CHAPTER 249: BOND

"We should be able to reach Planet Arkanis in half an hour," Luo Bingqing said as he looked at the star map displayed on the screen in front of him.

Azrael glanced at Elyara, who was sitting beside him, and asked curiously.

"You haven’t broken through to the Epic Rank yet?"

"I can break through anytime," Elyara replied in a calm voice. "But before breaking through, I need to prepare a few things, so I will do it after returning."

"I see," Azrael nodded at Elyara’s words before shifting his gaze to Luo Bingqing, who, like him, was also at the peak of the Class Rank.

"You’ll also try to break through after going back?"

"Yes," Luo Bingqing responded. "I’m still a little short of accumulating enough power. If I don’t use a special potion suited for my core, it’ll take me about two weeks to break through."

Azrael wasn’t surprised when he heard Luo Bingqing’s words. Unlike Elyara, who had been at Level 22 when they consumed the Blood Bead, Luo Bingqing had only been at Level 21.

As a result, the energy remaining inside the Blood Bead after pushing him to Level 25 was less than Elyara’s, making it more difficult for him to reach the Epic Rank in a short time without the help of a potion.

Azrael fell deep in thought after hearing Luo Bingqing’s words, recalling what Nalvadir had once told him:

’Make as many powerful allies as possible.’

Although Azrael wasn’t someone who liked interacting with others more than necessary, he understood that having strong teammates was essential, especially teammates who could be trusted and wouldn’t stab him in the back.

Inside the Ancient Ruins, if he had been alone, it would have been difficult, or perhaps even impossible, for him to reach the core area.

They had encountered numerous powerful groups of monsters along the way and had only managed to escape because they worked together.

At the same time, although not entirely, he could now at least trust Luo Bingqing and Elyara to some extent.

’Well, since I have decided to follow his advice and make some allies who might help me in the future, I might as well start with these two,’ Azrael thought.

After a moment of consideration, he took out the Spear of Frostfang and Aegis of Dawnsong.

Luo Bingqing and Elyara were startled when the aura of the two Legend-ranked artifacts suddenly filled the spaceship’s cabin and their eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"Here," Azrael said calmly, handing the spear to Luo Bingqing and the pendant to Elyara.

Both Luo Bingqing and Elyara subconsciously stretched out their hands to accept the items. However, the moment the artifacts fell into their grasp, they snapped out of their daze, and their expressions changed drastically.

"Wait! What are these? And why are you giving them to us?" Elyara asked in an agitated tone, her voice filled with shock.

Luo Bingqing was just as surprised and he looked down at the spear in his hand with a dazed expression.

"These two were inside the storage ring I found beneath the throne in the Ancient Ruins," Azrael explained calmly. "They’re your share."

"Huh?" Luo Bingqing and Elyara were both dumbfounded and looked at Azrael with stunned expressions.

"But that storage ring... it was something you found on your own," Elyara said hesitantly, shaking her head. "I’m already grateful that you gave me one of the Blood Beads from it. I can’t take anything else."

"She’s right," Luo Bingqing agreed, nodding his head and placed the spear back in front of Azrael. "I also can’t take it."

’Hmm... at least they’re not greedy,’ Azrael thought inwardly with a nod.

He knew very well how tempting a Legend-ranked artifact could be, especially for warriors at their level who were still at the Class or Epic Rank.

Owning such an artifact could significantly increase one’s power, granting a huge advantage over one’s peers.

Yet, even in the face of such temptation, Luo Bingqing and Elyara resisted, which spoke volumes about their strong mentality.

But since Azrael had already decided to give them those artifacts, he had no intention of taking them back.

First of all, although both artifacts were quite powerful, they weren’t of much use to him.

The Spear of Frostfang was indeed strong, but compared to Fallen Star, it still fell short.

Moreover, the power an artifact could display also depended greatly on its wielder.

For a Class or even Epic Rank warrior, it was difficult to bring out the full power of a Legend-ranked weapon like the Spear of Frostfang.

