Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix
Chapter 1172 - 1172: Everyone has their moments

When the army of the first city arrived on the second one, Rain, Terra, and Sealyn had already left… they found people tending the wound and preparing to chase them, but it seemed that they wouldn't be able to accomplish much at that rate… their speed was quite slow, and the darkness of the night and the harsh terrain didn't allow large groups to move together.

"We heard some questionable things since we began to talk with them… are you sure that we should work with them?" Terra asked.

"I don't like the idea as much as you, but we can't afford to get caught and attacked by three sides now," Rain replied. "We still have to worry about the enemies that put us here. There are the beasts, and while they are weakened, the people that live here have some useful abilities that could pose a problem."

"Man, it is good to be finally heard again," Sakaki said. "Too bad that I don't have much good news to share. I am about to unravel this system, though."

"If you think that is hard, imagine the agony of having only half a second to talk every now and then," Larisa said.

"... Who are we going to help first?" Sealyn asked.

"Worried about your boyfriend?" Terra asked while smirking.

"I wonder when I passed the kind of image that makes you ask that…" Sealyn asked and then sighed.

"Dad and Kei are the closest. Maxime is with them, and with Kei's fighting style added to that, they will be helpful to speed things up here," Rain explained.

"Grandpa will groan for a bit when he hears this," Sealyn shrugged. "Anyway, we have been here for three days, but only a few hundred people reached this zone. Do you think that a lot of us are stuck on those challenges where they had to face other people?"

"It could be… there isn't much to eat in those areas, so they will be forced to make their choice," Terra showed a complicated expression. "People's minds and will weaken a lot when they get hungry…"

The people in the vessel survived many things over the years, everyone wanted to believe that they wouldn't turn against each other no matter what, but they couldn't rule out that completely. Just thinking about it didn't help either… all of them were lucky that they didn't have to fight each other.

As the night kept going, Rain, aided by his family and friends, engaged in fierce battles against dozens of beasts that threatened the cities. Many familiar faces had joined the fight, making the collective effort more effective. Despite the challenges and losses, the united front gradually gained the upper hand against the beasts.

However, as the night progressed, some individuals among the survivors began utilizing the portals Rain and the others had left behind. This raised questions among those who remained, wondering how to proceed to the next zone. Meanwhile, the appearance of monsters ceased completely, creating uncertainty about the conditions for advancing to the next stage.

By the time morning arrived, Rain and his allies had successfully defeated all the beasts. The toll was heavy, with a couple of thousand lives lost in the battle. Yet, considering the total number of inhabitants in the area had reached the two hundred mark, the victory was nearly flawless.

"Who is missing?" Seara asked.

"... From the people closest to us? Esmeralda, Branden, Lorence, Orcis, and all of their kids," Rain said. "At the same time, there are no signs of Iori as well… can't say how he would operate here, but their disappearance feels off alongside his."

"What can we do about that?" Jori asked after he crossed his arms.

"Nothing aside from waiting," Rain replied. "If they are in the other zones, they will eventually come, so we can prepare the terrain for them to join us, but now we have to deal with the situation here."

Orzlan was reuniting the branches of his band in the other cities to have a meeting with Rain and the others to plan the rebellion. They were in prison, so that was a rebellion… it was hard to imagine how things would proceed after that. Still, most people knew that fighting Rain and the others would be close to suicide, so they were supposed to have the upper hand there.

"Anyway, it seems that your plan to make me have a forced nap backfired splendidly, huh?" Rain asked.

"Did you seriously think that you would have noticed something so late in the game and prevented this whole situation?" Seara asked.

"No, I was trying to kill time with small talk," Rain said. "If I don't do that, I will probably die of anticipation to catalog all the knowledge and skills the people here have."

"It is a sea of knowledge… right above a sea of corpses that sustained these societies for millennia…" Terra said. "Forty million people… do you think that many people existed and lived on our home planet?"

"Back in the relics time, it reached eight billion…" Rain explained. "Back then, magic wasn't a thing, so colds could kill people, insects, scratches, all sorts of small things could kill them for the majority of their history."

"And I thought they were an advanced civilization," Terra shrugged. "This is quite disappointing."

"Everyone has their moments," Rain said.

After a brief period of waiting, Orzlan successfully arranged the meeting with the others. Although many people were still receiving treatment for their injuries sustained during the night's battles, the urgency of the situation required them to move forward with their plans. Time was of the essence, and they needed to make preparations for the future while they still had the opportunity.

The wounded were still being tended as fast as possible, and those capable of attending the meeting gathered to discuss their next steps. The atmosphere was tense, filled with a mix of exhaustion and determination as they headed toward the location.