Maha thought that Shui was attaining enlightenment, so she was going to guard him and factor this into the debt that she owed him, but then she noticed that he was also mumbling something. Curious, she slowly leaned in to hear, yet she still couldn't recognise any words. However, she felt a refreshing feeling make its way from her head to the rest of her body. This refreshing feeling was like nothing she had ever felt before, both gentle and nourishing.
She didn't know it, but she was beginning to fall into a trance similar to Shui. Unfortunately, it wasn't long before the source of the refreshing feeling suddenly vanished. It was like being woken up in the middle of a good dream; irritating, but the frustration was short-lived.
"Huh?"
It would be easy to call it a mistake in her judgement, but despite its brief stay, that refreshing feeling had definite results.
'My soul, it's grown almost twice as strong.'
Although Maha knew techniques that utilised the soul, she was an energy cultivator, so she rarely experienced such a jump in the quality of her soul except after a major breakthrough.
'What was that?'
As Maha looked at Shui with a passionate gaze of intrigue, Alia carefully broke his trance and informed him that time was up. She felt a little apologetic for having to wake him from enlightenment, but if she kept this news from him and the worst happened, he would be far more devastated.
[The clone that I sent to Silver City is sensing spatial disturbances. We have to leave.]
[That fallen has terrible timing. Let me leave a few messages before we go.]
[Sure, just be quick.]
"Sorry Maha, I have to leave now. It's urgent."
"If it's so important that you stopped your enlightenment, then you don't need to apologise to me. I'll see you when it's time to find the inheritance."
"Certainly."
If he wanted to move at anything near his top speed, Shui would have to stop using mental control to manipulate his body. It frustrated him since he was confident he could have reached Soul Perfection in a few more days, but he knew what his priorities were. On the way to the Myriad Flower Lodge, Shui slowly withdrew mental control from his body. The parts that were unaffected by mental control initially felt numb, but the pain that had tortured him was slightly alleviated while the numb body parts slowly regained feeling.
He was prepared to check out at any time, so he hadn't left anything in his room, but he thought it would be best to leave a note for Emily and Alicia regarding his abrupt departure. He wished he had more time to settle things with both of them, but the circumstances simply didn't allow it. He was particularly worried about Emily since the danger targeting her hadn't been resolved yet, but he couldn't ask Alia to split any more of her power to protect her. He could only hope that she would be safe staying in the inn with Dull Harmony. For a moment he considered asking Alicia to look after her for him, but even he wasn't dense enough to make such a request.
Once he arrived at Myriad Flower Lodge, Shui quickly completed the checkout procedures and left two letters at the front desk. If he waited for a few minutes, there might be a chance to meet with either Alicia or Emily, but he didn't have that leeway.
By the time he left the lodge, sensation had returned to most of his body, so he started with a jog. He passed through the city as a blur and went over the entrance gate before anyone even noticed he was there. It would have been more trouble if the city was on high alert, but while there was a barrier to stop someone from flying into the city, it was easy to leave by air.
The damage to his soul left Shui with a banging headache, but the pain in his muscles was much more manageable, so he could run at 70% of his max speed.
"There's no time to waste, so I'll lend you a hand."
"Wait, I don't know about—"
Suddenly, Shui felt his body engulfed in a familiar heat that nearly took over control from him. He had some experience from when Alia did this to him inside the Spirit Nest, but with his soul damaged, he was barely able to control himself as well as last time. At his current pace he would be able to return to the Five Cities Region in two days, but he wasn't sure if he would be able to stay in control for that long.
Meanwhile, Alicia sat down with the letter from Shui in hand. She received word about the letter shortly after Shui departed Myriad Flower Lodge, but by then Shui had already left the city. In the letter, Shui apologised for his cold response and added that he hoped they could meet again some day.
She didn't think he had run away from her, but she couldn't help but feel upset that he left before she could fully express her grievances.
"Young Miss, should we go after him?"
"...No, it's fine. As he said, we'll meet again one day. I'll settle things with him when that day comes."
When morning came, Emily also received her letter, but she accepted it with little discontent. She wondered if he would be okay given his injuries, but she believed that he would manage one way or another. Now that he was gone, she didn't have to worry about letting herself become spoilt in his care.
"The evaluation will begin soon. I have to give it my all."
At this time, Adrian was having a conversation through a gem.
"You fool! Why didn't you stop her from leaving?!"
"She left while I was still speaking with you yesterday. And you told me you wouldn't send any more assassins after her!"
"This is why you're a fool. You've spent so long with her, and you've still failed to make any progress. If it went according to my plan, she would have been made helpless and sent to your bed by now."
"You said you would leave this to me. If I can get her to fall for me, then with her talent in our family, our influence could grow exponentially!"
"Hmph, and what have you done since then? I entrusted you with this matter and even gave you a chance to be her saviour, yet you've let a stranger woo her and tear her away from you. I wouldn't be surprised if she's already offered herself to him."
Adrian tightly clenched his teeth, but he couldn't refute the person on the other end of the gemstone, not only because of who it was, but also because Adrian had the same thought. He should have been the closest to her, yet that pretty boy seemed to have overtaken him in the few days that they had spoken. Scorn and hatred began to taint his love for Emily, but he still had hope that she retained her purity.
"I promise I'll make her mine. Just give me some more time, Father."
"Hmph. Keep in mind that if you fail to win her over, there's no reason for her to stay alive."
With that, the connection was closed, and Adrian was alone with his thoughts. When he looked out the alley he was standing in, he could see the entrance to the Myriad Flower Lodge down the street. If Emily stayed there, it would be hard for his father to attack her anymore, but he couldn't help feeling bitter that he wasn't the one who persuaded her to move there. He didn't want to believe his father's assumption that Emily had already been bedded by that young man who suddenly appeared, but he had seen for himself how close they became after a few hours.
If his Emily really had become a harlot, then he swore to purify her himself.