He didn’t say anything after his outburst, instead spending time closely studying the princess.

It didn’t seem like anything changed about her physically. However, her body's gold sheen had almost disappeared, returning her skin to its normal pale state, and her clothes possessed actual colors again.

Absorbing the heart somehow increased Princess Jin’s cultivation to the Nascent Soul Realm… or higher. If she was in the Foundation Establishment or the Core Formation Realm, he would still be able to see her name instead of a question mark in its place.

William couldn’t believe it. That was such a massive jump that it was impossible not to consider the option of the system malfunctioning again.

It was either that, or it could be that Princess Jin’s body was occupied by something that was at a higher cultivation.

He immediately jumped to his feet and put some space between himself and the princess, heart thudding at the thought of the Seedling using Princess Jin’s body as a puppet. The guess wasn’t much of a stretch since it strangely accepted its death.

That must have been why the Seedling willingly accepted all the strikes that destroyed its body. It already had its hooks into the princess when that damn tether was created.

The hatred that spiked inside William was unmatched. It put a haze over his mind, making him think of drastic actions that he luckily didn’t have the chance to act on. The system distracted him with an alert.

[Side Quest Completed | Take the heart of the Magmaheart Goliath Embryo]

[3 Treasures awarded]

He stared at the alerts stupidly. That meant Princess Jin was still in control of her body, right? And where were the treasures that were supposedly awarded to him?

As if answering his skeptical thoughts, Princess Jin groaned loudly. Her fingers twitched before clenching to form a loose fist, but his attention was quickly drawn to a bright gold spot that appeared over her heart.

William would have been afraid that this was another issue about to pop up, but the system alert of the quest being completed erased those worries. All that was left now was curiosity.

A bright flash of gold blinded him briefly, but he could hear the soft sounds of several things hitting the ground. He heard the princess sigh softly as if relieved of some sort of pressure.

When his vision was returned to normal, or rather, mostly darkness since Princess Jin’s body was no longer acting as a source of light, he was given the answer to his question about treasures. They were the only things that could be seen as they let off a soft light that was bright enough just for the treasures themselves.

One was reminiscent of a crystal ball half a foot wide. Its color was the same as its glow. It was a deep red, but the sphere itself had occasional wisps of bright orange appearing on the surface. He was hit with the image of the massive giants hatefully glaring at each other with flaming eyes before he wiped it from his mind fearfully.

Another was a charred cube with a rough surface that was as tall as him. It gave off a soft white light that only showed the frightening black color the cube possessed. The same color he saw on the giant’s skin.

The last treasure was the one that caught William’s attention the most. It had a golden glow. The same color that Princess Jin’s body emitted for so long, something he was confident caused her ridiculous cultivation growth. The same color of the tether that connected the princess’s body and the Seedling. And more importantly, the same color of the blood he remembered spilling out of the giant.

It was a palm-sized puddle of a liquid that was gold.

William had to fight every instinct in his body from licking up that puddle like a thirsty dog. All the answers to his impurity levels were right in front of him, or so his mind was screaming at him.

It didn’t take long for him to realize that it was highly unlikely there was such a simple use for the liquid. The side quest that had just been completed mentioned explicitly that the three treasures he would receive would be suitable for Spirit Severing Realm cultivators.

That was four major realms above his current cultivation. These three treasures might as well be three quick ways to die for William.

After that bout of madness was suppressed, he was careful to avoid getting too close to the treasures as he attempted to draw them into his spatial stone. The only reason he even bothered to try was because of Sophia. If an immortal cultivator upgraded his spirit stone, it should be able to store treasures for Spirit Severing Realm cultivators.

It did.

William let out a little chuckle in happiness when he succeeded. At least he didn’t completely lose out to Princess Jin when comparing their gains.

“Why are you so pleased, Wei Liang?”

His smile froze at the voice saying his name. It sounded like Princess Jin, but something intangible was added to make him feel more friendly toward the speaker. However, it was so obvious that it was easy to ignore.

This must be what Sophia mentioned about being easily influenced by women with higher cultivation. Thankfully, Princess Jin was given her power and didn’t grow into it, leaving her with no clue how to use it subtly.

“I’m just glad you’re awake, princess.”

“Hmm,” Princess Jin sounded amused. When she snapped her fingers to casually create a floating ball of light, he saw that she was indeed amused, “So it has nothing to do with the treasures you stored in your spatial stone?”

It took everything William had to hide the spike of fear. Was this where he would be betrayed?

“A little bit,” William shrugged, “But honestly? It’s mainly because you’re safe. You have been unconscious most of the time, princess, but you won’t believe how many times we were close to death..”

“I was aware of everything.” She was blunt, this time with an even brighter smile.

“… What?” William asked slowly, wondering if she truly meant everything. If so, he should be more than safe with the amount of times he fought desperately to save her.

Unfortunately, he didn’t get an answer since he heard a familiar crack from above, except this time, it was followed by several more. Before he could make a move, he was staring up at a pretty face that had a serious look.

“Looks like it’s my turn to save you,” Princess Jin announced proudly. A dense veil of Qi appeared around them, disintegrating the falling clumps of dirt and dead vines into nothing.

William supposed this was her way of returning the favor, but did it have to involve him in a princess carry?

However, a sudden void appearing in the ceiling changed his mind. It reminded him of how his soul was almost extracted when they arrived. If he needed to be in a princess carry to avoid experiencing that again, then so be it.