Chapter 28: The Price Of The Bind

Chapter 28: Chapter 28: The Price Of The Bind

Soon, the families said their final goodbyes, each heading back toward their respective territories.

Upon returning to the grand Astaraeas estate, the family of three immediately gathered within the quiet sanctuary of Aldrich’s private study.

Once they settled onto the plush leather couches, Aldrich wasted no time and dove straight into the core matter.

"Son, it is time you receive our family’s foundational cultivation technique," Aldrich started, his expression shifting into a serious, formal mask. He handed over a small square object as it materialized in his hand.

"This is an Astral Nexus Chip. Sealed inside is our supreme inheritance. The Celestial Star Codex. Memorize every single detail of it well."

Aeon accepted the artifact, his eyes curiously examining its structure. It was a sleek, silver-black chip with perfectly smooth edges and intricate, microscopic glowing lines carved systematically across its surface. A tiny, flawless crystal rested directly at its center, emitting a soft, pulsing silver light that gave the object a deeply ancient yet hyper-advanced appearance.

The Astral Nexus Chip was a legendary piece Mix of technology and Magic used exclusively by peak factions to store high-tier data and secret techniques.

It was a masterclass fusion of ancient runic arrays and nanoscopic constructs. The specific chip Aldrich had just handed over was a Transcendent-rank artifact, fully capable of locking down a family legacy without any risk of external data corruption.

Aeon turned the shimmering chip over in his palm, looking toward his parents. "How do I initialize the transmission?"

"Just tap it directly against your forehead, dear," Elisabeth instructed, her face breaking into a warm, encouraging smile.

Following her direction, Aeon raised the silver-black chip and pressed it firmly against his brow.

Whoosh!

Instantly, a massive, roaring torrent of structured information flooded straight into his consciousness, completely expanding his internal memory banks.

The complete, unedited blueprints of the Celestial Star Codex unpacked themselves within his mind. The technique’s complex energy conversion mechanics, its highly dangerous internal meridian pathways, and its secret, specialized cross-bonding sword techniques were all meticulously mapped into his brain.

Aeon closed his eyes, utilizing the absolute passive processing of his Infinite Memory to carefully read through the overwhelming tide of data, permanently etching every single character into his soul.

Within a mere two minutes, he had completely memorized, cross-referenced, and understood the technique’s operational framework. Thanks to his Infinite Comprehension, his mind was already actively breaking down the syntax, refining its flaws, and optimizing the style far past its original limits.

Withdrawing the silver-black chip from his forehead, Aeon calmly handed the artifact back to his father. "I’m fully done, Dad."

Aldrich and Elisabeth stared at one another, a look of profound confusion and staggering surprise instantly etching itself onto their features. They synchronized perfectly, voicing their disbelief in a single, startled breath.

"Already?!"

Aeon nodded, a playful, innocent smile playing on his lips. "Yeah. I have completely memorized and thoroughly understood the foundational mechanics of the technique."

Aldrich stared at his son in absolute, his jaw dropped slightly in astonishment. The Celestial Star Codex was an exceptionally complex Divine-rank technique. Even when Aldrich himself was widely hailed as one of the finest, most terrifying prodigies of his entire era, it had still taken him a full, uninterrupted month of grueling meditation just to comprehend the basic framework. Yet, his ten year-old son had completely unraveled it in a mere two minutes.

"Two minutes... Hahaha! Our boy truly is blessed by the The Ancestoral Dargon, El!" Aldrich burst into a roaring, deeply proud laugh, his broad shoulders shaking as he looked toward Elisabeth.

The Duchess, meanwhile, maintained a tender, intensely loving smile on her face, her beautiful eyes shining with a wave of unbridled maternal pride. "It is absolute perfection. His future path will burn brighter and brighter with every passing day."

She was deeply ecstatic that her son’s talent defied all logic, but a small layer of maternal worry still softened her gaze. In this brutal universe, children who displayed such monstrous aptitude were always the immediate primary targets for rival empires and the fanatical factions of the Voidbound Cult.

Although the the races has agreed peace treaty, there are the corrupted and racism ones who wants to either manipulate or get rid talented ones.

Aldrich rolled his shoulders, getting straight back to business. "What is your next intended step, son? Shall we begin the first stage of the Warrior Path?"

Aeon smiled, raising his hand to state his terms. "Father, Mother, if possible, I would like to cultivate entirely on my own in absolute isolation for the next five years. I want to test my limits and see exactly how far I can push my foundation without any external guidance."

In reality, Aeon needed to slip away into his private pocket world to exploit its time-dilation mechanics. Because his unmasked Infinite parameters required an exceptionally larger reservoir of cosmic fuel to level up, his cultivation progress was standardly 100x slower and harder than a normal person’s. The absolute best tactical choice was to secure a massive block of unbothered isolation for himself.

The room fell into a brief, contemplative silence as his parents exchanged a lingering look. Finally, Elisabeth chuckled softly, her eyes warm. "Very well, dear. True monsters and peerless geniuses have always possessed highly peculiar minds. Let’s see exactly how far your own conviction will carry you."

Aldrich nodded firmly, supporting the choice. "I will personally instruct the household staff to stack a continuous supply of high-grade cultivation rations and premium magical resources inside the private training hall. I will ensure the perimeter is entirely locked down. No one will dare to bother your isolation. If you find yourself needing anything at all, simply project your voice."

Five years of isolation was a magnificent timeline for Aeon. Under the Level 1 time-dilation rules of his domain, five external years translated to a staggering 1,825 years of internal time.

