Mumin was dominated and recruited, many veins of Fire-Feather Minerals were extracted. Eventually, Edrick returned to the hollow hill alongside his newest maid.
Inside, the other disciples were still just waiting around, focusing on outlasting the other sects, so that they could have the realm to themselves. Edrick made sure to cultivate that secret technique often as well, but he had to admit that even when he collected many resources, or when he slaughtered that entire pack of Nature-Blessed Wolves…
…He had not felt much rejection from the realm at all, nor had he even caught sight of the red guardian. That being was supposed to appear in the distance as a warning before actually striking. The fact that Anoteros had not caught sight of this special creature even once was odd.
From his perspective, he had already gathered a lot from the realm. Just from the mines, he had plundered a whole lot from each of them, not holding back as he stuffed the storage pouch.
Did it perhaps have to do with the fact that he had collected it all carefully? Or did the fact that he always made sure to leave some appease the realm somehow?
Considering that this place had a defence mechanism against outsiders taking too much for themselves, it might not be inaccurate to assume that if you collect responsibly, the realm might actually allow you to take far more than you might expect.
Resources were aplenty here after all…
Such interrogations were what he thought about when cultivating the secret technique.
Apart from pondering on that, after returning to the hollow hill, he performed a small hand sign toward Yin, signalling that her three friends had been successfully convinced to join the residence.
His fifth wife was relieved, but also quite surprised. She had not expected that all three of them would only need a single occasion alone with Anoteros to be so thoroughly convinced. Were her friends such easy girls? Of course not, her husband was just too magnetic and charismatic. No woman in her right mind would not be attracted to him.
Although she wanted to go to her friends and ask them how it had been, Yin had a mission of her own inside the realm--One that required her to avoid showing affection for her husband. It was a pretty tall order, especially since she had only recently become his, and thus, was still very excited about spending time with him.
But it was a mission Edrick had given to her--To trick Shu into believing that she actually was interested in him.
Before, the idea of tricking someone else in such a manner would have seemed abhorrent to her. But now? She saw absolutely no problem with it. The will of the household’s patriarch was absolute, and she could not imagine a world where Edrick’s will could be wrong.
Though she still absolutely refused to even brush up her hand against Shu. Trickery was one thing, but there was no way she was going to slightly touch another man in such a way. But that was fine here, because Shu was too spineless to make any gutsy moves on her.
Yin’s job was relatively simple. She had to make Shu believe a whole bunch of things Anoteros had told her about. Although a smart man, Shu drank her every word like it was heavenly law, showing no distrust or even a hint of puzzlement. No matter what she said or implied.
He was blinded by love... Truly foolish. This was disgraceful for a man.
In the meantime, Edrick ventured outside alone. Now that he had recruited new maids and mined everything that could be mined on his list, it was time to go hunting for plants and beasts.
His Kanabo had been shattered during his fight with the wolf pack, but he had thankfully thought ahead on such a problem and brought a spare. However, when it came to hunting beasts, it was a somewhat bad weapon. One wanted the resulting carcass to be as intact as possible. The hide and bones served their purposes much better when undamaged…
As Anoteros followed tracks, employing his full stealth capabilities to avoid unexpected encounters, he gathered high amounts of Full-Moon Blooms. This flower littered nearly all clearings and was common in open plains as well.
He also came across Saint-Alexandria Blossom. Rarer overall, but still not exactly a treasured good in this realm. It was a plant with medicinal properties, a common staple in healing goods.
His prowling also led him to patches of Blood-Drunk Grass. These did not really grow on their own. It was the result of blood being spilt upon stalks of grass, and it developed best when it was beast blood.
Despite seeming easy to mass produce, it was actually incredibly complicated. Something about why it turned into Blood-Drunk Grass was not understood yet, so the stalks that were grown by people typically turned out to be of low quality.
In any case, it was an ingredient useful for body cultivators in particular, as it stimulated one’s body. Also, anyone could consume them to improve their innate body. That second part was useless to Edrick since he didn’t need any supplements to reach his peak physical condition.
Eventually, he stumbled upon the tracks of what he had been following for several days--A group of Earth-Carrying Boars, specifically, a mother and her sounders.
Her young wasn't exactly small anymore, but not quite grown-up just yet. Otherwise, the males would have already left the group.
Making use of his enhanced stealth capabilities, Anoteros was able to get very close without being noticed.
The first time he had faced one of such beasts, a single one of his arrows had not been enough, but with the right angle…
In quick succession, he fired multiple arrows from his hiding spot, striking several of the boars straight in the eye. The arrows pierced their brains, killing them on the spot.
The other boars were thrown in a panic, and many more arrows were sent flying at them. Now on high alert, they were able to avoid being struck dead in a single blow. However, with their sides exposed, the arrows still dealt considerable damage.
These beasts were most dangerous and resilient when charging at their target. Their skulls were incredibly thick, and the hide around them was similarly tough.
Their sides were a bit softer, however. If one knew where to aim, coupled with the fact that Edrick was shooting using a heavy longbow, the arrows managed to damage some internal organs.
It did not take long before Edrick stood over the corpses of his prey. Two of them managed to escape with superficial injuries, but they were leaving a blood trail behind. Anoteros simply had to store his kills inside the storage pouch before giving chase, so he was not far behind.
‘Would that be a stupid decision, or a smart one?’ he eventually wondered as he realised where they were running to.
Edrick recognised this from descriptions he had been told. The bark on the trees turned dark, and the canopy became a veil that stopped nearly all light from pouring in, only allowing a few stray rays to pass through.
This was Underwood Elf territory.