William couldn't see it, but Efretta flashed a wide smile after hearing his words. The embers in her eyes rekindled a flame deep within her soul while her hair extended a few centimeters, her entire body subconsciously resisting the Fire Laws that bound her.
"Are you going to keep me here, then?"
William nodded seriously, "If that's what it takes to protect everyone. I don't care how powerful the Heavens are, I'll take them on by myself if I have to. I don't need your help."
He hung his head low as he finished his statement.
I'm sorry System. I might have to fail your Quest, but I'd rather try to escape from purgatory than allow your Eighth Host to let people like Fria, Charlotte, Carl, Gunther, Tia, and Yuming die. I just can't live with that.
-There's no need to apologize. Look up.
William did as he was told and raised his head, only to be met by two orbs, one the size of his thumb while the second was as large as his fist. The first orb was multicolored and resembled every Elemental Affinity he had, while the second was a pale white filled with clouds.
-Acquired World Seed (x2): +200,000,000 PP
William didn't even have to wonder what Efretta had given him after seeing the System messages.
Efretta's voice became somewhat hoarse for a second before returning to normal, "You passed the test, of course. These World Seeds will allow you to achieve exactly what you seek: to protect those you care for while still pursuing the peak of Cultivation.
The first World Seed is my prison, which isn't a fully formed World yet, but can still be of some use. The second is from Reius, my own World. Once you Ascend, merge Reius with your own World Seed and all the inhabitants will be under your protection. No one will have to die, and you will grow stronger as a result." she explained.
It was all a test? William wanted to be suspicious of Efretta, but the two World Seeds in his hand gave him no reason to. There was a chance that the System and Efretta were working together, but what was the point?
William had lived a relatively comfortable live because of the System and its Talents. It had even pushed him to Ascend instead of rushing him to absorb the Elemental Veins. If it wanted to save Efretta so badly, it would have issued the System Quests much sooner, or at least given him a shorter time limit.
There was just one thing bothering him.
"If I take these now, what's the catch? Also, what will happen to you?" he asked.
"Naturally, you will have to spend your own Mana to keep the Worlds running. I took away Reius' ability to use Mana, so the cost is extremely small to maintain it right now, but this World is different. It will continue to exhaust my Mana until I am gone, but you will have to shoulder the responsibility afterwards.
As for my future, I lost control over Reius the moment I gave you the Seed, so I will have to reform a new World and start from scratch. My Cultivation will drop to the Ascension Realm, and I will be killed off by this World's suppression in less than ten years. As of right now, I can no longer be considered a God." Efretta explained her bleak future as if it was a simple matter.
So, in order to save my people, she has to sacrifice her own Cultivation and potentially her life... Is this true, System?
-Request requires 3.5 Trillion Potential Points. Yes/No?
Between Torc's situation and Efretta's explanation, William felt like the System was just trying to make him use his two remaining Free Ask Function Responses as soon as possible. That said, this matter was too important to ignore.
I'll use one of my Free Responses.
-Yes. Ascended Cultivators develop a minor World Seed when they reach the Celestial Planes. As their Cultivation grows, their World grows and expands with them. Destroying or removing this is just about the same as destroying one's Dantian in the Mortal Realms.
-Additionally, Efretta's soul will receive a backlash for giving up her World, and she will enter a period of weakness for five years.
She's doing all of this for me? William didn't know what to think. His perception of Efretta had become like a rollercoaster, up and down with no clear end in sight.
After hearing that she would willingly sacrifice tens or even hundreds of thousands of years' worth of Cultivation for him, William felt grateful.
"Thank you, Ancestor." he bowed slightly and opened an empty Space Ring. He threw both of the World Seeds inside and promptly closed the portal without a second glance.
Efretta, whose spirits had been lifted by William's desire to protect those close to him, suddenly felt the urge to smack herself in the forehead. She peered past William's Arrays to look at the Starmetal Artifacts that stored his Space Rings, not surprised to see one in particular slowly turning into liquid.
The System, sensing that William hadn't yet noticed, suddenly felt like giving out some information for free.
-Chaotic Treasures are a very special type of material that form during significant events across the Universe. Whether it's a Planar-Scale battle amongst the strongest Cultivators in existence, Mortal Ascension, or the collapse and rising of Planes, these Treasures are usually unparalleled and have a wide array of uses.
-World Seeds are one of these Chaotic Treasures, and like the rest they cannot be stored in Space Rings as simple as yours.
William pressed his hand against his leg, only to remove it and see a silvery liquid seeping through his clothes. The Space Ring was completely destroyed, and the World Seeds were slowly drifting back to Efretta.
William reached out and firmly grasped the World Seeds, then cleaned out the liquid titanium from his Artifact and heaved a sigh.
Efretta heaved a sigh of her own, "Magic is a mysterious thing, but the greatest mystery is how a moron like you can wield it without killing yourself."
"It was an honest mistake; I've never had a Chaotic Treasure before!" William argued back, hoping to retain a shred of dignity.
-I may no longer be attached to the Eighth Host, but we can still exchange thoughts. She's already aware of your experimentation with the Space Element.
A memory flashed through William's mind of himself accidentally detaching his own head with Space Magic while trying to teleport. If not for the Regeneration Talent, William's journey would have ended there.
You told her about that? But I'm your current Host, shouldn't you be on my side?
-Doesn't apply when it comes to your natural stupidity.
Well at least I didn't forget that there are 28 Elements and not 27! William retorted.
-My information was suppressed. I didn't forget.
Hehe, whatever. William smiled. In his books, he had won that argument.
"So, what are you going to do now? Are you still going to keep me here?" Efretta asked.
William smiled, "We got off on the wrong foot, but I think it's obvious that our common enemy is the Heavens. If I want to deal with them, I'm going to need all the help I can get." ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ NoveIＦire.net