Chapter 493 - 354: The Amazing Indians (Part 3)

Bascara stood rooted to the spot, his gaze shifting. He had, in fact, arranged for men to keep watch.

It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Ian. He just wanted to see what method the man would use to purify the Rift.

If it really was a Secret Technique, perhaps he could pick up a thing or two.

A minute later, a muffled boom echoed from within the Rift, as if something had exploded.

Then, the dark purple mist began to dissipate.

And it didn’t dissipate slowly; it receded rapidly, like a retreating tide.

Five minutes later, the surrounding mist completely vanished, and the Rift... was gone.

A giant pit, a hundred meters in diameter, abruptly appeared where the Rift had been.

Bascara’s pupils contracted. He strode to the edge of the pit and looked down.

There was nothing in the pit. No Mutants, no trace of contamination, and no Source Crystal Vein Ore had formed.

It was so clean... as if something had licked it spotless.

"This..." He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but only a sigh escaped.

The soldiers behind him were even more dumbfounded.

They had guarded this place for many years, watching the Rift expand day by day, watching their comrades be torn apart by Mutants.

’But that Legend from Great Yan went inside, and just like that, the Rift is gone?’

Bascara took a deep breath. Witnessing it with his own eyes only made the shock more profound.

He turned to an officer behind him. "Did you see anything?"

"I... I saw it clearly," the officer’s voice trembled.

"After Mr. Yin went in, a red light flared up inside, and then... it just exploded."

"A red light?"

"Yes, a crimson light, just like the sun."

Bascara fell silent. ’A crimson light... the Red-Bladed Spear?’

He recalled the intelligence reports from Great Yan. Mr. Yin’s most commonly used method was a crimson Long Spear.

’One strike to pierce the Rift and purify everything... So... it was all true.’

"Let’s go." He waved his subordinates away, the thought in his mind growing stronger.

’A Secret Technique. It must be an extremely powerful one. If India could obtain it...’

「Over the next half-month, Ian traveled all over India.」

One location, two, three... At every Rift, he went in alone.

Each time, he would be inside for one to three minutes, then emerge. The Rift would disappear, leaving a giant pit behind.

Bascara went from initial shock, to later numbness, and finally to boundless greed.

He became more and more convinced that Ian possessed some kind of powerful Purification Secret Skill.

This Secret Technique had to be in Indian hands.

"Your Majesty, aside from the seven Rifts arranged previously, there were two other Level Five Rifts. The Level Three ones are almost all gone."

In the palace, Bascara bowed and reported.

King Samit sat on his throne, his fingers tapping the armrest.

"He purified all of them?"

"Yes. So far, there hasn’t been a single failure, and he purifies them very quickly."

"Hahaha! Excellent." King Samit laughed. "Where is Mr. Yin now?"

"He’s resting at the camp outside the city. He said he’ll be leaving tomorrow morning."

"Leaving?" King Samit’s smile widened. "What about his payment? Did he mention it?"

"He did, but as Your Majesty instructed, I told him the national treasury was empty and we needed time to prepare, asking him to wait a few days."

"And what was his reaction?"

"Um, he seemed very calm. He just said, ’Got it.’"

"Very calm?" King Samit raised an eyebrow. "That’s it?"

"Yes."

Bascara lowered his head in thought, somewhat puzzled himself. "He really said nothing more. He just turned and left the city."

"Heh heh..." King Samit leaned back in his chair, a satisfied expression on his face.

"Great Yan has an old saying: a mighty dragon cannot crush a local serpent. It seems he has accepted the reality of the situation."

"Your Majesty, why don’t we trade the remaining Source Crystals for the Secret Technique in his possession?"

Aditya proposed a compromise, his goal still being Ian’s Secret Technique.

"We’re not giving him any more Source Crystals," King Samit sneered.

"The previous payment was more than enough. We have our own difficulties now; he should be understanding."

"Just the Purification Secret Skill? You can approach him again, feel him out."

"Your Majesty, I believe this is unwise," Shomia said, her voice hoarse.

"His power is terrifying. My Secret Technique tells me this man is extremely dangerous."

"No matter how strong he is, he’s still just one person," King Samit interrupted her.

"We have three Legends of our own, an army of millions, and what’s more, we have our invincible ’big mushrooms.’ If he dares to make a move, he makes an enemy of all of India."

"At that point, even if we kill him, Great Yan won’t be able to blame us."

He paused before adding, "Besides, he purified the Rifts but didn’t leave behind any Source Crystal Ore. We’re already being polite by not demanding compensation from him."

Bascara and Aditya exchanged a look but said nothing.

A flicker of worry crossed Shomia’s slender eyes, but she didn’t speak again.

’The King’s command has been given. It’s useless to say more.’

「On a small hill dozens of miles outside the city, Ian sat cross-legged inside his tent with his eyes slightly closed.」

His Spiritual Power extended, blanketing the entire palace.

He heard every single word of the conversation between King Samit and the others.

’Just as I expected.’ He opened his eyes, a cold glint flickering in their depths.

"Gak! They really dare to default on the payment?"

Gaga emerged from the shadows, the silver vortexes in its eyes swirling.

Ian nodded. "Not only are they planning to default, they also want to keep me here and force the Purification Secret Skill out of me."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Gaga’s wings flared open.

"Let’s go right now, grab that so-called King, and force him to hand over all the Source Crystals!"

"No rush. Let’s wait until dawn. There will be a bigger audience then."

Ian stood up and walked outside the tent.

The night was deep. There were no stars in the sky, only a ghastly white moon hanging on the horizon.

"I want the Source Crystals, and their lives... I want those too."

He muttered to himself, "A bunch of foul insects, daring to plot against a Giant Dragon. They truly don’t know the meaning of death."

’Tomorrow, in front of everyone in India, I will crush those insects. Then I will take all the Source Crystals.’