Endless Journey: Infinite Realms

Chapter 336 Hook

Chapter 336 Hook

"Now, all that we need to do is wait." Alex muttered as he hid the hair strand back on his pocket.

"Wait for what?"

"We wait for the message from the rebels" Alex replied after hearing Alina’s question.

"Alex, you think those rebels will actually give a message at this point?"

"Alina, if their only goal was to take Annie away, that means that they were aiming to use her for something." Alex replied as he cracked his knuckles. "Since she was kidnapped, of course those rebels will ask for a ransom."

"Oh. So you think those rebels will demand a ransom right now."

"Yes. The earlier they demand the ransom, the better it will be for the rebels, since it shows that they have a grasp in the situation." Alex said as he observed the still panicking TimeMasters. "Any second now..."

"..."

Alina stood quietly behind Alex, as she waited for this ’message’ that Alex was talking about.

Sure enough, just a few minutes after the giant disappeared, a small metallic box suddenly manifested around the area where the giant should have been.

This metallic box was emanating a malicious aura, which made the TImeMasters raise their guard.

Even Alex, who was the farthest away from the box, could not help but frown as he felt threatened by the box.

[HELLO THERE, PARASITES]

Out of nowhere, a deep, rumbling voice came out of the box, which made everyone nearby wince as they clutched their ears.

This voice seemed to be laced with some kind of power, as Alex felt a grating sensation in his ears right now.

He immediately used his power to dispel this sensation, helping him recover his clarity.

The TimeMasters however shook their heads repeatedly, as they seemed to be unable to remove this painful sensation.

[HAHAHA, YOUR EARS HURT, DOESN’T IT? CONSIDER THAT AS OUR GIFT FOR YOU ALL.] The voice from the box said leisurely, as if it was enjoying what was happening to the TimeMasters right now.

"You! Stop these blasphemous actions!" One of the TImeMasters bellowed as he pointed his finger at the metal box. "First, you kidnap our Young Mistress, and now you dare do this to us? It seems like you don’t know your position in this world!"

[POSTION? PFFT, YOU DARE SAY THOSE THINGS TO US?] The voice from the box suddenly let out an enraged tone, as if what the TimeMaster said had triggered something in hit. [YOU PARASITES INVADED THIS WORLD AND USED ITS RESOURCES FOR YOURSELVES! YOU ARE THE LEECHES WHO ARE SLOWLY BRINGING THIS WORLD INTO OBIVION! YOU ARE THE ONES THAT TAINT THIS WORLD! YOU DO ALL THAT, YOU STILL LOOK DOWN ON US? WOW, THIS HYPOCRISY JUST MAKES US SO SPEECHLESS...]

"S-shut your mouth!" The TimeMaster hurriedly replied as his face flushed. "We are not here to talk about your group’s philosophy!"

[OH YES, WE ARE NOT HERE TO TALK ABOUT THAT. WE ARE HERE TO GIVE OUR DEMANDS.]

"D-demands?"

[HAH? WHY DO YOU SOUND LIKE THAT? DID YOU FORGET THE FACT THAT WE ARE NOW HOLDING YOUR YOUNG MISTRESS CAPTIVE?] The voice in the box cheerfully said as the box shook a little. [WAIT... DID YOU ACTUALLY THINK THAT WE WILL JUST RETURN YOUR YOUNG MISTRESS AFTER ALL THE EFFORTS THAT WE USED JUST TO OBTAIN HER? HAH, YOU TIMEMASTERS REALLY ARE JUST STUCK-UP PRIVILEGED PEOPLE!]

"You!"

[WE ARE HERE TO DISCUSS THE TERMS FOR THE FREEDOM OF YOUR YOUNG MISTRESS...] The voice in the box said as its tone suddenly shifted to a formal one. [FRANKLY SPEAKING, WE ARE TEMPTED TO JUSST KILL THIS EVIL SPAWN RIGHT NOW. BUT WE HAVE BETTER USES FOR HER. OF COURSE ONE OF THOSE WILL BE TO HUMILIATE YOU TIMEMASTERS!]

"...You may be a filthy Immortal, but you seem to be an honorable negotiator. Speak your terms then." The TimeMaster said as his face contorted in humiliation in anger.

It was quite obvious that this TimeMaster was extremely pissed right now, but he seemed to be holding his anger in for the sake of Annie.

[HMMMM... WHAT WILL BE OUR TERMS AGAIN? WAIT A SECOND....]

"..."

[OH RIGHT, HERE ARE OUR TERMS!]

"Tremble..." After saying these words, the box’s shakings started to increase as its body started to disintegrate. Some parts of its body started to disappear, with the box’s body slowly shrinking in front of everyone’s eyes.

From the looks of it, this box can only for a few more seconds before it disappears entirely.

[7 DAYS FROM NOW, WE WILL BE HOLDING A RITUAL WITH YOUR YOUNG MISTRESS AS ITS MAIN COMPONENT.] The voice in the box said, making the TimeMasters who heard it let out gasps of surprise. [WE WILL NOT TELL YOU THE RITUAL OF COURSE, BUT WE CAN ASSURE YOU THAT YOUR MISTRESS WILL BE IN AN ’EXTREMELY BAD SHAPE’ AFTER THIS RITUAL]

"H-hey! Where are the terms that you promised to say!"

[IF YOU DON’T DO ANYTHING, OUR RITUAL WILL SUCCEED, AND YOUR YOUNG MISTRESS WILL BE USED AS A FODDER.] the voice in the box said, as it seemed to ignore the TImeMaster’s complaint. [SO IF YOU WANT TO SAVE YOUR YOUNG MISTRESS, THEN DO YOU BEST TO FIND HER! HAHAHAHA! GOOD LUCK FIDING US!]

