I Refused To Be Reincarnated-Chapter 728: Adam’s Game

Adam’s swords cleaved through the basilisk’s carcass. Muscles were torn, and archaic scales clinked on the ground like coins, making Yann’s stomach churn with desire. This amount of wealth could secure a manor in the lower noble district of any major city. Even the capital wasn’t off-limits as long as one had the right relationship, like he did. But what made his breath come out ragged was the core Adam pulled out from the beast’s stomach.

It was shaped like a diamond, flickering between ethereal grey and unholy green light—as if mirroring the basilisk’s favorite diet. A magus-level beast core with soul and demonic affinity. From memory, he couldn’t recall having read about such a thing in the archipelago’s history. He knew some things were never meant to be recorded, but even then, he doubted more than a handful had ever witnessed something similar. As for its value...

He took a deep breath, hoping to calm his racing heart—it didn’t work. This core alone was worth a medium-sized mansion among the noblest families of the capital, right inside the highly coveted college district.

They hadn’t entered the archipelago for a day yet, but Adam could already earn so much. This was madness. His strength was, too. He had thought he was a powerful archmage who escaped the Celestial Frost Matriarch because of his demonic cleaver, flying fortress, and the leviathan’s unexpected help. Now he realised Adam was a powerhouse himself. But how did he achieve so much at his age? Not only magic but cultivation, too.

He scratched his head and kicked at a gnarled root. Fur crawled back beneath supple skin as his muscles lost their feral might.

Questions, questions, but no answers. And asking... Well, why would Adam answer when he, himself, didn’t want to share his origins or magical knowledge? Anyway, curiosity mattered less than benefits, and those he could get as long as he followed the lad.

He approached Adam carefully, knowing a battle-ready mind could lash out at the slightest abrupt movement. Then, he rubbed his hands and called out in the softest voice he had ever produced.

"What do you plan on doing with your spoils, lad?" He pointed at the dead creature as soon as Adam turned. "Even if they make exquisite materials, they come from the guardian of the groove. It’ll be hard to sell without drawing... unwanted attention."

Adam raised a brow. "The enforcers again?"

"Indeed." Yann nodded. "You can hunt pretty much anything on the archipelago, except ancient creatures and guardians."

"Doesn’t matter." Adam shrugged as he shoved the scales and beast core inside his spatial ring. "They won’t know after I craft them into armor and potions."

"Yes, they won’t..." Yann’s words died in his throat. He closed his mouth, then opened it, his eyes wide. "Wait, what? You’re an alchemist, too?!"

He could accept the armor part since he had already shown his talent in enchanted sewing, but that was a whole different discipline.

Adam didn’t give him time to ponder it. He just leaned over his sword, smirking. "Did you think the wine you like so much was merely distilled?"

Yann remained silent for a moment, Adam’s amused gaze searing through his mind. What nonsense... No, this lad was just far too abnormal for sense to make sense. Even among the seven great houses’ geniuses, Adam would most likely teach them humility with a cold, hard reality check if nothing changed during his five hundred years of exile.

Eventually, he rubbed his eyes and turned. Waving his hand, he muttered. "Take your time to organise your spoils. I’ll check the surroundings for other threats."

He wouldn’t get a penny from the basilisk’s corpse, not when Adam began to drain even the blood that had splattered on the ground. But the nest was free for the taking. And who knew what artifact such an ancient creature had hoarded during its long life?

After the shade of a broad pine hid his figure, mana rumbled at his fingertips. Claws sprouted from his nails, and the next moment, they were already digging into the hard bark. Cracks and falling splinters, soft enough not to draw Adam’s attention, fell as he climbed. Once on the summit, his eyes darted in every direction.

Only the biggest tree or an elevated cave could have housed the hulking basilisk. And there he saw what he searched for—a tree so tall that it pierced the forest’s mist like a pillar. He couldn’t even see its peak through the dense foliage. But he was sure of one thing: it towered above the mist, where the warm sun rays bathed the basilisk. After all, it was a creature that enjoyed warm places, and the misty forest was... cold.

Determined to get his share, he leapt toward the tree, two feathered wings erupting on his back. In the blink of an eye, he passed branches thicker than him, sighed in relief as he left the mist’s purifying embrace, and finally saw the sun sparkle on the object of his desire.

The nest was broader than a common house, made from perfectly aligned branches. They protruded at the edges like spears ready to impale any beast who had the foolish idea of entering uninvited.

Tucked in the center, he saw ancient relics. Some equipment shimmered with spectral energies, while demonic engravings covered others. Most, however, were fragmented, scarred beyond repair, or just too low-tiered to hold any real value.

Yet, his smile broadened, and his heart drummed in his ears. Because at the center lay an egg half his size. The shell was pure white and lined with converging blue patterns that left no doubt. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

"The offspring of the basilisk!" He clenched his fist, imagining the sound of rushing Prestige and the scent of all the wine and beauties he could get with it. Any great house would beg him to sell them such a powerful unborn creature. After all, once tamed and grown up, it would make for a magnificent guardian. And he still had the artifacts!

"Hahaha. I guess I have no reason to be jealous anymore. I’m getting as much as the lad did." Smirking, he flew down, only for his eyes to widen as the artifacts vanished. "What in the world?!"

He sped down, sweat trickling down his forehead. The egg! He had to get the egg no matter what!

As he cracked the nest’s branches upon landing, the egg rose a few centimeters, then a meter.

"No!" He roared, lunging forward. Yet, he halted, his pupils constricting. Behind the rising egg, sky-blue eyes locked on him, lips curved in a mocking smirk.

"I’m done with the spoils, so I thought I’d get the rest before it suddenly vanished." Adam sneered, genuinely amused by Yann’s distorted face. "Fancy meeting you here, though. Anyone else might think you were trying to double-cross me."

"..." Yann’s moustache twitched, and his heart bled tears of frustration. "Of course, not... I-I was just scouting for you."

"Right." Adam rolled his eyes, then pushed the hovering egg toward Yann. "Sell it. Fifty-fifty."

"Really?!" Yann snapped his face up, his ears burning in anticipation. "I mean, of course I will! Fifty-fifty. No scam!" He hesitated for a brief moment, then decided not to ask why.

Meanwhile, Adam grabbed the sphere containing the sleeping Qing and cradled her against his chest. She hugged his neck the moment the sphere faded, her face relaxing.

His lips curved like a fox that saw through his opponent. He didn’t need to kill Yann for fear of betrayal for two reasons. The man was too obsessed with money. No matter how much someone would pay Yann, he could always pay more.

The second reason was much more straightforward and universal. Yann had already started to fear him. Without a bulletproof plan, he would not dare to bet his life for wealth.

Adam’s smile turned darker. "Lead us out of the forest."

----

AN: For yesterday. A bit longer, too, for the interest.