Death... and me

Rean wasn't an idiot. The ability to detect Heaven-Level Metals. That's not something anyone would spread. Besides, that was only at this moment. If Kentucky grew strong enough, he might even find metals that surpassed Heaven Level. Obviously, those materials were worth a fortune, so everyone would want to put their hands on Kentucky.

"Oh, right! Elder Reliance, how many Heaven-Level ores should I let him eat every day?"

Reliance pondered a bit as he looked at Kentucky's size.

"Hum... that also depends on how good the ore itself is. That small Malagal Ore I gave him just now was around 100 grams, and it's considered a Middle-Level Heaven Material."

Reliance then sent his Spiritual Sense inside Kentucky's stomach and watched as he digested that Malagal Ore for a few minutes.

"Alright. If it's Low-Level Heaven Materials, give him a similar piece every three days. If it is a Middle-Level one like this Malagal Ore, give him a piece every five days. High-Level ones should be one piece per week. And if you are lucky enough to find Peak-Level ones, and are willing to let Kentucky eat it, give one every ten days."

Those words made Rean notice one thing.

"Does that mean they all have the same effect on Kentucky?"

Reliance nodded.

"Yes. That's because Kentucky is refining the ores inside his own body. That means he can separate the impurities so that only the parts that really matter will be absorbed by his feathers and scales. Obviously, the higher the level of the ore, the longer it will take to refine since they have more 'content' available."

Reliance continued.

"However, you should try to feed him as many higher-level ones as possible. Although there is no difference in the end result, the time wasted separating the impurities in his body is too big. It is not worth feeding him only low-level ones since it will take forever for it to bring out any significant result."

Rean didn't mind, though.

"It's okay. As long as Kentucky can really detect the presence of Heaven-Level Materials, he will be able to sustain himself. My problem would be if I had to buy them myself."

Reliance laughed.

"Do you think Heaven-Level Ores are that easy to find? Everyone wants those things, so most near-surface ones have already been mined a long time ago. As I've said, using his ability to find metals is only an alternative. You will need to have heaven-defying luck to find more of them around. Also, even if you find it, there will probably just be a few small chunks available. Heaven-Level materials don't appear in large quantities like Lower-Level ones."

Rean could only sigh after hearing that. Indeed, things wouldn't be that easy.

"Kentucky, feeding you in the future will be quite expensive. Can't you go out and find some Heaven-Level Spiritual Ores for us?"

*Chick? Chick!*

Suddenly, Kentucky closed his eyes. He stayed like that for a few minutes until Kentucky suddenly opened them again as he looked in a particular direction.

*Chick!*

Right after, Kentucky ignored Rean and Reliance, dashing straight out of the room.

Rean then looked at Reliance with a weird expression.

"Wasn't it supposed to be hard to find Heaven-Level Spiritual Ores?"

Reliance scratched the back of his head right after.

"Ahem... Maybe the records were wrong... or maybe his mutation increased his ability to find them. Anyway, we need to first see if he really found something or not."

Of course, they immediately got up and followed Kentucky. However, after following Kentucky for a few minutes, they noticed that it intended to go out of the Sect. Reliance believed in the Minokawas' senses, so he decided to help it. He enveloped Kentucky and Rean with his Spiritual Energy and took flight, bringing them in the direction Kentucky was pointing.

Some people in the Sect noticed when Reliance brought Rean out, including Droman.

"Hum? Where are they going?"

Still, he didn't care too much and returned his attention to repairing Reliance's Formation Flags. Reliance had three Stage Six Demon Beasts ready at his beck and call. Even if some spies reported Rean's whereabouts to the Umbral Sect, nothing would change. The Umbral Sect would only be sending their forces to become the meals of Reliance's Demon Beasts.

As for being afraid of Reliance trying to capture Rean, that thought didn't even pass through Droman's mind. Even though Reliance had such a weird personality, Droman knew that Reliance would never go back on his words. Since he agreed to not insist on taking Rean away, Droman was sure that he would do it.

As soon as Reliance stepped out of the Sect, he spread his Spiritual Sense to contact Lanlan and Jinjin. Zunzun had been staying on his shoulder all the time, so there was no need to reach it.

'Follow me.'

Reliance knew about the Umbral Sect issue, so he called everyone just in case.

Surprisingly though, there was no need to be that alarmed. That's because Kentucky's group didn't even leave the 300km radius of the Dalamu Sect territory. Around 220km to the east of the Sect, Kentucky began to point his beak to the ground.

