A gigantic snake was speeding along a road in the middle of the forest.

On top of this snake was sitting a muscular man who was observing his surroundings with a curious look.

'Surely this place is much more wooded than in Marxus' Ruvan thought as he saw the landscape filled with a vast grove of trees. Although he had taken these paths before during the rescue mission, the reality was that it was only now that he was able to take some time to appreciate the entire landscape in its entirety.

'I remember that during the return we took another path'

"Good luck on your mission big brother"" A group of female disciples who were returning on foot from their mission joyfully greeted Ruvan upon noticing his Sect disciple robe.

"Thanks girls! The same for you... Be careful with your way back"

"Thank you big brother!"

"Big Brother... may I know your name?"

"Ruvan... My name is Ruvan"

"Ohhh... I hope we can share a drink with big brother when you returns from your mission"

"Of course! It will be a pleasure"" Ruvan said with a smile as he walked away on top of Viridis. This was already the sixth group of disciples who stopped to talk with Ruvan for a while.

"Ssssss"

"Hey what do you want me to do...? It's not my fault I'm so handsome"

"Ssss"

"Hahahaha calm down, calm down... You also have very pretty scales~"

Ruvan's journey had been relatively smooth, after all they were still within the Hidden Flower Sect's area of influence. It was not uncommon to encounter several disciples and Sect patrols around the area.

'According to the map it should be this way'

Ruvan was using the map that Jena had given him. This map was extremely complete and detailed unlike the generic map they sold in the Quest Hall.

From points of interest to descriptions of the fauna and nature of each place, the map gave a fairly detailed description about each of the regions of the southern part of this continent.

'It even has a detailed description of the geopolitical situation of the region'

The map also detailed the powers that dominated each zone and their spheres of influence, it was certainly the ideal tool for a novice in the region like Ruvan.

"How are our friends coming?" Ruvan asked to Viridis.

"Ssssss"

"Three days away from us?"

"Ssss" "Ssssss" "Ssss"

"Oh I see... three days away. It's not bad at all..." Ruvan murmured with a smile as he tried to keep a cautious distance from Edmar's group and the rest of his henchmen.

"Let's try to keep this pace"

Finally after another two days of marching Ruvan and Viridis finally left the region of the Hidden Flower Sect to start a border region called as Swamp Forest.

'Mmm the Swamp Forest is a border region that separates the Hidden Flower Sect from the Iron Hill Sect.'

'According to this map this place is relatively dangerous due to the large number of spirit beasts that are prowling around the area... It would be best to try to keep at the outskirts of the forest.'

'This path could work...'

"Viridis! Make sure to leave a clear trail to our friends that we took this path"

"Ssss"

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The next day.

"This map is the best shit" Ruvan muttered with a smile as he realized how the path he had taken had spared him the need to encounter spirit beasts or bandits.

"Are our friends still behind us?"

"Ssss"

"Excellent..." Ruvan said with a smile as he slapped Virdis a couple of times on the scales.

"Did you like your dinner?"

"Ssssss"

The night before Ruvan and Viridis had hunted a couple of spirit beasts for dinner.
Among these beasts was a juicy spirit boar which was expertly cooked by Ruvan.

Ruvan had learned to cook during his life as a mercenary so he could be considered as a pretty skilled cook as long as the distances with professional cooks were separated.

"Well... Apparently we are now entering the Desolate Mountain Range region" murmured Ruvan upon seeing an imposing mountain range on the horizon. A lot of haze seemed to surround the mountains giving any visitor a spectacular view.

"What are we waiting for... There's supposedly a village up ahead"

"We can eat there," Ruvan said as he ordered Viridis to continue their march.

After another five hours of walking, both finally arrived at what seemed to be a border town which was located right at the entrance of the mountain range.

The village at best looked more like a village than a village. With the occasional wooden house, it certainly gave the impression of being a rather poor…

'This is definitely a shitty place' Ruvan muttered to himself as he saw the unkempt appearance of the village. Its inhabitants sported a rather unkempt appearance which fit perfectly with the condition of the place.

"Happy Rock Village..."

"You must be kidding" Ruvan muttered with a smile as he read the ridiculous name of the village.

'Mmm the houses have an architectural style very similar to that of the Central Continents... It would not be unusual for their inhabitants to be the descendants of the people who migrated to this place'

The Continent of Doxus was a relatively uninhabited place until a few thousand years ago, when cultivators from the central and eastern continents began to settle in the place.

"Well... the best thing right now would be to look for an inn where I can eat a little and ask for some information" murmured Ruvan as he walked into the village.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Damn... this bastard really knows how to move" murmured Edmar seeing that they still hadn't managed to catch up with Ruvan.

The idea of Edmar and his henchmen was to ambush Ruvan in the Swamp Forest to avoid having to make the whole trip to the Desolate Mountain Range, but unfortunately they could never get close to him no matter how much they accelerated their march.

"It's because of his spirit beast... I think he's a level four spirit beast" Said another of the girls within the group.

"Not only that... Apparently the bastard has a good quality map, after all the routes he has taken have been the shortest and safest in the whole region" Edmar said with a thoughtful expression.

"Well... enough talking"

"Hurry up to finish your meal... We must leave if we want to reach him before he enters the Desolate Mountain Range"

"What happens if he enters the Desolate Mountain Range? Forgive my ignorance, but I know absolutely nothing about that place" Said a disciple with a curious look.

"It's a desolate place just like the name says..." Said one disciple with a bitter smile.

The Desolate Mountain Range was relatively famous in the region.

"If he enters there it will be very difficult to trace him..." Edmar said in a serious voice.