Noah's answer stunned the three cultivators for a moment.
They knew that Noah wasn't interested in glory or similar, but his reasons were purely egotistical!
\"You want me to create a united front with the other powerhouses and hunt the rank 6 beasts while also lying about your status so that you can spend more time with your woman?\"
Chasing Demon summarized the situation with that question.
\"Precisely.\"
Noah wore a serious expression when he answered that.
He knew that he couldn't have any vital role in that battle, there was no point in him joining the battlefield only to keep the rank 4 creatures at bay.
That crisis was simply out of his league, and he didn't see anything wrong in enjoying his remaining time with June while the higher-ups did the dirty work.
Chasing Demon couldn't help but explode in a loud laugh when he heard Noah's answer.
Noah had been nothing more than a rank 2 cultivator when he joined the Chasing demon sect, but now he was informing the higher-ups of the Hive about the dangers linked to the current crisis.
\"Haha! It took you forty years to learn to desire something outside the cultivation journey, but you are already willing to use your Patriarch for your needs. I acknowledge your desire, a demon must enjoy its freedom after all!\"
Chasing Demon spoke before turning toward Elder Julia to give voice to some orders.
\"Contact God's Right Hand. Tell him that the Hive accepts the conditions of the Empire and would like to set a meeting to announce its discoveries.\"
Elder Julia bowed and disappeared as soon as she heard those words.
Chasing Demon then turned again toward Noah.
\"We need to have a long talk about your woman when this is over.\"
Noah saw the patriarch of the Hive disappearing after he spoke those words.
Only Elder Austin remained in the room, and he began to eat the delicacies on the table as if nothing had happened.
However, Noah was confused by the recent turn of events.
\"What did the Patriarch mean with accepting the conditions of the Empire?\"
Noah asked, and Elder Austin took a sip from his cup before answering him.
\"The higher-ups of the Empire have already tried to create a united front to kill the rank 6 creatures among the winged beasts. Of course, their reasons weren't as detailed as yours, they simply wanted to take down the quasi-rank 7 leader before it returned to its peak.\"
Noah's eyes widened when he heard his words.
'The deafening cry really belonged to something that is half-step into the divine ranks, no wonder the Empire is so concerned about its existence.'
Noah thought, but Elder Austin wasn't over with his explanation.
\"Your report is very appreciated though. The Utra nation is the only force that has discovered something about these creatures, and the Elbas family keeps on refusing to collaborate with the excuse of being more valuable than the other factions. The Patriarch will probably spread this information and put every force on the same level.\"
Noah sighed internally when he learnt that.
He could imagine the value that information had during that crisis, it wasn't surprising that the Royals wanted to benefit from the efforts that they had put in their researches.
However, Noah had reached similar results with his expertise and inscribed space-ring, taking away the monopoly over those pieces of information.
\"Elder Jason is waiting in front of your new quarters, he will inform you about our losses and progresses. The envoy of the Utra nation is also there, she has been treated with care.\"
Elder Austin spoke while focusing on the banquet in front of him, he didn't even turn when Noah bowed and left.
Noah came out of the building, and the sight of the wrecked city appeared once again in his eyes.
The deafening cry of the quasi-rank 7 winged beasts had destroyed most of the buildings and killed the vast majority of the human assets inhabiting them.
The protective dome had defended the shining lakes, but it couldn't protect the frail centers of power of the human cultivators.
'A mere cry has killed the best rank 3 assets of the Coral archipelago, and the same should have happened in the territories of the other nations… Humans are less than ants in this environment.'
Noah's mind became cold when he thought that.
The world was always the same, one calamity would just end your life if you weren't strong enough to oppose it.
Noah quickly found Elder Jason with his consciousness.
He was sitting cross-legged in front of a three-story mansion that seemed to have been built recently.
He stood up and handed him a scroll when he saw Noah's descending toward the mansion.
Then, he simply flew away.
Noah began to read the contents of the scroll as he entered the mansion.
The scroll listed the events that had followed the deafening cry, describing everything in great detail.
'Elder Pansy, Elder Emil, and Elder Dorian have died during the cry. Almost all the human assets have died too, and those that survived are either crippled or completely ruined. The city was almost destroyed, but the shining lakes are fine, this area is still inhabitable by human cultivators.'
The Hive's losses weren't that severe, but the death of three heroic cultivators was somewhat disheartening.
Those elders had been stuck in the gaseous stage for decades, if not centuries, only to come to the new continent and die during the crisis.
Their hope to advance had become the reason behind their death.
'Chasing Demon has begun to deploy the copying technique on these territories though, the Hive will soon obtain larger training areas and create more inhabitable domes. Not bad in the end, I guess the Hive benefitted from having fewer valuable territories.'
Noah's mind continued to stay on the scroll until he noticed the young-looking woman casually sleeping on one of the couches in the main hall of the mansion.
She was still wearing his robe, and her eyes opened as soon as she noticed the new presence in the room.
A warm smile appeared in Noah's view, and part of the coldness that had invaded his mind dispersed at that sight.
'Life and death can coexist in the world, warmth and coldness can do the same in my mind. Feelings, mindsets, and laws can express the same power, the only difference is in the sharpness of the blade that radiates them.'
Noah thought when he felt the two different emotions in his mind.
The world filled his being with death and coldness, but June made him feel life and warmth.
\"How did it go?\"
June asked when Noah lay down behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.
\"I've taken away the advantageous position of your nation, but they won't know that it was my doing.\"
June turned to face him at that answer and neared Noah's face to murmur soft words.
\"So, do we have time?\"
\"Yes, we have time.\"
Noah kissed her after his answer, his role in that crisis was over.