The following morning, Tyler awoke but kept silent about the one-sided dialogue he had overheard the previous night. Before leaping down to the ground, he first made sure Luo Pang was comfortably perched in his tree, about 20 to 30 meters distant.
While nibbling on some dried meat, Tyler couldn't stop thinking about Pang's words.
"The person responsible for my younger brother's injury is nearing the next outpost on schedule... Yes, father, I understand."
After overhearing those words, Tyler found himself deep in thought, puzzling over a troubling question: When did I ever cripple someone? He painstakingly reviewed every interaction he'd had since arriving in this world, but it wasn't until this moment that a potential answer emerged.
Could it be Young Master Luo, the one disciplined by Lo Shen near the village between Edge City and Permanence City? Tyler remembered Shen's words clearly from that incident.
‘Ah, Young Master Luo has been having some issues with authority that I’ve just corrected, so no need to worry he’ll heal in time.’ Those were Shen's exact words. Could it be that this Young Master Luo was Luo Pang's younger brother?
Still, Tyler couldn't see how he was implicated in this matter and found it baffling. One thing was certain: his escort, Luo Pang, had been scheming against him all along.
He shuddered at the thought of what might have happened if he hadn't swiftly dealt with the pack of tier 2 wolves and severely injured the tier 3. This chilling realization turned Tyler's heart and gaze as cold as ice.
After his meal and a few hours of cultivation, Tyler masked his true feelings with a forced smile as he reunited with Pang to resume their journey.
Throughout the day, Tyler contemplated using the communication crystal given to him by Ancestor Fang but ultimately chose not to. He knew he was under time pressure, especially since Luo Pang had already witnessed his strength.
However, Tyler had a plan in mind. Examining the map he carried, he pinpointed the upcoming outpost and estimated that they would reach it by tomorrow morning.
Observing the area around the outpost, he noticed that it was flanked by danger zones on either side, with a serpentine road cutting through a narrow chasm that divided these perilous areas.
That area would make for a perfect ambush point, and Tyler would be stupid just to walk in there.
They traveled mostly in silence throughout the day, and Tyler had Luo Pang collect a few more herbs as he figured he would either die due to the man's scheming or survive and loot it off his corpse.
His divine sense truly was a broken ability to detect treasures. Tyler also had to kill four tier 2 beasts that had ventured onto the road and saw him as easy prey.
As night fell, they were approximately three hours from the outpost. Tyler decided to stop in a nearby cave he had detected a short distance from the road. Luo Pang, without voicing any objections, followed Tyler's lead.
Following their usual routine, Tyler took the first watch while Luo Pang settled into sleep right after setting up his protective formations as he did every night. After a few hours, confident that Luo Pang was deeply asleep, as confirmed by his divine sense, Tyler rose from his meditative state.
Tyler had resolved that if Luo Pang intended to harm him, he would strike first. He might have been acting on assumptions, but when it came to his survival, he preferred to handle the repercussions rather than risk death. In the worst-case scenario, even if he died in the attempt, he was confident the sect wouldn't execute him due to the Sword King’s interference.
As he was beginning to see the beauty of this world and feel powerful enough to travel alone without the constant fear of random tier-two creatures ending his life, Tyler's thoughts turned to finding anyone he once knew.
For the first time since returning from the liminal space between universes, he longed to reconnect with his past. A single Sea Formation cultivator and his allies wouldn't stop him from accomplishing his goal.
Channeling his entire cultivation base, Tyler concentrated all his power into a single finger-sword. With eyes as cold as ice, he stared down at the sleeping Luo Pang and swiftly slashed toward the man's neck.
Luo Pang had barely a moment to sense something amiss as he felt the surge of Qi, and his formation disks sent urgent warnings to rouse him.
But it was too late.
Tyler's action resulted in a violent burst of blood in one swift, decisive strike. Luo Pang's head was obliterated along with his soul, shattered into countless fragments under the sheer force of Tyler's sword and Qi.
This strike mirrored the same strike he had executed against Master Tanaka just days before, which had been evaluated to have the same power level as a Sea Formation cultivator. That was the only reason he had confidence in this attack's success.
Tyler half expected the man to have some life-saving treasure or that he'd put up any type of fight and wake up at the last second to evade his strike, but nothing of the sort happened.
