"Phew..."

"Mm, Herbert, eat, can't eat anymore..."

"No, no, let me eat this..."

"Phew..."

Herbert looked at Valentina, who was talking in her sleep, and couldn't help but shake his head, reaching out to pinch her nose.

"No wonder they say you're living so happily."

"It's really just eat and sleep, sleep and eat... This talent is truly enviable!"

Being able to eat and sleep well, how wonderful.

And the most enviable part is, Valentina isn't actually wasting her time; one of the innate talents of Giant Dragons is the slow improvement of strength during sleep.

Miss Hungry Dragon seems to be lazily sleeping, well, she indeed is, but... not completely.

Her strength slowly increases during sleep, surpassing the Legendary Peak, gradually progressing towards breaking through the Epic threshold.

Especially after frequent activities with Herbert, some wondrous changes have occurred in her.

Valentina can't quite determine yet, but she vaguely feels that her bloodline seems to have become... purer?

According to Herbert, this should be called "purification"?

Valentina doesn't quite understand what it means, but she knows following his advice and eating more is beneficial.

A few days ago, there was even a faint summoning coming from her bloodline!

Inheritance?

At this point, am I finally going to receive inheritance?

The inheritance of Giant Dragons usually begins in the wyrmling stage, imparting some ancient knowledge to the young of the tribe.

But Valentina, being a unique breed, was always considered a flawed product not recognized by the bloodline, receiving no inheritance.

That was partly why she was driven out of the nest for not receiving her bloodline inheritance.

Yet, after reaching adulthood and growing to the Legendary Peak, she suddenly felt the care of her bloodline.

This unexpected discovery brought Valentina quite a bit of joy.

Although she wasn't too concerned about gaining the power of inheritance, she was very interested in the wisdom brought by the knowledge infusion.

Miss Giant Dragon also wants to be clever!

This made her even more obsessed with the activities between the two of them, providing more legitimate reasons...

"Come on, fight!"

"Elbow! Come into the room with me!"

"Yes is yes, no is no, what does taking a break mean?"

"Come!"

"If you don't cooperate, it's because you don't want me to become clever!"

"Let me eat—"

...

Recalling the various battles from before, Herbert shook his head, sighing softly.

"I still need to work on enhancing the body... not just strength, but also flexibility and endurance."

The task is daunting and arduous.

The road is long and winding!

Thinking of these, Herbert sat down beside Valentina, leaned his head back, and rested it in her lap.

And Valentina, not rejecting his presence, moved habitually in her sleep, gently cradling his head, allowing it to rest against soft warmth.

Herbert, feeling the slightly high temperature of Miss Hungry Dragon, snuggled comfortably, causing her to shiver unconsciously in her sleep.

Once everything fell quiet, Herbert retrieved his earlier acquisition from his embrace.

The glistening Demon's Tear radiated a crimson glow, appearing exceptionally vivid under the dim light.

This was obtained from Flora through... let's say through strength rather than deceit.

Unlike blood, Demon's Tears are extremely rare and difficult to seize.

Demons are chaotic and frenzied beings, knowing nothing but slaughter throughout their lives, with no concept of crying inherent in their instincts.

Only higher-level Demons truly experience emotions such as joy, anger, sorrow, and resist the Abyss's will to possess their own will.

But even then, most remain not much different from their past selves, still frenzied and chaotic.

Obtaining blood is easy, you can simply kill a Demon to acquire it with ease.

But tears are different.

Especially tears born from true feelings, they are nearly impossible to obtain through coercion.

"To acquire them, only genuine feelings can be exchanged for genuine feelings!"

Herbert mused, gently placing the tear on his tongue.

The crystal-clear droplet melted the instant it touched the tongue, spreading as a drop of crimson liquid within his mouth.

With closed lips, Herbert felt its movement in his mouth, savoring its taste.

"The tears of Demons are just as salty, no different from humans."

Thinking about this, the scene before Herbert's eyes changed.

Though still in a reclining position, he found himself within a pool of boiling blood.

Herbert stretched his arms over the rim, immersing his body from the chest down as if soaking in a hot spring.

Besides him, peculiar forms of large blood-colored worms roiled constantly.

Seemingly terrified of Herbert, the worms frantically distanced themselves from him, none daring to approach.

"..."

Observing the surrounding lava scene, inhaling the sulfur scent that filled his nostrils, he took a deep breath, exclaiming, "This is the smell."

"Excellent, I'm back again!"

Upon first acquiring Flora's blood, Herbert had also entered this space.

But that time, the duration wasn't long; he only experienced a brief moment, not even having time to observe the surroundings before emerging from the illusion.

He rose to his full height, lifted his leg, and stepped out of the blood pool in one stride.

Splash.

At the landing spot, a worm unable to dodge burst upon his step, letting out a wretched screech.

"Ah—"

The miserable sound resembled not that of an insect, but rather a voice akin to a fat-headed, arrogant middle-aged noble.

Nonetheless, Herbert showed no mercy for the worm's death, expressing nothing for its demise.

Why did you stand in my way? Trying to scam me?

After all, this is merely an Illusion Realm.

Herbert looked down at the reflection in the blood pool, noticing his current form seemed somewhat bizarre.

"Hmm?"

His appearance generally matched when he previously transformed into a male Enchanting Demon, but his body had now undergone significant changes.

Protrusions on the outer sides of his limbs turned into sharp blades, his entire body brimming with spikes.

Herbert extended his hand and, with a thought, his fingertips also morphed into sharp edges.

Clenching his fist tightly, three half-foot-long crimson spikes thrust from his knuckles.

This is...

Having studied quite a bit of Demonology with Flora, Herbert gained some understanding of Demon's types.

Demons come in varied forms, showcasing diverse abilities.

Among the most famous and typical Demons, there's a rare and special kind.

"Blade Demon?"

Within the Demon realm, Blade Demons have an alternative name filled with malice.

These lifelong killing Demons, refer to Blade Demons as...

Slaughter Demons.

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