Legacy of Hatred-Chapter 132: Answer

After seeing magical beasts’ cores for the first time, Liam acknowledged their value. They weren’t as powerful or useful as magical items, but Liam was ready to believe that they could work as ingredients for other noble arts.

That conclusion was actually obvious since some alchemical recipes required specific magical beasts’ parts. It stood to reason that their far more valuable cores had similar uses.

So, Liam could now accept that the cores and inter-Sects bets could justify such a dangerous mission. Places with an abundance of magical beasts weren’t exactly common after all, and the Church of the Man’s ownership allowed the Sects to share it peacefully, preventing battles over its control.

However, the various crosses on the Rising Waterfall Sect’s map hinted at the fact that the Mutated Battlefield could hold something else of value, and Liam even had another clue.

For some reason, the usually talkative, or hissing, Ancestral Snake had remained silent ever since its initial remark about human greed. It had sensed something, and Liam believed he was smelling it, too.

’Why do I feel kinship with the blood here?’ Liam asked. ’What is this place even?’

The mission’s dangers and the discoveries about the cultivation world had kept Liam’s mind busy, but he hadn’t missed the most glaring aspect of the Mutated Battlefield.

The magical beasts in that place were simply unnatural, so much so that Liam’s hunter upbringing prompted him to feel an instinctive repulsion toward their very existence.

Of course, the magic, or horror, of the cultivation world could explain those monstrous creatures, but Liam’s hunches said otherwise. Actually, even his knowledge vouched for that.

Magical beasts were Qi-induced mutations of ordinary animals, meaning they could gain features beyond their original species. Yet, for so many of those different, disjointed parts to manifest, the cause had to be more than mere Qi.

That, or the Mutated Battlefield possessed a type of Qi capable of producing such extensive, unnatural transformations. Either way, both hypotheses pointed to the fact that the place had something else.

"Come on," Liam sighed, speaking instead of thinking. "I’ll probably have to kill the Dragon King one way or another. Enough with the manipulation and tell me what I’m smelling."

Liam half-expected the silence to continue. After all, the Ancestral Snake was no ally. Their goal aligned, but they had different ideas on how to implement them.

However, a human hiss did rise in Liam’s ears, carrying a tinge of derision among its boundless hatred. ’Our power, my son.’

Liam straightened his back, startled by the answer he didn’t believe would have arrived. The Ancestral Snake had actually replied, but Liam knew better than to trust it blindly.

Despite everything, Liam had heeded Crazy Uncle’s warning, understanding it now more than ever. After experiencing more of life, Liam could finally review what that old man had revealed in his dying moments properly.

If Crazy Uncle were to be believed, the Ancestral Turtle had tricked him, first by inadvertently causing the Bloodline Screening and then by awakening the seed of hatred inside Liam, the very seed he had helped create.

’I don’t want to be a mere pawn,’ Liam thought, seemingly replying to Crazy Uncle’s last words. ’This is my life, and I want the strength to live it how I choose.’

Nevertheless, those thoughts put Liam back at the beginning of his reasoning. If the Mutated Battlefield truly held something connected to the Ancestral Beasts, Liam wanted to seize it and, possibly, benefit from it.

"Since we are talking now," Liam said. "Are you behind my latest greedy thoughts?"

The Ancestral Snake matched Liam’s expectations this time, ignoring his question entirely.

’I guess it doesn’t make sense,’ Liam considered, shaking his head. ’The Snake is Hatred and Envy, and I got the former. Greed is the title of the Qilin of Wealth and Abundance.’

What had once been nothing more than a fairy tale had become undeniably real to Liam, forcing him to consider it seriously. The unbelievable story about the Ancestral Beasts was the stuff of legends, and Liam was right in the middle of it now.

Still, whatever crossroads Liam was facing could wait. Something else needed his attention before he could decide what to do with the remaining days, and he addressed it by undressing.

Liam threw the dirty robe in a corner and emptied his pouch on the floor before neatly arranging everything he had, the sight making him forget about his previous worry to express a genuine desire.

’I want that ring-pouch-whatever so badly,’ Liam complained in his mind, almost failing to believe how much he had managed to stuff on himself.

Two sets of supplies rested on Liam’s left, followed by twelve flasks of the Qi-recovery elixirs, ten rank 1 and two rank 2.

Then, there were eighteen Poisonous Cloud Pills, the rank 2 Boiling Blood Pill, the wooden knife, the glass shard, the green jade, Maxwell’s tablet, the pipe, a smaller pouch, and even a book.

That was too much to carry around in any comfortable fashion, especially if Liam wanted to have room for more. He had gained another pouch, but that didn’t exactly solve the issue.

’The book can go,’ Liam listed, ’The same with most of the food. I brought too much anyway.’

Wasting food felt far from good for someone with Liam’s upbringing. That had been the most sought-after resource most of his life, but things had drastically changed.

The blue rooting expert’s smaller assortment of supplies confirmed that. Cultivators were superior to mortals even when it came to hunger. Liam didn’t need to eat as much as he did back then, and that was bound to deepen as he climbed through the cultivation stages.

At least, the Alchemy Elder had mentioned as much in one of his lessons.

’All the rank 2 items are too valuable to leave behind,’ Liam decided. ’Even if I don’t need them, I can trade them. I also can’t leave the Cloud Pills and elixirs. I can’t survive without the first, and the second can always earn me contribution points.’

Truth be told, Liam had no need to do any of that. If he stuck to the plan, he could wait for Maxwell and Joel to pick him up, eliminating the necessity of throwing away anything.

But six days were a long time, long enough even for someone as strong as Maxwell to risk dying. Besides, staying put was the Sect’s mission, which Liam had no loyalty toward.

’I had already decided,’ Liam realized, ’Hadn’t I?’

Liam’s current gains weren’t small, and the danger outside was realer than ever. However, getting stronger was his priority, and that meant chasing every opportunity he found, even if he had to go against the Head Disciple’s orders.

Also, if the place truly had something to do with the Ancestral Beasts, Liam felt compelled to investigate. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to claim that his very life depended on learning more about those legendary creatures.

’Why is the Church of the Man even involved?’ Liam wondered, seizing his pipe and preparing it, quickly lighting it up with his Qi to breathe a mouthful of revitalizing poison.

Liam might have made a decision, but he had six more days to implement it. He had even just discovered a method to get stronger, so he finished smoking and closed his eyes, delving into his circulation technique.