"Can I just take whatever I want?" Nie Li looked over at
"Mm." Ye Ziyun nodded. Nie Li had saved her father — how could such a debt ever be repaid by a few items? Forget about taking a few things; she would agree to any request he made without hesitation.
"Well then, I'll just help myself." Nie Li stretched lazily, his gaze landing on a few stones among the sea of treasures. He reached out and picked them up.
Seeing Nie Li fish out a handful of plain, unremarkable stones from among all the dazzling, golden treasures, Ye Ziyun asked in surprise, "What are those?"
"These are Guardian Stones. They say they're only mined from a single deposit in the northernmost part of the Sacred Spirit Continent, which has since been overrun by Demon Beasts. Many runic engravers would etch inscriptions onto these stones once they got their hands on one. When activated with Soul Power, they can form a small protective barrier. This one, for example, has a Black Gold-grade inscription carved on it — it can withstand at least two attacks from a Black Gold-level powerhouse. The inscription is a bit worn, though; it'll need some repair." Without the slightest hesitation, Nie Li scooped up all six Guardian Stones. He soaked them in demon blood, reactivated the inscriptions, then pressed three of the repaired stones into Ye Ziyun's hands and pocketed the other three for himself.
"Those are..." Ye Ziyun stared at the three Guardian Stones in her palm. "Such valuable things..."
"They're from your family's treasury. I'm not even being polite about it, so why are you?" Nie Li chuckled and continued his search.
A faint blush crept across Ye Ziyun's cheeks as she tucked the three stones away.
Nie Li kept walking. How could anyone come to a mountain of treasure and leave empty-handed? He wondered whether there were any scrolls inscribed with Legendary forbidden techniques. If there were, he wouldn't hesitate to take them. His current strength was far from enough to wield them, but the more treasures he had on hand, the more options he'd have to save his own skin.
Whenever he spotted something good — especially anything useful in combat — Nie Li shoved it straight into his Space Ring, or after explaining its use to Ye Ziyun, stuffed it into hers.
In no time at all, Nie Li had grabbed several hundred assorted curios and artifacts, looking for all the world like a bandit ransacking a place.
He figured if Elder Ye ever saw this scene, his heart would probably ache. Nie Li was treating this place like his own home.
"Too bad there's nothing really impressive here. This City Lord's treasury is a bit second-rate," Nie Li remarked with some disappointment.
Ye Ziyun listened, not quite sure how to respond. Nothing impressive? And he'd still taken several hundred items?
Nie Li located sixteen scrolls inscribed with Legendary forbidden techniques, but sadly, they hadn't been well preserved. Ten were already ruined, and only five could be restored. After repairing those five, he gave three to Ye Ziyun and kept two for himself.
Nie Li stretched again. He'd taken just about everything in this City Lord's treasury that was worth taking. With so many treasures in his possession, he felt considerably more secure.
Suddenly, his gaze locked onto something among the many artifacts — a mysterious egg. It was roughly a third the size of a millstone, its entire surface a deep crimson gold, covered with mysterious runes.
Nie Li considered himself well-read and knowledgeable, yet he couldn't make heads or tails of the runes inscribed on this egg. They radiated mystery and wonder.
These runes were utterly foreign. He had never seen anything like them.
When Ye Ziyun noticed Nie Li staring at the strange egg, she asked curiously, "Nie Li, what is that?"
"I don't know either," Nie Li replied with a bitter smile, shaking his head. He could identify nine out of ten demon beasts by name, but the thing that frustrated him was that he had absolutely no idea what kind of creature this egg contained.
The runes on the egg were far too mysterious, and Nie Li didn't dare touch it for the time being.
Even Nie Li didn't know what this egg was? Ye Ziyun was somewhat astonished. Since she'd known him, there had never been anything Nie Li couldn't identify. She had assumed there was nothing in this world that he didn't know about.
"So what should we do?" Ye Ziyun looked at Nie Li and asked.
Nie Li stared at the mysterious egg, and with his keen senses he detected a faint aura emanating from within. The creature inside was still alive. That aura, for reasons he couldn't explain, sent a trace of pressure through him.
"What on earth could it be?" Nie Li wondered to himself.
A thought suddenly struck him. With a mental shift, he began gathering Soul Power from his Soul Sea, condensing it into a thin stream, and directed it into the egg. He didn't know what kind of demon beast was inside, but if it absorbed his Soul Power and became attuned to it, it would be tamed!
After that delicate thread of Soul Power flowed into the egg, Nie Li sensed that the aura within seemed to resist his influence, forming what felt like a small barrier. His Soul Power couldn't penetrate it.
Feeling that barrier's force, Nie Li's heart went cold. This was absolutely an extremely high-level demon beast — and it very likely wasn't from this world.