The next week went by without any incidents, as Paul, Anna, Su, and Elaina were in seclusion, breaking into the beginning realm.
The five elders. used this time to inform everyone of the time limit they were under and to present them with options, which they discussed with Paul.
This information caused an uproar, since, just like Paul predicted, there were not many women willing to become slaves, even without branding.
-Ladies, calm down.
Lin Mei shouted to gain their attention, and it worked as the women quieted down.
-We don't like this option any more than all of you, and truth be told, Paul also is not that happy with it, so this is the last resort for us.
The other possibility of finding more power crystals and swapping them out, to buy ourselves some more time, is the preferred option, so let's get to it as soon as possible, because the time is ticking, and we have a whole city to search.
With that, the women all rushed to find more power crystals, beginning their search in the most obvious places that used such items.
Unfortunately, there were none in the guards' barracks or in any warehouses they looked through.
Even the ones from the mansions were either gone or broken.
They looked for four days, and the only result was a bunch of broken crystals and one that was barely usable, with many cracks visible on its surface.
-I don't think we can find any more crystals in this city, and if you think about it, it becomes obvious why that is.
Wen Lan said, sitting down in the city hall, after a few hours of searching building after building and coming out empty-handed.
-Care to share your theory?
Lin Mei asked, also tired after going through the same thing in a different part of the city.
-Well, if we had the crystals, we would be able to activate this city's protective barrier, making it impossible for the creatures to get inside, whether the pulse weakens them or not, so it would defeat the purpose of setting up this trap.
Wen Lan explained.
-So what you are saying is that the bastards who set all of this up took away all the crystals, except for the ones in the city lord's mansion?
Gu Man asked.
-That's right.
Wen Lan confirmed.
-It's either that or they shattered them, since we found a lot of broken crystals.
Sun Ning suggested.
-Whatever the case, we already checked the most likely places where such crystals were used, so if we can't find any more crystals, then we will need to go for the second option.
Len Ai joined the conversation.
-Truth be told, I see no problem with it, especially since we already know that Paul keeps his word at all costs.
Gu Man said, with a slight smile.
-We are all married, do you want us to cheat on our husbands?
Lin Mei asked, not believing that Gu Man would even consider such a thing, much less encourage it.
-Correction, we were married before we landed here.
Gu Man said calmly.
-I'm stuck here for the last decade, and all of you have been here before I even arrived.
How long do you think our husbands would wait before declaring us dead?
-I see your point, but still, we can't simply cheat on them.
Sun Ning said.
-Speak for yourself, I'm sure that my ex-husband has already buried me and taken another wife, so I see nothing wrong in looking for a bit of happiness for myself, especially since it might help us escape this place.
Gu Man presented her position.
-If you ladies want to stay faithful to the men who by now almost certainly moved on, then that's your decision to make, but please don't interfere with mine.
She added, leaving no doubt about her intentions.
-We can't interfere, even if we wanted to, but you might want to ask Paul's ladies for permission first, since it seems that they have a say in these matters.
Lin Mei said, with a defeated tone.
It was not like she was immune to Paul's charms, but she had a hard time getting over the mindset of cheating on her husband, who most likely had already buried her and moved on, since she was gone for more than twenty years at this point.
The other ladies were all the same, and the temptation to be treated as a woman by a man was hard to resist for them.
It also didn't make it easier to resist this temptation when the man in question was young, handsome, skilled, and a dual cultivator to boot.
-Of course, I'll ask them, you all saw what happened when Bing Xin kissed and hugged him.
All the elders were certain that if not for the circumstances, the younger of the Ice twins did these things, she would be in a lot of trouble with Paul's ladies.
-Well, I hope they will accept you, but let's get back to the main topic.
Sun Ning said, not wanting to dwell too much on this, as her resistance was breaking even now, and the less she talked about or met Paul, the longer she would be able to resist, hoping that it would be enough to get out of there and go back home.
-There is nothing much to discuss.
Len Ai, siad.
-If there truly are no crystals that we can use, then we need to get out of here within the next half a year.
She added.
-The only problem is how to do it?
Wen Lan stated.
-Right now, two sisters are nearing the ascension realm, but there is no guarantee that they can make it, and even if they do, then we still need to become their slaves to ascend with them.
Lin Mei stated.
-Actually, there might be more sisters approaching this stage soon, since the dual cultivator sisters will likely approach Paul sooner rather than later, since their cultivation mostly depends on having access to Yang Qi.
Gu Man added her two cents.
-Truth be told, I still think that Paul is our safest option, and let's not forget that there are over three hundred sisters here, and only one man, so whether we become his cultivation partners or not, he will most likely advance at an astonishing speed.
Len Ai said, reminding them that not everyone had to become Paul's cultivation partner.
-As long as his ladies are not the jealous type, then I bet that at least a hundred sisters will try their luck with him.
Wen Lan smiled.
-How can they be the jealous type and share him between themselves?
Gu man asked.
The way she saw it, as long as she didn't create unnecessary drama, was not a threat to them, and accepted that she would share her man with the rest of the sisters, there was no reason they would not accept her as a sister.
Moreover, it seemed that Paul didn't discriminate and liked both young and mature ladies equally, not to mention his open-minded approach to other species, which boosted her confidence in becoming his cultivation partner, even if she failed to convince the others and Paul to accept her as his woman.