Chapter 267: Envy! Entering the Abyss

"Forgot?" Aiden’s eyes snapped wide open as he stared intensely at Nellie.

He began to wonder if she was just teasing him.

But seeing Nellie’s genuine, concentrated expression, he quickly pushed that thought aside.

After a long moment, Nellie finally spoke up.

"I remember now."

"The Family Head mentioned it. There’s another fragment located in a place called the Abyss Heartspire."

"That’s right, Heartspire."

Hearing this, Aiden was visibly shaken.

How could this be so coincidental?

He had just received an invitation to the Abyss Heartspire auction, and now he learned the final fragment was also in Heartspire.

"I have to go to this Heartspire," Aiden thought to himself.

He had too many other things to do to stay here and split rewards with Victor and the others.

Besides the mystery treasure map fragment, the only thing that could interest Aiden was that Legendary Rank equipment.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t quite the right fit for him.

Victor and the others exchanged glances, finally turning their attention to Aiden.

"Captain, you should handle the reward distribution," Jordan said, scratching his bald head.

"That’s right. No matter how you split it, we’ll all accept it with respect," Victor nodded in agreement.

Without hesitating, Aiden pulled out a pile of Legendary Rank materials from his storage space and dropped them in front of Victor and the others.

"You guys divide it up yourselves. I’ve got things to do. This is the compensation I promised earlier," Aiden said casually.

Instantly, Victor, Jade, Jordan, Cici, and Nellie’s eyes went wide as they stared dumbfounded at the Legendary Rank materials before them.

"Are... are these all Legendary Rank materials?" Victor’s voice trembled. He instinctively pinched his thigh hard. The sharp pain made him realize instantly that this wasn’t a dream.

Aiden had indeed said that if he took most of the rewards, he would compensate them.

But now, Aiden only took a single, somewhat useless mystery treasure map fragment and produced so many precious Legendary Rank materials in return.

Victor took a deep breath, swallowed hard, and slowly said, "Captain, these things are too precious. I can’t take them."

The others nodded in agreement, trying to refuse as well.

Aiden shrugged, looking completely indifferent. "Precious? Not really. I still have plenty more."

"Take them. I have things to do and need to leave first," Aiden said. Without looking back, he walked away.

Watching Aiden’s retreating figure, Victor took a deep breath and turned to look at Jade and the others nearby.

A smile of undeniable joy spread across his face. "Haha, we’re going to be rich now."

Even Nellie, who came from a hidden family, felt her breathing quicken.

If it were just one or two pieces of Legendary Rank materials, she could ignore it. But the pile of Legendary Rank materials right before her? Even within The Wycliffe Family, she couldn’t have gathered this much!

"Dividing the loot! No, wait—dividing the Captain’s good stuff!" Victor couldn’t hold back anymore.

Just then, he felt dozens of envious stares lock onto him.

The other genius contestants nearby were swallowing their saliva, eyes wide and staring blankly at the Legendary Rank materials.

A few couldn’t help but start whispering in shock:

"Damn it! I can’t take it anymore! If I only knew I should have waited until my parents got The Great Shaw Empire nationality before they gave birth to me!"

"Uh... that’s going to be a bit difficult."

"Are you not envious? Don’t you want it? If I were Aiden’s teammate, I’d be jumping for joy right now."

"Envious? Of course I am! Those are Legendary Rank materials! Aiden just tossed them away to his own team like it was nothing."

"Ah, you really can’t compare people. I can’t beat Aiden in strength, and honestly, I can’t beat him in anything else either."

"Actually, there is one thing Aiden can’t beat you at."

"Really? What is it? Tell me fast!"

"You’re uglier than Aiden."

"Damn it!"

...

Inside the room, Aiden held the Abyss Pass in his hand and took a deep breath.

He had just asked Caleb to find it for him.

Along with that, Caleb had also bought many human books—books Aiden thought WraithJack would like.

Originally, he had planned to head straight to the Abyss and use the Abyss Heartspire Auction House invitation.

But Robert had just visited and asked him to wait just a moment longer.

The matter of WraithJack was too important. The Radiant Blade avatar of Bella, the strongest God in the human world, was already on her way.

Aiden was also very curious about WraithJack. He felt that during their last meeting, WraithJack’s attitude had been surprisingly good—so good that it must have had a reason behind it.

