After several hours, the light began to fade, signaling that night was approaching.
"We'll be spending the night on the road. At best, we'll arrive tomorrow," Mi Lan explained to Hinako.
The road wasn't straight; it was winding—but not sharply. Its curves resembled the shape of a "§."
It was also wide enough to fit three carriages side by side. If measured in numbers, it would be around 12 meters.
The six carriages moved in a line, while on both sides, men and women rode atop goats.
They looked like a royal procession under heavy guard.
As usual, dense trees lined both sides of the road. They didn't travel too close to them, leaving a small gap—perhaps that was why they had put so much effort into widening the path.
Moments later, night had officially fallen.
"Ooosh."
The squad captain halted his goat.
Upon hearing him, the others began stopping as well.
"Oosh."
"Oosh."
And so, the carriage carrying Kogan and Hinako came to a stop as well.
Shan Yu dismounted from the front, entered the carriage, and sat down beside Mi Lan.
The goat riders tethered their mounts beside the nearest carriage, forming six groups.
With their vision nearly nonexistent in the darkness, gathering closely together was a wise choice.
"Do you realize that we could be attacked at any moment?" Shan Yu widened his eyes, speaking in a serious tone.
Mi Lan smacked his arm. "Don't scare them."
"Hahaha! Look at her—she's not even surprised. And Kogan looks unconscious," Shan Yu laughed.
Hinako looked at them with a complicated expression. The whole situation felt strange.
What was she even doing here with them? And why was Kogan being so lax—so unlike himself?
Kogan sat with his eyes closed, arms crossed over his chest.
"Could it be that you were already attacked?" Mi Lan asked.
"We didn't see anything there," Hinako shook her head.
"Actually, we don't really know what exists on the other side of the river. We've heard of the great tree that holds up the sky, but we've never seen it ourselves," Mi Lan said.
"It's just a tree the size of a mountain. You might be amazed the first time you see it, but eventually, it's just a tree," Hinako explained.
Perhaps the sight had lost its grandeur because of the marriage proposal she received there.
And speaking of that…
"What exactly could attack us here?" Hinako asked.
"Could be humans, could be beasts—who knows?" Shan Yu shrugged.
"Which is more dangerous?" Hinako asked, wanting to get a better idea of the situation.
"Depends on you—do you prefer a quick death or a slow one?" Shan Yu laughed.
Hinako looked at him, unsurprised. In fact, she hadn't even needed to ask.
Before arriving here, she had already encountered both—humans and beasts.
A human had attacked her, and a beast had saved her.
A beast had attacked her, and a human had saved her.
"Don't worry. Even if we're attacked, we have weapons." Mi Lan pulled out a dagger.
'Could that thing even kill that ape?' Hinako stared at it, unable to suppress her amusement.
As if sensing her skepticism, Mi Lan said, "This isn't just an ordinary dagger—it's forged from essence."
"What's the difference between this and a regular dagger?" Hinako asked.
She was curious—was this the kind of magical weapon she had always dreamed of owning?
"A regular dagger is made of stone or metal, while this one is made of essence," Mi Lan smiled, her face showing pride and confidence.
'Huh?' Hinako raised an eyebrow.
What kind of logic was that? She couldn't understand it.
But to Mi Lan, it was something unique—something she had always admired.
Essence wasn't just used for healing; it could also be forged into the equipment one needed.
But unlike healing, not everyone could manifest objects using essence.
Only those who had reached the First Rank were capable of doing so.
It could be compared to puberty—just as a male must reach a certain age to produce semen, one must reach the First Rank to manifest essence-forged equipment.
And just like the body has its limits, they couldn't create too many items in a short period. Doing so would wreak havoc on their body, requiring time to recover.
Shan Yu and Mi Lan were not First Rank individuals, meaning they couldn't manifest essence.
Kogan's face remained expressionless—until suddenly, he opened his eyes.
A faint wail echoed into their ears.