My Mother is the Villain

Chapter 33: Morning

Victor didn’t hide what had happened to the souls inside the Necklace of Hate.

Naturally, their hatred grew stronger.

However, it was low-quality hatred—not particularly useful.

When the roots attached to his body finally detached and returned underground, he felt an overwhelming sense of comfort.

[Lifespan: 3,700 Years]

It had increased significantly, nearly doubling.

Many people looked pleased—after all, most had gained a decent harvest as well.

As long as they weren’t killed, they could live longer.

Of course, far more cultivators died by being killed than by running out of lifespan.

Only the truly powerful ever died from old age.

Wars happened far too often—between sects, between clans, even between continents—especially during the era of choosing a World Monarch.

Everyone would get involved, at the very least lending support to strengthen formations, ultimately leading to countless deaths.

Victor stood up and stretched, his gaze falling on the two elders from the Scoot Clan who were still waiting.

They looked uneasy.

Handing over the key had been forced, but in truth, they weren’t entirely sure Victor would keep his promise.

In response, Victor revealed the Necklace of Hate.

"I’ll release them. Be ready to catch them," he said indifferently.

At the Great Sovereign Realm, they could at least capture the souls of weaker cultivators.

That way, the souls wouldn’t dissipate.

Both elders were visibly surprised.

They quickly prepared themselves.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The souls flew out from the Necklace of Hate.

The two elders raised their palms, each catching half of the souls.

"Young Master, thank you!" they said, clearly not expecting this outcome.

When dealing with stronger forces—even their own superiors like the Dragon Blood Sect—they were often deceived, losing everything without gaining anything in return.

Victor merely smiled without saying a word.

Yet that very smile made them uneasy again.

They nodded quickly before leaving in a hurry.

The Necklace of Hate... they couldn’t help but fear it.

What if Victor suddenly changed his mind and decided to seal their souls as well?

Fortunately, that didn’t happen. They were allowed to leave.

Emma gave Victor a strange look, letting out a sigh of relief.

Even though he oppressed others, she thought Victor hadn’t become a completely cold-blooded killer—at least not yet.

It wasn’t that he wasn’t tempted.

If he broke his promise, the System would undoubtedly reward him.

However, he was wary—if he became too ruthless, someone might grow furious enough to kill him.

After seeing Lukas get snatched away right in front of Margaret, he realized that even she couldn’t fully protect him.

Whoever managed to take Lukas could likely kill him as well—even in Margaret’s presence.

Even if she was stronger than everyone else, that didn’t mean she could counter every trick.

"Time to head back," Victor said to Emma and the Bald Elder.

Bryce had no choice but to part ways, as he needed to return to his sect with the disciples.

Even without causing further trouble, Victor could still feel many hostile gazes—especially from the Dragon Blood Sect and the Immortal Sword Sect.

"Let’s see if you can still act so arrogantly once you arrive at the Heaven Emperor Academy," Lancelot sneered from afar, his voice clearly reaching the Russell Clan’s flying vessel.

"Young Master, he’s nothing. He only has stolen talent. He can bully the weak, but he’ll tremble in fear when he faces the Human Young Monarch," someone behind Lancelot added.

"Hmph, there’s no need to involve my seniors to deal with him," Lancelot snorted.

This was the first time Victor had heard of the Human Young Monarch.

Anyone bearing the title of Monarch was undoubtedly terrifyingly powerful.

He glanced at Emma and noticed her eyes trembling slightly.

"Young Master, that person belongs to my generation," she said quietly.

"So he’s that strong—even you are afraid?" Victor chuckled.

Emma nodded unconsciously.

"Yes... he’s the strongest candidate among humans in this era. But we don’t know how the younger generation will develop yet. As for Bryce... I remember he was nearly beaten to death with a single strike when that man had just entered the Heaven Emperor Academy."

"Is he still at the Academy?"

"Yes, it seems so. He might be pursuing something there. His real name is Charles Habsburg. The Habsburg Clan is actually a newly rising clan—they don’t even have a World Monarch. But their ancestor once became one of the strongest figures on the Ancient Human Continent. Charles has sworn multiple times to become the first World Monarch of his clan."

Victor nodded after hearing that.

A formidable rival—truly, they were everywhere.

And he still had no idea what lay beyond the human territories.

The return journey was faster than before.

Back at the clan, Victor went straight into the castle and returned to his room.

He didn’t see his mother again. Who knew where she had gone with Ella.

Sitting on his bed, Victor began absorbing Spiritual Energy.

He didn’t focus on the two Merit Laws—they had already progressed far beyond his cultivation, making further improvement difficult.

Instead, he concentrated on drawing out the potential of his bloodline.

It felt slightly easier now that his lifespan had increased.

Even so, despite training until he was drenched in sweat late into the night, he failed to raise it even by a single percent.

The only thing that increased was his Spiritual Energy.

[Realm: Sage]

[Spiritual Energy: 1,000 / 500,000]

[Spiritual Energy Accumulation: 115,000]

[Body Realm: Sage]

"It really is difficult..." he admitted with a sigh.

After resting briefly, he resumed training—this time focusing on improving his techniques alongside absorbing Spiritual Energy.

If he wanted to advance from the Sage Realm to the Sovereign Realm, his techniques needed to improve.

Since they were already at the Saint Class from the beginning, the path forward was naturally more challenging.

This wasn’t something that could be accomplished in a single day—it required constant refinement.

He doubted even the System would upgrade the class of his techniques.

The next morning, he opened his eyes with a brighter expression.

[Realm: Sage]

[Spiritual Energy: 3,000 / 500,000]

[Spiritual Energy Accumulation: 117,000]

[Body Realm: Sage]

At the very least, his Spiritual Energy had increased significantly. He was satisfied with the results.

He then went to the bathroom, washing away the sweat covering his body.

Today, he chose to wear long pants and an open coat that extended past his knees.