Just like that, a Sea Formation cultivator of the Inner Sword Sect died.
Meanwhile, unknown to Tyler, within the depths of Profound City on Sword King Mountain, at the principal residence of the Luo Family, the portrait of Luo Pang shattered into pieces.
The head of the Luo Family was jolted from his meditation by the sound of a Soul Portrait breaking. He looked up with a frown and then retrieved a communication crystal.
Meanwhile, Tyler, having taken the storage ring of the fallen cultivator, delved into its contents and was amazed by the abundance within. It contained not only the materials they had collected on their journey and the remains of animals he had provided but also a vast array of pills, potions, formation disks, and several small, intricately decorated boxes.
Tyler's curiosity led him to explore the contents of the boxes one by one.
The first box revealed a considerable amount of silver coins, forming a small heap.
The second box was filled with several hundred spirit coins.
In the third box, he found half a dozen silver condensates and a handful of spirit crystals.
However, the fourth and final box, which appeared to be made from a superior material compared to the others, resisted his attempts to open it. Despite his efforts, the box remained sealed even within his inner world.
After taking some time to examine everything meticulously, Tyler felt content. He had thoroughly read each label on the pills and potions, and his resources had grown significantly, both in terms of wealth and his stock of condensates and crystals.
Having completed his first warehouse building hewn from the robust tier 3 heartwood a few days ago, Tyler meticulously organized the materials within.
The warehouse he had created was nothing too extravagant as he wasn’t an architect, but the materials alone made it look like an enchanted hall from a high fantasy tale.
Its walls, hewn from heartwood, emitted a natural scent of forestry. The interior was illuminated by the essence of his inner world, eliminating the need for external lighting sources and bathing the entire space in a soft, ambient radiance.
The interior was lined with towering shelves, each carved from the same rugged and rustic heartwood. These shelves were now brimming with various exotic items, notably a collection of potions and pills, each housed in its own ornately decorated, glowing container, signifying the nature and strength of its contents.
A special section was allocated for weapons, a relatively sparse area that had just been populated with swords from Luo Pang's ring. Luo Pang's own sword, placed centrally as a trophy, dominated this space. With its gem-studded hilt, this sword radiated the formidable aura of a tier 3 weapon, standing out amongst the other four swords.
An entire section had been sectioned off for the furniture he found within the ring. Besides a few pieces gifted by Lin Jian, the assortment of furniture—like the expandable tables, shape-shifting chairs, and spatially impossible cabinets, all crafted from rare materials—were spoils from Luo Pang.
These pieces, while magnificent, left Tyler somewhat at a loss as to their practical application in his current setting.
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Central to the warehouse stood a large podium he displaced from the furniture section, functioning as the nerve center for Tyler's cultivation resources and wealth. This whole space now stood as a testament to Tyler's newfound wealth of resources he had acquired from the now-deceased Luo Pang.
In the corner of the warehouse, where all of the formation disks and communication crystals were stored, a single one started humming with energy as a grave voice resounded in Tyler's mind.
"Whoever you are, you've made a grave mistake. The Luo Family of the Sword Sect will hunt you down until there is no longer any of your bloodline remaining in this world!"
A frown appeared on Tyler's face as he heard this. He had been discovered somehow.
With a single thought, he targeted the crystal and sent back a single message before crushing the crystal. "You reap what you sow. Perhaps you'll be next. Watch yourself, whoever you are." Creating a small cloud of dust, the crystal disappeared into nothingness.
Sorting through everything else, he noted a few more communication crystals Luo Pang carried around, two of which were marked with the symbol of the Sword Sect and one of which was completely unmarked. Unless someone talked through them, he'd leave them be for now.
Finally, since Tyler had no idea what any of those formation disks did, he left them alone in a corner of the warehouse to study later once he got his hands on a How to Formation Disks for Dummies book. He was reasonably confident that none of those formations could track him from within his inner world, as Lin Jian had made it perfectly clear that this was only a power Ascendant cultivators should have.
In the outer world, Tyler was determined to leave no evidence of his presence in the cave where he and the lifeless body of Luo Pang resided. He deployed his divine sense, a perceptive force that swept the cave's entire expanse with precision. With a mere thought, Tyler initiated the transfer of every object within the cave's confines to the expanded terrain of his inner world.
