Kyte silently observed the failed Gifted as they moved along according to his will. He had injected their bodies with his Internal energy so they wouldn't do anything out of the ordinary. Or, at least, too out of the ordinary. Kyte was inable to imitate the smooth movements of someone walking so the failed Gifted looked a bit unrealistic. However, that was much better than letting them thrash around. They were still getting odd looks from others, but that was fine.

Kyte and Mark led the group down a road that was blocked by a giant, black wall. A large S was imprinted onto the door that was placed in the wall. Kyte noticed several guards relaxing around the door, which wasn't very surprising. The guards noticed Kyte's group so they quickly brought themselves to attention. Kyte made sure that his S rank badge was still pinned to his shoulder, which it was.

One of the guards walked toward Kyte and he took notice of the badge on his shoulder. He calmly observed the group and noticed that Kyte was the only S ranker. That and Kyte was the only one with a badge, excluding Mark who had an A rank badge. Kyte spoke first:

"I want to enter the S rank district. I'm not sure if my friends are allowed inside, however."

"Sir, as long as they are accompanied by you, they are allowed to enter. They must not stray too far from you while inside." The guard replied.

"Alright. I will be supervising this group. Is there a payment to get in or something?"

"No, there is not. You just have to request it and we will open the gate."

"Good. You can go back to your station, I still need to chat with my friend."

"Understood." The guard walked back to the others.

Kyte turned to Mark and asked:

"Are you sure you want to stay with your current branch?"

"Uh, yea. I'm actually kinda close with them. Besides, I still have to work two jobs, so I'm quite preoccupied."

"Oh? You have a job? I never would've expected that..."

"Hey, I need those two jobs! After working for so long I'm finally getting good money form them. Not only that, I administrate FOG from this district. I doubt there would be any Apis in other districts. I'm trying to build up my guild here first, then when several of us reach S rank in power, we'll move our headquarters to the S rank district. I'm really busy, haha."

"You sound busy. Well, before you go, I'll give you my number and some Signal Spheres."

"I don't think I'll need any more Spheres, though..."

"Oh, it's not entirely for you. You can pass a few of them to your members. That way I'll know if one of them is in trouble."

"You would help them? That's so not how an asshole would act."

"Hey, I'm not originally a heartless douchebag...maybe. All you have to do is give some out. Don't worry about the details."

Mark stared at Kyte for a few seconds before replying:

"Alright, fine. How many are you giving to me?"

"Hmmm, how about five. Only give them to the members that have the most potential."

Kyte took out five Signal Spheres and handed them to Mark. He then took out his phone and gave Mark his number, despite Mark's several remarks about having a guy's number in his phone.

"I'll see you when the time comes." Kyte said.

"Yea, totally. Something like that...Anyway, see ya." Mark replied.

Mark turned around and walked off. Kyte watched him for a few seconds before turning toward the guards and striding toward them.

"Open the gate."

"Yes, sir."

The guard moved to a electronic panel and pressed several buttons, after which the door opened. It was a large gate that seemed a big too big for only humans to pass through, but that wasn't a problem. Kyte and the others walked into the other side, the S rank district.

The physical look of the district seemed to be about the same as the Outer district. However, instead of one story, the buildings were two stories. For the most part, they had the same style as before. A few were different here and there but not by a large degree. Everything emitted a stronger atmosphere than before, as if it was another world.

Fortunately, there were still signs that showed which building was which. The realtor's building was actually on the road that connected to the gate, so Kyte and the group only had to walk a little bit to arrive.

Kyte wanted to purchase a house for the group. He didn't have any of the currency used in the Core, but he hoped he would be able to trade instead. Although he didn't get any weapons from the seventh stage, he did have a significant amount of equipment from the sixth. There were a few top-grade items as well that he never had any use for. Mostly because they were either not compatible with him or he just never had to use them. Now that he was in the seventh stage, he didn't really need them anymore.

Kyte told the others to wait outside before he entered the building. It was basically the same as before, but the tables were clean white instead of the brown like before. Kyte walked up to the receptionist and asked:

"Can I buy a house?"

"Huh? That was pretty blunt..Ahem, yes, you may. However, it costs a lot of money. You sure you can afford it? I'll have to look at which ones are available first though." The woman behind the desk looked at Kyte in a weird way.

Kyte didn't blame her; he looked like complete crap. Not to mention the group of smelly and raggedy people outside.

"That's fine. Anything will do. I have a group of Gifted with me that I'm planning to take care of, so I'll need a house. My Branch's house can't hold all of them."

"Ah, that makes sense. It'll only take a moment for me to look up houses."

Kyte wondered just how expensive the houses would be. He had no idea if the items in the storage necklace would be enough. One of the reasons why he wanted to buy a house was so the group outside had somewhere to stay. He assumed there wouldn't be enough room in his own Branch's house, so that was really the only solution.

The second reason why is that he wanted to begin the revival of the Bloodrage Sect. He thought about it and realized that it was practically the perfect time to do so. The group of Gifted that he led out of the forest had been with him through thick and thin; he had defended them from everything and kept them alive long enough to arrive at the Core. Not only that, but Kyte was almost certain they were all rogue. Meaning, their Branches were wiped out during the attack on the train. They don't have anywhere to go.

The three A rankers would be great assets, if Kyte's prediction was correct. Honestly, he had no idea how quickly they would cultivate. Maybe the stronger Gifted would cultivate faster because their base power levels were higher, or, maybe that doesn't even matter and it's only about latent talent. He would just have to wait and see.

