Chapter 340: Damian Avoids Becoming Whetstone
Damian smiled as he looked over his newly acquired harem staff, clearly satisfied with how things had turned out.
Cynthia, however, suddenly remembered something important and turned toward him.
She folded her arms and tilted her head. "Master, didn’t we originally come here because we wanted to enter the demonic territories using your connections?"
Damian looked toward her.
Cynthia continued, "Now that Serina and Miona have already left with Helena, what exactly are we supposed to do?"
Damian froze.
For several seconds, he simply stared at her.
His so-called demonic connections were literally Serina and Miona. "Damn..."
Damian slowly rubbed his forehead. "I completely fucking forgot about that."
Cynthia closed her eyes and sighed.
Cassandra, on the other hand, immediately laughed and casually waved one hand. "Oh, come on. Don’t overthink it too much."
Damian turned toward her and raised an eyebrow. "Hmm?"
Cassandra casually pointed toward the five newly accepted servant-slaves. "Two of them were members of the Nether Blood Moon Sect, weren’t they?"
The two former demonic sect disciples immediately stiffened when everyone’s attention shifted toward them.
Cassandra continued, "They should know something about the demonic territories too. Routes, nearby factions, important cities, dangerous areas... probably enough to get us started."
Damian stared at the two women for several seconds before realization finally struck him. "Oh, right."
𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂
He scratched his cheek awkwardly. "Kinda forgot about that too."
Cynthia immediately facepalmed. "As expected of Master."
Damian looked offended. "What’s that supposed to mean?"
Cynthia lowered her hand and gave him a completely flat look. "You remember almost everything perfectly unless it has nothing to do with women or treasures."
Damian opened his mouth and paused before weakly saying, "...That sounds worse when you say it out loud."
Linsey laughed.
Cassandra, however, didn’t join in this time.
Instead, she looked toward Damian thoughtfully, as though something else had suddenly occurred to her. "Still... there’s actually something I’ve been wondering about."
Damian noticed the change in her expression. "What?"
Cassandra pointed directly toward him. "You’re at Peak Nascent Soul now."
Damian’s expression became slightly more serious.
Cassandra tapped her own chest. "And so am I."
Her playful demeanor gradually faded. "I still don’t fucking understand how you became this strong so quickly, and apparently you’re not planning to explain it anytime soon."
Damian coughed. "Correct."
Cassandra ignored him. "The point is, we’re both much stronger than we were before."
She tilted her head slightly, genuine confusion appearing in her crimson-black eyes. "So why are you still planning to hide from Nolan?"
Damian’s expression slowly changed.
The others also became noticeably quieter.
Cassandra folded her arms. "From what you told me, that bastard is only around the Golden Core Realm, right?"
She stared directly at Damian. "So why the hell are we still running from him?"
Damian stared back at Cassandra for several seconds before eventually letting out a long sigh. "Because that son of a bitch Nolan isn’t normal at all."
Cassandra raised an eyebrow.
Damian rubbed the side of his face in frustration. "That bastard is basically a chosen one. A child of destiny, Heaven’s favorite little asshole, protagonist, whatever the hell you want to call him."
Linsey blinked. "That sounds a little dramatic, even for you, Master."
Damian immediately cursed, "Because it fucking is."
He crossed his arms, his expression becoming noticeably more serious. "Like I said before, Nolan is a chosen one. People like that are ridiculously difficult to kill. They’re like fucking cockroaches."
Cynthia quietly listened.
Damian clenched one fist. "Even if we corner him perfectly, somehow he’ll pull out some hidden trump card nobody knew existed and escape like a slippery fucking loach."
He pointed toward himself. "Or worse, we could have him completely beaten, and suddenly the bastard awakens some ancient bloodline, comprehends some ridiculous technique, receives enlightenment from Heaven, or pulls another miracle out of his ass and counter-kills us instead."
Cassandra frowned. "You seriously believe all this chosen-one bullshit?"
Damian nodded without the slightest hesitation. "Absolutely."
He pointed vaguely into the distance. "Just look at Nolan’s life. Everything about that bastard screams chosen one."
Damian raised his fingers one by one. "Insane talent, a powerful master, ridiculous inheritances, opportunities constantly dropping right into his hands, and somehow, he kept surviving situations where any normal cultivator should’ve died."
Damian clicked his tongue in annoyance. "That isn’t luck anymore. That’s straight-up protagonist bullshit from some fucking novel."
Cynthia slowly nodded. "When you describe his history that way... his survival rate is certainly abnormal."
Cassandra folded her arms and thought quietly for a moment. "I see."
She eventually looked back toward Damian. "Still, how can you be certain he’ll continue surviving? Why assume our chance of killing him is practically zero?"
Damian shrugged. "Because people who think exactly like you usually become his whetstones."
Cassandra’s eyebrow twitched.
Damian pointed at her. "Strong genius sees chosen one. Strong genius thinks, ’I’m much stronger. I’ll crush him easily.’"
He spread his hands. "Three Chapters later, congratulations. The chosen one used you to break through."
Linsey covered her mouth, trying not to laugh.
Cassandra stared at Damian for a moment before letting out a low chuckle. "Thinking about it again... you’re annoyingly convincing."
"Exactly," Damian said, snapping his fingers.
He then raised one finger. "However, if we ever reach the King Realm..."
His demeanor changed as a dangerous smile slowly appeared on his face. "Then I might actually feel comfortable hunting Nolan down."
His eyes narrowed slightly. "At that point, I wouldn’t just fight him. I’d crush every escape route, every hidden supporter, every rescue possibility, every fucking trump card I could find before killing him."
Cassandra slowly nodded. "That makes more sense."
Her expression became thoughtful. "The King Realm is fundamentally different from the four realms beneath it. The gap isn’t something a normal trump card can casually bridge."
Damian nodded. "Exactly."
Cassandra rolled her eyes a moment later. "Fine. Then where the hell are we going next if we’re avoiding him?"
Damian immediately turned toward the two former Nether Blood Moon Sect disciples among the five servants.
Both women straightened the moment his attention landed on them.
Damian walked closer. "Alright, you two."
They quickly bowed their heads. "Yes, Master."
He rubbed his chin. "You two should know the demonic territories better than anyone else here, right?"
Both of them nodded.
Damian’s eyes immediately brightened. "Perfect."
He clasped his hands behind his back. "Then tell me the safest and easiest way for us to properly enter the demonic side."
The two women prepared to answer, but Damian raised another finger. "And more importantly..."
His serious expression disappeared almost instantly, replaced by his usual shameless grin. "Tell me the fastest way to become ridiculously famous over there."