For the next hour and a half, Xan paid attention to every word that came out of Rad's mouth. To the teenager's surprise, the old man had survived hundred of dangerous situations during his life, during which he had met people who later became relevant figures in the three tribes and Sacro.

He also discovered that he had been part of Sacro's army while participating in the otherworldly mission, placing him among the top thirty strongest cultivators in his faction. The more he discovered about him, the more he wondered what he was doing there.

"I have a question," Xan said while raising his hand.

"What is it?" Rad asked.

"Why did you leave Sacro if you were in such a good position? What could a cult offers you that Heaven couldn't?" Xan asked curiously.

Rad's face darkened after hearing those words. After sighing, he talked.

"I heard rumors and needed to confirm if they were true," he said.

"Rumors about what?"

"About bringing the dead back to live," Rad said while looking at the ground.

Xan was shocked after hearing that. If Rad had managed to find a way to do it, he might have a possibility to bring his mother back to life.

As if he was reading his mind, Rad decided to destroy Xan's hopes.

"Don't even think about it, kid. Not only is it costly and would transform the person into something that is not human, but you can only do it if you have that person's soul. If the soul has already left this world, you can do nothing about it. Unless you are interested in a moving corpse, in that case, it would be much cheaper but not nearly as practical." Rad replied.

Realizing Rad probably didn't want to talk about that, Xan decided to change the topic of the conversation, but as he didn't know what to say, both stayed quiet for a while.

After a few tense minutes, Rad decided to end that situation.

"Well, the class is over today. Continue cultivating whenever you have free time and clean your dantian as soon as possible. Things get interesting from that point onwards." Rad said with a smile. "I will return in a few days to check your progress and see if you have any doubts. Oh, and remember to find an excuse to leave the castle at night. I want to start with the combat training as soon as possible."

"Until next time," Xan replied while waving his hand.

After that, Rad left silently before disappearing as soon as he crossed the door. Even though it had been a few hours since his last meal, he wasn't hungry yet, so he decided to leave the food Rad had brought him for later.

Instead, he decided to leave the fortress already. As it was still day, no one would ask him about his intentions or where he was going.

He planned to leave and seek inspiration for his excuse to leave at night, and the best way to do it would be to go outside and see what the world could offer him.

Xan left his room, decided, and swiftly crossed the second and the outer area before leaving the Yellow Blood Fortress without any problem.

Near the fortress was a small city full of commoners and low-stage cultivators named Rantia. If Rad hadn't told him about his diary, that might be his final chance to get a cultivation technique somehow. Now he would go to Rantia, hoping to find an excuse to leave the fortress at night.

Even though that was not his first time in the city, Xan was nervous. He had spent most of his life at the fortress, seeing the same faces repeatedly, and the few times he had come to the city, he had always come with someone.

When he was just a kid, his mother would bring him with her when she went to the market, so he slightly remembered some of the city's streets. He never returned after she passed away, so the few things he knew about it may have changed.

Even with that, he continued walking until he reached the city's main door.

"Stop right there! What is your business in this city?" asked one of the door's guards.

"I'm a subordinate from the Yellow Blood Family, and I'm here for personal business," Xan replied as he showed the guard the symbol of the family on his robe.

Even though he was only a member of the second area, Xan still had some benefits from living in the fortress, and having easy access to the city was one of them.

As soon as the guard saw it, he gestured toward Xan to enter the city as he opened the door.

'Well, let's see what I can find in this city.' Xan thought.