Is that a Wisp?

The Four Sectors' Border Region.

Inside a relatively wider path in the maze-like canyon was a certain individual. She had the appearance of a woman in her sixties, sporting grey, braided hair. Her face was slightly wrinkled, though she still retained her glamour.

Moreover, her face seemed accentuated by a regal beauty that only the wisdom and maturity of age could give. Each of her actions were lithe and graceful. Moreover, she exuded a sense of peace, making the entire atmosphere around her similar to her aura.

Two men, seemingly in their twenties, were kneeling on all fours side by side, acting as the chair she was seated on. On top of that, they didn't seem troubled by this. Instead, they were in bliss to serve her. Their faces were slightly flushed as waves of giddy feelings emanated from their heart upon every subtle action of the old lady.

The old lady was wearing a robe that covered her entire body from head to toe, save for a portion that didn't cover her eyes. The dress was of mild blue hue and was made using a color tone that caused one to feel tranquility the moment one looked at her.

Whether it was her eyes, her graceful figure, or her manners, all captivated one to leave everything behind and embrace the peaceful atmosphere. The situation was the same for the 200 people seated before her in a meditating pose.

Though, judging by their getup and their messy appearances, they didn't seem to be people that followed her. Rather, they were one of the bandit groups that roamed through the region in a hunt for rich prey.

At this moment, they all were obediently meditating, as if it was how they naturally moved. Their usual vulgar expressions were non-existent, as if they had been upright individuals from birth.

"Violence begets sadness. Non-violence is the path to happiness." Her melodious voice resounded, echoing in the place as every listener nodded automatically, looking as if her words enlightened them.

"All your attacking abilities are now unnecessary." Saying so, she opened her mouth, causing a mild swirl of Godly Energy in the area. The Godly Energy flowed into the bandits and exited their bodies soon after, carrying lights of all colors with them.

"Heok!"

"Ugh!"

"Gah!"

The bandits grunted in a variety of ways as something within them seemed to have been stolen permanently. One of the bandits seated at the front inspected himself, murmuring after a second in a tone of calm, "I lost all my offensive abilities, even the ones I spent my lifetime training."

All the colorful lights converged into a sphere in front of the old lady before beginning to spin rapidly. Slowly, they mixed, mashed, fused, dispersed, disintegrated, and integrated themselves into a whole.

The old lady soon smiled as she lifted her hand, infusing blue-colored Godly Energy into the sphere, causing it to condense and continue to shrink continuously. A couple of hours later, the sphere then turned into a pair of ribbons.

The old lady blew into them while unleashing her Godly Energy, causing the pair of ribbons to multiply into two hundred and scatter towards the bandits. Like a flock of birds, the ribbons approached the bandits.

Soon, the bandit at the front watched as a pair of blue ribbons floated before his face, gently being absorbed into his body, causing him to convulse for a couple of seconds.

"Ugh!" He grunted in pain before a feeling of warmth coursed throughout his body. This feeling of warmth circulated, subtly changing his appearance. The rough features that made him seem like a true bandit mellowed out, imbuing in him an innately kinder appearance.

His appearance was still the same as before, albeit with subtle changes. All they did was give him an overall first impression of someone gentle. His muscular structure had also experienced some changes, becoming smoothened out a little.

From his bulky stature, he became mildly thinner as his muscles became more streamlined, increasing the versatility of his strength. His skin tone had also improved, becoming slightly smoother, looking like someone that hadn't experienced the harshness of the environment too much.

Any toxic substances in his body seeped out through his pores as some of his Godly Energy was consumed, washing over his entire body as it removed everything dirty about him before vaporizing, not leaving behind any traces.

Every ability he possessed—excluding the attack-based abilities that had already been taken out by the old lady—was absorbed by the pair of ribbons, experiencing a subtle change.

"I feel…stronger?" The bandit was confused as he looked at the old lady in shock. Stemming from him was zealous admiration at the selfless being before him.

He then focused on the pair of ribbons inside him, comprehending their uses as he summoned them. They were the same blue ribbons as before, but faint designs seemed to have been carved onto them. When he looked at them, he could sense his abilities had been inscribed.

Also, despite the changes, he sensed that he could still use those abilities, albeit they had to be executed in a manner different from what he was used to. The pair of ribbons had become his main method of use for some reason.

"Even if one wished to remain in peace, the world is still a scary place. Warmongers would come knocking on your doorsteps even if you have zero intentions to fight. With that, you must still have a means of protecting yourselves," the old lady spoke, watching all the bandits slowly get up as they thumped their chests.

