The Dawn of the New World Chapter 1628

He quickly pulled his robe open to see the slave mark quivering with a foreign energy. And since his spiritual threads were already spread out, he was able to pick up another detail that he had previously missed.

The mark- in its entirety- was present on his shadow within the Umbral Planes and it was not a simple print either. There was an eye sealed within the print and it was trying to awaken.

"Huh...I guess this is how they keep track of the slaves," Hao Xuan smirked.

Not only was he able to see the eye within the slave print but he could easily destroy it with his new-found psionic powers if he so wished.

The only downside was that whoever was on the other side would be able to sense that the connection was severed so it would not be a good option if he still wanted to stay here.

'Good to know I have an out.'

He recalled his spiritual threads and the two swords fell to the ground.

The eye opened and began observing the surroundings to find his location, which did not take long.

A few seconds later the connection was closed and everything returned to normal.

Hao Xuan chuckled to himself, 'I guess now I wait for them to come to me.'

He sat down to rest but barely 5 minutes later a set of heavy steps were approaching the hideout.

"Slave Jin," Ketillaug called out from a couple of meters away.

"You can come inside friend," Hao Xuan invited him in with a joke, "It's not like there are any windows or doors to protect my privacy anyway."

The bull demihuman hopped over the half-destroyed wall and landed near the fire.

"Quite a decent place you've got here," he complimented looking around, genuinely impressed.

"Better than any slave quarters, that's for sure."

Ketillaug agreed wholeheartedly.

"You're very right, slave Jin-"

But as he turned towards Hao Xuan something caught his eye.

"There is...something different about you."

He couldn't quite put his finger on it but it was more than just a vague feeling, "You feel...not too much of a...stranger?"

And it only confused him the more he tried to understand.

Hao Xuan immediately realized it was because of the "Beast Charmer" ability that he had recently upgraded all the way. Doing so had in fact physically altered him to a degree, although he was as of yet unsure of the purpose of said changes.

He laughed, "Hahaha! I certainly hope so friend. Wouldn't still call you a stranger after everything that happened last time we went out."

But Ketillaug was not so easily convinced.

"Hmm, right..." he continued to look around for clues which only made Hao Xuan's smile widen.

"So what can I do you for? Is it time for the next shift already?"

"Yes, I'm afraid it is," Ketillaug muttered somewhat apologetically, "It should have been a few more days but things have changed."

Hao Xuan stood up and dusted off his worn-out robe "Really? Pray tell."

"I-I can't- I shouldn't. They told us not to divulge anything for the time being."

But Hao Xuan casually walked up beside him and placed a hand around his shoulder like they were old pals.

"Oh come on, who am I going to tell? I'm just looking for a little heads-up. In case it's something dangerous I should make a few preparations before going out, don't you think?"

"Huh? No, it's not that dangerous- Can you remove your hand?"

The bull demihuman tried to push Hao Xuan away but he barely budged.

"Ugh, and you're soaked! What is this??"

Ketillaug quickly wiped his hands on his robe but the musky scent only got stronger.

"It's just a little sweat, nothing to be worried about," Hao Xuan winked.

"That's disgusting! Why do you humans sweat so much!?"

"Hahaha!"

With Ketillaug in the lead, Hao Xuan started moving back to the first floor while trying to get more information out of him.

"So what was it? Why the change?"

*Sigh*

Ketillaug finally relented and spilled the beans.

"A few slaves went missing and some others were attacked by one thing or another so we're a little low on manpower now. Plus I heard there was something big that happened last night on the upper floor so your guess is as good as mine."

"Hmm. See, that's good information. Now I will know to keep my guard up out there," Hao Xuan patted him on the back.

"Watch the armor- I just got it cleaned!" Ketillaug swiftly distanced himself, "And I told you it is nothing to worry about, there will be a lot more guards this time around so you can just focus on digging..."

"Yeah, I'll see it when I believe it!" Hao Xuan sarcastically mumbled but Ketillaug did not let it pass.

"Then believe it," he said gesturing to the front as they came down the final staircase.