Chapter 257 - 257. Inheritance
The city of Slyfall was a simple one.
It wasn't luxurious or clean, it only featured a large market, a few hostels, and many taverns.
'This really resembles one of the pirates' hideouts of my previous world, I kind of like it.'
The streets were filled with drunkards and women with revealing clothes, what surprised Noah even more was that most of them were cultivators!
'It seems that I ended up in the gathering point of the criminals of both nations, I should go on my way as soon as I finish my most pressing matters.'
Noah had his hood lowered, the soldier had advised him not to wear it inside the city and he had finally understood why.
'Everyone here should have quite a record, they won't like someone unwilling to show his face. A hood would just attract trouble.'
He went looking for the best hostel that he could find and he rented a room for the exorbitant price of one hundred Credits per night.
Noah didn't care much about that price, he was in a seemingly lawless city after all, they could set any price they wanted.
Also, the one chosen by Noah was one of the best hostels in the city, he needed the right structure for what he was going to do.
'I can't just absorb the Bloodline Inheritance anywhere, I need a safe and silent space to focus completely on it.'
The records about the Bloodline Inheritance were scarce, Noah only knew how to absorb it and its effects.
Yet, what he knew for sure was that the head of the rank 4 worm was deteriorating and he needed to hurry in absorbing its sea of consciousness before it became ruined.
Noah immediately went to his room and closed the door behind him.
The room was simple but wide, it had a large bed and one couch with a mat laid on the floor.
Also, the density of "Breath" wasn't bad either, Noah guessed that all the expensive habitations had a way to increase its concentration.
'This will do, I don't think it will take more than two weeks.'
Noah had paid the rent for three weeks already, he needed that amount of time to return to his peak form and undergo the absorption.
Four months of constant march weighed on his physical condition, he couldn't just straight up cultivate again, he needed to rest.
Noah went directly to sleep, the fatigue of the travel forced him to rest for more than a half a day before his mind could be considered recovered.
'According to the records, I will undergo the life of the beasts while I absorb it.'
Noah ate a satisfying meal before sitting cross-legged on the mat on the floor.
Then, he took out the barrel where he had sealed the head of the rank 4 worm and he opened it.
A pungent smell immediately enveloped the room, four months were really too much even for a rank 4 material.
Noah stabbed his hand in the severed part of the head and took out a small dark-red crystal from it.
That was the solidified sea of consciousness of the magical beast, the Bloodline Inheritance that he had worked so hard to obtain.
'To think that this small thing is one of the best medicines for the mental sphere of a cultivator… My mind should be able to handle it, right?'
What worried Noah the most was the capability of his mind.
A Bloodline Inheritance essentially contained all the experiences of the magical beast and of its predecessors.
It could come in many forms, depending on how much time had passed from its creation.
Of course, the more a beast with a sea of consciousness lived, the more its mind would be valuable.
The sea of consciousness of a magical beast was essentially a worse version of the humans' one, it contained only raw thoughts and strong emotions, it couldn't really be used for the casting of spells and similar.
However, that was exactly why the cultivators could absorb it!
Their thoughts were denser, their emotions more diversified, they basically had a more complex mind.
Yet, if a beast had lived for too long, its mind could equal the might of the heroic ranks, making it impossible for cultivators in the human ranks to absorb it.
'It shouldn't have been more than twenty years, I don't believe that the Royals would have let it live if they had recognized the Inheritance.'
Noah didn't know it but the last cleansing performed by the Royals had happened only fifteen years ago, his mind could completely cope with the absorption process.
The crystal seemed frail, its surface was rough and uneven, it was really far away from a perfected sea of consciousness.
Noah exhaled loudly and then neared the crystal to the middle of his eyebrows.
The crystal crossed his skin and trespassed his skull, passing unhindered Noah's brain to reach for his sea of consciousness.
As soon as it entered Noah's mental sphere, its borders broke and the mental energy contained inside was poured in Noah's mind.
It was at that moment that he lost control of his body and began to dream.
Cultivators scarcely dreamt, as they mind improved, they would be more aware of their surroundings in their sleep.
Yet, Noah completely lost control of himself as his mind started to absorb the thoughts of the beast.
In the dream, Noah opened his eyes only to see a dark underground place.
He ran through tunnels and cavities by instinct, his mind was only led by one basic feeling: Hunger!
Noah had never felt so hungry before, it seemed something compulsory, an instinct that he could not suppress.
He followed the trail of the "Breath", he knew that it came from a living being.
However, when he arrived in the place where the "Breath" was exuded, he found himself in front of a hundred of worm's corpses.
Those were his companions, his pack, he was momentarily stunned by that sight.
Then, a human appeared in the air, his facial features were unclear but Noah clearly recognized the golden color of his armor.
The cultivator simply waved his hand, creating a dense layer of air that completely stomped Noah, reducing him in a meat paste.
It was at that moment that Noah died, the exact moment when hate appeared in his mind.