This transfer was instant. Where there had previously been a large pool of blood next to the body of Luo Pang, now only the rocky grounds remained. Even through his divine sense, Tyler couldn't detect anything wrong with this cave.
Resolved not to overstay his welcome in the vicinity, Tyler quickly vacated the cave. Once outside, he attended to the Striders. Tyler removed their saddles, which appeared to soothe and control them. By doing so, he had effectively freed them into the wilds.
Having liberated the Striders, Tyler focused his journey toward the southern outpost. He was acutely conscious of the potential perils ahead.
Luo Pang had stressed the importance of steering clear of the so-called danger zones, and Tyler was aware that he might inadvertently stumble into a trap if he went through the pass beyond the outpost. Although his instincts advised caution, he also realized that completely avoiding these zones could divert him from his new objective.
Setting aside the mission of the Sword Sect, for now, his foremost priority was to identify those plotting against him.
The route he considered was laden with hazards, requiring him to venture into the danger zone known as the Twelve Ghosts Ridge. Opting for a safer but more time-consuming route around the two mountains was an option, yet it wouldn't allow him to find out more about his pursuers.
After all, he had the best scouting tool available to any cultivator below the Soul Shattering stage - Divine Sense.
Tyler was ready to take this carefully weighed risk, motivated by the urgent need to face and comprehend the looming threats. He believed that not only would he be able to find out more about the people targeting him but also avoid all of the dangers within the Twelve Ghosts Ridge using his enhanced senses.
Tyler headed west for several hours to veer off the main trail and cover his tracks. He meticulously concealed his presence, moving through the forest with cautious, measured steps. His journey involved evading every creature he encountered, prioritizing stealth and caution in his movements.
During his cautious trek, Tyler sensed the presence of a tier 3 beast resembling a porcupine at a distance of a few hundred meters. Fortunately, his distance from the creature, combined with his efforts to remain undetected, ensured that the beast remained oblivious to his presence.
Upon encountering a towering tree that stood out among its surroundings, Tyler paused to assess the area thoroughly. He expanded his divine sense, stretching it to its limits, reaching well over a kilometer for a brief moment. He aimed to meticulously scout the tree and its vicinity to ensure the area was safe.
To his astonishment, a formidable creature was atop the tree, nestled in a large nest, a tier 4 hawk-like entity. The moment Tyler's divine sense made contact with it, the creature was jolted awake and let out a piercing shriek.
The creature's sonic cry had a devastating impact. For an entire kilometer, weaker beasts experienced severe backlash from the sonic attack, and some even fell unconscious.
Realizing the threat posed by the approaching sonic wave, Tyler reacted swiftly to mitigate its impact, fully aware that the force could potentially render him unconscious.
In just a fraction of a second, he felt the combined assault of sonic and soul power battering against the crystalline structure of his inner world. Drawing upon his experience from the Sword Sect's trial, Tyler quickly maneuvered his qi, utilizing the wind laws to conjure the Galeweave Shield.
While not exceptionally powerful, this defensive technique became significantly more effective when combined with his recently fortified qi and strengthened pathways. It was barely enough to avert a disastrous outcome from the creature's attack.
To maintain the shield and keep himself conscious, Tyler had to expend a considerable amount of his Qi. This wasn’t without injuries, however, as the sound wave rocked every organ in his body, causing him to bleed out of every orifice on his body, his consciousness waving. At least he wasn’t knocked out and had plenty of medicines in his inner world.
The encounter with the tier 4 monster, even before entering the danger zone, made Tyler question his strategy. He briefly considered abandoning his quest to uncover his adversaries and completely circumventing the area.
However, after a few tense seconds, Tyler, with his divine sense still extensively deployed, noticed that the hawk had returned to slumber, apparently reassured that nothing was amiss. This observation led him to conclude that the creature was highly sensitive to soul fluctuations. While his already deployed divine sense didn't trigger any reaction from the bird, initiating it seemed to provoke an aggressive response.
Tyler's understanding of the creature's sensitivity offered him crucial knowledge on navigating encounters with such formidable beasts. He realized that to circumvent the effects of a tier 4 creature's attack, particularly one as potent as this hawk's sonic assault, he would need to train his divine sense even more than before.
