Chapter 806: Rewards and Karma Settlement

Chapter 806: Chapter 806: Rewards and Karma Settlement

After the fall of the abyssal mantis, the dust took time to settle over the shattered bedrock. With the queen’s death, the few surviving males fled in terror toward the fissures, leaving behind air laden with ash.

Ethan walked toward the dissolved remains of the gigantic beast. Amidst the dark vapor, something sparkled with a purple light. He bent down and retrieved a spirit core the size of a fist, perfectly spherical and pulsing with the essence of the Void.

[Not bad, Master], Crul’s voice echoed in his mind with satisfaction. [The core of an abyssal beast at the peak of the Dao Manifestation Realm... If the Black Chaos Sword absorbs this once you rest, its power will refine further. Furthermore, its exoskeleton left a pair of scythes intact; they are divine-grade materials for blacksmiths.]

Ethan stored the core and scythes into his spatial ring without changing his expression. At that moment, the Frost Dragon Princess and the blind monk approached slowly. The young lady, pale but maintaining her posture, clasped her hands before her chest.

"Brother Ethan, your strength is terrifying..." said the frost princess, looking at the crater with a mixture of fascination and fear. "However... you must be careful. You have killed the Prince of the Blazing Fire Dragon Kingdom. His father is a ruthless man who will not overlook the death of his heir. There will be political trouble waiting for you once you leave this realm."

"Let them come," replied Ethan with icy indifference, not looking at her directly. "I don’t care how many kings or kingdoms come seeking revenge. If they want my life, they will have to pay the price."

The princess blinked, stunned by the lack of hesitation in the youth’s voice.

The blind monk stepped forward, leaning on his staff of mystic wood and adjusting the white blindfold over his eyes.

"Fate is a capricious river, young benefactor," commented the monk in a deep voice. "Your slash didn’t just destroy that abomination’s body; it sliced through causality itself. I have traveled through countless realms and have never witnessed such interference from the Void. Tell us, do you plan to continue claiming tournament tokens to crown yourself as the sole champion of this secret realm?"

Ethan turned toward the survivors in the area and raised an eyebrow.

"That depends on you," said Ethan. "Do you still want to compete against me for first place?"

The cultivators present, exhausted and trembling from the shockwave, exchanged glances filled with bitterness and resignation. Not a single one raised a weapon.

"That would be pure stupidity," answered the Frost Dragon Princess, letting out a bitter laugh. "It’s one thing to compete against geniuses of our generation, and quite another to fight a monster that cannot be beaten. As soon as the portal opens, we will forfeit the tournament. No one here is foolish enough to court death."

"Indeed," chimed in the blind monk, wearing a serene smile. "The Dao of the Smiling Buddha teaches that recognizing one’s limits is not cowardice, but wisdom. I thank you once again for saving my life, young benefactor. However, karma is a wheel, and my path does not allow me to leave life-or-death debts unpaid. I must cleanse my karma with you."

"It’s not necessary," said Ethan curtly. "I only did what I had to do to survive. You owe me nothing."

"To you it may be a simple act, but to my soul it is a heavy chain," insisted the monk.

From beneath his gray robes, the monk produced a prayer bracelet made of aged wooden beads, carved with golden runes that emitted the scent of sandalwood and purified spiritual energy. He held out both hands to offer it to Ethan.

"Take this at least," said the monk. "It is a relic blessed by the Luminous Lotus Monastery. It contains a karma barrier. It will save your life once against a lethal strike. Consider it the settlement of my debt."

Ethan observed the bracelet, and seeing the firmness in the monk’s posture, took it and slipped it onto his wrist. The beads emitted a warm glow before fitting against his skin.

Ethan stepped back, adjusting the beads on his wrist as he felt the object’s spiritual resonance.

"Crul, what exactly is this?" asked Ethan in his mind, keeping his face expressionless as he observed the blind monk.

[They are blessed beads], explained Crul within his sea of consciousness. [They carry a refined Buddhist damage-transfer enchantment. When you receive a blow that exceeds your defensive threshold, the formation inside the beads will shatter, absorbing and neutralizing that lethal damage for you. It’s a useful item for a lower realm. However, there is something far better hidden deep within these ruins. Go find it, but bring no one with you... not even Isabella.]

Ethan raised an eyebrow internally, recalling their discussion regarding the abyssal creature.

"What about the egg you mentioned earlier that did the same thing as these beads?" inquired Ethan.

[The egg contains the hive’s princess], answered Crul in an instructive tone. [Normally, the queen lays thousands of common eggs, but she only incubates princesses by her side. The damage-transfer effect operates through a blood bond: if the queen or the bondholder receives a mortal blow, the incubated princess absorbs death in her place.]

"A pity..." pondered Ethan in silence. "It would have been great to tame her and obtain those eggs continuously to protect ourselves indefinitely."

[I wouldn’t count on that, Master], Crul scoffed with a chuckle. [In fact, this species of abyssal creatures is cataloged among the top one hundred strongest and most terrifying beasts in all of creation, even within the upper planes. Attempting to raise a live queen in this realm is playing with divine fire.]

"Crul... what exactly is this ranking? And what are these upper planes you speak of?" inquired Ethan.

[There are things it is time for you to know, Master], answered Crul in an unusually serious tone within his sea of consciousness. [But first, let us head into the ruins. There is something inside that will make it much easier to explain everything to you.]

Ethan gave a subtle nod in silence, locking his gaze onto the dark entrance of the ruins extending into the heart of the mountain.