Chapter 587: Inhuman

Needless to say, Andrew struggled to believe his ears. He hadn’t even finished his threat, but the outsider had already talked about killing, sounding quite happy about it for some reason.

Liam was genuinely at his wits’ end when it came to Rachel, but he hadn’t lost his mind. He greatly appreciated that interruption, but its oddness didn’t escape him.

The timing was truly strange. It had only been three weeks since Liam had left the Dark Heaven Tribe and a single one since he had somehow settled down to focus on hunting level three scorpions.

Branching experts could move quickly, especially when accompanied by suitable magical items, but Andrew still arrived too soon.

After all, it wasn’t just about hurrying to a destination. Andrew would have needed to find Liam before knowing where to go, and those were time-consuming practices, on top of needing specialized tools.

The underground hall couldn’t have been easy to find, either. That tablet’s purpose was to create safe and isolated areas, featuring some intrinsic cloaking properties, but Andrew attacked its exact spot nonetheless.

Moreover, Liam hadn’t felt anything. Whispering Wind’s perception-oriented techniques had shown him how his superhuman senses weren’t all-powerful, but he was a branching expert now. Something should have popped out, especially in three weeks.

With all those variables in place, the answer was pretty much obvious. ℯℯ𝑙.

’He hasn’t tracked me,’ Liam realized. ’He tracked Rachel.’

The explanation even had two factors working for it. The Great Quiet Desert was big on tracking methods due to its harsh, dispersive nature, and Liam was an outsider. The Invincible Oasis Tribe couldn’t have set up something for him in such a short time, especially without him noticing.

’It’s likely that he hasn’t made any move until I stopped to hunt,’ Liam thought. ’I would have sensed him being nearby if he had been observing us.’

The feat was still exceptional since Liam’s alchemical session hadn’t lasted long. Andrew definitely had tools to improve his speed dramatically or hide himself beyond what Liam’s senses could find.

’This is a problem,’ Liam considered. ’Even the Inquisitor smelled me. I need to find a solution.’

Being tracked was troublesome, but things were even worse for Liam. He had his bloodline to be wary of, and the magical tools the cultivation world would employ against him would only increase in quality as his strength progressed.

The next expert to find Liam might very well be someone who could spot his bloodline, exposing his greatest secret to the world, bringing death in the shape of the Dragons upon him.

’I need to concoct a product that hides me,’ Liam decided, his mind already browsing through the recipes he had memorized from his Master’s inheritance. ’A perfume might work, but the ingredients remain an issue.’

Naturally, Liam didn’t let those considerations distract him. The biggest issue was still hovering above him, looking angrier than ever. He was facing a proper mid-stage branching expert now.

’He should be weaker than the inquisitor,’ Liam thought, both the greatsword and the fan materializing in his hands. ’But he still took both my kick and poison arrow without as much as flinching.’

The one-sided fight against Caspar hadn’t made Liam arrogant. No branching expert was weak. They were all elites among elites, so he couldn’t hold anything back.

Liam’s clear stance pushed away Andrew’s confusion, paving the path for his anger. Still, he didn’t fall prey to it, keeping himself in check, behaving like a truly seasoned expert.

"Outsider, you called yourself Dark Wanderer," Andrew announced. "I will ignore your rudeness out of respect for your alchemical skills, but even my patience has limits."

Liam had yet to show any alchemical skills, but masters in the noble arts were worthy of respect, even when still just in name. Also, Andrew couldn’t forget the poison-infested swamp Liam had been immersed in at their first meeting.

That was why Andrew had never meant for that second encounter to degenerate into a fight to the death. Poison masters were annoying to deal with, and Liam was valuable. The plan was to pressure him before resorting to words.

Nevertheless, Liam understood all that, and he couldn’t have been more tired of words after dealing with Rachel.

"Let’s not do this," Liam groaned, black Qi already escaping his figure, tainting the environment. "You probably want me to switch sides and take Rachel as leverage. It’s not happening."

Andrew showed no surprise at Liam’s understanding. His intentions were quite easy to figure out after all. If anything, that firm loyalty was more of an issue.

A snort escaped Andrew’s mouth as his figure dropped to the ground, the weight of his existence shattering the rocky surface, sending ethereal gales toward Liam.

That was no attack. Andrew was merely releasing his Qi, but the energy of a mid-stage branching expert couldn’t be looked down upon.

Andrew’s Qi was dense, carrying pressure that blew away the toxic fumes rising from the ground Liam had infected. Even the dark slime shuddered, shrinking under that weight.

The infection was still ongoing, but Andrew was suppressing it with Qi alone. He was preventing the swamp from happening with the same energy Liam was using to create it.

’He is more experienced than me about the branching stage,’ Liam thought, the event confirming a detail he had already guessed.

Qi could fight Qi. It was an obvious correlation. Liam wasn’t unique in wielding his dantian’s nature. If anything, that was the staple of the branching stage, and Andrew had clearly spent far more time learning to weaponize that ability.

But Liam’s poison also wasn’t easy to counter, far from it. Andrew’s Qi might have suppressed the inflection, but it hadn’t stopped it. Also, there would come a point when even his energy would fall prey to it.

Still, Andrew knew that, too, which was why his figure teleported in front of Liam, a punch already heading for his chest.

Andrew was faster than Liam. His mid-stage created an advantage Liam’s inborn edge couldn’t match. Yet, Liam also had superhuman senses on his side. He had seen the attack before it started, so his greatsword moved earlier than the punch.

The two attacks seemed about to hit at the same time, when Andrew’s figure suddenly disappeared. The greatsword hit empty air, but the force it carried still shattered the ground underneath.

Andrew reappeared a few meters away, his arms behind his back, a confident smirk on his handsome face.

"Young Caspar’s fears weren’t unfounded," Andrew exclaimed. "You are capable. Maybe even that Master you boasted about isn’t just talk."

Andrew barely finished his line when a drum-like noise resounded in the area. The sunlight darkened as a tide of violent blackness surged into the sky, but he couldn’t look away from its source.

Liam’s hair fluttered in the black Qi blowing out of his figure, his eyes wide, their sclera so riddled with blood vessels that their whiteness was barely noticeable.

A primal instinct rose inside Andrew, a warning similar to fear. The technique Liam had unleashed looked powerful, but his expression was more concerning. Somehow, it didn’t seem to belong to a human anymore.

"Did you ..." Liam hissed human words, fangs peeking behind his canines, "Insult my Master?"