Chapter 361
Chapter 361
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 361
Chapter Title: Howard Industries (1)
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I opened the small wooden box closest to me and peered inside.
The moment the case—about the size of a ring box—snapped open, a clear yet tangy fragrance flooded the room.
Just inhaling it was enough to brighten my mood. This was no ordinary scent, wafting from a round object wrapped in paper and stored within.
'This must be the famous Shaolin Temple's Minor Return Pill.'
Sniff, sniff—
I couldn't help flaring my nostrils, savoring the aroma.
That alone seemed to wash away the toxins from my entire body, filling me with a surge of refreshing vitality.
After indulging in it fully, I quietly closed the lid and smacked my lips with satisfaction.
This Minor Return Pill was a gift from Hari, who had met face-to-face with the Shaolin abbot as a token of gratitude.
If he hadn't stepped in at that desperate moment, everyone present would have been in grave danger. This much was only natural.
Of course, in the past, it would have been enough to warrant a Great Return Pill instead. But now, with the value of spirit elixirs skyrocketing, things were different.
Over the past two decades, the potency of natural spirit herbs had steadily declined, crippling the field of alchemy entirely. These days, producing top-tier elixirs like the Great Return Pill was all but impossible.
Making even a Minor Return Pill now demanded materials and effort equivalent to a Great Return Pill of old. In that sense, calling it Shaolin's pinnacle spirit elixir wasn't an exaggeration.
'They must have really stretched themselves to hand this over.'
Beyond that, they'd promised all sorts of additional perks and preferential treatment—essentially baring their maximum sincerity.
They must have seen earning the favor of Hari, who had shone so impressively against the Heavenly Demon, as a top priority.
'Of course, I get the sentiment, but...'
That didn't mean it satisfied me.
I set down the case with the Minor Return Pill and picked up the one next to it, its lid embossed with antique patterns. I opened it.
Whoosh—
In that instant.
The scenery around me shifted.
From the somewhat chilly modern interior to the dappled shade of a tree on a sunny spring day.
No—a field ripe for harvest? Or maybe a summer valley with cascading waterfalls.
'Whoa, this is something else.'
But as 「Clear Mirror Still Water」 activated and calm returned, I realized it was just a fleeting illusion. I clicked my tongue in amazement.
Like a comic character beholding the cosmos after a delicious meal, the mere scent had tricked my brain into hallucinating. The energy infused within was anything but ordinary.
'As expected... this is the real deal, a true Great Return Pill.'
The undisputed supreme treasure of the martial world—now little more than a legend, even in Shaolin.
I had no idea how many they'd squirreled away without using, but with production impossible, its value was beyond measure either way.
'Yeah, that's more like it for a spirit elixir.'
There simply weren't any on the market. Even money and power couldn't buy one.
And how had I gotten my hands on such a treasure?
'Bought it.'
That's right. Just bought it.
Plain and simple.
After all, didn't I have the Karma Shop's 『Item Purchase』 function, which could provide nearly anything in existence?
Unless it was a one-of-a-kind item already owned by someone, acquiring spirit elixirs was a trivial matter for me with karma to burn.
Until now, for Hugo with his 「Heavenly Qi Body」 that accepted any qi nature without issue, refining through alchemy held little meaning. So we'd mostly relied on the spirit herbs Harris gathered...
'But for the main body to use personally, I need to be more selective.'
It was different from my avatars, loaded with traits and able to improvise solutions to any problem.
The main body was just a sturdy young man with diverse abilities, loads of money, good looks, and a great personality and physique. Nothing more.
I needed to eliminate even the slightest risk.
'Sure enough, sourcing quality spirit elixirs from anywhere but Outerica and the Kanghwan Realm is a pain.'
Arrayed on the table were various spirit elixirs beyond the ones I'd already seen.
The Kanghwan Realm's finest, like the Wudang Sect's Supreme Purity Pill and the Huashan Sect's Purple霞 Divine Pill.
Outerica's potions, alchemically processed from dragon hearts, magic stones, and other materials.
And spirit elixirs from other worlds, gathered through various channels.
There were reasons I'd amassed so many.
'Energy forms the foundation for wielding mysteries. But from my perspective, managing multiple avatars, imbalance toward one type isn't ideal.'
This differed from cases like High Elf Harris or Battle King Hari, who had transcended limits.
They could cultivate martial arts and adapt them in their own ways, but for the main body—a complete blank slate—committing to one path would inevitably restrict future avatars' development.
With no telling what challenges or avatars lay ahead, I couldn't impose limits on myself.
So the solution I'd chosen was this.
'Gather the maximum energy without tipping the balance, then convert it into pure energy adaptable to any mystery.'
If others knew my thinking, they'd laugh it off as a pipe dream.
It was utterly impossible by conventional wisdom.
Each world's laws differed, so the natures of their energies did too.
Even within the same world, a knight's aura couldn't substitute a mage's mana, nor a martial artist's inner energy power a sorcerer's spells. Across entirely different worlds? Forget it.
'But I know it exists—the supreme force above all energies, valid in any world.'
Know it? I'd encountered it countless times, analyzed it thoroughly in clashes with the Archdemon, and ultimately internalized it myself.
I possessed infinite potential.
'Divinity.'
I closed my eyes gently and turned inward.
"Hoo—."
Far from one or two, numerous avatars already harbored seeds of divinity.
Immortal King Hans, Vampire King Heinz 2nd, Battle King Hari.
Beyond them, I sensed faint sparks in Heinrich, bearer of the Main God's proxy might and glory, and in Harris, blessed by the World Tree.
Yes, that was the situation.
Could the one who controlled those avatars remain unaffected?
'Even with separate bodies, those avatars are still me. Sure, realm-derived dignity is heavily shaped by the base flesh...'
My soul had long since grown to match.
Though most of my dignity was split and allocated to operate over a dozen avatars—half of them transcendent—so it wasn't obvious on the surface.
I opened my eyes again and gazed intently at the elixirs on the table.
Most avatars had long since retreated to safe havens and entered dormancy.
For the first time in ages, fully focused on my true body alone, I flexed my arm—which felt strangely foreign—and picked up an elixir.
'Might as well start with this.'
The Shaolin Temple's Minor Return Pill, first one I'd seen.
And.
Without hesitation, I popped it into my mouth and activated 「Authority of Gluttony」.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Haaa—."
A stream of pure white qi mingled with my exhaled breath, shimmering in the air like frosty mist before vanishing.
That was just the beginning.
The entire room was already thick with hazy vapors leaking from my body.
I slowly opened my eyes and glanced down at myself.
The impurities discharged with sweat in the initial rounds were long gone after countless repetitions—not a speck remained.
'Well, yeah. After dumping that many elixirs into me, it'd be weirder if any lingered.'
Dozens of spirit elixirs had piled up on the table.
Now, only empty wrappers remained.
Even though 「Authority of Gluttony」 kept the process swift, I'd still consumed every last one.
And the most crucial outcome?
'Not enough.'
A half-success.
I smacked my lips and repeatedly clenched and unclenched my fist.
The failure wasn't for some obscure reason.
I'd planned to balance the Kanghwan Realm and Outerica energies equally into a dual foundation, then consolidate the rest into a stable tripartite structure...
'Who knew even combining all the others wouldn't cut it.'
The issue was the inferior quality of elixirs from other worlds compared to those two.
I'd underestimated the potency of top-grade ones from the Karma Shop. Even matching quantities, they were qualitatively outclassed.
'But proper divinization demands uncompromising quality. That was the bare minimum baseline...'
In the end, instability prevented full conversion to divinity. Still, half a success wasn't terrible.
Bzzz—
A misty energy rose from my hand like heat haze.
