SUPREME ARCH-MAGUS

As the evening approached, the statue began losing its shine. Maya had already stopped absorbing the insights from the statue and focused on remembering what she learned.

Meanwhile, Kent opened his eyes inside the soul space. Before him, a tall, handsome, mature young man stood with a mysterious smile. The young man appeared exactly like the person on the statue, The Poison God.

Kent wondered whether he is dreaming or hallucinating. But the mark of a phoenix ancestor inside his soul space lets Kent recognize where he is now.

"Are you the poison god?" Kent asked with a hesitating look.

The young man before Kent smiled ambiguously. "I'm just a consciousness left by the poison god. I appeared before you to deliver a warning."

Suddenly, the smile on the young man's face vanished as he stared into Kent's eyes with a serious look.

Kent did not understand what the poison god consciousness was speaking about. Kent didn't make any mistake to anger the poison god.

Before Kent could question him, the young man began speaking. "Before leaving me in the statue, the poison god asked me to deliver this warning. You are the only person who is able to absorb the first tome of poison arts through my insights. There are three parts to the poison tome legacy offered by the poison god. Now, you have complete knowledge of the first part.

The warning is specifically for you. The poison is a double-edged sword. With the knowledge you have now, you can kill thousands of people with the flick of your fingers. People who are stronger than you won't be able to stand before you.

But remember one thing, many fated people like you lost their free will and became servants to the poison. If you use the poison knowledge for stepping on the weak and killing the innocent, you will forever lose the opportunity to learn the other two parts of poison tome.

As long as you stay on the righteous path, you will receive the poison god blessing one day. Otherwise, you will lose the knowledge of poison tome slowly. Always question yourself about whether your opponent is worthy of your poison.

Good luck with your journey to become a poison master. Lastly, one small suggestion I could give you personally is to use poison to save your life and help others. All your deeds will be watched by the poison god."

After finishing the last sentence, the poison god consciousness vanished without leaving any trace. Kent's image stood there in the soul space until his focus shifted to reality.

The last words of the poison god continued to linger in his thoughts. Sorting his thoughts, Kent slowly opened his eyes.

Just as he opened his eyes, the last ray from the statue disappeared, and it again turned into a normal rock statue.

Kent was surprised by the scene before him. All the elders, disciples, and matriarch stood outside the formation and were staring at him curiously. Kent is the only one left inside the formation.

Behind the mob of people, the guardian sun is fading into the dim sky. After checking his surroundings, Kent stood up from the alter and walked out of the formation.

Kent did not understand why everyone was staring at him with admiration, curiosity, and surprise. Even the matriarch was staring at him with keen eyes.

"Everyone, go to your residence. Elders, take care of disciples, and order the servants to prepare a banquet for Kent." The matriarch spoke loudly in an authoritative tone.

All the elders who wanted to ask Kent about what he gained left the alter with a dissatisfied face. Everyone is guessing that Kent definitely gained substantial benefits as he absorbed hundreds of poison god insights.

Kent approached the matriarch and thanked her in a sincere tone. The matriarch's gaze moved between her daughter Maya and Kent for a second as she nodded her head and gestured for Maya to take Kent with her.

"Kent, don't reveal what you learned to anyone." The matriarch said before walking away.

Kent nodded his head and went with Maya to a secluded place.

"What happened? Why is everyone staring at me when the ritual finished?" Kent asked while holding onto her hand.

"They are envying you, Kent." Maya replied with giggling laughter. "Till now, no one has been able to sit on the alter until the ritual is finished. You were the first one we all witnessed. So, everyone is guessing that you gained something valuable that can change their fate. You better be careful from now on." Maya replied while taking him to a beautiful garden beside the pond.

Time passed slowly as they both indulged in the chat. When Kent revealed that he could concoct an antidote for the yearly poison of her father, Maya hugged him tightly and began crying like a baby.

Leaning on his shoulder, she held his palm and continued to stare at the pond water.

_

It was night, and the entire poison clan was brightly illuminated to grandly celebrate Kent's banquet.

The entire underground buildings were lit up brightly with colorful lights, and several women were performing songs and dances near the central hall where the banquet is arranged. It was very pleasing to the eye.

Everyone eagerly toasted Kent for his accomplishments during the ritual. Each of them wanted to get close to him and butter him up since Kent was the center of focus, and everyone wanted to know what he gained during the ritual.

Among the crowd's toasting and cheering, Kent did not forget to toast the matriarch as well!

Even though everyone is reaching out to him with a glass of fine wine, Kent controlled his consumption and remained sober.

Kent planned to sneak out and harvest some herbs in secret once the banquet was over. He found several rare herbs and unique flowers when he entered the poison clan. Continue reading at mvl

As the night progressed, one by one, the disciples and elders slowly left the banquet. To speak with her mother, Maya took the matriarch away early.

As the banquet ended at midnight, Kent found an opportunity to slip away from the main hall and headed towards the entrance, where those rare herbs grew.

_

PeterPan :-)