Chapter 268. Distraction.

The group fell silent after hearing Aiden’s words.

"There are rank 4 chaotic beasts throughout the forests?" Arica asked.

"Yes."

Aiden continued staring into the distance.

Beyond the forests, mountains, and waterfalls was the area he had discovered with his enhanced senses.

The pagodas stood there.

There were many of them.

Some were several dozen meters tall, while others were much larger, their ancient structures rising high into the sky.

Aiden could see through portions of their walls and observe the countless shelves inside.

There were cultivation manuals.

Movement techniques.

Affinity-related skills.

There were thousands of them.

Yet reaching those pagodas wouldn’t be easy.

Several rank 4 chaotic beasts were roaming the area.

Some were inside the forests.

Others were near the mountains.

A few were moving between the pagodas.

The group couldn’t fight them.

Even one rank 4 chaotic beast was enough to put all of them in danger.

"We can’t fight rank 4 chaotic beasts," Cosmo said.

"We don’t need to," Aiden replied.

Everyone looked at him.

Aiden raised his hand.

A blob of crimson blood emerged from his hand.

The others immediately focused on it.

The blood floated before him

The crimson liquid stretched outward.

It gradually took shape.

A head appeared.

Then a body.

Four legs.

A long tail.

Within moments, a construct made entirely from crimson blood stood before them.

It resembled a chaotic beast.

The group stared at it.

"What are you planning?" Cosmo asked.

Aiden didn’t answer.

The blood construct immediately ran into the forest.

Aiden watched it carefully.

The construct moved through the trees.

It looked like a chaotic beast from a distance.

Aiden continued controlling it.

He made it run deeper into the forest.

Then he made it stop.

Several seconds passed.

Aiden’s crimson eyes narrowed.

A rank 4 chaotic beast had noticed it.

The massive creature turned its head.

It stared at the blood construct.

The construct remained still for a moment.

Then it suddenly turned around and fled.

The rank 4 chaotic beast roared.

Its enormous body shot forward.

Trees were crushed beneath its feet as it pursued the blood construct.

Aiden watched the scene.

"It took the bait."

The others immediately understood his plan.

"You intend to lure the rank 4 chaotic beasts away with those?" Chromium asked.

"Yes."

Aiden raised his hand again.

More blood emerged from his body.

The crimson liquid floated around him.

Then it began forming more constructs.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four.

Five.

The numbers increased to hundreds.

Each construct resembled a different chaotic beast.

Some were large.

Others were smaller.

Aiden deliberately gave them different appearances.

Once they were formed, he sent them toward different areas.

Some ran toward the eastern forest.

Others headed toward the mountains.

Others headed in the direction of the lake.

Several others headed towards the pagodas beyond the mountains and forests.

Aiden carefully controlled their movements.

He made some of them run normally.

Others moved erratically.

One would suddenly stop before fleeing again.

Another would move through the trees before changing direction.

The goal wasn’t to make them fight.

It was to make the rank 4 chaotic beasts notice them.

A roar suddenly echoed through the forest.

The group looked in the direction of the sound.

They couldn’t see what had happened.

But Aiden could.

A massive rank 4 chaotic beast had noticed one of his blood constructs.

The creature immediately chased after it.

Another roar followed.

Then another.

Aiden’s eyes moved across the forest.

Several rank 4 chaotic beasts had taken the bait.

The beasts began leaving their original territories.

Some pursued the constructs deeper into the forest.

Others chased them toward the mountains.

Aiden continued manipulating the constructs.

He didn’t allow the rank 4 chaotic beasts to catch them immediately.

Whenever one was about to catch a construct, Aiden made it change direction.

The beasts continued pursuing them.

Soon, the area around the route toward the pagodas became noticeably quieter.

Aiden looked ahead.

There were still several rank 4 chaotic beasts.

He needed to deal with them as well.

He created another blood construct.

This one was much larger.

Its appearance resembled one of the chaotic beasts that inhabited the island.

Aiden sent it toward a rank 4 chaotic beast that was moving near the edge of the forest.

The creature immediately noticed it.

It stopped.

Its massive head turned toward the blood construct.

The construct moved closer.

Then it suddenly turned around and fled.

The rank 4 chaotic beast roared and chased after it.

Aiden watched as they disappeared into the forest.

"There."

He looked at the others.

"Let’s move."

The group immediately followed him.

They moved carefully through the forest.

Aiden remained at the front.

His enhanced senses continuously scanned the surroundings.

