Imperial Crown.

Chapter 644 The Wonderful Uses of Corrupted Soul Essence 2
Many thanks to Qidian's [Ruthless but Heartbroken] for the 300 RMB reward!

……

Leaving the old castle, riding on griffins, Raven and Sicreth flew back to the new castle in Eagle City.

Lux was eager to train, so Raven and Sicreth couldn't stay any longer.

Back at Eagle Hold, Raven met Odu.

"Greetings, my lord."

As a beast tamer specializing in raising magical beasts within Eagle Fortress, Audu has dedicated himself to this job for over a decade. Now, with age, his belly has grown, his physique has changed, and he's even starting to go bald. He has long since been promoted to supervisor, overseeing a dozen orphans who graduated from Griffith Academy.

Upon seeing Raven, Audu led the group in a hurried bow and respectful greeting.

"Um"

Raven nodded calmly. "Let's go check on the griffin eggs."

Sikeret, however, seemed disgusted by the smell of feces and turned away.

In recent years, Raven hasn't come here to strengthen the hippogriffs, Kapibal's eggs and offspring; he's not even in the castle. As a result, the number of Wind Kings has plummeted. Most are just ordinary hippogriffs. Occasionally, there will be eggs from Wind King matings, which are of slightly higher quality and rank.

Audu had his men lead the griffins away and said, “My lord, in the past year or so, these two griffins have only laid four eggs in total.” “Fortunately, these two griffins are of a high rank, both being third-tier.” “If you were to strengthen them, they might be able to break through to the fourth tier.”

A fourth-tier magical beast—a griffin!

That would be a mount no less powerful than several dragons!
"Hopefully."

Raven, however, remained remarkably calm. The main issue was that advancing the rank would inevitably require a large number of magic cores of the corresponding element. It wasn't simply a matter of extracting the essence of the corrupted soul from the egg! He didn't have many magic cores left. The magic cores he had previously obtained from Adjani… and those he had acquired and accumulated over the years, had mostly been used to strengthen other magical plants within his magic field during the reversion to the Green Root Peach.

He had previously instructed Fiona to ask her aunt for money to buy magic cores. He didn't know if Fiona had actually told her. After all, Fiona and her aunt, Denise, had never gotten along. Even if she had, he didn't know if her aunt would treat it as an important matter!
Now that his cultivation level has increased, his requirements for the quantity and grade of magic cores have also risen rapidly. He is no longer at the level of a baron, where he could simply move a finger on the Deep Blue Platform to purchase a large number of magic cores.

Once a magic core surpasses the fourth tier, it becomes practically priceless. If it's a magic core made of rare elements, the situation is even more extreme—several times more precious than magic crystals! Its value rivals that of a gemstone, a valuable resource for cultivation.

Although magic cores contain a large amount of corrupted soul essence, recklessly consuming them could very likely cause a cultivator to explode and die! However, according to Raven's understanding, the vast majority of cultivators on the entire Miders continent take unconventional paths. This is the norm in the cultivation world! For example, the mercenary Kimbak, who once dueled Eric, advanced in rank by consuming a magic core. This predicament is caused not only by the increasing scarcity of high-level cultivation resources, but also, and perhaps more importantly, by the monopolization of all resources by the nobility. Not only commoners and merchants, but even minor nobles—barons and viscounts—are not uncommon in their willingness to risk consuming magic cores to break through their limits!
This also proves why Dane regards the "Seventh-Order Magic Core of the Hydra Lizard" as a treasure!

A million gold coins is just its base price. Most importantly, this thing can't be bought with money.

This is the real reason why D'Arc (Daren) can boast!
He wanted to show that compared to them, the old-money nobles, Raven, who had just been promoted to earl at that time, was still far behind.

It has the meaning of both showing strength to win over Raven and threatening him.

"My lord." "That's all."

Audu pointed to the four carefully protected griffin eggs and said.

