Dual Cultivation: Beasts and Women!

After the fight against Hugue, the next few days passed quickly for Liam and his group, and soon it was time for him to leave the headquarters for the first time since he arrived in the sect.

The days between the fight and today were quite hectic, with Liam using up most of the merit points he still had, now down to 10,000 points. Many Division Chiefs and Commanders have sought him out in recent days, but his strategy of staying in the Lotus Temple's cultivation rooms with his wives has paid off well, strengthening them as a whole and avoiding encounters he didn't want to have.

The few moments when he had to interact with companions of the same rank were relatively quiet, with him being able to avoid challenges and deeper conversations by using the excuse that he had to leave on an external mission.

One of the good things about the Demon Gate was its strict rules and the possibility of refusing confrontation or even getting away from immediate problems by using missions outside the sect. While things were more flexible within the sect, the Elders took outside missions and the attitudes of sect members that might impede such missions seriously.

As Elder Neill himself had spoken to Liam earlier, his Secret Hunt mission should be more focused on external enemies and less on his fellow sect members. That didn't mean he should forgive fellow sect members, but he should certainly be more decisive with external forces and Demon Gate rivals.

Thus, his relative ease in warding off trouble was no stranger to his group until the moment of his farewell today.

After a fiery night in which he cultivated with each of his cultivation companions living in his house, he had a rich breakfast with the group before saying goodbye.

Of the group living on his estate in City Two, only Nance would accompany him and his group to Irondom. The rest of the women would remain to fulfill their responsibilities with the sect, preparing themselves for the possibilities he had created in recent weeks for them to strengthen themselves.

As soon as the group's morning farewell meal was over, with Toby and his men, but also Isa and her team, already there at the residence, Liam stood up and took one last look at those who would be staying.

"Work hard during my absence. I expect you to consolidate your current powers and get closer to your next breakthroughs when I return. I'll see if I can bring you some gifts on this journey, but I can't guarantee much." He smiled as he looked at his group of women.

They all said goodbye to him, hugging him while the men led by Isa felt envious of him.

"How long are we talking about here?" Mary asked as they escorted the team on this mission out of the house.

Toby answered promptly, "The journey to Irondom is 8 days using the vehicles we'll be using on this journey. So that's 16 days to get there and back, considering an uneventful journey. But we can add about 4 days to that and the days we'll need to stay in Irondom... It should take between 20 and 25 days, maybe a month, if we're delayed by problems or opportunities."

Groups on missions outside headquarters had a certain amount of autonomy over what to do out there. They were free to delay their return to the sect, as long as they had a justification.

Before leaving, they had to submit a mission plan to the General Records Hall and get a departure permit. This permit had an expiry date, which was usually 150% of the group's planned mission time.

When a team on a foreign mission didn't return after this time had expired, the General Records Hall would issue an alert to the Law Enforcement Hall to investigate the situation and a possible escape.
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But even after all these security devices have been activated, as long as the group can justify the reason for their delay—opportunities or serious problems—it was possible to escape punishment.

The sect knew the continent had many problems and opportunities, and now and then, groups on external missions were delayed because of these possibilities.

"Sigh... It's a long time," Mary murmured, this being the first time she'd been away from Liam for more than a few days. "Anyway, good luck to you. I hope you get back soon."

The group stopped in front of Liam's property, finishing their goodbyes before heading for the exit of City One.

Besides Liam, Toby, Nance, and Isa, there were 3 Officers led by Liam, while 2 First Officers and 11 Officers from Isa's group completed their formation.

Nance was obviously the weakest, with her cultivation of 7-Star Spirit Earth. But there were three other Spirit Earth Realm cultivators in the group, followed by most of them being 1-Star or 2-Star Spirit Sky cultivators. Only the First Officers and Commander Isa had between 3-Star and 7-Star Spirit Sky Realm cultivation.

This was a common formation for journeys by sect members outside the headquarters, neither as large as the groups of Commanders hunting disciples for the sect, nor so small as to be weak or irrelevant.

The group made their way on foot to the exit of the city, where they came across the Law Enforcement Hall post and handed in their departure permit. There they found the three carriages they had ordered from the General Records Hall, good-looking vehicles, mostly made of wood, with Demon Gate symbols and big, powerful horses.

The men from Isa's group took the lead to command of the vehicles, and soon Liam was in the middle carriage of the convoy, together with Isa, Nance, and Toby.

Their journey began along the inner roads of the headquarters, with the group setting off in silence, Nance, and Liam watching the road with interest; for the first time leaving the headquarters.

Isa and Toby had already left the headquarters a few times before and had gotten used to the view. They saw Nance, masked and dressed in black, and Liam, in his red suit, gazing at the stunning view of the fjord, heading out of the headquarters, a journey of about three hours.

The sect's headquarters was imposing with its enviable vastness!

Liam observed the path, noticing several powerful beasts near the sect's exit, creatures that were even stronger than the fourth realm plant his group had faced previously.

He couldn't distinguish the cultivation of all those creatures he saw from afar, but he estimated that there were Spirit Kings among those creatures on the borders of the headquarters.

'Here begins my escape. I'll pay attention to every detail from now on!' Liam thought to himself, eager to define where his escape could not take place and to learn more about the sect's search methods.

With a soon-to-be Commander and Commander Isa on his side, he had two good informants to answer many of his questions. All he had to do was be sensitive enough not to let the two of them realize his flight interests.

Isa would still need to hear from them about their escape plans, but she wasn't Liam's concern. Given Isa's devout personality, he imagined that this woman would most likely agree to join him on the run from Demon Gate. The problem was Toby, who he wanted to be as careful as possible not to understand his real objectives.

'On my return I'll have to deal with Mylla... I have to take advantage of this month off to prepare to cultivate with her!' He thought before summoning his books on the Fourth Class of his profession.

His companions remained silent as they watched him begin to study, aware that it was in his plans to reach the Fourth Class during his stay in Irondom!

...

The first few days of Liam's group's journey were uneventful. They would travel for most of the day, stopping only to eat and take brief breaks. But during the nights, they would hardly make any progress on their journey, when they would normally stop to camp and rest from the hard day's work.

Traveling wasn't comfortable, but the biggest problem for cultivators like them was the uncertain dangers in their path. Unlike the region that Commander Amos' group had passed through on their way to the Eternal Doom Island—a weak and quiet area of the mainland—the region of the headquarters and Irondom was dangerous, with creatures of up to the fifth realm roaming the area.

Unlike in the headquarters, where there were specific areas where one could know in advance that there were dangers, it wasn't like that outside the headquarters. The forests were great unknowns and could have powerful residents near or far who, depending on their day or the behavior of travelers, would feel the need to act.

Because of these big differences, night journeys were not recommended, even for groups as well-trained as Liam's. But these stops had been great for the young Runemaster in the group. Liam had been taking advantage of the stops to train what he was learning from his daytime studies, but also to cultivate with Nance and Isa.

The method Liam chose, though less safe than cultivating indoors, was well prepared for. He had bought good huts and formations capable of protecting his and his companions' privacy. That's why they had cultivated every day without the various men in their group finding out about their dual cultivation.

On their fifth night of rest since leaving the sect, Nance advanced to the 8-Star of the Spirit Earth Realm, while Liam reached the end of the 1-Star of the Spirit Sky Realm. Even Isa was showing signs of improvement, being at the absolute peak of the 7-Star of the Spirit Sky Realm.

But the most important thing that night was not Nance's progress. That night, just after cultivating with the girl with the beautiful, short blue hair, Liam created his first Fourth Class rune!