Treasures, Choices, and Secrets

Eddie couldn't understand why the white bull attacked the tree guardians and not the Bull Shadow.

 Without time to ponder, he carried Sophia and entered the right hall. The Blood Queen, with her extraordinary speed, had already started fighting the bull-headed warriors inside, soon joined by the Bull Shadow.

Eddie, with Sophia on his back, stood amid the chaotic battlefield, staring at the right hall's wall. 

It was a jumbled mural that needed to be completely restored to unlock the mechanism and reveal the treasure.

 "My kidney, they can't be serious!" Eddie thought in frustration.

He had been focused on finding mechanisms and vulnerabilities, not paying attention to the details of the left hall's mural. If he couldn't fully restore this mural, the mechanism wouldn't unlock, and the treasure would be unattainable. 

An hourglass above the mural had started its countdown as soon as the Blood Queen began fighting, leaving them with very little time.

Eddie, unsure which piece to start with, finally decided to take a chance on two pieces he thought were most likely.

Just as he was about to leap up, Eddie's eyes stung painfully as if a blinding light pierced through his eyelids straight into his mind. 

To Sophia, Eddie appeared bathed in golden light, with dazzling rays shining even through his covered eyes.

Sophia was overjoyed, wondering if Eddie had a breakthrough or was using a hidden talent to find the key piece of the mural.

In less than a minute, Eddie completed the giant mural. 

As he landed, the entire hall shook, followed by the sound of a mechanism. 

Sophia, concerned only for her brother, hugged him tightly, relieved to see him return to his familiar self. 

She had feared he would ascend to a legendary realm, leaving her behind.

Even Eddie hadn't expected such a dramatic change from his Level 4 Eye of Wisdom enhancement. 

It seemed to seamlessly combine with his normal vision, allowing him to see through objects to their essence.

 However, it was exhausting, rapidly depleting his innate energy.

Eddie patted Sophia's head reassuringly, "It's okay, I'm fine. I... upgraded my hidden talent and found the key point to complete the mural. Let's see what treasures we've got!"

In his heart, he repeated, 'I'm not a siscon,' until his inappropriate thoughts subsided.

Sophia, unaware of Eddie's turmoil, nodded innocently and followed him.

A passage opened in the side wall, leading to a platform with three treasures. Eddie was amused to see a sign saying "Choose Two." 

Ignoring the rule, he was about to collect all three, but Sophia, obediently following the instructions, stopped him, fearing triggering a mechanism. 

She chose a silver ring, which was too large for her fingers.

Eddie restrained himself, focusing on the wisdom reward from clearing the Zodiac, more valuable than any physical treasure. 

He let Sophia keep the silver ring, even though it was just a poison-detecting ring and not particularly useful.

Eddie, having restored the mural, watched as Sophia playfully stuck out her tongue, unwilling to part with the pearl necklace he had just put on her. 

The other two treasures were a pearl necklace and a silver dagger. 

The pearl necklace, a 'Soul Pearl,' could resist soul damage up to three times. 

Eddie found it useful, especially against the savage bulls' deadly stares outside.

Sophia, blushing, whispered something about not wearing pearls, but Eddie didn't understand the significance. 

He reassured her and placed the necklace around her delicate neck, feeling an urge to kiss her soft skin but restraining himself, reminding himself she was his sister.

Sophia picked a silver ring first but found it too large for her fingers. 

She then exchanged it for the silver dagger, named 'Piercing Pupil,' and offered it to Eddie. 

He accepted it, attaching it to her waist, telling her to protect herself.

Eddie left Sophia at the entrance of the right corridor, not wanting to risk her safety now that their protective shield was gone. 

He went out to battle the savage bulls with the Blood Queen and the Bull Shadow, luring away the two Golden Savage Bulls.

Eddie summoned the Thorn Witch, planning to use the bodies of the bull-headed warriors, keeping this secret from Sophia. 

The Thorn Witch, having consumed numerous strong enemies, had evolved from Silver Level 1 to Golden Level 1 and looked like a 13-14-year-old girl, slightly smaller than Sophia. 

She joyfully leaped into Eddie's arms upon being summoned, laughing and not wearing any clothes, as she disliked 

Eddie noticed that after the Thorn Witch's evolution, her intelligence seemed to have improved, and she knew how to please her master. 

She playfully licked Eddie's face, reminding him of a kitten. Eddie was relieved Sophia didn't see this, or she might have misunderstood him as a lolicon.

"I don't have time to play with you. Put on your clothes and clean up the bodies. I'm busy," Eddie said as the Thorn Witch playfully dressed in front of him. 

She struggled with the clothes, not understanding how to wear them properly, which made Eddie sweat as he had to help her get dressed.

Eddie's heart stirred with inappropriate thoughts as he dressed the Thorn Witch, but he quickly suppressed them. 

He then went back to lure the Golden Savage Bulls, his mind still lingering on the Thorn Witch's youthful beauty.

The Thorn Witch continued to grow and would soon evolve into a mature woman. Eddie dared not think about her future development, fearing a nosebleed.

After a while, Eddie found both of Sophia's century-old tree guardians were killed by the savage bulls' deadly stares. 

He instructed the Blood Queen to take over and lured away the two Golden Savage Bulls. 

The Bull Shadow, enhanced with the Giant Shadow, held its own against the savage bulls. 

Eddie encouraged the Bull Shadow to use battle skills, realizing his disadvantage in not utilizing battle skills naturally.

Eddie reflected on his own strengths and weaknesses. 

His battle skills were powerful, but his battle beasts needed improvement. 

He realized that perhaps Jean brought him here to highlight his weaknesses. His battle beasts, although strong, were not as formidable as those of other innate warriors who had spent hundreds of years cultivating their power and beasts.

Eddie pondered whether he would have been able to kill Tucker and his brother so easily if they had not relied on enhanced-class battle beasts or had a high-intelligence holy beast among them. He realized the importance of balancing his battle skills with strong battle beasts.

This might be the real reason Jean encouraged Eddie to challenge the Zodiac and cultivate a holy beast, aiming to strengthen his battle beasts' capabilities.

"Brother, will that method really work?" 

Sophia asked excitedly upon seeing Eddie return. 

She was eager to help her brother, but her strength was limited. 

Her Bronze Level 5 century-old tree guardians were sufficient against ordinary warriors, but they couldn't withstand the repeated stares of numerous savage bulls of the same or higher levels.

Fortunately, the century-old tree guardians were life-guarding battle beasts and wouldn't truly die.

Eddie wasn't sure if the secret method would work, but he needed to maintain his sister's confidence. He nodded affirmatively to Sophia.

If the method worked, Eddie was confident he could lead Sophia through the Zodiac. 

Furthermore, if effective, he even believed he could gradually train Sophia, Laura, and Jean into innate warriors. 

However, they might suffer a bit, as the method was somewhat... unconventional.