Sean Shaw hesitated for a moment, then said, "Divine Lady Lucia, please don't tell anyone about the secret of this painting, alright?"
"Okay." Lucia Lu nodded. "I won't say a word, don't worry."
This sort of thing is exactly what they mean by "a treasure invites its owner's doom."
"If you ever need to use it for anything, just come find me," Sean added.
"Deal!" Lucia laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. "Righteous! Hahaha!"
Sean glanced at the spot where she slapped him. "Righteous?"
"Of course! Anyone willing to share their secret treasure is one of us! From now on, you're just like Ian—one of our good brothers!"
Lucia said this as she strode out with the storage pouch. "Let's hurry and bring the Yin Core to Ian! He must be dying to get it back!"
Sean watched her energetic figure disappear, his expression darkening slightly.
......
When Ian saw his Yin Core really restored to its original state, he nearly dropped to his knees before Sean.
"Hey!" Lucia quickly grabbed him. "Fifth Highness helped you out of comradeship! If you kneel, it changes the whole meaning!"
So Ian didn't kneel, but said, "Fifth Highness, if I ever get the chance, I will definitely repay your great kindness!"
Sean said, "Take the Yin Core back and see how much you've lost."
Ian re-absorbed the Yin Core, swirling with black light and deep, unfathomable power, and circulated it within himself.
In an instant, the whole room was filled with chilling Yin energy, as solemn and oppressive as stepping into hell.
He looked completely different too—half his figure seemed to merge into the shadows, mysterious and powerful, radiating a crushing aura.
"Whoa!" Ryan Lu jumped back several steps. "That's terrifying!"
Ian stopped, delighted. "I've only lost a few decades of cultivation. A few more decades of training and I'll be back to normal!"
"That's great!" Lucia let out a sigh of relief. "That's not a big loss at all."
"Who says it's not a big loss? It's a huge loss!" Ryan Lu protested.
"Losing your core and getting it back with only a few decades lost? That's already super lucky!" Lucia Lu said.
"But losing his Yang purity—isn't that a loss? That's priceless! Right, Ian?" Ryan pressed.
Ian blushed, looking thoroughly embarrassed.
Adrian Drake asked, "So, what do you plan to do about Divine Lady Jenna?"
Now that Ian had his Yin Core back, he didn't even draw his sword. He thought for a moment and said, "Just have her apologize properly to Lucia. That'll be enough."
"You're way too easygoing! Your Yin Core is a treasure for anyone cultivating divine fire! If you're this soft, next time any flame cultivator hits a bottleneck, they'll just steal your core! Then you'll be crying, and we won't help you a second time!" Ryan Lu grumbled.
Ian asked, "So what do you think I should do?"
Ryan Lu said, "Make her pay up! Spirit jade, divine artifacts—whatever! Don't stop until she's bankrupt!"
"Actually," Luna Lian chimed in, "she's just an illegitimate daughter of the Summers Clan. Her status isn't high, so even if you bankrupt her, she doesn't have much to lose. It's really not worth the trouble."
Ryan Lu asked, "Then what do you suggest?"
Luna Lian looked to Lucia Lu. "Sis, what do you think?"
Lucia Lu said, "Just have her apologize properly to Ian. People like that—best to keep your distance from now on."
......
After everyone had left, Sean Shaw stopped Adrian Drake and asked, "How are you doing?"
"What do you mean, how am I doing?" Adrian replied.
"Divine Lady Jenna."
Adrian sighed and shrugged. "Shattered illusions, I guess! Just goes to show—you shouldn't get too hung up on looks. It's what's inside that counts."