It was more than enough time for an apex predator to refine his weapons, master his elements, and build a foundation that would completely shatter the world.

Aeon’s smile widened as he stood up from the couch, stepping forward to wrap his parents in a tight, affectionate hug. "Thank you, Mom, Dad. I promise I will not disappoint your expectations."

Elisabeth gently rubbed the back of his hair, her voice dripping with pure, unconditional tenderness. "It’s completely fine, dear. No matter what happens, we will always be immensely proud of you."

A short while later, Aeon stood alone within the reinforced white chamber of the estate’s private training hall. Piled neatly in the corner of the chamber was an immense mountain of nutrient-dense cultivation rations and high-tier Magical resources.

Emma was currently resting on his left shoulder, her tiny lower eyelids turning pink as large, dramatic tears began to pool in her blue eyes.

"Why, Master?! Why do you have to do this?!" Emma demanded with a heavy, adorable pout, stomping her tiny foot against his robe. "Can’t you just wait a little bit and spend some actual time out here in this place? Why are you immediately running right back into that isolated space? Do you even realize that five years out here equals to nearly two thousand years inside the dimension?! I absolutely cannot stay trapped inside that empty landscape for that long! I’ll go crazy!"

To her hyper-active nature, her master was nothing short of an absolute training maniac. He had literally just stepped out of a grueling six month session, and within hours, he was preparing to plunge right back into the dark for a millennium.

Aeon let out a soft laugh at her dramatic expression. "Hahaha! Emma, there’s absolutely no rule stating you have to remain locked inside the dimension with me. Since you can now safely leave the boundaries of the pocket world, you are entirely free to go out and explore the outside universe. Just make sure you don’t wander past the borders of the Northern Region."

The moment the directive left his lips, Emma’s tragic, sorrowful expression vanished instantly, replaced by a radiant wave of pure, sparkling hope. "Oh! you are right. But..but it is my duty and my very reason for existence to manage the domain and take care of your needs while you are cultivating, Master!"

Aeon smiled warmly. Raising his right index finger, he gently tapped the top of her tiny head. "It’s completely fine, Emma. Your happiness and freedom mean significantly more to me than a strict operational routine. You can always slide back into the dimension whenever you feel homesick. Besides, our conscious minds are permanently bound by a soul link, so we can communicate effortlessly no matter how many dimensions separate us. Go out and enjoy your time."

Emma’s eyes swelled with genuine, deeply touched tears. Overwhelmed by his profound kindness, she zipped into the air and threw herself against his face, planting a tight, affectionate kiss directly onto his cheek.

"You truly are the absolute greatest Master in the entire universe!" she cheered ecstatically.

Without waiting for a reply, she spun around, flying toward the heavy reinforced exit doors and phasing cleanly through the solid metal structure like a streak of golden light.

Aeon merely shook his head in fond amusement, and awkwardly joked while watching her vanish. "I swear, that little servant of mine is becoming incredibly spoiled. Well, whosefault is that, haha."

Turning his attention back to the mountain of resources, Aeon locked down his focus. With a sharp mental command, he opened the cosmic pathway to his domain, vacuuming the five years’ worth of cultivation rations straight into his inventory before stepping through the threshold himself.

Whoosh!

In a flash of light, he materialized directly on top of the majestic marble platform sitting within his private palace courtyard.

Dropping smoothly into a cross-legged position, he cleared all lingering thoughts from his mind, his gaze turning razor sharp as he addressed his system.

’System, initialize the 100x Amplified Return on all three of my currently bonded targets.’

[DING]

[Acknowledged, Master. Processing initial target data profiles...]

[Initializing 100x Amplified Return on Target: Damian Darkmore...]

[Calculating reward .. ]

[DING]

[Calculation complete. You have received the followings:-]

[Special Talent acquired: Reaper of Death (SSS-rank) —> Primordial Death Sovereign (Primordial-rank)]

[Physique acquired: Abyssal Sovereign Physique (SS-rank) —> Abyssal Nihility Physique (Divine-rank)]

[Bloodline acquired: Umbral Dragon Bloodline (SS-rank) —> Eclipsing Shadow Dragon Bloodline (Divine-rank)]

[Elemental Affinities acquired: Shadow (Divine-rank), Darkness (Divine-rank), Death (EX-rank)]

[DING]

[ERROR: Talent Rank cannot undergo the 100x Amplified Return process. The Master’s Talent rank is already at the absolute highest apex tier (Infinite-rank) across reality.]

[System Compensation triggered: The Master may manually select one single attribute from the target’s profile to receive an alternative, absolute 100x rank upgrade.]

Aeon was thoroughly baffled to his absolute core, his mind spinning as he read through the massive wall of text. ’Holy shit... this is absolutely insane,’ he thought, a predatory thrill rushing through his veins. The sheer quality of the unsealed rewards was magnificent, and the system’s compensation glitch was a complete, unexpected jackpot. ’Thank you for the broken code, system.’

Aeon thought with a sarcastic, wicked smile.

He didn’t need to waste a single second debating his choice. The trajectory was already crystal clear to his mind.

"System, initiate the 100x return straight into the newly acquired Special Talent." Aeon commanded loudly.

[DING]

[Directing alternative 100x amplification onto the acquired Special Talent profile...]

[Processing evolution ...Primordial —> Origin —> Infinite...]

[Evolution complete. You have successfully acquired: Special Talent: The End of Endless (Rank: Infinite)]

Aeon’s eyes widened progressively further, his breath catching in his throat as the absolute, reality-breaking text of the new speci talent finalized its text right before his vision. A low, dangerous smile spread across his face.

"Damn."

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