"Now, how do I find the withered tree in this huge land?"
This was a problem Simon discovered after spending three minutes in the Blackwind Valley.
He had not asked the female Veilmaster because he believed that if the clan wanted them to know the location of the withered tree, they would tell him.
He also believed that he would be able to find it on his own, but it was turning out more difficult than he expected.
’Since none of them told me where the tree is, they must want me and the other candidates to locate it ourselves.’
’Probably a part of the test where they want to test our ability to locate things.’
Simon released a soft sigh as he stood on the branch of a tree near the entrance of the depths of the valley.
"How do you expect to locate things when I’ve never been trained and neither was a hunter, scout, or anything of sorts."
Simon was about to stand, but then he noticed a group walking in his direction.
Or to be more specific, they were walking out of the valley depths and toward the Veilmasters.
’Thirty demons in one group? Did they come to an agreement so that they can protect themselves with each having a condensed shadow essence?’
’That’s very surprising.’
Simon’s eyes landed on a familiar face.
’It’s him. The leader of those six.’
He shifted his gaze to the companions.
’It seems all his companions are still alive. Well, it shouldn’t be surprising since they all have Noble Bloodlines.’
Simon then shifted his gaze to the demon who stood at the forefront of the group of thirty.
’An Odrasil?’
Simon furrowed his brows slightly.
’An Odrasil in this terrain would be extremely difficult to deal with.’
Simon was about to look away after observing the group for a few more seconds, but a demon with a bow and arrow suddenly shot an arrow toward him.
His instincts kicked in, and his head move to the side at an extremely fast speed.
Bang
The arrow pierced the tree he stood on and it nearly pierced a hole through it.
Simon glanced at the arrow, then he looked at the demon who shot the arrow.
The demon was a male, and it had an open third eye in its forehead.
’An Irkalla. How annoying.’
Simon clicked his tongue, but his expression was deathly calm even when thirty Fiends drew their weapons and readied their demonic energy to attack him.
"Who are you? And why are you hiding there?" The Odrasil stepped forward and asked with a calm but old voice, but Simon remained silent and observed the Odrasil.
The Odrasil were demons with a noble bloodline, and their appearance was one of the ugliest of all demon appearances in the entire demon realm.
When one thought of an Odrasil, the next thought that would come to one’s mind were trees.
Odrasil’s were demons who had tree-like appearances.
They were humanoids, but their bodies were made out of tree barks and roots.
And then their faces.
Odrasil’s had three faces, and all three faces were horrifying to look at.
The three faces of an Odrasil are usually that of a withered old man, a crying and withered middle aged man, or a weeping boy who looked like he had not eaten in years but was still surviving.
If the Odrasil was a female, the faces would not be that of men but women.
Every single face was horrifying to look at, and nobody would deny that the Odrasils were true demons upon seeing their appearances.
However, the Odrasils were a strange race in the sense that they were not violent or cruel. They do not love battles, and neither do they love bloodshed.
Once a human or another demon who knew nothing about the Odrasils interacted with them, they would believe that the Odrasils were actually a peace loving race, and they were the true definition of do not judge a book by its cover.
Simon thought so too in the past, and oh was he fooled.
The Odrasils had everybody fooled, and Simon could never forget the calamity they nearly brought upon Earth.
These demons... did not love battles and bloodshed, but they were far more dangerous, far more vile, and far more evil than many other demon races.
They were one of the few demon races he was truly disgusted at, and he could not hide his disgust as he stared at the Odrasil beneath him.
"I’m not hiding. I’m looking for a withered tree. Do you know where it is?"
One might be surprised why Simon was not trying to hide what his goal was, especially in front of a group of thirty Fiends.
And the reason was simple.
The Odrasil.
The Odrasils are not a violent race, and if he asked such a simple question from an Odrasil, the chances of him getting an answer out of the Odrasil was rather high.
Also, if anybody was to know where the withered tree was, the Odrasil would.
They could control the wood element.
"I know where it is, but can you tell me why you want to go there?"
"I’m looking for somebody." Simon answered indifferently.
"Who?"
"I believe that’s none of your business. If you want to tell me where the tree is, then tell me. If you don’t want to, then don’t bother."
The moment Simon said these words, some of the demons were riled up, and a few wanted to launch one or two attacks at him.
"As arrogant as always huh. What gives a lowly mixed breed like you the confidence to not kneel before us."
Simon indifferently looked at the leader of the group of six who just spoke, and just as always, he ignored the child.
"You!"
The demon drew his sword in fury, but the Odrasil calmly spoke while making his voice louder with demonic energy.
"That’s enough."
He looked at Simon.
"Just go straight until you hit a barrier. The withered tree is just behind the barrier."
Simon frowned. "A barrier."
The Odrasil shook his head. "That’s all I know."
Simon thought for a moment before he nodded, then he turned around to leave.
"Thank you."
The Odrasil was surprised, then he nodded and reached into his chest. He brought out a crimson fruit, and the eyes of every demon drastically changed.
Just as Simon was about to leave, the Odrasil called out to him.
"Wait."
Simon paused and looked at him.
"I can see that your demonic energy is lacking. I’m generous, so I’m giving you this fruit. If you eat it, your lifespan would increase and so would your demonic energy. You’ll become a Superior Lesser Demon in a few minutes after eating it, and there are no side effects."
Simon’s eyes were glued to the crimson fruit, and he struggled to rein in the utter disgust and killing intent he was about to release unto the world.
"Hmm?" The Odrasil tilted its ugly head with a curious light in his eyes.
A few seconds later, Simon turned and left without saying a single word.
The Odrasil and the other demons were baffled at Simon’s reaction to the fruit, and the Odrasil could not help but look at the demon close to him.
"Did I do or say something wrong?"
The demon shook his head and shrugged.
"I see." The Odrasil looked into the distance where he could faintly sense Simon, then he also shrugged and turned to the front.
"Anyway. Let’s go, he’s not out problem. The trials are."