Raven looked at the griffin eggs, each the size of a ripe watermelon. Even the shells themselves gave off an unusual feeling. Unlike smooth chicken shells, they weren't covered in rows of brownish-yellow scales, like those of a pangolin. At the center of each scale grew short, stout, sharp barbs. Raven touched one; it was extremely prickly. He wondered how the griffins had managed to hatch these things from inside the steel door.

It's highly likely that when they're first born, these scales and barbs are soft. They only harden gradually.

"Well"

After a slight sensing, sure enough, there was one fire elemental, one earth elemental, and two wind elemental. However, apart from the fire elemental, Raven did not have any other elemental magic cores on him.

Yes, he no longer has even the yellow sand element, a common magic core.

Although he was disappointed, Raven had no choice but to reach out and extract the essence of the corrupted souls from the four griffin eggs. He then crushed the magic cores and poured them into the fire-elemental-compatible griffin eggs. Having done all this, Raven didn't stop, but carefully continued to channel some of his own demonic energy into the four griffin eggs.

As Raven's skill level improved, he became increasingly adept at "enhancement".

From the very beginning—only the essence of corrupted souls was separated.

Later on, the essence of the corrupted soul was extracted and infused with pure elements.

Then, at this moment—extracting the essence of the corrupted soul, infusing it with pure elements, and transferring the fighting demon's vital energy.

I believe that before long, these griffin eggs will bring him some unexpected surprises.

"Holding one's breath and concentrating" "Audrey Eugenio"

Just then, Raven's eyes gleamed with golden light as he looked at the 67-year-old Audu. He crushed some low-level magic cores and poured them into Audu's body. With Raven's current level and strength, there was no need for him to be so cautious and secretive. He would strike when the time was right. If Buruo and Sangmiao hadn't been present earlier, Raven would have already strengthened Philip.

Something convenient.

Audu wasn't extraordinary; after being enhanced by Raven, he immediately felt a lightness in his body. His mortal body could only withstand first- and second-tier magic core elements. Anything higher, even pure elements, he couldn't withstand.

As a veteran employee who worked alongside Gordon from the same era, Aldu, adhering to his duty, after receiving the enhancement, simply knelt obediently at Raven's feet, kowtowed, and kissed the surface of Raven's leather shoes to express his gratitude, without asking a single question or uttering a single extra word.

"Master!" "Master!!!"

Just as Audu got up to lead Raven to strengthen the other monster eggs, Lingling's shouts came from afar. Lingling came running up, panting, and said, "Sister Fiona said that the mercenaries transporting food have arrived. "The leader wants to see you."

"Oh?" "So fast?"

Raven was somewhat surprised to hear this. All told, it had only been almost two months since he had reached an agreement with the Hand of Death.

"I'll be going now." After saying goodbye to Audu, Raven followed Lingling back into the castle.

"Viscount Raven!"

A bald mercenary with ugly scars on his face hurriedly and enthusiastically shouted.

Raven nodded indifferently without saying anything.

“I’m sorry, Your Excellency!” “Since this is our first time here, the main purpose of this trip is to establish a relatively safe route.” “As you know, both the mainland and the country are in great turmoil right now, with robberies everywhere.” “We are only sending 3 million pounds of grain this time.” “The rest will be sent in two batches, 5 million pounds each!”

Fei Bota explained with a slightly restrained smile, then said "Oh," as if remembering something, and added at the end, "Mr. Krabs said that he asked me to give his regards to the Viscount."

Raven nodded. "Yes." "Thank you for your hard work." "Did Mr. Krabs find the thing I asked for?"

Upon hearing this, Fei Bota was taken aback. After a while, he said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Viscount Raven. Fifth-tier [Redemption Mushroom] is extremely rare, and we currently have no clues."

"Make Mr. Krabs go to great lengths and spare no expense to get it for me." "I'm willing to pay any price."

Raven said calmly.

After saying that, Raven took out a token. "You've all had a long and tiring journey, brothers." "With this token, you can travel freely within Eagle City." "All purchases will also be discounted by 3%." "Consider this Raven's treat."

Feibota: "..."

"Thank you, Your Excellency."

