Ill Follow You

After speaking with Zhu Ting, Yang Manli also called. He talked to her for a while and expressed his desire for her to remain available and prepared for what was to come.

There was nothing Han Sen could do right now, since he was near Whitestone Beach. Returning to the Icefield on such short notice would prove difficult. Even returning within a month would be a remarkable achievement.

After finishing his discussion with Yang Manli, Han Sen called up Huangfu Pingqing. He wanted to purchase a map from her, one that would guide him back to the Icefield.

"You are on Whitestone Beach? You really are on Whitestone Beach?" Huangfu Pingqing seemed quite surprised.

"Is it such a surprise that I'm here, at Whitestone Beach?" Han Sen looked at her strangely.

"You should be near the Whitesand Shelter, then. You are, aren't you?" Huangfu Pingqing skipped a direct response and enquired.

"Yes." Han Sen's eyes opened wide. "You can't be here too, can you?"

"Yes, I'm here. Wait for me in the Whitesand Shelter for two days and I'll come see you." She hung up.

Han Sen was taken aback and felt a little insulted. He said to himself, "You didn't have to hang up so quickly. You didn't even provide me the opportunity to tell you that Queen is with me."

After waiting a day, the Z-steel arrow were delivered. Han Sen went to the archery range to try out the strength of his new peacock crossbow.

Han Sen loaded a bolt, took aim at the platinum target board, and pulled the trigger. The bolt was loosed with a blue beam of light as its guidance.

Boom!

The thick platinum target board was smashed into splinters, which surprised Han Sen.

"Holy smokes! This is great!" Han Sen shouted, overwhelmed with incredible joy.

For such power to come from an ordinary Z-steel arrow was tremendous. If he managed to obtain sacred-blood beast soul bolts, the power was sure to be insane. It was even likely it could shoot through the body of a super creature.

"I'm going up the mountain to slay the Sky Falcon king." When Han Sen now thought of the Sky Falcon king, his heart burned with the desire to slay it.

Entering the shelter again, Queen said she had managed to make contact with Tyrant. He and the rest of the group would be there in a few days.

"That means we aren't too far from the Icefield, then." Han Sen was surprised.

"Travelling by sea, it would take a month, even if we were free from danger and any likely interruptions for the duration of the trip," Queen said.

"In that case, never mind." Han Sen wanted to avoid the ocean right now. He currently fancied walking where he needed to go, to avoid drawing the ire of any sea creatures like the lobster.

"We should wait until Tyrant arrives. I'll propose your inclusion in our group again, but this time, I'm sure there will be no issues," Queen suddenly told Han Sen.

"Nah, that's okay. I'm not really fond of cooperating with others." After what had happened, Han Sen realized being with others wasn't as beneficial as he had first assumed. There was still every chance he'd get bullied by a super creature.

And if he wasn't with a group of people he could place his complete faith and trust in, it would be silly to walk into life-or-death situations with them on a regular basis.

Han Sen was looking for people he could trust, and Tyrant and the others did not fit the bill. He foresaw many issues that could arise if he were to remain with them.

"Why?" Queen asked, frowning at Han Sen.

"I can cooperate with you, but I cannot cooperate with Tyrant and the others," Han Sen confessed.

In all honesty, Han Sen looked down upon Tyrant and the rest of Queen's group. He at least wanted his teammates to be on par with Queen's power; otherwise, facing off against super creatures would be a pointless venture.

Queen looked at Han Sen as if she was in deep thought, without saying anything. It seemed as if she desired to read what was going on in Han Sen's heart.

"Oh, yeah. Senior Pingqing is coming over tomorrow. After I meet with her, I'm going off to hunt. I won't be returning just yet," Han Sen said.

"Where are you going?" Queen asked.

"Sky Pillar mountain." Han Sen didn't think there was any reason to hide his destination, so he told her directly.

When Queen heard the name, she paused. After some thought, she said to Han Sen, "There may be super creatures residing there. You should wait a few days so we can all go together."

Han Sen thought about her proposition, and it didn't seem like a bad idea. When he researched the location, he had read of the possibility of a super creature being there, too. If Queen and her people wanted to go there, that would be fine. The more people there were, the more distractions there would be for an attacking monster if they needed to escape.

On the second day, Huangfu Pingqing arrived just as she said she would. Seeing Han Sen with Queen, her beautiful eyes opened wide and her mouth did not close.

"Why are you two together?" Huangfu Pingqing asked, with a puzzled expression.

"I want to invite Han Sen to join my team," Queen responded.

"You're inviting him into your team?" Huangfu Pingqing thought her ears were being faulty for a moment. Queen inviting someone into her team personally was a rare thing.

And Han Sen had only been in the Second God's Sanctuary for over a year. She really did not understand why Queen would want to invite Han Sen into her team.

She understood how Queen's team functioned. The people who joined were the cream of the crop; they were the best of those who had managed to unlock their first gene lock. Han Sen did not seem to qualify no matter which way you looked at it.

"He rejected," Queen said, stoutly.

This came as a big shock to Huangfu Pingqing. She was speechless, and all she could do was stare at Han Sen with wide eyes.

Queen had invited Han Sen to join her team, but Han Sen rejected her. This was like a fairytale, a strain for anyone to believe.

If it wasn't for Queen telling her this, she wouldn't believe the news.

Han Sen merely laughed and said, "Queen is only joking around. It's not that I do not wish to join, it's just that there is someone on the team who does not desire my presence."

"Who?" Huangfu Pingqing thought this sounded more believable. But who would dismiss Queen's desires?

Han Sen then quickly told her the story of what happened when his position in the team was first relayed to the members, and Tyrant's fierce objection to his inclusion.

"I know this Tyrant. He's too big for his britches. He is so cocky. Aside from Big Sis, he doesn't take anyone else seriously. His objection to you comes as no surprise." Huangfu Pingqing looked as if she was starting to understand the situation more and more. She continued, "But this guy really is something. Out of all the evolvers who have unlocked a gene lock, he is certainly the most powerful of the lot. Aside from Big Sis, he is undoubtedly the strongest on the team."

Queen, who was still standing there and listening to the discussion, suddenly said, "If you are willing to join the group, then I will propose your membership once more. If you are rejected again, then I will quit the group and follow you."

At that moment, Huangfu Pingqing was petrified as if she had seen something ghastly. All she could do was stare at Han Sen and Queen.

She thought her brain was too small to handle the complexities of their situation, and she had no idea what was going on anymore.

It was hard to imagine that Queen, of all people, would say something like this.