'What is he trying to do?' Khal remained nonchalant but he continued to follow the man's figure from the corner of his eye.
Even Rubie seemed to be on edge as she too noticed the man, but as Khal didn't do anything she did nothing either. However, it was obvious if she found that the man was a threat to either Liza or Khal she will attack without hesitation.
"Easy, just let's wait and see what he tries to do." Khal petted Rubie on his shoulder, calming her a level down.
Meanwhile, Liza has already reached the top of her staircase and stood before the Lava Fruit with her eyes closed and a layer of fire covering her body.
She stood there motionlessly, however, that was all she did. Even after several minutes straight she stood in one place, not moving even an inch.
Khal raised his brow when he saw this, but in truth, he was not surprised. Out of the three requirements, the third one was the most difficult as it said one can not touch the Lava Fruit no matter what, thus this is why Liza stood in one place; she tried to figure out how to consume the fruit without touching it.
Though, maybe it seemed complicated at first glance, it was not hard at all. There were different methods, each differing per person, how one could consume something without touching it, including treasures such as the Lava Fruit.
For example, one could consume treasures with their Essence while others could consume them through Secret Arts or simply by their Talents!
And exactly because of this, Liza tried to think which one would be the best for her. As she didn't have a Secret Art that could help her, there only remained her Essence and Talent.
However, as she was not proficient in controlling her Essence like Khal much less control it in a way where it could make her consume the Lava Fruit, the only thing she could do was to try using her own Talent!
Although she has never tried it before, she felt like if she attempted to use her Flame Controlling ability she will definitely succeed, thus she didn't hesitate and raised her hand before her layer of fire expanded and engulfed the Lava Fruit too!
And to her great surprise, the moment that happened a warm sensation entered her body, while the Lava Fruit gradually became smaller with each second!
'It's working!' Liza looked joyful once she felt her body, or to be more specific her Talent, undergo strange but pleasant changes, indicating she indeed started to consume the Lava Fruit.
In the meantime, Khal stared at the man in the distance with a sharp gaze, ready to move if he had to, but just as he thought he will attack, suddenly the man halted his steps and remained motionless before his eyes met with Khal's.
'...'
The two stared at each other for a while before the man waved his hand and vanished into thin air, leaving no indication at all that it was there just a few seconds ago.
"That's all? What did he try to do?" Khal seemed confused by this and even kept his guard raised as he thought he will get ambushed, but to his shock, nothing happened.
"Interesting..." Khal mumbled in a low voice before his gaze got shifted at Liza, whose body suddenly exploded with great power right after the last but of Lava Fruit vanished from sight!
BAM!
Immediately after, the heat that was previously around because of the Lava Fruit vanished, while Liza's body emitted an aura Khal has never seen before around her.
"How are you feeling?" Khal asked Liza once she walked back down, his face holding a smile and eyes that seemed curious for an answer.
Liza hearing the question glanced at both of her hands, but instead of answering she swung her hand upward, immediately causing Lava to explode from below the ground akin to the fountain in the distance!
"Oh? Talent Mutation?" Khal raised his brow as even though he told Liza her Talent can undergo mutation, he knew the chances for that were low, extremely low.
Nevertheless, it seemed her luck was pretty good thus he just smiled and congratulated her.
Liza smiled hearing Khal, but quickly widened her smile and said, "Anyways, we still have a deal to finish, right? How many Rock Golems did you kill?"
As she asked that, she took out several pieces of cracked Rock Hearts, 28 to be exact.
"I have killed twenty-eight. And you?"
Khal seeing the Rock Hearts and the proud smile on her face, Khal couldn't help but chuckle and wave his hand before summoning a small pile of Rock Hearts onto the ground, dumbfounding Liza deeply as the amount far surpassed her mere twenty-eight!
"Well, I think tonight's dinner is on you."
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After winning their little contest by a huge margin, Khal and Liza went back to Moon City where Liza 'invited' Khal and Rubie for dinner.
After eating themselves almost full in Lunar Tavern, Liza went to collect her reward for her Mission with Rubie while Khal went back into his room to continue his cultivation.
Once inside his small room, Khal sat down in a lotus position and closed his eyes.
'I have concentrated on doing quests so much that my process with my Essence Paths has remained the same. It's time to unlock a few.'
As the requirements to reach the Stages above the Sixth Stage was to consume enough Beast Essence and unlock his Essence Paths, Khal knew it was important for him to unlock all paths as soon as possible so he can reach the Second Realm faster too!
Thus, he quickly concentrated and controlled his Essence into the sealed gate in his right hand, attempting to open it.
However, to his surprise when he did and his Body Essence touched the gate, a slight sensation swept through his body before the gate got unlocked effortlessly, causing his fifth Essence Path to be opened just like that!
"....Eh?"
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