Chapter 809: An End to Her First Love
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
When newcomers entered the Holy City, there would be two major junctures that they could go through. One was the improvement of Soul Power and reaching their own Heroic Soul limit. The second was to form their own Soul Domination abilities.
Comparatively speaking, each juncture had its own difficulty, but neither of them could be easily completed. Even the best of the newcomers often needed to spend one to two years to complete just one of them. If so, they would then be qualified to follow the Dimensional Exploration teams on missions. However, Laura actually took less than half a year, to be precise, only four months to do so.
Although this move could not be regarded as a standard combat-type Soul Domination ability, its usefulness to an exploration team was immeasurable. It was definitely more popular and more valued than most combat techniques as she would have the ability to instantly heal injuries and restore Soul Power during actual combat. Furthermore, it also had a certain protection and s.h.i.+elding effect. Despite the fact that this ability was currently limited by her lack of Soul Power and that she was not able to give free rein to it, having the ability alone was sufficient. She could definitely become a core member in any exploration team.
Laura was also a little excited. It was by chance that she managed to master this move. Prior to this, she had always focused on the usage of Soul Beasts as the main direction of cultivation, specifically her Explosive Bear. It was so much so that her own Dharma Idol became only a subsidiary, but she still ended up not making any progress. It was only because she remembered w.a.n.g Zhong’s advice to always look at problems in a different way if one didn’t work out and that she could try doing the opposite if she encountered a bottleneck. She then began to cast aside her original mindset. She even took it a step further by giving up her Explosive Bear. As a result, by chance, this combat technique naturally came to pa.s.s. Now that she had gotten Molton’s affirmation, Laura felt that she definitely made the right choice.
However, what excited her more was that she finally seemed to have the capital to become independent.
To be honest, there were several times when Laura asked Molton to help w.a.n.g Zhong, but her requests were always rejected. Laura knew Molton’s personality rather well. Perhaps when he first brought w.a.n.g Zhong back to the Holy City, he had a favorable impression of w.a.n.g Zhong, but to Molton, his Holy Disciple friends were obviously more important than w.a.n.g Zhong. What’s more was that w.a.n.g Zhong had offended all his friends on the first day he came to the Holy City; thus, her hands were tied when Molton didn’t want to lend a hand.
But now, things were different. With her Soul Domination ability, she could be a team healer; thus, she would be able to find a position suitable for her in any exploration team and would have a certain influence. If she wanted to help w.a.n.g Zhong again, there was no need to ask her brother again.
She calmed herself down from her excitement after successfully developing her technique, and her mind was filled with w.a.n.g Zhong. She had been undergoing closed-door cultivation during this period of time and had not been in touch with the outside world for nearly two months. Her first thought was to share the joy of her success with w.a.n.g Zhong; thus, she wasted no time in sending a Skylink message to him. However, even after she took a shower back in her dorm, there was no reply.
Laura was a little puzzled; thus, she sent another message to Sharmie in an attempt to find out what was going on.
Surprisingly, she got a reply almost instantly. “Yo, busy woman. You finally remembered my existence?”
Um… Laura was originally filled with enthusiasm, but after receiving such a reply from her good friend, she was at a loss for words.
Frankly, Molton had always disapproved of her hanging out with Sharmie and the others. This batch of newcomers were the most disappointing in the eyes of the Holy Disciples. Before entering the Holy Land, there was a large group of so-called geniuses who had been thought highly of by others. However, other than Solomon, Scarlet, and Carolyn, who were destined to become big shots, the rest of them were mostly mediocre. Even Grai and Napier, who had recently made a name for themselves, were nothing to the Holy Disciples. As for those who were worse off, there was absolutely no need to mention them at all. People like Sharmie, who were at the lowest rung, were destined to be labeled a disgrace. They would either wait for their deaths in the Holy City or be sent back to Earth with the t.i.tle of failure. It was impossible for them to ever hold up their heads. Of course, Sharmie was rather good-looking; thus, there were a few people interested in her, but for Mario… He would probably meet with a tragedy.
This mindset was so deeply ingrained in the Holy Disciples that Molton often seemed to inadvertently prevent Laura from contacting Sharmie and the others. It was so much so that both of them had begun to drift apart from each other unknowingly.
“How’s it going for you recently?” Laura originally wanted to crack a joke like she always would before, but when she spoke, it turned into the most common greeting.
“Well, I am not dead yet.” Sharmie’s tone was definitely not enthusiastic at all.
Sharmie had yet to get over that incident involving the Oceanic Beasts exploration team. Previously, when the captain of the Oceanic Beasts kept pestering her and causing trouble for her and Mario, she did seek Laura’s help. Initially, she thought that Laura really did help her as the other party seemed to have toned down his actions, but she clearly misunderstood. It was just that the other party was trying to lay low before he made his ‘big move’. Fortunately, at that time, she had already joined the Wanderl.u.s.t Team, and it was Sister Feng who helped to settle the matter in the end.
It was then that Sharmie gained some clarity. After all, they were supposed to be really good friends, almost like sisters, but when she was in a difficult situation and needed help the most, this good friend suddenly disappeared into thin air, as though Laura was avoiding her. If it wasn’t for w.a.n.g Zhong’s timely appearance and the Wanderl.u.s.t Team… Sharmie couldn’t bear to think about what might have happened to her if the captain of the Oceanic Beasts had managed to break through her and Mario’s line of defense.
Sharmie did not blame Laura, because frankly, after spending some time in the Holy City, people understood the way things were done in this place. They might help for small matters if it was convenient for them, but it was absolutely normal for people to stay out of it when it came to more serious matters. It was just that it was no longer possible for Sharmie to trust and treat Laura the same way she had before. Some things could never be found again once they were lost. This was sometimes the case for women. They could become fast friends at the first meeting, but if there was a flaw in their relations.h.i.+p, they might become strangers to each other forever.
“Is there anything you need?” Sharmie’s reply was as though she was dealing with a stranger who she didn’t like very much.
“Err… it’s nothing.” Laura could sense the other party’s hostility; thus, she began to panic and eventually took the initiative to hang up the Skylink.
She could hear the unpleasantness in Sharmie’s tone and could sort of guess the reason why. She actually did go to Molton for help with the Oceanic Beasts’ situation, and he had agreed to help. She a.s.sumed that her brother had settled the issue, but now it seemed that her elder brother had probably just brushed her off. After all, he didn’t like Sharmie and her other friends.
No one was to blame for this matter. Sharmie was helpless, and Laura was wronged as well. It was just that Molton didn’t take orders from her.
It was unknown when it started, but the friends.h.i.+p between the two of them had already begun to erode. That was just life. It was not all because of this closed-door cultivation and the Oceanic Beasts matter. In fact, before she went into closed-door cultivation, there was already very little contact between the two. They were all busy with their own cultivation. Perhaps this was the Holy City’s rule that her brother had mentioned before. People on different paths would eventually drift away from each other. One could wish the best for another, but one certainly would not pause on one’s own path just to wait for another.
Sadness was unavoidable, but Laura wasn’t someone who couldn’t handle loss. Lots of emotions overwhelmed her, but she didn’t want to explain herself. To her, having a clear conscience was good enough. By the time she wrapped her mind around the matter, she recalled that she was supposed to ask about w.a.n.g Zhong. However, it wasn’t suitable to call Sharmie again. Fortunately, she still knew some of Molton’s friends; thus, it was not difficult to find out the news on w.a.n.g Zhong.
After casual inquiry, she immediately found out a lot of information related to w.a.n.g Zhong.
This guy doesn’t seem to have laid low at all. He frequently made the news in the Holy City. For example, just a few days ago, there was an experimental accident related to him. He made three dormitory buildings in the alien-race area explode and was now a.s.signed to a warehouse in the outer city as punishment. Now, he was definitely an extremely unpopular figure in the Holy City; even people from the Tyrants didn’t like him.
On the whole, there was only one word to describe his situation — miserable! Additionally, for the upcoming Holy Disciple rank-advancement compet.i.tion, it was rumored in various channels that many people were going to target him. w.a.n.g Zhong was like helpless prey, in a state where everyone wanted to take a bite out of him.
Perhaps, this was the reason why he did not reply. Perhaps he was in a terrible fix now.
Her good mood stemming from her breakthrough was completely destroyed by this bad news. Laura sat on the bed and thought for a long time before she finally called Molton’s Skylink number.
First of all, she talked about her windstorm ward Dharma Idol, and Molton was naturally overjoyed. After asking about the details of her Soul Domination ability, he grew even more ecstatic.
A large-scale Dharma Idol that could be released at any time, which had healing, recovery, and s.h.i.+elding functions… Such a Soul Domination ability was rather rare even among Holy Disciples. As a Holy Disciple with rich experience with exploration teams, Molton understood the value of this. There was no doubt that his sister could soon become a formal member of a powerful team and even possibly, the focal point of the entire team.
Frankly, even though Molton had a certain reputation and status among the Holy Disciples, he was already finding it difficult to sustain the cultivation resources for both his sister and himself, but now, all their problems would be solved!
“This is great news. Now, the Holy Disciple rank-advancement compet.i.tion will be a piece of cake for you. We have to celebrate!” Molton laughed in excitement, “Let’s meet at our usual place tonight! I will also invite some people from the Phantom Squadron and strive to confirm your placement as soon as possible. I don’t think it will be a big problem!”
The Phantom Squadron was one of the top 10 exploration teams in the Holy City. It was ranked third and was also Molton’s exploration team. It was why Molton could afford to be c.o.c.ky and why he had a certain network of contacts. Of course, he was only a small captain in the Phantom Squadron; thus, it was not possible to pull Laura in directly, but now that Laura had managed to gain such an awesome Soul Domination ability, things were different. He only needed to help a little bit from the sidelines… Presumably, his sister would soon become the third ‘supernova’ among the newcomers to enter a top 10 exploration team in the Holy City.
“Let’s talk about the celebration next time. Bro, I need your help. Please!”
“What are brothers for? Why are you being so polite?” Molton was in a good mood; therefore, he was ready to agree to anything. “Feel free to make any requests. It will be considered a celebratory gift from me. What the h.e.l.l, girl! You are only four months in, and you developed such a powerful Soul Domination ability. I don’t think even Carolyn is a match for you! You have really made the Potter Clan proud.”
“Help w.a.n.g Zhong.”
In the past, when Laura mentioned words like helping w.a.n.g Zhong to Molton, she would always hesitate, as she knew that Molton would never agree. However, this time, she was rather firm. “Bro, you probably know about his current situation. The Holy Disciple a.s.sessment is in two months. If he doesn’t get help soon, it will be too late.”
On the other side of the line, the originally excited Molton immediately felt his throat constrict. In fact, no matter what requests Laura had, even if it was beyond his own ability, he would have found ways to help her, but this was the only thing that…
Molton felt an imminent headache, and he paused for a long time before replying. “Laura, my influence is limited. How could you not understand this after living in the Holy City for so long? Help him? How can I help him? Can you stop being so stubborn? There are plenty of fish in the sea…”
Laura didn’t respond. She had already made up her mind this time; thus, she just waited quietly for Molton’s response.
Looking at how stubborn she was, Molton was speechless. “Sis, you can’t be willful. In fact, we have to bear a lot of responsibilities in the Holy City. We are not just here for ourselves. We have a responsibility to our family.”
“In this place, it is already considered very good if you can help yourself. As for those who are incompetent, you really cannot help them unless you have sufficient power. This breakthrough in your Soul Domination ability is a starting point. I’m proud of you. But if you don’t hold on to this good starting point to proceed on quickly and instead waste this great opportunity on unimportant things, then you will definitely regret it next time. If you really want to help w.a.n.g Zhong, then continue to improve yourself. When you are strong enough and when w.a.n.g Zhong has yet to show signs of improvement, then it will be your time to help him! ”
Molton had used similar speeches to brush Laura off countless times. This was obviously a stalling tactic. If the gap between the two grew larger, Laura would naturally lose interest. The first few times he used this tactic, Laura would often be rendered speechless, but this time, she obviously did not intend to be brushed off so easily.
“w.a.n.g Zhong is really in a difficult situation. If I don’t help him, I can’t take it lying down.” She stared deeply into Molton’s eyes through the Skylink without flinching. “Bro, you know the influence of the state of mind during cultivation. This will make me become distracted, and inner demons may form.”
Molton grew silent as he could sense Laura’s obsession.
Inner demons were definitely a taboo in cultivation. It was not just alarmist talk. It was okay if one did not mention it, but once Laura started to produce such thoughts, no good would come out of it if her matter was not resolved.
“This is the last time,” Laura added. “Regardless of its success or failure, this will be the end of the line for me.”
Molton remained silent for a long time before he finally nodded. If helping Laura with this troublesome matter could let her have that peace of mind, it was worth the effort.
“You said this is the last time. You can’t do this anymore…” He then said in a low voice, “I can guarantee that he will be promoted to Holy Disciple, but after that, you will have nothing to do with him!”
Laura nodded. She knew Molton rather well. Since she had already mentioned her inner demons, he wouldn’t brush her off again. As for Molton’s condition — that is to ‘have nothing to do with him’ — frankly, Laura wasn’t sure if she could do it, but this was the only way for her brother to agree to her request. She would try her best to do it anyway, because she knew that she wasn’t the one that w.a.n.g Zhong liked. She might have had fantasies in the past, but now… Perhaps, she had also changed. If she could do something for w.a.n.g Zhong, it could be considered a nice ending for their relations.h.i.+p.
“Lastly, I have one more condition — Kadin,” added Molton.
There was no need for any details. Just by mentioning this name, Laura already understood what he meant.