After being brough away from the testing chamber, I could only continue to follow the group of arguing elders, while trying my best to make sense of what they were saying.

"You know we can't do it! Not only is he unregistered yet, but we also don't know who he is! What if he turns out to be some kind of spy?"

"Stop speaking nonsense! If he were to be a spy, why would he show his capabilities just like that? Being wary of the enemies doesn't mean disrespecting their abilities like that!"

"But you can't completely disregard this option! As such, we can't allow him to take the white robe's test before we will be fully sure about his allegiance!"

"Are you even sane? He just entered the city, while watching as we sort of bartered for him with the one that brough him in the first place! If we want him to be loyal, we need to give him some reasons to become a part of our sect first!"

Even if there was some sort of punny barrier that was most likely supposed to separate their speech from my ears, I didn't even need Bonger's help to decipher what they were saying from the ever so slight vibration of world's mana as their emotions made them infuse their words with energy. Adding the ability to read from their lips to a certain degree offered most likely by the same aspect of my system that translated all the words for me from the very moment I appeared on this world, while I pretended to be completely oblivious to what they were talking about, in reality, I continued to listen to their conversation as I had nothing better to do at this moment.

As we walked out from the back of the building when compared to where we entered it, despite still arguing with each other, the group leading me was strangely united about the direction where they were taking me. Seeing how not even once not even one of them stepped to the side as if wanting to lead me away to a different place, I began to suspect that their entire conversation… was supposed to be heard!

"Let's just push him through the truth ceremony and advancement trial then. We will uphold the sect traditions then, and no one could blame us for doing so later… Are you guys okay with it?"

With the elder appraiser that so far attempted to smooth the path of advancement for me finally giving up on his initial stance, the elders finally came to an agreement. But just like mentioned before, the path they took didn't change even by the tiniest bit!

I know there was a chance that no matter what their decision would be, all the places where they would've to take me would still be in the same area, but with how cautious I wanted to be, I found it hard to believe!

No matter what, I had to prevent them from discovering my true intentions for as long as it would take me to gain their trust, get back to the stronghold and finally revive Eve! Later on, killing them all wouldn't pose any problem, even if I would be forced to do so without learning their cultivation method. After all, killing them all wouldn't force me to destroy all their valuable books and techniques!

"Okay then. Listen, boy…"

In an instant, I felt my adrenaline surge, as the face of the elder that served as my guide so far dared to call me in such a disrespectful way. I know my body looked young with how well maintained it was, but that's not a reason for you to patronise me like that!

"Yes, sir elder?"

Instead of flaring up, I simply nodded my head, trying to hide even the smallest hint of anger that could form on my face from the eyes of the group of elders in front of me. That would be far more than enough for them to prevent me from advancing even further right upon entry to the sect, so I had to keep the ruse of being obedient, little lamb in their eyes!

"You will now take part in the truth ceremony. While it sounds mighty and scary, all you need to do is to reply to the questions honestly, without hiding anything from the judges and you will be allowed to take an advancement trial."

Taking a breath after spewing such a long sentence in one go, the elder took his sweet time of building the suspense in the air, before raising his head back and looking me in the eye.

"My hopes aside, are you confident in your strength? Or rather, in your fighting abilities? Or to be even more precise, do you think your fighting ability does match your raw strength?"

Well, it didn't take the smartest head to deduce what kind of 'advancement trial' it would be, from how the elder asked me about my personal strength. But while I was pretty…. confident that I could turn literally anyone in this city into a toothpaste that I would later use to brush the hair on my ass, I wasn't so sure if I could do the same without relying on my real power, but on my body alone!

But well, the source of my recent problems laid in the predator's mindset evolving, right? Why not look deeper into the topic then?

*Hey, Bonger… Do you think you could evolve the executioner path for me as well? Or rather, what are the pros and cons of doing so? And most importantly, what does it cost?*

"Well… While there are some limits to how many abilities you can evolve, you don't need to bother about it for now. As for the effects, I don't think I need to remind you what happened with the predator's mindset influencing your mind?"

*Well, it happened like yesterday? Two days ago? My memory isn't that bad, you know?*

"Then forget about what happened then. Unless you will evolve all your abilities at once, you should be on the safe side."

With the confirmation coming from the Bonger himself, I had nothing to worry about then!

"I don't think any of the red-robed guys that I saw on the way could do any better than kissing my fist as I would smack their faces!"