Xian Lin was a smart man, and seeing the attitude the two had towards him, he felt it better if he didn’t delay.
Although they were technically allies working towards the same goal, they obviously didn’t treat him as such. And frankly, he felt that this was the proper attitude they should have.
If this duo, who hadn’t even told him their names, had been more open, he would’ve doubted their credibility.
After all, regardless of how many cautionary measures and codes they created, there was never a situation where they could be 100% sure of each other’s identities.
Nevertheless, he didn’t dwell on the matter too much. The group stayed in the inn until what would’ve been nightfall if they could see the sky before departing back through the convention.
As they walked, Damien and Ruyue once again had time to admire the sights around them, but it didn’t seem like that was all they were doing.
If Damien had to be honest, ever since that night in the unnamed forest where Ruyue had cried on his chest, their relationship had become awkward at best.
Even with how they joked around on their way to the mountain range, he still noticed a wall she was trying to erect between them.
But he couldn’t really say anything about it. From what he could figure out, she was in the process of healing. Although the village massacre hadn’t been a big deal to him, it was different for her, who had ended up falling victim to the trap.
If what she needed now was time to come out of her shell again, he could only give it to her. They weren’t close enough for him to be of any more help.
He chose to put the matter aside for now since they were currently on a mission. It’d be weird if she acted too cheerful in the serious atmosphere they had around them since arriving.
While the group was in their own thoughts, they arrived at an unassuming wall at the far end of the convention. This wall was the end of this massive cavern, meaning they could go no further.
Or at least, that’s how it should’ve been.
The main strength of Damien’s eyes so far had been their ability to see through illusions, and once again they lived up to this purpose.
Directly in front of them, there was an illusion around 3 meters in height resembling a door. Past this door, he could feel plenty of life auras as if there was another hidden meeting going on there.
“This wall is where I’ve seen the people I mentioned disappearing into. I don’t know exactly where they’re going, but I’m sure it’s somewhere around here.” Xian Lin said.
“Yeah, I see it as well. Thanks for your help so far, but we can take it from here. I’m sure you have your own duties to attend to.” Damien responded curtly.
Although it came off arrogant, Xian Lin was well aware that it was simply their wariness towards him that elicited such an attitude. Because of this, he could only wryly smile and bid his farewells.
“As you said, I am here as the Sect’s representative, so I have many duties to attend to. I hope the two of you find what you are looking for.”
After Xian Lin left, Damien and Ruyue didn’t immediately enter the premises of the hidden convention, instead opting to watch out for other entrants beforehand.
And it only took a single group for Damien to confirm his suspicions. As the group of individuals passed the illusion, he ended up finding something interesting.
A familiar black aura that smelled of death radiated from each and every one of them. He had seen it once before on the Northern Continent, but he didn’t pay it much attention back then since the enemies had proudly declared themselves as devil worshippers.
The curious thing was that the strength of these auras was abysmal. There was one among them that had slightly more aura than the rest, but it still didn’t amount to much.
Remembering the leader that the Shen clan head had fought, he realized there must be ranks among even the devil worshippers.
It might’ve been stupid of him to think otherwise, but the fact of the matter was that he never necessarily considered it. They were all the same to him anyway, they were enemies.
Still, since the fact that the hidden convention was for devil worshippers had been confirmed after he watched a few more groups enter, he and Ruyue decided to enter as well.
The main preparations they had to make before embarking on this trip were all related to identity. From their new names and relationships to their affiliation with the Twilight Blood Sect, and finally…
Damien looked down at his own body, which was radiating a similar black aura to those he had watched previously.
This was yet another reason for Damien to praise Tian Yang’s seemingly endless capabilities. The two of them only had to take a simple pill, but now they were radiating the aura of a Nox follower.
What was the secret behind this? Damien didn’t bother to ask. Back then, there was a clear look in Tian Yang’s eyes that forbid questioning. But he was sure that the top experts of the world had done some…not so righteous experiments to create such things.
But there was no use in complaining. Such inventions were the reason he could successfully infiltrate as he was doing today. It was the same case as what he felt with the Twilight Blood Sect.
If it was anyone else, perhaps their opinions and view on the righteous sects would have been shattered, but for Damien and Ruyue it wasn’t that big of a deal.
While Damien was an outsider and had never really taken the “righteous” title seriously, Ruyue was a core member of a major clan regardless of how terribly they treated her. She was well aware that the powers that coined themselves as good were anything but.
Maybe that was part of the reason the two of them had been given this mission. Besides the fact that they could keep their mouths shut, they weren’t going to be disillusioned so there was no worry about defection or anything of the sort.
Thinking these kinds of useless things, Damien led Ruyue through the illusory area of the rock wall that functioned as a door.
There was no tedious procedure for them to prove themselves, but there was a guard radiating the aura of a peak 3rd class existence waiting at the door.
On his face were a pair of glasses, and considering how nigh impossible it was to have bad vision as one’s body evolved through ranking up, Damien was sure they were an artifact.
Most likely, they were used to see the black aura that surrounded Devil worshippers. Anyone who had such an aura would gain entry into the hidden convention.
Yet, as Damien looked around the new area he had just entered, he no longer knew whether “convention” was the proper word to describe it.
No, rather than a convention, it was more a combination of a trading post, an exchange fair, and an auction.