Martial Era: Starting With The Strongest Talent-Chapter 59: Hesitation

A few minutes before the explosion tore through the sky, Adam was already rushing toward the center of the incursion.

He’d gathered enough soul pearls.

More than enough, in fact. The amount he carried was already close to the limit of what his body could safely handle.

Any more would be pointless, wasteful even. Besides, by this point, he’d practically ransacked most of the Sirens’ pools.

There wasn’t much left to gather.

Which meant it was time to shift focus to the Water Lily.

Adam didn’t want it because he planned to use it.

He wanted it because he knew he would make an absurd amount of money selling it.

Despite how it might look, Adam had always had a strong appreciation for money.

Who didn’t? He’d grown up in conditions that naturally fostered that mindset, and now that he was walking the martial path, a path infamous for draining resources at an alarming rate, money mattered more than ever.

This wasn’t about sudden luxury.

It wasn’t about him getting spoiled over the past few days and developing expensive tastes.

No.

This was about sustainability.

Improvement.

Survival.

Sure, there would be moments when he indulged himself, but never excessively. He knew better than to let comfort dull his edge. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

As for why Adam believed the Water Lily would be at the center of the incursion, it wasn’t a guess.

Through [Connect], he’d seen it.

He’d sensed the flow of Clan heirs, and their entourages, gravitating toward the same general direction.

Even when they got distracted by Sirens or clashed with one another, their initial heading had been the same.

The middle.

That told him everything.

Instead of running around blindly, wasting time on a wild goose chase, Adam chose the smarter option.

Follow the tide.

If everyone was converging on the center, then that was where the Water Lily was most likely to appear.

With that decision made, Adam increased his speed, cutting through the swamp like a shadow as he headed straight for the heart of the incursion.

The heart of the incursion lay at the breached rift.

That was the epicenter, the point where the rift’s influence spilled into the real world and warped the surroundings.

Everything abnormal radiated outward from that spot.

Which was exactly why it made sense.

If a Water Lily had formed anywhere, it would be there.

Adam could already feel it as he closed in, the thick, heavy essence leaking from the rift like heat from an open furnace.

His instincts sharpened, and as he ran, he activated [Connect], sweeping the area ahead of him before fully entering it.

That was when he was shocked mid-stride.

What he saw made him surge forward even faster.

When Adam finally reached the epicenter, he came to a stop.

What stood in front of the breached rift, Was not a Water Lily.

"It’s you."

Floating before the rift was a dark gem, suspended in midair, pulsing faintly with warped essence.

And standing directly in front of it was Henry, the Faraday heir.

He wasn’t alone.

His goons were spread out around him, forming a loose perimeter.

Adam’s gaze flicked across the ground.

Then his eyes narrowed.

The earth nearby had been dug up, poorly. It was amateurish, shallow and rushed. Anyone with experience would have done a better job hiding it.

A telltale sign of haste.

So that’s where they buried the bodies.

Adam realized.

That was why he’d rushed here faster than usual.

Earlier, through [Connect], he’d sensed corpses in the area.

​Considering the current situation, both dangerous and blatantly illegal, and the fact that Henry’s men showed no exhaustion after the slaughter, it became obvious to whom the corpses belonged.

The corpses weren’t Clan heirs.

They were Acolytes.

Adam could tell, because compared to martial heirs a small group of Acolytes, even if they held the advantage of numbers, would be no match for martial heirs.

Adam knew the manager had sent acolytes into the incursion. That was how she’d uncovered the truth about the Water Lily in the first place.

But now?

Now it was clear that the Water Lily wasn’t the most urgent issue anymore.

The dark gem floating in front of the breached rift radiated a twisted, unstable essence. It pulsed slowly, like a diseased heart, warping the air around it.

Whatever that thing was, it was far more dangerous than a rare plant.

Adam didn’t bother asking questions.

There was no room for misunderstanding here.

No chance that this was some innocent mistake.

Only one certainty.

They were up to no good.

Adam stepped forward and slid into a stance, his common knife held in a reverse grip, blade angled low and ready.

Henry’s expression hardened.

"Don’t drop your guard," he barked at his men.

"He’s strong, but don’t let him interfere with the plan."

The goons responded immediately.

Conduits were drawn. Essence surged. Four-star and three-star profound spirits manifested behind them, flickering into existence with hostile pressure.

Among them was the same goon who’d gotten in Adam’s face yesterday, and the same one Dickson had sent flying earlier that day. He was clearly healed, though faint bruises still marred his face.

He grinned viciously.

"Attack."

They moved as one.

At the same instant.

Adam activated Rapid E and Poison F.

The world slowed.

And Adam rushed forward to meet them head-on.

Adam didn’t hesitate as he moved.

The followers rushing him might have had higher ranks, better conduits, even profound spirits at their backs, something Adam himself didn’t possess.

But none of that deterred him.

There was one simple reason.

He was absolutely certain, without the slightest shred of doubt, that he would wipe the floor with them.

Still... there was a problem.

A small one.

But before he could fully dwell on it.

The goon, who had shouted attack, reached him first.

​A sword came down in a brutal vertical arc, aimed to split Adam clean in two. Yet, the strike might as well have been mailed to him, as Adam side-stepped the attack effortlessly.

The blade slammed into empty air.

In the same motion, Adam drove forward and smashed the handle of his common knife into the man’s head.

The impact cracked sharply, the goon’s eyes glazing as his balance shattered. Adam followed up instantly, his foot snapping out and crashing into the man’s chest.

Crack!

Ribs broke, as the goon was launched backward, colliding hard with one of the other charging men and sending both tumbling across the ground.

Adam didn’t slow down.

He surged toward the rest.

And the problem finally surfaced clearly in his mind.

I knew this would happen one day...

I’m hesitating.

Hesitating to kill them.