Fipata accepted the token, his face showing excitement and flattery. "Then we won't bother you any longer, Viscount." With that, Fipata led the group outside.

Upon arriving outside the castle, a woman shrouded in a cloak stamped her foot and cried out, "Father!!" "How many times have I told you not to call Lord Raven 'Viscount'!" "He should call him 'Godfather'!" "That's a well-known taboo!" "You just said it six times!" "Six times in total!" With that, the woman angrily pulled down her hood, revealing a slightly delicate but bronze-skinned face.

"I'm sorry, Monica. I was just too excited."

"I feel a little apologetic," said Fei Bota.

Reflecting on their meeting, Fei Bota could clearly sense Raven's distance. Besides, what viscount or nobleman was so stingy? He couldn't even offer a 2-3 day free meal. He only offered a 3% discount, and then shamelessly claimed it was "his treat." Perhaps she really had "lost her tongue."

“Alas, the hearts of nobles are so narrow and stingy.”

Fipote shook his head and sighed helplessly. No matter what, he was a dignified fourth-tier extraordinary mercenary guild leader. Ordinary barons and viscounts… let alone treating him with great courtesy, would even go to great lengths to win him over. This could only mean one thing—Raven was no ordinary viscount.

"Since we're here,"

"Let's enjoy ourselves."

"Daughter," Fipatta coaxed his daughter. This time, the extraordinary mercenaries escorting the grain alone numbered over 700. However, everyone had their own salary, so he didn't need to pay for others. "Daughter," Fipatta asked worriedly, "are you really planning to participate in the Raven Arena?" "Mr. Krabs said it's a very dangerous thing."

His daughter's mother died protecting him, her only dying wish being that Fipata treat his daughter well. He did indeed dote on Monica, but she was too stubborn and willful. Sometimes she gave him a real headache.

“Trust me, Father!” Monica said confidently.

……

It's quiet at night.

The wind and snow are getting stronger.

Raven, however, had his bedroom window open, a wine glass in his hand, and a self-rolled leaf cigarette dangling from his lips, enjoying the onslaught of wind and snow with great contentment.

Just now, he personally inspected that batch of grain. Not only was the quantity sufficient, but it was also free of mold; it was all top-quality grain. There was also a lot of smoked monster meat. This immediately relieved Raven's immense food shortage.

"Mr. Krabs is a good person."

Raven picked up the slices of monster meat that had been delivered with his chopsticks, dipped them into the pot of water on the small stove in front of him, rinsed them a few times, and then took them out and put them in his mouth. He was enjoying his hot pot with relish. As he ate, he sniffled and sighed leisurely.

blow--

A short while later, a person drifted in through the window.

She was thin, with a cloak draped over her back. She silently gazed at Raven. Raven spat out the food scraps in his mouth. "These past years have been tough on you." "These are clothes I prepared for you. Patty told you how to make them, right?"

The person glanced at the clothes, looking somewhat embarrassed, as if they had been extremely humiliated, but unable to retaliate, and muttered, "I won't wear it."

"You haven't improved your skills over the years, but your temper has certainly grown a lot!"

Do you think I'm discussing this with you?!

Raven slammed his chopsticks on the table, frowned, and snapped, "You really think I can't do anything to you?"

"Yes!"

Seeing that Raven was angry, the person could only nod in humiliation, take the clothes, and fly out of the windowsill.

Raven finished his meal in silence.

After having Lingling come up and tidy up, Raven closed the windowsill, walked to his desk, and lay down on the sofa. He kicked off his shoes and placed them on the table; the socks, with his big toe sticking out, quickly emitted a foul odor, but Raven seemed oblivious. He picked up his coffee, took a deep sniff, and hummed in a grating, theatrical voice, "My mood is right now, my weather is right now, a carefree little god~~~"

"Eh"

"Yes"

Raven suddenly had a funny idea. It was the same idea that came to him when he transplanted Baido's legs. A wicked smile appeared on his lips, Raven's red lips and white teeth flashed, and in the next instant, his spiritual energy sank into the blood ring.

