June had told Noah that there was a mysterious pool at the end of the Royal Inheritance. The claims that the Elbas family gave the chance for breakthroughs to the nobles came right after June's team found it.
The war against the Shandal Empire then revealed that some nobles had experienced sudden breakthroughs. That phenomenon wasn't limited to them either. Some Royals had advanced faster than expected too.
In the end, there was the cooperation between the Elbas family and the Ravaging Demon sect. The fact that a rank 5 cultivator stuck at the peak of the solid stage for so long had managed to advance right after the first sign of their alliance was suspicious too.
It was safe to assume that even Elder Marco had gone through the same process. After all, even his breakthrough had been equally surprising.
Everything seemed to fit the idea forming inside Noah's mind. The foreign understanding that had tried to reach him was even another clue that supported his hypothesis.
The pool retrieved in the Royal Inheritance appeared to have the ability to force breakthroughs in heroic cultivators. Yet, Noah's body found its waters toxic, which was why he decided to refuse the understanding that they gave.
There were some dark areas in his reasoning. Except for the actual proof that the oily liquid had some connection with the pool, Noah was unaware of its drawbacks.
Such a miraculous item was bound to have massive repercussions on the centers of power of the cultivators. Even the natives' transformation forced them to abandon their individualities, and that process was less invasive.
'Some nobles have never reappeared,' Noah thought as the Divine Deduction technique helped him gathering all the pieces of information that he could find. 'And my body rejects this liquid, meaning that it can't be anything good. I've never seen a magical beast being picky about food unless it has evident negative effects.'
An inscribed bottle appeared in his hands, and Noah stored the liquid inside it before putting it back in his space-ring. He wasn't qualified to analyze that substance. It was better to leave the matter to Thirty-seven or Daniel.
The destruction caused by his battle against the True Mountain sect appeared in his eyes when Noah moved his focus back on the environment. He expected to see reinforcements coming soon, so he didn't want to remain in the area for much longer.
Noah dived toward the ground and searched the spot where Elder Carmen had died. He quickly found her space-ring, and he returned in the location of the separate dimension's door after seizing it.
He had no time to look for the secret areas of the True Mountain sect. They would be troublesome to find and open due to the defensive inscriptions there.
The alliance had predicted that the entrances to the separate dimension would break during the raids. It was part of its plan to deploy Thirty-seven's disciples in each location to keep them functioning so that the attackers could retreat at any time.
In Noah's case, the destruction had been so thorough that the disciple in place had to rebuild the exit multiple times to keep it active for the whole duration of his battle.
The door released a light that enveloped Noah's figure when he activated it. The scenery of the separate dimension soon appeared in his eyes, as well as a familiar face that he didn't see for a long time.
"Demon Prince," Elder Roy said as he performed a polite bow, "I hope your hunt was fruitful."
Noah's consciousness swept Roy's centers of power to check on their state. Many years had passed since the Elder had recruited him in the Chasing Demon sect, and many events had filled that long period.
Elder Roy was still a rank 4 cultivator, but he had managed to reach the solid stage. Noah had outclassed his growth, but the Elder had found his path only after Thirty-seven joined the Hive.
Noah nodded. That casual meeting reminded him of how much he had grown, especially since he had just overpowered a solid stage cultivator.
"Get to the fifth rank," Noah said as he walked past him. "The Hive needs to recover from the war."
There wasn't much more that he could say to him. Their relationship had become stale since the Hive claimed its independence. Noah had been too busy becoming stronger than anyone in his generation to mind social interactions.
However, seeing that the older generation's experts were catching up eased his worries about the Hive's situation. There were still many promising assets, and its foundation was finally on par with the other organizations.
With the hybrids, the cultivators from the Odrea nation, and the many recruits that joined every day, it was only a matter of time before the Hive reached that level. It only had to turn that foundation into powerful Elders now.
The insides of the Elders' space-rings appeared in Noah's mind as he walked toward a specific teleportation matrix. There were riches of various kinds inside them, but they mostly suited his two victims' elements.
There were a few valuable items, especially in Elder Marco's ring, since he was the sect leader. They consisted of inscribed weapons and some scrolls, but nothing surpassed the fifth rank in terms of power.
That amount of riches was average for rank 5 cultivators. Only cultivators that had encountered inheritances or were in similar lucky situations could get their hands on items that surpassed their power.
Noah didn't know if the True Mountain sect's secret areas hid something else, but he wouldn't risk his life to look for them. What he had obtained was already enough, and it wasn't even the main goal of his mission.
He had obtained what he wanted. The Ravaging Demon sect had lost two rank 5 cultivators, and he had tested his new abilities in a real battle. Also, he had seized essential pieces of intel from the Elders, which would help create a complete picture of the enemy's situation.
Noah returned to the gathering point of the alliance after using a series of teleportation matrices. It was a structure built in one of the destroyed areas under the control of the Hive.
A series of amazed glances landed on his figure when he entered the large hall filled with Elders from both organizations. There were large maps that depicted the territory of the Papral nation and piles of notes next to them.
The outcome of the first raids had already become a public domain for the most part. After all, there were many eyes on the Ravaging Demon sect. Also, some of the Elders that had rebelled had done so to become spies for the Council.
Reports arrived continuously on a large crystal placed at the center of the room that created an ethereal screen where it listed all the major news. There were even kill counts when it came with the experts directly involved with the raids.
Noah could see his name on the screen. He was almost at the top of the list, second only to Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon.