"Wait, let get this straight." Kane massaged his brows, half-shocked, half-confused. "You got affected by Void, which led to you gaining your Void affinity, and it probably reset your rank and everything.
"After that, you reached Paragon, beca a Heavenbreaker. Sohow, you are walking on two paths of power. Not only that, you can use five elents to a sufficient degree?"
Kane didn't know what to say.
He knew the Executioners chosen by Sphinx wouldn't be normal, but Neo was above and beyond anything he could've imagined.
"You are right."
Neo's nonchalant attitude made Kane smile bitterly.
He used to think he was a genius but eting Neo was making him doubt that claim.
Shaking his head, he returned his focus to the safe and the blood vials.
He took out seven of them and gave them to Neo.
"Use Darkness to devour them. Ava will tell you when to do that."
"What are these?"
"Concentrated Bloodlines. Devouring them will allow you to use their skill temporarily.
"Since you can use five elents, I gave you five vials that will let you talk with elentals of your elents.
"As for the last two vials, they can let you talk with elentals of Void. You haven't awakened that affinity, hence you need two vials to increase your perception of them."
Kane didn't know about Neo's Empathic Transcendence Trait.
His solution would work for normal demigods.
For Neo, it was a hundred tis better.
It would increase his Trait's effectiveness by several folds, even if temporarily.
"I would love to give you more, but those are the only skills I have for this task."
Kane and Neo returned to the main hall.
The wooden floor creaked beneath their steps.
"Ava! Co here!"
Ava arrived a few monts later.
"Is there anything you need, Master?"
Kane's eyebrow twitched at the word 'Master'.
However, he didn't point it out, having given up on correcting the way his daughter addressed him.
"Take Neo to the Yasagori Pond. That place has a high concentration of all Elentals. It will increase his chances of talking to them."
"Master, the Pond is too precious. Just because they are from your holand—"
"Ava, we had this talk last night. Let's not do it again."
Ava nodded with a clenched jaw.
Neo looked at the father-daughter duo with a silent gaze.
The Pond was sothing clearly important, maybe sothing like a limited resource.
But Neo didn't have the luxury to look for another thod.
"Follow ."
Ava and Neo left the two-floor house.
The air outside was crisp, carrying the scent of earth and distant foliage.
They navigated through the forest for hours.
Towering trees cast long shadows over them, their branches swaying gently in the wind.
Most of the monsters stayed away after sensing Ava's Dragon Aura.
The ones that approached were quickly dispatched by her.
The duo stopped before a small hill.
They stepped onto the broken staircase hidden at the corner of the mountain's foot.
It was covered in fallen leaves, cobwebs, and the steps were cracked and uneven.
As the two walked forward, Neo opened his mouth.
"Your dad is quite hospitable."
"You are right," Ava replied with a hint of pride. "Not many people know it, but he is very kind."
"Not many people know it?"
Neo noticed the nuance behind Ava's words.
It seed as if Kane did not have a good image in Tartarus.
"They are too afraid of Master to notice the kindness in his actions."
Before Neo could ask more, they reached the mountain top.
It was a small, flat area.
The air was clearer here, filled with energies that made Neo's skin tingle.
A massive tree stood at the side. Its roots twisted into the rocky ground, while a shimring pond lay in the center.
The water was still yet held an ethereal glow, reflecting the sky above like a mirror.
Neo could feel the huge amount of Elentals present in the area.
"This pond, Yasagori, has a special property that attracts Elentals. By sacrificing it in small amounts, you can ask for favors from them."
Neo raised his brow.
It was a lot better than he had imagined.
"Take out the things Master gave you."
He brought out the blood vials from his Shadow Space and prepared to enter the pond.
"Is there anything I need to be careful about?"
"The amount of Elentals you can talk to at once depends on your ntal capacity. Don't try to be greedy and talk with too many of them, and—Wait, stop!"
"What?"
"Why are you entering the pond like that? Remove your clothes." Ava looked at him with an annoyed gaze.
"…Is that necessary?"
"Yes."
Neo clicked his tongue.
Even if he wasn't embarrassed normally, this situation was different.
He didn't want to get naked in front of Ava, who was like his niece to him.
"Remove the clothes," Ava said with narrowed eyes. "Yasagori is a sacred place belonging to our ancestors. Stepping into it clothed is rude."
Neo nodded.
He followed her words and removed his clothes, placing them neatly on a nearby rock.
The air was cold against his bare skin, sending a brief shiver down his spine as he stepped closer to the pond.
Ava's eyes widened slightly when she noticed his scars.
Under the faint glow of the moon, crisscrossing lines of old wounds marred his body.
She had expected Neo to be a mage since his mind was powerful, but given the state of his body, he was a warrior—one who had seen more fights than she could've imagined.
"What do I do now?"
"H-uh!"
Ava flinched, her train of thoughts coming to a screeching halt when she heard Neo.
She had to gather her bearings before she answered,
"Devour the vials. Since they are concentrated bloodlines, you will gain their skills.
"It will increase your perception towards Elentals. Then, you can use the Yasagori as a bargaining chip for whatever you want.
"Keep in mind that you shouldn't try to talk to a large amount of Elentals at once.
"Even one with your mind will break if you go overboard," Ava explained again and again.
Neo nodded and took out the Everwitch Violet.
Ava seed to recognize the flower, but Neo wasn't paying attention to her.
...
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