Day 27:

The next morning-

Rilden woke up, looked to his right, and couldn't help but grin.

In his arm was a naked purple-gold-haired beauty, who at some point woke up ahead of him. She was staring at him, but didn't wake him up.

"Good morning, my husband." Elarose softly said with a warm and loving voice, quite different from her usual monotone voice.

It was sweeter than hearing a morning bird's singing, making Rilden unknowingly grin.

"Good morning, Elarose." Rilden softly replied and kissed the beauty.

Since they finally broke the ice, Elarose slept with him on the same bed. Rilden had to admit that it was a joy no one could understand until they experienced it. While they didn't have sex, cuddling was just as pleasant.

Separating from him, Elarose slowly got up and left the bed before getting dressed right before him.

"What a feast to the eye." Rilden thought, enjoying it, and felt reluctant once Elarose left the room.

"Don't overstay in bed." Elarose reminded him and left.

"Hah... it has been about a month since that day, right? It is hard to believe I achieved so much." Rilden sighed and checked his status.

 

Name: Rilden Greyblade
Sex: Male
Age: 18
Status: Perfect Condition, Happy
Social Status: Hero of Qhiion
Sexual Status: Divinely Empowered Breeding Stallion(Not a virgin and empowered by the most ancient fertility goddess herself!)
Bloodline: ???(Unknown and refined mutated bloodline at tier 6)
Bloodline Abilities: Daily Prophet, Analysis, Precognition, Clairvoyance.
Blessing: Qhiion(Hero Blessing), Atrivia(Gifted Breeding Stallion)
Hero Abilities: Perfect Warrior, Fire of Hope, Symbol of Hope, Carver of Paths
Warrior Realm: Initial tier 3. Warrior Talent: 7.
Magician Realm: Peak tier 1. Magician Talent: 7.
Comprehension: 3.5
Overall Evaluation: A new hero with Mythical Talent, a Hero Candidate wife, and a divinely empowered schlong.

 

"Now, my biggest regret is gone." Rilden grinned and checked his <Daily Prophet>.

 

[<Daily Prophet> activated.]

[Due to the emergence of a new Hero Candidate, Atrivia is even more joyful and loving than before, and would double her blessings upon the world for the next three days! An Atrivia's Love will form at—]

[Another Atrivia's Love will form at—]

[Another Atrivia's Love will form at—]

[Another Atrivia's Love will form at—]

 

Rilden blinked his eyes, and a strange expression formed on his face.

"Well... now I know what I would never lack," Rilden muttered.

.

.

.

At around 7 in the morning-

Rilden stood outside the city with Elarose, Astrid, Audfrey, Nefstein, and about a hundred men, looking at several thousand Thralls who volunteered and were willing to fight, both men and women gathered from nearby territories.

Elarose wore a face veil she borrowed from Astrid due to her excessive beauty. Astrid was deeply shocked when she learned that Elarose could become a Hero Candidate, but it wasn't the most exaggerated achievement Rilden had, so she quickly adapted to it.

On the other hand, Audfrey stood behind Elarose like a little lackey, regarding her as her superior. She was a Totem Warrior of Jurgan, so it was little wonder. However, she also stared at Rilden with fiery eyes.

"If he can make her a Hero Candidate, he can make me one too, right?" It was the logical conclusion she reached.

As for Nefstein, the now-permanent stooge, his thoughts were simpler.

"The young Hero is awesome." He gave a hidden thumbs up, feeling pure admiration for Rilden.

Rilden stared at the Thralls, who were all nervous, as he began sorting them into groups, his eyes glowing as he looked at them.

Of course, he was using <Clairvoyance>, able to see through the bloodline types of all the Thralls.

For three hours, Rilden organized them, speaking simple words that he learned from Astrid. It was simple to memorize words such as Fire or Earth.

Finally, the results were out.

Out of 5,624 Thralls, 1,272 were Elementless, 1,735 had Earth affinity, 487 had Fire Affinity, 892 had Water affinity, 721 had Wind affinity, and the remaining 512 had special affinities, such as Darkness, Light, Lightning, Life, Death, Plants, Metal, Blood, or Compound elements.

"Is this due to their main deities being Jurgan and Atrivia? Or is it due to their ancestry?" Rilden wondered.

With such a large sample, he didn't think it was a coincidence.

Not only that, but there were 67 with Blood element, 13 with death element, 20 with Earth, Blood, and Death dual element, and one with triple Blood, Earth, and Death elements!

