'...I sense Mira nearby.'
Munching on a beast bone, Rhydian, in her humanoid form, trembled slightly, feeling her connection to Mira solidify. Meaning that terrifying woman was nearby.
...boom!
Rumble!
...boom!
Distance explosions reverberated through the land, which, for some reason, seemed to be in the direction she felt Mira. Rhydian could only imagine what sort of trouble she was in now.
'...Fortunately, I made a breakthrough recently, or else she might really kill me for being too lazy.'
During her solo journey, she encountered numerous useful treasures, most of which were bones of ancient beasts. They were usually buried under hundreds of meters of snow, ice, and stone, but her senses were abnormally sharp when it came to things like this.
It wasn't so pronounced before, but after she broke through to Rank 8, she gained something akin to super smell that allowed her to sniff out almost anything beast-related as long as she desired it.
Of course, this ability wasn't omnipotent, as the range was limited, but this continent was like a treasure trove, so it didn't matter. There were immense numbers of strong beasts buried deep in the ground. Which made sense, as from her point of view, the humans were vastly in the minority here.
Beasts ruled most of the land like they were evolutionarily suited for it.
After consuming so many, both living and dead, she had finally broken through to Mid-Stage Rank 8, which showed no signs of stopping as it slowly increased with every bite of the leg bone she chewed on.
Just then, she felt a pull toward a location deep in the ground and understood she found another dead beast, but she soon frowned.
'Now that Mira's nearby, the chances of me being able to search this area freely is basically nil.'
'Should I just move somewhere else?'
She knew that moving to another area would be best for her safety, but she still felt reluctant. This central area of the blizzard housed the most hidden resources, even if it was the most difficult to traverse.
After a few moments of pondering, Rhydian sighed. '...I might as well go see what's going on. My carefree treasure-hunting spree is coming to an end anyway.'
Turning in the direction she sensed Mira, she began walking at a leisurely pace, not in a rush to jump right into danger.
***
"HAP!" A burst of fire shot out of a woman's hands, incinerating a Behemammoth, a giant icy Mammoth, and lighting her way in the blizzard. However, she made sure not to damage their tusks. She then proceeded to walk through the rest of its 'nest,' killing every one of its species until none were left behind.
She stored their remains inside her Spatial Ring. After cleaning the place dry, she reluctantly searched around for their dung.
'Ugh! Why do I have to do this shit?' She grumbled, using her Qi to levitate their feces before shoving it in a separate Spatial Ring.
Of course, she knew why: Behemammoths were incredibly valuable resources. Every part of their bodies could be used in some way, whether it be creating powerful weapons, arrays, or pills. Just this pack of a few hundred could provide her Sect with decades of high-level resources, but it still annoyed her that someone of her strength and status still had to go digging for shit.
That's what subordinates are for, after all!
"Hehe~ No need to be nervous. I'm not judging. I'm just curious how you're still alive. I mean, Mira can be pretty... rough~ after all~"
"..."
Linnea wondered the same thing. "A-Ahaha... I guess I'm just lucky? I mean, part of me thinks she doesn't even know I exist, so..."
Maria smiled wryly, shaking her head. "Yeah... that sounds like her." Coughing lightly, she changed the subject. "Anyways, it seems like you're looking for a way to heal yourself, right?"
Linnea hesitated for a moment before nodding. It wasn't really a secret, but she didn't exactly like telling people that she was crippled. It felt like she was accepting her current pitiful state–something she refused to do.
"What if I said I could heal that for you?"
"..." At first, Linnea thought the woman before her was an idiot speaking nonsense, but seeing the calm smile on her face, she started thinking otherwise. However, she inwardly shook her head, refusing to place her hope in that.
It was commonly known that healing broken dantians required miracle pills or rare treasures. That was the lifeblood an any true cultivator. Like how humans needed a heart to live, cultivators needed a core(dantian) to cultivate. Without it, the possibility wasn't even there.
Without a working dantian, the meridians would be all messed up, making them essentially useless. Even breaking through to the Qi Condensation Realm would be difficult. Rather, the Meridian Opening Stage in the Body Tempering Realm would already be a near-impossibility.
Needless to say, just as the items that could heal a broken heart were so exotic, the same was for a dantian, perhaps even more so.
"...You... You're not messing with me, right?" Linnea asked shakily. "How could you-"
Maria smiled gently. "I haven't tried it before, but I'm pretty confident in my healing techniques."
"What?! Techniques?!"
...Rumble... BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Distant explosions and earthquakes shook the city, alerting everyone in it. Most took cover, afraid that some giant monster was approaching, but the truly strong all narrowed their eyes, looking toward the center of the blizzard.
"...Mira," Maria muttered, clutching her heart, which started pounding in her chest. "...Mira's over there. I know it!"
Celaine's expression turned serious. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely!"
"Then, what are we waiting for?"
"Right! Let's go!"
Nodding, the two stood up and began to head out before Maria turned around to look at Linnea. "I'm sorry, but it looks like we'll need to put this conversation on hold."
"Wait-!"
Linnea shouted, but the two were already gone. She slumped back in her chair, feeling dizzy, her emotions tumultuous. "...W-Why does everyone around me just do whatever they want?"
'Now, what should I do?'