Chapitre 9 : Departure and....
Ziha didn't want Lost to feel trapped with her. When she saw the villagers meet earlier, she understood that the loss of consciousness of the young man was not trivial. Strangely, no other person had been targeted since Lost. She had believed that Hong Xue also had the misfortune of suffering a stroke when he coughed up blood. She had panicked and was afraid of losing her two loved ones in the world. Being alone without them would be like a killing because they were her haven of peace, her home.
After the doctor examined the baby, he told her countless times that the baby was okay. He just had a surge of energy that had been too high. Simply in front of the concern of the young woman, the doctor proposed to keep the child longer with him for observation. This request calmed her slightly even though a touch of fear remained ingrained in her. She still prefers to hide the events from Lost so that he can leave completely free. She didn't want the young man to feel compelled to stay in the village any longer. Ziha was already heartbroken by this decision but also ready to let him go. When she makes a decision, she goes to the end of it. Lost, sitting on his bed, looked at her with warmth like a big brother and had ended up appreciating this young woman with the character of fire. She had given him the green light despite the sadness that reflected in her eyes. The young man can leave honestly without having to sneak away and without losing the trust she had in him. He knew that his departure was going to be difficult for Ziha since she seemed very attached to him but he would not go back on his decision. The youngster understood this and in order not to show the pain and not to change her mind, she lowered her head to hide her emotions. Lost having an immortal status had already recovered all his strength and stood up. He put on his sky blue dress and silver boots that were resting on the wooden chair on the right side of his bed. He tied some of his hair with a crown the same color as his boots and walked silently to the door.
" - Gege, You must know that you are important to us so take care of yourself. Do not spend all your time in your scrolls and do not forget to take your meals on time. Lost, thanks for everything. Thanks for saving us. Thank you for making us live in joy. We love you and will always be proud of you. Goodbye my brother."
With tears in her eyes, she stared at the back of the being she still loved and refrained from throwing herself into his arms. Lost had stopped his steps in front of the door with trembling shoulders. He was not as emotionless as before since he had tasted the family warmth that he had missed so much. He clenched his fists to hold back the excess emotions that might escape his body. He took a deep breath and regained his composure in record time.
" - No thanks to you for accepting me as I am. I am proud to have met you."
He turned to her, a soft smile and a grateful look. He pretended to shearch in his long sleeve and took the relic from his inventory. This object belonged to Hong Xue so Lost handed it to Ziha confidently. He had hesitated for a long time on the question because holding the relic brought great responsibility and danger. Yet he couldn't forget the child's tattoo, which looked strangely like an hourglass.
" - Give it to Hong Xué when he's older. His parents lost their lives to protect him and this object. Don't tell him about me and take care of him. It's better that way."
He approached her one last time and placed the relic in her hand. He hugged her before walking again to the door without stopping. Ziha followed him with her eyes until the door closed behind him and then collapsed to the floor, her face wet with tears.
In the Main Hall, the sleeping child in Kana's arms felt the sudden disappearance of Lost without being able to do anything about it.
Indeed, as soon as Lost had taken the path to the exit of the village, his inventory full to bursting, he had activated the skill of invisibility so that no one traces his presence before being far enough.
He was far from suspecting that his departure would wake the demon from his sleep.
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It was years later that Lost reconnected with the world. He lived twenty years of his life in a cave thousands of kilometers from KongDe. He had cut himself off from the world in order to refine his combat skills. Without realizing it, he had reached level 50. To climb higher, he had to open up to skills other than combat. Sysy had guided and accompanied him throughout his training and their bond was strengthened. Living as a hermit had made Lost calmer and closer to nature. He could accumulate Qi just by breathing making his breaktrought easier.
Lost, head down, was washing his hair in the little lake he had discovered on his map, completely naked, water up to his waist. He had just finished a hunting party for his meal and had not calculated the mud puddle he had landed on during his game run. The moment he looked up, a feeling caught him off guard. He quickly flew over the lake in order to put on his sky blue dress which he always kept in his possession but the edges of which were starting to deteriorate. He dried his hair using the wind and flew to the top of the tallest tree.
" - Sysy activates the world map. I have the impression that we are no longer the only ones here."
The system immediately went to work, trusting blindly to the young man's intuitions. This skill had reached the highest level and could never be wrong.
When the map displayed, Lost noticed the red dots indicating the presence of humans. Yet he had installed an invisible barrier powerful enough all around his territory so that no one could enter.
" - Sysy, how did they get through the barrier? None of them seem to be powerful enough to do so.
- I don't know, but we can't change the fact that they're there. Lost collect all your spirit plants and put them back in the inventory. Your training is over. It's time for you to mix with human beings."
