Page 531

"What’s this affinity with elements connected to spiritual energy? I remember you mentioning it before," Kisha said, her brow furrowing as she tried to recall the details.

It had come up earlier when she was learning to cultivate her spiritual energy and mana.

"Host, each cultivator, spiritual animal, or spiritual plant has an affinity with specific elements. Their spiritual energy aligns with these affinities and takes shape accordingly."

"For example, your husband, Duke, has awakened abilities in Lightning, Fire, and Ice. This means his affinity leans toward those three elements, and the spiritual energy flowing through his veins is composed of them."

"When he absorbs spiritual energy from the surroundings, his body selectively draws in these three elements while ignoring or repelling the others. As the spiritual energy takes form, it manifests into the abilities or skills you’ve seen when you conjure or cast them."

"Every cultivator, spiritual beast, and plant possesses at least one elemental affinity, and their abilities develop based on that affinity. For example, those with a fire affinity often manifest fire-based powers and frequently pursue alchemy, as they can cultivate a pure soul flame."

"Similarly, spiritual plants with elemental properties are highly valued in alchemy, as they can enhance the effectiveness of pills and produce unique results depending on their elemental alignment."

008 continued explaining elemental affinities to Kisha, understanding that her unfamiliarity with the murim world left her with gaps in knowledge about such concepts.

The more she understood, the better equipped she would be to advance in her cultivation, especially since she was now cultivating both mana and spiritual energy.

While Kisha’s understanding of mana cultivation had been significantly enriched by the cultivation manual she acquired, her knowledge of the murim world and its unique principles still needed to be expanded.

Currently, the development of her world seemed to align more closely with the cultivation practices of the murim world, making information about such systems increasingly vital to her.

"I see. So you’re saying this spiritual plant, which has awakened its consciousness, also has an elemental affinity, but we don’t yet know what it is," Kisha murmured, her gaze thoughtful as she absentmindedly played with her chin using her thumb and index finger.

"Host, given the nature of this mystical spiritual plant, I’m confident it possesses at least two strong elemental affinities, which is what makes it so special," 008 clarified. "Otherwise, it wouldn’t have the unique ability to enhance the success rate of pill and elixir creation."

As another realization struck her, Kisha gasped. "Doesn’t that make this spiritual plant a coveted treasure?"

"It certainly does," 008 confirmed. "If this spiritual plant had been born in the murim or a fantasy world, countless powerful martial artists and adventurers would likely fight to the death for it."

"Its miraculous effects would make it immensely valuable. The fact that it can enhance pill and elixir creation indicates that its fruit or flowers will contain potent spiritual energy, capable of significantly boosting a person’s cultivation in multiple ways."

"Woah! I guess I’m actually a rich woman, huh?" Kisha said casually, brushing off the weight of the revelation and tucking the topic away at the back of her mind now that she understood the basics.

’Host, you’re far beyond just wealthy,’ 008 thought to itself.

’Your territory space alone is a treasure among treasures in the murim world. Add to that the last surviving Scarlet Bees and their queen, and now this mystical spiritual plant... Not to mention an omnipotent system like me.’

But 008 kept those thoughts to itself. After all, if it voiced them, Kisha would just tease it for "patting itself on the back" and boosting its own ego.

Kisha had no idea just how many treasures she held in her hands.

If anyone knowledgeable about such things were to see them, she would undoubtedly be coveted as a walking treasure trove.

Fortunately, she had learned the value of discretion, sharing these secrets only with Duke and her close-knit family.

As for the others who were aware of her secrets, they were bound by such loyalty—or fear—that they wouldn’t dare betray her. Even if they wanted to, they wouldn’t live long enough to utter a word.

With a calm heart and a clear mind, Kisha stayed with Daisy for a while, attempting to sense the spiritual plant’s thoughts as Daisy did.

Perhaps it was Daisy’s natural affinity for plants that allowed her to easily connect with their thoughts and emotions, a talent Kisha and others lacked.

Despite its awakened consciousness and its bond to Kisha—much like Zeus and Bell—the plant couldn’t yet establish a direct connection to her mindlink.

It was still too young, and with Kisha’s recently enhanced mental capacity, forming such a connection would be a challenge even for those far more advanced.

