Chapter 424 - 423-
When Grey emerged from the cave, the invisible, transparent maggot that represented the Captain wriggled violently as it desperately tried to force its way through the invisible barrier. It twisted and squirmed repeatedly, throwing itself against the unseen obstruction with increasing desperation.
Unfortunately, every attempt ended in failure.
The barrier remained completely unmoved, as though the tiny creature did not even exist.
Grey simply nodded toward the young girl before silently following her down the mountain path.
However, just before leaving the cave’s vicinity, he paused for a brief moment and glanced back at the two towering stone pillars where he had last heard the Captain’s agitated voice.
A slight frown formed on his face.
He felt that something was rather strange.
Still, the thought only lingered for a brief moment before disappearing.
The Captain had always been independent. Although she often acted childish and mischievous, she possessed countless bizarre methods and was more than capable of taking care of herself.
Grey did not believe that anything serious could have happened to her.
Perhaps she had already slipped into the cave after pretending to be blown away just to deceive him.
With that thought in mind, Grey withdrew his gaze and continued down the mountain without looking back again.
---
"Damn rotten apples! Where is little Grey going? Isn’t he coming back to pick me up? Why is he following that little girl instead?"
Violet’s indignant voice echoed through the air as the transparent maggot squirmed furiously against the barrier.
"Argh! If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve placed more than one worm on him! I’d even have secretly planted a few on that little girl too. Then I could’ve followed them wherever they went!"
The more she spoke, the angrier she became.
In the end, with no one else to vent her frustration on, she directed all of her complaints toward the Sequence Elder sitting inside the cave.
"Hmph! Rotten old woman! Always ruining my plans! One day I’ll definitely get my revenge!"
After an entire round of bitter complaints and childish grumbling, the transparent maggot finally stopped struggling.
Its tiny body slowly became even more translucent before beginning to dissolve at an astonishing speed.
Within only a few breaths, the strange creature completely evaporated into countless transparent particles that quietly scattered into the air before disappearing without leaving behind even the slightest trace.
The instant the maggot vanished from existence, the middle-aged woman, who had remained seated before the stone table while silently studying the chessboard, slowly lifted her eyes.
Coincidentally, her calm gaze landed precisely on the spot where the transparent maggot had disappeared.
She observed the empty space for only a brief second.
Then, without displaying the slightest hint of surprise or curiosity, she lowered her gaze once more.
Her attention returned entirely to the complicated chessboard before her.
The mountain breeze continued to blow gently through the cave, causing the corners of her robe to flutter lightly.
Yet nothing seemed capable of distracting her.
It was as though nothing in this world mattered more than the endless chess game she was quietly playing...
Against herself.
---
"Senior Disciple Grey..."
The young girl finally spoke after walking in silence for quite some time.
Her voice was hesitant and filled with uncertainty.
Ever since Grey had begun following her, he had not uttered another word. His indifferent expression remained unchanged from beginning to end, making it impossible for her to determine what he was thinking.
Seeing the faint annoyance lingering on his face, she couldn’t help but feel somewhat guilty.
After all, she was the one who had persuaded her master to summon Grey.
Ever since their encounter at the medicinal shop, the young girl had unknowingly become infatuated with him.
She had wanted to see him again countless times.
Unfortunately, Grey rarely appeared in public.
Even when he did leave the Detective Agency, he always concealed his appearance through various methods. By the time anyone realized it was him, he had usually disappeared once more.
This was simply how Grey preferred to live.
If he wasn’t carrying out duties for the Detective Agency, he would usually be locked inside his residence cultivating, researching poison formulas, or experimenting with new concoctions.
Occasionally, whenever he lacked spirit stones to purchase cultivation materials, he would quietly hunt down wanted criminals.
Even then, he preferred operating beneath the cover of darkness.
As Grey silently walked beside her, every one of his calm, measured footsteps seemed strangely captivating.
His long grey hair swayed gently behind him with the mountain breeze, while his expression remained cold and detached from everything around him.
To others, Grey could not be considered devilishly handsome.
His facial features were refined and exquisite, but they were far from extraordinary.
Yet his calm demeanor, emotionless expression, and indifferent temperament naturally drew people’s attention.
Coupled with his unusual grey hair and peculiar eye color, he possessed an indescribable charm that became increasingly difficult to ignore the longer one looked at him.
It was not merely physical appearance.
Rather, it was an otherworldly aura that surrounded him.
An aura that unconsciously attracted the gazes of countless women.
Grey himself was naturally aware of this.
Because of that, he always made a conscious effort to disguise himself whenever he ventured outside.
Unfortunately, despite all his efforts, situations like this still continued to occur.
Among everyone Grey had met so far, only one person appeared completely immune to whatever strange charm surrounded him.
Violet.
Yet for some inexplicable reason... Grey found that strangely comforting.
"Where are we going?" Grey suddenly asked in his usual aloof tone.
Since her master had personally requested that he accompany the young girl on this mission, he had no intention of refusing.
Still, he wanted to know exactly where they were headed.
The young girl froze for a brief moment.
"Uh... I-I..."
Caught off guard by Grey suddenly speaking to her, she became visibly flustered.
Her thoughts momentarily turned blank.
A few seconds later, she hurriedly composed herself.
"We’re... we’re heading to a Corroded Zone to collect some cultivation materials."
She paused before continuing.
"If everything goes smoothly and we’re fortunate enough, we’ll probably return within a week."
"But... if we encounter unexpected circumstances or fail to gather everything we need immediately..."