Only a single blood bead remained within the blood ring. The youngest child, Korima, lay upon it. Ferdinand, Crouch, and Judd sat cross-legged in a circle, listening intently as Crouch recounted his legendary travels across the continent. The Ferdinand family listened with rapt attention.

It seems that boasting is a common human trait.

"Hello, everyone."

Raven listened for a while and found it quite interesting, so he couldn't help but interrupt.

Crouch rolled his eyes at this and stopped talking to Raven. He silently shut his mouth. Ferdinand, Judd, and Korima, however, stood up.

“Raven,” Ferdinand asked, “What are you going to do now?”

"What do you mean, 'What am I going to do now'?" "You're acting like I'm some heinous villain!" "You're the victims?!" Raven retorted, "You all owe your current state to my mercy in sparing your lives, understand?!"

"Just say what you want," Ferdinand said impatiently. "Now that the blood bead is gone, it's just going to devour our souls, isn't it?" "What kind of pure evil seed are you!"

Raven: ...

“Don’t you want to know what’s happening in the capital?” Raven asked.

"Do I need you to tell me?" Ferdinand scoffed dismissively. It was clear that after spending so much time inside the Blood Ring, he had long since disregarded life and death. He was no longer afraid, and even seemed eager to die. "Master Crouch has already told us."

Speaking of this, Ferdinand's expression became somewhat excited. "I thought you were all that capable, Raven." "In the end, didn't you also get tricked by Seraphim like a dog?" "Haha!" "Kingslayer!" "You'll never be promoted again!" "You've squandered all the glory of your ancestors!"

Ferdinand grew increasingly excited, even gesturing wildly as he spoke, saying in a sarcastic tone, "You keep saying 'I'm the protagonist~~' 'I'm the protagonist~~'" He drew out the words, his tone dripping with sarcasm, before suddenly exploding, "You're your mother's protagonist!" "You idiot antelope raven!" (Fuck your mother!)

"Stop!" "Stop yelling..."

Raven couldn't take it anymore. "I've thought of a way to bring you back to life."

"Really? Raven as the main character?????????"

Ferdinand's face lit up with joy, and he hurriedly shouted, "Raven!" "I admit it!" "You are the chosen one!" "The protagonist of destiny!!!" "As long as you let me out, I'll help you take down Serafino!" "That beast wiped out my whole family! He stole my family's wealth! I'll give you half of it!"

Raven: ...

Crouch: ...

Kolima: ...

Judd: That's awesome, grandpa!
……

Outside the Blood Ring, Raven summoned the two skeletons, Little Blackie and Brother Kun. With his level five, two-star mage cultivation, these magical creations could already exist indefinitely. Raven didn't need to expend any special mental or magical energy to maintain them.

"call"

Raven blew a breath, and the eerie green flame in the little black skull's eyes instantly extinguished. Raven took Ferdinand's soul from the blood ring and put it back in.

Ferdinand looked incredulously at his skeletal hands and body, speechless. "This is your method?!" His voice sounded strange. "And this doesn't work either. I can feel my soul being slowly pulled away," Ferdinand said anxiously.

"Don't rush," Raven said, taking out the essence of the corrupted soul and preparing to pour it down from above his head.

"Bring it to you!"

Pei Dinan's eyes lit up, and he immediately shouted, snatching the crystal bottle containing the essence of the corrupted soul. Then, he put his nostrils to the bottle opening and sucked in water like a dragon sucking up water.

The entire bottle of Corrupted Soul Essence vanished in an instant.

"Hehe!" "Alright!" "It's stable!"

Ferdinand tossed aside the crystal bottle, walked around the room a few times, and felt extremely comfortable. His previously tearing soul immediately stabilized. "Is there more?" "Give me a few more bottles; perhaps I can truly restore my physical body."

Raven took out a few more bottles, intending to use them for experiments. However, just as Ferdinand was about to take them, Raven pressed his sock-covered foot, with its toes showing, against Ferdinand's skull face. "Beg me." "You just insulted me so much; it severely damaged my mental state."

puff-

Ferdinand knelt on the carpet, his skin gleaming. "Raven, the protagonist!" "I beg you!" "I'm just a supporting character!" "No!!" "I'm the damn villain!!" "I beg you!!!"

