Legacy of Hatred

Chapter 384: Safety

Liam wasn’t sure what he felt or sensed when he woke up. Some lingering soreness in the back of his mind kept his brain groggy. He didn’t feel the weakness that stemmed from his very soul, but his first mental functions were nothing short of instinctive conclusions.

’Grace?’ Liam wondered, the sensations between his arms triggering that thought. Besides, Grace was the only one with him. Only she could be with him.

Still, the situation was too impossible to belong to reality. Liam hadn’t dreamt much since becoming a cultivator, but that had to be it, so he reacted accordingly, not bothering to stir his reason awake.

Liam wrapped his arms around that slender body, one hand savoring her back, the other digging into her silky hair, reaching the base of her head. She was so thin compared to him, as if she could easily break or disappear, so he held her close, shielding her, falling prey to the selfish desire of wanting to trap her with him.

But strangely enough, the slender body responded. Fingers ran over Liam’s abdomen before a hand timidly reached his back, clinging to it softly.

Liam had every intention of going back to sleep in that far more pleasant position, but a certain reaction urged him closer. He lowered his head, immersing his nose in that brown hair, breathing its sweet scent deeply.

Then, everything lit up, and Liam basically jumped away, finding himself with his back against the wall, eyes wide, his hands lifted in surrender.

There, Liam saw it without the mercy of drowsiness anymore. Grace slowly sat up on the mat where he had slept, her bent leg sideways, cutely bringing a hand to her mouth to hide a small yawn.

Even upon waking up, Grace’s manners were beyond perfect.

"You are ...," Grace muttered, glancing at the frozen Liam, "More comfortable than I expected."

"Grace?!" Liam gasped. "Did we sleep together?!"

"Me?" Grace wondered, a faint frown forming on her face. "Master Liam, I have never lain with a man."

It seemed Grace easily switched back to Master Liam when it suited her, but she wasn’t done.

"Of course, since I am your possession," Grace added, politely lowering her head but looking up at Liam coyly, "If you were to request that of me, I wouldn’t be able to refuse."

Liam opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Grace had warned him, and he had chosen to endure rather than part ways, promising not to mention the issue anymore.

Moreover, it was hard to reject Grace when she looked so cheerful. Liam experienced profound fulfillment seeing that he was making her happy, but there was a giant issue.

’I’m going crazy,’ Liam cursed internally, lowering his head and digging his hands in his hair, ruffling it to enforce self-control.

Sadly, it didn’t work. Liam and Melissa had indulged in intimate acts, but they had never slept together, and the experience was a tempting new frontier.

It wasn’t even about what Liam’s senses had captured. Grace was extremely alluring, from her manners to her figure. However, sleeping with someone far surpassed such basic urges. It was a true emotional connection.

Liam didn’t want to think about how much he had liked the experience. Still, his heart gave that away, pounding wildly in his ears, seemingly betraying Melissa, at least according to her definition of lovers.

’No, no,’ Liam thought, taking deep breaths. ’I’m just surprised. This isn’t the same.’

Grace let Liam lie to himself and approached the pile of goods. Now that they were both awake, they could brief each other, deal with the magical items, and focus on training.

Naturally, the action claimed Liam’s attention. He lowered his hands and watched Grace’s distancing figure, her calm, calculated steps reeking of her iconic elegance.

’Why haven’t I noticed?’ Liam wondered, glued to the scene. ’I did last time.’

Liam wasn’t a heavy sleeper, not even close. He hadn’t even been as tired as when he had rested on Melissa’s lap, but his brain had refused to warn him about that invasion.

’I can’t be this careless around her anymore,’ Liam decided, standing up to join Grace. ’No more collapsing for a while.’

"You talked about an auction," Liam mentioned, "And a city."

"From what I could surmise," Grace nodded, "This border is indeed deeply lawless. Rather than areas of influence, the forces here establish small domains, even if they are righteous."

"Does it mean we are safe traveling through the wilds?" Liam seemed to understand.

"There seems to be a problem with magical beasts," Grace warned. "With no official authority, no one clears their nests. Everyone prioritizes their benefits over wasting efforts in acts of public safety."

Liam had seen that while flying. The traces connected to the cultivation world were abundant, but some had probably been due to magical beasts rather than cultivators.

"But yes," Grace confirmed. "Traveling won’t feature problems of the political kind for the most part. Yet, the only way of doing business is to enter potentially enemy territory."

"And you chose this city," Liam pointed out.

"It’s apparently a popular node," Grace explained, "Ruled by three forces. Their conflict of interests should allow us to avoid immediate oppression."

Since the three forces didn’t coexist peacefully, they might fight each other to secure the new wealthy players. Of course, nothing was certain, but it was a good bet.

"It’s just," Grace sighed. "The Brigade wasn’t great at giving directions."

"Do you have paper and chalk?" Liam asked. "If you tell me what you learned, I can draw a map."

Grace wasn’t aware of that skill, but Liam wasn’t one to speak randomly, so she gave him what he needed and started summarizing what she had learned.

The task served as Grace’s update, but also left her speechless at Liam’s hidden skill. The map that came to be was incredible, far better than anything she had drawn in her mind.

"Liam," Grace suppressed a gasp once the map ended in her hands, "You never told me you had such drawing skills."

"I have lived as a hunter," Liam dismissed the praise, but forced himself to accept a detail that had stood out multiple times, "And I have a good memory for natural environments. I seem to spot things others can’t."

