Unexpected Encounter

In any case, Blan knew it wasn't the time for learning. "Alright, let's go."

The next Star Energy Creatures that appeared after that were taken down or scared away by Tuly and his group. After all, Tuly also wanted to test his own strength. Unfortunately, the Star Energy Creatures of the outer and inner regions didn't pose much of a challenge. On the other hand, their journey to the core region was quite fast.

One might be wondering why Duran and Carol even came along. After all, they had barely any attack power as they were literally at the start of what one could do with Star Energy. The problem was that Tuly's Level Up had attracted too much attention. If he really left them behind in the city, there would be a good chance of others trying to steal his 'slaves.'

And just like that, a day went by in a flash. Night came down while those too deep into the forest set up camps and took turns to watch for threats. That was basically the only thing Duran and Carol could help in this time, so they shared half of the night each.

Meanwhile, Braga and his group followed another path. If Tuly, who was much younger than Braga, had experience around Ostalas, let alone Braga. He had come here many times, be it for protection jobs, gathering parts of Star Energy Creatures, or simply to train himself. Because of that, the truth was that the path he chose was much faster. Not to mention that he also knew where to find Tricolor Flowers.

"We should be getting close. The last time I saw the Tricolor Flowers, they were being raised by a pack of Stinger Krouses," said Braga. "I'm not afraid of fighting anyone for the flowers. However, if I can get you to make the Three Phases Leveling Medicine before encountering any of your competitors, that will be for the best."

Joani agreed with Braga, replying, "The same goes for me. It seems I was right to employ your group for this job."

A few minutes later, Braga finally saw the flowers. "There they are. However, I don't know when they will have that Tricolor Dew you talked about."

Joani didn't mind, telling him, "That's my job. The Tricolor Dew will appear during the first hour of the day. That's why I asked for us to pack up before day broke out." Joani then looked in the direction where the first of the three suns would raise. By now, it was already possible to see blue skies on the horizon, showing that the sun wasn't far from appearing. "Look, it should be around now."

Braga's group immediately looked in the flowers' direction in the distance. It was then that Star Energy began to gather around the flowers before entering them. The flowers, which had already flourished, opened even more as they shone with yellow, red, and blue light.

The Tricolor Dew was nothing more than the aftermath of that phenomenon. The flowers used the Star Energy and the first rays of light of the day to develop. As a result, their 'waste' was spilled out. That 'waste' was the Tricolor Dew. Although it was a 'waste' for the flowers, it was very rich in Star Energy and had three different medicinal properties. In fact, that was the reason why it was used in the Three Phases Leveling Medicine.

"So that's the dew, huh?" Braga asked. He hadn't paid much attention to the flowers before when he came by. "Whatever. Look, the Stinger Krouses are here."

Braga was right. As soon as the dew appeared, the Krouses also came out. If Lian's group was here, they would think of the Krouse as some giant bees. The difference was that they were purple in color with colored eyes. Each one was as big as a four to five-year-old kid. "Let's go! They're quite big, but they're all Level One Star Energy Creatures. The majority can't even use Star Energy properly. Just avoid their poisonous stingers and hit them hard. They should die with a single hit."

After saying that, Braga was the first one to jump out. Following that, he pulled out two katars as Star Energy and lightning gathered around his body.

*Zap, zap, zap, zap, zap...*

*swish, swish, swish, swish, swish...*

Each move of his katars cut a Krouse down, making it too hard for the others to even get close.

Braga's group didn't follow Braga himself, though. Instead, they made a defensive circle around Joani and protected him on the way to the Tricolor Flowers. Braga's job was to scatter the Krouses as much as possible while his group dealt with any of the Krouses who passed by him.

"Great!" It didn't take long before Joani reached the flowers. He then opened his backpack, taking out what seemed to be a small cauldron and a few other tools. He only had one hour to use the Tricolor Dew before it completely lost its properties, so he had to be quick.

However, little did Braga and the others notice, but the Krouses weren't the only ones watching them.

Back on the side of Lian's group, they were also making their way to where the Tricolor Flowers grew.

Tuly couldn't help but lament. "Shit! Even though we moved as fast as we could, we still haven't gotten there. Look, the first sun has just come up!"

Then again, Blan, who quickly followed them with his Cubi, hadn't given up yet. "Don't worry. We're already in the core region and are very close to the location of the flowers. It shouldn't take more than five or so minutes to get there."

*Gasp, gasp...*

A tired Lian, Carol, and Duran couldn't help but ask. "Do you think we should wait here? We're obviously a lot slower than you guys. After all, you know how to use Star Energy properly."

"No need," said Tuly. "I don't want you to be attacked by Star Energy Creatures while I'm not looking. Just try to keep with our pace. Use this chance to train how to use your Star Energy to boost your body's abilities."

They bitterly smiled but continued. They weren't exactly the athletic type back on Earth, so even if they had the support of Star Energy, they were suffering quite a lot.

*Bzzzzzzz...*

Suddenly, a few Krouses began to appear in their view. "Look, the Krouses! We've arrived."

However, Tuly found it weird. "Why are the Krouses not attacking us?"

That was correct. All the Krouses were flying past them and rushing deeply into the forest.

"Who cares?" Blan didn't even pay attention. "Since they're not getting in our way, then we have a free pass to the flowers."

Eventually, they arrived where the flowers were. It's just that none of them paid attention to the flowers. Instead, their eyes immediately focused on an enormous Star Energy Creature eating something in the middle of the flowers.

For a moment, when the creature opened its mouth chew to its food, Tuly and the other members of his group went pale. That's because they definitely saw a half of Braga's head inside the creature's mouth. The bloodied scene in the area also showed that whoever was there before didn't have a good ending.

In fact, Lian got pale way, way before Tuly and the others. After all, he could also see the crowns on the Star Energy Creatures. The five spikes on that creature's crown were very obvious as well. "L-Level Five!"