“What do you mean, grandmaster? Are these people not human?” Dahlia asked.
“You are an alchemist, young man?” the spider asked.
Ning ignored the spider and answered, “No, these are definitely humans, but their blood is not. It’s…” Ning felt their blood again and said, “… it’s like the blood they have doesnt’ belong to them. It’s like, they had someone else’s blood. However, it couldn’t adapt to their body, so it changed.”
“Yes!” the spider shouted. “The one I ate said something similar. That human said that it was here to get me so that they can get stronger by taking me away and devouring my blood.”
Ning brought out a little more ingredients and did some more experiments. After a while, he said, “I see. I think I have a general idea of what is going one. Shit! This is going to turn into a problem.”
“What? What’s wrong?” Dahlia asked.
The spider also looked at Ning intently. Ning checked the other person too and found the same result.
“Shit!” he shouted.
“What’s wrong, young man?” the spider asked.
“Sigh, if I’m not wrong, these people have injected themselves with an amalgamation of the blood of the different beasts, especially legendary ones to try and gain their powers for themselves.”
“If I’m not wrong. They are trying to mimic and find a way to become Jha’Akim themselves,” Ning said.
“What?” the spider shouted in surprise. “How do you know that name? It should have been lost to history.”
Ning sighed again. “I was sent here by your ancestors to get you back to the secret realm through the tomb. Don’t you wish to go back?” Ning asked.
“You… are you really sent here by my ancestors?” the Spider asked.
“Yes. I’m here to take you back. That is… if you still wish to come back,” Ning said.
“YES! Of course!” the spider shouted. “I have wished to go back many times. I curse my younger self everytime I remember how stupidly curious I was.”
“I came out of that place and unknowingly stumbled onto this place. Now I don’t even know how to return back. I don’t even know where to return back.”
“I’ve been searching around the lands, but I never found anything. At some point, I simply gave up on finding my way back. That… was a few centuries ago. I’ve been staying here now, waiting for my end to come.”
“However,” the spider spoke with all 8 of its eyes shining brightly, “however, If I can go back, then please let me. I wish to go back.”
Ning smiled. “Sure, that’s what I promised your ancestors anyway,” Ning said.
“Wait!” the spider shouted. “Let me call the little guy here first. I’ve been with this family forever as they were the ones that gave me shelter. I should at least say my goodbyes.”
“Sure,” Ning said. The spider sent out its divine sense and called someone.
“They must’ve really taken care of you for you to give out such a great technique to a little boy like that,” Ning said. “He made good use of the pill making technique.”
“How do you know that?” the Spider asked.
“Bertel, he took part in a competition and won it. You must have taught him quite a lot,” Ning said.
“Oh he did? He was telling me about that a few months ago. He was really scared, that kid. I told him he would do good. Thank you for that information,” the spider said.
“Anyway, how are you here?” Ning asked.
“As I said, I was roaming and one of this place’s ancestors found me, and I started guarding them,” the spider said.
“No, no, no, I mean this continent,” Ning asked.
“What continent?” the spider asked.
“The southern continent,” Ning said.
“So?” the spider asked.
“Do you not know that the beast realm is in the central continent?” Ning asked.
“Huh? That can’t be. I was teleported into the middle of the forests in the north,” the spider said.
“Hmm… that’s weird. I wonder why that is,” Ning thought.
Suddenly, footsteps could be heard from the side as someone came rushing in. It was a middle aged man with a face not unlike Bertel’s.
“Senior, you—” he stopped when he saw Ning and Dahlia.
“Who are you two? And why are you here?” he exclaimed. He took out a sword and got in a stance to fight immediately. “Are you two the same as the last ones?”
“Wait, Teril. These are not here with a bad intention,” the spider spoke.
“Hello, I am Ning, and this is Dahlia. We are here to take your senior here back to his home,” Ning said.
“Huh?” the man got more confused and thus less hostile. “Back to his home?” his minds churned for a few minutes and his eyes brightened.
“Senior, you mean… they are…”
“Yes,” the spider said. “These people were sent by my ancestors to bring me back.”
The man turned to look at the two of them, and his cautiousness returned. “Did you verify that, senior?” the man asked.
The spider went quiet. “Hmm… not really,” the spider said. “But they do speak of things that no other people would speak of, and… that young man is way to strong to decieve me into going somewhere with him.”
“He would simply just grab me and walk away, and none of us would be able to do anything,” the spider said.
“Hey now, I would never do that,” Ning said. “Anyway, say your goodbyes, and we will leave.”
“Huh?” the middle aged man shouted. “You’re leaving right now, senior? You won’t say goodbye to Bertel when he returns?”
The spider stopped. He really wanted to say his goodbye to the young lad.
“Um, young man, is it possible to wait for a few days?” the spider asked.
“Um… yes, but if possible I would love to leave as soon as possible,” Ning said.
“Hmm…” the spider thought. “Oh, I know. You said you were here to get us back, right? I know of another brother that lives to the south.”
“Maybe… you can take him too in the meantime.”