It was still morning.
Although the sun's rays heated the ground and the air, they felt too cold.
Desper and the team had returned to their horses and were heading back to the Beacon. Although, five hours had passed since Eland activated the Azure Ability, the horses were still tired. But at least, they could be ridden. The team members were all exhausted, both physically and mentally.
Desper stared at the back of his horse with empty eyes. The village's destruction affected him the most. It brought him back to three months ago, to the day of the disaster when his village was destroyed. The torn bodies, the scent of blood, the desperate looks… it was the same.
"Are you okay?" Eland got closer to him and asked.
For a moment, Desper didn't respond. Eland wasn't annoyed at all; he was shaken as well.
"W… Why?" Finally, a word escaped Desper's mouth.
Eland didn't understand. "Why what?"
"Why?" Desper repeated. "Why did the monsters attack them again? Didn't Arkan execute the Lurker? What made them go there?"
Eland lowered his head, a sad expression on his face as he answered,
"These felines were all B-Rank monsters. As I told you before, B-Rank monsters don't have cores, so they don't sense Essence fluctuations and aren't attracted to cultivators or the Beacon. With no O-Rank or M-Rank to lead them, they attack only to feed, regardless of whether their targets are ordinary people or cultivators."
Eland fell silent for a moment, then added with difficulty, "That was also why the monsters attacked your village, despite the absence of any Lurker."
Desper's body tensed upon hearing that. His face twisted with anger and grief.
His village had also been destroyed under the same circumstances: a Double Signal, no Lurkers, and B-level monsters.
Eland ended his explanation with, "You can rest for the next two days. You don't have to fight any monsters till the end of the mission. just relax your mind."
That was what he said; however, Eland was thinking of something else.
'The Double Signal three months ago, the strange behavior of the monsters from the two Spatial Cracks, and the Double Signal now… all of them happened in Desper's presence.'
…
After another two hours, they finally returned to the Beacon.
Desper didn't speak to anyone during the entire journey back. He went straight inside the Beacon and lay on the bed, burying his face in the pillow. He didn't change his blood-stained clothes or even take off his swords.
"Is he going to be okay?" Outside the Beacon, Arkan asked.
"Three months ago, he saw his village destroyed and everyone die. Now, he had to witness that again," Eland said. "No one would be okay after that, not even the toughest among us."
Then he looked at his team and added, "Prepare the other horses in case anything happens."
Inside the Beacon, Desper tried to sleep many times, but he ended up lying on the bed for five hours, staring at the ceiling.
He slowly sat up, then blindfolded himself. After activating his Svikari Bloodline, he began cultivating. It was the only way for him to stop thinking.
…
Three days passed.
Luckily, these days were quiet, with no new Spatial Cracks or Distress Signals.
Right now, Desper had just finished his cultivation session. He looked at his token and saw the words 'Fourth Stage of Muscle Cultivation' written at the bottom. He had broken through to the next stage. Normally, he would have been happy about that, but he wasn't in the mood to celebrate.
"I'm too close," a voice said.
Desper looked at Bron, who was sitting on his bed. His body was trembling, and his face was filled with hope.
"I'm too close," he repeated nervously. "I feel it. I'm about to break through."
Desper was surprised. Bron had been stuck for years at the Tenth Stage, so this was a big surprise or he's just imagining.
The door of the Beacon opened, and Zen entered.
"It is time."
The mission had ended, and it was time to leave. Hearing that, Desper stood up, picked up his bag, and left the Beacon. Outside, he saw six men on horseback approaching them.
Desper heard Eland's voice
"How are you feeling now?".
"Much better, I guess."
"Your eyes say the opposite."
"Some bad dreams."
By then, the other team had arrived.
Eland faced the other leader and said, "Can you send a Backup-Team Signal?"
"Hmm?" The other leader was surprised.
Eland explained, "I couldn't send it and had to wait until you arrived. I will take responsibility for that."
The leader of the other team didn't waste any time and operated his Detection Desk.
"It worked," he said with a sigh of relief, then asked Eland, "What happened?"
Eland explained the strange behavior of the monsters and how they targeted Muscle Cultivators, which frightened three members of the other team. Then he explained how he had failed to send any of the signals. In the end, he told them about the Double Signal.
"You are very lucky to still be alive and not have been ambushed by Zlodei or something," the other leader pondered. "If I had been in your place, I would have abandoned this Beacon immediately."
Then he looked at his team.
"We will stay inside the Beacon until the backup teams arrive."
After sending the Backup-Team Signal, the sect would dispatch two strong teams of Organ Cultivators to take care of the Beacon until the bizarre situation was resolved.
After that, Eland mounted his Azure Horse and rode away, followed by the others.
The ride back was uneventful. They had no reason to preserve the horses' energy, so they rode at full speed and reached the sect in less than an hour.
After showing their tokens to the guards, they passed through the huge gate into the desert between the outer walls and the main sect.
At the periphery, they dismounted and handed their horses to an old man waiting there.
"I will report to the Order Hall," Eland said. "We will meet tomorrow."
Everyone nodded and went their separate ways.
Desper opened the door of his apartment using his token and stepped inside. He felt as if he had been gone for months, not just a week.
After bathing and changing into clean clothes, he went to his room and put a blue pill in his mouth. It was a sleeping pill he had just obtained from the Medical Hall. He had been sleeping poorly for the past three days, so Eland had advised him to take one. Just a minute after taking it, Desper felt his head grow light, and he quickly fell into a deep sleep.
He woke up the next day after sleeping for over eighteen hours. Despite that, he still felt exhausted.
After using the bathroom, he entered the Silent Room and began cultivating. Since no one could interrupt him there, he didn't need to blindfold himself.
After only five hours of cultivating, he left his apartment. As he walked through the sect's streets, he observed the lively scene: many stalls selling various items, people walking around, children running and playing.
'Everyone feels safe here.'
The sect was the safest place in the area. If any monster attacked it, there were hundreds of cultivators to tear them apart, not to mention the Elders and the Sect Leader. Disciples could go on missions knowing their families were safe here.
Lost in his thoughts, he suddenly collided with another person and fell.
Desper snapped back to his senses and helped the man to his feet.
"I'm sorry. I didn't see you." Desper apologized.
"No problem."
The man remained polite and continued on his way.
However, Desper suddenly frowned as he noticed a man standing near a stall. The man's eyes weren't on the goods; they were fixed on Desper. When Desper looked at him, the man quickly picked up an apple, pretending to inspect it.
Desper continued walking, but this time he moved faster, frequently changing streets. At one point, he even started running before finally stopping in front of a certain restaurant.
"Here!"
He heard a familiar voice calling out.
He turned and saw Eland, Taros, Silas, Zen, and Arkan sitting around a table inside the restaurant. Desper walked over and sat with them.
Eland asked, "Why were you running?"
Desper frowned. "I think someone is following me."
"Following you?" Everyone looked confused.
"Yes. I changed my route many times and increased my speed, but I couldn't shake him."
"Are you sure you're not imagining it?" Silas asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Do you think I've lost my mind?" Desper replied angrily.
"Calm down, Desper," Eland said. "You don't need to worry. No one would dare do anything to you inside the sect."
Desper's mental state hadn't been good for the past few days, so they thought he might need more rest.
"Anyway. Take this."
Eland handed Desper a small pouch.
"What is this?" Desper asked, confused.
He opened it and was surprised to find it filled with monster cores.
"It's your share of the spoils," Eland said.
Desper picked one up between his fingers, staring at it.
'I think this is the price of suffering.'