"Grandmother Arista!" Muria promptly called out, sounding very polite. There was no reason to hesitate—after all, she was his direct blood relative and, without a doubt, would be a strong supporter in his future.
"Dragon King, since you plan to catch up with your grandson, we'll take our leave for now." Noticing that Arista seemed intent on chatting with Muria, the three Titans, recognizing they were no longer needed, respectfully requested permission to withdraw.
Since the Titans, Seraphim, and Metallic Dragons had formed an alliance, the world's dynamics had shifted. For these Titans, the most obvious change was that the Dragon King before them, clearly from the Metallic Dragon race, was now an ally. As a result, they needed to show respect to her as a senior.
"Hmm." Arista nodded calmly in response to the respectful bows of the Legendary Titans. Though outwardly composed, she was inwardly thrilled.
Atreus had already informed her about the alliance of the three races, and the fact that these Titans bowed to her indicated that they considered her a friendly force. This special treatment was only afforded to allies; otherwise, expecting a Titan to bow to another race's Epic? Dream on!
"Muria, if you get any more news about godly avatars, remember to inform us. Don't keep it all to yourself," one of the Legendary Titans sternly reminded Muria before leaving.
But as if still not reassured, the Titan added, "If you tip me off about a godly avatar even once, I'll give you a million elemental crystals. One tip, one million!"
"Got it, I'll let you know," Muria replied, rolling his eyes. Did they think he was the type to be swayed by money? Really, he had his principles.
"Wow, money sure comes easy!" Hearing that just reporting one piece of information could earn Muria a million elemental crystals, even Arista, a newly ascended Dragon King, couldn't help but show a bit of surprise.
A sum like that was enough to crush a small nation, yet these Titans could offer it without a second thought. The weakest of the three Titans was already an Eighth-tier Legendary, and by the Titan resource system, they controlled at least a medium-sized world each, meaning they weren't short on cash.
What they lacked were unique experiences, like battling gods. For them, spending a million elemental crystals for the opportunity to fight a god was an absolute bargain.
As for Muria, this deal was definitely not a loss. He had the information, after all. He could fight the godly avatars first to his heart's content, and then inform the Legendary Titans.
Muria had already made up his mind: a million per tip-off about a godly avatar. By the time the war was over, he'd better have made at least several billion. Anything less wouldn't do justice to his efforts.
His fellow Titans were all filthy rich, and they barely cared about money. To them, such wealth was just a material possession.
"You all retreat and rest for now," Muria ordered after the three Titans left, dismissing his battle-worn Cloud Giant legion and the dragon army, who were visibly anxious after the battle.
The dragon army, mostly comprised of young, inexperienced soldiers, had been thoroughly frightened by the battle. Even though dragons were high-level creatures, years of peaceful living had dulled their edge. When faced with the reality of death for the first time, they had been terrified. Nevertheless, fear or not, Muria would continue to push them onto the battlefield. As apex predators, combat was essential for them.
"Grandson, I heard you married a ten-winged Seraphim descendant. Where's my Seraphim granddaughter-in-law? Take me to see her," Arista said, eyes shining brightly, once they were alone.
"She's resting in my territory."
"Resting?" Arista quickly picked up on the word choice. "Is my granddaughter-in-law pregnant? Is it a boy or a girl?"
"She became pregnant recently, so we're not sure yet." Muria smiled sheepishly. For the past two hundred years, he had spent most of his time in quiet seclusion, reading books or handling matters related to his position as the Lord of Xanapus. The rest of his free time had been dedicated to ensuring the continuation of his bloodline with Mikaela.
Muria had done some calculations and realized that just having one child wouldn't be enough. Both his grandparents and parents hadn't fulfilled their reproductive duties. As a species with long lifespans and low fertility rates, at least two offspring per couple were needed to maintain population levels. Yet, his grandfather Akmon had only fathered his father, and his maternal grandparents, Deimos and Arista, had only one daughter, Atreus. Likewise, his parents had only him. Muria had no siblings, which fell short of the necessary standard.
Mikaela's parents, at least, had done their part, having both her and her brother. Muria, however, realized that if he wanted to make up for the shortcomings of his ancestors, he would need to have at least eight children with Mikaela. That number seemed almost impossible.
They had worked for nearly two hundred years just to conceive one child. Having a second one naturally seemed out of the question, unless they relied on source power.
"Take me to see her!" Arista said eagerly, thrilled at the unexpected joy of seeing her grandchild and a potential great-grandchild.
Soon, Muria, Atreus, and Arista arrived at Xanapus' floating Cloud City, where Mikaela was resting, just as Muria had mentioned.
"Muria, Mother... and you are?" Mikaela, who had been practicing swordsmanship with a war sword in hand, turned to greet Muria and Atreus. Upon noticing Arista, who bore a striking resemblance to Muria, she respectfully inquired, already guessing who she was.
"Mika, this is my grandmother," Muria explained, rubbing his nose. "She's just returned as a newly ascended Dragon King!"
"Grandmother!" Mikaela respectfully addressed her.
"Ah!" Arista's heart soared at hearing a Seraphim descendant call her "Grandmother." By Seraphim standards, Mikaela could easily become a Seraphim herself. "Good child!"
"This is our first meeting, and it seems like you already have everything you need. No matter what I give, it feels inadequate. So, I'll give you something special—a technique even your Epic-level backers can't provide."
In a cheerful mood, Arista pondered for a moment before gently tapping Muria's forehead and Mikaela's brow. The couple, just about to react, were immediately overwhelmed by a torrent of information.
"This is..." Muria's face showed genuine shock as he skimmed the knowledge now in his mind. It was a complete source power technique, detailed to the last step, all of it crystal clear in his mind.
However, there was a catch—despite understanding every individual word, Muria couldn't comprehend the technique as a whole. He wasn't at the Epic level yet, so even if he possessed an Epic technique, it was beyond his current abilities to use or fully grasp.
"How does it feel?" Arista asked, grinning as Muria opened his eyes, still visibly shaken by the information in his mind.
"This technique is incredibly valuable!" Muria said after a moment's thought. It was the first complete source power technique he had ever received. Although he had fragments of the Seraphim's source power technique, he hadn't obtained the full version, and as for the Titans' version, he hadn't even seen it.
Muria couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy. He was sure this technique had a dubious origin, likely stolen from a powerful race. Given its superior quality, compared to what the Seraphim might offer, it was clear his grandmother hadn't developed it on her own.
In other words, this technique had been acquired through illicit means. Muria could see its great benefits, but he also sensed the potential danger attached to it. Some things came with strings attached. However, this wasn't something he needed to worry about.
"As long as you understand its value." Arista nodded in satisfaction, pleased to see her grandson was duly impressed.
Though she had risked her life to obtain this technique from the Void, her main goal upon returning to the world of Erathia was to seek protection and, more importantly, to spread the technique to benefit her partner and descendants.
In simple terms, Arista had always planned to pass the technique on to Muria. By using something she was going to give anyway as a grand gesture, she felt it was a brilliant move—one that made her look good and was profitable too.
After chatting for a long time with Muria and Mikaela, Arista finally remembered the main reason she had returned to Erathia.
"Muria, what do you think about me trading this technique with the Titans? Do you think your ancestors would agree?"
"Though I haven't seen the full version of our tribe's source power technique, there's no doubt yours is superior. It's especially suited for Legends like me who are about to step into the Void and aim to become Epics."
After a moment of thought, Muria gave his opinion. His grandmother's technique was undoubtedly more advanced, particularly in terms of safety, compared to the Titan method of gaining source power, which required frequent battles with evil gods. That method was far too extreme.
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