Dividing the Spoils: Cursed Stone

The pile of rocks that had suddenly appeared was the remains of the idol. Once the Lizardfolk of the tribe were mostly dead, the statue had suddenly become covered in cracks. The once calm and peaceful stone figure seemed to have been cursed; the bluestone turned pitch black, and it subsequently disintegrated on the spot, scattering across the ground!

Only when a deity falls does an idol shatter.

But since this statue had not yet given birth to a "god," why would it end up like this?

Faith backlash?

The statue had only just been completed; could a connection of faith have been established in such a short time?

Could it be...

Borne widened his eyes.

Dozens of Giant's Hand manifestations appeared in an instant. After some picking and choosing, he quickly found a peculiar stone.

According to the Chip's analysis, this stone bore clear traces of carving and appeared to have been inserted after the fact.

Borne's expression shifted, and he raised his longsword, striking the stone directly.

Crack...

The blade snapped!

The breaking of the longsword did not frustrate Borne; instead, a smile appeared on his face.

He then retrieved a Cross Sword from his pack. Borne took a deep breath, and a faint glow emerged upon the blade.

His companions, already drawn by Borne's actions, widened their eyes as they watched the sword.

"Is this 'Qi'?"

It was no secret in the academy that Borne was suspected of having mastered 'Qi'.

As early as three years ago, Borne had demonstrated superb combat techniques, and his actual combat capability was in no way inferior to that of a dedicated combatant.

The Ioulaum House possessed no Warlock bloodline, and Borne's superhuman reflexes and speed immediately drew the attention of many.

The heritage of Nether noble families was unfathomable; some lineages were even older than Ioulaum, and digging up information was a trivial matter for them.

They soon deduced from Borne's behavioral patterns that he had mastered the Monk Breathing Technique.

There had been those in the early days of the Ioulaum House who mastered it, but to this day, no one other than Borne had been seen wielding "Qi," showing that the Monk Breathing Technique required even more talent than spellcasting!

There was no way to counter it.

Monks themselves were few and far between, almost always hiding in deep mountains and old forests; in the North, one could no longer see Monks at all, and the properties of 'Qi' existed only in records.

Outside of the user, no one knew its characteristics.

Even if one wanted to target it, there was no direction to go.

At the time, the various families had only speculated, but this was the first time they had truly seen Borne use it.

The Cross Sword, coated in 'Qi', sliced through the stone block in an instant. A pitch-black stone the size of a fist, emitting 'black smoke,' rolled out. Wherever it passed, flowers and grass withered rapidly, and the soil became parched and cracked.

Borne was so startled he jumped back.

What an evil aura!

It wasn't just Borne who felt this; the members of the Arcane Society felt the same. Staring at the black stone, they felt a sense of nausea and ringing in their ears.

Hubwick seemed to recall something; his face turned pale with fear, and he shouted loudly:

"A curse! Do not touch it, or we will all suffer a terrible fate."

As he spoke, he quickly ran to Borne's side, saying with an agitated expression: "Listen to me, this stone is cursed. Do not touch it, really! Otherwise, not only you, but all of us will suffer for it!"

Borne glanced at Hubwick. It seemed he was very familiar with this object, or perhaps he had come into contact with such cursed items before, and he was clearly terrified!

Of course, without him saying it, Borne had already discovered the strangeness of this thing!

"Such a strong curse. This must be at least Level 6 negative radiation pollution," Belon judged.

Level 6 radiation pollution was a major issue. Belon had a military background, so his words carried high credibility, and no one questioned his judgment.

Of course, radiation could be good or bad. For instance, Dean Giles's Wizard Tower was a large-scale radiation source that was beneficial, enhancing the activity of magical elements!

It even improved the happiness index of the people in Seventon.

Level 6 radiation pollution was enough to affect a large city; if left unchecked, all life in this marshland would be wiped out.

This stone was clearly negative energy; if thrown into a graveyard, a swarm of skeletons and zombies would crawl out that very night.

If left here, it would soon become an undead paradise.

Of course, good and evil were merely human standards. To professionals like Necromancers, this thing was no less than a divine artifact, and it held value even for Legends.

Borne felt he might have discovered the reason for the Lizardfolk's migration, but this thing was clearly 'broken.'

"This is beyond our capabilities. Should we report it to the academy's upper echelon and have high-level spellcasters come to handle it?"

Dalena suggested.

Just looking at this thing made one feel uncomfortable all over, let alone picking it up; that would be courting death.

However, the others did not speak. Although this thing was evil, it was also an extremely rare item. If the academy intervened, it might end up being "confiscated for the public good."

Everyone turned their gaze toward Borne. Regardless of anything else, he was the one who discovered it first, and he had the most right to decide how to handle it.

Borne did not speak, but his expression made it clear that he was very interested in this object.

After his attempts at persuasion failed, Hubwick quickly retreated far away; he had no desire to be caught in the crossfire of a curse.

In his view, these fellows were simply newborn calves unafraid of tigers. He had already made up his mind to bolt the moment the curse was triggered. According to their contract, he had fulfilled his duty by leading them to the Lizardfolk tribe.

