Unsealing Emptiness

Chapter 341: Realm Ego’s gift.

In a brightly lit room the size of a hall, a man stood alone by the window.

Light particles danced around his long golden hair which lazily rested behind his back.

The room had a strange kind of silence permeating throughout. The bookshelves by the walls didn’t contain a speck of dust. Strangely, there was no smell of any kind either.

A normal man would find it unnerving just standing there.

The man stood unmoving as he gazed outside with his calculating golden eyes. He indifferently watched people go on about their lives.

Some lived happily, while others starved to death. Some schemed through their whole life while others had no clue about the ruthless nature of living beings when faced with survival. He could see it all. Everything was laid bare before his godly eyes, be it inside the room or thousands of miles away from his castle.

“Is everything done?”

.....

Inside the room, his wispy voice flowed softly. Only those with sufficient skill could perceive the absolute power blended therein, along with a sensation of lightheadedness.

Faced with the question though, the man who had arrived in the room remained calm.

He wore luxurious clothes, knitted with jewels of the rarest quality. His golden eyes and golden hair very much resembled that of the man’s by the window. Only he didn’t have that calculating gaze and the light glow to his hair.

While the man by the window stood with a posture that gave no clue of his thoughts, the man by the door conveyed nothing short of arrogance, directed at everything but the man by the window.

“Yes, father. I have already circulated the rumors. It won’t be long before all the Lords hear of this.”

The man by the window did not reply.

Though seeing that his son didn’t leave immediately after, he calmly uttered, “Speak your thoughts.”

“Father... I don’t mean to be presumptuous, but what is the purpose of doing this? Even Mother has not been able to understand your thoughts lately...”

“You can leave.”

The young man kept staring at his father’s back with clenched fists. He had so much more to say, but seeing that his father wasn’t willing to listen, he held himself back with all the strength he could muster.

‘Very well... if you won’t tell me, I have my own methods to find out...’ thought the young man before turning around with a wicked smile.

As the door closed behind him, the man by the window glanced back with a thoughtful yet cold face. No emotions flashed past his eyes as he diverted them back to the scenery outside the window.

. . .

Back to the faraway lands, in the Realm of Abezan, the Howling Province.

A man lay gasping in the midst of the concrete ground, encircled by a crowd. On a closer look, he was the once genius of the Leonhard Dynasty, Berk Leonhard.

“They are not simple guards!” he shouted as he got up pointing his finger at the man who bested him in under a minute.

“Believe whatever you want. Let’s get inside,” the young man smiled the same smile and led everyone back into the wooden house.

Only Ozul and the Elder had not bothered to stroll outside to observe the show. Ozul was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn’t notice he and the elderly guy were the only ones remaining in the room. The Elder stared at him the entire time as if he wanted to say something, but Ozul didn’t even look at him!

The Elder retracted his gaze with annoyance as everyone came back in.

The young man assumed his original position beside the Elder and smiled at everyone, almost gloating as he could see the original traces of arrogance dissipating from their faces.

“Now now. Don’t get depressed. Remember what I told you? You guys are Dragon Eggs. Anyone of you can hatch and soar the skies as if you own them!”

Everyone’s attention was drawn to his remarks. It sparked a glimmer of hope in their hearts. They had no idea where they were and being weak meant death no matter where they were. This was the truth commonly recognized by all.

“Yes. There is still something that can help you in this foreign land. That is, what you all call your Mana Core.”

Ozul squinted his eyes and stared at everyone. Indeed, he could still feel everyone’s Mana Core. Though how it could help them was something he didn’t understand.

Even someone like Zier, who was only a Fighter and not a Mage had Mana Core. He just hadn’t progressed as a Mage after forming the Mana Core.

“How will our Mana Core help us? Is there Mana somewhere in this Realm?” asked Sarah beside Aakal.

They were relatively more composed than others since they hadn’t been fighting much before being brought here. They opted to find a safe place instead of joining in the chaos. Chaos had already caused both of them a friend.

