Please Touch Me, Master

'H-how…?'

Ash was practically out of breath despite being an existence more akin to an Undead than anything else in the world. Undead weren't supposed to feel fatigue, but perhaps it was due to the mental pressure constantly on her, she felt weary.

But how could anyone blame her?

'I've been traveling for a few days now… but I haven't run into Lord Bi yet. How come?'

She began to doubt herself—wondering if she had made the right call by leaving the cave. What if Bi Chen had returned to the cave and was searching for her? What if his intention all along was for her to recuperate while he attended to business outside?

'Did I misread his intention? Oh no… what should I do now?'

A tinge of regret churned within her, but she didn't allow herself to get consumed by it. Still, the bitterness in her heart was hard to get rid of.

'Throughout the days I've been traveling, I've encountered several Abominations. I have had to flee from many, while also killing my fair share of them.' A sigh left her lips as her body shook as a result of the mounting pressure.

If she had just stayed in the cave, perhaps none of this would have happened.

"ROOOAAARRR!!!"

The roar of a distant Abomination caused Ash's face to turn even paler, her body rapidly moving in order to find a hiding place. Unfortunately, in an attempt to escape the Abomination, she found herself in a completely unfamiliar place.

And worst of all, it was crawling with Abominations!

There were five Abominations, all of whom were Rank 1. But to the current Ash, they might as well have been death sentences, since she had almost no methods to deal with all of them at once.

She wanted to escape, but found that the roaring Abomination from before was slowly walking through the entrance.

Ash was trapped!

'Lord Bi, I'm so sorry!' Her eyes tightly shut as she made a desperate cry. 'Please save me!'

Despite making this silent prayer, nothing happened.

The Abominations pounced on her, and though she managed to escape with her life, she lost a portion of her limb and was severely injured. This was even after using her full strength to evade their assault.

'I can't beat them! They're definitely going to kill me…' 

Ash could already see her end right in front of her, and without Bi Chen around, she wasn't sure if she could revive again. A feeling of dejectedness clutched at her heart, but she still held out hope that Bi Chen would come and save her.

She didn't even want to consider the possibility that Bi Chen had completely abandoned her.

'I just need to hold out for a while…' Her ragged breaths echoed in the clearing. 'Lord Bi will definitely save me!'

And so she fought on.

She even managed to kill two Abominations, but at the cost of most of her limbs. She was severely injured, and if she was an actual living person, she would have died a long time ago.

However, even the resilience of her undying body couldn't protect her for too long.

At this point, she was on the ground, having been shoved to the wall by one of the larger Abominations. Her two hands were gone, and only one of her legs was remaining.

Essentially, she was helpless.

'Damnit…' Ash gritted her teeth, fighting off the tears in her eyes as she witnessed death approaching. Bi Chen still hadn't come, and as time passed, the hope of him coming was getting diminished.

Ash didn't want to have the thought, but it flashed in her mind like an intrusive thought.

'What if he doesn't come?!'

She shuddered at the thought, banishing it almost instantly. Still, her pathetic state and hopeless situation served as a grim reminder of reality, rapidly eating away at the fantasy that she had built up in her head.

From what she could see, there was little to no hope for salvation.

"Is this… truly the end…?"

She closed her eyes in resignation, unable to muster any more strength to protect herself. 

However, in a cruel twist of fate, it was only after she had this thought that a qualitative change occurred. 

VWUUSH!

It was sudden and bright, causing Ash to snap her eyes wide open.

Her body trembled, revealing a powerful aura that caused even the Abominations to shrink back out of their survival instincts. The effect of this light was instantaneous, as Ash's entire body became immersed in it and she vanished from her position.

One moment, she was staring at the Rank 1 Abominations, and the next… she was right beside the Zombie body of her Sovereign Lord—

"Lord Bi!" Ash yelled out, her eyes wide with surprise and filled with tears.

Bi Chen glanced at her, his cold expression slowly morphing into a smile. He leaned closer and patted her head, allowing soothing words to leave his lips.

"You did well holding on for so long. Congratulations… you're Level 5 now."

'L-Level 5?! I actually… reached that level already?' The last time Ash saw Bi Chen, he was only in Level 3, so Level 5 was a big deal for her.

'Does that mean Lord Bi has been monitoring my growth all along?' She wondered, but quickly came to her realization. 'I understand it now! He wasn't close to the cave at all. He left me there so that I could fight Abominations as I made my way to him.'

By doing that, she would increase her strength—even if she didn't realize it.

'He already had a method to teleport me to his side, but he only did so when he realized I could not fight any longer. Lord Bi, you…. You're so amazing!'

The darkness that clouded her heart quickly vanished, replaced by renewed hope and admiration towards her Sovereign Lord.

In fact, Ash even felt ashamed that she doubted him for even a second.

'He is the Sovereign Undying Lord, after all. There's no way he wouldn't have thought about all of these matters.' Ash nodded to herself, a smile of relief playing on her face. 'He truly is unfathomable. I tried to understand his intentions, but failed in the end…'

"Thank you, Lord Bi!" 

"You're heavily injured, so you should take a rest here. I've confirmed that there are no Abominations around, and since that Rank 2 is just up ahead, I doubt there will be any Rank 1 who will show up to cause trouble…" He raised her and gently placed her injured body close to the wall.

Ash felt like she was in a dream, feeling the warmth of his touch and the bliss that accompanied his affection. She was so dazed that all she could do was nod while he spoke to her.

It was only after a few seconds that she snapped back to reality.

"L-Lord Bi! You said the Rank 2 is up ahead, is it the—?"

"Yes. It's the one you failed to eliminate back then. I've been tracking its movements, and I plan to kill it now."

"Ahh… that's great!" Ash beamed. "Did the Artifact Crafting succeed? Where is the Artifact?"

Upon hearing this question, Bi Chen made a bitter smile and shook his head. "It failed, but there's no need to be concerned. Not only is the Rank 2 injured, I have also devised a proper plan to eliminate it."

"I-I see…"

"Plus, it's been over two weeks since you've been asleep. I've grown considerably stronger since then…" Bi Chen's words matched the confidence he showed on his face.

It made Ash develop even more confidence in him and in this "plan" that he had devised.

"W-what Level have you reached now, Lord Bi?"

A smirk formed on his face as he shrugged casually, slowly walking away from her. It was only at this point that Ash noticed several small containers made from dark ash patches strapped all around Bi Chen's body, particularly his waist. They were all connected to layers of black strings that formed belts or braces to hold these many small patches together.

However, before she could ask any question, he had already walked a considerable distance from her. Only the echoes of his voice remained, dancing in her ears until her eyes widened.

"Level 10!"