"That's what she told me."
The situation spiraled out of control, and Lawrence had no choice but to reveal everything that had happened to his wives. Someone like him isn't afraid of how his wives might feel about him having slept with another woman, on the contrary, he would be amused if he saw any signs of jealousy on their faces.
Although he knows such a thing is impossible, given these women's past, it would be outrageous for them to have the audacity to reproach him for anything.
"This situation has reached a point where I wouldn't be surprised if you asked me to regress in order to get answers."
Coldness Divine sits beside him and crosses her legs. Despite her demeanor, she show no intention of opposing committing suicide if it means discovering what Prescribed Dream is scheming, but she will never say it out loud.
"I would be lying if I said I hadn't considered it." Lawrence looks at her for a moment and then sighs. "But nothing assures me that her innate ability won't warn her about this, I won't risk it when I only need one thing from her."
"Are you okay with not knowing anything?"
"Yes." He nods at Coldness Divine's words, "If you knew her, you would understand."
"If you're looking for our approval, then you have it, Lawrence."
Serene Will hasn’t read anyone’s mind at the moment, but if she relied solely on mind reading, she wouldn’t have gotten this far. “We’ll wait as long as necessary to make Prescribed Dream disappear. Until then, we’ll prepare to restrain her while you deal with the consequences.”
Coldness Divine scoffs, “Hmph, I doubt a little level 300 hunter can do anything against one of us. I don’t know why that woman is trying to surround herself with mystery, but once she enters the personal dimension, it will all be over for her.”
The discussion progresses smoothly, everyone agrees to wait longer than planned to ensure Prescribed Dream doesn’t betray them. Their biggest concern lies in how the Unquenchable Fire Brothel will react and the consequences Lawrence will have to deal with as the only individual linked to all the disappearances.
Although Sky Petal also contributed to the conversation, there's something she could never mention. The thoughts that the plants had about Prescribed Dream.
+++
"I managed to get the spiritual herb you asked for, but..." Serene Will wrinkles her nose, "It cost 500 thousand gold, don't do anything with it unless you're completely sure."
"Hahaha, don't worry! I just need it to cross with other herbs, it will be very useful. Thanks."
In the following days, both Serene Will and Coldness Divine spent a large part of their fortune pleasing Sky Petal. It’s enough to say that Sky Petal is bankrupt to understand how costly this field is for her.
If it were another refiner, they would be under great pressure being so indebted, but not her. Few things can really affect this flower girl, if she weren't always smiling and looking cheerful, she would be the most suitable to have
Weeks later, Sky Petal arrives with great news.
"Mana Condensation Pill, can permanently increase mana by 10 to 20%... Purified Body Pill, removes impurities from the body... Sea of Mind Pill, reduces the damage from internal demons... Fleeting Dawn Pill, increases the likelihood of achieving enlightenment..."
Seven different medicinal pills are presented to everyone, each with incredible effects.
"I have found the clues to replicate the spiritual herbs, these seven pills are the ones I chose from all the pill recipes, the rest I rejected as you asked, Lawrence. Although interesting, their value was lower, refining them could damage my reputation as a refiner."
He had explicitly asked Sky Petal to choose only the best and reject the rest, so he could present himself to clients and announce without fear of reprisal that his refiner was only interested in 7 pills and that the rest was garbage.
Serene Will evaluates the pills with her innate ability and can't help but sigh after getting the results. "It's a pity we can't consume them, I just hope you succeed in replicating those spiritual herbs."
If she manages to replicate them, not just a single pill, Sky Petal could create an endless number of them. It will be months before she has success, it will be a trial and error process before finding the perfect cross where a rare spiritual herb will be born in her garden.
Until then, Lawrence will sell these pills at a high price to those big shots.
"As for that lion-man's pill..."
Sky Petal shakes her head in response to Lawrence's question. "I want to go beyond just creating a pill without impurities, but for that, I need time."