"That's more like it." Raven released his foot.

Ferdinand hurriedly absorbed all the third-tier corrupted soul essence from the bottle into his stomach. No flesh grew back, but the soul fire within the skull's eyes blazed brighter, making it several sizes larger!

Raven's heart pounded with unease. He even wondered if the spiritual energy he had absorbed from Ferdinand earlier had been replenished. The power of this corrupted soul essence was simply too terrifying, too powerful, and too monstrous.

Fortunately, the skeleton in the little black boy's body was summoned by him and was absolutely loyal. Raven only needed a thought to destroy Ferdinand. This was tantamount to indirectly signing a life-and-death soul contract with Ferdinand, planting a forbidden spell that could not be crossed even half a step!
Although Raven can't perform "soul searches" like in the novels, knowing exactly when someone eats or defecates, as long as he retracts Blackie's skeletal body, Ferdinand's soul will once again transform into a "silver bead," either returning to the Blood Ring or tearing apart and dissipating in the real world!

"Ugh!!"

Ferdinand wept with joy, though no tears fell. "I never imagined I'd have a second chance at life!" "Haha!" "You could even say I have endless lifespan!" "A blessing?" "A curse?" "Truly, everything is predestined!"

"Raven!!" "Raven!!!"

Just as Ferdinand was feeling sentimental, the Blood Ring stirred again. Clearly, Crouch was getting impatient with Ferdinand's prolonged absence.

"What are you doing?" Raven asked, sending a wisp of his spiritual energy into the blood ring.

“Raven.” “Actually…” “I’ve always approved of you being with Lux.” Crouch, hands clasped behind his back, sighed with the air of an elder, “It’s just that I think you have too many women, and I’m afraid you’ll ultimately let Lux down and hurt her.” “Think about it.” “As your teacher.” “No!!!” “As half a father, what father could accept such an ending?!”

"However, after these past few months of quiet reflection," and "with Ferdinand's encouragement," I've come to realize that you are not a heartless person after all.

"How about this?" "Just let me out." "I can tell Lux myself that my death has nothing to do with you." "That way you can finally get a good night's sleep." "You won't have to constantly worry about the pain of Lux discovering the truth."

"You"

"You truly love Lux, right?" Crouch hesitated for a moment before asking.

After all, Raven had told him himself that he was about to marry Lux. Given Raven's selfish and self-serving nature, he probably wouldn't have married Lux ​​if he didn't love her.

What's in it for me to let you out?

Raven laughed.

Everyone calls him shameless, but when it comes to their own lives, who doesn't speak against their conscience? Ferdinand at least knows to give himself half the fortune, while Crouch is just dreaming.

Besides, the situation in the capital had already been settled, and he was firmly branded as the "king-killer." Ultimately, Raven didn't have much of a grudge against Ferdinand; letting him out would at least provide some amusement. After all, they were going to deal with Serafinu soon, and Ferdinand, having lived in the capital his entire life, certainly knew and understood more than Raven.

"What do you want?" "Just tell me."

Upon hearing this, Crouch displayed an air of supreme confidence and spoke with absolute certainty.

"Do you have a fifth-tier Soul Redemption Mushroom?" Raven asked, surprised.

"What's so difficult about that? I can give it to you in no more than two months after you leave!"

Crouch gave a dismissive smile.

"You're not planning to get it from within the Church of Light, are you?" Raven asked, somewhat skeptical. "I asked Lai Lunning! He said there's nothing there either."

"Tch." "Oh, Raven." "Sometimes I really don't know whether to praise you for being smart or call you stupid."

"So Ferdinand flattered you a bit, and you actually think you're the main character?" Crouch shook his head and chuckled. "There are many things you can't handle. I have my own methods."

"Row"

Raven nodded calmly and followed the same procedure, placing Crouch on Kun's body.

……

(End of this chapter)