Chapter 514: Returning to the Horn Lizard Town.
Coming out of Scorpion City, Thoren rode his mount, urging it to move faster.
Clouds of dust rose into the sky behind him as the undead mount raced across the barren desert.
Now that he knew the backstory of the Bleeding Desert, his view of this world had completely changed.
Just from his short conversation with the Ancient Scorpion, he knew the waters of this world were far deeper than he had initially thought.
Apart from that, he had realized that the Abyss was not as simple as fighting beasts, leveling up, and continuously growing stronger.
There were many ancient and mysterious powers at play behind the scenes.
And as long as he did not want to become their pawn, he needed to grow stronger as quickly as possible.
Previously, he had thought each floor could only have the strongest boss at the highest level acceptable to the rules of the Abyss.
But he was wrong.
The existence of the Ancient Scorpion alone had completely overturned his understanding.
Just like the Ancient Scorpion, she had been suppressed to live deep underground.
As long as she did not step outside and did not directly interfere with the actions of her clansmen, she would not be targeted.
However, the moment she came to the surface, that would be her end.
As for what would attack her, Thoren did not know.
Besides, he already had a guess in his mind.
Another point that caught his attention was the influence of higher powers on the higher floors and their ability to influence those below.
Although he had come into contact with higher powers on the first floor, he had thought that, with the power of the Abyss, their influence would be limited.
But now, he realized his thoughts had been nothing but the naive ignorance of a weak human.
The Abyss could only maintain control over the worlds it devoured. But what happened to those inside the world after it was devoured?
That was left for them to decide.
Thoren’s expression became slightly solemn as he thought about the implications.
The Abyss itself might have rules that even powerful existences could not violate, but that did not mean those existences were powerless.
They could still influence weaker worlds.
And they could still use beings like him to accomplish things they could not accomplish themselves.
That realization made Thoren’s eyes grow colder.
He had entered the Abyss seeking strength and searching for his sister. He had never intended to become someone else’s pawn.
Shaking his head, he decided not to think about such a heavy topic any longer.
Right now, he needed to return to Horn Lizard Town and have a serious conversation with Solenne.
There were too many things she needed to know.
More importantly, there were things he needed to know from her.
His silver hair swayed backward, carried by the desert wind as his mount raced through the desert.
The endless crimson dunes passed rapidly beneath him while the scorching wind whipped against his face.
With the undead mount pushed to its limit, the journey that would normally take a couple of hours was shortened to barely an hour.
Quickly, he arrived in the vicinity and could see the outline of Horn Lizard Town in the distance.
Apart from that, through his perception, he noticed many people, both humans and Beastmen, coming and going through the town.
After a couple of seconds, he arrived before Horn Lizard Town.
This time, he did not bother to get down from his mount as it marched directly into the town.
"Is that..."
"Do you want to die?"
"My goodness... he’s back."
"What should we do?"
Instantly, the arrival of Thoren sent a ripple throughout Horn Lizard Town.
Whenever humans and Beastmen saw him, they froze in their spots.
Their muscles stiffened.
Shock was written all over their faces.
No one there dared to speak, and even breathing too loudly was considered disrespectful toward the Grim Reaper.
He had just passed through the town gate, but news of his arrival had already traveled to all the major factions inside the town.
At the backyard of one of the houses, a group had gathered, talking and laughing when a figure suddenly rushed over and whispered something into his leader’s ear.
"What did you say?" The blue-haired woman asked in a loud voice as she immediately rose to her feet.
Listening to her shout, all the party members stared at her in confusion. Beside her, her twin stared at her while raising his brow.
"What is it?"
He asked, his voice leaving no room for questions.
"Tell everyone."
The female twin said as she took a deep breath.
The figure, who was a Level 35 Assassin, looked at everyone and spoke in a low voice.
"The Grim Reaper is back."
What?!
Instantly, the still silence in the backyard was broken as everyone stared at the Assassin in disbelief.
"What should we do?"
One of them asked, his voice carrying a mixture of excitement and uncertainty.
The legend of the Grim Reaper had spread throughout the human Awakeners and the Beastmen.
In the hearts of many human Awakeners, he had somehow become the uncrowned king.
Feared and respected by everyone.
"Do you need to ask?"
The male twin said as he rose to his feet.
"We are going to meet him right away."
His voice was filled with excitement and curiosity.
Just like everyone who had heard the legend of the Grim Reaper, only a handful of people had actually seen him.
Now that he was back, they couldn’t wait to see the young man who had made everyone tremble at the mere mention of his name.
Such a figure, how could they not rush to meet him?
Unknown to them, they were not the only ones having that thought.
Everyone wanted to know what kind of person stood behind the terrifying reputation that had spread throughout the Bleeding Desert.
All the major forces were moving at once to welcome the one and only...
Grim Reaper.