To be precise, he would attempt to maintain his divine sense as if meditating as much as he could endure. This continuous extension of his divine sense would enable him to sense and respond to the presence of powerful creatures without inadvertently succumbing to their defensive mechanisms and train his ability to process this much information.
It was a technique that required skill and endurance, as maintaining this level of awareness would be mentally taxing.
After narrowly avoiding disaster, Tyler simultaneously focused on two tasks: sustaining a semi-meditative state to maintain his divine sense max range and constructing a provisional shelter for the remainder of the night.
In the vicinity of the towering tree, Tyler noticed an absence of other animals, which now made sense to him considering the presence of the tier 4 predator. Drawing upon his military training, he crafted a small burrow for his night's rest.
The burrow-making process involved selecting a slightly elevated spot to avoid water accumulation. Using no other tools than his superhuman hands, Tyler carefully dug into the earth, creating a narrow entrance that expanded into a more spacious chamber below. The walls of the burrow were reinforced with sticks and leaves to provide stability and insulation. From the outside, the burrow was camouflaged with natural debris, blending seamlessly with the forest floor.
The process took almost two hours as maintaining concentration on his divine sense caused him quite the headache while attempting to do anything other than meditating.
Choosing to sleep near the territory of such a formidable creature might seem reckless to many, but Tyler was confident in his ability to remain undetected at this juncture. This confidence in his stealth abilities, coupled with his strategic choice of location, Tyler released his concentration towards maintaining his divine sense and went to sleep.
Luckily, the dissipation of the divine sense had caused no disturbance whatsoever.
***
At the outpost, Shin Seok waited calmly for the anticipated arrival of Tyler and Luo Pang. He was the one with the lowest cultivation in their group, so naturally, he was the lookout. Their appearance was expected either late that night or shortly before the sun reached its zenith the following day, as Luo Pang hadn't reported anything yet tonight.
Meanwhile, deep within the mountain pass and along the towering walls that led to the danger zones above, a group of about a dozen cultivators busied themselves with setting up an intricate array of formation disks and various traps.
This preparation was part of a well-orchestrated plan to ensure Tyler's downfall. Given his predicted route, everyone involved was confident in their ability to eliminate him despite his extraordinary strength.
The initial revelation of Tyler's formidable power had shocked everyone. When Luo Pang first reported how a Qi Transformation cultivator like Tyler possessed such astounding capabilities, the news was met with disbelief and bewilderment. How could someone who had only recently advanced to the Qi Transformation level display such seemingly impossible strength?
However, the group eventually dismissed these concerns, bolstered by the presence of Luo Pang, who had been providing nightly updates on their movements. Additionally, with the assistance of two other seasoned Sea Formation cultivators, one hired by Hung Jeok and another by the Luo Family, their confidence in the success of their plan was unshakable.
They were confident that with such a formidable team and strategic preparations, they could overcome any challenge Tyler might present.
The realization that something was amiss didn't dawn on them until the following day when there was no word from Luo Pang, and neither he nor Tyler had appeared at the outpost. It was plausible that Seok might have missed them, but the cultivators stationed inside the pass would not have missed their appearance.
This unexpected turn of events threw Lo Xin, Hung Jeok, and the others into a state of mild panic. Their plan, which seemed foolproof, was now showing cracks, and the lack of any information about Tyler's whereabouts only heightened their anxiety.
Meanwhile, perched on the precipice of the Twelve Ghost Ridge, Tyler lay there battered and bloodied, his body prone against the rugged terrain for an entire day, observing them.
With each passing moment, he etched the faces of everyone involved in this ambush into his memory, slowly piecing together the puzzle of the attempts on his life.
In his mind, he reviewed his interactions with these people, believing his conduct to have been reasonably unexceptional, albeit slightly unconventional for this world. But now, he was beginning to grasp the lengths they were willing to go to over what he had perceived as a minor misunderstanding.
This realization brought a new understanding of the treacherous dynamics and the dangerous undercurrents of power and betrayal in this world.
But also how out of the ordinary he was as a cultivator to warrant such a lineup of cultivators to deal with him.
Then, a communication crystal vibrated with power from within his inner world.