"Hey!"

[HAHAHAHA! GLORY TO THE IMMORTALS! DOWN TO THE PARASITES!]

"Boom"

The box then exploded in a tiny puff of flames, with the crazed laughter from the box continuing to echo out to everyone.

[HAHAHAHA! HAHAHA! HAHAHAHA!]

"..." As the smoke from the tiny explosion faded away, the TimeMaster’s pale faces all turned paler as they realized what was actually happening.

"Those rebels sure are vicious." Alina muttered behind Alex as she observed the TimeMasters around her. "They did not ask for any kind of ransom. Instead, they taunted the TimeMasters by saying that they will use Annie for some kind of ritual. Alex... these guys must have hated the TimeMasters a lot."

"That could be the case. But there is a chance that this message is also a trap by these rebels." Alex replied as his eyes only narrowed further. "Why would these rebels even flaunt about their planned ritual? Even if it’s for their ego, it doesn’t make sense! By doing this, they are putting their ritual in the danger of being aborted!"

"Alex, are you saying that these rebels wanted the TImeMasters to look for the location of the ritual?"

"I am not sure Alina. But I am sure that these rebels has something else planned beside this ritual." Alex replied as he closed his eyes. "And the only way that we can uncover this plan is when those rebels decide to use it."

"..."

After Alex said these words, Alina turned silent, as she looked down while nibbling her teeth. She seemed to be mulling on something, which made her like this.

"...Alex, the situation in this world is getting more and more complicated." Alina said to Alex as she gave him a worried look. "Are you sure that we will not get swept away by all of this? Are you sure that we can still be the dominant side here?"

"We will never know the answer to that Alina, unless we make our moves." Alex replied confidently as he clasped Alina’s shoulders. "If we will just stay indecisive and doubt ourselves, we will never have the chance to succeed. As such, all that we can do now is to move forward, regardless of what is happening."

"So you want us to sail through the storm, instead of just letting it settle?"

"Exactly."

"...We must better prepare our sails then."

"Indeed."

"We must also chart our courses properly from now on."

"...You’re getting to caught up with your metaphor, Alina."

"Sorry about that, captain."

"Sigh... I can see that you get my point already." Alex said as he shook his head. "Now, we just have to strengthen ourselves while we wait for the right moment to make our move."

"Right." Alina said as she nodded her head. "Since Annie will be used for a ritual, there is no doubt that she is still alive now. As for Kiera and her grandpa..."

"Those two will also be safe. I gave them numerous Inscripted Symbols to defend themselves.’ Alex said as the silhouette of a stylus appeared on his hand. "As long as there is no extremely powerful cultivator who makes a move on Kiera, I am sure that she will be safe."

"Right. And besides, Annie will also use her status to protect Kiera and the old man." Alina added as she gripped her katana handle tightly.

"Well, as long as those rebels are not crazy, nothing bad will really happen to them..." Alex muttered as he noticed some of the TimeMasters slowly flying towards him. "Well, Alina, I guess it’s time for us to face the wrath of our friends."

"...Alex, are you saying that these TimeMasters will blame us for what happened here?" Alina asked as she also saw the approaching TimeMasters. "Surely they will not be that irrational, right?"

"Well, I think that the reason that these TimeMasters were kind to us before was because they knew that the Great TimeMaster wanted to hire me as a babysitter." Alex said hollowly as he shook his head. "They seem to value Annie a lot, just like what you can see here."

"Oh." Alina’s face then turned strained as she realized what Alex was talking about. "They were treating you nicely before because of Annie. But now that Annie has been kidnapped, and it even happened right under your nose, there is no way that the TImeMasters will just let you be off."

"Exactly." Alex said as he let out a sigh. He then looked up at the TImeMasters, as he sensed their emotions.

"Hmm.. They seem to be holding their anger in, although I can sense that all of them are pissed at me." Alex said to Alina as he scooted closer to her.

"...That’s not a good sign, Alex." Alina replied as she assumed a defensive pose.

"Don’t worry, these people will not attack us, I think." Alex said as he tried to calm Alina down. "After all, we are still their guests..."

"Ehem." The TimeMaster who was the one speaking to the box earlier, suddenly opened his mouth as he started speaking to Alex.

"Mr. Alex, we are disappointed with your actions." The TimeMasterr said with an aggrieved expression on his face. "You were tasked to keep our Young Mistress safe, yet you failed to keep her from danger today! How disappointing of you!"

"Hmph, don’t try to shift the blame on me." Alex said as he seemed unfazed with the TimeMaster’s admonishment. "Do you actually expect me to win against that thing earlier? Wow, for your information, I am a babysitter, not a powerful fighter!"

"But I am actually a powerful fighter." Alex thought as he saw the TimeMaster’s pale face turn red.

"I-insolence! You really dare question us?"

"Why wouldn’t I? Did I actually do something wrong here?"

"You..."

"Hmph, it seems like you know it too. It’s not only my fault. It’s also the fault of all of you." Alex mercilessly said as his eyes scanned the crowd around him. "

"Hey! Shut your mouth right no-"

"Do you think that we can really save your Young Mistress by pointing fingers around here?" Alex said as he forcefully interrupted the TimeMaster. "Instead of just standing here pinning blame everywhere, why don’t we just move our asses to save the Young Mistress? How about that?"

"..."

"Bullseye, Alex." Alina muttered as she seemed delighted by the uneasy reaction of the crowd. "You got them your hook..."