Death... and me

Liana then used her Divine Sense to send a message to an older woman called Tiffany. She was also someone who joined the Sacred Land, but she preferred to gather with her Tenke Kingdom people during this excursion instead of the Sacred Land's people. 'Tiffany, it's me. Liana.'

Tiffany's expression changed for a moment, but she quickly recovered before she glanced at Liana in the distance. 'Liana! Where the hell have you been?! Do you know how crazy Elder Gamala turned when she saw you jump on that Demon Bird?! She basically ordered all of us to come after you, trying to find where you went. Quick, come here. I'll protect you until we leave this place.'

Liana shook her head, though. 'Sorry, Tiffany. I can't do that. If I join your group right now, you will most likely become a target for those people from the Blood Path Sect. They seemed to be looking for me.'

'What?!' Tiffany's expression went cold after hearing that. 'They dare?! Don't worry, you can come with us. Hmph! I just want to see how they will catch you!'

Liana shook her head and then explained what had happened so far. Only then did Tiffany understand why Liana was better off staying away from her group. 'I see... Indeed, if the Evil Path cultivators suddenly ally to take us out, that will be very troublesome. I want nothing more than to break Roan's neck right now. However, it wasn't his fault that you got into his mess, so I guess I can't blame him. We'll need to fix your weakness to cute things later, so you better be prepared.'

'Yes. Sorry, Tiffany.' Liana couldn't help but drop her head after hearing that. In any case, she contacted Tiffany for a reason. 'Tiffany, what's happening here? Why is everyone gathering in front of this gate? I haven't heard anything about a gate made of Life's Nemesis Rocks before.'

Tiffany shook her head in response. 'We don't know. Just like everyone else, we were unable to pass through this gate. We want to know what's on the other side, but it's impossible to get through.'

'Then why are you waiting here? Shouldn't you explore other places to finish your tasks from the Mission Hall?' Liana asked soon after.

Tiffany shook her head again. 'Can't you see this is an opportunity? I've gathered some information with the other Righteous Path cultivators here. However, they also have no idea as to what this place is. It doesn't seem to be different for the Evil Path cultivators either. No one here wants to give this up, even if we fail in our objectives.'

Tiffany then warned Liana, 'You should not stay here. Since no one knows who you are, take those twins with you and leave this place. You three are just too weak, you see? There are very few groups here that don't have Elemental Transformation Realm cultivators. If things turn awry, you three will be the first ones to be dealt with. In case the twins don't want to leave, you should go alone. You have the Frigid Pearl with you, so you shouldn't have any trouble getting away on your own.'

Liana answered Tiffany's request with a question. 'Tiffany, if you were me, would you retreat?'

'This...' Tiffany was speechless. 'Sigh... fine! But if things get out of control, don't hesitate in using the Frigid Pearl. I will also support you as much as I can. You're too important for our Tenke Kingdom, after all.'

Liana couldn't help but smile after that. 'Thank you, Tiffany.' Right after, she continued to ask, 'Then again, why would all of you keep waiting here instead of trying to find another path?' Sure enough, that was the main question. 'Do you have a way to get inside that door?'

Tiffany shook her head in response. 'It's you guys that are somewhat late. We all tried to find other paths, but the shape of the Demising Catacombs made it so that no different path was available. Believe me, our group tried to find another path some time ago. The same goes for everyone here.'

'Then, what about the gate itself? Are you waiting for something to see if it can open, or are you all gathered here, not knowing what to do?' Liana asked.

Tiffany shook her head once again. 'Look above the gate. Can you see those five dark spheres?'

Liana looked above the gate, and sure enough, there were five dark spheres. It's just that they were so small that she missed it at first. Liana also took the chance to tell Rean and Roan about that before asking Tiffany back. 'What about them?'

Tiffany then explained, 'Before, there were six of them, but one of the spheres simply lost its power. From what I found here, the first group to arrive said that there were ten. Naturally, the other spheres lost their power as well. Everyone believes that something will happen once all the dark spheres lose their powers.'

Liana understood after that. 'I see... so all we can do is wait, huh?'

'Pretty much,' Tiffany answered straight away.

Liana then looked at the twins and explained the rest.

However, Roan narrowed his eyes. For some reason, he didn't think the spheres losing their power was a good sign. 'You two, come back with me. We're going to stay close to the entrance of this room. Also, grab your life-saving items. You will probably need them.'

Rean and Liana were taken aback. However, they knew that Roan wasn't the type to joke around. Roan also added. 'Liana, don't tell your friend anything. It's one thing if our group steps back, looking like we want to flee. After all, we're very weak in the eyes of the majority here. However, if your Tenke Kingdom people do the same thing as us, they will definitely gather everyone else's attention.'

Liana didn't like that, though. 'I can't let my friend simply act as bait. I'll tell them as well!'

Roan narrowed his eyes. 'Then at least tell them to create some excuse. And it better be good.'

Liana nodded after that. 'Alright.'