That had happened in the Demonic Sect’s ruins, in the Evergreen Canyon, and even in the inheritance. Liam could blame the latter on his breakthrough, but it was time to accept that trend now.

"I would have added your maps to our wares if I had known," Grace muttered, still inspecting the comprehensive, precise drawing. "Master Liam, do you have other skills I should know about?"

Liam crossed his arms and tilted his head in thought. Grace basically knew everything about him, except for a few details.

"The breakthrough changed me a lot," Liam revealed, looking down at himself. "I wasn’t always this muscular. I have senses on par with perception techniques and can somehow hide my presence."

Liam then summoned an empty flask, bringing it to his mouth to fill it with a yellow liquid before explaining that point. "I also produce my own venom. It’s great in my case, but it made me think whether I’ll develop fangs next."

Grace had seen that yellow liquid already. Liam had filled many flasks during their trip to Kilrest. The venom’s power was also evident, as well as its immense advantages for an alchemist, especially a poison master.

Grace also understood that Liam couldn’t use that venom for his cultivation. It was the same with her Qi. His inborn, peculiar traits were similar to her ability to read faces and smell profit, too, but her question involved something else altogether.

"Is it safe to kiss you?" Grace wondered.

"It should be," Liam responded, not thinking much about that curiosity. "It’s really easy to control. It’s like a part of me."

"Shouldn’t you know for sure?" Grace asked, performing a curtsy. "As your possession, I’d be honored to be part of Master’s experiments."

Liam’s brain caught up with the trap, but he just shook his head, summoning several items instead. Grace had done her briefing, so it was his turn.

"Take these for now," Liam announced, offering a series of pills and flasks. "I have plenty in the recovery field, and it’s safer if you keep some in case I’m not able to throw them at you."

Liam was giving Grace none other than five rank 2 healing pills, eight rank 2 Qi Recovery elixirs, and seven empty Qi-Storage pills.

That was a full assortment of recovery products that ordinary rooting experts could only dream of. Still, Liam had focused on them for the time being, accumulating quite a shocking amount.

Actually, that quantity had increased after dealing with the Brigade’s ingredients. Liam’s personal stash had even gotten close to expiring, so he had decided to turn it into products.

Of course, not everything had become a recovery product. Liam had also concocted a single Master’s Pride, ten rank 2 Poisonous Cloud Pills, and a batch of smoking powder that would last him three months.

There were other random products, too, which basically emptied everything Liam had in terms of ingredients. He felt bad having nothing left in that regard, but there was no fighting the passage of time.

Also, there wasn’t just regret. It was a bit childish, but Liam felt more complete now that his trump card and some Cloud Pills had rejoined his arsenal.

Grace didn’t know how to react to that offer. She had handled far more products, but had never kept so many for personal use, especially of a singular purpose.

Yet, obviously, safety was paramount for Liam, especially Grace’s. That was his way of taking care of her.

"Master, you flirt," Grace gasped, storing the items. "You already own me. You don’t have to make my heart skip a beat any longer."

"You wanted to be spoiled," Liam reminded, joining that banter while taking out more products. "Take these, too."

Grace could recognize many alchemical products because she had often sold them, but the new handout made her hesitate.

"Rank 2 Meridian-Cleansing elixirs?" Grace asked.

"I don’t have any use for these products," Liam explained, "But they can help compensate for your talent."

Meridian-Cleansing elixirs improved the Qi flow. Liam’s talent gave him the ideal body for cultivating, but Grace was bound to meet difficulties.

"Master also left me recipes to force a core to sprout more spiritual roots," Liam revealed, "But they are extremely expensive and would consume your lifespan. I’ll try to find safer alternatives once we restock on ingredients."

That was new for Grace and beyond shocking. She had thought such miraculous drugs only existed in legends, but Liam was talking about them as if they were ordinary.

Naturally, the value of such products was incalculable.

"Master Liam," Grace called, her greedy smile taking over her face. "Why should we waste these on me when we can make a lot of money?"

Liam had a hunch it would come to that, given how Grace loathed spending money to cultivate. Still, he could use the game she had initiated to his advantage for once, even enjoying that revenge after what she had done while he was asleep.

"Use them," Liam scolded. "That’s an order."

Grace’s figure snapped straight. Liam was getting better at their banter, but she hadn’t expected him to improve so quickly. He was putting more of himself into words every day.

"And aren’t we lifelong companions?" Liam added. "We’ll face even bigger dangers in the future. We need to be as strong as we can."

Grace gave in to the admission that Liam would be with her even in the distant future. She took the elixirs, but couldn’t help but voice a shy complaint. "My Master has become exceedingly sly."

"Where do you think I’m learning that?" Liam pointed out, chuckling as Grace turned away.

"What’s next?" Grace scoffed. "Will you force me to burn more spirit stones?"

"That’s exactly what I want you to do," Liam confirmed.

"Am I not your good, prized possession?" Grace peeked behind her shoulder, seemingly teary and defeated. "Do you have to be such a cruel Master?"

Grace’s cuteness was erupting, but Liam wouldn’t let it faze him, not when it came to her safety.

"I’m not the fan," Liam stated. "You won’t trick me like this."

"I liked you more when you held me in your sleep," Grace sighed, accepting defeat, but not before throwing that final blow. "To be so heartless after claiming a lady’s first night."

’Now she remembers,’ Liam cursed internally, feeling cracks forming in his sanity. ’Can I really survive her until I get to the Dragon King?’