With such an unexpected encounter, especially on their route to one of the marked inheritance locations, Edifice figured that there was some sort of correlation.
While she can't be so certain, Edifice held hope that their search would come to an end.
'This hideous beast might be connected to the inheritance.'
'If so, then the current location we are heading to might be the true location of the inheritance!'
'But we'd need to defeat this beast to reach it, assuming that it is guarding the inheritance...'
"Dawn, is there anything on your mind about this beast?"
Dawn shook her head in response, leaving Edifice to contemplate their next steps.
The beast never left its position, but was still looking in their direction.
"It has to be guarding something, and I'm betting that it's the inheritance."
"I'm also sure that it's guarding something. Whether it's the inheritance or something else, are we going to take the risk?"
Sighing, Edifice considered the risk of launching the entire caravan against the beast.
She also considered just the two of them fighting against it, but doing so would leave the caravan unprotected.
Edifice turned to Dawn for her opinion.
"How do you think we should go about this? I don't want one of us to tackle this alone, but I also don't want to implicate the caravan, or leave them without our immediate aid."
Turning around, Dawn looked at the caravan behind her, focusing on the frontmost carriage with Selene.
"Well... How about this for consideration?"
...
The hideous beast's muscles bulged under the striped fur, its long tail waved high above.
Only one eye peered through the curtain of its messy hair, narrowing and twitching as it watched a lone person approaching.
Pale, golden light surged forth, and a crescent blade cut the air.
It was slapped by the dragon-like tail as the hideous beast snarled.
Dawn sent a flurry of crescent blades towards the beast, who retaliated with a low roar.
As the two battled, they uplifted terrain and smashed apart trees.
Driving the battle deeper into the forest, Dawn distracted the beast from the path it was defending.
"Charge forth! The inheritance is located further ahead."
With the hideous beast absent, Edifice led her caravan forward.
Their goal was to reach their location where the inheritance was marked, which was supposed to be a cave.
Looking at the source of the rumbling lands and loud collisions, Edifice's brows were tight as she wished for Dawn's safety.
She turned her gaze forward again, focusing on Immersion to constantly check her surroundings, but also looking around with her eyes.
'That hideous beast could use Dao Arts to mask itself. Typically, Mystical Beast Kings and Spirits can't hide from Immersion.'
'I wasn't able to spot this thing through Immersion or ordinary eyesight, achieving this requires a powerful Dao Art of high-level Clarity.'
'So... this thing must be a human creation, or a human...'
'Its level of intelligence is bestial, but its human traits are undeniable. What a terrifying creation...'
Soon, after travelling a few hundred meters, the first sight of the cave was seen.
There was a cliff with various openings in its surface.
Edifice ensured that there was nothing within the immediate two hundred meters before moving forward.
However, the beasts pulling the carriages seemed reluctant to get too close to the openings.
"Keep them here, tie them to a tree nearby."
Edifice turned back and checked on Dawn and the hideous beast through Immersion.
Ensuring that Dawn was safe, Edifice quickly entered the largest opening.
...
Using Immersion to guide her path, Edifice ran through the caves with quick speed.
Abruptly, the walls opened wider and the roof rose drastically. The floor fell into a drop, bringing Edifice to a stop.
Before her, the cave opened into a wide area, the roof extended several hundred meters high, and a dim light filtered through a single opening in the roof.
It shone upon a large pool of murky silver; it swirled and ebbed gently.
The air was cold and thick, and Qi was abundant in the air.
'Such a large Spirit Spring!'
'It's natural too... is this the inheritance?'
Edifice was shocked at the discovery, shaking her head to reset her focus.
Quickly scanning the area, she found no hostile entities or arrangements in the cave, promptly leaving the scene.
'I can't tell whether this is truly the inheritance left behind by that State Cultivator, but the Spirit Spring is a valuable treasure in of itself!'
'It should be fine to leave the caravan within the cave while I leave to aid Dawn!'
Thinking so, Edifice felt an awful foreboding. She unconsciously found herself wishing for Dawn's safety.
...
Amid dirt clouds and torn foliage, Dawn found herself retreating while constantly drawing the hideous beast's attention.
This was her plan, to distract the beast while Edifice takes the caravan to the marked location -- the cave.
Doing so, and ensuring that it is safe, Edifice would soon join with Dawn to battle the beast and put it down.
All while keeping it far from implicating the caravan, and the supposed inheritance location.
Dawn was merely keeping the hideous beast occupied; she did not need, nor want, to engage it fiercely.
It roared furiously as it charged and flicked its tail; its low groans and growls were sickening to listen to.
Cutting golden arcs in the air, Dawn sent forth another flurry of crescent blades.
However, the beast merely turned away, not whipping with its tail as it usually did.
"What is..."
Before Dawn could finish that sentence, the hideous beast shot forward, quickly leaving in the direction of the marked location.
In other words, it was heading towards the caravan.
Dawn pushed off the ground with incredible power, rushing forward in a single leap.
Raising her weapon -- Iron Lotus: Night Breaching Spear -- Qi flowed abundantly into its blade as it burned white hot.
However, the blade did not meet with the beast's back, but another attack from the side.
Dawn blocked the sudden attack, but was knocked from the air.
She landed roughly on the ground and rolled into a crouched stance.
The hideous beast continued to flee, leaving her in the uplifted terrain.
"I don't suppose you can leave, right?"
"..."
Before her, a figure dressed in white appeared from thin air.
His voice still had its youthful tone, but was mired with arrogance and pride.
"I can't have an outsider throwing their hand into our matters... So I ask that you leave and not interfere."
...