Chapter 356: Absorption

"This guy really knows how to bargain."

Hazel, not far away, muttered softly to the legendary lich beside her as she listened: "He's far more formidable than that woman named Mace."

She had also been an eavesdropper throughout the bargaining between Li Mochen and Natalie Mace, witnessing firsthand how Ms. Mace crumbled under Li Mochen's pressure.

"The situation is different, Hazel. The circumstances now are completely unlike before."

Lynde shook his head disapprovingly: "Ms. Mace possessed true wisdom. For her BOSS at the time, successfully escaping was paramount. Your brother, though he appeared to be retreating step by step, never yielded an inch on the interests he deemed essential."

Li Mochen ultimately reached an agreement with Anthony, whereby the latter would improve his 'Light Demon IV' and lend it to Li Mochen for use.

This exoskeleton armor was originally designed and built to rival a demigod. Yet it had relatively few flaws; after optimization and refinement, it could achieve combat power at the legendary second tier. Moreover, in certain aspects—such as speed and strength—it could actually compare to a demigod. Within its core, even a measure of 'Divine Authority' was permanently fixed!

However, this suit of armor had one flaw that Anthony could not remedy no matter what. Its combat duration was only slightly better than the previous 'Light Demon II', lasting about an hour.

Thus, Anthony still needed to craft for Li Mochen, within the next five years, a set of magitech exoskeleton armor—or magitech armor, or a magitech battle suit—with combat power no less than that of the 'Light Demon V'.

After settling the most important condition, the subsequent items proceeded very smoothly.

For instance, Li Mochen requested a high-imitation 'Dragon's Might' with a minimum level requirement of 11 and at least 20S-class power. Anthony agreed readily, stating that he didn't even need to do it himself; the numerous master alchemists under Light Demon Industries could complete the piece for him.

Similarly, Li Mochen's desire to acquire Light Demon Industries' subsidiary 'Ether Biopharmaceutical' was also accepted by Anthony without hesitation.

As for the Stones of Fate, the tycoon promised to do everything possible to collect them for him, but he would only bear the cost up to one billion gold shields; any excess would be Li Mochen's responsibility.

After the negotiations concluded, the tycoon did not leave immediately but remained in this Death's Home magic tower to begin repairing his 'Light Demon V'.

The aberrants had already taken the energy core of the 'Light Demon V', but the tycoon seemed to have found a better option. After reaching an agreement with Li Mochen, he locked himself in Lynde's magical energy laboratory.

The conditions and related equipment here were, in Anthony's view, quite ordinary, but it was still a legendary mage's laboratory. In all of Atlanta, there were no more than twenty laboratories better than this one.

Anthony dared not be picky. After the agreement was finalized, Li Mochen actually wanted to drive him away. However, the tycoon ultimately persuaded the latter on grounds of 'personal safety', allowing him to stay briefly in the Death's Home magic tower.

As chairman and CEO of Light Demon Industries, and steward of trillions in wealth, Anthony was constantly coveted by others. Without demigod-level combat power at his side, Anthony dared not leave Atlanta alone.

Even the fourteen legends summoned by Natalie Mace could not give him enough security.

Only Li Mochen's location had two demigod-level combatants—the legendary lich residing in this six-story magic tower indeed possessed strength close to a demigod. Thus, the tycoon considered it an excellent refuge until his 'Light Demon V' was repaired.

However, Anthony was also forced to agree to pay 'lodging fees' and 'protection fees'. During his stay, he would additionally craft a legendary-level 'construct puppet' for Li Mochen.

The foundation of this 'construct puppet' was precisely the 'Magitech Mechanical Core' he had acquired at the Red Sparrow Club.

This man, by some unknown method, had managed to retrieve his magical energy waist pouch. This quasi-divine spatial artifact contained not only a large amount of magical energy materials but also various instruments, including precision machine tools—this was the basis of Anthony's confidence in repairing the 'Light Demon V' at the Death's Home magic tower.

Of course, that 'Magitech Mechanical Core' was also inside.

At this moment, Li Mochen was on the top floor of the Death's Home magic tower, staring intently at the 'Divine Fortune Purple-Gold Pagoda' before him.

When he sniped 'Void Night Lord' Delfinia Ederick, his wish was to 'inflict the maximum possible injury on the opponent'. This wish directly consumed the last one hundred and seventy-four strands of merit energy on the pagoda.

But now, the pagoda's multicolored spiritual light was once again abundant, having broken through a thousand strands to reach one thousand and forty-three.

All of it had been fed back at the moment he wounded the 'Void Night Lord', causing the 'Divine Fortune Purple-Gold Pagoda' to shake and tremble violently, nearly making him lose control of his magic source, which had been driven to near berserk by the activation of the two 'Blood God Stones'.

Li Mochen gazed for a long while, then turned his attention to the laboratory on the fourth floor of the magic tower.

He thought: if the so-called 'merit' condensed on the 'Divine Fortune Purple-Gold Pagoda' was essentially feedback from altering fate, then what positions did the wounded Delfinia Ederick and this Mr. Braden occupy in the river of fate of this world?

He then withdrew his thoughts, focused on himself, and fully sensed his own body.

After about half an hour, a hint of joy involuntarily appeared at the corners of Li Mochen's mouth.

Before firing the shot, he had swallowed the Blood God Stones from the Flame God Phaethon and the Azure Dragon God Natephad, and used the twenty-ninth-level sacred scroll 'Sacred Purification' gifted by Natalie Mace to shatter the divine will and contamination contained in the divine blood.

This could maximize the power of his bullet and greatly enhance and develop his bloodline power.

The result was as he expected: the potential of this body had been maximally strengthened under the catalysis of the divine blood. The 'Ice Domain' and 'Flame Domain' had both been elevated to the limit of the intermediate level, while the 'Power Domain' had directly entered the advanced level.

Li Mochen did not impatiently test the results of his purified bloodline this time. He closed his eyes again, began to summon a vast surge of lightning like a swarm of snakes using the 'Zhou Tian Xuan Ling Thunder Qi Mantra', and simultaneously opened his own weak 'Fate Domain', murmuring in his mind.

"I wish! Perfectly absorb the remnants of the divine blood, leaving no trace of the original owner's will or impurities!"

This wish was exactly the same as when he had absorbed the secret blood before. As the wish was made, the multicolored spiritual light on the Divine Fortune Purple-Gold Pagoda began to dissipate rapidly, almost 'collapsing'.

Until three seconds later, when only a little over one hundred and twenty strands of multicolored spiritual light remained, black blood mist suddenly burst from all over Li Mochen's body.