At the same time, in the twin dragon towers, Isla Crowe looked at Hae-Hyuk with worry. The man himself left a week ago and came back with one arm missing.

After asking, he told her everything that happened and she could not help feeling anger.

It was one thing if the Saint took Cao Lei’s arm but why would they take Hae-Hyuk’s?!

And why did he even have to go there in the first place?

…sigh…

She looked at his right arm. No more flesh. Instead, golden metal with flickering dark runes. It was the manifestation of Hae-Hyuk’s favorite element: Domination.

Then again, it could never compare to the original fleshy right arm. It was, after all, the true form it was first given.

His power would be impacted.

Then again, as long as he managed to cross over the 70th stage, he would be able to regrow the arm he lost correctly. He would be able to access the Higher Will and then, it would no longer be a problem.

It was just unexpected that the Celestials, Neutrals and Evil would all appear there.

She could not help but ask him once more: “Did you really have to go there?”

Hae-Hyuk turned around from the window through which he had watched the city for hours on end, contemplating.

He smiled at Isla: “You know that I had to”

She sighed: “Why not bring him back here if you still consider him your disciple?”

He smiled sadly: “Would you come back if you were him?”

She chuckled. Yeah, right, no way. That kid had been raised in order to die unknowingly and now that he survived and learnt the whole truth… There was no going back.

“A teacher is for life” stated Hae-Hyuk.

“But he was not supposed to live this long” added Isla.

Hae-Hyuk nodded as he turned back towards the window: “Our fate remains linked for as long as we both live since we are master and disciple”

Isla stated: “You could have let Cao Lei go and kill him. Would it not sever the fate then?”

He nodded: “Yes. But then, as a master who was aware and did not do anything, my fate would be affected. Breaking through would then be…”

He sighed.

Of course, he would rather not have had to go. But if he did not, he would lose his way, his path. The next steps in cultivation would never be taken for there would be none available to him.

Fate was not trivial.

He had a duty to Jin whether or not he liked it. He did not. But that was what it was. Fate decided so.

He looked back at Isla dotingly. She was worrying about him and it made his heart feel warmth.

It was a shame that she did not want to ascend like he did. They would have to separate some day too.

He shook away those thoughts and, instead, asked: “Did you receive any news about him?”

Isla shook her head: “No. Everyone says he died. All those that were there at least”

Hae-Hyuk laughed: “He’s alive”

Isla nodded. As a master, through fate, he could know. And if he said that Jin lived, then Jin lived.

Isla asked him: “How did he even survive though? That was Grunleden’s full force technique”

Hae-Hyuk pondered for a moment before he speculated: “Corruption. As long as it has a ‘mass’, it will survive. If the corruption managed to absorb at a speed high enough to sustain itself until the technique ended, then it is possible”

Isla pondered before agreeing. This was indeed a possibility. However, to be able to do that, that was beyond impressive.

“You think it’s impressive, right?” he teased.

She pouted: “Obviously. Don’t you?”

He acquiesced.

She switched the subject slightly: “What should we do next then?”

Hae-Hyuk breathed deeply before he spoke: “Nothing. As long as I remain unaware of his situation, my fate won’t be impacted”

She sighed: “I should not have told you about Cao Lei’s movements”

Hae-Hyuk chuckled: “It’s fine”

Sofia entered at this moment with two women in tow. She was extremely excited as she nearly screamed: “Jin’s alive!”

Hae-Hyuk and Isla looked at each other before they looked back at Sofia. Sofia saw the strange scene and noticed Hae-Hyuk’s right arm: “What’s going on?”

The both of them did not answer her.

She guessed herself: “Master Hyuk, you went there?!”

Hae-Hyuk scolded: “Call me properly, Sofia. And yes, he’s alive and I went there. I fought Cao Lei over there”

Sofia’s mouth opened wide for a moment out of sheer surprise before she recomposed herself. She thought things through for only a moment before she asked: “Why did you not bring him back, Master?”

Hae-Hyuk turned to Isla. Isla sighed before she said: “He will never come back, Sofia. You should understand, you saw what happened there”

Sofia wanted to say that they could not know without asking but, in the end, did not. She grew up in the past years. She could understand the underlying meaning behind those words.

Her mother wanted her to give up on Jin and warned her at the same time not to pursue the matter.

She bit her lips and left without another word.

Isla sighed and Hae-Hyuk recomforted her: “She will eventually understand when it’s her turn to be in our place”

Isla retorted: “I don’t know if it’s a good thing”

Hae-Hyuk did not answer.

As the trio went down the tower, Sofia asked the two: “We need to help him. He’s still my senior brother in name”

The twins who followed her sighed. In their heart, though, they rejoiced. It meant more paid vacations.

After all, finding where Jin was was impossible. He could be anywhere in this world.