Davis watched the spatial vortex, the dimensional pathway to the Elemental Dimension, close. He was astounded, a bit disappointed, and greatly saddened. Although he was unlikely to return through this spatial vortex since he already figured it would close on him if he were to re-enter, he had indeed hoped that it would stay open.

At least, he could have another way out if he were to be surrounded here.

Davis then looked around once more.

No traps were placed around according to his senses.

It felt strange considering Azariel's avatar was killed some distance away from here. Surely, any power would send people to investigate why Azariel had appeared from this direction. If they didn't, he wondered what kind of foolish or overconfident power they were.

'Perhaps they have their own reasons…'

Raising his hand, he flicked his dyed black hair and patted his black robe before moving towards the place Azariel had gone.

He had already disguised himself in preparation to enter the Six-Headed Hydra Upper Realm. Unless he knew where he was, it really wasn't good to start his tribulation. If he started right near the capital of the realm, he would be screwed beyond compare even if he were to become an Empyrean.

As much as he loved the idea of laying waste to the capital of the Hexadra Imperial Empire, it wasn't an optimistic idea. It was a suicidal idea.

Of course, if he learned that the Realm Master was away, he would definitely go to the capital. Therefore, he first needed to find out where he was and get information.

'By this time, the rulers of the Upper Realms will be receiving word that the secret realm has closed. They would wonder if I was stuck there for good or made it out unless the Celestial Transcendent is aware of my exit to the Upper Realms. After all, breaking the Covenant necessarily doesn't mean that I entered the Upper Realms. I could have stepped into a Greater Realm, too. Hopefully, he doesn't have the ability to trace where I landed to a pinpoint accuracy…'

Davis pursed his lips, figuring that he was depending on the less likely outcome to succeed. Even though he used Heavenly Gambling Records, he wasn't a gambler.

He walked past the trees and various kinds of flora adorning the forest.

He inhaled a bit of spatial energy from the heaven and earth, allowing him to guess that the killing formation must be some kind of Spatial Formation. In that case, he wasn't afraid since Azariel told him it was just an Empyrean Grade Formation.

Davis was confident that no Empyrean Grade Formation could trap him.

Soon, after crossing tens and thousands of kilometers, he came across a mountain range. At a glance, it appeared to be empty, but with his keen senses, he could see vague silhouettes beyond a veil.

'Evidently, there's also a concealment formation… is this not a legal establishment? Or is concealing a territory a common act among the powers present in the Upper Realm? Hmm, it might be more common than I think, like the Metenoa Family, but then again, it doesn't necessarily warrant killing Azariel without uttering a single word, so it is likely an illegal establishment of some kind…'

Davis approached it as he checked for a way around the mountain. However, he couldn't find any, only coming in contact with a chasm near the edge. Looking back, he realized that the forest behind him led to a dead end as it was surrounded by a huge chasm. He could sense water energy rising slowly from the chasm, so he guessed this place was surrounded by a massive ocean.

'I'm in a highland above a vast ocean?'

Davis wondered what kind of place this was before he turned to look back.

"Come out."

Someone walked out of the veil, demanding that the intruder come out.

Davis frowned.

It appears that his concealment was found. In that case, it made sense that Azariel could've done nothing. However, since the other party wasn't directly looking at him, he guessed they noticed his presence through some method but didn't actually detect him.

"It's no use hiding. When you walk on the ground, it creates echoes in space, no matter how minor it is, because of the Speltuma Ores that pick up resonance, which is caught by the detection formation."

'So that's what happened… I'll remember to float next time…'

Davis couldn't believe he made a mistake. The mistake was so minor that it couldn't even be called a mistake, but he digested it into his learning experience.

He walked out of his concealment, causing the black-robed man to turn to look at him with a frown.

The black-robed man's gaze swept over Davis from head to toe, sharp and appraising, like a blade scraping along bone. His frown deepened, not with confusion, but with a kind of irritated certainty.

"So you finally came out." The man said coldly, "I was wondering which rat was stupid enough to crawl back toward the mountain after escaping. It turns out it was you."

"…?" Davis's expression was indifferent, but he was confused inwardly.

When was he inside the mountain?

Could it be that his facial disguise coincided with some random person inside?

