Seeing the eagerness of Barnes the Holy, Darren could tell just what kind of power had suppressed him.
"One of my friends has inherited that man's cultivation method," Darren uttered.
A hum went through Barnes's mind
and a single thought surfaced.
That cultivation method had been passed on? This was his chance to regain his power and Darren's friend was the key!
"Oh, so that's how it is..."
Barnes let go of Darren and started straightening his clothes.
"Your friend must be quite the looker then," Barnes said in praise.
Darren rolled his eyes. "Barnes the Holy, I don't quite understand how someone of your high status can only resort to flattery now."
"And how the hell would you know? Do you have any idea what it's like to fall from the top level of warriors? You don't, right? Don't call this mere flattery. I will say anything I want and call anyone whatever I want if it means I will regain my power."
Barnes said this with an air of confidence and a huff. You could sense his resolve.
"Anyway," Darren sighed. "Think nothing of it. You've saved my life on several occasions by now. I'll tell Finley to give it a try."
"Wait. It can't be. You mean...It's that brat!" Barnes felt his heart skip a beat. He realized the friend Darren was talking about was the man he nearly killed in the past—the man in white.
"Yes, I hope you now see the importance of thinking things through before you act. Imagine, if you had killed him that time, you wouldn't have your chance of regaining your power now."
"Yes, of course. You are a very wise man indeed, Darren. One of the wisest, even." Barnes gave an almost cartoonish smile at Darren while he said this.
"Don't even try. You're going with me when I leave in a few days. I don't have any news on the Fire Kylin Clan. All I know is that the Fire Kylin is not easy to deal with."
Darren had heard from neither Finley nor the Water Kylin in a while, and this worried him.
Aside from this, he'd been tricked and left suddenly without saying. Finley must also be worried by now. He had to return.
"What of this Fire Kylin you speak of, then?" Barnes asked, as he nodded.
"The Fire Kylin is a legendary beast. He too has inherited power from his ancestors and plans on using this to destroy my other friend's clan."
"Huh! Have no fear! I will charge forward bravely and slay the beast!"
"I doubt you'll come even close. Monkey could probably handle it. Strength-wise, he was on par with the Fire Kylin before—a bit stronger, even, but I'm not sure about now," Darren said this matter-of-factly, but he also might've been throwing soft insults at Barnes.
"Anyway, it doesn't matter. If we bring Caroline with us, we can probably manage to kill him."
Right at the mention of their names, the monkey and Caroline arrived.
"That would be a wonderful plan!" Darren was confident that they could definitely defeat the Fire Kylin with Caroline's help.
"I've been wanting to go out for some fresh air, so of course I'll come with you," Caroline said with a smile.
"I'm coming too!" Naomi piped, as she jumped out.
"Okay, guys, let's all go. A vacation sounds like a good idea. We need some adventure, it's so boring here."
"Great! Come on, let's go, Darren." Augustine was also very excited.
The next day, they set out on their journey.
When they were passing through the white mist area, out of nowhere the stone man blocked their path and demanded toll before he would let them pass. They easily beat him up and went on their way.
They cruised through the sky, and before long they were back in the sea area of the Water Kylin Clan.
"It's a shame you killed the crocodile, Darren. I could have built a lot of strength if he was still around. When he saw the familiar sea area, the monkey was reminded of the souls the crocodile used to collect for him.
"You can improve your strength, but don't go on a killing spree," Darren said calmly.
"Alright, I won't kill unless someone challenges me first, okay?" said the monkey, as he smiled. "For your sake."
Suddenly, a powerful wave swept over from the bottom of the sea. The waters began to rage with powerful roars.
The glow of a great flame began to appear from the depths.
"Look at that! It's the Fire Kylin Clan, right on schedule! What a coincidence!"
Without wasting a second, Darren acted fast. "Barnes the Holy, go hide with the others first. I'll check and see if it is indeed the Fire Kylin Clan we're dealing with. We need to act carefully because if the Fire Kylin sees you, he'll hide away and build up his power."
The Fire Kylin would be smart enough to hide away if he saw the poweful companions Darren had brought with him. This would be to Darren's disadvantage. If the Fire Kylin hid away and built his powers up to bond with the Fire Soul Crystal, he would be too strong for them to defeat.
"Yeah right. You just want to defeat him all by yourself and take the credit," Barnes said with disdain.
"Not now, Barnes! This is for the good of everyone. Go hide with the others! Quickly!" Darren whispered commandingly.
"Barnes the Holy, just trust Darren on this and hide. You're going to scare off the Fire Kylin," the mutated monkey explained.
"Hum, you do have a point. I am the great and ever-popular Barnes the Holy, and the whole world cowers at my feet. Can't blame him for fearing my might. In that case, I'll let you deal with him first then." Barnes was flaunting his strength again, but this convinced him enough to comply with Darren.
The mutated monkey flew everyone away. For the meantime at least they could relax and wait.
Soon, four kylins appeared in front of Darren.
'Ok, it isn't the Fire Kylin, ' thought Darren. This put him at ease.
The four kylins all gave off a powerful aura, but they were nothing compared to the Fire Kylin.
"It's that dragon!"
They recognized Darren at first sight.
"Seize him! The king will reward us handsomely if we bring him back with us! Haha!" they cackled.
The four kylins went into a frenzy. It was their lucky day. They had really only come to spy on the Water Kylin Clan, but instead they chanced upon the man their king wanted to capture the most—Darren.
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