“No, there isn’t. The Mana in your world was created by the Realm Ego of your world. All Realm Ego’s are different. So even if there was a Realm with Mana, it wouldn’t be the same as yours. Trying to manipulate it only causes serious backlash outside the influence of their Realm Ego.”

The young man explained patiently. He was almost a scholar in this aspect, hence why he was chosen to guide the newly brought people.

“Then what use will the Mana Core be?” Aakal stepped forward.

“I’m getting to it... Remain patient, will you?” The young guy groaned huffily. The treatment of a beautiful woman like Sarah and a brutish man like Aakal was completely contrary.

Even the Elder beside the man shook his head. No matter which generation of men, there were only a rare few who could overcome their carnal urges.

“Using anything created by a Realm Ego outside its influence isn’t entirely impossible. While Mana itself is tricky, Mana Core is not.”

“It’s extremely wonderful! Your Mana Core is created by the Realm Ego in your favor. You can even say that it’s a bag of positive fortune solely tailored for you...” The young man’s voice drifted off in envy.

One had to know just how precious this opportunity was for anyone. Sadly, only the people from the Broken Worlds could enjoy such a privilege, hence, many people referred to them as Dragon Eggs only waiting to be hatched and become Fortune’s favored.

“Because all Realm Egos encourage the growth of life, you will not only get the benefits of Realm Ego of Abezan, but you will also receive additional blessings from Lady Fortune with the Mana Core.”

Even without his ability to read people’s emotions, Ozul could tell that the young man was nothing less than jealous right now. The old man, on the other hand, remained stoic.

The young man exhaled a mouthful of distaste and motioned towards the old man, “This is where Elder comes in.” “He is an acupuncture master and there aren’t many who can match his knowledge of the human body in all of the Howling Province!”

Ozul’s ears perked at the mention of acupuncture. Why was acupuncture involved in all of this?

He suspiciously eyed the Elder and saw him taking out a box from thin air. The wooden box opened and on the red velvet was placed a single silver needle the size of a human’s hand.

It was at this time that the old man took over the explaining, “Although your Mana Core is useless as it is right now. It is still a gift from your Realm Ego. All you need to do is to absorb this gift.”

“Absorb?”

The Elder didn’t mind the questioning this time, “Yes. It’s like eating a Dao Pill. But unlike a Dao Pill, you need help to absorb your Mana Core’s benefits.”

“Uhm... Are you sure there is no other way?” asked a man with a child’s build.

The Elder shrugged his shoulders, “You can choose not to do so. But know this, this is the only time you are receiving help for free.”

“Indeed. The Elder’s services aren’t cheap. Even someone like me can find it hard to afford him time,” The young man chipped in immediately. Although he seemed sincere, there was obvious flattery in his tone.

Seeing that not everyone was convinced yet, the young man began, “Helping you absorb the Mana Core at your current stage is quite a delicate task. If handled by anyone with not enough experience, you can even explode to death!”

“The Mana Core has to be melted first and you, on your own, do not possess enough strength to do so. The Elder will channel his energy through acupuncture and help you absorb the Mana Core. If someone inexperienced were to do such a thing, their energy will surely destroy your insides. This requires very precise control.”

Despite all that talk, everyone was still unsure whether they wanted to do this or not.

They were new here. What if they were being forced into doing something that they would regret later on?

Unfortunately, they didn’t have any choice at this point. After refusing their offer, where will they go? They had already seen a Rank-8 Mage getting beaten by a mere guard in a matter of minutes. They were too weak to survive alone in this new world.

“Why do you go to these lengths for us?” Raven asked the most important question.

Despite the fact that she knew she wasn’t as powerful as she used to be, she didn’t worry. If their goals were malicious, she would rather choose to take the dark road.

She wasn’t the only one. Blaze, Berk, and even the Sovereign thought as such.

“You will find that out later. We are only doing what we are ordered to do. Though I can assure you that now or whenever you want, you can walk out from here,” the young man assured.

The old man beside him sneered, “Hmph! Do you think I will take advantage of you? Even if I wanted to, your Mana Core will be of no use to me.”

“Now, whoever wants to absorb their Mana Core, hurry up!”