Chapter 1375 1375 - Gathering

Noah didn't remain in the Rumbling Region. The guilds that Chief Ash had sent away knew that he was there, and the Crystal City didn't withdraw the bounty.

More mercenaries and assassins would come for him, so he couldn't remain in the same place to train. It was better to find a different spot far away from the Rumbling Region where he could spend peaceful years and focus on his prowess.

Noah had maps and Soul Stones to spend in case he ran out of ideas. Finding a safe spot inside the Hellish Landscape wasn't a problem with so many forces occupying its territories.

Noah eventually opted to avoid any interaction with the human forces and travel through the vast sea of flames until he found a spot far away from any recorded inheritance. Fire in the middle tier couldn't hurt him anymore, so he had many options at his disposal.

Once he found a decent spot, Noah deployed his dark world and began to cultivate. He had a lot to do, but he couldn't risk enraging Chief Ash since she was his only lead toward Divine Demon. He had to focus on the abilities that could quickly improve his battle prowess.

Years went peacefully inside the Hellish Landscape. No one could find Noah while he cultivated in a random spot among the sea of flames. The tracking abilities didn't work either since his dark world made sure to erase every track that he had left during his travel.

After a bit more than fifty years, Noah decided to leave the separate dimension and meet with Chief Ash. His robe and dark world kept him hidden from unwanted gazes, and he quickly managed to disperse any pursuer once he returned to the wilderness.

Noah couldn't go back to Silkpost city. The Crystal City was one of the overlords of that settlement, so he couldn't appear publicly. Chief Ash had also advised against that since their cooperation would be exposed if someone recognized him.

Chief Ash and her group reached Noah in a forest near Silkpost city after exchanging a few mental messages. They didn't seem bothered by the fact that they had to wait more than half a century to begin their mission. Decades went by as if they were seconds for divine cultivators, so they didn't mind waiting until he completed his exploration of the Hellish Landscape.

"The Land of the Fallen had far more territories back then," Chief Ash said after she performed few formal greetings with Noah. "The magical beasts have taken most of them due to their constant expansion. In my opinion, the humans can't win against that enemy."

Noah could only nod at her explanation. She wanted to console him since he had left the Hellish Landscape quite soon, but he didn't care about her words. He only wanted to know what she knew about Divine Demon.

"You lead the way," Noah said as he straightened his position. "I hope this force is enough to take him down."

Chief Ash's group consisted of twelve gaseous stage cultivators and her. They weren't a weak force, but Noah had the vague feeling that they weren't enough against Divine Demon.

"It's not," Chief Ash replied bluntly. "That arrogant bastard is in the solid stage. Our role is to support the main group during the battle. Our leader will fight Divine Demon directly."

Noah revealed a surprised expression at those words. He had always thought that Chief Ash was the leader of her guild. He didn't expect her to be a simple underling.

"Right, they don't record these in the libraries," Chief Ash said. "Every guild needs a cultivator in the solid stage to obtain the acknowledgment of the stronger forces. You can even set up an entire organization once you have a cultivator in the eighth rank. Mercenaries and assassins can have only leaders in the liquid stage, but they aren't real groups."

Noah limited himself to nod again, but he felt happy inside. His cooperation with Chief Ash had just begun, but he had already gained valuable information that the libraries couldn't offer.

'We have to join a solid stage cultivator then,' Noah thought as he suppressed his emotions. 'I wonder how strong experts at that level are.'

Noah also felt lucky that he had spent many years improving his prowess. He wouldn't be unprepared even in front of a solid stage cultivator. He wouldn't win if a battle were to happen, but he felt confident in his ability to escape.

'I only have to decide what to do once we find Divine Demon,' Noah thought.

It was still unclear whether Divine Demon could be an ally. The behavior of that expert would decide Noah's actions. Noah didn't want to fight him, but he wouldn't hesitate to draw his blade if the situation required it.

"Does this mean that Divine Demon has a guild?" Noah asked as he continued to investigate.

"No, quite the opposite," Chief Ash replied. "He doesn't want to join any organization, and he even kills whoever tries to find him. Those like him aren't rare when it comes to ascended cultivators, but they usually understand the limits of traveling without the backing of an organization sooner. He is an exception."

"What about his contacts and alliances?" Noah continued. "Doesn't he have customers? I don't believe that he has no help after spending so long in the Immortal Lands."

"We have confirmed a few names through the secret organization," Chief Ash said. "They shouldn't be a problem. Their relationships are strictly professional, so we might find troubles only if Divine Demon has some specific resource coming from other forces."

Noah nodded a third time before following the weaker troops that had already begun to move toward their destination. Ordinary cultivators couldn't cross the wilderness like him. They needed safe paths that they could travel without meeting many magical beasts.

The group moved quickly. Chief Ash didn't tell Noah their destination, but he could guess where they were going since he knew the Immortal Lands' general layout. They were returning to the area of influence of Vagona city.

Noah and the others traveled for months through the wilderness. Chief Ash's group knew all the safe paths through the forests, mountains, and lakes that appeared in their view, and Noah could only adapt to their approach to those lands.

The group didn't aim to return to Vagona city. Chief Ash and the others were going in one of the peripheral territories inside the mountain chain.

More cultivators appeared in that region. A few groups converged toward the peak of the mountain and brought presents that they exposed to the other cultivators to brag.

Noah didn't understand why they would do something like that, but Chief Ash gladly began to explain again.

"The boss is on the summit," Chief Ash said. "My guild doesn't have many restrictions, but our leader wants to see the results of our missions before assigning some rewards."

"Why aren't you taking out any present then?" Noah asked, but something told him that he already knew the answer.

"I have completed a few tasks already," Chief Ash said, "Those experts mostly are weaker cultivators who can't even go past the initial phases of the divine ranks. Asking for help is their only hope."

****

Author's notes: The last chapter will arrive after I wake up.