Dual Cultivation: Beasts and Women!

Their plan was to move at dusk. They would follow Mary and Jane closely, but for now, they wanted to watch them and, if possible, act at a moment of vulnerability.

But just as they reached them, Jane noticed their group, exceeding their expectations.

Abimael was silent for a moment, pondering what to do in this situation. The ideal would be to use the element of surprise to their advantage, so that they could win as easily as possible. But since that was no longer possible, it was up to them to act now or face an even more difficult time later.

With a swift, deliberate movement, he emerged from the shadows, revealing himself more directly to Mary and Jane. As he stepped forward, his companions followed suit, materializing at four different points around the two women.

Jane, with her unwavering strength, stood resolute amidst their supernatural presence. But there was more to this encounter than met the eye. Five figures stood before them, each emanating an aura of power, and they were bolstered by an army of 10 Spirits on their side. In stark contrast, Mary and Jane could only rely on the support of 4 Spirits, their numbers seemingly insignificant in comparison.

The advantage was clearly on the enemies' side!

"Miss Mary, this one here is Abimael, a member of Emerald Owls." The enemy leader came straight to the point, 20 meters away from the two women. "I'm here to make you an offer." He smiled and gestured with one hand to show calm.

Mary frowned as one of her hands clenched a dagger behind her back. 'Are you trying to pit me against Liam?' She understood the situation, feeling her heart pounding and her thoughts flying.

She could strike first and start this fight, or she could listen to the enemy's suggestion and see if it was possible to avoid a fight.

To be honest, Mary didn't want to fight five opponents. As much as she and Jane were stronger than their enemies—individually speaking—they weren't born warriors. Without their Spirits, they would have trouble facing them.

'I can probably kill one of them by surprise, and if I'm lucky, Jane will act and maybe immobilize another, but there will still be at least 6 Spirits against us.' She thought as Abimael made his proposition.

"... Miss Mary, we know you and Liam Porter are close. But don't take this the wrong way. We wish you no harm. Our business is against him.

What we want from you is a simple agreement. You have two choices here. Agree to go after him more directly and poison him, or go after him indirectly and lead him into our trap and we'll do the work.

Whichever you choose, we will protect you and reward you when everything is resolved. We'll even accept you into our faction and give you a position of great importance!" Abimael said in an energetic tone, gesturing with his fingers to show how much Mary would gain from this.

Jane looked at her friend out of the corner of her eye, unsure what the woman's decision would be. She didn't know what Mary's relationship was with this Liam Porter. In fact, she didn't even know who Liam was. But from Abimael's words, Mary and Liam should be friends or, more likely, lovers. Now, he was probably in serious trouble.

'Will she accept?' Jane speculated.

She didn't have the malice common to the Demon Gate disciples. Her background differed from almost all the members of the sect, and her powers contributed to her current personality. But she wasn't stupid, let alone as childish as she seemed. She knew where she lived and wouldn't judge anyone in Demon Gate for a decision like the one Mary should make.

Whatever Mary's decision, this woman should not be judged. The decision to fight and protect a friend was remarkable and worthy of respect. Jane would certainly help in the fight. But to abandon a friend and throw him to the wolves was understandable.

Were there any genuine friendships in a place like this? Would Liam Porter risk himself for Mary if the situation were reversed?

Jane would also support Mary if she made a deal with Emerald Owls and would not judge her hunting companion!

Mary thought about what to do, changing her posture and looking doubtful.

Having decided, she looked into Abimael's eyes and asked, "What guarantee do I have that you won't turn your weapons on me as soon as I let my guard down?"

Abimael liked the question and revealed an enchanted piece of paper. "A contract will guarantee your safety, miss. All you have to do is help us eliminate Liam Porter. We'll do everything else and give you all the benefits, including the guarantee that we won't harm you and will continue to protect you."

Mary smiled and stepped forward as she raised a hand. "Then let's make a deal," she said in a melodious tone, her voice extremely pleasant to male ears.

