Corrupt Creations

"AHH!!!" "ARGH!" 

Theodor's skin was already completely corroded and the acid kept infiltrating deep down on his body. He was lying down on the floor, losing his life signals and force with every passing second. His plans for Lan Xue wouldn't even be able to be displayed anymore, since the acid blood kept eating away his body. 

On a separate part of the cave, Hazid abruptly opened his eyes at the moment his worm pet died. He lost his connection with his beast all of a sudden and a sense of fear and crisis started to kick in. 

He stood up and messed up the drawings on the ground, taking his things in a quick motion. He didn't think twice, before taking a secret passage to leave the cave through the backside. 

Unfortunately for him, Seth could track all of his moves. Nothing he did was able to escape from his senses. 

Theodor kept flailing his mangled limbs and screaming in pain on the floor, till all his movements stilled. He didn't have any more forces to resist and ended up losing his live there. The people inside the supply carriages, finally started to wake up, but when the first person was able to destroy the carriage from inside and leave, he was only able to see the outcome of that horrifying scene that had happened. 

Seth and Lan Xue had already departed from there. Before leaving though, they had opened up the entrance path once again, making those people lives a bit easier. They had helped them surviving that difficult situation, even though those innocent people might not know about it. But Seth and Lan Xue would never serve as their caretaker and bring them back to the city. Some of those people that were kidnapped, were locals. They would be able to guide the whole group back safely. 

After leaving that cave, Seth and Lan Xue were leisurely chasing after that individual called Hazid. Both of them had his energy signature in sight, so it was a simple task to chase after him. The only difference, was that Lan Xue was able to feel that person's energy and where he was, by the pulses his energy emitted. But Seth on the other hand, could see the entire area around that individual as if he was there. 

The Soul Sense was a lot more efficient than energy scans and on top of that, he could see stronger cultivators without them realizing, what energy scans would never be able to accomplish. 

Hazid suddenly hid inside an abandoned fortress made of yellowstone. It was now filled with sand and desolation, but it had once served as a base for some groups of people. 

Hazid entered quickly, as if he had already preciously used this location as a hiding spot, but just as he turned around a corner, he got face to face with Seth. 

His heartbeat accelerated and he got scared. His first reflex was to turn around and run, but just as he turned around, he saw a doll-like figure standing on his way. 

"You... Who are you?!" 

"You seem to be in a hurry friend, can I help you with something?" Seth politely smiled and asked. 

"Wh-What do you want? I'm just a normal hunter trying to make a living... What do you want from me?" 

Hazid seemed a bit shocked and that was partially because he lost his precious beast. He was in a state of fear and didn't even think about retaliating, all he wanted was to flee from there. 

"Are you alright? You look like you're running from an enemy... Maybe you could think about fighting back, if you still had that disgusting worm of yours." 

After Seth said those words, Hazid realized they were indeed after him. He had to escape from that situation, because he didn't want to lose his life there. He quickly looked towards Seth and then Lan Xue, and decided he would explore the one that seemed to be the frailest. 

Hazid suddenly sprinted towards Lan Xue, since he didn't expect a doll-like girl would actually be a really strong cultivator, but less than a second later, he would regret choosing that route. 

As he was about to push Lan Xue with his Mana imbued hands, he felt his both arms and legs stiffening all of a sudden. But that was not just a normal stiffening condition, since he felt a freezing sensation together with the temperature around the whole area dropping sharply. 

His body got stranded there, as if he had been stuck in a block of ice. But Hazid was so anxious and desperate to leave, that he tried to move even though his legs wore totally frozen already, causing harm to his own body. 

Crack! Crack! 

His legs snapped in half, making Hazid's body hit the floor while both of them stood frozen where he previously was. 

"ARRGHH!" 

While Hazid was screaming in pain for losing his legs, a foot suddenly crushed his right arm that was totally frozen, shattering it in three parts. 

"AAAAAAAHHHHH!!!" 

Seth watched the rough treatment Lan Xue was giving that poor man and decided he wouldn't try to tease her anymore. While looking at that loli figure, he wondered if she wasn't the real devil incarnate. 

Lan Xue stepped forwards while Hazid was still desperately wailing in pain and her hands were already exuding a freezing sensation. She knew they would have to extract all the information Hazid had sooner or later, so she didn't want to waste time with useless things. She was preparing to go directly to the worst part; for her target at least. 

However, before she started to act, Seth suddenly said: "There is no need for that. I have a better and quicker way." 

He stepped forwards and placed his hand on top of Hazid's head, instantly suppressing his Mana and ability to move. Seth's eyes were already shining with a blue soul coloration, as he invaded that man's mind, dissecting it and searching for the information he wanted. 

While doing that, he discovered the motive Theodor hired mercenaries to escort the caravan, was exclusively for the purpose of feeding Hazid's already dead worm pet. They had a pact where a lot of money was at the table. 

A little bit later, Seth finally found what he wanted. His lips unconsciously rose to a sinister angle and he automatically said: "Ahahaha. Found it. Finally." 

Lan Xue got impressed that she wasn't able to feel any energy fluctuations from Seth's technique. Once again, she marveled and tried to understand about those strange abilities he displayed. 

While he was executing his soul search, the already heavily injured Hazid, was feeling an immense soul pain. It was a pain that not even the worst body torture could achieve and as Seth extracted the information he wanted, Hazid's life force was fading away. 

Seth stood up and said: "This man serves as a safety lever in between the Cerberus Clan and the Scorching Trade Group. He had contact with a small base of demons from that damned clan. It is located not so far away from here. We should go there and give them a gift, since they were expecting that the shipment would arrive sometime this week." 

Lan Xue nodded, but she decided to ask: "How were you able to do it so quickly?" 

Seth smiled and said: "I'm pretty sure you've heard about soul power, right?" 

"I did. The Lake Goddess told us it existed, but she wasn't able to teach anything to the Palace Masters. Is that what you just used?" 

"Yes. But it was not only that. I was actually using a soul technique." 

"How can I learn about it?" Lan Xue was interested on learning about soul techniques. 

"Sigh... I won't be able to teach you, just like the Lake Goddess. Unless..." Seth was about to say something, but he stopped at the last moment. 

"Unless...?" 

"Don't worry with that. It's a requirement that is impossible to happen." He shook his head while saying. 

Lan Xue didn't say anything, but she wasn't able to stop thinking about it. 

Hazid was in a horrible situation, where he wasn't able to move and had a damaged soul. He could only wait for death inside that abandoned fortress. Seth didn't feel even an ounce of pity towards him. He worked together with the Cerberus Clan, kidnapping people to use as experiments, so this destiny was fit for a person like him. 

Seth and Lan Xue decided to leave, but before they left, Seth sent a wisp of Evergreen Poisonous Essence inside that man's body, guaranteeing he would suffer a bit more and certainly die at the end. Coupling with the fact he was in the middle of the Desolate Scorching Wastelands; his fate has been sealed. 

Although it took almost two days, now Seth and Lan Xue had a concrete destination. 

Seth didn't know anything about the geography of the whole wasteland, but he had Hazid's memory showing him the complete path he took to arrive there. He was sure that in a day or two they would already be a that region, visiting his old friends.