Child of Destiny

Chapter 1427: The Beginning (Part 1)

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Right after entering the region, Shin instantly noticed that the flow of energies in the air was flowing toward a certain direction. It would not be hard to find the location of the inheritance tome due to this. The energies within the surroundings were moving toward the center of the region, which was most likely the location of their target.

Shin also noticed that the surrounding plants and trees were withering. The life forces that they contained were being sucked by something at the center of the forest.

As they approached the deeper parts of the forest, the surroundings were also starting to change. Dead trees and completely dried vegetation were everywhere.

There were also some dead animals lying around. Their bodies were already in the middle of decomposition, but there was no foul smell coming from their corpses. Instead, the fungi that were forming from those corpses were releasing a pleasant smell that could even calm the mind.

But despite that being the case, Shin quickly summoned his Mental Energy to protect his body from those fungi and even formed a layer on the hole of his nose to filter the air that he was breathing.

From the information that the organization had provided, these fungi could be one of the reasons why the agents that they had sent earlier turned into monsters after being exposed too much in them.

The people that came along with Shin also wore a special gas mask to cover their noses along with a set of leather suits that fully covered their bodies. They also had a special feature that would constantly release subtle energy that warded off the fungi.

As Shin and the others approached the center of the forest, the more gruesome the scene became. Even the ground seemed to be in a dead state as well – it was completely dried as if it was in a barren land.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

As they walked further ahead, Shin could sense some subtle movements in the area. His sharp Spiritual Sense was sensed by the vines moving both on the surface and under the ground, slowly and quietly approaching them.

Shin glanced at the agents that were accompanying him before returning his gaze upfront. He did not inform them about the impending. They might be helping him in this mission, but they also served another purpose – they were here to be the eyes of the organization that would be watching over his actions and preventing him from escaping.

If could lessen their numbers to a manageable level, then that would be enough for him to find an opportunity to do whatever he wanted later.

As for the main puppet that they would be facing later, Shin was not worried due to the tools that the organization had provided him. Those were more than enough to preserve his life even if he could not get that inheritance tome.

Because of those tools, Shin became even surer that these guys were desperate to get their hands on this particular inheritance.

He was already drawing a plan that he could use to negotiate with the Black Serpent Mafia. After all, he was not foolish enough to believe that those guys would let him get his hands on the inheritance tome without taking more precautions.

Of course, these agents could also not be underestimated. They were also quite skilled and had their respective methods to sense their surroundings.

Even if their sensory field was inferior to Shin, who commanded such a large area of Spiritual Sense, they could still sense the small movements in the surroundings once those vines stepped into their territory.

But once it happened, it was already too late.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

The vines already made their moves and flew toward the agents, wrapping themselves on their targets or piercing the bodies of those agents.

The majority of the group was able to respond in time and dodge while the rest that got caught showed no emotion. They just stood in their respective spots while the others cut the vines for them.

Shin kept an eye on the surroundings while cutting the vines that tried to approach him. He was using the sword that the organization had provided. It was not good enough for what he needed, but it was more than enough to handle these things.

Moreover, the fire innate attribute of his Mental Energy was a bane for these vines, which could instantly burn them to ashes after being sliced by his sword.

He saw that the wounded agents just injected a serum into their bodies that swiftly healed their wounds and cleaned their bloodstreams from the fungi that tried invading their bodies.

”It seems like they come prepared this time. I guess their agents suffered a lot due to these fungi,” he mumbled as he continued moving ahead while cutting the vines pouncing at him and not caring whether those agents would follow him or not.

Given how the Black Serpent Mafia trained their agents, he knew that these guys would not care about anything aside from completing the mission given to them.

They proceeded to move forward until they encountered the first wave of agents that turned into plant monsters.

With their appearance, Shin could not help but compare them to the plant and tree monsters that he had encountered in the game.

However, their characteristics and abilities were slightly different despite the similarities that they shared.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Shin was able to easily ward off the attacks of these humanoid monsters, cutting their vines and burning them into ashes.

The other agents were also doing quite well under the leadership of the young executioner who was accompanying them.

”Not bad,” Shin commented as he saw how good the young executioner was. He also felt that the guy was hiding his skills quite well from him.

”I guess I have to keep my eye on that guy,” he mumbled as he twirled his sword and charged at the center of the monsters, planning to end this as soon as possible.

***

Meanwhile, on the side where the exploration of the tomb of the cultivator, a huge number of people were currently gathered.

The representatives of the different nations, the people from the Federation (the main force of the World Government), the soldiers of the military, the members of the Magic Ace Academy, and the Top Military School were currently gathered in this place.