*Chick! Chick!*

"That close?"

Rean and Reliance immediately became doubtful. This was way too close to the Dalamu Sect; they haven't even left its territory yet. How come the Sect didn't find it before? Was there really anything in this place? Besides, they weren't near any mountain to start with. Rean knew that ores were easier to find close to mountain ranges since tectonic activities would bring them up from below. Of course, that was not an absolute rule, far from it, actually. Still, he thought that if they were to really find a Heaven-Level Ore deposit, it would probably be near the mountains.

Reliance then landed on that flat land that had a few trees and boulders here and there. Because of its proximity to the Dalamu Sect, no Demon Beasts or any human settlements could be found nearby.

Kentucky then began to peck on the ground while he used his feet to push the earth away. He was quite fast, considering his plumpy size. However, at that rhythm, it would take forever.

Reliance then patted Kentuck's head before saying.

"Alright, you can stop already. Leave it to me."

Kentucky then looked at Rean, who used his Spiritual Sense to convey Reliance's words. Only then did Kentucky stop excavating and waited for Reliance to act.

"Lanlan, are you there?"

Right after, Rean and Kentucky heard a voice coming from below as the ground trembled a little.

"Yes, Master. Do you need anything?"

Although Rean couldn't see it, he didn't need to think too much to understand that this was another one of Reliances' three Stage Six Demon Beasts.

Reliance then nodded.

"Yes. According to this Minokawa, there should be a deposit of Heaven-Level Spiritual Ore under this place. Can you go around and see if you can find anything?"

The centipede immediately answered.

"Alright. It might take some time, though. The area that the chick pointed out is quite big, and I also don't know how deep I need to go."

Reliance didn't mind.

"Take your time. We will be waiting here."

Rean then felt the ground under him tremble for a moment until it completely stopped. It was evident that the centipede had gone too deep for him to feel its movements.

"Kentucky, are you sure there is something in this place?"

*Chick?*

Kentucky then looked at Rean with a puzzled expression. He wasn't intelligent enough to understand everything yet.

Reliance then sat on a corner and played with Zunzun. Around a minute later, a black snake with a horn appeared nearby.

"Jinjin, come here. I want you to meet Rean and his Minokawa too."

The Snake then nodded at Rean.

"I'm Jinjin, a Horned Black Snake from the Everdark Swamp in the Maril Region."

Rean smiled as he asked.

"Is Maril Region the place where Elder Reliance and your Demon Beasts' friends came from?"

Rean had heard about the place before. It was even further away than the Flaxin Empire that neighbors their Sasamil one. Of course, there was very little information, so he didn't know much.

Reliance nodded.

"Exactly. That place is even bigger than Sasamil or Flaxin. However, there is no government entity there like the Imperial Families here. The ones who control the area are the cultivation sects and other small organizations. There are no countries either. If you want to establish any organization, you will need to fight for territory first. In a certain way, it's quite chaotic."

Reliance then rubbed Jinjin's forehead as he said.

"Before you ask, Jinjin is also an ordinary demon beast. There are hundreds of thousands like him in the Everdark Swamp. By the way, the voice from earlier was Lanlan, a female Spring Centipede from the Luva Forest. Just like Zunzun and Jinjin, she is also quite a common demon beast there. It's just that she is already a Stage Six Demon Beast, so she became several times bigger than the others."

Rean couldn't help but feel impressed by Elder Reliance.

"You made three common Demon Beasts reach Stage Six. That's amazing!"

Reliance shook his head in response.

"I only gave them support. It was through their own effort that they reached this level."

"That's not right, Master! If not for you, we would never gain sentience. We were supposed to have died of old age a long time ago without ever really understanding the world."

Reliance laughed as he pet both the Tanager and the Snake.

Rean's opinion of Reliance couldn't get any better either. After all, he also liked Demon Beasts.

Time passed, and three hours went by. Suddenly, Rean felt the ground tremble again. However, this time, Lanlan really came out of there. Finally, Rean was able to see the enormous dark green colored centipede.

"Master! It's amazing! There is an enormous deposit of High and Peak-Level Spiritual Ores around 29km deep. There is a magnetic field around it too. That's why no one noticed it before. Besides, the concentration of Spiritual Energy is very high. I believe there is probably some Heaven-Level Spiritual Ores at the very center and not just a bit at that."

Reliance and Rean immediately looked at Kentucky with surprised expressions.

*Chick?*