Way of the Knights

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Everyone felt chills running down their spine when they heard Henry's revelation. 

They felt slightly unnerved and couldn't quite believe that a very powerful foe, who resides on the higher floors of the Devil Emperor's Pagoda, came down and nearly eradicated them. If it wasn't for Raven's swift and decisive actions, it's quite possible that all of them are dead by now and the devils might've escaped from the mountain. 

"This doesn't make sense Senior Brother." Jason reacted after a while of silence, his pale face showed a disturbed and stressed expression. "Why did it come down? Well, I don't know they can do that in the first place but why?"

Henry was silent for a bit before eventually telling them what he has in mind. 

"We're not so sure of that for now. We brought back it's corpse and if my guess is right, then my colleagues should already be extracting whatever they could from it's memories before it's revived by the Sin of Wrath. However…"

There was a tense silence before Henry continued his words: "When we arrived, we asked it why it came all the down here, and it replied by saying that it's father - the Sin of Wrath, had felt the presence of an Elven Abomination."

Unit-17 looked at each other in confusion, all of them are confused by what an Elven Abomination is. Sensing their confusion, Henry decided to explain. 

"We don't know what an Elven Abomination is either. Maybe some Elder of the sect knows about it but that's until we make the reports. Still, I have my own opinions about the subject."

"According to ancestral records, Devils carried a profound contempt and disgust towards the Elven Race. However, there aren't concrete records of that since during the decisive battle between our founders and the Devil Emperor, no Elven influence was mentioned."

"There are some disciples who carried Elven blood within the sect, actually they're fairly common." Henry stated, "But while Devils have something against them for whatever reason, they never really did any drastic measures against them. We've talked to some disciples who have Elven blood that went on patrol multiple times, asking them if they were being purposefully targeted by the Devils. The results are negative. Aside from visible contempt, no other thing was different."

"However, this 'Elven Abomination' caused such a stir on their ranks. Even going to such lengths as to send down an Army Commander down here in order to deal with it. This makes me think, that whoever this 'Elven Abomination' is, is something that the 'Sins' want to cut down before turning into a huge headache for them."

"The chances of that Elven Abomination being within you guys are low though." Henry stated, causing everyone to sigh in relief. "Although you guys stayed within the formation, it isn't enough for you to hide from the Centurion Lancer. It most likely saw you and ignored you. It only attacked since it saw you running and didn't want you guys to report back to us."

"However, I wouldn't put it past you guys. So far, these are all my theories. They might be right or wrong, who knows. What you guys should do is to take it easy and wait for the announcement. This event will mostly likely blow-up and you guys might not be allowed to venture to the Devil's Cradle for a while."

"Train and get stronger. Solidify your foundations. Those who're thinking of switching their cultivation techniques, now's the best time to start. You can always ask for my opinion about it but remember, your body is your own. The decision will be up to you."

"Also, the topics of our discussion just now should remain a secret for now. Unless you hear the announcement, none of you should leak this information out. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Senior Brother." The Unit-17 answered in unison. 

"Alright, dismissed. Go get some rest and recover. Raven, you stay for a bit." Henry stated. The rest of the unit left leaving Henry and Raven alone to discuss something personal. 

"I said it before and I'll say it again." Henry smiled at him and said: "You did very well. Your quick response to the situation and your bravery in saving your comrades are commendable feats. Your actions will be revealed during the official meeting, whether you receive additional credits from that, it'll depend on the final verdict."

"I merely did what's right Senior Brother. But of course, who am I to say no to Merit Points?" Raven replied while rubbing his nose. Causing Henry to chuckle. 

"Right? I would've seriously think there's something wrong with you if you acted like a martyr." Henry stated causing Raven feel somewhat embarrassed. "Anyways, that's not the only reason why I wanted to talk to you privately."

"I'm listening, Senior Brother."

"Then I shall not beat around the bushes." Henry's voice turned serious. He then pointed at the miniature table/telepathic device in front of Raven and said: "Would you be willing to submit your knowledge on how to create that and have the sect test it out for you?"

"Of course it wouldn't be for free. As for how much Merit Points you'll receive from this, it'll depend on how effective this thing is. But that's only if you agree, I won't force you if you're not comfortable with the idea."

Raven was momentarily stunned by this, however he managed to recover pretty quick and instead of answering, he took out a quill and paper from his spatial ring. He then started writing the necessary tools in order to create this communication device. He also wrote his personal inputs and every probabilities he have in mind before passing it to Henry. 

"Here's everything I know so far about it." Raven stated, much to Henry's surprise. "Feel free to experiment and test it out. If anything, I'll be glad if I could help for the greater good. Of course, I won't refuse Merit Points if I could get some." 

Henry chuckled and received the paper from Raven. The latter also handed him the table he used just now so that Henry will have a concrete proof with him. 

"Thanks for this. I'll keep you informed about the process." Henry stated as he kept the table and the paper inside the spatial ring. "Also, I've noticed that your Destruction Laws are at the perfection of the first concept. Not bad. Try visiting the Hall of Enlightenment, show this to the Supervisory Deacon and he'll take you somewhere nice."

Raven received a small token from Henry and was confused. However, Henry didn't explain and instead said: "Alright, I'm off now. I just received a word that the meeting will soon start. Rest properly and work harder."

After saying that, Henry disappeared from the base, leaving Raven alone and speechless. 

Glancing at the token at his hands, he felt its smooth surface and the cool sensation on its touch. It was a golden token with a violet crest and a small insignia in the middle that he had never seen before. It looked like an engraving of a flowing water but he can't be so sure. 

Nevertheless, Raven kept it and would follow Henry's instructions. 

Afterwards, he went back to his room and once again checking his body for any injuries he missed. After double-checking it, he sighed and was relieved that there are no risks to him anymore. 

"I can recover my energy when I enter seclusion inside the Palace." He murmured, "But really, this is so weird. An Elven Abomination huh? This is the first time I heard about it."

Raven's mind wandered about the recent events that nearly took his life. While he's not really in a real threat of dying, the sensation of death closing-in on him is something that he'll never get used to. Thank god his accumulations were deep, allowing him to save not only himself but a great number of people in Tartarus. 

Needless to say, for some reason, he's a bit bothered by that 'Elven Abomination'. This until all of sudden, he remembered an important thing that Henry failed to realize. 

"He didn't know that I bolstered the Concealing Formation!" Raven's eyes widened as cold sweat drenched his back. "Only Jason saw me doing that! But it looks like he was in too much of a shock that he forgot about it."

As realization dawned upon him, Raven's heart started beating faster. 

"Senior Brother said that the Centurion Lancer had most likely saw us but didn't attack since it was disdainful of us. However, what if it really didn't see us?"

"What if it only noticed us when where running since we're no longer hidden!?" Raven continued with his conjectures and felt more and more startled. "It felt disdainful to kill us…so it's possible to escape from it. If that's the case, then why would it attack us when we're fleeing?"

"The reason is because one of us is actually its target!" Raven exclaimed. "It's can't be them, so that means it's me." 

"I'm the Elven Abomination?" Raven was confused but he suddenly remembered something that made him gasp. 

"Old Master Tenrou's Blood!"

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