Aura refined from mana.
It swiftly transformed into something entirely different—qi, inner energy honed to purity.
Then mana, spiritual power, natural force—an energy fluidly cycling through mutable natures.
Impressive in itself? Not really.
I could already handle diverse energies via the supplementary effects of 「Entity Projection」.
The key was that I could now draw on the vast reserves latent within me, making my accessible energy pool orders of magnitude greater than before.
'That's a huge win on its own. Previously, the power I could muster had hard limits.'
Of course, trait disparities still prevented fully emulating 「Entity Projection」.
Yet with energy constraints lifted, my current strength dwarfed my past self.
'At this level, pinnacles are manageable—even if transcendence is out of reach.'
This attempt had clearly revealed the potential, so I had zero intention of stopping here.
'If I can perfect this...'
My hand drifted to my chest unbidden.
My heart thrummed more vigorously than ever.
Sensing the 'something' nestled within, I closed my eyes.
A formless possibility, unbound by any trait or nature.
A power that could become anything required, achieve whatever desired.
That was the divinity I aimed to awaken.
"To get there, I need spirit elixirs from other worlds first."
Quantity mattered, but quality even more.
Not quite Great Return Pill caliber, but at least Minor Return Pill level to help...
'The problem is, those aren't easy to come by.'
The dismal efficiency of Earth's spirit elixirs was no secret.
Awakeners sent to otherworlds would have researched it beforehand and known.
So even if they snagged some precious ones, they'd gobble them up before heading back to Earth.
'Have Hans pioneer new dimensions?'
Not a bad idea.
To maintain balance across diverse world energies, he'd need to tour quite a few dimensions, not just one or two. But Hans had grown considerably, and with 『Dimensional Barrier Easing』 strengthened, the process would be smoother than before.
'Still, can't just rush into it. Capturing transcendent mediums alive is one thing...'
Divinity-types whose memories couldn't be read were off-limits, as were dimensions lacking spirit elixirs entirely.
Above all, pioneering even one new dimension required substantial research time here for synchronization.
'...We'll tackle that step by step. For now, try other approaches first.'
Fortunately, I had one more option ready to go right away.
More efficient, broader in scope, and expandable for future uses.
My gaze shifted to the items in one corner—specifically, the magic tools I'd recently recovered.
Depending on their value, these commanded far higher regard than spirit elixirs. On this world, they were priceless masterpieces money alone couldn't buy.
'Perfect timing. I've been feeling the need for an organization with global reach.'
Acquiring rare items wasn't just about money; finding sellers was the real hurdle.
A lack of infrastructure, basically.
And even if you found them, those with the goods I wanted already had the means to make bank themselves—they wouldn't bite at mere cash.
'So offer them something irresistible.'
If they were hoarding elixirs like that, their thirst for growth went without saying.
Then satisfy it—not with the slim odds of elixirs, but a surefire path to power.
Unlike elixirs, magic tools had no special restrictions for use on Earth.
What if I offered those as payment?
Not run-of-the-mill stuff, but jaw-droppingly rare artifacts even in their home worlds—bait them with custom temptations?
'Play this right, and it'll rally serious opposition to the Billion Assembly on Earth. Take it further with made-to-order commissions...'
Game over.
Producing the bait was no issue either.
I had dwarf master craftsmen, dragon enchanters, demon lord-tier black mages, saints, sacred blood vampires, and high elf spiritists at my disposal.
'Shift the underground magic tool trade into the open and scale it up. Build worldwide renown, then dangle special orders to lure in awakeners.'
People only move for personal gain.
And as long as the profits kept flowing steadily, betrayal wouldn't come easy.
'The hassle goes to Jin So-ran and the Blood Alliance—they've handled supply smoothly so far. Europe to Termidor, Gomorrah, and Dracul...'
A specialist firm in otherworldly magic tools.
The launch of 'Howard Industries'.