This pill is important, it will be the one that fosters a close relationship with a faction leader or that involves Lawrence in a major event. Whatever it may be, Sky Petal wishes to refine a pill not just perfect, but impossible to replicate.
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In that way, no matter which refiner Ephemeral Principle hires, no one will be able to discern the steps to create that medicinal pill.
Lawrence only hopes that the pill will be ready before the next auction, as by just looking at the faces of these women he understands they made a great sacrifice to find those
"How much money did you spend on this?"
Their silence is enough, his fears have become reality. "For now, we don't need money, the sale of these pills will generate substantial profit but... we are spending more than we earn. You know what that means, right?"
"I'll leave you alone."
After saying what he had to say, Lawrence leaves the living room.
"Ha! Who does he think he is?"
Coldness Divine scoffs at him then snorts. "Whom shall we hunt this time?"
"It has to be a big shot." Serene Will pulls out various portraits from her storage ring and places them on the crystal table. "The list has decreased, but there are only two whom we cannot hunt. The rest are viable with proper preparations."
On the table, there are 60 portraits, all of them are clients who requested their services and who now must die. The faces of Serene Will and Coldness Divine change upon seeing these portraits, only Sky Petal remains the same, but not for long.
An idea crosses her mind.
"Can I be the one to choose this time?"
It's unusual for Sky Petal to take the initiative to participate, so both women easily accept her request.
"One of my clients had a strong medicinal smell..." She searches among the portraits and soon finds him. "Him, Thousand Leaves. At the time I didn't pay much attention, but now that I think about it, to have such an aroma, he must have been in contact with many spiritual herbs."
"A pill refiner?"
Coldness Divine narrows her eyes, but Sky Petal scratches her cheek. "Maybe, he didn't talk much about himself, but that's not what matters."
After a few seconds of silence, Sky Petal smiles cheerfully. "He must have a lot of money and many spiritual herbs. If we empty his treasure vault, we won't have to go through a situation like this again... At least for a while."
"..."
Both women don't know how to respond, because to foster the growth of a pill refiner, they are incurring exorbitant expenses.
Serene Will sighs, "I agree, let's kill him."
Unanimously, they decide that Thousand Leaves will be their next target.
+++
Agares City, Heavenly Path Kingdom. Divine Plane.
In a discreet mansion, surrounded by extensive green territory, dozens of guards patrol the area looking for intruders. Of course, such an occurrence is impossible, not when each of them possesses level 600 and there are guards who have level 700.
For a city whose average level is 350, entering this mansion is no different from committing suicide. No one needs to tell them, all hunters know that a big shot lives there and that it would be foolish for them to inquire further.
The guards patrol, following the same route as always, but some notice strange sounds.
"Did you hear that?"
At the warning of one of their comrades, the rest stop to listen.
"...It's coming from the garden."
In various places and simultaneously, more than 30 guards head towards the gardens in search of the strange event. Ten of them conduct a superficial investigation and give up after a few seconds of inquiry, but the rest carry out a more thorough search. Finding more than just the source...
"Why is that branch carrying remains of a demonic beast?"
The end of their lives.
"What--? Aaagh! AAGH!"
Dozens of vines emerge from the ground, ensnaring the guards and subsequently asphyxiating them. If that were all, there might be a chance to escape. The problem arises afterward.
'A... white… tree?'
The vines turn into branches and their green hue shifts to white. At some point, a small white-trunked tree emerges, whose branches suck the life out of the guards. In just seconds, they turn into old men and a simple branch twists their necks, easily ending their lives.
If it were possible to observe the movement of these vines from the sky, even an illiterate would be able to discern their meaning.
"What the hell? An earthquake?"
The ground trembles, but only for a moment.
Then the surroundings change. They seem to repeat themselves, as if God were lazy and copied the landscape. All those who witness this event know they are in danger and that they must regroup, but after turning around and retracing their usual route, they realize the harsh reality.
They are trapped in a labyrinth, in the enemy's magic formation.