Legacy of Hatred-Chapter 177: Half-life

Those words hit like hammers, but not in the painful sense now. Liam’s brain might be sore, but it worked, and it also possessed the knowledge to grasp the grimness of the news.

Liam might only be an apprentice, but he was Horace Rauret’s apprentice. His Master had ensured that his knowledge never stopped expanding so that he could eventually make use of it once his skills caught up with it.

Rank 2 concoctions were far more difficult than their rank 1 counterparts in every sense of the word, involving superior layers of challenges to overcome.

The recipes were longer. Liam had only skimmed through general lists, but even the easiest ones featured four ingredients, the same number that the Boar’s Touch had required.

The ingredients themselves were far more valuable, a single one probably being more expensive than the sum of the four Liam had used for his rank 1 poison.

A simple cauldron also couldn’t suffice for those concoctions. The Boar’s Touch had corroded through the loaned item in Liam’s cave already, so a higher-rank poison obviously demanded a proper magical item.

And then there was the issue with the alchemical flame. Better ingredients demanded stronger fire, which only superior Qi could produce. It was why the Elder couldn’t make high-ranking concoctions anymore after all.

Nevertheless, even when taken individually, those seemingly insurmountable problems paled before the biggest one yet.

The failure had been a single instance of what could be a trend. The best rank 1 poison in the world hadn’t been enough to overcome Liam’s current bottleneck, and chances were the following ones would feature a similar problem.

If Liam truly needed a rank 2 poison to become a rooting expert, he might require a rank 3 one to enter the branching stage. At that point, his cultivation might demand something in the fourth rank to grow even further.

With the gap between stages growing steeper with each higher level, Liam couldn’t help but see his journey as unsustainable. He would basically always require ingredients his cultivation lacked the means to obtain or afford, having to use them in concoctions he wouldn’t have the power to perform.

Of course, all that if the higher-rank poisons didn’t kill Liam first.

And Liam knew why of those insurmountable challenges. Only one possible explanation existed, one that his Master couldn’t consider.

"This is beyond mockery," The Alchemy Elder muttered, seemingly to himself. "How can the Heavens demand a rank 2 concoction from a foundation expert?"

Liam’s heart sank. His incredible, peerless Master looked truly lost, his face lowered, reviewing that inexplicable issue. Liam had never seen him like that and knew it was his fault.

"Why would the Heavens create something that can’t possibly thrive?" The Elder wondered, his voice barely a whisper.

’Because my talent exists beyond the realm of the Heavens,’ Liam thought, recalling Lucy’s words, also lowering his head, but in shame. ’Because I have the ten spiritual roots that only a son of the Ancestral Beasts can possess.’

And Liam wanted nothing more than to give voice to those thoughts, even if only to reassure his Master and pull him out of that depressing confusion. Liam couldn’t bear to see him like that, questioning himself, but he didn’t speak.

’For nine is perfection,’ Liam thought, gritting his teeth to keep his mind sealed and let nothing leak into his tongue, ’While ten is divine.’

Liam felt profound guilt. He was disobeying his Master’s direct orders, keeping secrets from him, choosing to leave him in that distressed state, but the alternative was worse.

Anyone who knew about Liam’s ancestral bloodline would be in danger, a deadly, insurmountable one at that. He had reason to believe that the Dragon King was the strongest cultivator in the Kingdom, and that he would stop at nothing to kill the Ancestral Snake’s son.

Liam couldn’t predict the future, and he would be as careful as possible, but cultivators had magic at their disposal. The secret of his existence might eventually leak, and anyone with information about it could become the King’s target.

So, even if it pained Liam, even if he felt like the most unfilial disciple in the world, unworthy of such an amazing Master, he remained silent. That was his only way to protect the Elder, and he was ready to endure anything to keep him safe.

As long as no one could connect Liam to the Ancestral Snake, his loved ones would remain safe.

As for the Alchemy Elder, he noticed Liam’s reaction and could read the evident guilt on his face, but misunderstood its source. He believed his disciple was blaming himself for the failure, and it was his duty to reassure him.

The Elder also didn’t want to see the disciple who had made him so proud looking so defeated.

"Disciple, stay here and rest," The Elder declared, standing up. "Recover fully. I must consult the Scripture Hall, but know that your performance has been exemplary."

That rare praise only made Liam feel guiltier, but he remained silent, peeking above his lowered head, watching as his Master approached the boulder, where he stopped and looked at him once more.

"Disciple, don’t lose your trust in alchemy," The Elder mentioned. "Believe me when I say that a solution must exist."

Liam couldn’t bear to match his Master’s concerned look and lowered his head even further. Yet, despite all the guilt his lie had filled him with, he also felt the Elder’s care, so he nodded, not to reaffirm the pretense, but to reassure his Master.

The Elder departed at that point, and Liam waited until he heard the boulder close before lifting his gaze, a depressing realization dawning upon him.

Liam hadn’t forgotten. He couldn’t, and his encounter with the butcher had even acted as a reminder, but he couldn’t deny how well his life was going.

Despite some deadly challenges, Liam had a Master who cared about him, Joel, whatever he was doing with Melissa, a great reputation inside the Pale Moon Sect, and riches that could make rooting experts jealous.

That was a full life, one featuring far more than Liam had ever believed he could have. It couldn’t make him forget his revenge, but it was important nonetheless, maybe even as much as that foul desire.

Yet, good things never lasted.

Nothing catastrophic had happened. Everything was in Liam’s mind and future, but he faced a familiar issue once more, the same problem that had made him leave Lucy and his status as an outer disciple, the barrier he thought he had solved.

Rooting experts and even level three magical beasts were dangers Liam was ready to accept, but the Dragon King was way beyond that. He thought his secret wouldn’t create problems as long as it remained hidden, but reality had just proven him wrong, hurting his Master in the process.

’How strong do I have to get until I can show about all of myself without putting people I care about in danger?’ Liam wondered, his now-broader mind enabling that deeper thinking.

Because, for a person as honest as Liam, his silence was no different from lying. His Master, Joel, and Melissa deserved all of himself, but he had to keep that barrier in place to protect them.

And that now felt like a half-life, something that Liam translated into unworthiness of what his loved ones were giving him, an unsolvable compromise that would follow him until he was strong enough to bear the consequences of his Hatred.

’How fair is it to treat people like this?’ Liam pondered. ’I’m protecting them, but this protection feels bad.’

There, Liam’s mind broadened once more, albeit in a sad way, but such was life. His more mature brain hadn’t only enabled him to accept the incredible joy of affection beyond family and friends. He could also see darker, sadder emotions now.

’It doesn’t matter how I feel,’ Liam decided. ’Their safety comes first, just like strength has to.’

The decision didn’t make the compromise feel any better, but it rekindled some of Liam’s drive. He couldn’t let sadness freeze him. He had to advance until he was strong enough to create a solution, and recovery was the first step.

The healing pill had done nothing for Liam’s sense of weakness, but he knew what could, so he dragged himself to his pipe and began smoking, the previous experience delivering newfound proof of the breakthrough’s dangers.

Liam’s cultivation was undoubtedly tough. It had already endured two debilitating events, probably for the same reason behind his impossibly steep bottleneck.

However, the breakthrough was indeed a dangerous procedure, and Liam didn’t know how many attempts his cultivation could endure before finally cracking, no matter how tough it was.

Still, Liam had a silver lining there. His Master had his entire trust. Liam could rest easy and focus on recovering, knowing that the great Horace Rauret had his back.