When Leinor arrived back at the Capital, Ren was already able to fly beside him, regaining some of her energy.

  "Where to?" Leinor asked, "To the pace?"

  "No." Ren shook her head, flying forward to where they lived before, nding at the mansion's front door.

  She was about to knock on it when it opened, and a smiling Hal stood there, looking at them.

  "Long time no see, Young Lady!" He said happily.

  "Uncle Hal!" Ren hugged him suddenly, giving out a loud sigh.

  "Something… happened?" Hal asked, knowing very well he was right in asking, just by feeling her back, patting her head.

  "Let's talk inside." Leinor smiled tiredly, and when they went in, Hal quickly served tea to them, sitting down in the living room.

  After Leinor and Ren told him everything, he just leaned back, closing his eyes before speaking.

  "Don't worry, Young Lady, everything ought to turn out good. They are blessed by karma, and even if hardship comes, the Lady is going to come out stronger from it."

  "Thank you, Uncle Hal…" Ren smiled, putting down the teacup. "How's life been for you?" She changed the topic, not wanting to ruin his mood any further.

  "Oh, it is rexing! I was named the Emperor's Advisor. In all honesty, I do nothing at all, only enjoying my old days!"

  "Heh, you are still not that old!" Leinor joked, but Hal shook his head.

  "I am. I am way past my prime. You know well that I was injured a long time ago and only received five lightning bolts in my tribution. I may live longer than others, but my powers are diminishing day by day. I have not been fit for fighting for a long time, and I gave up on cultivation as I reached the end of my road."

  "Don't say that, Uncle Hal!" Ren protested, pouting a little.

  "It's the reality, Young Lady!" He chuckled, "I can no longer advance, so why should I worry? I was stuck for centuries, unable to even advance with outside help. I am fine now. I have come to terms with it, and I enjoy life and being old. I still have at least a century or maybe more; it is not like I am dying tomorrow!" He ughed loudly. "It's just that I let life take its course."

  "We will come visit more often," Ren replied with a guilty expression.

  "Don't worry about it, Young Lady." He answered, looking at her warmly, "You are in your prime time of cultivation, heh; you must do what you need to do; don't worry about my old bones. It was my pleasure to see you grow up, and it is my fondest memory. I often remember the days when I had to clean up after your mess! Heh... You were such a naughty kid!"

  “Ehehe… well… I can't argue with that!" Ren answered, blushing, feeling even better now that she had visited the man who could be counted as her only grandparent.

  "Yeah, me neither," Leinor added, too, as most of the things also involved him, getting dragged along by Ren.

  "My advice is, Young Lady, don't worry; everything will work itself out." He patted her hands, smiling at her. His words could apply to many things, not just her worry about her mother's condition and how to tell Valen.

  "Mm… you are right. Thank you, Uncle Hal."

  "Please. No need for thanks between us!"

  They stayed for a little more before bidding farewell, and Ren hugged him once more, for a long time, before leaving for the pace. Arriving, the first to meet them was Feynor, and after expining everything once again, they came to the conclusion that Valen should be kept in the dark, at least for now.

  "I'll tell him I've been assigned to an important mission with Mom," Ren expined, crossing her arms. Now, she was already much calmer than she was on the way back with Leinor, and finally, she managed to think of a solution.

  "No problem, he can stay." Feynor nodded. "The kids are also close, so they are going to be fine; you can leave him here as long as you wish!"

  "Thank you..." Ren sighed, feeling a little relieved.

  "If you want to thank me, ask my brothers to come home sometimes. They haven't even met with their nephew and niece yet!" He rolled his eyes, meaning Lacuss and Reignar, as Leinor was coming and going pretty frequently.

  "Eh…" Leinor smacked his lips. "Reignar is out, again, who knows where. Lacuss is in the forest, training with his wolf... But, when they are back, I'll drag them here myself!"

  "Good!" Feynor nodded heavily. "I love them as my brothers, but they need a good lecture about family matters, and they owe my kids six years of birthday presents."

  His words made them ugh, and Feynor was finally also much more rexed, seeing Ren ugh as well. When the kids arrived, Valen was especially excited to hear about a 'secret mission' his mother and sister were going to take on, and he did not for a moment consider that it would be dangerous.

  "Don't worry, Sis! I'll be good and cause as little trouble as possible!" He procimed proudly.

  "As little? What about not causing any?" Ren knocked on his forehead, grinning.

  "I can't do that! Could you?" her brother asked back, with hands on his little hips. He was secretly very happy that he would now miss his father's lectures and escape any punishment. It was a win-win!