Originally, he planned on recruiting up to 1,500, but now, he would use all 1,836 cores.

"Is this a stroke of luck?" Rilden thought as he looked at his bracelet. "Perhaps it affected the number of people who would arrive?"

Shaking his head, Rilden had the Thralls who didn't meet his demands return. While they felt disappointed, Rilden added that he would recruit them if he obtained suitable bloodline awakening materials, which cheered them up.

And now, the remaining Thralls looked at him with burning eyes.

"Do you swear loyalty under the gods that you will loyally serve?" Rilden asked, and Astrid repeated.

The Thralls hurriedly knelt and swore fealty to him, and as they did, they felt a warm sensation of confidence surge within them.

Seeing them all gain his mark, Rilden smiled and had the Elemental Hearts distributed, which they ate after receiving the order.

Hum* Hum* Hum* Hum* Hum*—

The wave of bloodline awakening lasted for over an hour! Most remained ordinary, but some even directly broke through, becoming Junior Warriors or Magicians!

But the one who attracted him the most was the unassuming young and malnourished girl who awakened the triple-element bloodline. Unexpectedly, she didn't advance and even looked like she wanted to cry.

Hence, he couldn't help but <Analyze> her.

 

Name: Sibbe
Sex: Female
Age: 16
Status: Hungry, Miserable
Social Status: Manumitted Thrall
Sexual Status: Virgin
Bloodline: Blightkin(Mutated Earth, Blood, Death triple-elemental Tier 1)
Bloodline Abilities: Blight Affinity
Warrior Realm: None. Warrior Talent: None.
Magician Realm: None. Magician Talent: None.
Comprehension: 2.9
Overall Evaluation: A clever but ordinary teenager with an abnormally weak, mutated bloodline suitable for surviving and thriving in blighted lands.

 

"Astrid, ask her what her ability is," Rilden said, pointing at the woman.

"My lord... I can speak your language..." The teen said in the Empire's language with a heavy accent.

"Oh?" Rilden was surprised. "Who taught you?"

"My mother... she was from the Empire before being captured and enslaved," Sibbe said.

"I see... can you explain to me your ability?" Rilden asked.

"Yes, my lord..." Sibbe nodded and began explaining with a miserable look, as if wanting to cry.

Rilden, Astrid, and Elarose heard what she said, their hearts throbbing when they heard everything.

 

[<Blight Affinity>: You are immune to the negative effects of tier 0 Miasma and Blight, and tier 0 blighted creatures will not attack you unless provoked. You also gain resistance to tier 1 and above Miasma and Blight.]

 

Two weeks ago, Rilden would have thought that this bloodline was close to garbage and only useful in specific situations. Who would want to stay in a blighted land and befriend such creatures?! You had to be sick in the head for that. He would also feel miserable. But now...

He couldn't help but exchange a look with Astrid and Elarose.

"Are you two thinking what I am thinking?" Rilden asked.

Astrid and Elarose nodded, excitement in their eyes.

Sibbe, still wallowing in her sorrow, didn't realize that her bloodline would be viewed as a treasure.

.

.

.

While the rest of the Thralls were armed with weapons, armor, and training, Sibbe was given special treatment.

First, she became Elarose's handmaiden because she knew the Empire's language and was clever. And second, Rilden didn't hold anything back as he invested the natural treasures he casually found in the city.

Her appearance significantly changed, from an ordinary-looking and malnourished slave girl to a healthy-looking and athletic handmaiden.

However, she looked silly, sometimes seemingly wanting to laugh, while other times looking dazed.

 

Name: Sibbe
Sex: Female
Age: 16
Status: Healthy, Dazed, Excited
Social Status: Hero Candidate's Handmaiden
Sexual Status: Virgin
Bloodline: Blightkin(Mutated Earth, Blood, Death triple-elemental Tier 1)
Bloodline Abilities: Blight Affinity, Blight Empowerment
Warrior Realm: Peak tier 1. Warrior Talent: 2.
Magician Realm: Peak tier 1. Magician Talent: 2.
Comprehension: 2.9
Overall Evaluation: A clever teenager who is freeriding a bigshot due to her unique bloodline.

 

[<Blight Affinity>: You are immune to the negative effects of tier 1 Miasma and Blight, and tier 1 blighted creatures will not attack you unless provoked. You also gain resistance to tier 2 and above Miasma and Blight.]

