Chapter 25: Departure
A strange phenomenon. As soon as his focus decreased, his fingers reappeared, totally unaltered. It took some effort to manage it again. This time, Moss kept using the power while reaching for the ground. It turned out that he could feel and push with his hidden fingertips. They were still there, only very hard to spot. He brought his hand close to his face to have a closer look. Indeed, he could see an ethereal version of his fingers from this distance. He wondered if he could extend them or something of the sort, as described in the manual, but the answer was negative. Still, he was very satisfied with this development. He just hoped that his technique would allow him to hide his clothes in addition to his body, otherwise he would have to get naked to disappear in the dark.
Hoping for the best, Moss kept practicing until sunrise and eventually managed to extend the shadow skin to his wrist. That intense use of the shadow power left him tired and a bit nauseous though, as Lauren immediately noticed when they met up in the morning for breakfast.
-'Are you feeling well? You look sick...'
-'I may have pushed myself a bit. It's okay. Anyhow, there is some good news!'
He narrated her his achievements. Hearing that she slammed a hand in his back and congratulated him cheerfully. To her great disappointment, he did not deign to give a demonstration.
-'I am really tired right now. Just let me rest a bit and I will show you.'
-'Okay! See you soon, grandpa.'
He gained his room and collapsed on his bed. His body was aching from the inside now. However, it all disappeared as he fell asleep. Afterward, he felt much better. Looking from the window, he could tell that the sun was still high. It was time for a challenge.
During this day and the following ones, they tried hard but still failed to touch the senior or his puppet. Lauren was still incapable of seeing through his illusion. Besides, he either used these to hide from their sight or was a master at hide and seek, as they searched for him everywhere in the sect in vain. They climbed on the roofs, searched in the building wrecks and even used a red throat to gain an aerial view of the site. On a side note, controlling a bird was much more difficult than a rat. Lauren trained at low altitude and upon soft ground with unfortunate passers-by, feeling so sick some times that she gave back her previous meal. However, once she mastered it, she could not get enough of this new ability. On his side, Moss improved his shadow coat to the point of being able to hide half his body. He could choose which part to cover, but this choice influenced his abilities. For instance, if he hid his head, his mind would turn empty and slightly altered, but he would see in the dark better than in broad daylight. On his feet, his stability improved. On his hand, his finger could become hard and gained dexterity. The more he concentrated power, the stronger those changes were.
But despite all of the above, Elehago and his puppet continued to slip between their fingers. Sometimes he pushed the vice to make his puppet provoke them as they searched for him on the roofs and a dangerous game ensued. But as their ability had increased, nothing bad happened.
The wolfs were nowhere to be seen since the last incident, and the disciple slowly forgot about them. With their new strength, they feared them much less. Lauren was even eager to try to control one since Moss had suggested it. Indeed, they would make great mounts and fearsome allies in fights. They were numerous, however, and would likely do everything they could to deliver their mate from Lauren's mind control if she ever managed to subjugate one.
Finally, they resolved themself to leave and to give up on the high cultivation sets. In the beginning, it had felt great to have a place to stay, but they were growing tired of it. On the other hand, the perspective of advancing towards the stairs excited them a lot. After packing, they said their goodbyes to the place and to their senior brother. He wished them good luck but when they asked him if he would continue to monitor them, he neither confirmed nor denied it.
How good it felt to adventure in the wild again! For the occasion, Moss had reviewed all of the herbal registers at their disposition and soon started to uproot some. As they advanced lower in the vast land depression, their view of what lied forward decreased, even when they climbed on top of trees. The forest gradually became darker and bushier, until Lauren struggled to see even during the day.
On their first night, Moss climbed a tree to meditate in sight of the moon, which was getting fairly engulfed in shadows as well. They had also feasted on spiritual plants, so his practice suddenly became much easier. The general plants recorded in the sect were also helping, though a just a bit compared to specialized ones.
From the top of his tree and with the increased perception offered by his shadow cloak, he could figure that the swamps were still far. The wildlife was also stronger around them now. Screams and rumbles came from everywhere.
But at some point, Moss felt spied on by an entity greater than a simple beast. It did not last, however, and his gaze proved unable to reveal anything more. Still, he promised himself to talk about it on the following day.
When he did, as his previous warning had proved true, Lauren took it seriously. However, there was not much they could do. They carried on advancing in the dense forest.
Suddenly, around three in the afternoon, a bush shook with great strength. They prepared themselves for a confrontation but nothing came. When the disciples approached to inspect the suspicious place, they found nothing. However, another bush jerked fifty meters from them. Now they were sure of it, someone or something was playing with them.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone