Return of the Mythic Bloodline-Chapter 352: I refuse
On the other side of the Royal Gate, all the debris and the broken chambers had been completely cleared away. The torn garden was fully restored, and the place was immaculately cleaned without a single speck of dust. Nobody could believe that just a day ago, an intense clash had taken place here.
Only two chambers remained inside. One belonged to Mother and the other to me.
In front of Mother’s chamber, Lily was sweeping the floor while, at the center of the garden, Mother sat with her eyes closed in her wheelchair, extracting Soulforce from the Soul Stones and absorbing it into her body.
Lily greeted me with a deep bow, stopped cleaning, and moved to the back of the zenith, giving Mother and me some space.
Only a single day had passed, yet Mother already looked far healthier than she had the previous night.
Sensing my presence, she opened her eyes and looked at me with a warm gaze, halting her absorption.
"Taranis," she whispered with a faint smile.
I moved closer to her and lowered my face so she could caress my cheeks before gripping the handles of her wheelchair from behind.
"How are you feeling, Mother?" I asked as I slowly pushed her chair toward her room.
"Better now that you are here," she replied softly. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢
"You should not stay outside. You will catch a cold," I said as we neared her room.
"I am an Eternal Sage," she retorted sharply.
"And you are also ill," I replied gently.
"..."
"Now, now, do not stare at me like that, Mother," I chuckled as I opened the door to her chamber.
"Hmph, do not lecture me. I am your mother. I have seen you naked," she scoffed sharply.
It was her ultimate line whenever she lost an argument to me, since I never had a comeback to that.
"Alright, my pretty mother, I will not lecture you anymore," I chuckled, wrapping my arms around her in a warm hug from behind.
After reaching her bed, I gently lifted her from the wheelchair and laid her down.
"How many days will it take for you to regain your strength?" I asked, sitting beside her.
"About a month," she replied.
"Here, take these once you regain a little more strength," I said, placing the jade bottle containing several Heavenly Thunder Refinement Pills beside her.
These high quality mid tier pills, once consumed, permanently increase and refine the lightning attribute Soulforce within the body of an Eternal Sage. If a cultivator from a lower realm were to consume them, they might explode from the sheer amount of Soulforce contained within.
She was slightly surprised to receive such priceless pills but soon regained her composure, knowing it was completely normal for me to possess treasures of this level.
The two of us talked for a few more hours as I continued recounting my adventure from where I had stopped the previous night.
Once she fell asleep, I gently kissed her forehead, pulled the blanket over her, and stepped outside.
"I should not make any noise or she will wake up," I murmured as I drew Vajra from my inventory and moved to the back of the zenith.
I had already engraved all the knowledge of Thunderbane Swordsmanship from the manuals into my mind, but I still could not practice it within the sect, as it would expose my ability to use Soul Aura.
This was the only place and time where I could freely practice without worrying about anything.
For the next eight hours, I imitated the moves described in the manual, ensuring that no thunder leaked from my lightning to wake Mother.
It was difficult and exhausting, but it also helped me gain greater control over my attribute.
When dawn approached and most of the trees and ground had been destroyed by my relentless strikes, I finally received the notification I had been waiting for.
Ding...
"Congratulations! You have learned a new skill: Sword of the Thunderbanes Chapter 1:
Fang of the Thunder Wolf."
Ding...
"Congratulations! You have learned a new skill: Sword of the Thunderbanes Chapter 2:
White Tiger Severance."
"Huff, I think this much should be enough for today," I murmured, wiping the sweat from my temple.
Continuously using Sword Aura throughout the night to learn these skills was exhausting even for someone like me, who possessed a vast amount of Soulforce.
It was almost dawn when I finished my training. Without wasting time, I returned to the sect, took a long bath, and just as I was about to lie down and rest, a knock sounded at the door.
I already knew who it would be at this hour.
Opening the door, I found Thorin standing at the entrance with an unreadable expression.
"What do you want?" I asked with a frown.
He bit his lips, forcing himself to speak, but no words came out, as if something prevented him from saying them aloud.
"If you are here to admire my handsome face, I think that is enough," I said, beginning to close the door.
"I am not here for that!" he said loudly, immediately grabbing the door to stop it.
My frown deepened at his rude behavior. Sensing that I was about to beat him, he finally muttered under his breath, "I would also like to train under you."
"Oh, that is surprising," I said, raising an eyebrow.
I had already expected that he was here to ask me to train him.
Throughout the previous day, while I trained Lyra, he had been watching us from a distance, staring at me with sharp eyes.
If looks could kill, I would have died a thousand times under his piercing gaze. From the wars I had fought against demons and the thousands of awakeners I battled in the Abandoned Lands, my senses had sharpened enough to discern the emotions of anyone watching me.
At first, he was merely keeping an eye on me, perhaps because he feared I might make a move on Lyra, which was a disgusting thought to me since she was my sister. However, his gaze gradually shifted from anger to curiosity when he witnessed our spar.
Throughout the entire session, I mercilessly struck at Lyra’s weaknesses until her bad habits were significantly reduced.
It was frustrating for Thorin, but he had no choice but to admit that my training methods were undeniably effective. To the point that he swallowed his pride and asked me to train him, even though he had previously opposed it and had even raised his voice at Lyra.
I had already been considering knocking some sense into these idiots, so after a brief pause, I said calmly,
"I refuse."
