Death... and me

Rean pondered in silence for a bit and asked, 'Do you think it's a good idea to get more Divine Stones here in Pol Continent?'

Roan didn't seem to care. 'That's up to you. Considering that the majority of the high-level beings are aquatic demon beasts, they don't have use for your weapons. That means you can only sell those Element Gathering weapons to the humanoid races in the islands. I don't know if they would target you once they find out about your weapons.'

Rean nodded after that. 'Well, I'll give it a try, but not here. I want to see if I can get Rank Three Divine Stones first. I doubt anyone would be willing to trade such stones in this city. We need to head to humanoid cities closer to the center of Pol Continent.'

Roan agreed with Rean after hearing that. 'That much you are right.'

Just as their conversation ended, Rean had arrived at the Blacksmith Guild and presented his badge once again. Not too long after, he was called over to a test room, where an elder of the Blacksmith Guild oversaw his test. Once again, only a few blacksmiths had reached the Golden Peak-level, so it was surprising to hear someone wanted to take the test.

The elder, a woman named Gubia, was impressed with Rean's skill. "So young and yet so talented. I've seen your previous badge before. You came from the Huring Continent, didn't you? You're quite far away, no? Why would someone so talented and with such high cultivation like you be risking life traveling between continents?"

Rean shrugged his shoulders as he replied, "That has to do with my family head. He believes the best way to cultivate and gain experience is to travel all around. He just didn't expect me to leave the continent, so I can only guess how he's feeling right now. Hahaha!" Once again, another lie was made on the spot.

However, the woman agreed that it was indeed a good way of gaining experience. "Then again, I wouldn't risk someone with your talent to travel alone. Are you sure there isn't some expert from your family following you from the shadows? I would definitely put one if I was them."

"Who knows?" Rean didn't seem to care as he shrugged his shoulders. "If there is one, they're hiding very well since I've been traveling for a very long time."

Gulia sighed before she threw a token to Rean. "Anyways, I just had to confirm that you could forge a piece of equipment at the Golden Peak-level. Since you did it, you're eligible for the promotion. Bring this token to the workers at the entrance hall, and they'll provide you your new badge. Of course, it will state that you did the test in Pol Continent, so people won't be able to tell that you came from Huring anymore. We can't provide badges from the Huring Continent, after all."

Rean didn't mind. The same thing happened when he took the test from the Formation Guild. "Not a problem. I just want to be recognized so that when I try to sell my equipment, no one will doubt my skills."

Gubia nodded after that. "Very well. This kind of Golden Peak-level weapon is very popular here in Utari, so you should be able to make a few good Rank Two Divine Stones with them. You can ask for a private workshop here in the guild as well when you decide to start working."

"Thank you," Rean said in response. "I'll take my leave now."

And just like that, several hours went by. Falangia registered her daughter to take the Foundation Establishment test designed for kids. Meanwhile, Roan gathered all the items and got rid of all the targets in his missions. As for Rean, he returned to the hotel and just cultivated while waiting for the rest.

Roan finally returned to the island where he left Luan when it was starting to get dark. It didn't take long for him to find Luan, though. 'Oh-ho...' It's just that he noticed that the kid was being bullied by other kids. Some of them were in the Core Formation Realm, so Luan was kind of paralyzed with fear. He was still six and a half years old, after all.

"Are you going to hand over your Demon Cores or not?" asked one of the kids that seemed to be the leader there.

Luan shook his head vigorously, although he didn't have that much confidence. "I d-don't have Demon Cores."

"Liar!" Another kid who seemed to be around his nine years old intervened. "I saw you when you cut down a Stage Two Jellyfish as if it was nothing. You definitely got its Demon Core right after."

"Hey, kid. Some of my friends are in need of Stage Two Demon Cores to give to their elders. Why don't you help us, huh? You can just go back into the water and look for more Demon Cores."

That wasn't true, though. Luan did complete Roan's task and got 20 Stage Two Demon Cores. However, he did get his fair share of damage and wasn't in any condition to fight much more. He would be able to defeat a few more demon beasts, but it was impossible to get another twenty. At the very least, not before he spent time healing himself. Roan, of course, would come back much earlier than that.

Suddenly, Luan received a Divine Sense message from Roan. 'Why are you even wasting time listening to them? Just put them down already. Just be careful not to cripple or kill any of those kids since it'll make things annoying later.'

Luan was taken aback as he immediately looked at the skies. Sure enough, he saw Roan and Kentucky far away. He wanted to tell Roan he didn't have the ability to do that. After all, there was even a Core Formation Realm cultivator in the middle of this pack of six kids. How would he fight all of them?

Of course, Roan knew what he was thinking. 'Just attack already. If things go south, I'll be here to take care of the rest. Remember to use the side of the sword.'

Luan was still scared, but he believed Roan. Besides, he was even more afraid of what might happen if he didn't do what Roan said. Indeed, to Luan, Roan was much scarier than any bunch of kids.