Chapter 81: You’re Holding the Wrong End

Lin forced the sword downward before it could turn any farther. His wrist bent with the movement, the dark lines beneath his skin becoming clearer as his fingers tightened around the hilt. Liam moved sideways, keeping himself between the blade and Clara without standing directly in front of either. The cape lifted some of his weight from the ground, ready to pull him away. He still had both uses of Reversal, but there was no skill notification this time. He wasn’t going to waste one finding out whether a sword moving on its own counted as an attack he could return.

“Clara. Behind the car.”

She moved immediately, though she stayed near the rear corner where she could still see him. Lin heard her footsteps and looked up, apparently realizing how the scene must look from her side. He had brought out the weapon, and now he was struggling to keep it pointed at the ground. Liam watched the muscles tighten along his forearm. With that much Strength, holding a sword still should have been the easiest thing he did all day.

“Put it away.”

“I’m trying.”

The answer came through clenched teeth. Liam stopped himself from stepping closer and looked at the panel again. The connection between the weapon and its owner remained active, but the information was changing faster now. A thin line appeared along the blade in his vision, marking a fracture that ran from beneath the guard toward the middle. It wasn’t visible on the metal itself. Whatever his analysis was showing him existed deeper inside.

[Detected: Energy accumulating along internal fractures.]

[Foreign spiritual presence: Active.]

Lin suddenly drove the point into the ground. The blade sank through the surface with a sharp crack, stopping several inches deep while he kept both hands on the hilt. Liam heard Clara swear behind him. He moved back another step, watching dust settle around the weapon. Lin’s sleeve had slipped farther up his arm, exposing dark branches that now reached almost to his elbow.

‘He’s feeding it more every time he tries to force it down.’

“Stop pushing energy into it.”

Lin looked at him sharply.

“How would you know what I’m doing?”

“Because the damaged part lights up every time you do it.”

For a moment, Lin only stared. Then the pressure around the sword eased slightly, and his shoulders dropped. He hadn’t released the hilt, but the dark lines stopped spreading. Liam kept watching until he was sure the change wasn’t temporary. The sword still pulled against Lin’s grip, only with less force than before. At least the bastard could listen when the alternative was having something crawl farther up his arm.

“Can you let go?”

Lin opened one hand. Nothing happened until he began loosening the other, when the hilt twisted and made him grab it again.

“Not like that.”

Liam called the screwdriver into his palm. The tool appeared smaller than usual and immediately pressed against his fingers, sending a clear feeling of resistance through their connection. He looked down at it, then at the sword. He hadn’t ordered it forward yet. Apparently, it understood enough to dislike where this was going.

‘Relax. I’m not feeding you to it.’

He pictured the screwdriver pressing against the flat of the blade near the ground, keeping it from twisting while Lin released his hand. The response remained unpleasant, but it no longer felt like refusal. Liam sent it forward slowly, watching the distance as it grew to the size of a short metal bar. It settled against the blade with a light click, and he immediately felt how much concentration it took to hold that position.

“Try again. Slowly.”

Lin looked at the emerald tool, recognizing it from their fight. For a second, Liam thought he would refuse simply because he didn’t like being helped by somebody he had tried to stab. Then Lin eased his fingers away. The sword shifted against the screwdriver, sending a sharp pressure behind Liam’s eyes, but remained planted in the ground. Lin stepped back, staring at his empty hand as though he hadn’t expected to see it again.

The dark marks stopped moving.

“Don’t touch it.”

“I wasn’t going to.”

Liam almost laughed. The answer sounded much more reasonable than anything Lin had said to him so far. He lowered himself fully onto the ground, letting the cape rest while he concentrated on the screwdriver. Holding both abilities ready had already started dividing his attention. He could keep the blade steady for a little while, but this wasn’t something he wanted to turn into a long conversation.

“Where did you get it?”

Lin didn’t answer immediately. He pulled his sleeve back and rubbed the darkest part of the mark with his thumb. It didn’t fade.

“An inheritance.”

“From somebody alive?”

“No.”

“That would have been useful to mention.”

Lin gave him a hard look, but Liam pointed toward the sword before the man could start arguing. The blade had stopped trying to turn toward him. Now it trembled against the emerald bar in short movements, with a pause between each one. Liam moved closer by half a step and focused his analysis beneath the guard, where the fracture began.

[Closer examination available.]

[Detected: Sealed spiritual remnant within the weapon.]

[Seal condition: Fractured.]

[Observed function: Extracting energy through contact with the bonded wielder.]

Liam read the lines, then looked at Lin’s arm again. The marks followed the same side of his wrist that rested against the hilt when he held it. He had been treating the sword like an injured part of himself, pushing more power into it whenever it became difficult to control. Whatever remained inside had been taking everything he offered.

