41 Hesroth

Xue Mo's words, although surprised everyone, Dominic complied, nonetheless. He saw no reason not to. In the time Xue Mo had stayed with the assassination academy, he never asked for anything other than the books.

Ordering one of the students to go fetch what Xue Mo asked for, Dominic looked at Xue Mo and asked, "can you please follow me to my office?"

Hearing the polite tone that Dominic used, no one disputed as if it was the natural thing to do, and to them, it was. Xue Mo had used his identity as a teacher not only to make them think of him as their master. From the looks of it, his plan worked.

He didn't have a reason to decline. Leaving everyone, Dominic and Xue Mo went to the former's office. Yet, Dominic didn't go and sit behind his desk. He went to the office's right side, where a wall was, and moved some rocks into different positions.

Clang*

After he was done, behind the walls, a few mechanisms seemed to have activated before slowly opening a door near the rocks' changed places. Dominic entered the new door and politely asked Xue Mo to follow him.

Xue Mo didn't react to this and silently followed behind Dominic. Lu Yao was staring at Dominic with intense eyes, wondering what he was planning but didn't say anything. She only stayed vigilant.

After descending around five thousand kilometers of stairs, another door appeared in front of them. However, this one was made of a metal that Xue Mo didn't see before yet knew about from reading.

"Atrine…" Hearing what Xue Mo muttered, Dominic wasn't shocked and continued moving towards the blackish-red door. The intricate lines on it weren't only Magic Formations. There was also another set of lines that seemed more complex.

"You have arrays too?" Dominic wasn't surprised that Xue Mo knew about Atrine, but he was when Xue Mo mentioned Arrays.

After all, Arrays were something that can only be made using Qi energy, and the one who can make it should be able to feel the wavelength of the Qi energy. People who could do that were rare, and who knew how to utilize it was even rarer.

Dominic quickly straightened his face trying to hide his surprise, and answered. "As Teacher Mo had said, we know of the Qi Arrays and even have someone that can draw them."

Xue Mo didn't speak further, and Dominic didn't divulge more info than necessary. He approached the door and knocked. Xue Mo only continued looking without saying anything. Dominic started fiddling with both the Magic Formation as well as the Qi Arrays on the door. After another three hours, Dominic, who had sweat flowing from his body, wiped his forehead and muttered, "Finally."

Dominic wasn't someone versed in Qi Arrays nor Magic Formations. Both fields required something that he didn't possess, yet he could still open the door because he had the code. Even with that, it took Dominic 3 hours of working at his fastest speed to finish opening it.

Clang Clang*

With another sound of mechanisms working, the door opened by itself, revealing a magnificent seen behind it. It was filled with Mana stones and Qi stones. These are resources that people in a world like the Ash Expanse shouldn't possess.

However, that wasn't the only thing as there was a Vast room that looked double the Assassination Academy's size. There were fountains, plants that had Qi energy flowing out of them, Dominic and Magical Beasts, but most importantly, there was a hut in the middle of it. The place looked magical.

As if they didn't see the newcomers, no creature approached the new company's positions, allowing them to roam the land with ease. Dominic still saw that Xue Mo hadn't reacted, not even a flinch, making him decide to talk.

"Teacher Mo, welcome to the Assassination Academy's secret grounds!" The enthusiasm and pride that Dominic showed when he said that confirmed Xue Mo's suspicion.

'They called for their back-up.' Xue Mo knew that when he left Dominic's office that day, he went and informed his superiors of his appearance. He didn't know why they took this much time to arrive, but they did. 'Well, let's see what they will do before doing anything rash,' Xue Mo thought with amusement. The only reason Dominic wouls suddenly bring Xue Mo here was if he was asked to.

He wasn't worried about them finding someone that could match his raw power because he didn't believe they had that much strength. Yet, he didn't drop his guard, as he never underestimates his opponents or future enemies. If they, by chance, had such an individual, he had to be careful.

Dominic moved through the terrain slowly and carefully. He was especially careful when he moved through the plants, trying not to damage them in the slightest. Xue Mo could tell that although he didn't know what properties these plants had, he could recognize some of them from his past life. 'As expected, even if this world is different, there were still some similarities.' Xue Mo thought while doing the same as Dominic.

Finally, after crossing many plants and grasslands, they arrived in front of the hut. Dominic slowly and carefully knocked at the door before announcing, "Sir, I have brought Teacher Mo!"

With the twist of a key, the door opened. The one who opened it was a man that seemed to be in his early thirties. He had brown hair and honey eyes. He didn't seem frail or muscular, just ordinary. Even the aura exuding out of him was ordinary.

However, in Xue Mo's eyes, the man was like a mountain. Even he felt surprised when he saw him. Even if he could fool the others with the gentle aura he was emitting, Xue Mo saw the real him, and what surprised him was, 'his energy feels as great as my Shadow Soul Pressure?!!!'

Alarm bells went off in Xue Mo, which didn't escape Lu Yao and the man's eyes. They were both surprised for a different reason. The man was surprised because Xue Mo saw through him while Lu Yao because Xue Mo was worried.

Dominic didn't see the peculiarities that just transpired between the three next to him and continued, "Sir, Teacher Mo, just asked for all the Qi Sensing pills we have. Should we send him to his residence or here?"

Dominic acted even more respectful towards the man in front of him than Xue Mo, and he had every right to. The man he called Sir was terrifying, his name would shock everyone who heard it, and Dominic was sure that even Xue Mo would be afraid if he knew who was standing in front of him.

Xue Mo and the man noticed how Dominic was ignoring Xue Mo, which prompted the man to scold him, "Dominic, just because I am in front of you, don't forget who you were listening to all this time!"

Catching on to what the man was saying, Dominic turned to Xue Mo and apologized. "I didn't mean to offend or ignore Teacher Mo's existence. If this lowly one offended you because of that, I am very sorry."

Xue Mo had no time for Dominic right now, so he waved him off. The man also wanted to talk to Xue Mo alone, so after making sure that Xue Mo would stay here with a nod, he ordered Dominic. "From now on, Teacher Mo is my guest! You can bring all that he needs here."

With a bow, Dominic left. "Phew, that Dominic surely needs to relieve his stress. He is too strict with himself!" The man said with a heavy sigh. His face was containing an expression of pity as he stared at the receding back of Dominic.

"Anyway, I haven't introduced myself, have I? I am the Draconic Snake, Hesroth!" The man spoke with pride, but he saw that Xue Mo didn't react and gave him a few seconds. However, the answer he had been anticipating made him disappointed as he stared at Xue Mo and Lu Yao's confused faces.

"Who?" They asked.