Chapter 613: What about you, human?
Asher detected the rank of the creature trailing Kyle and, upon recognizing it was merely at the late stage of transcendent rank, he breathed a sigh of relief. Being only at the middle stage of the supreme rank, he needed to steer clear of all the undead who were more powerful than him.
Nonetheless, he wondered how the heck the human stumbled upon such a powerful undead in this area, especially after he had recently cleaned this place. Swiftly moving towards Kyle, who recoiled from the undead with a look of disgust, Asher whispered.
"Hey, I introduced myself, and you bolted. That's kind of rude. How about you share your name too? I can sense you're only at the divine rank, not quite ready to take this thing down. Introduce yourself, and I'll lend a hand. Sounds like a fair deal, doesn't it?"
He grinned with a hint of anticipation, but the human's words didn't quite align with what he had hoped for. Instead of saying, Yeah, let's be friends, help me out, Kyle mumbled to himself.
"I don't have gloves. Ugh, I really don't want to touch this thing; its body is emitting such a foul smell but well..."
Kyle had lost nearly all of his divine and spiritual energy when he forcefully entered the tomb after breaking its restrictions. Flying and using instant teleportation a few times was the most he could manage at the moment. Knowing this, he understood he had to rely on his fists for now. He grabbed a shirt from his mind-space, tore it swiftly, and wrapped the fabric around his hands so fast it left Asher a bit stunned.
Then, under the man's gaze, he advanced towards the undead, nearly three times his size, with all his agility. After dodging its weapon, he landed multiple punches on the undead's chest. Instantly, a pained howl burst from the undead's lips, and its white eyes dimmed as cracks spread across its bones, shaping its ribcage.
Kyle stepped back as the undead began swinging its weapons wildly, causing destruction all around due to its immense power. As he ascended into the air, ready to attack the undead again, his gaze fell upon numerous similar undead emerging from the distance, the exact location where he had previously disturbed the earth after sensing a treasure buried beneath.
"What the actual hell...?"
He blinked and used the last bit of energy in his body to vanish from his spot, dodging entanglement with them all. A few transcendent ranks were okay, but with no divine and spiritual energy, it was better for him not to push too hard and avoid tangling with so many transcendent rank undead. Especially since he had no idea what other obstacles lay ahead in this place.
Asher, who had been silently observing Kyle all this time, was somewhat surprised to witness how the human could engage a transcendent rank and inflict damage with his bare fist despite being only a divine rank. He blinked as the one he was monitoring vanished.
"Why did he leave? The undead is almost finished... just a few more punches would be enough to end it-!"
His words abruptly stopped as his senses caught onto the numerous powerful undead moving toward his location.
"Oh... I know why he disappeared!"
He shouted and quickly fled in another direction, away from the lake. The undead Kyle had attacked and injured followed behind him, with many others. But how could they catch a supreme rank?
Asher easily led them far away from the lake and, after making sure they wouldn't find their way back, he vanished from their view to return to the lake. He sat atop a rock, gently caressing the body of a winged creature to soothe his excited heart.
"I am surprised to see the outsiders have become so strong. A divine rank beating a transcendent rank with just fists? This generation seems pretty powerful. I am just hoping that the tomb exit opens up soon so I can get out of here. I know I will, but I am getting all worked up just thinking about finally leaving this place!"
He peered towards the far end of the lake, where a wooden pillar stood with a light.
"What about you, human?"
After receiving no reply, he approached the pillar with a wide grin.
"I already sensed your presence. Why hide, huh? Come out. Let's converse. It's been a long time since I have spoken to someone other than monsters."
Kyle didn't budge from his spot. He never meant to hide and knew Asher could sense him given the latter's superior strength.
He sat cross-legged behind the pillar to absorb divine and spiritual energy from the air. Prior to using instant teleportation, he had employed his scent perception skill and observed that every direction around him was filled with powerful undead.
Only the vicinity near the lake seemed relatively clear. Mentally calling out Bia's name, he paid little attention to the man who had slowly crept beside him, engaging in ceaseless chatter, as Kyle sensed no imminent threat from him.
'Bia?'
An immediate response came.
-'Yes, I can hear you. I'm with Jian. We successfully entered the tomb with the rest. I'm not sure where the others are, but I can sense you're quite far from my location. I will come to find you.'
Kyle stopped her from coming to find him. It was better for her not to move when the sky above was nearly pitch black.
'This place is filled with undead. Did you and Jian encounter any? If yes, don't wander around and find a cave or a hidden spot nearby to hide until morning. Then you can head in my direction.'
His brows furrowed as silence fell momentarily. Moreover, he detected a touch of hesitation in Bia's emotions.
'Are you and Jian truly okay?'
He rose abruptly, surprising Asher seated beside him. However, before he could leave towards the location where he could sense Bia, her voice resonated in his mind.
-'We are okay. No need to worry. But I will come find you as soon as daylight breaks!'