Whenever he detected a rank 4 chaotic beast nearby, he immediately changed their route.

The others followed his instructions as they quietly moved deeper into the area.

Aiden continued controlling the blood constructs.

Every so often, another roar would echo from the forests.

The sounds gradually became more distant.

The rank 4 chaotic beasts were being pulled farther away.

Eventually, Aiden stopped.

"We’re close."

The others looked ahead.

The trees gradually became thinner.

Then the first pagoda finally appeared before them.

Everyone stopped.

A massive ancient pagoda stood beyond the thinning forest.

It towered above the surrounding trees, its ancient walls covered in intricate characters.

But it wasn’t alone.

As the trees continued thinning, more pagodas became visible.

And then more.

The group stared in astonishment.

The pagodas stretched across the distant landscape.

They stood between the mountains and across the vast terrain beyond the forests, forming what seemed like an enormous ancient city of pagodas.

Some were small.

Others were several dozen meters tall.

Some were so enormous that they towered above the surrounding mountains.

There were pagodas as far as they could see.

Rows of them stretched toward the horizon.

"This..."

Arica stared at the sight before her.

Everyone was momentarily speechless.

Aiden had already known they were there.

His enhanced senses had allowed him to see the enormous collection of pagodas from much farther away.

But this was the first time the others could see them for themselves.

"How many are there?" Pamela asked.

Aiden’s eyes swept across the vast expanse.

"More than I can count from here."

The group stared at the countless ancient structures.

The sheer scale of the place was difficult to comprehend.

This wasn’t a single ancient pagoda.

It was an entire region filled with them.

And every single one could contain ancient resources.

Aiden’s gaze moved across the distant structures.

He could see through portions of several pagodas.

Thousands upon thousands of scrolls and jade slips filled their interiors.

Cultivation manuals.

Movement techniques.

Affinity-related skills.

There were countless resources preserved within them.

Aiden’s eyes narrowed.

The Han Yi Ancient Sect had left behind an astonishing inheritance.

And they had only just reached its outermost region.

"Let’s enter."

The group immediately followed Aiden.

They approached the nearest pagoda.

Aiden pushed against the enormous door.

Creak—

The ancient door slowly opened.

A wave of stale air flowed out.

The group cautiously stepped inside.

There were rows upon rows of shelves.

Countless ancient scrolls were neatly arranged across them.

Jade slips were placed beside them.

Some shelves were filled with thick books.

Others contained ancient tablets.

Aiden’s gaze swept across everything.

There were thousands of resources in the first pagoda alone.

"These are cultivation manuals," Arica said.

She approached one of the shelves.

"This section is divided according to affinities."

Cosmo looked toward another section.

"These are movement techniques."

Pamela’s expression changed when she noticed another group of shelves.

"Affinity-related skills."

The others immediately began examining the resources.

Aiden didn’t stop them.

Instead, he looked toward the deeper parts of the pagoda.

There were more floors above them.

And judging from what he could see, there were even more resources stored on those floors.

This was only one pagoda.

Aiden’s gaze moved toward the entrance.

The rank 4 chaotic beasts were still occupied.

They had successfully entered without attracting their attention.

But they couldn’t remain here forever.

The blood constructs wouldn’t continue luring the beasts indefinitely.

Aiden looked at the others.

Also, after they arrived here, he saw further regions he could not see previously. There was one last pagoda beyond the others. And what Aiden saw infront of it, left him shocked.

"Guys take what you can and we will move to the last pagoda. I think you guys will be shocked as well to see what I have discovered"

Everyone nodded.

They immediately began collecting the ancient resources.

Aiden walked toward another section.

His eyes moved across the shelves.

He wasn’t looking for something for himself.

Apart from those currently with him, he was thinking about the people who would eventually receive these resources.

Desmonda

The others in the Iron Empire.

His companions.

The people he cared about.

All of them could benefit from what they found here.

Aiden’s gaze became cold.

The Order was still out there. After him. After his loved ones.

He didn’t want the people around him to be helpless.

He wanted them to have enough strength to survive.

Aiden sent several manuals also into his storage bracelet.

Outside, the forests remained filled with rank 4 chaotic beasts.

But for the moment, they were being led away by crimson beasts that did not truly exist.

Aiden had found a way to turn his own blood into the perfect distraction.

And it had opened the path into the treasures of the Han Yi Ancient Sect.

Eventually, everyone had taken what they could.

The group left the first pagoda, turned into streaks and followed Aiden towards the last pagoda. They were eager to see what Aiden had picked up with his scouting.