Just as he was thinking this, a soft tapping sound came from outside the window.

Aiden quickly walked over and opened it.

A sword he had now grown very familiar with was floating quietly outside the window, gently tapping against the glass.

"Are you all ready? If you are, let’s go."

The Radiant Blade vibrated softly, emitting a sound.

Aiden blinked in surprise and repeated, "We?"

"That’s right. Just you and me. You only need to use the Abyss Pass in front of me, and I’ll naturally enter the Abyss with you."

The Radiant Blade slowly flew from outside the window into the room.

Aiden couldn’t help but ask, "Is the Abyss Demon God from the Frontline Battlefield already gone?"

"Yeah, that idiot Osido fled with his tail between his legs after I sliced off his arm."

The Radiant Blade shook slightly and continued, "Before his Demon God Domain fully formed, I could have rescued you immediately."

"But at that time, he was desperate to save those Demon geniuses, so he didn’t have time to attack you."

"I took that chance to chop off his arm and severely wound him."

Hearing this, Aiden shook his head, his expression calm. "It was my own lack of power."

"If you could have put a protective barrier on me back then, that would have been enough for me to be grateful."

Joining the Global Reclaser Exchange Tournament was his own choice. Knowing the danger of the Frontline Battlefield, yet still hunting Demon geniuses—that was what he wanted to do.

He wouldn’t force others to save him.

Nor would he risk his life to save someone else if they were in danger.

Aiden took a deep breath and, without hesitation, crushed the Abyss Pass in his hand.

Only by reaching a higher level of strength could he ensure this kind of danger wouldn’t happen again.

Immediately, his figure began to fade away slowly.

The Radiant Blade inside his room suddenly transformed into a key-sized, sword-shaped beam of light, attaching itself to his dissolving form.

...

Inside the Abyss, on Demon Clan territory.

Aiden snapped his eyes open, immediately alert as he scanned the surroundings.

He quickly pulled out his warning compass and scanned the area. Seeing no strong enemies nearby, he finally exhaled in relief.

"Good. You must always stay alert, no matter where you are. That’s the most basic trait of a true strong one."Just then, a cold voice suddenly echoed directly in Aiden’s mind.

Aiden frowned, glancing left and right, but couldn’t spot the sword that had appeared moments ago.

He cautiously thought in his mind, "Thanks for the compliment."

A long silence followed. No new voice appeared for quite a while.

Aiden sighed with relief.

Having someone hear your inner thoughts at any moment is incredibly uncomfortable.

"Don’t worry," the cold voice spoke up again. "I just inserted my voice into your mind so others couldn’t hear us. I can’t actually read your thoughts."

"How should I address you, then?" Aiden asked quietly.

He only knew from Robert that the sword was an avatar of a divine powerhouse named Bella.

"Just call me Bella," the cold voice replied. This time, however, Aiden could detect a hint of liveliness and excitement behind the words.

He turned around and checked his body carefully, but couldn’t find the sword anywhere.

"No need to look," the voice said. "I shrank down small and hid in your hair."

"Let’s move fast. It’s been ages since I’ve been to The Black City. I actually miss it."

"I wonder if a few of those Pink Desire shops are still open?" Bella suddenly asked.

Aiden froze.

Pink Desire shops?

Is this something a cold, aloof Divine Powerhouse would even mention?

He felt this sword he had to call Bella was a bit different from the one he’d seen in Robert’s room earlier.

"Ahem, sorry, slip of the tongue. Forget it. Just get moving," Bella hurried him along.

Aiden narrowed his eyes slightly to figure out the direction.

Then, the Blackfire Cloak on his back flared wide, shooting rapidly toward The Black City.

For about thirty minutes of flight, Aiden chatted quietly with Bella.

But the more he talked, the more something felt off.

"Bella, you’re amazing! That Abyss Demon God was so strong, yet you still cut off his arm!" Aiden said with a smile.

Bella’s voice was unusually excited and full of pride as she replied, "Of course, kid. Stick with me, and you’ll become a powerful Reclaser too."

Aiden nodded firmly, then suddenly asked, "Will I be stronger than you one day, Bella?"

"You have some nerve thinking that! Bella the woman is..." Bella’s voice suddenly cut off.