At the same time Abby attended her duties in Dry City, a young blond man, accompanied by a giant winged beast and a human, arrived in Stone Island's capital.
However, this person beside him was nothing ordinary, as this man was a powerful Spiritual Emperor, someone who was already at level 63.
"So, you are coming back here for good?" The gray-haired man asked the young blond next to him. "You will still be able to return with me if you choose."
"I will still have to return to the empire anyway..."
"Mister Holt, thank you for the offer."
"But I believe the Western Empire is not for me." The young blond said this with his head down, feeling bad for having to admit it out loud. "There I a... I am just an ordinary person, without any prestige or expectation of growth..."
"I'd rather live less but live like a king here in the northern Central Continent!"
"Hehehe, I thought you would say something like that..." That Spiritual Emperor laughed but did not continue to force himself on the young man beside him.
The Western Empire was brutal for people of only Black talent, as in the case of that young man. For someone like him, it would be challenging to get a high enough position for him to at least have a status similar to what he had on Stone Island years ago.
And since that expert knew that for people from this region, it was not at all easy to give up their identities to fight in places as crowded as that empire, he did not blame this young man.
It was a genuine choice, and he had no right to question or force this young man to follow a bloody path.
He might have made a similar decision if he had been in his fellow traveler's place. However, as a native of that empire, Oriel Holt was already used to the cruel lifestyle of that place.
No, he was not used to it. On the contrary, he was addicted to the idea of significant risks accompanied by possible great benefits.
And with such a different mindset, he could not help but regret that such a young man had chosen the easy way out.
"Well, anyway, I hope you don't regret it, Luke."
"You are still young and have not seen much of this vast world. But believe me, the number of men who regret decisions like yours is not small!"
"One of them even created a great phrase that has been repeated in the Western Empire for hundreds of thousands of years..."
He then looked into the eyes of that young blond man and said. "It is better to suffer through a defeat than regret."
"Anyway, I just hope you're not making that decision considering the girl you claim to like..."
"A man's worst mistake is to set any woman as his goal!"
"I have never met any man who has sacrificed himself for a woman who has been happy or successful. Everyone who follows that path either regrets it, is abandoned, betrayed, or broken psychologically..."
Gulp!
"Don't worry, Mister Holt. I didn't make that decision considering passions." Luke Nash said this, being sincere with that man.
That was the young man Minos had met about ten years ago when he had come to Stone Island to do business with Elen and some shopping in Old Stone.
At that time, young Luke had tried to challenge Minos but had failed miserably. However, he had not forgotten that, and now, being at level 51, he was back there with several plans in mind...
Although he was in love with Elen and still liked this woman very much, Luke had not decided to return to his state for her.
He honestly did not think he was compatible with the competition of the Western Empire, so he had asked for his liberation to return home.
But still, hearing that man's harsh words, Luke had felt a slight sense of worry in his being.
But who would not feel the same way as he did?
Even cultivators could suffer from their mental traps. So, how could he be sure that he was not making a mistake?
'Anyway, I feel like this is the best decision, so I'll just believe my instincts!' He thought about it as he clenched his fists tightly.
"Well, I wonder how Stone Island is doing after all these years?" He heard Oriel asking this, but he had no way of answering that man.
The Western Empire was simply too far away from the northern region of the Central Continent. Because of this, there was no efficient means of communication for the Nash family to communicate with Luke.
Consequently, Luke Nash knew nothing of what had happened in that region since his departure!
...
A few minutes later...
At the Nash family estate, the prominent members of that organization at headquarters were in a large open courtyard, where a sizeable winged beast had just landed.
Among those people were the Nash patriarch, Elen's father, and this woman, who had not gone to the mainland to fight alongside her family's troops.
'Oh? Luke?' Elen thought about it as she saw that person from afar, recognizing this young man who had not changed much since his departure.
'He's at level 51, not bad...' However, just after thinking about it, a smile appeared on her face, with her remembering that she had maintained the difference between their levels, even though she was in the northern region of the Central Continent.
'It seems that meeting Minos on that passage through Dry City was the best thing for my life.'
'Maybe I should pay him a visit soon...' She smiled, also remembering her friend Elena.
But as she watched the newcomers in silence, those two finally got off that big beast and went to greet the people who were waiting for them.
"Luke, you didn't grow up bad!" Richard Nash said this as he patted that young man's right shoulder.
And Martin Nash, Luke's father, was no less pleased than the supreme elder. "Hehehe, looks like you managed to handle the pressure of the empire well, eh?"
"Hmmm." Luke nodded, embarrassed, choosing to leave it to talk about his decision later.
Right after greeting those two old men, he looked in the direction of the beautiful Elen, who had become even more stunning after these years.
Gulp!
'She's already at level 54!' His eyes widened in shock, with him not believing how that woman had achieved such a feat.
He had traveled for many months just to go to the Western Empire and then suffered through the high competition in that state. But Elen... Elen had stayed on the 'quiet' Stone Island!
How could he accept that calmly?
"How did you do that? Elen, what's up with your cultivation level?" He asked in shock, feeling the injustice of the world.
"Well, I worked hard and had some luck..." She said this, laughing in grace.
But Marvin did not leave his son in the dark for long. He made a serious expression and said. "Luke, many things have happened on Stone Island, and in the north of the Central Continent in those years you have been away."
"We had a war on Stone Island, and now the whole region is involved in the Black Plain war of independence."
"Young Minos, that ally of Elen, is now the strongest person in the region."
Upon hearing this quick explanation, Luke's jaw nearly dropped to the floor from the sheer size of the shock he had just experienced at this news.
"It can't be!"
"How can things change so much in such a short time?" He questioned his father in disbelief, feeling as if these people were there to spoil his dreams.
He wanted to spend a few days with his family and then find his former 'rival,' Minos. However, upon hearing such absurdities from those people, he had undergone an abrupt change of reality, capable of making him dumb with surprise.
"So many things have happened?" Oriel asked interestedly, finding Elen's rapid progress and Marvin's words curious.
"Yes, Mr. Holt."
"But let's talk about it in a more appropriate place..."
After that, those people followed into the Nash estate, with Luke strolling behind those people, with no sign of life on his face.
It was as if his soul had left his body!
'What will I do now?' He asked himself, feeling an immense pressure forming on his shoulders.