[<Blight Empowerment>: When you are affected by Miasma and Blight, you will proportionally grow stronger, your training and recovery speed will multiply, and it will nourish your hunger and refine your talent and bloodline.]

 

Rilden couldn't help but grin.

"This girl is perfect for exploring that place. No, she was practically born for the role!" Rilden thought.

Of course, he was referring to the cave system under BlackBlood Pass.

"If we place her there, would she inevitably become a Mythical powerhouse or above?" Rilden wondered.

That place was a death trap for anyone but Sibbe. To her, it was a holy land of training!

But there was one thing he had to be careful about.

"Would she be loyal after gaining power? What would she do afterwards?" Rilden felt troubled.

He felt it was too much of a gamble. While he wanted to trust her, he had to wait and see before sending her there. What would he do if she decided to monopolize it and grew too powerful? Even if she didn't harm him, she might not be loyal anymore.

"I now somehow miss that Ruler's Mark ability... but I don't want to force people to be loyal to me." Rilden shook his head.

Rilden wasn't some power-monger; he wanted to earn people's loyalty, not take it by force. However, he wasn't a perfect judge of character, and he didn't want to lose his little treasure trove.

For now, it was best to let her stay by their side. After all, there was no rush, and he would know through the <Daily Prophet> if it was safe.

"Well, no point in thinking about it." Rilden thought while playing with the four new Atrivia's Love he got during the day. "Speaking of which, Atrivia's Hero Abilities are very... mixed."

Rilden thought as he recalled the abilities Elarose described to him.

 

[<Summer Maiden(Parital)>: You are the summer maiden blessed by the summer matron herself, and you carry the power of summer wherever you go. During summer or when under the sun, you gain Summer Aura, shielding you against unholy, corrupted, and evil energy and damaging demons and undead. You can forcefully activate it or enhance it with Magic Power.]

[<Fertility Aura(Partial)>: As the chosen of the Great Mother, you carry an aura of fertility that makes everything around you more fertile, be it land, plants, or creatures. Staying near you will passively improve soil quality, plant health, fertility of men and women, and health of pregnant mothers and their fetuses. It also has a chance to cause plants to mutate into Natural Treasures or improve the talent of unborn children. You can use your Magic Power to enhance and concentrate it on a target.].

[<Earth Daughter(Partial)>: The Earth Mother is one tough mother, and as her chosen daughter, you inherit her powerful might and maternal protectiveness. Your Strength, Toughness, and Resistance to harmful substances and energies are passively one tier higher, and the defenses around your womb are twice higher, protecting your children if you carry any.]

[<Warm Love(Partial)>: You are the chosen of the Loving Mother, and those around you will feel your love to all life, and even the foulest of creatures would hesitate to attack you. All sentient creatures around you will gradually lose their hostile intentions toward you, and their negative emotions will be cleansed. When in close contact with someone you hold affection for (romantically or not), your mutual affection and energy exchange will gradually erode energy impurities, toxins, and bottlenecks, making training smoother and more efficient.]

 

<Summer Maiden> was essentially an anti-evil power. <Fertility Aura> made everything around her more fertile and improved the health and talent of plants and unborn children. <Earth Daughter> was a straight-up boost in her strength and toughness as a warrioress. As for <Warm Love>, aside from making others not want to fight her, its other passive ability was the most interesting.

It was hard to notice, but his energy flow was about 2% smoother. Due to consuming many natural treasures, his energy was impure, and while it would initially not be a problem, it would eventually form a bottleneck. That is to say, even if he had a tier 5 Natural Treasure, he might not be able to use it, and it might even kill him! Of course, Rilden wasn't worried since there were ways to purify it. The most straightforward method was to train, but removing these impurities was difficult and time-consuming. However, some Natural Treasures were targeted for exactly this.

For example, the Essence Pool cleared most of his impurities. Of course, some impurities remained, but they were minimal since he didn't consume anything or train. Now that he had sex with Elarose, it likely eroded the remainder.

"Seems like I should make sleeping naked with her a routine? And have sex while at it?" Rilden lewdly thought.

What straight man would say no to that?

"Speaking of training, I haven't trained yet. I should probably start using that Mythical Talent of mine."

With that, Rilden went to his room and trained using the Harmony Breath method.

Little did he know that news of a new Hero Candidate of Atrivia spread like wildfire among the upper echelons of both major human forces.