Krune looked at those fragments and then said.
"Let's bring them back to the Wisp Main World for now. It would be a terrible idea to absorb them at this time. After all, our cultivations would increase because of that, which means that Feifei would definitely go into the Soul Forging Realm. Maybe even myself since I'm in the 7th Stage."
Krune and Feifei took the and then left the City. As for Hobbek and Rannia's group, they couldn't care less anymore.
None of Hobbek and Rannia's companions tried to stop them either. First, their numbers were similar, and second, they would be going against the laws if they attacked first. For the Void breaking Realm guys, it was enough that Krune didn't kill those two. With that, they can get their payment back... or so they wished. But now, that might be impossible as well.
There was also another problem. Only a Heavenly Fragment Owner can absorb the fragment of another. A cultivator or demon beast without a fragment would never be able to make it their own. So it would be useless even if they had recovered the fragments by luck.
While they were healing their injuries, Hobbek and Rannia also thought about another problem. The fact that they don't have the fragments anymore. It could be said that they are basically useless to the Extreme Yin Yang Palace as of the moment. Because of that, they doubt that the Palace will pay those three Void Breaking Realm cultivators for their sake.
Hobbek had already paid the Soul Forging Realm guys since their case was only Spirit Stones.
"You guys can go back to your own places already. We won't be able to do anything for you all anymore."
The guys in the Soul Forging Realm were already expecting this. So they bid their farewell and left straight away. They felt some greed about Hobbek and Ranni Spatial Rings, but as long as they are inside of a City, especially a big one like this, they won't be able to touch them.
Hobbek then looked at the Void Breaking Realm cultivators that stayed and sighed.
"Well, it is obvious that you are here because of what we promised you. But the way we are now, there is simply no way that the Palace will pay you. After all, it would be a simple waste of resources. So what do you plan to do? If it is Spirit Stones or our weapons, I can at least do this much for you. Staying with us would be a waste of time for both you and us."
They also couldn't attack Hobbek and Rannia here, and Hobbek also confirmed what they feared.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"Sigh... whatever. Just give us those Purple Flame Weapons. Although you can't use it against Krune, they obviously can be used against others. Besides, they are worth a fortune. I know that you used almost all your Spirit Stones just to buy those two things."
Hobbek nodded and collected the Sword and Spear that fell in a corner, throwing it to them. It wasn't a lie, Hobbek and Rannia had really spent almost all their Spirit Stones on those weapons. Although they had several other things in their Spatial Rings, those weapons were indeed the most valuable ones. That also made them think just how rich Krune is at the moment since he was the one making those.
Those three just looked at each other and nodded. The fact is that they don't want to risk using these weapons, so they will just sell it back and share the payment. It is not like they need to ask for Spirit Stones alone. Due to the Purple Flame Weapons' rarity, they probably can get something better. They had been a group of three friends who stayed together for a long time. Because of this, none were afraid of the other stealing the others.
Without even bidding farewell, the three Void breaking Realm guys quickly left. Leaving only Hobbek and Rannia behind recovering from their injuries.
Rannia looked at Hobbek and asked.
"Say, what do you think we should do now?"
Hobbek shrugged his shoulders.
"What else can we do? We are already here in Dalin anyway, so we can just cultivate once more. Fortunately, our Laws were not affected, we just can't use them due to our cultivation level."
Hobbek thought about everything that he and Rannia had gone so far. All their battles, decisions, and everything else that had been for the sake of the Heavenly Fragments. But now that they lost the Divine Souls that held them, they wouldn't be able to become Heavenly Fragment owners anymore. So he felt like their purpose had disappeared.
As for hatred? Well, if those two said that losing their cultivation and Heavenly Fragment didn't affect them, it would be a lie. Still, they didn't exactly feel hatred for Krune and Feifei. The reason was quite simple, though. From the very start, they knew that they might be the ones losing everything. The fact that Krune didn't kill them is already an excellent outcome.
Rannia then advised.
"Shouldn't we go back to the Extreme Yin Yang Palace to report everything that happened?"
Hobbek looked at the sky above. Countless thoughts were going through his mind. Both he and Rannia understood that Krune's initial plan was for them to see the destruction of the Heavenly Fragments. After going back to report it, the battle for the Heavenly Fragments would obviously become pointless. But after he opened the arena protection formation, no one from both sides could touch the other anymore. Krune also couldn't hide them either, so the battle will continue for those who still had them. It's just that Hobbek and Rannia are now out of it.
"Say... We know very well how the Extreme Yin Yang Palace works. Once we return and report everything that happened, the Palace will simply not bother about our existence from there onwards. At most, we will just become ordinary disciples or maybe not even that. So what about we simply stay here instead and forget about all of this?"
Hobbek then looked back at Rannia.
"Collect Heavenly Fragments, fight for the Luvile Universe in the Heavenly Competition, and all the burden that would be coming next. Don't you feel like now that we are free from all of that, it might not really be a bad thing? After all, I still have you, so it's not like I needed anything else from the start."
Rannia was taken aback. Deep down, she always thought that she and Hobbek's relationship wasn't frank. That they were both just using each other to achieve greatness. Because of that, she couldn't help but get a little red after his last words. After all, there isn't really a need for them to stay together anymore. She felt like this was the first time that she knew Hobbek's real feelings.
"Hum... I guess it is worth a try. But what should we do once we reach the Divine Path Realm? After all, we would be forced out of Dalin at that point. Because we are not going back to report everything straight away now, the Palace might take it at us once we enter the Luvile Universe."
Hobbek laughed.
"That is simple. Several powers in the Dalin Universe can allow us to stay as long as we join them. So why don't we do just that? Even if we decide to not join anyone, it is not as if we can't select another Universe to go after here instead of going back to Luvile."
Suddenly, Hobbek noticed something and couldn't help but comment.
"It's quite weird, don't you think? I feel like this is the first time ever since I found out to have a Heavenly Fragment that I'm making my own decisions. So far, I always followed the Palace's orders. In fact, I believe it is the same thing for you too."
Rannia was taken aback once more.
"That... seems to be true."
It was then that she remembered Feifei and Krune. Those two were obviously not following anyone's rules and certainly didn't care about the Heavenly Fragments either. They even tried to destroy them so that they could get their peaceful life back. Not only that, but they also had a child... probably. It was still somewhat hard to believe that the kid was Krune's. But for some reason, Rannia also felt like it wasn't a lie.
"Hobbek... do you want a child?"
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmHobbek felt like he was struck by lightning.
"Say what?!"
He looked at Rannia, who seemed to have gotten even redder.
"You said that we were making our own decisions, right? This would obviously be our own decisions as well."
Hobbek scratched the back of his head. He felt like this was the first time that he and Rannia had ever really 'talked' with each other.
It was then that Rannia noticed that she forgot the situation that they were in. Which made her feel like an idiot. They have almost no cultivation at the moment. So it would not be a good idea to do that now.
"O-Of course, I'm not talking about now. How could we do that at the moment like this, right? We first need to recover our cultivations and then we ca-"
Suddenly, Hobbek covered Rannia's mouth with his finger.
"I want it now."
Rannia was surprised by that, but then she started to laugh.
"Sure, but I believe it would be better for us to recover our injuries first, right?"
Hobbek felt embarrassed at that comment. Of course, they need to at least recover their bodies to the peak state. It was a good thing that they had several healing pills in their Spatial Rings, so a full recovery wouldn't be a problem.
"Ri-Right..."
Ever since that day, Hobbek and Rannia disappeared from everyone's radar. No one knows if they would appear once again.