At present, Kisha hadn’t realized that her enhanced mental capacity was preventing the spiritual plant from forming a mindlink connection with her, as she had yet to gain full control over her newfound power.

After spending some time with Daisy, Kisha decided to leave her alone to enjoy her time freely, playing with the plant as she pleased.

Kisha then returned to her own tasks, her thoughts lingering briefly on the curious little sprout before focusing back on her work.

"Argh!"

"Ugh"

Cough...

Cough...

As Kisha stepped out from the hidden location of the plant, she heard a commotion nearby.

Turning toward the noise, she saw people collapsing to the ground one after another.

Her brow furrowed in concern as she moved closer to investigate.

Not far from the Winters’ men, Sparrow and Vulture were also on the ground, in the same state as the others.

A sudden tremor of realization swept through Kisha as her heart tightened, remembering something important.

Without hesitation, Kisha retrieved a pill bottle from her inventory and quickly took out a handful of pills.

At the same time, Duke, who had been occupied elsewhere, came rushing over upon hearing the commotion, followed closely by Mike, Gant, and Marcus.

The five of them worked quickly, helping the people who had collapsed, their faces pale and twisted in agony.

Some had veins bulging in their necks, threatening to burst, while others had the veins in their foreheads visibly straining.

Gritting their teeth, they writhed on the ground, clawing at their chests as if trying to rip their hearts from their bodies.

"Gah!!!’

"Quick, help me get these into their mouths!" Kisha urged urgently, tossing the pill bottle to Duke.

She swiftly pressed a pill into the nearest person’s mouth.

Duke, acting just as quickly, grabbed a handful of pills and threw the bottle to Marcus.

The pills were small, about the size of half a bean, and as soon as they touched the tongue, they dissolved instantly.

A few seconds after ingesting the pill, some of the victims stopped writhing in pain, their bodies drenched in cold sweat, then they quickly lost consciousness.

The five of them worked quickly and efficiently, administering the pills to everyone.

Once they finished, Kisha and the others left Sparrow and the others behind to rest, deciding to search for the rest of the Winters’ men.

Kisha immediately instructed Duke and the others to use the territory’s interface and map to locate the remaining members, ensuring they wouldn’t waste any time.

Soon, they dispersed, each of them using the territory interface to check the map.

Green dots marked the locations of the Winters’ men scattered across the territory.

Without hesitation, each member took a direction and sprinted toward their target.

Kisha and Duke chose the farthest locations, knowing their speed surpassed that of Marcus and his grandchildren.

Marcus and the others, without question, followed the orders given to them and quickly set off.

Soon, Kisha arrived at the southwestern part of the swamp, where she found the Winters’ men who were supposed to be gathering clay, their bodies twitching and foam bubbling from their mouths.

Her heart tightened with concern as she quickly used her telekinesis to lift them from the muck and carry them to the dry shore.

Without wasting any time, she fed them the pills using her telekinesis, ensuring they received the relief they desperately needed.

Once she had administered the pill to each of the Winters’ men, Kisha carefully checked their conditions one by one.

Satisfied, she used her telekinesis to lift them into the air and headed in the direction where Duke had gone.

By the time she arrived, Duke had just finished assessing the last person’s condition.

Without exchanging many words, Kisha raised everyone into the air with her telekinesis. Duke gave her a quick nod, signaling his acknowledgment.

With another nod in return, Kisha lifted herself off the ground as well, using her telekinesis to float upward.

She didn’t want to risk running through the forest while carrying so many people, fearing they might collide with the trees.

It would require too much concentration to ensure none of them were harmed, especially when she was also preparing to head toward Marcus and the others.

As Kisha made her way to where Marcus and the others were, Duke hurried off toward Sparrow and the rest to keep watch over them.

Kisha followed the map, flying directly to Marcus’s location.

When she landed in front of him, Marcus instinctively stepped back.

Kisha quickly scanned the Winters’ men on the ground and, noticing that their breathing had stabilized, she used her telekinesis to lift them all.

She then headed toward Mike and Gant, repeating the process for the men scattered across the territory.

Once she had gathered all the Winters’ men, she returned to where Duke was waiting.

Gently, she set everyone down on the ground and pulled mattresses from her inventory to ensure they were comfortable as they regained their strength.