Swen shrugged.There was a mocking, irritating smile on her face.
"This story… sounds completely unbelievable.""You opened your dantian… and then gathered the essence of the Void into your eye, is that it?"
A brief pause.
"…If it were that easy, everyone would have the Eye of Darkness."
Silence.
But this silence… wasn't calm.
The muscles on Shinju's face tightened.His eyes darkened.
"Everything I said…" he spoke in a low voice,"…is the truth. Word for word."
He slowly raised his hand.
The thin black lines wrapped around Swen's body—tightened instantly.
Swen's breath caught.She clenched her teeth.But she didn't look away.
Shinju took a step closer.
"That mocking attitude of yours…""…means you're hiding more than you're saying."
At that exact moment—
clink.
Something fell from Swen's pocket.
A metallic sound echoed.
Swen's eyes widened.
"Wait—!"
Too late.
A sphere rolled across the stone ground…followed by three glowing golden pills.
They spun slowly.When they stopped… the air itself trembled with faint light.
Shinju bent down.
Silently.
He picked up the sphere.Then the pills.
Light seeped through his fingers.
Koharu noticed.
Something was wrong.
"Shinju… wait—"
But then—
the light flickered.
The pills…
began to melt.
As if they had never been solid.
Golden radiance turned into liquid.
It slipped through Shinju's palms—and sank into his skin.
Into his veins.
Suddenly—
the veins in his arms lit up.
Gold.
Bright.
Alive.
As if a sun was burning inside him.
The black restraints around Swen vanished.
She staggered back a step.
Koharu held her breath.
Shinju's eyes widened.
For a moment—
pain.
Sharp.
Burning.
Then—
that pain turned into an overwhelming heat.
"What… is this…"
His breathing quickened.
"…this heat…"
The energy reached his chest.
Then—
spread through his entire body.
His dantian points—
lit up one by one.
Short.
Sharp.
Then—
all at once, they merged.
Shinju dropped to his knees.
Held his breath.
Forced the energy down.
Pulled it through his veins—guided it toward his core.
Controlled it.
By force.
Then—
everything stopped.
Silence.
Swen's eyes froze.
One second.
Two.
Then—
"NO!!"
Her voice echoed.
She rushed forward.
Looked at Shinju's hand—
But it was too late.
Not a single pill remained.
All of them… were gone.
Swen's face collapsed.
"Years of work…" she whispered.
Then suddenly she shouted:
"YEARS OF WORK—GONE!"
Her eyes trembled.
"What did you just do?!""Shinju… what did you DO?!"
No answer.
Shinju was still breathing.
Heavy.
Trying to stabilize himself.
Swen's voice cracked.
"Those… were Yang Pills!"
She pointed at him.
"A lord would need an entire month to absorb just ONE!""And you—"
Her voice shook.
"…you consumed all three in seconds!"
Koharu remained silent.
Swen continued.
This time her voice was lower.
More afraid.
"Even one of those pills…""…is enough to make a person immortal."
Her eyes locked onto Shinju.
"But you…"
She swallowed.
"…you erased all of them."