I stared at the core for a few seconds with a stern gaze, switching back and forth between the egg and the core.
I was thinking if it truly was the right decision.
If I wanted, I could simply walk away and find a low-level beast's core easily within the remaining time limit. Although the core that lay in front of me was, no doubt, the biggest that I had ever seen in my life.
Usually, Dantians or Cores are the same size as one's fingernails. But this—it was in a league of its own.
A dantian so big that it seemed to exceed the size of one's stretched hand—it was truly unheard of.
If I were to implant such a core in my body, my body would evolve and attain the characteristics of the beast itself due to its higher lineage and bloodline. However, at the same time, since it had an unfathomable cultivation, the core still retained the soul of the beast, and the very proof of that was the voice that I could constantly hear—not to mention, what had happened mere moments ago...
And because of that, if I were to betray or go back on my words to protect the snake's child, it held enough power to kill me once and for all in an instant.
It was a dilemma. One that no one would ever want to fall into, and yet, I simply smiled at the core.
I extended my hand forward and softly let my fingers grasp onto the core.
"This is my answer to your proposal..." I said softly.
The cerulean energy that seemed to be resonating within the core, in that exact moment, flared up—causing it to glisten into a bright cerulean glow.
"Very well. I will leave my child in your hands, Mo Taixuan." The beast's voice appeared once again, softly ringing through my mind.
"When the child hatches, it will feel familiar towards you due to my core; however, whether you can win its loyalty or not, I will leave that to your ability. Anyhow, do not attempt to hurt that child in any manner. Think of him simply as another child of yours."
With that said, the voice disappeared once and for all, leaving the core in my hand.
The system, on the other hand—which had been lying dormant up until now—suddenly materialized in front of my eyes.
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[#~System Notification~#]
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[Congratulations! You have successfully cleared your first Task!]
[Providing rewards...]
[You have obtained a White Rank: Demonic Qi Tempering Manual!]
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The screen in front of me began to emanate a shimmering bright white light, pulsing through its center in wave-like patterns.
Rays of light slowly stretched upwards, converging at a single point—forming a small fist-sized sphere of light.
The sphere then expanded, and the light began to shape itself into a rectangular shape, slowly transforming itself into a book—its cover black and roughly torn from the edges as though it had survived through generations.
The book simply hovered in the air, floating above the system screen as if waiting patiently for its new owner to quickly pick it up.
I stood there like a statue, calmly staring at the screen with my eyes widened. To some point, I was dazzled by the capabilities of the system because even I understood that what it had just done was well beyond the capabilities of a normal cultivator.
Creating things out of thin air was simply unheard of even in my world.
I raised my other hand towards the books and firmly tightened his grip on them before picking them up.
Then, a new system window appeared in front of me, overlapping the previous one.
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———————————————————
[#~System Notification~#]
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[Congratulations! You have obtained a mythical beast's core!]
[The system can help you implant the core into your body. Would you like to proceed?]
└ [• Y/N]
[# Caution - During the process, the host will feel an excruciating pain as your entire body will go through a metamorphosis. The stronger the beast core is, the more pain you may suffer with.]
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"Yes."
Without hesitation, I answered almost instantly. I had been waiting for that exact moment. I was desperate and, at the same time, calm like the sea.