Jane remained silent as she grimaced, letting her guard down for a moment.

Meanwhile, Abimael felt he had made the right move and stepped forward as well, while his men laughed, also easing their tension.

Come to think of it, that was the most likely outcome, right? Who would be loyal to someone else after only a few weeks at each other's side? Especially in a place like Demon Gate and in a deadly situation like this.

Each of these men, and even Jane, thought the same thing. Meanwhile, Mary stopped just a few feet in front of Abimael.

Just as they were about to shake hands, the metallic sound of a weapon being summoned rang out, followed by a slashing motion against the air.

Swooish!

"You!"

All Abimael could manage was that word as he raised both hands to his neck.

In a single motion, a silver dagger had appeared in one of Mary's hands, then slashed diagonally until it struck the left side of Abimael's neck, cutting a six-inch gash.

Blood splattered on Mary's clothes as each of the five people around felt goosebumps and the tension of the fight return.

"Shit!" Jane shouted as she raised her guard again, cursing her friend inwardly for not arranging such a move before acting.

Abimael's four allies moved as well, already using their Spirits as they raised their guard again.

Abimael fell to his knees before Mary, a look of incomprehension on his face. 'Why?' He wanted to ask, but he couldn't.

His body collapsed at Mary's feet, with no more strength or signs of danger.

Simultaneously with the darkness covering Abimael's eyes, Mary made two Spirits appear around her, one the gray-skinned demon and the other the blue-gray Terraquatzal with rocky reliefs on its scales.

She didn't hesitate to command her two Spirits, retreating toward Jane as she launched the creatures to attack the Spirit Masters in the area.

A powerful scent of flowers filled this small patch of forest, covering the area in a mixture of numbing dust and disorienting mist.

Plant roots grew violently, racing against the enemy bodies as Terraquatzal came face to face with the first opposing Spirits.

"Let's join forces. We don't have the numbers, but we're stronger and we'll attack first." Mary said to her friend as she stood with her back to Jane.

"Right." Jane agreed immediately. "By the way, you surprised me. I thought you actually wanted to make a deal with them."

"Never!" Mary laughed as she said it, but the confident resolve in her voice couldn't be ignored.

Jane beamed, growing more interested in this friend, but also in this Liam Porter. 'I can't wait to meet this guy.' She thought to herself, listening to her friend again.

"Command your two Spirits to fight. My defense has evolved a lot because of my second Spirit, so I'll protect you if necessary," Mary said, aware that this was a risky but necessary strategy.

If they couldn't use all of their Spirits against the four remaining enemies, they would be in terrible shape quickly!

Jane nodded in agreement, imagining that she would have no choice but to trust her. Luckily for both of them, she had very strong field power in the woods.

With their first attack, another enemy would fall, with the poisonous roots of one of the surrounding trees immobilizing the body of one of the four enemy Spirit Masters.

Jane had attacked right after Mary, outpacing the speed of the four Spirit Masters who were weaker than her. As a result, she could take down one of them just as his Spirits appeared and tried to counterattack.

But with the fall of the second enemy, the remaining three retreated a bit, cautiously using their 6 Spirits against the 4 Spirits of these two women.

'If we don't hurt one of them, we'll be in trouble!' One of them realized as he broke out in a cold sweat, feeling the blows his Spirits were exchanging with their opponents.

As much as Mary's first Spirit was only a 4-Star Spirit Lord, her new Spirit was a 6-Star Spirit Lord, while Jane's Spirits were 5-Star one and 6-Star one. At the same time, the enemies' Spirits were 3-Star and 4-Star Spirit Lords, much weaker than their opponents!

Even if they had more Spirits on their side, their numerical advantage wouldn't last for long!

With beads of cold sweat trickling down his face, the man drew his weapon and stealthily navigated through the fog-covered area, searching for the enemy Spirit Masters.