The underground palace was just as quiet as the headquarters of the demonic faction. The reinforcements hadn’t arrived yet but neither had their enemy. The group made up of the Elders and disciples originally stationed in the border region could only wait for either to appear. This wait … it felt like torture.

By now, everyone had rested up after the previous fight and was ready to face the enemy again. But even though they were ready, there was nothing to do. The tension ramped up further the longer they waited and especially the younger disciples had trouble keeping calm.

Zhi Guan looked around but there wasn’t anything he could do. This kind of situation … keeping your calm was a skill you had to cultivate slowly. It was a pity these disciples had never had the chance to do so. Maybe the seniors closer to them could help them but otherwise, there was nothing else to be done.

He retracted his gaze and instead turned to look at Luo Lin. His own third junior martial brother was doing a lot better. Well, he couldn’t quite be counted as one of the younger disciples. In fact, he had been in the sect for a good hundred years now, hadn’t he?

He thought of the day his Master had brought over Luo Lin. That somewhat pale face with those sad eyes was still etched into his memory. Even though he had also always felt responsible for Yan Hong Min, that day was probably the first time he truly understood what it truly meant to be a senior martial brother. Now, look at him: Those things from the past had probably faded a lot and he was finally happy. If he could protect his current smile, it would already be enough.

Zhi Guan continued to look at him for a moment before turning to Shen Lei. The two of them definitely had the same goal so he felt a lot less worried. Being with him had apparently taught Luo Lin a lot of things too. At the very least, he seemed relatively calm compared to others despite the fact that his experience on missions outside wasn’t much deeper than theirs.

Shen Lei caught Zhi Guan’s gaze and gave a faint smile. He didn’t say anything though. They were past that time. He looked toward the door, his gaze narrowing. If the demonic faction intended to attack in retaliation for the previous losses, they shouldn’t be far off. As for the reinforcements … their own sect shouldn’t be far either. After all, they had set off a lot earlier than the other three. The question was who would arrive first or if they would have bad luck again and both groups would run into each other before their plan could be put into motion. That would really be awkward.

Luo Lin had woken up by now and looked from one person to the other. He didn’t understand the situation as well but simply the fact that his first senior martial brother was close by and hadn’t taken a single step elsewhere since he woke up told him that the attack could come at any moment.

Was he ready? He didn’t know. Most likely, the answer was no though. How could he ever be ready for a big battle? Even the small one before had been exhausting even though there had been a lot fewer people than they could expect for what was coming. It also hadn’t actually lasted that long despite what it might have felt like. And yet, he had been exhausted afterward and needed a long break to rest up. He wouldn’t have that chance in the following battle. So really … how could he be ready?

Luo Lin furrowed his brows, feeling unsure of himself. His cultivation level wasn’t low but most of it came from his cultivation style, not through cultivating on his own or gaining experience. While the spiritual energy in his body could be considered dense and didn’t lack far behind cultivators like Shen Lei or Zhi Guan, his endurance couldn’t keep up.

The attention to detail needed in a battle of such a size where so much was happening everywhere around him and he could be hit by a stray attack at any time, the ability to judge how much energy to put into which attack for which enemy and when to actually try to hurt or when to only make a feint … such things were out of the realm of his knowledge. He could only go with his instincts but those weren’t well developed either so more often than not, he’d have to err on the side of caution and use more strength than might be necessary, causing his energy supply to run out earlier than expected.

Luo Lin closed his eyes and sighed. He knew he shouldn’t think too much but his ability was linked to Shen Lei and he couldn’t use it alone. As a result, the possibility of him dragging down his fiance was rather high and he couldn’t make up for it by being all that helpful either. The best part of his current ability was likely being able to help with escaping and healing.

Speaking of which … Luo Lin stretched his neck and brought his lips to Shen Lei’s ear. “Do you think … the healing works in the dreamscape?”

Shen Lei raised his brows in surprise. They had never tried combining two of Luo Lin’s copied abilities. But yes, this was a question they should answer. After all, where did you have the chance to retreat and heal up on the battlefield? If not for others shielding you, it would be impossible. If they could retreat to the dreamscape and heal up there, it would be for the best. That would give them the space and security needed to recover without issue.

“Well … I’d say let’s try it out. Anyway, the people from the demonic faction shouldn’t be too far away anymore. It’s about time for us to start our patrol.”