The time was starting to wear on, and night began to settle in the Origin Realm, so after profusely thanking Will for all his help over the past hour or so, Rohan and Elane promptly departed the city hall.

But compared to the time they first entered over an hour previously, they felt much more free, and even more confident. They weren’t under any shackles thanks to the priceless treasure they were lugging around anymore, and even better than that was Rohan’s new improvement to his strength, unarguably the greatest improvement he’d seen so far.

The shift from his F rank Firestone Skin to his E rank Molten-stone Skin didn’t just effect his defensive capabilities, but also his strength, speed and other physical capabilities as well.

The F rank version was already capable of boosting his strength far beyond what an ordinary Awakened at his level could achieve, and the E rank version was even more outrageous than that.

Rohan was eager to test out his newfound strength, especially in the Awakened Association’s testing centres again.

’If I recall correctly, my previous score in the strength test was 31.2.’

Back then, that score had already felt absurd to him. Rohan still remembered the shock he felt when he heard that result for the first time. At the time, he’d barely just awakened yet he stood shoulder to shoulder with Peak F rank Awakened who had been in and out of the Origin Realm and cultivating their strength for years.

But that smugness didn’t last long. His standards had already changed, and what once felt extraordinary now looked almost mediocre compared to the level he was at now.

He knew that the levels of strength for an F rank Awakened with only Normal tier Genes and Genetic Armaments usually capped out between 30 and 35, so even before his transformation he equalled an Normal tier peak F rank Awakened in terms of strength — though he knew that wasn’t an accurate gauge for his strength either, as those numbers were only from a week of cultivating his genome.

Now, nearly another two weeks later, it was bound to be even higher, perhaps between 40 and 50. ’But that’s before my Gene evolved.’

With his recent changes, he had no clue what kind of result he would achieve in his next strength test.

’I also need to find out what the averages are for Awakened with Elite tier and even Commander tier Genes and Genetic Armaments to compare myself with them.’

After all, only having the numbers of ordinary Awakened didn’t really give him much information to compare himself to.

However, as they stepped outside the city hall’s grandiose doors, Rohan and Elane stopped in their tracks before they managed to walk a few steps.

"It looks like word has spread." Rohan muttered quietly in Elane’s ear.

All around them, whether it be passersby on the street, people inside the buildings opposite, and even some of the Awakened walking past them into the city hall — they were being watched.

Not from curious glances either, as there wasn’t anything too interesting about them since Rohan had long deactivated his Molten-stone Skin.

These gazes were pure, like that of a predator watching its prey from a distance. Nobody was even trying to hide it either, everyone in the know openly watched them as if they had nothing to lose and nothing to hide.

It was obvious why they were all doing this.

’Looks like Rudith managed to get the word across after all.’

He knew that was the only possible answer, since Will hadn’t even started writing the report yet, let alone handed it in.

’Which makes these people more dangerous than if the higher ups wanted to get in touch with us.’

After all, the higher ups of the Federation — all those heads of family clans, military big shots, bureaucrats, you name it — they would never be so open with their stalking like this, and they might even do it through official channels.

They would soon learn that the treasure was no longer available after Rohan absorbed it regardless, so their interest in them is sure to drop.

’Well, that’s too bad for these guys as well.’

Taking the time to return his gaze to each and every single Awakened who openly watched them like hawks, Rohan suddenly let off a daunting smile.

Then, even more confusingly for these people, he began speaking quite loudly, with his voice reverberating throughout the street in front of the city hall.

"I know what you’re all here for!" He shouted.

He never received an answer though, and Elane had already stepped off to the side and leaned against one of the large pillars supporting the pediment above them with her eyes closed.

"But I have some bad news for you guys, I already sold it! Hahaha! Too late, you suckers!" He laughed and mocked them without a single care in the world.

If this were before... well, let’s be real, he still would have taunted them like this, knowing that it might lead to them being killed the next time they ventured out of the city.

This time, though? Not a chance. Not with his current strength. If any one of these Awakened dared to try something like that on them, then they were in for quite a rude awakening.

Even if an E rank were to pursue them, they would be able to escape back to the city quite easily before dying. No longer would they have to bow down whenever an E rank Awakened felt like bullying them.

With Rohan’s E rank Elite tier defence, even an E rank Elite like the old man from the Red Fang exchange house might not be able to take him down before he returns to the city!

Many people frowned after hearing what Rohan said, as the fact that they no longer saw the large, nearly human sized flower sitting atop his shoulders backed up his claim of selling it.

Even if he was lying about that, it still meant that it was no longer on his person, and considering the only place they’d been since entering Erenhot this time round was the city hall, trying to break in and take it was completely off the table.

Some people scowled at him and turned to leave. But some people still stayed.

’Tsk, stubborn bastards. Can’t you just take the hint and fuck off?’

It was bound to happen. Greed would drive people to do crazy things, and the Awakened most desperate to get their hands on the treasure would never take Rohan’s words at face value unless they confirmed it for themselves.

Unfortunately for them, they’d only get that chance when Rohan and Elane left the city, which for now, was not happening!

"Man, I’m exhausted..." Rohan muttered while yawning.

Being up for over 24 hours was one thing, but the physical and mental exertion they endured in that time frame felt as if they had been awake and fighting for a week straight instead.

It was about time they called it a night since the sky had already turned dark, so they checked into the best looking inn they could find in order to catch a good night’s sleep.