Furthermore, once Azrael broke through to the Epic Rank, Fallen Star would grow even stronger.

Although he wasn’t certain what kind of changes would occur in Fallen Star, he was confident it would become far more powerful than the Spear of Frostfang.

As for the Aegis of Dawnsong, its details stated that only those with a pure heart could use it.

Azrael didn’t truly understand what it meant to have a "pure heart," but according to the description, the Dwarven blacksmith who had created it forged it with the intent of protecting the innocent.

The pendant even carried the blacksmith’s will, and Azrael knew all too well that he was not someone interested in protecting the innocent.

He had no desire to play the hero, and knowing the creator’s intent, he had a strong feeling that in order to properly wield this pendant, one would need a mentality inclined toward helping others, something he utterly lacked.

Because of that, he concluded that these two artifacts wouldn’t be of much use to him.

He could have exchanged them for credits at the Academy, but since he had decided to make Luo Bingqing and Elyara his allies, people who could lend him support in the future, he chose to give the artifacts to them instead.

After all, offering tangible benefits was the most effective way to make people follow you willingly.

At the same time, what Azrael had told Elyara inside the Ancient Ruins hadn’t been a lie.

He had promised that as long as she and Luo Bingqing didn’t act against him and remained his teammates, he would take care of them.

Even in the ruins, when Azrael had sat on the Sanguinal Throne without discussing it with them, putting them in potential danger, they hadn’t retaliated.

If they had wanted to, they could have attacked him while he was unconscious on the throne. But neither of them did.

Since they hadn’t betrayed him and had acted like proper teammates, Azrael felt it was only right for him to do the same.

Especially considering that, back when he was on Earth, the word "teammates" had held great meaning to him as they were the only people he had truly cared about.

"Since we entered the Ancient Ruins as a team, it’s only natural that you both have a share of what was found inside that storage ring," Azrael said calmly when they refused to take the artifacts.

"Besides, there were more powerful things inside that ring, and I kept those for myself."

Luo Bingqing and Elyara were both slightly surprised by Azrael’s words. Though they hadn’t spent much time with him, it was clear to them that he was a cold individual with little to no interest in others.

For someone like him to willingly hand over two Legend-ranked artifacts felt almost unreal.

"Do you have a fever?" Elyara asked cautiously.

Azrael’s mouth twitched when he saw the suspicious looks on their faces, and he had the sudden urge to beat them up.

He admitted that he had his own reasons for giving them the artifacts, but it wasn’t as if he meant them any harm. So seeing them look at him as though he’d been possessed by someone irritated him slightly.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he spoke in a composed tone.

"I’m not sick or anything. I’m giving these to you because you deserve them. Also..." He looked at the two artifacts and shook his head. "These two are useless to me."

Luo Bingqing and Elyara were taken aback by his words, clearly not understanding what he meant by these two things were useless to him.

But Azrael had no intention of explaining further and he simply urged them to take the items.

In the end, both Luo Bingqing and Elyara accepted the artifacts, though they still appeared hesitant.

Seeing their uncertain expressions, Azrael thought for a moment before speaking again.

"How about this, take these artifacts, and in the future, if I ever need your help, you won’t refuse me."

Elyara and Luo Bingqing exchanged a brief glance before nodding without hesitation.

"As long as it’s something I can help with, I won’t refuse," Luo Bingqing said in a serious tone, with Elyara nodding right after him.

Azrael didn’t say anything further and simply nodded in response.

Luo Bingqing and Elyara were both quite excited about their Legend-rank artifacts. However, unlike Azrael, who could view the detailed information of items through his Status Window, others didn’t possess the same ability.

As a result, the two could only examine the artifacts visually and would have to wait until they returned to Planet Arkanis to learn their full details.

Soon, half an hour passed, and Planet Arkanis finally came into their view in the distance. Seeing it, smiles naturally appeared on their faces.

’Finally back,’ Azrael thought to himself as the spaceship approached the planet.