Noah didn't answer the hooded man's question.
His gaze was fixed on his figure, he was trying to understand his cultivation level but he could only pick up some clues.
'I know that he isn't in the heroic ranks but I can't define his actual power. His mind is stronger than mine.'
That conclusion was enough to make him realize that he was dealing with some sort of important figure.
'Rank 3 cultivator, either in the liquid or solid stage. He is far stronger than me.'
The previous conclusion led to this one.
Noah knew that he was a special case, the possibility of a cultivator having a sea of consciousness stronger than its dantian was an extremely rare event.
That's why he could safely assume that, since the man in front of him had a mind stronger than his, then his dantian must have been at a far greater level.
A rank 3 mage with a rank 3 dantian at that level could be considered at the peak of the human ranks, thus someone important.
"Joining an orthodox sect with this personality of yours won't be easy, those old fogies use the Mental seeds as the first test from before I was born."
The man spoke again.
"You know, they are actually more permissive back in the continent. Well, they go easy on the young and immature ones at least."
Noah continued to listen, the man seemed to speak with no reserves and would often touch or test some parts of Noah's plant.
"Look at this, there are so many branches! This means that your nature is basically defined and there is no hope of shaping it. I'm afraid that even the sects in the continent would refuse you."
The man shook his head after those words, he was probably trying to emphasize his expression but the hood that covered his face made that gesture pointless.
'Is he trying to say that he is from the Papral nation?'
Noah wondered.
His mind had been unaffected by his speech, he was only focused on understanding the meaning behind his words.
"You are lucky though, I might just know a sect that won't care about this and will probably treat it as a positive quality."
"Which sect?"
Noah finally interrupted the man to ask that question.
"So you do speak! Wonderful, I was afraid you might have been mute. As for which sect I'm talking about, that would be mine."
The man's voice turned grave toward the end of the phrase, he seemed to have stopped joking around.
"You came looking for me just because of my personality?"
Noah asked.
He could understand that every organization needed henchmen and that his personality seemed to be suitable for that role, yet, he couldn't help but wonder if that single requirement was enough to earn a private meeting.
'Maybe they gather all the members in this way and I'm not a special case.'
That possibility hit Noah's mind.
If his assumption was right, he was in front of an organization of the underground world, private meetings would be the best way to ensure the secrecy of its recruitment.
"Yes and no. We have many cells laid around the archipelago and we don't lack pawns that have no relevance in its political network. Your personality fits the requirements to enter our organization but it also tells me that you could do well in another role."
The man continued to explain calmly, he didn't seem to care that he was giving that much information to Noah.
"What role is that?"
Noah asked with interest, joining an organization was part of his plan since he arrived in the archipelago, it would spare him a lot of money and time entering one in that way.
As for the issue concerning the legality of said organization, he couldn't care less.
The man didn't immediately answer, he first grabbed some branches with both his hands and separated them from the tangle, the thorns of the plant couldn't hurt him, they had grown feeding on mental energy after all, they could be considered sturdy only in relation to similar plants.
He then inserted his hand in the dark core and picked up the black rose at its center.
Noah could see how, even when out in the open, the edges of the rose were blurry, the light didn't seem to be able to completely illuminate it.
"This is your core, you can see how it can't merge with the world illuminated by the sun. To use its full potential, you must immerse it in the thickest darkness."
The man spoke again and he reinserted the rose back in the tangle, using his sleeves to prevent any light from entering its insides.
The rose disappeared right in front of Noah's eyes, he couldn't see it anymore, it seemed as if it had really merged with the darkness.
"The role."
Noah reminded him of his question.
It would be a lie to say that he didn't have some kind of enlightenment from the man's speech but he was still able to put it on hold until the meeting was finished.
He wouldn't allow himself to be distracted in front of such a mysterious man.
The hooded figure released a small laugh before taking away the hood from his head.
Strands of long gray hair were laid on his shoulders as his facial features were revealed.
He was a middle-aged man, he was extremely thin and his edges were sharp due to the lack of fat under his skin.
However, what attracted Noah's interest the most was his shining red eyes.
His skin tensed as he opened his mouth, Noah could see the tremble of his throat as he began to speak.
"I'm Roy, I handle the recruitment of my Chasing demon sect and one of my sources has shown me your case. I could just find you a job as a henchman but I think that your talent would be wasted in that way. That's why I came to offer you the position of honorary disciple, would you like to hear more about it?"
Roy smiled toward the end of its phrase, his smiling expression was quite scary due to his features but Noah could feel the good intentions behind his proposal.