Apotheosis

The fine tip of the runic brush glided smoothly over the smooth surface. Although it was just a third-star rune, Zen had drawn it quite swiftly.

A rune master might not have a high cultivation level, but his soul force was more powerful than those cultivators of his level.

Meanwhile, Dillon and the stewards watched Zen in amazement. Zen finished the first rune swiftly without a break. 'His soul's strength is incredible!' Dillon thought.

His eyes darted to a steward of the World Commercial Alliance who stood next to him, and then he winked.

The steward understood and proceeded to open a jade box with a black pill inside, and then he handed it to Zen.

"What is this?" Zen asked dubiously as he glanced at the box.

"This is the top-grade Soul-nurturing Pill. You can nourish your soul with this, since you must have consumed some during the drawing," the steward replied politely.

"No need! I didn't use much of my soul force," Zen grinned and said. The steward nodded and quietly went back with the jade box.

Ever since Zen's soul had entered the Fighting Soul Realm, his soul had been enhanced every day. He didn't need to rest even if he had drawn five hundred third-star runes, so he didn't need the Soul-nurturing Pill to nourish his soul either. Besides, the Soul-nurturing Pill still contained some impurities even if it was of the best quality. Zen thought that it was inconvenient if he had to refine the impurities in it after he had consumed the elixir. Thus, he refused to accept their gift.

On the other hand, Dillon glared at the three runic experts and internally cursed them. After they had drawn half of a rune, they would bathe themselves, wash their hands, burn an incense stick, and swallow a Soul-nurturing Pill. They were afraid that their souls would be hurt when they drew the rune.

They were quite arrogant, but the runes they had drawn weren't even that powerful. However, the runes they sold were shockingly overpriced. They had a fixed price list, and the people of the World Commercial Alliance or other dealers had never gotten any discounts at all. People from the Runic Tower certainly made a big fortune.

However, the Runic Tower needed to turn in a part of its income to the World Commercial Alliance. Even then, Dillon didn't quite like the organization. He disagreed with the way they dealt with things.

That was why he was quite pleased when Zen, a talented runic expert, arrived. 'He could make those three old men realize how lame they are, ' Dillon mentally sneered.

And he did get what he wanted, as the three runic experts including Nate had all lowered their heads now. A teenager easily drew the three-star rune. Although Zen didn't look down at them, they felt ashamed of

d Cloud Powder, which was made of bones that had existed way before, and other materials. Thus, the patterns on the stone gave off golden radiance, and a mysterious divine texture was hidden under the radiance.

When Dillon saw that Zen had drawn the fourth-star rune, he sighed in relief. "Nate, it looks like you need to hang your name upside down on the wall!" he said to Nate with a smile. To hang one's own name upside down on the wall was a way to show that he had been humiliated by himself.

Nate stared at Zen's fourth-star rune. "I'll do that when I'm back!" he responded after a long pause.

Each runic expert of the Runic Tower had their names written with runes on their room doors. He could hang his name upside down on the door, but it was a huge insult to him.

'I finally taught you a lesson. I'm sure you will be less chirpy, ' Dillon scoffed in his heart.

After a while, Zen finished drawing the second and the third fourth-star runes. The stewards picked up the three fourth-star runes and started to place them carefully.

Dillon walked towards Zen and greeted him. "Mr. Luo, you have painted over a hundred runes. I was wondering if you need to nourish your soul," he said with a smile. "If you don't like the Soul-nurturing Pills because they have impurities, I have a Soul-nurturing Jade which can help you nourish your soul. It is an extra reward for your work," he added.

"Soul-nurturing Jade!" the three runic experts, including Nate exclaimed. Their eyes gleamed with envy as they stared at the Soul-nurturing Jade.

They all knew that the World Commercial Alliance had a jade, which could cultivate one's spirit. Nate and the other runic experts had previously asked for it in the past few years, but their requests were denied. To their surprise, Dillon was now giving it to the young lad.