In order to remain undetected, they took various detours and only arrived at night. Adrian was a bit worried that the family that lived there would be around. He wanted to avoid anyone who would recognize him as a member of the Thorne family.
Luckily for him, no one was home. He didn't have time to ponder the reason why, as he quickly ushered the kids inside the house.
Only after they were inside did he heave a sigh of relief. The kids' tense bodies also visibly relaxed. They had been on the move all day, and Adrian could tell that they were tired.
Jayson was still okay as he was in the Qi condensation realm, however, Olivia was still just a mortal. Despite that, she didn't utter one word of complaint.
This surprised Adrian a bit, and his view of her improved a bit.
However, their journey hadn't ended yet. They planned to use the cover of darkness to escape and flee the city. He took both of them to the basement of the building where a formation was set up.
Like the previous one, this formation could be used to leave the city undetected. Without wasting any time, he brought out a bunch of spirit stones and activated the formation.
Since there were multiple individuals using it at the same time, the energy required to power it was several times more than normal. The formation crystal he had would not be enough.
Luckily, qi stones could be used to provide the remaining energy. He didn't know how much was needed, therefore he just dumped a large amount of qi stones in the formation.
Hundreds of thousands of qi stones appeared out of thin air and piled up into a small mountain inside the formation. Adrian had emptied about half the contents of his storage ring without hesitation.
This amount was akin to the entire life savings of a weaker Golden Core Formation realm cultivator. However, Adrian didn't mind it. If it could guarantee the safety of him and his siblings, then it was worth it.
The formation lit up and let out a blinding light that threatened to expose their actions. Luckily, they were in the basement of the house. The qi stones started turning to dust by the thousands as the energy inside them was siphoned off to power the formation.
With a whooshing sound, the three of them disappeared, leaving behind a pile of dust and a few thousand qi stones as the only evidence that they were ever there.
It seemed that the owner of the house was in for a pleasant surprise when he got home that day.
This time, they appeared in a stone room in the mountain, west of the city. The room was bare, with only a few amenities like a bed and chair present. The walls were filled with crystals that emitted a soft glow that illuminated it but wasn't too bright.
The three of them didn't pay attention to any of these as fatigue washed over them. The kids didn't even wait for him before they jumped onto the bed and promptly fell asleep.
Seeing this, Adrian let out a light chuckle. He didn't immediately go to sleep like them. Instead, he started exploring his surroundings. He exited the room to find similar ones right next to it.
He checked each of them one by one and was surprised to find multiple warehouses chock-full of supplies. This alleviated his worries a bit. The journey ahead was going to be long, so having supplies would indeed be helpful.
With that out of the way, he also succumbed to the weight of slumber.
Adrian woke up after an unknown amount of time. They were currently inside the mountain, so he couldn't tell the time. But with his biological clock, he knew it was already a new day.
He glanced into the room that the kids were occupying and found them still asleep, snuggling up to each other. A smile graces his lips as he firmly bottles down all of the negative emotions welling up inside him.
'I don't have time to grieve. I still have to get us somewhere safe.' He thought to himself as he forced back a tear.
Shaking his head, he went into a kitchen he had found yesterday and started cooking. He wasn't exactly a master chef, but he knew enough to make something decent.
His time in the Misty Mountains had taught him various survival skills, including cooking. As the aroma of his cooking wafted into the atmosphere, the two sleeping children slowly woke up.
Olivia was rubbing her eyes groggily as he traced the source of the delicious aroma. She soon found Adrian in the kitchen, where he was serving up their meals.
"B-Big brother." Her tiny voice called out shyly. She still wasn't used to addressing him like that. It had only been a day after all. He didn't say anything, but simply smiled at her and gestured for her to sit.
She did so and soon, in front of her was a plate full of steaming hot food. The little girl started drooling unknowingly before she grabbed her utensils and, without hesitation, dug in.
A few minutes later, Jayson walked in and his actions mimicked those of Olivia's. Adrian sat at the table as well, and the three siblings began eating. Even though they were silent, the atmosphere was peaceful, which soothed everyone's nerves.
It didn't take them long to finish, and they all left to freshen up. Luckily, this hidden location in the mountain was filled with all the basic amenities, including a bathroom.
When they were all done, they donned their clothes. Instead of the flashy and luxurious attire that they usually wore, this time, they only wore simple black robes.
Adrian then led them out into the passage that led outside. At the end of the passage, he moved a large boulder that was blocking the entrance. Rays of light shone on them as they could finally breathe in the fresh air of the outside world.
However, they didn't waste their time taking in the view. The demonic cultivators were still close by; therefore, they could not avoid any mishaps.
However, they were in a bit of a dilemma. The lands of the Floating Cloud continent were vast. Travelling from one place to another was usually done with the aid of magical beast mounts or artifacts.