"Alright…"
To Locke's surprise, Celes didn't grow angry at his refusal. He merely let out a soft sigh.
"These are all the treasures I know of that can restore soul power."
"Unfortunately, the things I can do for you are precisely the things you can't do yourself. If that's the case, then even if I want to help, there's nothing I can do."
With that, Celes spread his hands helplessly.
"Alright then—do you have anything else you want to ask me, Locke?"
"…What?"
Locke blinked, momentarily at a loss as to what was going on.
He had rejected Celes's proposal. By all logic, shouldn't Celes have killed him on the spot—or forced him to refine Soul Gold Beads?
However, when Locke sensed the emotions faintly leaking from Celes's soul, he could only shake his head and smile bitterly.
It seemed he had underestimated Celes after all.
There was no denying that Soul Gold Beads were extremely sought-after treasures—even in divine planes and supreme planes. Ordinarily, the moment one appeared, it would be snapped up at an exorbitant price.
But to Celes, Soul Gold Beads were no different from any other resource.
After all, their greatest use was to restore the souls of god-level experts or slightly enhance their soul power.
For beings whose souls were intact—and whose soul power had already reached their personal limit—Soul Gold Beads were completely useless.
And Celes happened to be exactly such a person.
He was an upper god who had achieved divinity through bodily ascension. His soul had never been split and had always remained at its peak.
Moreover, after so many years, Celes's soul had long since reached its absolute limit. No matter how many Soul Gold Beads he had, he wouldn't be able to absorb them.
His interest in having Locke refine Soul Gold Beads was largely so he could use them to barter with other members of the Chief Gods' legions in exchange for different resources.
Now that Locke had clearly stated he couldn't refine them, there was no reason for Celes to force the issue.
People were always like this—if something was essential to them, they would pay any price and use any means to obtain it.
But for things that were of little use—or no use at all—they simply wouldn't care much.
All the dangers Locke had imagined earlier had existed only in his own mind.
"Haa…"
Letting out a deep breath, Locke once again felt the helplessness of being weaker than others.
This sensation—of even his thoughts slipping beyond his control—combined with the innate "persecution paranoia" that every transmigrator seemed to possess, was something Locke truly never wanted to experience a second time.
"Then, Lord Celes… if I want to obtain those treasures, what should I do?"
"Locke, I'd advise you to rely on time and recover slowly."
Hearing Locke's question, Celes shook his head.
"The things I just mentioned are all treasures of immense value. They're basically monopolized by major powers."
"With your current abilities, you have almost no chance of obtaining them."
Celes wasn't deceiving him.
In divine planes and supreme planes, Sanctuary-level experts were as common as dogs, and gods walked the streets.
Even though Locke had decent attainments in the soul, at the end of the day he was still just an ordinary lower god.
In divine planes and supreme planes, he barely qualified as a "person"—and even then, only at the very bottom.
Locke fell silent.
Perhaps before he had truly comprehended his own "self," he might have chosen, as Celes suggested, to wait a thousand years for his soul to recover.
But now, Locke felt that if he chose such a retreating path, his soul itself would become tainted.
He didn't know what consequences a "dust-covered" soul might bring in the future—but he instinctively felt that preserving the clarity and purity of his soul would be of immense benefit to his path ahead.
With that thought, Locke lifted his head and looked straight at Celes.
"Lord Celes, I really can't wait a thousand years."
"Please tell me how I can obtain those treasures."
"You—"
Celes frowned, nearly rebuking Locke for indulging in wild fantasies.
Even for him, acquiring soul-restoring treasures required paying an enormous price.
Locke was merely a lower god, with no backing or faction in divine or supreme planes. How could he possibly obtain such things?
Yet when Celes met Locke's gaze, he suddenly fell silent.
He seemed to remember that countless years ago… he himself had once possessed eyes just like those.
When had his gaze begun to grow clouded?
After a moment of silence, Celes burst into loud laughter.
"Hahahaha!"
"Very well, Locke."
"I can see your choice clearly in your eyes."
"Since that's the case, I'll tell you."
"In material planes, it's impossible to obtain such treasures."
"Only by going to divine planes or supreme planes will you have a chance to find artifacts capable of restoring soul power."
Whoosh!
Celes took a token from his spatial ring and tossed it to Locke.
Locke caught it, faintly sensing a terrifying aura emanating from the token.
"This token represents the Snowfall Legion under Lord Phiros, a Sovereign legion."
"Keep it on you—it should help you deal with some minor troubles."
"Of course, if you want to join Lord Phiros's Sovereign legion, you can also take this token to the Water Divine Plane. I still have a bit of standing within the Snowfall Legion."
"The planar teleportation array is located in the Endless Icefields."
"With your divine sense, you'll have no trouble finding it."
"Thank you, Your Majesty Celes."
After putting the token into his spatial ring, Locke bowed deeply in gratitude.
Though Celes spoke lightly, this token was nothing short of a talisman to Locke.
It allowed him to borrow the prestige of a Sovereign legion.
In this era, no one dared to casually ignore the authority of a Sovereign.
Naturally, Locke also understood that to truly powerful experts, such a token carried little weight.
But as long as he didn't provoke them, few strong beings would attack someone associated with a Sovereign's legion for no reason.
…
Radiant Temple, Grand Cathedral.
Dressed in a blue robe, Locke arrived above the cathedral.
Before leaving the Wakanda Plane, there was one final matter he had to settle.
That was to officially take ownership of the Spear of the Rising Sun.
His soul power spread outward, and Locke quickly located the Light Pope.
"Your Holiness."
"Who's there?!"
The moment Locke's voice reached his ears, the Light Pope snapped his eyes open and spread his divine sense.
What shocked him was that his divine sense found nothing at all.
No matter how carefully he scanned his surroundings, he couldn't detect the slightest anomaly.
(End of Chapter)
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