They retained all their experiences as bandits. But now, they seemed like honorable warriors nurtured by a respectable family, judging by their demeanor.

"To a typical battle maniac, the best way to fend them off is to annoy them as much as possible until they're repulsed by the very notion of fighting. That is our way of protecting ourselves and maintaining peace." As if it was a response to her words, the ex-bandits slammed their chests once again.

The bandit at the front exuded unwavering resolve as if he had been trained for this very day. One of his pairs of ribbons shone as it coiled around his body, wrapping every nook and cranny as their sides and ends merged, turning into a cohesive armor that covered him from head to toe.

The part of his armor above his eyes shone with a blue light as his presence changed. The other ribbon formed a knot on his head. And with just a single thought, it moved forward, taking on many shapes: shields, ropes, cages, etc. All the other bandits had also executed the same thing in their armored forms.

"Change." Upon her command, all the ex-bandits connected one of their ribbons to each other, creating a massive formation, one that manifested a massive shield capable of defending against the strongest of attacks in their respective realm and even a realm beyond without suffering from a single scratch.

"Great." She nodded and proclaimed, "From today onwards, you will be reborn as the Ribbon Sect. When you die, your children will inherit your pair of ribbons, carrying your legacy of bringing peace to the world."

"Yes!" All of the armored ex-bandits shouted. Their shout thundered across a vast area, causing the listeners that had been traveling towards the Sub-Realm to become scared.

"Let's move towards the Sub-Realm, then." The old lady smiled, "Also, address me as the Seamstress."

"Yes, Lady Seamstress!" All of them shouted in return. The row of cultivators were clad in blue armor that glistened with blue light, possessing an imposing appearance.

One of them walked forward and kneeled on the ground, causing the old lady to look in surprise. He thumped his hand on his chest, speaking, "I have never revealed my demon beast form to others because I had been afraid they would abuse me. But, I finally have the guts to do so now that I am wearing this ribbon armor."

"Go ahead." She nodded, anticipating the next because this was something she hadn't come across before.

"Yes." The man nodded as his body bulged, causing his armor to collapse into a blue ribbon that coiled around his hip region. His arms turned into sharp blades, capable of piercing through anything, while his legs turned into tough stumps, dense enough to stomp on anything.

They then segmented into three, turning into flexible legs with spring-shaped musculature capable of making massive leaps. The arms turned into aerodynamic blades that maximized their ability to cut through the air.

Its face turned into a cute creature that normal people couldn't resist. Such was the charm of its face.

Upon seeing his demon beast form, exclaims of surprise and shock resounded from everyone. Even the old lady was surprised, for the demon beast race before her was infamous for scamming people. And, the worse part of it was the fact that even if they knew about them, people would still get scammed by them from time to time.

Also, thanks to their tremendous jumping ability capable of leaping kilometers with each leap, traversing them in a second, they couldn't ever be captured. And because of their repeated scams, their race garnered a lot of infamies.

Rooked Famer!

This was what their race called themselves. Even in human forms, they were still able to scam people to a considerable extent. Moreover, they were capable of subtly morphing their facial features while in human form.

This was how they changed locations from time to time in search of new prey to scam. So, the moment someone knew there was a Rooked Famer among themselves, they would immediately try to harm or even kill them. Though, they would always fail as Rooked Famers were the fastest demon beast race on land and would always escape from any situation easily by leaping from the scene.

The fact that a Rooked Famer voluntarily revealed his true identity did surprise everyone. Surprisingly, no one tried to attack him.

"Why did you reveal yourself like this?" The old lady gently smiled as she inquired.

Making a light bow with its head, the Rooked Famer replied, "I wish to serve as your mount. That way, no matter how dangerous the situation becomes, I can bring you out of it."

"Yes, Lady Seamstress. He's the perfect choice as your mount. With him, you don't have to worry about your safety." The others too chimed in.

"Fine." The Seamstress smiled as she watched the Rooked Famer manipulate its ribbon and cover itself, fully armoring itself, turning into a blue creature. With that, it now looked like an entirely different demon beast.

Moreover, the part of the ribbon forming the armor on its back changed, turning into a comfortable seat for the Seamstress to be seated. The Seamstress climbed aboard and felt that it was perfect for her, nodding in acknowledgment, causing the Rooked Famer to roar in joy.

Followed by her cue, they all started to march through the path.