Lost did not wait for things to be repeated to him twice before putting all his finds in safety and looked at his cave one last time, which he had taken the time to decorate according to his tastes. She was still the size of a studio in the modern world and had lived in comfort all his years in it.
It was time to say goodbye to his hermit life and reconnect with humans. He was eager to meet again and finally travel without fear of not being able to protect what was close to his heart. He sometimes wondered how the village of KongDe was doing but strangely his intuition urged him not to go back there as a great danger awaited him. He had learned to tame this skill and follow it. He looked at his map and decided to walk over to the intruders.
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Yǐnxíng lìliàng was not a very intelligent man but he knew how to use his arms. He knew that coming to this strange and especially uninhabited forest was not to everyone's taste. The wind feather cult leader had heard of a prediction referring to the savior of the cultivation world who apparently lived in this remote corner. Fan Hao Yezian strongly believed in this prophecy and wanted to get this person before other sects. Many cultivators had tried to locate the savior, but nothing. People were starting to believe that this story of saving the world was just nonsense and that so far no great threats had emerged. There was certainly the demonic cultivator clan that was only just beginning to bloom, but that was it. It would take years before this clan could be powerful enough to harm other sects. This is why Yingxing and his juniors found themselves searching for something that may not exist. Their nerves were strained and fatigue began to make his juniors irritable.
He huffed and jumped on the first tree to lie on a branch. He looked at his cult brethren and motioned for them to rest. They did not see Lost pass near them. They also did not know that another sect had the same mission as them and had just obtained the first contact with the savior in question.
Lost had recognized the group because of the silver feather emblem with its enhanced senses and certainly did not want to become their ally. This sect was one of the ones that destroyed HongXue's house and pretended to be Good Samaritans. It disgusted him to the highest degree. He preferred to get to know the next group. From what he remembered, Blue Sky Sect had been neutral since the death of their leader over twenty years ago. Lost knew the cause of this death and intended to use it to get closer to a very important person. He had decided in his Hermit mode to change the story for Hong Xue's sake and wanted to meet the most important person in this game first : the tall and overpowered protagonist. The protagonist followed in his late father's footsteps and lived only for justice and peace. His meeting with Hong Xué was the trigger he needed to open his mind to compassion and forgiveness. He was loved by many people without lifting a finger and he seemed to have an incredible chance to discover the uniques treasures that made him practically invincible. Lost had managed to get some in the years that followed because of this curiosity and his desire to make the protagonist less celestial in the eyes of all because Lost knew that despite all his successes and his popularity, the protagonist would eventually lose the head overwhelmed by sadness and loneliness. Making him less divine would help him more than he would destroy him.
He continued his flight in the air when lost in thought he hit something full force. He would have resumed his journey but the thing forced him to make a dive towards the mainland. He tried with all his might to peel off the black shape, which had decided to stick him, to no avail. He didn't have time to do anything until a person appeared behind him and helped him get rid of it with a yellow paper talisman. They landed gently in the forest without a hitch. Lost came to his senses immediately and released the arms that were holding him from behind.
" - Houla gently handsome man ! I only saved your life."
The warm, cheerful voice of the stranger petrified Lost in place. He didn't know why but he seemed to have heard it before somewhere. He was trying to remember where but his memory didn't work on sounds but only on what he was seeing so he couldn't figure out where and when. It turns out he was maybe having ideas because his intuitions did not reveal anything dangerous for the moment. He turned and found himself face to face with the most handsome man he had ever seen but who was wearing the odd impression that something was wrong. Long jet black hair, deep black eyes and a soft face but at the same time masculine. He was handsome and above all taller than him by a head. He wore a black tunic and gave off an air of dominance and seduction yet so familiar.
When he realized he had been staring at this stranger for too long he blushed in embarrassment before looking away.
" - Thanks for your help. I didn't want to be discourteous, but I confess that I don't appreciate being too close to someone I don't know."
When he looked at the stranger in the eye again he tensed up immediately. The man seemed to be angry for a moment before smiling again. The change had been rapid but nothing escaped Lost. Yet he didn't remember saying anything disrespectful to him. Maybe he shouldn't stay here with this man and go on his way. He had wasted enough time like that. The protagonist was going to slip through his fingers if he didn't catch up with the group of Blue Sky Sect. He reached into his sleeve and pulled out a small ceramic bottle and handed it to the stranger.
" - Here are some high Qi condensation pills. Please accept them as a thank you for saving me. I would have offered you wine but I have responsibilities that await me and I have to go back."
Lost bowed and placed the small bottle in the handsome man's hand before resuming his journey but barely had time to begin that he saw out of the corner of his eye the man following him side by side without even ask him permission.
" - I am Hēi xuě and it turns out that we are going in the same direction. May I have the honor to know who you are ?"