“Was there a seal on it when you found it?”

Lin’s expression changed.

“Under the wrapping.”

“Did you remove it?”

“It was damaged. I thought it was restricting the weapon.”

Liam closed his eyes for a brief moment.

‘Of course you did. A cursed sword, a broken seal, and you decided somebody had wrapped your present badly.’

When he looked again, another line had appeared.

[Curse source identified: A sealed spiritual remnant sustaining itself through the wielder.]

[The damaged seal permits uncontrolled extraction and limited influence over the weapon.]

[Updated.]

[Side Mission Complete: Identify the source of the Ancient Cursed Black Sword’s curse.]

[Reward: Insulating Grip Tape.]

[AMPLIFYING THE REWARDS BY 10,000X…]

[NEW REWARD: Spirit Isolation Binding.]

[Explanation: Applied around an object’s contact surface to interrupt spiritual energy transfer through that surface. Does not remove an existing curse or destroy the consciousness within.]

Liam’s eyes stopped on the explanation. For once, the reward had arrived while he could still use it for the problem in front of him. He took it out, finding a roll of dark cloth resting in his hand. There was no glow, no writing, and nothing to explain why a strip of material should stop something that had been draining a Level 18 cultivator. He read the explanation once more before stepping closer.

“I can cover the grip. It should stop the transfer through your hand.”

“Should?”

“You want a guarantee, find somebody else before I get a headache.”

Lin looked toward the screwdriver. The emerald bar had started trembling slightly, and Liam knew he had noticed. After another second, Lin stepped aside. Liam approached from the opposite side of the blade, keeping his fingers away from the bare hilt as he fed the first strip of cloth beneath the guard. He worked slowly at first, then faster once he had enough wrapped around it to hold the covered section.

The sword jerked halfway through.

Liam’s hand stopped, and the screwdriver pushed harder against the flat. Pressure tightened behind his eyes, making him swear before finishing the last turns. He pressed the end against the overlapping cloth and withdrew both hands. The material held without a knot. Nothing dramatic happened, but when Lin cautiously touched the covered grip, the dark lines on his wrist remained still.

[Energy transfer through covered surface: Interrupted.]

“Pull it out.”

Lin did, keeping the blade pointed away from them. This time, it followed his hand without fighting him. He stood with it for several seconds before the sword disappeared. Liam immediately recalled the screwdriver, catching it against his palm and letting it shrink. A tired, irritated feeling came through the connection. He put it into the cradle without asking it to do anything else.

‘Yeah. You’ve earned a fucking break.’

Clara came around the Bentley as soon as the sword vanished. She caught Liam’s arm and examined his hands before looking toward Lin. Her expression made it clear that she hadn’t forgotten who had brought the weapon or why Liam had needed to approach it. Liam squeezed her fingers lightly, then turned back to the man standing beside the shallow hole in the ground.

“That doesn’t cure it. Keep the wrapping on, and don’t try pouring more energy through it.”

Lin lowered his sleeve.

“What do you want for this?”

“Stop following me.”

“That was already settled.”

“Then remember it.”

Liam turned toward the Bentley with Clara beside him. He had reached the passenger door when Lin spoke again.

“The inheritance had a case.”

Liam looked back.

“There were marks inside it. Similar to the ones beneath the old wrapping.”

“Find it. Take pictures before you touch anything.”

Lin nodded once. It wasn’t gratitude, but Liam hadn’t expected any. He got into the car and let Clara drive while he rested the closed cradle across his knees. His head hurt less once they left the warehouse behind. For a while, neither spoke, and he was grateful that she gave him time to let the pressure settle.

Finally, Clara glanced at the case.

“You helped him.”

“I helped myself understand what nearly cut me open.”

“You still helped him.”

Liam looked through the windshield. She was right, and pretending otherwise would be stupid. Lin still possessed the system Red wanted, still had enough strength to kill him with a clean hit, and now knew Liam could see things inside a weapon that he couldn’t. None of that made them friends. But the next time Lin wanted something from him, there was a chance he would call before trying to grab his jacket.

His phone rang before they reached the apartment.

Erto’s name appeared on the screen.

“Are you free to speak?”

“Yeah. What happened?”

“John wants to see you again.”

Liam straightened in his seat. Clara noticed immediately and lowered the music while he moved the cradle more securely onto his lap.

“About what?”

“He didn’t tell me. But Jeff will be there.”

Liam looked down at his hands. He had barely finished dealing with one family before another wanted him sitting at its table.

“When?”

“Tuesday evening. I’ll send you the details.”

Liam agreed and ended the call. Then he opened the information Frank had sent him about the fertilizer business, scrolling past the photographs until he reached the figures he had saved.

‘Fine. This time, I’m bringing my own questions.’