"There are a few available houses. Do you care about the location?"

"No, just give me the cheapest."

"Alright. The cheapest house is 8,300 Stones."

Apparently that's a lot. Let's just see what I can do.

"Unfortunately, I don't have Stones. Would it be possible to use items instead?"

"Um...yes, I believe so. If the items are good enough then yes."

"Alright. I'll be taking out a few items."

Instantly, three pieces of equipment appeared on the table. They were a hammer, bracers, and a ring. They were the only three top grade equipment he had. They were of no use to him because his Internal energy was strong enough to destroy them by itself. So, Kyte felt nothing as he took them out. Maybe they would've been useful to give to the three A rankers, but if he didn't get a house, they wouldn't have a place to stay.

The receptionist was slightly stunned at the sudden appearance of the items. At first glance, they seemed to be suitable for S rankers to use, though they were on par with the weaker tiers of S ranker equipment.

The thing about ranked equipment is that the price soars with each new rank. For example, if an A rank sword was one hundred stones, then an S rank sword would be about four hundred. The prices also depend on the quality of the equipment; a higher tier S rank sword could go for eight hundred or even more.

The difference between the equipment in the storage necklace and the Gifted equipment is that the items from the necklace can go up to top-grade while Gifted items only go up to high-grade. This makes top-grade items seem to be a tier higher than their classification. This is also why the receptionist thought of them to be S ranked equipment, though they belonged to the weaker tiers.

The woman picked up each item and carefully studied them. After about ten minutes had passed, she put down the third item and thought for several seconds before looking up at Kyte.

"These three items add up to about 1,100 stones. I'm sorry, you don't have enough."

"That's alright, I'll come back in a-...actually, I have one more item. Do you mind?"

"Um, no, I don't. Are you sure of it's quality though?"

"Yes, that I am sure of. However, I don't know what the price of it could be."

"Alright, allow me to look it over."

Kyte sent Internal energy into the storage necklace and brought out a single pill. It was deep red in color and the insides seemed to squirming around. The instant it appeared, a powerful evil aura filled the entire room. The receptionist was instantly taken back by the intense force that pushed against her body. Although it wasn't powerful it harm her, she was still slightly pressured by it.

This was the second time Kyte had ever taken out an Inner Demon Pill. He had two in total, and the first time he took one out was the day after he broke through into the seventh stage. He was at the late seventh stage and his Spirit energy was already at the eighth stage, yet the pressure emitted from the pill still slightly suffocated him. He looked at the laughing demon icon on the pill and just mentally sighed before putting it on the table.

The woman hesitated before taking the pill into her hand. She felt the thick aura seep out of it; she had no idea what it's use was but she knew that it was terrifying. The moment she saw the laughing demon icon, she sucked in a quick breath.

"Sir, do you realize what this is?"

"A pill..."

The woman oddly looked at Kyte before replying:

"That's correct, but this is no ordinary pill. I knew that was the case when you took it out, but now I'm certain of it."

"What, is there something wrong with it?"

"No, it's actually the complete opposite. Um...only Fighter-ranked or higher ranked pills have Icons. I was immediately convinced that this pill is at least Fighter-ranked when I saw the Icon. The aura it gives off is incredibly powerful; I also have no idea of its use. However, even without that information, the pill itself can easily go for at least ten thousand stones."

"Oh, that's good then. I'll just give you the pill without the three items. Is that fine?"

"Wha-, sir, I'm not really, authorized to have such an item-"

"Don't worry about it. Just give it to your superior or something. This covers the cost of the house, right?"

"Um, yes, it does."

"Then, all you have to do is give it me. I paid for it; that's all that matters, right? Why make it so complicated?"

"I, I guess you're right."

"Oh, don't forget the change. I'm gonna need the leftover money. Since you said it can go for at least ten thousand, just make it that."

"Alright. Please wait a moment."

That went better than expected. I honestly didn't suspect that the Inner Demon Pill would be so valuable. Then again, it is almost like a suicide tactic. If you don't kill your enemy before the pill's effects fade away, you're done for.

"Ok, the house is now under your name. Here is your identification card; it digitally holds your Stones and information. Don't lose it."

The woman handed a small card to Kyte. It was a light blue color and it displayed Kyte's name on the front. The back had a single line of barcode, so Kyte assumed there was no need for numbers and what-not.

"Thank you." Kyte said before walking out of the store.

Kyte regrouped with the others and told them that he got a house. They were quite excited to know that they'll be getting a two-story house just for them. Not only that, but they would be able to wash and clean themselves. They all looked horrible, so that was one of the most important things on their minds. Another important thing was eating real food, not just improvised meals that used meat from mutated monsters in the forest. Kyte himself hadn't even eaten anything since the time at the lake, so having a full meal would be a wondrous experience.

I have to apologize for my hypocrisy; I stated that I would be gone for 2 weeks, however, I failed to achieve my goal. I might as well explain myself, right? My graduation was Tuesday and so I was incredibly busy that entire week. Not to mention celebrating my graduation; I barely had any time to even read anything!

Apparently this chapter is 2.2k words. Doesn't feel like it at all.

Concerning future releases, they will be slow. I'm in the middle of multiple IRL situations actually concerning my own life so the time and work to put into writing had greatly lessened. HOWEVER! Do not fear, for I will not drop this story! The releases will only be slower, unfortunately :( . I wish I could do something about it, but alas, I do not have that power.

Sorry about this and that.