Borne began to chant a spell in a low voice.

A transparent, illusory figure slowly materialized.

[Unseen Servant]

Guildmaster Lisper immediately identified the spell.

[Unseen Servant] was a first-circle spell that summoned an invisible, mindless, formless servant capable of executing the simplest of commands.

When this spell was first created, it was intended for exploration—specifically for triggering traps or mechanisms.

Because it could only carry objects weighing less than twenty pounds, spellcasters later repurposed it for fetching items, cleaning, and organizing their living quarters.

Thanks to the modifications made by the Chip, the servant Borne summoned could lift objects weighing over thirty pounds.

The [Unseen Servant] possessed no mind and no offensive capabilities, yet under the influence of the Pitch-Black Stone, it suddenly became manic. A wave of negative, frigid emotion surged through the magical link and into Borne's mind.

Its naturally formless body began to manifest, and it emitted eerie, intermittent hisses.

"Ding! Malicious data intrusion detected. Firewall interception initiated. Estimated breach in three minutes."

The Chip's warning echoed in his mind, and red countdown digits appeared on his retinas.

Borne made a split-second decision and severed the connection to the [Unseen Servant].

Deprived of Borne's magical supply, the mutated servant, trapped in a state of mental chaos, quickly vanished, and the Cursed Stone fell to the ground.

"Three minutes?!"

That should be enough!

Borne slowly raised his hand, and a pale blue, illusory giant hand appeared out of thin air.

As one of the signature spells for any spellcaster, [Mage Hand] could move objects weighing no more than five pounds.

Ever since Borne had secured the top rank in his grade by utilizing [Mage Hand], it had become a mandatory spell for every student to learn.

[Mage Hand] was useful, certainly, but no one had ever managed to reach the level of proficiency Borne displayed.

A normal Mage Hand was white and transparent, roughly the size of a human hand. Borne's was pale blue and could take on various forms—it was simply undead-level bizarre...

The massive [Mage Hand] lifted the stone that had just been split open.

"Ding! Malicious data intrusion detected. Firewall interception initiated. Estimated breach in one hour."

The familiar warning sounded in Borne's mind again. The rock that had previously encased the 'Cursed Stone' was also radiation-polluted, though its radiation was far weaker than that of the stone itself.

"One hour, that's enough!"

A flurry of sword light danced, and within moments, Borne had carved the basketball-sized rock into a stone box.

With a wave of his hand, the pitch-black Cursed Stone flew into the stone box. He quickly snapped the lid shut and pulled a sheet of specialized lead paper from his pack to wrap and seal the entire box.

The Chip's notification vanished, and when Borne scanned the box with his mental energy, he found no issues.

"System! Scan it!"

Borne commanded in his mind; the Chip's scanning capabilities were far more precise than his own mental energy.

"Ding! Scanning... Estimated leakage time: 29 days."

"29 days. That's enough."

He could return to Seventon in a dozen days or so, and the academy would handle the problem after that.

"It seems this pollution curse is quite troublesome after all!"

Borne laughed heartily.

The others: ...

What the f— (a type of plant)...

You can actually do it like that!

The surrounding people were left petrified, especially Hubwick the Ranger, whose mouth hung wide open. Everyone was stunned by Borne's operation.

They could feel that the aura of evil and ill omens had vanished.

Could it really be that simple?

Is this how one seals a cursed object?

Shouldn't they have spent a day or two setting up a large-scale magic circle, having a high-ranking mage suppress the cursed object, and then sealing it in a special container?

How was it so casual in Borne's hands...

He just packed it up like that.

Doesn't this show a lack of respect for a cursed object...

It was a Level 6 Contaminant, after all.

The members of the Arcane Society felt their worldviews being reorganized once again; amidst their astonishment, it also felt entirely expected, as if anything involving Borne would inevitably become extraordinary.

Watching Borne toy with the stone box in his hands, President Lisper walked over out of curiosity.

Her mental power could no longer sense that dark, ominous aura; even if a high-ranking spellcaster had personally performed the sealing, the effect likely wouldn't have been this thorough.

"May I take a look?"

President Lisper asked.

Looking into Lisper's clear eyes, Borne smiled slightly and handed it to her.

"Mm, here."

Lisper took the stone box, only feeling the evil and ominous nature within once she made physical contact.

"What is this thin sheet wrapped around it?"

"A specially crafted lead foil. Its main component is lead, a high-density, soft, blue-gray metal with a melting point of 327°C and a boiling point of 1750°C!..."

With the Cursed Stone sealed away, Borne was in a good mood and uncharacteristically offered an explanation.

"The crystal structure of lead is a cubic lattice. Lead has high density, low hardness, a low melting point, and a high boiling point. It is a poor conductor of electricity and heat and can absorb radiation, which is why it is used to manufacture containers for radioactive materials and as protective shielding..."

"Therefore, it can react with most radioactive substances, forming a thin layer of lead compounds at the contact surface, thereby..."