Chapter 114: Desire to Contribute
After their agreement, she said she was going to investigate the Abyss Matriarchs and the Crimson Rebels, the forces she thought were most at odds with Liam. The Emerald Owls were a problem he knew best, so it made sense to focus on these other groups.
He agreed with her and arranged to meet every three days in the negotiation wing of the Missions Hall.
Following that, he made his way to the Beasts Hall. He didn't have to report to the Beasts Hall or the Battle Hall like he had to the Runes Hall. Liam only had to report to the Runes Hall because of his daily lessons under Ann's supervision. But in the other two halls he was assigned to, he only had to report once a week to stay out of trouble.
In the Beasts Hall, Liam could stay for another six days without worrying about going there. As for the Battle Hall, he would have to go there tomorrow and fulfill his responsibilities of the week.
In any case, he was part of the Leopards and had to report back to the group after being away for days.
...
At the Beasts Hall, Liam found a much friendlier and more welcoming atmosphere than in the other places he had been to since his return to the city.
Several members of Leopards congratulated him on improving his cultivation, completing the monthly mission, and surviving the journey out of the city.
When he reached the underground level of the coliseum and met Lazarus, the bald, square-headed man smiled when he saw Liam again. Such a person couldn't help but enjoy see that this young man who had suffered so much in the past few weeks was now doing well.
"Haha, Liam, looks like your enemies underestimated you! I imagine many of them will respect you now, right?" the man said as he stood in front of the short, black-haired boy. He clapped his hands on the boy's shoulders with a good look in his eyes.
"That's the tough part. I don't know if my problems have decreased or increased with these days away, Boss Ross." Liam was honest as he shook his head and sighed.
Lazarus got more serious and said, "Don't worry. Now that you are growing up, we will not allow aggression from others. Leopards are not something to be trifled with!" He clenched his fists and waved one in front of Liam.
He pointed to the barn in the dark area, and they walked towards it together.
"Tell me about the enemies you're most worried about right now," Lazarus said as he sat down in a leather chair in the living area of the barn.
"Emerald Owls, Abyss Matriarchs, and Crimson Rebels. I know little about them, so I don't know who hates me more or who is more dangerous. But they all have reasons to destroy me."
Liam didn't go into details, while Lazarus didn't want to ask for anything in particular.
"And what are your plans?" Lazarus asked.
He knew a few relevant things about Liam. But in order to coordinate his group's actions with what the young man had or could do, he needed to hear Liam's plans.
"For now, I want to stay away from confrontations and focus on becoming a Second Class Runemaster. I think that will help me a lot."
Lazarus shook his head in the affirmative, agreeing that this would indeed be good for Liam.
"Do it. It will help you and open up opportunities for you within the faction. Anyway, did you have to use the Guardian Sphere out there?"
"Yes, it's in recovery mode now... In fact, I was wondering how long it would take for it to recover."
The man motioned with one hand for Liam to hand him the artifact.
"I think it'll be active again in another three days. Keep it until you become a Spirit Earth cultivator. After that, give it back to our leader. There are others who can use it in the future." Lazarus handed the orb back to Liam.
Liam nodded in understanding as he put the protective item around his neck.
Lazarus stood and said, ending the conversation, "Since you want time to develop your abilities, we'll help you with that. The end of the month is here, and most of the faction leaders in the city will soon hunt for crystals in the forest. Therefore, it's unlikely that you'll have any major problems.
Besides, with the new month upon us, some of the local leaders will focus their attention on the new arena games."
All the outer disciples of the Initiate and Senior Initiate ranks had to hunt for Arcane Crystals for the sect. Also, the beginning of the month was the time when the disciples were most busy fighting in the arena, as they had to fulfill their monthly quota of fights, and many preferred to do so right at the beginning of the month.
"In the coming days, as long as you attempt to stay out of trouble, everything should be fine. In the meantime, I'll make sure the faction guards monitor our rivals. We'll act to protect you if necessary. You have my word."
