Black Onyx - Phoenix Resurrection

“Um… So, what happens now?” Eden asked. They had agreed to work for me for what would be a lot of money in the Ashen Wastes, but for a Cultivator close to the peak of Spirit Realm, in the outside world, the amount they demanded would be considered chump change.

I had no problem with it, and they similarly wouldn’t get a better offer anyway, so even though they were technically getting underpaid, they were fine with it.

[Now? Nothing. Make yourself comfortable while I take a short rest. Digesting all this Essence could be done much faster, but I’d rather not be wasteful.]

“Oh…”

I relaxed my body and stretched out over a large area as I got into a comfortable position and closed my eyes. While usually I would have absorbed the consumed Essence at a much faster rate, there was really no point in being wasteful. The slower I digested the beasts, the more I could extract from them. And as I had no shortage of time, I decided that’s exactly what I was going to do.

Eden and Calla meanwhile waited patiently on a nearby hill, and with the thousand Spirit Stones I gave them as an advanced payment, they diligently Cultivated while I… slept.

[How long have I been asleep?]

“Three days… or thereabout.” Calla answered.

Gerald quietly hummed, stretched his limbs, and then slowly shrank back down. He watched them as his size changed and stopped when he reached his preferred height of about three meters. They were about the same in that regard. [Alright, gather your things. Let’s go.]

“We are ready.”

They returned back to the camp shortly thereafter. Thener was standing in a tent over a table full of papers, studying complex Formations and inscriptions for the rift stabilizers.

Brum was nowhere to be seen, most likely busy watching over Felix and teaching him various Cultivation secrets as always. The little kid finally managed to reach the second step after long months of hard work. And it was done properly since he stuffed his Soul with Soul Essence as much as he possibly could.

Gerald still remembered the day when it happened. Bram was present at the time when the kid suddenly advanced. There was no warning. He just Cultivated when suddenly there was a surge of Qi, and he advanced.

Bram was so shocked, that he couldn’t stop talking about it for hours. Nobody advanced like that. It was usually an arduous process that took hours or days to break through to a higher stage. Instead, little Felix did it almost accidentally.

The man’s mind was blown.

“What’s that?” Eden asked, pointing at the Mithril throne in the middle of the camp.

[Hmm...] Gerald frowned and approached. His large form loomed over the metal relic as he glared at the Drow sitting on it. She seemed comfortable and carefree, simply Cultivating with closed eyes.

[You are in my seat.]

Thalza lazily opened his eyes and slowly blinked at him, stretching her body while moaning quietly. “Mmm, but it’s so comfortable.”

[I know, that’s why I made it like that. Now get off.] Gerald said calmly but firmly. Of course, the Drow complied, but she did it as slowly as possible and made sure her grumbles could be heard.

Gerald then made the throne disappear into his storage, before addressing her again. [You can use the relic, however the throne is off the limit. Oh, and the Soul Stones you will have to procure yourself.] With that, he picked up the Soul-containing spheres and removed those as well.

“Asshole. So stingy.” The Drow murmured under her breath and then walked away with her head held high. She didn’t even acknowledge the two newcomers.

Gerald ignored her antics and turned to the other two. [Just ignore her. She doesn’t like humans… or being told what to do.]

“Yeah... I noticed.” Eden said.

“That’s the bitch that killed my partner!” Calla added with a frown.

Gerald lifted an eyebrow, seemingly asking if that was going to be a problem.

“Work partner.” Calla clarified, understanding his intent. “We weren’t that close.”

[Well then…] Gerald turned around and gestured for them to follow him. [The job I brought you here for is mainly manual labor, with a bit of Qi manipulation. You will be helping Bram and I to make bricks.]

“Bricks?” Eden asked.

[Like one of these.] Gerald went to the Void Stone chest and opened it, taking out a dense gray rock. [Here, catch.] He tossed the item like he usually did and waited for the reaction.

“Ah! Son of a-!” Eden cursed and dropped the brick in just over a second. He then shook his hand as if he was burned, while Calla looked between him and Gerald. She then picked up the Dreadsone brick and held it for all of three seconds before she dropped it too.