  "Touché, my little brother, touché! That was a good one!" Ren ughed, pointing a thumb up to him.

  "How good?" He asked with a grin.

  "7? Maybe 8 out of 10."

  "Tsk! Still, no 9 or 10… your grading is too hard, Sis!"

  This made them ugh again as Ren hugged him gently, rubbing his back and making Valen feel really happy. He always admired and loved his sister, happy to have someone he could count on, no matter what happened.

  "Try to be a good boy, okay? If not, ohohooo… You can expect me to py dress up with you!" She whispered into his ear.

  "I will! I will!" He nodded repeatedly, afraid she would keep her word. No... he knew she would.

  In the end, Ren and Leinor left around midday, taking the Skyshark that he used to get here, and began traveling back to the Sect. It was already night when they nded, taking it slowly, and the first to meet them getting off the ship was Rem, flying at Ren, hugging her strongly.

  "What? Were you worried?" Ren chuckled, patting the little head of hers.

  "Um!" the little cinnamon roll nodded, wiping tears from her eyes, "But don't worry, Big Sis! I picked the best herbs for pill-making! Everything is fine!"

  "I knew I could count on you!" She pinched her cheeks pyfully.

  Everybody knew in the Sect that if they wished to get the best of the best pnts and resources for pill making, they had to butter up to the little fairy first. She was in an interesting position: she wasn't named Elder yet, still an inner disciple in name, yet everyone treated her as if she were part of the leadership in the Alchemy Department. It was not a surprise, because wherever she went, in the now-giant, extensive garden, the patches she took care of grew twice their size, and they just... brimmed with energy. Even Dermitos went for her if he was making a new pill or working to achieve a breakthrough in one of his previous pills' tier levels.

  "You can always!" Rem nodded proudly, fluttering her transparent wings. "I have little talent… but I can take care of the garden! Um-um!"

  "And somehow she can keep out Kyu, too. I always wondered how she did it." Leinor murmured because it was a miracle known by everyone in the Sect. As to why the glutton never bothered to munch on pnts, taken care of by her, it was a mystery. Whenever they asked, none of them gave a compelling answer, stunning the rest and leaving them with only guesses.

  "Come on, I want to visit Mom." Ren looked around, a bit more nervous, especially as they got closer to her parents' home.

  When they arrived inside the house, only Xendar was there, sleeping in a chair, while Anya y on the bed, and thankfully, she looked much better now. Her skin was healthy in color again, but covered in bandages that gave off a strong medicinal smell, filling the room with a thick, slightly stinging odor.

  "Mm?" Xendar opened his eyes, seeing his daughter and son-in-w arriving. "She is already past the danger."

  "Haah…" Both Ren and Leinor let out a long breath, letting a boulder roll down from their heart.

  "She still needs time to rest, and Sect Head keeps her in an artificial coma so her body can regenerate calmly and absorb the healing effects." He stood up, stretching a little, walking next to his wife, wiping her forehead, and changing the towel pced on it into a new one soaked in a sour-smelling, medicinal goo.

  "Do we know for how long?" Ren came closer, watching her sleeping mother.

  "A month at minimum, half a year at maximum," Xendar whispered back.

  "Tsk…" Leinor clicked his tongue, remaining at the door.

  "It was a close call." Xendar patted Ren's head, stroking her hair gently. "Give it a few hours, and she wouldn't have sted long enough for you to arrive."

  "Speaking of… what about the man who came to the Sect Head and me?" Ren asked, remembering about Ink.

  "He is okay. He needs a year or so to recover, but won't have major health problems, thanks to the Sect Head. He is cared for by a shaman; you can meet him ter. I already spoke with him and asked what he wants for a reward, but he has not decided yet."

  "I'll speak with him in the morning; I need to thank him too! Don't you want to rest, Dad? I can take care of Mom."

  "No, thank you. I'll stay here until she wakes up. The Sect Head also agreed to it." Xendar said, sighing, "For the time being, you are going to take over the Artifact Department."

  "Wha-?" She blinked her eyes, stumped. "Why me?"

  "Because I said so, and because beside me, you are the most proficient in it!" He groaned as he knocked her daughter on the head.

  "Ugh… o-okay. Haaah…” Ren sighed again, smiling, rubbing her head.

  "Don't let your bear rampage anymore, you hear? When I'm back, I'll take inventory, and if anything is amiss, you are the one responsible for it!" Xendar warned her gently.

  "I know, I know! Geez…” She pursed her lips, making Leinor smile so that both of them could finally rex. Seeing father and daughter joke like this meant everything was okay by now.

