I stared at the golden core pulsing in my palm, still warm from Barrett Hill's body. The energy within it radiated power—decades of cultivation, knowledge, and spiritual strength condensed into a single shimmering sphere. My victory felt hollow as pain radiated through my body. The wounds from the Devouring Shadow still burned, dark tendrils of corrupted energy trying to burrow deeper into my meridians.
"Worth the trouble," I muttered, carefully storing Barrett's golden core in a jade box. This acquisition would significantly boost my cultivation once I properly absorbed it.
I glanced down at Barrett's corpse, his face frozen in a mask of horror and disbelief. The mighty Sage of the Umbral Covenant, reduced to nothing more than a cautionary tale. I wrapped his body in a spirit-sealing cloth. Evidence of my victory would be necessary.