“It burns… What is this thing?” She asked as she nursed her blemished hand.

[Dreadstone. A nasty little rock that violently absorbs Qi. Not safe for consumption, unless you want to die.]

“And not safe to handle either, apparently.” Eden added. “That shit hurt!”

Gerald manually picked up the brick and held it in his hand. [It’s not too bad if you know how to counteract the effects. Since you are in Spirit Realm and your body is partially made of Qi, it should be enough to just increase your grip over your energy.]

“My Qi control is already excellent, thank you very much.” The guy said, sounding offended.

Calla looked at his hand. “Not that good, apparently.” She snickered. “Not that mine is any better.” She could barely hold the brick a few seconds longer before it became too painful to continue. As she looked at Gerald, however, she became jealous, since he held it much longer and without any apparent problems.

[Yes, I do feel it.] He answered without her even asking the question as it was quite clearly visible from her expression that she was interested. [But it’s not painful. Just uncomfortable. A thousand ants trying to bite through my skin. It gets worse over time though. My skin has some natural resistance.]

“Lucky.” Eden sulked.

“Forget that… What are those?” The woman pointed at the group of small dark gray figures moving around.

[Oh, that’s just my Terracotta army. Golems. I got bored and made them. Now, I’ll admit, it was not the best idea to make the bodies out of this stuff, but the surface ore is not too bad. The bottom layer stuff is the real pain in the ass.]

They both had confused expressions, so he explained. [The Dreadstone ore absorbs Qi, and since the golems run on it, they are getting drained faster than they should. I should probably make them of some other material, but I honestly can’t be bothered.]

“Do you use those things to help you make these… bricks?”

Gerald shook his head. [I would love to, but no. They would get instantly drained and are not worth it in terms of Qi spent.]

Calla nodded but then she came up with another question. “If these things drain Qi and we need it to work… Do you…”

[Yes, the energy needed for work will be supplied, don’t worry. However, I will always give you the same amount. One refill per month. If you wish to get more out of it, then I suggest you quickly learn to control your Qi better. The less you leak, the more you can Cultivate.] Gerald smiled.

“Huh. Now that’s some motivation… But, do we seriously get a full refill once per month? Like a full, full refill?” Eden asked.

[That’s what I just said, is it not?]

“But that’s… Another five thousand Spirit Stones, right?” He turned to the woman.

“It’s more than that for me, I think. Although I have to admit, it has been a long time since I was last completely full. That’s above the amount you are already paying us, right?”

[Of course. That’s what is required for the work. Be warned though, do not waste the energy, or the difference will come out of your pocket.]

Eden quietly gulped. He already had plentiful motivation before, but after hearing those words, his body subconsciously tightened, not letting any Qi escape. It was already perfectly sealed before, but then it held onto the energy even tighter.

Calla, on the other hand, relaxed. With the finer details of the work revealed, and with such a generous offer of Qi, she suddenly found stability in the land of death. It was such relief from not having to constantly be on edge against backstabbing humans, roaming wild beasts, and the world itself. There was even a little village in the distance where she saw people going on with their simple lives. There wasn’t much to do in the Lower Plane, but for them, it was home.

She felt their Cultivation, and with many of them not even having reached the Spirit Realm, most would never leave alive. And they were fine with that. She was not, but with a few more decades of hard work, she would reach the Sky Realm and leave this place. And her path there just got a little bit smoother.

[Ah, there he is…]

Calla and Eden both looked and saw a familiar face approaching. It was one of Lee’s personal guards. Or, used-to-be guards.

[I’m sure you guys already know each other, but just in case you don’t, let me introduce you…]

They exchanged pleasantries and began a casual chat as they would be coworkers for the foreseeable future.

[Now you are officially members of the Black Onyx, my company.] Gerald announced and then shrugged. [It has admittedly seen better days, with all the other members in the outside world, but that hardly matters. Now, Cultivate and empty your energy stores so I can get you all an equal refill, and let’s start this thing!]