NOVEL WEB Chapter 171: Getting Rich
Leon sent the following carefully thought-out message to the thousands who were holding their breath in anticipation.
A hush settled over the divine realm, the only sound the faint fwoosh of anticipation in the air. Leon could almost feel the electric prickle across his skin, as if the silence itself was holding its breath alongside the crowd, as his mind hovered over the send button.
Elemental Paragon:
I will first deal with those whose ignorance was about to cause their impending demise.
----
MoonWhoEatsHerself, LimbDealer felt an icy pressure pressed against the base of their throat, sending goosebumps down their spines as if a blade of pure frost hovered inches from their skin, along with hundreds of others who had mistakenly called out his name in doubt were also terrified now.
They weren't that scared before, as punishment according to law was not True Death, just an execution and a heavy fine, which was heartbreaking in itself.
Yet for the Lord of the Universe himself to say "impending demise," they were shaken to their very cores; they were not too sure if punishment now would be something that they could walk away from with their soul intact.
News of a Lord of the Universe in Elira's chat spread like wildfire throughout the entire divine realm, the number of people joining the chat increasing at a breakneck pace, and those who were offline were also coming online.
Notifications exploded across divine devices; servers pinged with fresh logins, and even dormant avatars flickered to life as the news rippled from thread to thread.
Flashes of multicoloured alerts strobed across screens, overlapping with a chorus of shrill notification chimes and urgent whispers echoing through every hall and chamber in the realm.
Even after joining, none of them sent a message before the Lord himself without his permission, not after he had commanded in the previous message to stop sending them.
Communication in the divine realm could be even faster than on earth itself, as now even big shots of the divine realm were also joining the chat. Still, they also dared not send their message to greet him.
They would have usually done so to show their respect, but his message had caused them to stop.
DivineEchoElira, the owner of the thread group, was also seeing everything in anticipation and excitement, as this would surely shoot her popularity to another level.
DivineEchoElira leaned closer to her display, heart pounding, already imagining the surge of followers and private messages flooding her inbox.
Like when she became famous 1000 years ago, thanks to the Lord of Space and Time drawing massive attention to her thread and sparking widespread interest in music across the divine realm.
Yet she only stayed in as a junior, spectating the event, as she knew one mishap could lead to her demise. As a Lord of the Universe, she was an absolute, but the Supremes were also to be feared in the divine realm.
Her trying something just because she had ownership of the thread would bring her only trouble.
And she could see 3 of the Supremes had currently joined the chat, and she had already made the joining message to be hidden so it wouldn't upset the Lord.
Leon was thinking hard about what their punishment would be; he had no interest in hurting them. The only thing he wanted was a momentary gain, to earn a lot of causalties.
His gaze lingered on the glowing interface, jaw clenched as he weighed every option. The flicker of temptation in his eyes warred with a cool, calculating logic.
He still hadn't forgotten about the item made out of him alone, put on sale by the Dimensional Keeper, a divine-ranked item. He absolutely wanted to get a hand on that item, but it would need a massive amount of causalties.
Cradle Seed of Elements (Divine– Item)
Once planted in the body, it gradually enhances all possessed elemental affinities.
Price: 790,000,000
Vendor: The Keeper of The Dimensions
---
Out of the corner of his eyes, he looked at the item in the shop.
I need a lot of causalties.
He had decided what he should do; he didn't want to be too overbearing, which might attract the attention of other Lords.
His carefully thought-out message was sent.
Elemental Paragon:
@MoonWhoEatHerself @LimbDealer It was your ignorance that led you to this situation; however, both of you are in luck. I am not some tyrant who wants to end juniors' lives because of their one mistake.
Your punishment is to send all the causalties you have to me as compensation. Additionally, from now on, both of you will be required to send 50% of the causalties you receive every month.
I have gotten lenient over the years; do you accept your punishment?
And none shall touch you or anyone related to you, as you have to live to bear the weight of your sins.
----
MoonWhoEatHerself and LimbDealer cried and sobbed in their places; one in her room, the other in his office.
MoonWhoEatHerself's shoulders sagged with relief, tears smudging her digital avatar. LimbDealer released a shaky breath, hands trembling over the shimmering screen, unable to believe their reprieve.
This punishment seemed like nothing compared to what could have happened to them. One thought formed in their minds:
Lord Elemental Paragon is really kind.
They hurriedly sent their replies, wiping away the tears of joy. This would make their life harder, but not too much. Also, the Lord had only asked for 50%, which showed he didn't want them to stagnate their future potential, as resources are one of the most important things to go forward.
They had to work much harder now, but they would do their best and never forget this generosity.
Leon was holding his breath in anticipation, as he felt he had done too much, having taken all their current causalties and going as far as taking 50% of the causalties they earn in their immortal life from now on.
He trusted his intuition; they were so fearful and awed by his presence that he decided to assert himself properly, all while giving them room to breathe.
He held his breath in anticipation—would he get the lifetime cash cow or not?
And then a message came.
@MoonWhoEatHerself:
My Lord, you have my heartfelt gratitude for giving us a chance. I will happily accept every term of yours.
@LimbDealer:
Great, thank you for sparing me and the doom that would have come to my family. Even if it feels a little, I would send 80% of my monthly causalties earned.
I am just too grateful that I can live with my family; you have my heartfelt gratitude.
LimbDealer, a guildmaster of a small-sized guild in the divine realm with a business of monster parts around the divine realm, which was still in development, didn't feel a single bit of regret when he had increased his own monthly compensation.
Unlike MoonWhoEatHerself, who doesn't seem to have a family like nearly 75% of the immortals, he had a lovely family; he felt it was only right to show his gratefulness to the Lord, as he was also not a poor man, and could be considered a wealthy immortal.
----
Leon, reading the message of both of them, bit his lips, especially after the message of LimbDealer.
A faint taste of copper grounded him as regret and satisfaction warred in his chest."
He felt like he had gone too easy on them.
There was a bit of regret, but he also felt his conditions were quite fair.
He knew he couldn't change his words now; they saw him as a Lord of the Universe, and he couldn't shoot himself in the foot by taking his own words back now.
Suddenly, two messages from the system in the form of shimmering golden pop-ups appeared in front of him.
A sharp chiming sound rang out in his mind, accompanied by a golden flash that painted the air in shimmering light, making Leon's pupils contract reflexively.
Seeing the messages, Leon's little bit of regret washed away like it was not even there to begin with.
"kek kek, I am going to be rich soon"