The Legendary F Rank

"Humans… Hmm, how should we proceed? It's been a very long time since I have seen one of their kind like this before." One of the hooded elders said as they examined both Haru and Hong Xia.

"The best thing would be to kill them. They have found out about our existence after all. We have hidden from the world for far too long to just be simply exposed like this." Another one of the elders said as Haru felt something that he didn't expect as he looked at the last elder that had yet to speak.

"Showing hostility would not be the best course of action for our tribe. The human at the front is rather skilled in cultivation. The only thing that our people have that would make us a match for him would be our speed and stealth. 

I suggest that you don't be too hasty with your judgement as a lot of our people would be killed if you decided upon something like that. I think it would be a much better outcome if we came to an understanding." The third elder said as the other two looked at him for a few moments before chuckling to themselves.

"Their hands are already bound with the soul tearing vines. If they try to use their Qi to escape then their souls will be ripped from their bodies and won't return until the vines are released. They are completely at our mercy. Don't you think that you are giving them too much credit?" The first elder asked with a smug tone to his voice.

"You doubt me? Then how about this. We allow him to try to break free. If he can't do it then I will drop the matter and allow the two of you to decide on your own what to do with them. 

But if he can then we do as I say and try to reach an agreement. The last thing that I want is our species to dwindle any more than it already has." The third elder said as he was sure of Haru's power from using spiritual sense.

'I didn't expect that one of them would also be a cultivator? He seems to be extremely strong too. Probably as strong as Master Chu I believe.' Haru thought as he looked at the third hooded elder who had now made a bet with his colleagues.

"Hm… That's an interesting proposition… Very well. Male human! You heard what he said. If you can free yourself from the soul tearing vines then feel free to do so. No one will attack you for doing it. You have my word." The first elder said as Haru nodded his head in response.

The guards that were standing near him retreated as they heard that he was going to attempt to break through. None of them wanted to be held hostage if he decided to once his hands were free.

'I can trust the one at the end. He has seen through my strength and he knows not to underestimate a cultivator. Although I came here with them it was just because I didn't want to kill them. If I wanted to I could have killed them all with a large scale attack before they had the chance to escape or froze the ground around them and turned them into ice cubes.

But it would be a shame. And honestly, I like cats way too much to mindlessly kill them.' Haru thought as he looked around for a few moments before pulling his hands apart.

The vine's around his wrists began to dig into his skin, engraving small marks on the surface as he pulled hard and hard before eventually snapping them. The vines unravelled from his hands and dropped down to the ground in a small pile before he raised his hand in front of his face with his palms facing the elders to show them how easy it was to escape.

A small discussion broke out among the guards as they questioned if they had put the restraints on them properly but all of them agreed that there was no way that they would mess something like that up and it was exactly how the third elder had said. 

The person they had captured had only come with them voluntarily. He wasn't there because he was scared or felt threatened by any of them. It was because he had an ulterior motive. They raised their suspicions about the pair of humans once again as they couldn't understand what possible reason there would be for coming all the way into the forest only to be captured.

"See, are you now ready to let me deal with this my way?" The third elder said as the other two grunted in submission before the third elder walked over to the top of the staircase and sat down before taking the hood off his head and revealing orange fur with bright green eyes.

"What is your name?  I don't believe that I have ever heard of someone like you." The third elder said as he looked at Haru with suspicion.

"My name is Luo Yang. But I don't know what you mean by a person like me…" Haru said as he looked up at the third elder who was looking down at him from the top step.

"A person with the scent of beasts." The third elder said as Haru's eyes widened as the word for 'beast' in the Gaohen language was the same word they used to say 'dragon'.

"What are you saying?…" Haru said with a serious look in his eyes as he couldn't help but let some bloodlust escape from his body. He knew that Lao's presence within his body for all those years probably helped him improve leaps and bounds. 

But he never stopped to wonder if there would be a lingering scent of sorts or a feeling that could only be associated with dragons. But luckily for Haru, the third elder seemed to get the idea that he didn't want to discuss the topic anymore and changed his whole attitude with just a single stair from the young man before him.

"I bet you have always liked animals haven't you?" The third elder said to clarify what he meant but Haru already knew that he was just saying that to escape the fact that Haru didn't want to discuss dragons openly with anyone.

"Yes. I love animals of all kinds." Haru said which seemed to spark debate with a few of the civilians as they were questioning why the elder was talking about animals with one of the trespassers.

"So what were your intentions for coming here? Our people have made it clear that we don't want anything to do with your world anymore. Don't tell me that you were sent here by the alliance to try to bring us back to your side?" The third elder asked as Haru looked confused for a moment.

"The Kastron star alliance? I don't think I am on the best terms with those people so you don't need to worry about them sending me here. The main reason I came here was to return a claw to one of your people. The second reason was to ask why would he assassinate someone I was interrogating. But I didn't get time to ask him that question." Haru stated as it seemed like a stupid reason like he was grasping at straws but if the person that he had returned the claw to spoke up for him then they would be clear of suspicion of trying to cause them harm.

But the third elder wasn't sure how he was going to proceed with the situation. He would have loved to bring both the humans inside and question them about many things before letting them go. 

But with the audience from the civilians and guards watching the situation play out he felt as though he had to set an example for them. 

Trespassers were supposed to be killed or put to work in the mines but they had never had to deal with humans finding their home before. Since humans made up the majority of the star system he felt as though putting them to work would make them hate them and likely to try to escape and wage war against them.

So killing them was the best option but the third elder could see Haru's strength he knew that if they tried to kill him they would lose a few members of their clan along with him.

He didn't feel as though it was right to kill someone for walking through the forest. Although they had claimed that part as their territory he knew that no one had a right to claim the forest for themselves when it was shared equally between the wildlife that lived there.

"I see. So you came here to return a claw to someone. Do you happen to have proof of that?" The third elder asked as Shiba the white cat took a step forwards and called out.

"When we made it to the source of the commotion I found them there with my idiot brother but when he saw me he decided to run away. If we wait till he comes back I'm sure he will be able to tell you if it's true or not." Shiba said as Haru nodded his head in approval.

"I see. So Marco was the one responsible for luring you here. I'm sure he will be the death of all our people one day." The third elder sighed before smiling as he realised that he now had a chance to take the two humans inside to ask them questions in private.

"Well, until Marco returns I would like to take both of these humans to question them in private. Are there any objections to that?" The third elder asked as he looked back at the other two elders he didn't say anything as they agreed that they would allow him to deal with them however he wanted to.

"Good. Then I will leave Shiba and Lena to bring them inside." The third elder said as the two guards rushed over to both Haru and Hong Xia to guide them inside the large building at the top of the stairs.