worked, it had taken a heavy toll on their ship. They were completely out of backup crystals for the engines and the hull was too damaged to survive another long voyage. It sounded as though they planned to sell it for whatever scrap it was worth and use the diamond star from Krysal. If Omilaena was right about being able to hide their presence, it shouldn't let them be tracked if they were careful.
Technically he should have been more anxious to be setting foot on a new continent. He'd heard so many warnings: overconfident warriors who had died instantly or successful warriors who had been seduced by a life of luxury. Kai couldn't let either happen. He needed to grow strong enough to help Zae Zin Nim and to stop the next apocalyptic monster incursion, that was all.
Still, he could only get there by constantly pushing himself. Kai glanced at his own soul and hoped that it would be enough.
<
Name: Kai Clanless
Total Power: 354
Cultivation: Body Refinement 21% (105)
Physique Level: D-0 (200)
Soul Level: 7 (49)
Monstrous Hunger - X (kappa)
Behemoth's Heart - VII (eta)
Direboar's Strength - X (kappa)
Isulfr's Bite - VI (zeta)
Tyrant's Claw - VI (zeta)
Baleful Breath - II (beta)
-
Void Gaze - V (epsilon)
Sahagin's Soul - IV (delta)
Lizarkyl's Tail - III (gamma)
Direurchin's Spikes - III (gamma)
Wallcrawler's Feet - I (alpha)
Beastbat's Wing - I (alpha)
Crystal Slime - I (alpha)
Dreamleech - I (alpha)
Abominalgum - I (alpha)
Rose Piranha - II (beta)
>
Roughly 350 Power in the human side of his soul, and if he continued bringing his monstrous side to full strength, he should be able to fight at an effective 700.
At a glance he would look the weakest of the three of them, and he wasn't sure how weak he actually was. The encounter with the sailors had reassured him that the gap in power wasn't anything absurd, like babies on Rosemount being far stronger than him. But the strength that had allowed him to fight the Diamond Crystalliers wasn't so special here, so he'd need to be cautious.
In the middle of feeling weak, Kai's mind suddenly reeled as he realized how insane that was. Just a few years ago, he'd been a young man pitying himself for not advancing fast enough because destiny kept spitting in his face. Now that he knew the standards of the world, the tiny amount of power he'd been struggling for back in Monskon City seemed like nothing.
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If he could send a message back in time and tell himself what would happen, would he even believe it? The idea that he was sailing on a Krysali ship to another continent, accompanied by a cultivator from Cloudspire and a poisoner from Rosemount, would have sounded like madness. How had his life changed so much, so quickly?
And yet that wasn't the thought that really disturbed him. If he didn't die, as everyone repeatedly told him he would, where would he be in several more years?
.
..
.
There had been a time when cultivation had been everything to her. Then it had been a horror, then a relief, then so many other things on her path to recovery. Yet now, as Zae Zin Nim swallowed another qi pill and attempted to cultivate the power within, it felt like nothing more than treading water.
She needed to make as much progress as she could now, using all the pure qi they'd taken or earned from Krysal. There was qi on Rosemount, but she was concerned about it being contaminated with chakra. If she wanted to properly advance and absorb the Blackblood Physique, everything needed to be perfect. In theory, when she broke through the Nascent Foundation stage to Earth Soul, she would be able to restore her body in full...
Somehow her thoughts had already wandered. Zae Zin Nim reprimanded herself and tried to return to the pure focus of cultivation.
Yet she couldn't help but think about everything she was missing in her weakness. This long trip over the ocean should have been perfect to talk to Kai and express all her true feelings. But with Omilaena there, leering at every moment, it just felt too awkward. Besides, she was still so hideously scarred, it wouldn't be right to attempt such a thing. Yes, she could reconsider once she was restored.
Except it might be too late by then. In Krysal she had learned that she wasn't the only one who could see Kai's charms. Now they were about to enter a new continent where anything could happen, and she couldn't ask him to sit and wait for a ruined woman.
Those thoughts should have been unworthy of her, but she didn't feel worthy as a cultivator either. When the two of them had met, she had been by far the stronger. Yet now... Zae Zin Nim took a break from cultivation to examine her soul.
<
Name: Zae Zin Nim
Total Power: 466
Cultivation: Nascent Foundation 41% (266)
Coldfire Corona: 46 (56)
Blackblood Physique Level: E-5 (95)
Soul Level: 7 (49)
>
Having more than 450 Power made her strong by most standards, especially given the new power of her Coldfire Corona. Yet it wasn't enough now. Kai might have looked weaker than her at a glance, but with his monstrous power he was actually substantially stronger. Omilaena was stronger any way you measured it and likely to grow even more powerful on Rosemount.
Somehow she had become the weak link, even as they protected her from the cultivators her father had sent. How long before they realized and left her behind? Kai might be so kind as to be naive, but he was walking a difficult path. If he kept moving forward, he would soon leave her behind.
Except he wouldn't. She wouldn't allow it. Zae Zin Nim took a deep breath and with renewed focus cleared her mind of all distracting thoughts. She was first and foremost a cultivator, and she would not let herself fall behind.
.
..
.
They'd be setting foot on Rosemount by the end of the day. Once, that would have filled Omilaena with either dread or relief. Now, she wasn't sure what to think.
Years ago, she had left her home continent because she recognized that she was up against a wall. To attain the heights of power that she knew existed beyond the highest peaks, she needed more leverage to climb higher. Without the strength to force her way into the top ranks, and especially not to enter the most important libraries, she couldn't find what she needed.
Instead she had fled to Deadwaste, the destination of the lazy and the desperate alike. She understood how it could be easy to be lulled into a false sense of ease there, since even her middling strength was far more powerful than so many of their strongest.
Instead, it filled her with a sense of dread that made her push her experiments even harder.
Just as she was stronger than the inhabitants of Deadwaste by virtue of where she'd been born, she knew there were those out there far more powerful than her. She'd even gotten proof of it, during the strange battle at the Frontier. In order to match such overwhelming power, it wasn't enough to merely train, she needed a deeper understanding of the true powers of the world.
Yet how much progress had she really made? Krysali cultivation had proved to be less fruitful than she had hoped, and though she'd advanced her primary abilities, it wasn't enough to overcome that gulf. Compared to the swift progress of the others, she was practically stagnant.
When Omilaena glanced at her own soul, she grimaced.
<
Name: Omilaena
Total Power: 648
Heart of Poison: Level 56 (224)
Lethal Artisan: Garnet Rank (175)
Physique: D-0 (200)
Soul Level: 7 (49)
>
Currently she stood at 648 Power, which was enough to be formidable but nowhere near the heights she needed to attain. How strong had she been when she first left Rosemount? She recalled having barely reached 500 and realizing that she was blocked. That meant a nearly 30% improvement... not trivial, but not much compared to cultivators whose power moved in huge leaps. Nothing compared to the growth of demonic arts, which she still hesitated to pursue.
The truth was that the real advantage she'd gained wasn't her own strength, it was her allies. Zae Zin Nim could grow into a useful ally, if she could be trusted, and Kai might hold one of the secrets she needed for true advancement. Having two people she could rely on was an advantage more important than any new power system.
Assuming that she could rely on them. Omilaena had never wanted to depend on others and she still hated the idea now.
But she didn't have a choice. They'd arrived at Rosemount and there was no more time.