  They stayed for a few hours, expining everything to Xendar, be it the battle, what they told Valen, or finally Hal's words. When they left, it was past midnight, and Ren walked towards the Disciplinary Department.

  "Are you going to start right now?" Leinor asked, walking next to her.

  "Depending on 01 and 02's efforts." Ren nodded in answer.

  "Elders!" The disciples standing guard cupped their hands to let them in, as the department's main Hall was strictly guarded.

  Usually, it was because of protocol, but now, underground, it really housed people imprisoned in the cells. All the disciples who joined the department finally felt they were not just being trained but were really part of the disciplinary department. Inside, Boursat was sitting behind a giant desk, looking rounder than ever before.

  "Good, you came!" He stood up, seeing Ren and Leinor enter. "Your servants just finished interrogating the one who calls himself The Blob." He expined, putting down his giant mug of wine and wiping his face with his sleeves.

  "Uncle Boursat… you got… way too big! We should spar!" Ren gawked as she looked at him, raising her eyebrows.

  "No, thank you. It took me years to regain the energy that I had spent against you two! I ain't thinking about wasting it once again..."

  "Isn't it easier to move around when weighing the quarter you do now?" Leinor asked with genuine interest.

  "Isn't it easier to speak when your mistress doesn't ride you?" Boursat countered.

  "Point taken." He raised his arms, not willing to bicker with him.

  "Follow me." Boursat groaned as he walked to a door at the back, pcing his hand on it, and soon it slid upwards, revealing a staircase leading even deeper downwards, clearly too narrow for him to accompany them, making Leinor chuckle. "Shut it." He snorted at the little ugh, looking at him, but Ren also raised her eyebrows.

  "How did that ball of fat get dragged down there?"

  "It was hard. But he lived up to his name." Boursat answered, without batting an eye, "We had to break his arms and legs, but the rest of his body was soft enough just to push down. With enough force, we could mush its greasy body through, but it took hours. The disciples who helped received an extra reward from Elder Carthus for cleaning up afterward."

  "I bet." Both Ren and Leinor chuckled, going down, leaving Boursat up there, who just sat back at the giant desk, continuing to drink and go through the daily reports arriving in.

  As for the stairs, they led deep down into an extensive underground byrinth built by Aerthus, Xendar, and Carthus together, capable of imprisoning anyone, even in the Perfect Harmony realm. Arriving at the bottom floor, they found themselves in an oval room with three doors, each being made from thick metal and ced with CC, infused with Leinor's ability to consume affinities, making it even harder to escape.

  "Master!" 01 and 02 bowed at the same time, just finishing with wiping off their hands, looking extremely tired, with heavy bck bags under their eyes. Their leather overalls were stained… with unidentifiable bodily fluids.

  "Good job, no matter the results!" Ren nodded at them with satisfaction, "You two should go up and rest; I'll take it over from here."

  "No need, Master." 01 and 02 spoke up and presented a thick stack of papers to her, wrapped cautiously in leather covers to protect them from stains. "Here are all the names, dates, and pces. We got them all. Every high-ranking member of his gang, their hiding pces, and all of his contacts among the nobles and wealthy people, be they merchants or rogue cultivators. We made sure there was nothing left in his brain!"

  "Oh?" Ren took it, surprised, and started flipping through. "Good! You two are getting better and better!" she smiled happily, seeing the hundreds of names. "We are going to go over them and see where this leads us to!" She muttered as she began licking her lips.

  "Every one of them?" Leinor asked as he looked over her shoulder, watching the names.

  "Yeah. Starting with the nobles." Ren nodded with a serious expression. "Is he still alive?"

  "Well…" 02 gulped, looking at 01 before continuing, "He… expired."

  "Huh..." Ren raised her eyebrows, opening the door, and the stench that escaped into the oval room made even Leinor flinch. What Ren saw inside made her blink her eyes a few times, stunning even her, before closing the door. "Who is going to clean this up?" She looked at them with a wry smile.

  "Ugh…" The two looked at each other as neither of them wanted to go back into the room if possible.

  "Rex." Ren chuckled in the end. "Let the other prisoners clean this up... This should break them in enough to interrogate them too, without resorting to… this."

  "Good idea, Master!" 01 and 02 nodded happily, feeling both spared and rewarded.

  "You're just happy, so it doesn't fall to you." Ren ughed before giving the stack of papers to Leinor. "Anyway, go up, have a rest... We will go and read through this in the meantime," she patted her hands. "When I am done with combing through it, we set out…" she whispered, already focusing on the names and pces in her mind.