Chapter 78: Chapter 78: North of Baelgard! Demon Domain!
The other side.
Mists of water enveloped the air.
Aster Grant quickly stripped off his clothes and leaped into the wooden tub filled with the Spring of Life.
The emerald waters instantly covered his chest, the cool and gentle energy wrapping around him like silk.
Then, he grabbed a leather bag and poured dozens of Star Stones into the water.
"Splash—"
The moment the Star Stones plunged into the spring, the entire tub suddenly lit up with a tri-colored glow!
The Spring of Life enhances the spirit, Star Stones strengthen the physique...
Plus the life essence of the World Tree leaves...
What kind of effect does the combination of these three have?
Aster Grant closed his eyes and focused, his spiritual power spreading out like a spider’s web.
In his perception, three distinctly different energies were intertwining in the water.
Aster carefully felt them.
The blue was the energy of the Star Stones, the white was the energy of the Spring of Life, and as for the green, it contained the energy of the World Tree leaves.
"Come!"
His spiritual power transformed into an invisible hand, simultaneously drawing in the three-colored energy into his body.
"Boom—"
In an instant, waves of turmoil surged within his sea of consciousness!
The Sovereign Talent blossomed with a silver-white radiance, the Soul-devouring Talent burst forth with a blood-red gleam...
Two forces began clashing in his meridians like beasts fighting over territory!
Damn...
Cold sweat emerged on Aster’s forehead, veins bulging on his neck, his skin alternating between silver-white and blood-red flashes.
If this continued, his spiritual power would definitely collapse!
However.
Just as his spiritual power was about to spiral out of control, the confronting forces suddenly halted.
The silver-white orb and the blood-red glow each retreated half a step, seemingly reaching an agreement as they drew a demarcation line.
In the blink of an eye, the three-colored energy was neatly divided in two, being steadily devoured and absorbed by the two talents.
Seeing the two forces within achieve a delicate balance, Aster exhaled a long breath.
However...
If those two talents devoured all the energy...
How would he improve his physical attributes?
Thus, Aster forcibly controlled his spiritual power, starting a struggle for energy...
Soon, the mist in the bathroom dissipated.
Aster slowly opened his eyes, a flash of silvery-white and blood-red light flickered deep in his pupils.
He looked down at the tub...
The Spring of Life had long dried up, the World Tree’s leaves turned to ashes and dispersed, and even those once brilliant Star Stones had dimmed completely, becoming a pile of lifeless fragments.
He shook his head helplessly.
Obviously, it was his body absorbing the energy, but the two talents almost devoured all the benefits like starving wolves...
If he hadn’t forcibly suppressed them, even the last trace of energy would have been completely divided by them.
However, the result was not bad.
Aster shifted his thoughts and summoned his attribute panel.
[Aster Grant]
[Beastbond: Divine Angel, Nature Elf]
[Level: Extraordinary Tier One]
[Talent: Sovereign (Enhancing...), Soul-devouring (Enhancing...)]
[Power: 205→250]
[Constitution: 201→250]
[Spiritual: 434→520]
[Speed: 202→250]
Aster stared at the attribute panel, his eyelid twitched.
"As expected..."
The energy was almost entirely divided by Sovereign and Soul-devouring, causing his spiritual power to surge.
Though the attributes of Power, Constitution, and Speed also improved, their increase was clearly less than that of the Spiritual Attribute.
"These two talents..."
Aster rubbed his temples, feeling a headache.
At this rate, achieving balanced improvement would need several times the resources...
Especially the Star Stones!
But.
He fixed his gaze on the two lines on the attribute panel.
[Talent: Sovereign (Enhancing...), Soul-devouring (Enhancing...)]
"This..."
His breath slightly paused.
After a talent awakens, it is usually fixed...
But Sovereign and Soul-devouring, they can still evolve?!
To know, Sovereign and Soul-devouring were already extremely rare top talents.
And now... they are still growing?!
"Gulp."
Aster involuntarily swallowed, his heart pounding.
If these two talents continue to improve...
To what extent will they become powerful?
Realizing this, he abruptly stood up from the tub.
"Let’s do it! It’s just some Star Stones, right? Tomorrow, I’ll hunt demons in the Demon Domain!"
Since the talents are such big eaters...
Let’s keep them fed!
...
The next day.
City of Chaos, Redemption Center.
Aster stood at the counter, accepting the black token handed over by the staff.
The token was cold to the touch, its surface etched with intricate demon patterns, a dim crystal embedded at its center.
This was proof to record the number of demons killed!
"Name? Level?"
The staff asked without lifting their head.
"Aster Grant, Extraordinary Tier One."
"Oh, Extraordinary Tier One... Wait!"
The staff suddenly looked up, eyes wide:
"What did you say? Extraordinary Tier One?!"
His voice unconsciously rose, the entire hall suddenly fell silent for a moment.
The next second, the surrounding crowd burst into uproar.
"Extraordinary Tier One? Did I hear wrong?"
"Is this kid crazy? Going to the Demon Domain at that level?"
"Probably some young master treating the Demon Domain like child’s play! He’ll learn his lesson when he loses his life in there!"
Sneering, disdainful, and pitying glances were cast his way.
However.
Aster remained unfazed, his eyes firmly fixed on the massive light screen at the top of the hall.
[Points Exchange List]
[Low-level Star Stone (10 points/piece)]
[Intermediate Star Stone (1000 points/piece)]
...
At the top, a line of striking golden text flashed.
[1,000,000 points: Special Sanctum Entry Qualification ×1]
Special Sanctum?
With the staff’s explanation, Aster understood the meaning of this Special Sanctum.
Although the exchange required one million points, it was worth the value.
And this sanctum had three layers.
Each time a layer was passed, the attributes of the participants would significantly increase in the sanctum.
Although it required one million points, it was worth the value.
"Then what’s this sanctum’s origin?" Aster curiously asked.
The staff shook their head.
"Before the City of Chaos was established, this sanctum already existed, and no one knows when it came into being."
Aster nodded thoughtfully.
For hundreds of years, humans seeking to explore the Alternate Space thoroughly is nothing short of impossible.
"Are you really sure you want to go to the Demon Domain alone?"
The staff couldn’t help but advise again, "The lowest level demons there are all of the Extraordinary Level, and a slight misstep could lead to encountering Commander Level demons..."
He paused, his tone grave:
"Even a fully equipped team of Extraordinary High Rank has more than a thirty percent casualty rate."
In other words...
You, an Extraordinary Tier One, going is courting death!
Aster smiled slightly, tucking the token into his chest:
"Register me."
Seeing his determination, the staff could only sigh as they completed the paperwork.
Soon, groups of Beast Tamers, guided by special personnel, boarded the flying beasts heading for the North of Baelgard...
Which is the Demon Domain!
When Aster boarded the flying beast alone, a not-so-subtle mockery came from the side.
"Wanna bet? I bet he won’t live past tonight!"
"Hahaha, I’ll raise the stakes! This kid won’t even leave a body behind!"
Aster casually glanced at them, noting them in mind.
...
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