The snake that had fallen from the ceiling was a simple rank 4 magical beast in the lower tier, Noah only had to arch his fingers and deliver a clean sweep to tear its body apart.

June stored the corpse of the creature as soon as it died, and she didn't even bother to dodge the blood that had fallen on her during the process.

Noah couldn't help but stare at her when that happened.

Her face stained with the blood of the beast that he had killed, coupled with her swift gestures, created an extremely captivating picture in his mind.

"I recognize that stare."

June revealed a smile when she said that, and she grabbed Noah's collar before reaching for his mouth to kiss him.

They had been in a relationship only for a few months, but they were already able to understand what was in each other's minds without speaking.

"Later."

June murmured that word when their lips separated.

"I know, I know. I was just imprinting this image in my mind."

Noah answered before turning to continue moving toward the south.

Those interactions had often happened during the past weeks, they would just stop at specific points in their travel to express the feelings that some of their gestures caused.

That open area was different from the tunnel though, they couldn't just stop whenever they wanted.

Yet, Noah didn't mind using a few seconds to enjoy the sight of his partner.

He felt as if a sort of limit had been removed after some of his feelings had fulfilled, something that ultimately benefitted his individuality.

The absorption speed of his cultivation technique had increased since he had decided to fulfill his desire even if it wasn't strictly connected to his cultivation journey.

It wasn't a matter of insights or laws, his individuality had simply expanded.

That behavior was obviously limited to June, his core was still the same.

However, he had accepted that he cared about her.

As someone that had been driven by purposes strictly linked with death, Noah found in June something that inspired life.

After all, Noah's goal in that life was to be true to his ambition, something that was followed only by his desire to avenge his mother.

Yet, there was a third goal now, and that featured June.

Of course, that goal was still unclear, but it was a start.

'Creation needs destruction, and the same goes for the opposite. My ambition and vengeance will undoubtedly lead me to a path filled with death, but I can also see life now.'

Noah thought while walking in the azure environment filled with gray sacs.

'It is impossible to create if I only pursue death… The answers always seem so close when you find them.'

Noah smiled internally when he felt his individuality slowly solidifying.

Snakes kept on falling from time to time from the ceiling.

Those magical beasts were using the paths created by the winged beasts to migrate since they couldn't oppose their invasion.

Noah killed those beasts without hesitation, and June promptly stored them inside her space-ring to avoid creating any noise.

The tunnels on the ceiling were narrow since the winged beasts were only two to three meters tall, meaning that most of the strongest snakes on the surface didn't fit inside them.

That led to a situation where only beasts in the lower or middle tier managed to reach the underground area.

Taking care of such weak and sparse rank 4 beasts wasn't a problem for June and Noah, they could easily handle them while remaining silent.

Snake-type creatures weren't the only beasts that fell from those tunnels though.

Every magical beast would attempt to defend its domain, especially if some time had passed since the deafening cry of the invading force.

The fauna on the surface had begun to fight back since it couldn't escape from the invasion, and Noah guessed that even the cultivators of the four forces were doing their part.

Blood flowed through the tunnels on the surface and fell in the area where June and Noah were walking.

Also, sometimes, the figures that fell from above them belonged to the winged beasts.

Noah didn't let go of that chance, he stored each of those creatures inside his device so that he could study them.

The winged beasts that fell from the tunnels were all dead, they would never retreat on their own since their leader had ordered them to gather food.

Noah dissected and analyzed those creatures as their advance continued.

What arrived in the underground area were mostly body parts and not intact corpses, but Noah did his best to discover as much as he could from them anyway.

The spirit automaton also helped in analyzing their structure.

The automaton was the manager of a rank 6 inscribed item, there were countless pieces of information listed inside it.

Also, its analytical skills surpassed even Noah who was an expert in that field and a hybrid, he simply couldn't compare to such a strong item.

Of course, the automaton was only able to point out features without managing to indicate their exact purposes, most of its data concerned inscribed items after all.

Yet, that was enough for Noah since he could use his expertise to fill the gaps that the automaton wasn't able to explain.

'The wings are only useful to their flight. They provide average maneuverability and high speed, but don't add any special ability.'

Noah summarized in his mind when he thought to have a clear picture of those beasts.

'Their claws are simply long and pointy fingers, no special abilities there either. They can use them to dig through the terrain easily, and they are their main weapons in melee combat.'

Noah then focused on their horns, which were the most interesting aspect of those beasts.

'Horns curved downward, useless in physical combat. Yet, they seem to radiate soft mental waves that don't belong to them. Telepathy? Are all of them like this? Is the leader the only one commanding them?'

Noah finally understood why those beasts had been dormant while the cultivators of the four nations explored the surface.

Generally speaking, a dormant beast could be awakened quite easily, any external input would reactivate its organism.

Yet, they kept on sleeping during the fall from the Immortal Lands and through many years on the Mortal ones, which meant that they could be awakened only under certain circumstances.

Now that Noah knew that they were controlled, he became sure that they had been awakened due to the leader or other existences inside the pack.

'There are too many of them, so I guess that the leader only controls the other rank 6 creatures inside its pack. They then control a certain number of rank 5 beasts that are in charge of those in the fourth rank. A pack linked by tight strings, formed by winged beasts of the earth element. How unusual.'

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