Agois headed to the dining hall alone. Fatso, Ablayu, and Fu were presumably away on a mission. As Agois was eating his meal, a stylish youth suddenly sat down at his table. It was Crom. He clearly disliked Agois; his eyes looked arrogant and proud, and he was itching for trouble.
"Yesterday, Dol called upon you, in my name, to become my attendant, and you refused. That shows you don't care much for me, and I don't appreciate that at all. Now, I personally ask you: Become my retainer. I needed someone anyway," he said, then added mockingly, "I grant you this honor personally, peasant. I found out where you came from." Crom smiled condescendingly at Agois.
Agois was beginning to get angry. If it had only been the incident yesterday, he wouldn't have cared, but today, Crom sat directly across from him and was humiliating him. He could no longer stand it and replied in a cold, harsh tone: "Actually, I was considering taking on a slave myself. You are exactly what I need. I grant you this chance and this honor." He spoke with a mocking and chilling demeanor.
Crom was furious. No one had ever dared to speak to him this way, but this peasant facing him was mocking him. Perhaps I have been too soft on this peasant, he thought. Disregarding the fact that they were in the dining hall of the sect, he unleashed his aura. His aura, at the peak of the 2nd Level of the Silver Realm, immediately suppressed Agois. Agois countered the pressure by releasing his own aura. The difference between them was vast; Agois was still in the early stages of the 2nd Level of the Silver Realm, but he refused to back down.
Seeing the peasant fight back only excited and angered Crom more. He planned to teach this scum a harsh lesson today. A Wind Blade instantly formed in his hand. The sharp and deadly nature of the blade was evident from its aura. He immediately flung it at Agois. Agois instantly used his Barricade skill, but a bad feeling crept in. Could he really block this attack? Even though he had comprehended the skill to the Profound Level, the power gap was too immense.
The Wind Blade struck Agois's barricade. A loud crash ensued, sparks flying, but the strike was not fully blocked. Crom was intrigued and amused to see that Agois had managed to slightly deflect the blow. This peasant really is talented, he thought.
Agois's forehead was drenched in sweat. He knew he couldn't hold the strike back any longer. If this blow hit him fully, he could die. He had not expected this arrogant brat to attack him so brazenly right here in the sect. Now, he cursed himself. Why did I have to provoke this idiot? Ah, am I going to die in such a foolish, childish fight? I was going to reach the peak, provide a glorious life for my family, make my master proud, and see all the magnificent sights of this world, he thought internally. His barricade began to slowly crack. Just as he felt he couldn't hold it back anymore, a voice suddenly echoed in Agois's mind.
He suddenly found himself in the Star Void, and a voice came from the brilliant light sphere there:
"Ha, did this idiot Pearl choose this weak, untalented brat? This human brat possesses the Body of the Dark Star. Not bad, but whatever, there's no point dwelling on it now. What's done is done. This lucky brat now holds the Cosmic Pearl."
Hearing this, Agois was completely shocked. Wasn't he about to die? Why was he here again, and what was this voice? This had never happened before. While Agois stood there, surprised and frightened, the voice from the bright light continued:
"You don't look like you're in a good state right now. Ugh, I just woke up, but look at the situation I face. I don't have much energy, but let me save you this one time. If you die, who knows how long it will take for the Pearl to find someone else?"
Agois couldn't understand anything. It was as if the voice was talking to itself. It mentioned concepts he had never heard of or known, such as the Pearl, the Cosmic Pearl, or the Body of the Dark Star. He was about to die, but the voice said it would save him. This excited him.
And suddenly, he returned to the real world. When he did, he felt a much more powerful energy enter his body. He instantly felt a strength he had never possessed before. He reinforced his Barricade skill, instantly neutralizing the blow. He then vanished from his spot and reappeared behind a shocked Crom. Before Crom could understand what happened, his world spun, and his consciousness faded.
With a single move, Agois had fractured the idiot's ribs. He used only the Flowing Water skill and his fist. With a single blow, he had broken the scum's ribs. After this, Agois stood there, both excited and astonished. The events that had just transpired were too surreal: the voice in the Star Void and this energy in Agois's body—it didn't resemble normal cultivation energy, but it was far more potent.
Suddenly, an Elder appeared there. He frowned as he surveyed the situation in the dining hall. The Elder on duty should have intervened long ago, but the resulting outcome showed otherwise: there was a child lying on the ground, covered in blood. Standing nearby was another child, surprised but still on his feet, though slightly battered. Such situations were common in their sect, but upon closer inspection, the standing child looked familiar. This was Elder Senfu's student! Headaches began to plague him. How should he handle this situation? Ah, damn Lona, you should have intervened, he thought internally. He first needed to check the condition of the child on the ground. He rushed over. The child's pulse was still beating, albeit very weakly. But when he saw the youth's face, he was terrified: this was Young Master Crom from the Aldron Family, a powerful family allied with their sect! Why did it have to be him? He could no longer handle this situation alone. He immediately needed to report this to a higher-ranking Elder.
He quickly told the other attendants to take care of Young Master Crom, and then told Agois to follow him. Agois was slowly recovering from his shock and beginning to understand the seriousness of the situation. What he had done was reckless, but he had been infuriated because the scum had genuinely tried to kill him. Agois had truly thought he was going to die. He was always more ruthless towards those who were ruthless to him. He would do the same move again, if necessary. He actually thought he had killed him, but he was lucky that he hadn't died yet. Agois hoped this situation wouldn't cause trouble for his master, but he understood that the arrogant brat had a powerful background, judging by how the Elder was handling the situation. Because of this, he was slightly worried. Ah, why did he make such a move? He had plenty of time ahead of him; revenge could always be sought later.
As Agois was thinking, the Elder in front of him brought him to the Hall of Justice. He told Agois to wait in a room and went to inform his superior.
4th Elder Grad, who managed the Hall of Justice, rubbed his head upon hearing the news. On one side was the Aldron Family, and on the other was Elder Senfu. He preferred to inform Elder Senfu first. He immediately sent a communication plate to the Elder, knowing Elder Senfu was still within the sect.
Elder Senfu was comfortably eating his Spirit Fruit in his courtyard when his transmission array suddenly flickered. He immediately picked it up and read the message, his expression changing. He rubbed his head. What a troublesome brat! Ugh, ugh, he ruined my nap time, he grumbled, but quickly composed himself and instantly vanished from his spot. At the same time, another Elder conveyed the news to the Aldron Family Elder within the sect. That Elder was also furious upon hearing the news but, upon learning the identity of the other party, immediately sent word to the family.