Chapter 2847: Chapter 2847: Journey

As Zen and Dorothy left the auction house, Jermain suddenly stood in front of them and blocked their way.

“Zen, do you have something on the Ear Mouse race?” Jermain asked. The young man was truly curious as to why the Ear Mouse had been so kind to Zen.

Although the Ear Mouse race did not give Zen the Other Shore Key, he was given permission to enter the Grand Sky Temple for free and even bring one person along.

This free pass was no simple arrangement. The Ear Mouse race was overly cautious especially given what happened at the Grand Sky Temple recently. Their set entry fee would be steep and only rose as time went on.

Zen shrugged. “I don't know much about the Ear Mouse race.”

“Then...why did they let you enter the Grand Sky Temple for free?” Jermain asked.

“Maybe they need something from me?” Zen answered. He didn't show it on his face but his tone made it obvious that he found the conversation quite dull.

“What would they want from you?” Jermain continued, not willing to back down with his questions.

“I don't know,” Zen repeated with a shake of his head.

The Ear Mouse race's invitation was really directed to Zen's corporeal body.

But he didn't know why they needed his corporeal body. He was telling Jermain the truth.

Nevertheless, he agreed to the invitation and even requested that he be allowed to bring a companion with him.

The Ear Mouse race thought that Zen's companion was the corporeal body they so wanted to see, so they allowed it.

They had no idea that Zen was actually going to use his corporeal body to enter the Grand Sky Temple and the companion he would be bringing with him was Dorothy.

This arrangement was rife with misunderstanding, but the results were set to be the same.

Seeing that Zen was truly clueless, Jermain had to back down. He still had one more thing to ask, though. “You can take one more person with you, right? Who are you going to take? If you don't have anyone, can you bring me with you?” he requested.

“I already have a suitable candidate,” Zen replied, turning his gaze to Dorothy.

Jermain's brows furrowed. “Is the person you're referring to Dorothy?”

His tone was incredibly serious and before Zen could reply, Dorothy opened her mouth. “Why? Is there a problem? Do you think I'm unsuitable to go to the Grand Sky Temple?”

“Of course you're not suitable!” Jermain exclaimed, not even bothering to hide his opinion. “You've only recently reached Stage Thirteen, so you have no idea just how dangerous this place is! Do you know what their true goal is? It's the Dark Region behind the Grand Sky Temple! The temple isn't even a safe place for you to explore, let alone the Dark Region!”

He had always considered himself as an elder brother to Dorothy. Even if she was the Origin Mountain head's granddaughter, he still did his part in keeping her safe from harm.

However, his protective tendencies proved to be too much for Dorothy right now. “Jermain, don't you think you're meddling too much?”

Her hostile reply made him frown, but Jermain had no intention of giving in. “If you insist on going, then I will have to report this to Uncle Winchell. I'm sorry, but I won't be able to keep this as a secret.”

“Then go! Report it to him!” Dorothy's nature had always been resolute. Once she made a decision, not even her grandmother would be able to stop her.

Realizing this, Jermain cupped his hands respectfully and withdrew. He was definitely going to report all of this to Winchell.

Once he was gone, Zen turned to Dorothy. “I didn't say I was going to take you with me,” he pointed out.

Dorothy smirked. “I am the most suitable candidate,” she declared in confidence.

However, Zen shook his head. “It's too dangerous.”

The two of them had only explored the Sacred Mallow Temple in Stage One and nearly lost their lives.

Jermain was right. The Grand Sky Temple was very dangerous and the Dark Region even more so. If they weren't careful, they could very well lose their lives. ᚱἈ₦Ó𝐁Ês̈

“You don't have any other choice,” Dorothy said with a triumphant smile.

And she was right. There was no way Zen would be able to find a suitable candidate within the day.

He needed to enter the Grand Sky Temple in the form of his corporeal body. However, that meant he wouldn't be able to store the candles and a few other things. He needed a Soul of Light with him, someone he could trust. He needed Dorothy.

Zen sighed. He looked at Dorothy and, even if he couldn't see her face clearly, he knew that she was smiling smugly at him right at that moment.

Her company was undoubtedly meaningful. Zen couldn't imagine exploring the Other Shore without her.

When he went to the Sacred Mallow Temple the second time, he had to switch between his body and soul in order to store the soul pills. It was terribly tedious and Dorothy's existence just made everything so much easier.

However, it couldn't be denied that the further they ventured into the Other Shore, the more perilous their journey was set to be. Right now, he felt a bit selfish in dragging her with him to a potentially precarious situation.

Dorothy noticed his misgivings and waved a hand to his vacant face.

“What's wrong?”

Zen pushed her hand away and said seriously, “I will protect you.”

Those were the only words he said before turning around and walking away.

Dorothy could only look on at Zen's back in confusion. She didn't really understand what he meant, though she figured he was now alright with her tagging along.

The agreed meeting time between Zen and the Ear Mouse race was tomorrow, but it was worth noting that the Grand Sky Temple was located at the other end of Stage Thirteen.

First and foremost, Zen had to send Dorothy to the Grand Sky Temple gate. Second, he would then have to transport his corporeal body from Stage Twelve to Stage Thirteen. All things considered, they didn't really have a lot of time.

After leaving the living creatures' strongholds, the two of them entered the wilderness.

Stage Thirteen had been eroded on both sides by the Dark Region. There was only one road left that the Souls of Light took, and there was no way they would get lost.

Numerous Souls of Light, all of them quite strange, passed them by. Some were as big as elephants while others were as small as Zen's fist. Almost all of them moved hurriedly.

Like Zen and Dorothy, they too must be headed to the Grand Sky Temple.

The two of them travelled for quite some time. After covering over a hundred miles, Dorothy suddenly pointed southwest. “Zen, look! It's so dark!”

Zen turned and found a huge, black ball in the distance.

It seemed to be devouring the land, casting eternal night on the Other Shore.

“That's the Dark Region,” Zen remarked as he stared at the absolute darkness.

As they went on, the area shrouded by the Dark Region grew. The road they ventured on was reasonably wide, but they felt great pressure upon them as they walked.

As a kind of experiment, Zen decided to release a bit of his spiritual sense and tried injecting it into the Dark Region.

However, the moment his spiritual sense touched the border, it immediately disappeared. Zen didn't bother doing it a second time.

It took the two of them almost half a day to complete the journey. To their relief though, they soon saw the Grand Sky Temple in the distance.

The temple was located at the very edge of the Dark Region. This put it in danger of being devoured fully by the darkness if it ever decided to expand again, but for now, its unique location made it serve as a passageway to the Dark Region.

Dorothy pouted her lips as they approached the Grand Sky Temple. “Why are there so many creatures here?”

“All the Souls of Light we saw on the way were heading towards the temple,” Zen said.

True enough, thousands of Souls of Light waited by the gate, densely packed and eager to rush in as soon as the temple opened its gate.