Return of the Youngest Son with SSS-Rank Talent
Chapter 41: Refinement

Chapter 41: Refinement

After dinner, Kael returned to his room and went straight to the bathroom to wash up.

When he was done, he sat down on the bed. Through the tall, wide window, which let in the moonlight, a silvery hue filtered through, illuminating the room with its brightness.

He looked at the two Zu he held in his hand.

The one he had obtained from the inheritance of the Bloody Wolf: it was opaque black, the size of a grape, with purple spots, spherical in shape, with two small, tightly closed eyes.

Zu Blood Claw. Rank 8.

The second, shaped like a grasshopper, had a jade exoskeleton, crystal wings, and a pair of white eyes, small like a centipede.

Zu Sealing Jade. Rank 9.

One of the three items Kael had chosen from the vault. The second most important one.

With this, I can use all my stat points without fear of my body collapsing.

Kael barely glanced at the Zu Blood Claw. His rank was insufficient to use it properly. Besides, he didn’t see its immediate usefulness.

He put it away again without further ado; he didn’t refine it because he would have to feed it even though he wasn’t using it, since the Zu are living beings.

His gaze returned to the Jade Sealing Zu. He recalled the information related to it, its feeding, and more. He had decided to refine it.

The path of the Zu Masters was new to him, yes. But he wasn’t going to put it off any longer.

I’ve been putting this off for too long—no more.

Determined, he sent his silver manna essence toward the Zu Sealing Jade. The refinement process had begun.

The Zu trembled in Kael’s palm, like a wounded bird flapping its wings in an attempt to escape. A faint silver glow emanated from its small body, expelling the essence of mana.

Kael remained unmoved. In his past life, he had been a Zu Master, though he never rose above rank 9; he knew what refinement was.

The Zu were not simply tools, but creatures that contained the essence of the origin of heaven and earth. And like all living beings, they struggled not to die.

Refinement is a silent war, where the will of the Zu is overwritten.

The Zu continued to expel the essence of mana, which was silver in color.

Kael, with his indifferent expression, continued to send his mana essence. He could feel the Zu’s resistance, fragile but tenacious, like roots clinging to the earth before being torn up.

"It’s not death," he murmured. And he knew he was lying.

Because, in truth, it was. The Zu would cease to be what it was: a free spirit, a flash of pure consciousness. In its place would remain an obedient shell.

And yet Kael did not hesitate.

The resistance was stronger than expected. Hour after hour, the Zu returned the essence of mana like a rebellious torrent.

Kael felt fatigue seeping into his body, but his eyes remained fixed, his will unbreakable. He knew he couldn’t afford to lose. Not now. Not on this new path.

The clouds dragged heavily across the sky, fraying into shreds that capriciously hid and revealed the pale glow of the moon.

The sky, once a tapestry of stars, turned a deep bluish black. The constellations, one by one, faded away, not suddenly: they twinkled in a final flash before yielding to the immensity.

Then the sun came up.

Its first golden rays tore through the sky with their light. The moon, now just a translucent ghost, melted completely into the growing brightness. The air was cold and thick with smoke.

And so, amid whispers of a cold breeze and the first distant song of a bird, the territory of Medici awoke.

Kael, who was still sitting on the bed with his body covered in sweat, stared at the notification window in front of him.

[You have successfully refined: Zu Sealing Jade]

I didn’t expect it to take me an entire night to refine a single Zu. Kael felt that the Path of the Zu was not so easy. But he was not disappointed at all.

On the contrary, he was satisfied. Before, he had barely scratched the surface of this path. His talent had limited him. Now, he could go much further.

However, compared to the first time he refined a Zu, this time it was much faster. He remembered all too well: the first time he refined one, it took him eight days to achieve it.

And that was the reason he left this path, since, on the path of the Zu Masters, talent is important to advance.

A clear example is Kael: in his past life, it took him eight days to refine a single one, utilizing his D-rank talent. But with his SSS-rank talent, it only took him one night.

The speed is simply absurd!

However, it was still too early to be satisfied. Kael brought his consciousness to his core.

The glass walls remained intact; the silver-colored sea of mana was as calm as a pond. It was greatly reduced: there was only 11% mana essence left.

However, the core was no longer empty. In the water was the Zu Sealing Jade, playing with the essence of mana.

With this essence, I can activate it for about three minutes at most. Kael quickly calculated, estimating the cost if he used the Zu Sealing Jade with the little mana essence he had.

But, after thinking it over, he decided not to do it. The refinement had taken longer than he had calculated. In addition, he needed his essence to recover to 97% again to use the Zu for longer.

After reviewing his core, his consciousness left the sea of manna. Kael watched as the golden rays of the sun filtered through the half-open curtain, accompanied by a light, cool breeze.

Before getting up, Kael opened his profile to assess his progress.

Kael Medici

Title: Strayed Demon.

Talent: SSS.

Mana Core: Awakened.

Rank: 9

Knight Rank: 9 Stars

Magician: 1st Circle

Traits: Refinement (A), Swordsmanship (A), Melee (S), Tamer (C)...

Strength: 51 +

Endurance: 49 +

Agility: 49 +

Vitality: 80 +

Mana Capacity: 11%

Stat points: 50

After quickly glancing at his status, Kael closed his profile.

At that moment, there was a loud knock on the door.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Come in," Kael said calmly.

The door opened with a soft squeak. Sophie, Alessia’s servant, entered with a respectful bow.

"Young master Kael, Lady Alessia requests your presence."