She smiled awkwardly.
"It might take considerably longer."
Grey silently contemplated her words before giving a small nod.
A trip into a Corroded Zone was not particularly troublesome.
However, everything depended on the specific materials they intended to harvest.
Some resources only grew within extremely dangerous regions where terrifying and bizarre phenomena frequently occurred.
Although Grey was no longer as fearful of Corroded Zones as he had been several years ago, he was far from arrogant.
Carelessness was often the greatest cause of death.
Even Spirit Core Formation cultivators had perished within Corroded Zones countless times throughout history.
Most frightening of all... Many of their deaths had been incredibly bizarre.
Some disappeared without leaving behind a single trace.
Others wandered out alive only to mysteriously decay into ash moments later.
There were even those who simply stood motionless until they slowly transformed into grotesque trees.
No one truly understood every danger hidden within the Corroded Zones.
Grey was confident in his own strength.
As long as they avoided venturing too deeply into the Corroded Zone and steered clear of certain incomprehensible existences, completing the mission safely should not prove too difficult.
Seeing Grey agree so readily, the young girl secretly let out a sigh of relief.
She had expected him to hesitate.
Perhaps he would even reject the request outright.
Instead... He had accepted almost immediately. Her heart couldn’t help but race.
’If everything goes according to plan...’ A faint blush crept across her cheeks.
’I’ll get to spend seven whole days with him.’
Her eyes brightened.
’No... seven days isn’t enough.’
’I can always pretend that gathering the materials is taking longer than expected.’
’We’ll stay inside the Corroded Zone for a few more days.’
’By the time we finally return...’ A soft smile unconsciously appeared on her lips.
’We’ll definitely have become much closer.’
---
If Grey had been aware of the young girl’s thoughts, he would have undoubtedly rejected her proposal and left on his own. Unfortunately, he had no means of reading her mind. Completely unaware of the schemes hidden beneath her calm expression, he merely followed behind her without suspicion.
The young girl, on the other hand, quickly suppressed the excitement bubbling within her heart. She took a slow, deep breath and forced herself to calm down. Even her walking speed and breathing rhythm became steady once again, making it impossible for anyone to notice the emotions she had just concealed.
The nearest Corroded Zone to Sky Mist City was more than two days away if one travelled normally. The journey itself was not particularly dangerous, but the distance between the two locations was simply too great. Even cultivators would have to spend a considerable amount of time flying across mountains, rivers, forests, and vast stretches of barren land before reaching their destination.
Fortunately, as disciples of Sky Mist City, they possessed privileges that ordinary cultivators did not.
Within Sky Mist City was a massive teleportation array that connected to numerous cities scattered across the surrounding regions. Rather than making the exhausting journey entirely on foot or by flight, disciples could teleport to a nearby city before continuing onward. If necessary, they could use another teleportation array there, gradually making their way toward their final destination through several connected cities.
Using this method, the journey that would normally require more than two days could be shortened to less than half a day.
Although activating the teleportation array itself only took a few moments, travelling between each connected city still required some time. Nevertheless, for Foundation Establishment cultivators like Grey and the young girl, covering those remaining distances posed little difficulty. Their flying speed far surpassed that of ordinary mortals, allowing them to cross vast distances in only a fraction of the time.
Before long, the two of them descended from the mountain and arrived at the district where the city’s teleportation arrays were located.
The place was bustling with activity.
Numerous cultivators dressed in robes of varying colors stood in orderly lines while waiting for their turn. Some chatted quietly with their companions, others cultivated with their eyes closed, while a few impatient individuals repeatedly glanced toward the front of the queue.
The reason for the long wait was quite simple.
Every teleportation destination required the array to be recalibrated beforehand. Since each group intended to travel to different cities, the formation masters overseeing the teleportation array had to carefully adjust the spatial coordinates every single time. Although the process was efficient, repeating it for every group inevitably resulted in a lengthy queue.
Grey’s gaze swept over the seemingly endless line, and a faint frown unconsciously formed on his face.
"So many people..."
Standing beside him, the young girl was equally dissatisfied.
If they waited in line like everyone else, they would undoubtedly waste a considerable amount of time before it became their turn.
Although a part of her wished the journey could be prolonged for as long as possible so she could remain by Grey’s side, she knew this was hardly an ideal situation.
More importantly, they were still within Sky Mist City’s territory.
If Grey became impatient enough, there was always the possibility that he would simply abandon the mission altogether and return to the sect.
That was the last thing she wanted.
Biting her lower lip slightly, the young girl hesitated for a brief moment before finally making up her mind.
"Please follow me, Senior Disciple Grey."
As she spoke, she reached into her storage bag and retrieved a finely crafted token.
Grey’s eyes shifted toward the object in her hand.
The token was exquisitely made, its surface engraved with intricate patterns that radiated a faint spiritual glow. It was obvious at a single glance that it was no ordinary identity token.
Without asking any questions, Grey silently followed behind her.
The young girl confidently walked past the waiting crowd until she arrived before the cultivators responsible for operating the teleportation array.
Ignoring the countless curious and angry gazes directed toward her, she calmly raised the token for everyone present to see.
The instant the token came into view, the expressions of the array overseers changed dramatically.
Their eyes widened in unmistakable shock.
Almost immediately, the few cultivators responsible for managing the teleportation array straightened their backs before respectfully bowing toward the young girl.
Without the slightest hesitation, they immediately stopped what they were doing and stepped forward to attend to Grey and the young girl personally.