After successfully diverting another monster camp in their path, Vicente's group stuck to their strategy of not fighting unless there was no other alternative.

By making three more detours over the next three weeks of travel, they increased the length of their journey to the point where they would be looking for the place where the cyan pentagram compatible with Vicente would appear.

With the group's cautious approach and focus on staying out of trouble, they avoided trouble until they finally left the Vinia Empire!

Now, they were on their way to the vicinity of the former headquarters of Nixlas' Shadows, near the easternmost border of The Ivory Desert.

With less than 20 days of travel ahead, the group was close to reaching the point in their journey where they could settle into an area and begin their investigations!

...

While Vicente's group was following a path similar to the one he had taken years ago in search of Lauren, the situation on the northernmost coast between the headquarters of Nixlas' Shadows and The Ivory Desert was tense.

In a coastal and mountainous area that had about 100 kilometers of coastline, three sects of the Dark Path, similar to Nixlas' Shadows, had their headquarters in the area.

While these sects were allies to the vampires, they did not consider each other as friends!

Having received copies of the vampire technique that had made history at the hands of the leaders of the Congregation of Revelations, these sects competed fiercely for the targets of the Light Path.

With the decline in the number of powerful Light Path magicians on the continent, and the migration to the south, the few that remained in the north and could be hunted by them were almost insignificant.

If any of the powers wanted to use their new technique to grow, they would have to vie with each other to hunt down these remaining Light Path magicians in the region!

...

At the headquarters of one of these three powers, a superior vampire, pale-skinned and white-haired like almost all members of the race, arrived at the command headquarters of one of the sects with important news.

With a curious look on his preserved, cadaverous face, the vampire looked at the black-haired, six-foot-tall human sitting on a throne of spears in the hall he had just entered.

"I bring you an opportunity, Coldpikes." The vampire's voice crackled with the smell of blood and rotting flesh.

The black-haired man looked at the pale-skinned creature, narrowing his eyes in interest. He wasn't in the best of moods with vampires, considering the way he had been outmaneuvered by these creatures, leaving him with almost no targets to hunt. But since he was in the unfortunate position of not being able to leave his old arrangements, he could only continue this strange relationship.

"What is it?" the man asked, scratching his fingers.

"Vicente Fuller is moving through the region. With him are four humans, three of them from the Light Path, Beginner Archmages..." The 1.8 meter tall creature said with a suggestive smile. "This could be your chance to complete your progress towards becoming an Advanced Archmage."

The man's eyes narrowed as he considered the possibility.

He and all the Dark Path magicians in the area knew about Vicente. How could they not? The young man's fame in the southern region had spread throughout the continent. Everyone, with even a little bit of knowledge about the continent, was aware of the Throne of Darkness and the first magician in the history of the Polaris Realm who possessed two magical forms.

Vicente was both a legend and a formidable threat to anyone who opposed humanity. He was a case to be studied; a man coveted by the most powerful people on both sides of the conflict.

As dangerous as he was to the magicians of the Dark Path, he was also a possibility.

Vicente was not only the Master of Darkness but also a magical form of the Light Path!

What would happen if he were sacrificed in a ritual using the vampire technique?

Not only that, from the words of the 4th stage vampire in front of the black-haired man, this local leader couldn't help but wish for Vicente's three companions, who could surely add a lot to his powers.

He had heard no news of human Archmages traveling in the area for months. When he heard about Paul, Jacob, and Ayden, his eyes lit up thirstily.

"Where are they going?" The leader of the Coldpikes asked. 'I must act quickly. If those two old devils find out and move before I do, I'll lose a lot.'

At present, the Coldpikes' leader's primary concern was not his own strength, but rather impeding the progress of his rivals.

Despite their alliances and service to the vampires, there were no clauses in those agreements dictating that their factions had to maintain a friendly relationship.

They had clashed several times in recent years, and it would only take one of them to become stronger than the others for them to become involved in a more problematic conflict.

The vampires would do nothing, of course. Since they had promised not to hunt these sects, there was nothing better than watching them destroy each other!

The vampire shook his shoulders. "That's the hard part. I don't know where they're going. We believe their purpose aligns with that of the Magicians Alliance, though there could be additional factors involved.

If you're interested, find out quickly what their purpose is and where they are. Your two rivals will soon learn of Vicente Fuller's group. Who knows which of you will find them first?"

The black-haired man stood up, clenching his fists tightly. He soon left the room.

Seeing the haste in the departing man's eyes, the 4th stage vampire smiled as he saw his plan working.

As much as the vampires didn't mind that the Dark Path magicians allied with them kept to themselves, that didn't mean they didn't acknowledge their value.

'What are you going to do, Vicente Fuller? Your kind are very good at finding their targets... Now you're closer than ever to getting caught!' The vampire thought as he left the place, planning to go to the other two sects in the area in order to secure more men to search for Vicente's location.