93 Dyeing the River Red (1/2)
Arnin, Sinfallel, and the now awake Canae walked for a while before reaching the Elemental River zone. They met some others on the way who Arnin took care of and got some information out of. His name also spread further as the infamous Demonic Joker.
Although his actions weren't as brutal anymore, just seeing a path of beheaded people was enough to frighten anyone.
On their way, Arnin made sure to let Canae kill others as well in order to sharpen her slowly and turn her into someone useful to him.
In front of the Elemental River zone, Arnin saw that the whole area was an open ground. The river flowed into a forest type area, however, Arnin felt a strong presence from inside which told him that going inside would be a dumb idea.
People were sitting either inside or beside the river with their eyes closed. Many of them were covered in all sorts of lights, which was most likely the light emitted from the element that they were absorbing.
Arnin slowly walked over to the side of the river with Canae and Sinfallel. ”Both of you go and find a place to cultivate. I will fetch you when I am done here.” Both of the girls nodded before quickly scampering away.
He didn't care too much for where they went. He would eventually find them if needed, plus they were his slaves, so there was really no way for them run.
Inspecting the water with his threads, Arnin's face couldn't help but turn red from excitement. 'I can feel it. I can feel my threads getting nourished by this river!' his eyes turned a darker red, akin to a beast who found food after many weeks.
Without any hesitation, he jumped into the river, however, there was no splashing. Rather, the river water only slightly trembling while he himself felt like he had just jumped into a pile of mud.
Although it was strange, he didn't feel like inspecting it right away. He could sense that there was no danger, so he closed his eyes and began to recuperate. For him, the river was a heavenly gift meant just for his healing.
An hour went by quickly, but Arnin's previous excited face couldn't help but darken slightly. His threads were healing, albeit extremely slowly. It was so slow that the hour he spent could barely heal one-millionth of a single thread. With this type of speed, he knew that it would take him years before he finally recuperated to the max. ]
'I don't have time to wait a few years. Not only will this close in a few months, but I also can't continue to sit around for a few years and fall behind in my cultivation. I must find a way to speed this up.' He looked down at the crystal clear water and placed his hand into it. He tried to lift some of the water, but he just couldn't.
With a frown, he placed both of his hands in and exerted as much force as possible, but nothing happened. He only felt that he was trying to lift a mountain, but he couldn't.
”You can't lift the water. This whole river is one body.” Suddenly a voice came from behind him. Arnin turned his head and saw two people approaching. There were a girl and boy, both around the same age. The girl had long silver hair, while the boy had hair that resembled the night sky. They were a little older than Canae, looking around the same age as Yinsi.
”Then how does drink this water?” He looked at the two. They didn't show any hostility, and he couldn't either since he was surrounded by hundred cultivators. Any sort of battle would attract the attention of others and he could very well be killed for making trouble.
The young girl looked at Arnin with some shock. ”Although it is shocking to see someone you're age here, you should know about this river at least.” Seeing that Arnin didn't really know about it, she shook her head and began to explain. ”Well, this river is filled with various types of elements which you probably know already, however, this river is really only one body. The water here won't splash and even finding a single drop of water is harder than finding a drop of water in a pool of lava. Almost impossible.”
Arnin listened quietly. 'This river seems to be similar to the Great Light Lake that is on the Heaven Clans land.' Arnin had gone to the Great Light Lake as a 'guest' many times. He was also able to 'borrow' lots of its water. He knew a couple tricks, but he didn't know if they would work here.
Seeing that the girl was still talking, Arnin waved his hands. ”That's all the info I need.” Although he was a little rude, he didn't care.
He sat back down and closed his eyes. He just needed to isolate a couple drops of water and then he could probably boost his recuperation significantly.
The girl looked at Arnin and couldn't help but pout slightly. ”What a rude little boy.” She crossed her arms of her chest and walked away with the boy beside her. ”Last time I am helping a kid out of pity.”
The boy looked at Arnin for a few breaths before his pupil retracted. He turned around and grabbed the girls arm and rushed out of the water. ”Ah! What are you doing?!”
They landed a few hundred meters away from Arnin and the boy finally released a sigh of relief. His back was covered in cold sweat. He looked up and saw the girl glaring at him. ”You need to stay away from that kid, alright?”
”Adilis, what the heck! You may be my fiance, but you can't just do that without warning, plus you can't tell me what to do. Hmph!” The girl looked away in anger. Adilis shook his head helplessly.
Although the girl in front of him was his fiancee, it was more of a family arrangement. He didn't feel much love towards the girl, but he had to protect her or else he would get in lots of trouble from his family.
The girl was weaker than him, sitting at Essence Manifest - Sky, while he was at Essence Manifest - Hell. Not only that, but he was ranked in the top twenty. He was much stronger than his cultivation realm, but he was also a cautious person.
”You need to understand that we are not the only people here. You may want to help others, but sometimes you will only get you in trouble.” His eyes sharpened as he looked at his fiancee. ”Look closely at that boy, tell me. Does he remind you of anyone?”
The girl looked at Arnin and then shook her head. ”Why does it matter who he is? He is only at Orb Birth - Heaven, while you and I are at Essence Manifest, plus you are in the top twenty. How could you be frightened by a child? Hehe.” She giggled as she looked at Adilis with a hint of mockery.
”You really don't know when to stop until someone forces you to, will you? Let me tell you who he is. A red-haired boy bathed in the crimson blood of his victims. With the cultivation of Orb Birth - Hell, he slaughtered someone at Essence Manifest - Sky with ease. Ring a bell?” The more he spoke, the quieter his voice got.
The girl's eyes widened in shock as her body slightly trembled. ”D-don't tell me that he is that…”
”Demonic Joker, the most infamous cultivator in the battlefield so far.” His eyes looked at Arnin with some apprehension. Even though he was in the top twenty, he knew that Arnin was extremely strong, plus he was also extremely ruthless. He wasn't scared of him, but he preferred not to mess with him either.
”Can't you beat him?” She looked at her fiance with hope. She was also not interested in the marriage, but her family really wanted it so she accepted it reluctantly. She knew that her future husband was extremely strong, but the only flaw she saw in him was that he was a little cautious. He didn't have the heroic air that most youths did, which made her look down on him.
”I should be able to beat him, but I am not too sure.” Taking a deep breath, he got up. ”He was able to kill Essence Manifest - Sky cultivators when he was only at Orb Birth - Hell, plus others say he didn't use his full strength. Now that he is in Orb Birth - Heaven, I am not too sure, but it should be my win.” Many people in the top one hundred had heard about Arnin. Most said that they could kill him, but the smarter ones withheld their comments. Just the rumors about Arnin's battle prowess told many that he was not one to be messed with.
Other than the top ten, most likely others would find it difficult to beat him, let alone kill him. Adilis was one of the few that felt that Arnin was hiding much more than what meets the eyes. Rumors stated he looked injured and pale, and then the color of his hair was black in the past. Some even stated that they saw him take out a group of ten in less than a second.