All the people who would represent them for the exploration were also standing at the forefront of the group along with their leaders.

The number of people at the Magic Ace Academy, Top Military School, and the Federation was noticeably lower than what they were supposed to have. It was because of the recent incidents where the students and young cadets were being ambushed by unknown forces.

Naturally, they had suspected that it was those representatives from the other nations. However, since they did not have any solid evidence that would support their suspicions and due to the underworld organizations joining the chaos, they could not demand anything from them.

Of course, there was one force that could not join this exploration. It was the representatives of the Silver Wing Continent, who became the main culprits of Shinʼs abduction.

Nathan and his people did not have any solid evidence either aside from the statements of the two lieutenants, who were leading the team that was supposedly protecting Shin.

But since they became the main suspect, the military force under the Springfields Family and the people from Flying Dragon Corporation put a lot of pressure on the representatives of the Silver Wing Continent.

Naturally, those representatives were depending on themselves and saying that it was an unfair treatment to them.

But with the prestige of Nathan, the Dragon King, along with his friends with similar levels of reputation such as Joaquin ʼThousand Beastsʼ Geovanni, Elias ʼWarrior Sageʼ Stuart, and Eugene ʼSword Immortalʼ White, those people did not dare to raise any strong objection.

Nathan was also aware that what they knew might also be a setup left behind by the real culprits to frame the Silver Wing Continent. This was the reason why he did not do anything rash and slaughter their people.

But as long as they could not find the real culprits, the representatives of the Silver Wing Continent would remain the main suspects.

If they wanted to clear their names, then they had to help Nathan and the others find the real perpetrator of the incident.

Because of this, Nathan had lessened the number of their competitors in exploring the tomb while also gaining extra people looking for Shin.

…

The person leading the people of the Magic Ace Academy was Martial King Lin Huang while the person in charge of students that would be exploring the tomb was Shiella and Mariel. Aside from them, there were also a few seniors from the elite clubs.

Since the situation was a little different than before, the Academy had made some adjustments accordingly.

As for the Top Military School, they did the same approach as the Magic Ace Academy, sending a mix of their special program students and a few seniors who would lead them.

The air surrounding the group of students representing the Magic Ace Academy was so heavy that even the top experts who were accompanying the other forces found it strange.

Shiella, who was standing at the forefront of the group, even more serious expression she focused her gaze on the entrance of the tomb. The air that she had seemed to be telling everyone not to mess with her or they would face an unforgettable consequence.

Even the laidback and mischievousness of Arthur was not present as he was also looking very serious right now. It had almost been two days since the incident, yet they still had no clear clue of Shinʼs whereabouts, so he could not help but be worried.

According to his uncle, some of the people of the organization that abducted Shin must be among the ones that were exploring the tomb, so he could not help but sweep his gaze sharply any everyone.

He would not be trusting anyone aside from his circle of friends and Shiella. Even the guys in their class would not be trustworthy, so he better be careful.

Leonard was also in a similar situation. This was not the first time that something like this had happened, but he could tell that this time it was something different. Moreover, he could also feel that Shin must be in grave danger given the serious look that Nathan had whenever he talked to them.

Lorraine was also quite quiet these past couple of days as she also understood the situation. She was also quite troubled when she heard from her family that this incident might be more serious than they originally thought since powerhouse experts were also involved in the incident.

Alice was also somewhat affected by the incident. She might not be that close to Shin, but she felt an uncomfortable feeling in her chest when she heard the news after she came back to the hotel at that time.

Cloe was the one who was most affected by this given her relationship and feelings for Shin. She was very troubled by the incident. She was too worried about Shin and could not focus her mind these days.

Fortunately, her master had talked to her and even calmed her down. She also realized her weakness, which made her work harder in her training under Old Man Lin these past couple of days.

Her temperament took a noticeable change because of this, which surprised her friends, especially Lorraine, who was closest to her. Her innocent and carefree attitude seemed to disappear in a short time and changed by something that they could not explain.

Even the twins of the Potter Clan – Jilian and Molton – were also affected by the mood of the group, especially when they learned what had happened.

This particular group was emitting a different air compared to the rest of the participants of the exploration. The people who saw them knew that they could carelessly provoke these guys once they entered the tomb.

Bang!

Not long after, the entrance of the tomb was finally opened.

Old Man Lin stood in front of it along with a few powerhouses present. He observed the entrance for a few moments before signaling to the young people behind them. ”You little fledglings can enter now.”

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