Reaper of the Martial World

Dyon took a deep breath. Losing his mind to fear wouldn't help him, but he felt like there was an added weight to his heart since Madeleine was with him. If he was alone, he probably would have gotten a grip on his emotions long ago. But, there was something about risking a life that wasn't his own, especially when it was a life he deeply cared for, that fried his brain.

Of course, Dyon thought about sending Madeleine into his inner world, but there were a few problems with that. Firstly, if he died, she would still die as well. Secondly, he couldn't send others into a new space just because he felt like it. If that was possible, he'd never lose a battle again. He was certain that Madeleine would resist, and if that happened, his attempts would bear no fruit.

Then there was the issue of his spatial transference array, the one that allowed him to enter in the first place. But, that was once again useless. If he could just coat himself in an array that allowed everything to go through his body without harming him, wouldn't he once again never lose another battle? The issue was the core principle of the martial world: will.

When someone actively attacks him, unless their difference in strength was sufficiently large, the effects of the array would dull and often stop working entirely.

Back at focus academy when Dyon used the spatial transference array to survive Oliver's strike – Madeleine's elder brother – it had worked because Oliver's will was weak. He had barely comprehended a 3rd level will and he was a mere meridian formation stage expert. He didn't have the ability to negate the effects of Dyon's array.

However, a heavenly entity like a mineral sprite was on a completely different level. Even if Dyon had Amphorae with him, there would be no guarantee of survival!

'Do you guys have any ideas?' Dyon asked.

'Sprites love nothing more than the paths from which they are born. Wind sprites love wind, fire sprites love fire, sword sprites love swords…'

'Mineral sprites love minerals…' Dyon smiled bitterly. How did he know that things would come to this? He had only asked hoping to hear a different answer, but it turned out that his fears were reality now.

Between his inner world, his demon sage tower, and his spatial rings, Dyon had many valuable materials a mineral sprite might fawn over. However, that didn't mean he wanted to give them up.

Dyon's eyes flashed with an odd light. With a thought, he began to bellow outward with pure soul energy. This was something he rarely, if ever, did. Often times, his opponents would have next to no idea what his soul strength was simply because he could keep it hidden so well. But, this didn't mean that he wasn't capable of doing exactly this.

'Don't antagonize it!' Little Yang said in a panic.

'I know what I'm doing.' Dyon said softly.

Little Yang almost got into a screaming contest with Dyon. You know what you're doing? You didn't even know what your opponent was two minutes ago! Then, you actually asked us for help with solutions! Now you're doing something so blatantly stupid yet you want us to believe you know what you're doing?!

However, before he could say any of these words, Little Yin put a small paw under his jaw, keeping his mouth closed.

Dyon's thoughts were simple. Even if he had to give up some of his treasures as an apology for intruding this mineral sprite's territory, he had to maximize his chances at gaining forgiveness.

Weren't souls that had lost their bodies as hosts known as spirits as well? These notions came from the same root. Spirits and sprites were just souls without an appropriate vessel.

A mineral sprite was able to use precious metals and rocks as temporary vessels, but this wasn't a true body. In the end, they were just spirits too.

Souls. Spirits. Sprites. Three words with near identical definitions, all connected with one another in some form. Since this was the case, wouldn't Dyon's pure soul energy make this mineral sprite feel more comfortable?

As though in response to Dyon's thoughts, the overwhelming danger lessened slightly even as Dyon's body seemed to glow with a magnificent halo. Madeleine's presence became hidden within it, shrouding whatever threat this mineral sprite thought that she might be.

At that moment, the oddly shaped rainbow metal-like core suddenly stopped spinning. It was then that Dyon felt as though a pair of eyes had trained onto his body. Unfortunately… It was also then that the danger he felt spiked as a clear sense of greed projected from the sprite.

'You idiot!' Little Yang finally shook away from his little sister. 'Sprites spend their entire lives finding appropriate vessels for their spirits! You think that just because I told you of a few love stories that they all have good hearts?! There are very few, VERY FEW, stories of Sprites even having good relationsh.i.p.s with humans, let alone falling in love with them!

'You just did the equivalent of walking into a war camp as a scantily clad woman before meandering amidst men who hadn't seen one in decades! Fool! Fool! Fool!' Little Yang almost passed out in anger. Dyon's words of 'I know what I'm doing' kept ringing in his mind. Do you now? Do you really know what you're doing? Now you'll die! Great job!