As he saw Lazarus offer his hand, Liam shook it and thanked him for his attention.
Soon after, he left, promising to return in a few days for his obligatory mission regarding the hall.
...
At nightfall, Mary returned to her dormitory, exhausted from the day.
Her load of sect responsibilities was twice as heavy as Liam's. Today she had worked three hours in the Refectory, five hours in the Essences Hall, and even served in the Beasts Hall.
She had barely eaten, cultivated, or studied today. When she entered her dormitory, all she could think about was her bed.
However, as soon as she left the stairs on the third floor of the building and looked at the corridor where her bedroom door was, her eyes took on an unmistakable light.
'Liam!' She caught sight of her favorite man and felt her energy rise as she quickened her pace.
Unlike many of the townspeople who had Liam in mind, Mary was not a well-informed person. Besides, she was so busy that she hardly had time to listen to gossip.
When she saw him, she smiled with relief and joy, relieved that he had completed his perilous journey out of the city and was back. But amid that feeling, she couldn't help but bite her lips, feeling wet.
"You look better." She complimented as they entered her small room.
He smiled, imagining that she would notice his changes.
"I've had some good opportunities since we parted that day." He showed her his true cultivation as he spoke.
He couldn't hide it from his cultivation partners, so she would find out in the next few minutes, one way or another.
Mary's eyes widened, as she couldn't help but be shocked.
'9-Star?' she thought to herself as she saw him approaching her.
"By the way, my trip out of town was quite profitable. I have a few things for you," he said as he grabbed her waist and sniffed her slender neck.
Mary hadn't bathed in hours. But this woman always smelled good. And hell, Liam loved the perfume of his women!
As he closed his eyes, he enjoyed the warm embrace of his girl and brought one of his hands to Mary's hot butt, squeezing it with glee.
"Is that so?" She felt her body heat rise, curious to know what she was going to get.
"I have some Arcane Crystals for you to use on your Spirit, recovery potions for when you need them, and pills to strengthen you. After we cultivate today, I want you to take one of these pills."
Unlike Liam, Mary had hardly used any special resources to strengthen or recover. As she was now, she would probably get a quick improvement by absorbing the medicinal effects of one pill he had gotten for her.
She felt happy to see him taking care of her, and at the same time, she unconsciously drew him even closer to her, wanting to give everything to this man.
"I will... But I must warn you, I intend to leave tomorrow to hunt for my second Spirit. I've arranged for a friend from the Essences Hall to go with me into the forest."
As he heard this, Liam moved away from her and looked her seriously in the eyes. "Are you sure about this? Can you trust her?"
He himself had wanted to take her with him to hunt her Spirit, but he knew that this could be quite dangerous for Mary, with the potential to reveal their relationship to his enemies. That was why he hadn't taken her before. But that didn't mean he wouldn't be suspicious if a third party approached her and went hunting with her.
"I don't think you can trust anyone here. But I know how to handle Jane... And if all goes well, I might get a genius on our side." Mary smiled at Liam.
She didn't want to rely on him alone. In fact, she wanted to help him, and if she could get Jane on their side, they could eventually use the precious Essences Hall to their advantage.
Liam was the person who liked to be in control, but he also liked to have people he could trust around him. If he interfered in everything, he would never have someone trustworthy enough to delegate important tasks to.
So he trusted her. "All right, but be careful. By the way, how's your Mana Mask?"
"I got through the first phase. After all, it's not a difficult technique to learn."
He liked what he heard. "Good. I think you can improve your cultivation after today. Use the Mana Mask to look like you're in the middle of 4-Star, even if you get stronger."
"All right."
Agreeing with him, she undressed herself and let her dress fall to the ground, revealing her perfect body to him.
He smiled as he saw her kneeling before him.
'Ah... I missed this.' He closed his eyes and savored the sensation.