682: 682. Mole

682. Mole

Understanding dawned upon Noah when he heard those words, but Elder Austin didn't explain further.

The latter simply turned to fly toward the desert when he was sure that the other heroic cultivators from the Hive had all taken different directions to return to their duties.

Noah followed the elder with interest.

He had a vague idea of what the Hive was planning, but he still wanted to see it with his eyes before making any suggestion.

Elder Austin dived toward the yellow sand when Thirty-seven's figure appeared in his field of view.

The automaton had his usual appearance, but Noah could see that he had expended a lot of the energy contained in his form.

His long hair was still immobile behind his back, and he traced deep lines on the sand with the long stick in his grasp.

However, his figure was far more ethereal compared to when he was in the palace, which signaled that his reserves of energy had reached a critical condition.

"The Patriarch told you to recharge yourself inside the pendant every week. Don't you dare to die on us because of your addiction!"

Elder Austin scolded the automaton, but the latter released a weak snort without stopping to trace lines on the sand.

Noah and the elder could see that Thirty-seven was extremely focused, but his form kept on losing part of its shine with every gesture that he made.

Automatons were something remarkably similar to normal lifeforms, and, as such, they needed nourishments to keep on living.

The spirit of Noah's ring acted as a simple program and didn't consume much energy, meaning that the power contained in the inscriptions of the item was enough to fuel it.

Yet, Thirty-seven was far more complex, and the fact that he had a personality already made him more expensive to keep active.

Also, it seemed that he was inscribing something, even if the surface of the desert didn't reveal anything.

Elder Austin quickly picked an item from his space-ring, and the aura of a rank 6 energy suddenly spread in the area.

Noah was a bit surprised when he analyzed the shining crystal held in the elder's grasp, but that emotion vanished when he understood the nature of the substance contained in the item.

The crystal shone with a blinding brown light radiated by the dense gas inside it that carried Chasing Demon's aura.

'It makes sense. Only Chasing Demon's "Breath" can fuel a rank 6 automaton.'

Noah thought as Elder Austin laid the crystal on the surface of Thirty-seven's uncaring figure.

The automaton absorbed Chasing Demon's "Breath", and his figure recovered its previous shine in no time.

Thirty-seven even quickened his pace after that wave of energy filled his structure, but Elder Austin still sent a series of messages through his inscribed notebook at that sight.

Noah remained silent, and he patiently waited for the elder to explain the matter thoroughly.

A few lines began to shine on the sand at some point.

Their light traced specific forms that became a small array when the lines connected.

Then, Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon appeared over that formation when its light dispersed.

"The communications work as intended, there was almost no interference in your message."

Flying Demon exclaimed when he saw Elder Austin, and he limited himself to show a broad smile when he noticed Noah.

"Enlarging it is far more difficult than we thought though. It might take a year to reach the eastern coast."

Dreaming Demon added, and she didn't fail to show a smile at Noah too.

"I never thought you two would be so eager to return in a separate dimension."

Noah said at their sight.

He had understood by then what the Hive was trying to do, and he could already feel the eagerness to join that project mounting inside him.

"Kid, Julia told us what you did with that woman of yours. Don't tell me that you can't understand the actions of this poor, old man."

Flying Demon answered while winking at Noah, and Dreaming Demon ignored the gesture of her lover as she reached for the automaton.

Thirty-seven stopped working when he saw the pendant on Dreaming Demon's neck, and he suddenly disappeared as he entered it.

Chasing Demon's energy wasn't enough to stabilize him, he needed to spend a set amount of time inside the pendant to return to his peak.

"So, who is our target?"

Noah asked when silence fell in the area.

He had understood that the automaton was recreating Divine Architect's separate dimension, and he could already guess what the Hive intended to do with it.

The Hive was the fusion of a series of unorthodox sects and underground organizations, so it was evident that it would be more inclined to resort to illegal methods to improve its position.

A separate dimension that could lead anywhere was the perfect tool to steal precious resources and make sudden attacks.

Cultivators that labeled themselves as demons had to put such a tool to use.

"We have always aimed to hit the Elbas family. Their researches are too useful, and they have accumulated too many grievances with the other big nations in the last years. The matter with the magical plant can only benefit our plan further."

Elder Austin explained, but Noah found a few flaws in his exposition.

The separate dimension was incredible, and the target was also the best among the available ones.

Yet, the Hive still needed precise coordinates to understand where to set the exits.

The heroic assets couldn't blindly jump out of the dimension and seize everything in their reach.

That would be unfruitful other than incredibly dangerous.

Elder Austin handed a folded sheet to Noah when he noticed that the latter was still doubtful about the matter.

Noah quickly unfolded the sheet only to discover that it contained details concerning the trades between the Hive and the Udye family.

However, the elder's smile made him understand that there was more to it.

Noah began to inspect the sheet with his mental sphere, and a strange, shining cube materialized inside his sea of consciousness at that point.

Havok and Zac's ethereal figures shot toward the cube and tried to open it but to no avail.

Noah deployed his half-transparent figure too, but even the work of the three beings couldn't break the surface of that shining shape.

"Prince, it's pointless. The powerhouse of the Udye family has encrypted the secret message with his methods."

Noah gave up on forcing the cube when he heard Elder Austin's words.

Ian Udye was the Patriarch of the Udye family, but he wasn't its strongest cultivator.

The nobles were used to hide their most powerful assets and leave the management of their family to weaker cultivators.

The secret message made the Hive understand that the Udye family had a rank 5 cultivator in their ranks.

"What does it say?"2

Noah asked, and Elder Austin didn't fail to increase his excitement with his answer.

"It's an invitation to help them with the Cause. We received it while you were inside the separate dimension. Prince, we have a mole in the Utra nation."

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