The man took two steps forward. As he moved, faint ripples spread through the air, as though space itself yielded to his presence. A bronze insignia glinted briefly at his waist. It was etched with twisted hydra patterns, half-hidden beneath his robe.

Davis saw this and thought, 'He appears to be a supervisor here, but doesn't seem to exude much authority. An influential guard?'

"What are you looking at?" The guard unleashed Level Seven Sovereign Stage undulations, "You escaped from the mining grounds, didn't you?"

"You seem new, but a plain black robe, hiding your aura, skulking through the outer region forest instead of using established paths. You think I haven't seen trash like you before?"

"…" Davis stayed silent.

The guard sneered, his lips curling in disdain, "Save your reasons. Who you are doesn't matter, you wretched rat. I don't care which tunnel you crawled out of or which mining foreman you slipped past. All you need to tell me is who showed you the path out."

Davis's gaze flickered with a hint of understanding, "You also run a secretive business that brings people out?"

The guard's expression darkened in annoyance, "You should be happy the killing formation didn't trigger since the Mining Director is in seclusion. It wasn't a while ago until some random rat who escaped was crushed to death. Unless you want to meet the same fate, you'd better shut up."

"…"

Davis's expression turned cold, "I want to see your Mining Director."

"You?" The guard looked taken aback before he sneered, "As if you can meet his excellency. You're merely a Level Nine Immortal Emperor, not even practicing the Transcendent Cultivation Method. What? You want to plead guilty to escaping? Don't test your luck. The director is absolutely ruthless and will not give you a second chance."

"What if I come from a wealthy family and can promise benefits?"

Davis raised his brows.

"You can…? Which family are you from?" The guard appeared amused, "If you are here, you must have been sold by your own family."

"One thousand Peak-Level Spirit Stones." Davis simply said.

"…"

His calm and indifferent voice made the guard dumbfounded and actually reconsider the situation. There was no way a wealthy and influential figure would bring her to mine and die, but there was a chance that mistakes could happen.

He gulped ever so lightly and harrumphed, "Trying to act wealthy? You're fortunate. Very fortunate. If I were in a worse mood, I'd feed you straight to the guard wolves and be done with it."

"You take me to the Mining Director, and not only the crystals will be yours, but I'll also expose your competitor for you."

Davis flatly said, causing the guard to turn solemn. After some consideration, he silently nodded and turned around.

"Follow me."

Davis followed suit.

He wasn't even trying to fool the other party, as he didn't even try to act, yet the other party nearly believed him. Clearly, greed was the issue.

Thankfully, he wore an Empyrean Grade Illusion Ring Artifact crafted by Bylai that concealed his numerous rings worn on his fingers. Hence, the other party didn't even detect anything strange about him, thinking he was really a miner.

A plain black robe, ordinary black hair, different facial features that he reconstructed using Blood Laws, and finally, the illusion ring to conceal his items and modify his true aura; his disguise was complete.

Some of his wives were incredibly thoughtful, making Davis smile lightly.

"What are you smiling for? Don't blame me if you lose a limb or two after you meet the director."

The guard harrumphed.

They passed through the veil.

A vast mountain hollow revealed itself, its interior carved into layered terraces like the ribs of some colossal beast. Dim formation-lights pulsed along the walls, casting warped shadows that twisted unnaturally, bending at wrong angles due to spatial interference.

Davis saw many people swinging their pickaxes at the Speltuma Ores.

They were obviously miners, hundreds of them.

They were scattered across the mountain's exposed veins, swinging pickaxes infused with weak spatial runes. Every strike sent ripples through the stone, warping the air in brief pulses. The sound was wrong. Each impact echoed twice, once immediately and once a heartbeat later, delayed by distorted space.

Most of the miners appeared to be Immortal Emperors or Sovereigns. It wasn't that they didn't bully Immortal Kings and Monarchs, but they couldn't even mine these ores since their minerals caused spatial disorientation and crystal poisoning that latched onto their flesh and grew into rupturing.

Davis already knew the effects of mining Speltuma Ore since he was aware of Empyrean Grade Ores and even some Exalt Grade Ores due to the time he spent with Bylai and many others mining in the Mountain-Sea Painting Shard Region.

"Aah!" Abruptly, a painful voice echoed.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.