Nero treated the three from the Medicine King's secret lineage like passing wind, completely ignoring them, not caring about their thoughts or actions at all.
He reached out, pinched off a piece of the caramel-like kernel, and tossed it into his mouth, chewing it slowly.
A rich, mellow sweetness exploded in his mouth in an instant. Nero pressed his lips together, and his whole body shuddered.
Then, inside the headpiece, Nero stuck out his tongue.
He thought, 'No wonder Aha said this thing can be baked into cookies, it's a bit too sweet.'
At first, he thought this was some kind of decorative nut, or something to be ground into powder and used as part of the flour. Now it looked like this thing should replace sugar instead.
After tasting one bite, Nero decided to put it away and use it later whenever needed.
However, since he was currently in a disguise, he couldn't have Black Cutter help with delivery, so he had no choice but to hold it in his arms for now.
Inside the headpiece, in the dim environment, Nero's eyes emitted a faint glow, and some changes were taking place.
Those gray eyes were extremely clear, like a mirror, and the same scene was gradually being reflected within them.
Vitality was sprouting, plants began to grow. New shoots pushed out from cracks in stone, withered trees met spring again.
They grew rapidly, intertwining and tangling, and at the top, a figure sat cross-legged with eyes closed.
That figure's body was like a puppet, with deer antlers, draped in white gauze, wrapped in plain robes. It had six arms, its body full of cracks, with vermilion jade fruits as eyes, and endless vitality as its sinews.
[Ding! The host is absorbing the power of the Path of Abundance.]
[Ding! Adjustments to the route have been made.]
The voice of the system sounded in his mind. The figure reflected in Nero's eyes quickly faded away, and his eyes returned to being as pure as they were at the start.
Although he had already expected something like this, Nero still couldn't help but pause for a moment.
He narrowed his eyes and muttered in his heart, 'Don't make it sound like I'm lying next to the Path scooping up water to drink nonstop, alright?'
[Ding! Although the fragments of Pure Beauty collected by Jetok have been converted and reabsorbed, a broken mirror cannot be perfectly restored. The Paths of Abundance and Destruction may help refine the body.]
'Oh! Then go ahead and work on it!'
Even though the system spoke in a roundabout way, Nero still understood what he meant.
A mirror that's been shattered will have cracks even if you piece it back together, but now the system had found a way to eliminate those cracks.
Nero had always been open-minded about things, not to mention this didn't have any downside for him.
Most importantly, he no longer needed to free up an extra hand to hold this seed.
Once the system got to work, he didn't even need to keep eating. The seed in his hands began to undergo a gradual transformation, turning into something smooth, moist, and easy to absorb.
In less than thirty seconds, the seed completely disappeared.
For Nero, this kind of change felt rather ordinary.
After all, this wasn't the first time he had lain by the Path scooping up water to drink. Sometimes, kind people would even randomly feed him a big mouthful.
That was referring to Lan.
Even now, Nero still hadn't figured out why Lan had glanced at him back in Belobog.
But something that couldn't stir much reaction in someone with Nero's life experiences felt completely different to the three ordinary people beside him.
At this moment, the three of them stared at Nero in complete shock, their mouths wide enough to fit three goose eggs.
What exactly had they just witnessed?
The birth of a Pathstrider walking at the forefront, or the birth of an Emanator?
They had no idea how to judge it, since they had never seen such a thing before.
They only knew that at this moment, this person's body was filled with vitality, so full it was almost overflowing.
Just now, this green-headed fish-man had eaten that seed, and immediately afterward, a burst of power from Abundance had flared up within his body, only to quickly be reined back in...
At this moment, Lu Furong and his companions all realized one very serious thing.
Originally, they thought that recruiting this person into the Medicine King's secret lineage would greatly boost their organization's strength and give the followers of the Hunt a serious headache.
But now, before they even recruited him, in the blink of an eye, he had become their superior.
This was like a group of interviewers preparing to interview a very promising young man, only for that young man to walk into the room and sit down, and then they receive a notice saying the company boss has changed, and it's now this young man sitting in front of them.
'What kind of nonsense is this?'
That said, the three of them were all adults. Adults had to learn how to deal with awkward situations on their own.
On the other hand, as a professional organization, and as professional Sowers, how could they lose track of what they should do just because of such a commotion?
As workers who had been tested by time and had struggled in society for a long time, the ability to speak to people like people and to ghosts like ghosts had already been mastered perfectly by the three Sowers.
Lu Furong taking the initiative earlier to help Stelle and Nero find excuses was a perfect example of this ability.
And at this moment, since this person in front of them had suddenly become their superior, then they should just address him as their leader.
Seeking longevity... there's no shame in that.
So they all lowered their heads in respect, devoutly shouting, "Compassion of the Medicine King!" and began addressing Nero as Lord Immortal.
The suddenly flattering attitude of the three Sowers made Nero feel physically uncomfortable. The kid felt a chill run down the back of his head and took half a step back.
He still preferred Lu Furong's earlier unruly attitude.
The way they were now was even more unbearable than Argenti.
At the same time, the others outside who had noticed the commotion inside the courtyard rushed in.
Fortunately, the moment they entered, they could see that Nero was fine, so the three members of the Astral Express crew relaxed.
They were full of confidence in Nero's abilities, but that didn't conflict with worrying about him, and from the outside, what had just happened really was concerning.
First there was a sudden burst of power, and then these three people cheering like they had lost their minds...
When Lu Furong saw this, his expression changed.
Different from the slightly flattering look he had when facing Nero, he returned once again to his earlier unruly demeanor and shouted at the group, "Who let you come in?!"
"Have you finished copying your scriptures? Or… are you not actually planning to join the Medicine King's secret lineage? If that's the case, then today, not a single one of you is leaving!"
At this moment, Lu Furong spoke with full confidence. Not to mention this was territory they had operated in for a long time, on their side now stood a newly risen big shot, Lord Immortal.
Even though Lord Immortal had come with those people, he was a man favored by the Medicine King. He would definitely make the right choice, Lu Furong firmly believed this.
Then he saw their Lord Immortal happily go over to greet his friends.
Lu Furong froze in place, not knowing what to say.
'We were just about to fight to the death, so why has Your Majesty already surrendered?'
The fact that their own leader actually belonged to the other side really gave off a strange feeling...