Chapter 136: The Minotaur

Three days later.

At night, on the bed.

Luo De suddenly felt a surge from the bracelet given to him by the half-unicorn, Xiao Ke.

He shoved aside Tally, who was rapidly sucking down her food.

Used 【Tree Walker】 to arrive at the Sand Willow District.

In the distance, the 【Dark Vortex Rift】 sand tornado, which had begun slowing down three days ago, accelerated again—and its scale had grown significantly.

The elf Kalist came up from behind.

She too noticed the disturbance.

"The ritual of the 【Dark Vortex Rift】 has intensified. The one behind this is growing desperate."

Desperation means our maze insertion measures are more effective than we imagined.

"How is the inserted maze holding up? Can it still withstand it?"

"Thanks to your lovely acquaintance—if the maze had no consciousness, it would already have been breached. I'm truly curious: how did a human like you manage to seduce a maze consciousness?"

Luo De smiled.

"Mainly mutual appreciation of each other's strengths."

"Hmph."

The elf ignored his arrogance, snorted, and added:

"The probability of companion monsters appearing will likely decrease, since the ritual's main power is now focused on countering the inserted maze—but the sand tornado's devastation is another matter."

The sand tornado's dust filled the sky like a thin membrane draped over the heavens.

It was already October; the wind season's backflow was coming.

Judging by the desert's current fury, it would be more violent than ever before.

Asethron has the Windwall Forest as a barrier, so they're fine—but other nations or tribes will suffer this year.

"I heard you've been going out a lot lately. Did you find Falshad?"

Luo De chatted casually.

"What's it to you whether I go out or not?"

"."

You're such a prick to talk to.

Seeing Luo De's exasperated expression, Kalist sighed and volunteered:

"On one hand, Falshad's concealment magic has improved drastically—I can barely track him anymore. On the other, dark elves have left traces at several places where Falshad lingered. I fear… he might be corrupted."

Luo De recalled Falshad's condition.

Aside from hanging out with that tiefling boy, he didn't seem particularly abnormal.

"Probably not. Falshad is the most normal elf I've ever met."

In his shallow life, he'd met three elves total.

One was Kalist before him, who often whipped herself in the cabin.

One was Georgi, the exiled golden-haired elf from Jade City, a womanizer who chased after human women over fifty.

The last, Falshad, liked men.

Having been shaped by modern society, Luo De wasn't gay, but he didn't react with horror either.

He really was relatively normal.

"Are you saying I'm not normal?"

Kalist's face darkened, terrifyingly sour.

Still, a faint blush crept up the tips of her pointed ears.

Luo De laughed it off.

Walked toward the edge of the Death Desert.

There was a small patch of inserted maze—their former experimental site.

It was perfect for summoning Long Hun Naulin to meet.

"M-Master!"

A girl in a black strap dress emerged from the pink ground, two spiral dragon horns on her head, a thick dragon tail extending from the dress's hem, lazily draped across the floor.

Her snow-white skin was dotted with black dragon scales arranged in interwoven patterns.

Naulin had been smiling, her small hands rubbing against her slightly swollen chest.

But the moment she saw the elf lady behind her master—perfect in face and figure—her face fell into a pout.

". -She's who?! Waaah… Master, you're cheating again!"

The dragon soul girl was far too jealous.

Luo De sighed, quickly explained, then mentioned the bone dragon Megan he'd encountered in the Fear Field.

He asked about the risks and possible solutions.

For the past few days, Megan's signature bones had been violently vibrating, pressing him to complete the transaction.

"Who's Megan?"

Naulin asked blankly.

"?"

Was the bone dragon lying?

Impossible—her 【Wrathful Burning Hate】 couldn't be faked.

Another cursed dragon?

Also impossible—Naulin's records clearly stated she was the only cursed dragon.

"Perhaps it's because she lacks a physical body," said Kalist beside him.

"Though many separate the roles of body, soul, and spirit, in truth they're deeply interconnected—disturb one, and all are affected. Losing her body may have caused her memory loss."

Her judgment of the dragon soul matched Oona's.

She was the red dragon Sabaan from the famed Dragonfall Incident.

Such cases weren't unique on the continent—there were already two artifacts in the Verdant Court housing dragon souls.

As for this human's pact with a cosmic entity…

Recent research yielded no solutions, only knowledge of the ancient spell: 【Soulbinding Chain】.

According to this fellow, the pact's terms weren't significant to him… perhaps observing their transaction up close could help me understand this spell better.

Luo De received no answers from Naulin and felt disappointed.

Seeing her master's expression, the dragon soul girl instantly panicked.

She hastily pulled a massive bull skull from the pink earth.

The bone's surface was carved with twisted runes and magical patterns, radiating dark, sinister spiritual energy and magic.

". -This… this is for you."

"What is this?"

"Earlier… someone performed a ritual sacrifice into the sand tornado, and I intercepted it…"

Earlier, someone used a spell to sacrifice into the sand tornado, and I intercepted it.

Took the bull skull.

Then patted the dragon soul girl's head approvingly.

Then he affectionately patted the Dragon Soul girl's head.

【Naulin's obedience +2, current obedience: 52】

Luo De handed the bull skull to Kalist, gesturing for her to identify it.

". uman, how thick is your skin? Fine, I'll overlook the forest business—but why should I help you with this?"

"Human, how thick is your skin? Fine, I'll let the forest matter slide—but why should I help you with this little thing?"

But still cast several identification spells.

"This is a Minotaur skull. It contains twelve souls of this race, each with a former strength of around sixth or seventh tier. As a sacrificial item, the cost was substantial."

"This is the skull of a Minotaur, containing twelve souls of its kind, each with a lifetime strength around sixth or seventh tier. As a sacrificial offering, the cost is substantial."

"If you know any dwarves who can forge or alchemize, you could try sealing them into artifacts… though I don't recommend it. Their resentment is heavy—they'll wail endlessly, releasing persistent spiritual shocks."

"If any of the dwarves you know can forge or transmute alchemy, you could try locking them into objects. But I don't recommend it—they carry heavy resentment and wail endlessly, releasing persistent spiritual shocks."

That's exactly what Naulin needs.

But she said only resentment formed on open-maze soil is usable.

And Kalist didn't need it either.

"Use 【Purification Shu 】 to disperse the souls inside. They're clearly suffering."

"Use the 【Purification Spell】 to disperse the souls inside; they clearly suffer within."

Perhaps it was a relic of his past-life beliefs—he wanted souls to find peace.

Perhaps it was the lingering influence of his past life—he wished for the souls to find peace.

Kalist used 【Purification Shu 】 to cleanse the souls within the skull.

The dark, sinister energy dissipated, transforming into pure, pale-blue spiritual essence.

【Received long-lasting blessing—'Gratitude of the Minotaur Dead'】

【Received long-lasting blessing—"Minotaur Undead's Gratitude"】

(End of chapter)