"B-but fathe-"

The voice was interrupted by a middle-aged man who seemed strict and slightly angry. This man was the current Patriarch of the Mirage Era Hall sect. His son came asking for help as he was mistreated and humiliated.

Visto stood before his father with his lowered, the arrogance and haughtiness he usually demonstrates was nowhere to be found.

"Don't think I'm a fool. Witnesses told me exactly what happened and it's your fault for causing trouble."

Athard Exas, the father of Visto, felt embarrassed by the behavior of his son. In fact, were it not for the elders currently present, he would have beaten Visto half-dead.

He knew that Visto is arrogant because he's the Patriarch's son and thanks to his high Realms, which placed him above his peers, however, he shouldn't have provoked a stranger.

Moreover, this stranger was welcomed as an honorary Elder inside his sect. It wasn't something he could control albeit being the Patriarch as the Grand Elder held more authority than him.

Plus, no matter how much he investigated, he couldn't uncover the guest's background, which made him hesitate and act cautiously.

In fact, he was delighted to see a strong person residing in his sect, however, knowing his son's attitude, he probably won't let this matter slide.

It was speculated that the guest had the cultivation of a peak grade God. It wasn't comparable to the elders but it was still a respectable, especially for someone who seemed to be a lone cultivator.

"Anyway, you're forbidden from leaving the golden hall for the next month."

The young man wanted to protest but immediately gave up once he saw his father's cold gaze. He could act however he wants in the outside but when facing his father, he could only be obedient and follow orders.

After Visto left, Athard glanced at the elder standing next to him and muttered

"Anything new about our new guest?"

The elder shook his head and replied

"No. The young miss said that he helped her in the Wicked Forest and they became friends. Also, the Grand Elder regards him favorably."

Athard nodded his head and added:

"Notify the others to not bother him. Anyone who tries anything will be heavily punished."

…

After spending a lot of effort to retrieve the two corpses, Arthur rested in his spacious room. He cultivated for a few hours but the results were minimal and disappointing. His speed in cultivating is lackluster, to say the least.

"Aren't I supposed to be a heavenly talent after absorbing so many corpses?"

Arthur asked Claud, wanting to know the reason behind his slow advancement in cultivation. Actually, his talent wasn't that bad, it was decent, however, compared to Lucy or other talents, he was still lacking.

"Actually, what people call talent is DNA. Each person or beast has a unique DNA and since you possessed a large quantity, you have stored all those DNA but unable to access most of them. Yes, your body is extremely tough and strong, but it doesn't necessarily accommodate all kinds of DNA. This DNA can be influenced by certain bloodlines or in some rare cases, Physiques. Currently, you cannot make use of the stored DNA but if we play our cards right, we can force an evolution that'll allow you to access them all. At that time, you'll be able to transform into anything you possessed without requiring a host."

"And how to force an evolution?"

After a short silence, Claud answered

"It depends on the circumstances. If, for example, you stay in a poisonous place for a certain amount of time, the System will offer you a choice to evolve. Even I, don't know the requirements for a body that can store all those DNA, I guess we have one more reason to reach the Garden of Words."

Hearing him, Arthur clicked his tongue and remained silent. Claud refused to say anything about the Garden of Words, even its location, which annoyed him but he couldn't just force it out of his mouth so he can only swallow his anger.

…

Late at night, Visto entered the Golden Hall, which is a good place to cultivate as it had thick Nether Energy and it's especially good for those who cultivate the sect's technique.

No one but him was inside this magnificent hall that was decorated with nothing but pure gold. Just as the young man entered meditation and activated his cultivation technique, he felt something was amiss. His bodyfelt numb and he started feeling immense pain from his Dantian.

By circulating his Nether Energy, he accelerated the effect of the lingering Dark Magic inside of him. Like the idiot he is, Visto wanted to expel the malevolent energy inside of him instead of calling for help.

Unfortunately, that didn't go well as he started coughing one mouthful blood after another until his face turned pale and the blood loss caused him to become extremely dizzy.

Only twenty minutes after he sat down, he could be seen laid on a puddle of blood, motionless and lifeless, of course.

Even Arthur didn't expect Visto to be such a fool. Fighting Dark Magic is useless, especially when it invaded every part of your body. Only Arthur was capable of saving him but alas, he literally killed himself.

Visto's death was only discovered the next morning. Athard wanted to talk to his son about Arthur only to find him deader than dead. By the time he called for the Physician to save his kid, it was already too late.

From grief, the Patriarch spat some blood and momentarily fell unconscious, if not for the support of the present elders, he would have collapsed.

At the same day, Athard closed the gates of the sect and allowed no one to enter or leave until the culprit was apprehended.

Shu Ru, who was in her room, playing with the small Yin Beast, was shocked to hear of this terrible news. She rushed to her Grand Elder to know more about this tragedy but even someone as acknowledgeable as her grandfather didn't know the cause of the death.

The Dark Magic had disappeared the moment it killed its target, only the poison was left. However, tracing it back to Arthur isn't possible.

As Arthur was attempting to create Void Talismans, someone gently knocked on the door, which soon opened by itself.

An elegant and beautiful girl entered the room, she had a strange expression as she gazed at the man before her. He seemed to be in a world of his own, not minding all the noise coming from outside.

Shu Ru hesitated for a long time and only after a few minutes passed did she manage to say what's on her mind

"Was it you?"

She knew that Visto attacked Arthur but couldn't reach him and was bounced back. This friend of hers didn't retaliate and didn't even touch Visto yet she was suspicious. He was far stronger than others think so killing Visto is hard but doable.

Hearing her, Arthur feigned ignorance as he replied

"What?"

"The son of the current patriarch was found dead this morning. Everyone is being investigated and no one is allowed to leave until the murderer is found."

Arthur didn't even glance at the girl as he threw down a broken Talisman and continued with his experiments.

"Is that so?"

His lack of reaction was strange and it slightly irritated Shu Ru, who usually carries herself with a calm demeanor.

"A person was killed, how can you be so nonchalant?"

Only now did Arthur stop and glance at her while retorting

"Tell me, why should I care? It's not like I know him."

"Hmpf! He was the one who refused to let you inside the sect a few days ago."

Still expressionless, Arthur stated:

"Oh then he got what he got what he deserved. Arrogant people like him don't usually live long."

The girl stomped her foot in anger and added:

"Who are you decide if he should live or die?"

Arthur frowned upon hearing her. He calmly leaned on the chair and drank some of the hot tea he prepared for himself while receiving her glare.

"I never decided his life or death, I was merely expressing my opinion."

Shu Ru didn't say anything as she stormed out of the room. She didn't have any evidence, heck! It may even be someone else's doing. She didn't invite him to her sect for him to kill Visto. While it's true Visto it annoying and had a bad attitude, he didn't deserve to die miserably like that.