"My Lord, you might want to know that this name is taboo in the archipelago, the powers there have been sent precisely to stop any rumors about a possible independence. I've seen good people imprisoned and interrogated only because they were aware of this name."

Cody added shortly after, his serious expression never left his face.

'It makes sense… I guess I'll see how the grave the situation is once I arrive, I don't really want trouble.'

If the situation of the Hive was too serious, Noah would simply go back to his original plan and join a legal organization.

It didn't make much difference to him which faction he joined as long as he succeeded in his plan.

"Thank you for your honesty, it seems that I've troubled you."

Noah changed the subject of their conversation while wearing a smile, Cody couldn't help but sigh in relief seeing that he didn't probe further.

That dinner ended shortly after, Cody gave Noah one of the best cabins on the s.h.i.+p and made sure that he had everything he needed before leaving him alone.

'd.a.m.ned big nations, they have their influence everywhere.'

Noah felt a bit frustrated.

He only wanted to cultivate in peace and to have access to techniques but those things seemed always locked behind powers with whom he could not interfere.

'The Royals want to enlarge their family, the Empire wants more soldiers, I wonder what the Papral nation asks its cultivators.'

Noah had seen how two of the three big countries handled lone and promising cultivators and their ways conflicted with Noah's interests.

He didn't mind joining a powerful organization as long as he could maintain his personal freedom and his growth wasn't hindered.

Yet, in that world, that seemed too much to ask.

'Controlling power, securing your position through power, everything here is about power.'

Hindering the cultivation journey of your subjects was the best way to maintain your ruling position, no one would be able to take your crown from you if no one was strong enough to do so.

'I'm not sure about the inner circle of the Empire, that G.o.d must have had some kind of privileged position to be able to cultivate till that level. I wonder if the Royals have a G.o.d too.'

Noah's understanding of that world was limited to his level, he only knew about the matters handled by humans, the situations above his level were a topic that he was completely unaware of.

'The Papral nation doesn't seem so bad though, the sects willingly cooperate for the greater good of the nation before handling their internal conflicts. Well, that's what Cody says.'

Cody came from the Papral nation so he knew more about its political situation.

Also, he had been exiled, forcing him to make a living as a sailor.

That gave birth to negative emotions toward his nation which made it easier for Noah to gather information.

Cody's crime consisted in the illegal purchase of female slaves from the Empire, that simple crime was enough to exile him in the archipelago where he could only rent a fis.h.i.+ng s.h.i.+p with the little finances that he had.

His crew was rented too.

However, since his sailors were quite weak, he could fish rank 3 magical beasts at best, barely meeting his monthly expenses.

'Balance and diligence, a code of conduct… There shouldn't be anyone more diligent than me but the other requirements are quite vague.'

Noah's thoughts wandered through the many information that he had gathered that day before he decided to rest, he had still to sleep after he left the sh.e.l.l of the Sea turtle so his centers of power needed another round of recovery.

Yet, he had finally found a safe foothold, the two weeks required to reach the Coral archipelago were more than enough to return to his peak form and even improve a little.

Noah barely came out of his cabin in those days.

Cody tried to give as much information as he could about the archipelago hoping to make some quick gain but Noah didn't hand him any more Credits.

Little by little, Cody stopped inviting him to dinner and limited himself to send food to his cabin.

Noah preferred that treatment since it left him with more time to train and to plan his next move.

His sea of consciousness was enlarging due to the "Breath" stored in it, it wasn't as fast as with the Kesier rune but it was still better than not training at all.

His dantian had completely recovered and was quickly nearing the limits of the liquid stage, the breakthrough to the solid stage was nearing even faster than Noah had predicted.

His body and mind were at a higher level after all, they were increasing the speed at which his dantian grew in order to restore some kind of balance between his centers of power.

The rest of his days was used to train in the Elemental forging method.

He had left the Odrea nation in a hurry and he knew that a long escape would have followed that event.

That's why he didn't bring any of the materials in the inventory with him.

They were already old and partially decomposed, only the formation of the inventory could slow their decay.

It would have been fine to take them if Noah was to have time to forge during his escape but the flight over the sea would have just wasted those precious materials.

To put it simply, he lacked the materials needed to improve the Demonic swords or to attempt in any other creation.

His training consisted of creating stronger wills to imbue in the "Breath", his ability had risen a lot due to the ma.s.s productions of disposable weapons but he knew that he could do better.

After all, when he was forging weapons for himself, Noah wouldn't aim to create self-destructive items, he wanted durable and stable creations.

Also, using his mind as much as he could was another form of training for the sea of consciousness which Noah gladly accepted.

It was in the silence of the cabin, with the occasional noise of the sailors in the background, that the s.h.i.+p completed its route, successfully returning to a port in the Coral archipelago.