The soil inside the bunker did not seem ordinary. The sand was entirely red and extremely fine.
According to the records Blaine had read, he already had a general understanding of its origin. It was said to be mixed with the ashes of successive kings of Wakanda—the Black Panthers of each generation. Every king who was about to ascend the throne had to be buried in this soil.
Not only the body, but even the face—including the nose and eyes—had to be completely covered with the sand. It was said that through this ritual, one could connect with their ancestors, and through the sublimation of the soul, even achieve face-to-face communication with deceased relatives. Although it sounded ridiculous, it was undeniably astonishing.
However, even if the sand supposedly had the power to connect to the underworld, to Blaine it was nothing more than a pile of sand mixed with other people's ashes. He briefly entertained the thought of collecting some of this soil.
Looking past the pile of sand, he saw a patch of scorched ground. If not for the bunker in front of him, Blaine would have thought it was the remains of a dead Black Panther reduced to ashes.
Upon closer inspection, it was not difficult to tell that this land had been left behind after a fire. This was probably where the heart-shaped grass used to grow. Unfortunately, all the damn shoots had been burned to ash, not even a single leaf remaining. Did Blaine really have to fabricate heart-shaped grass out of thin air?
Just as Blaine was about to step forward, he suddenly heard footsteps behind him. Turning around, he saw a group of elderly men wearing Wakanda's traditional attire, along with others dressed in formal suits, standing at the cave entrance.
Some were also clad in worn tribal garments. T'Challa's sister stood among them. Presumably, these were the Council of Elders of Wakanda.
Once they arrived, T'Challa gave Blaine a signal, allowing him to proceed.
Originally, Blaine thought these elders would try to stop him, or at least speak first—questioning him or expressing distrust. Instead, not a single person said a word. They simply stared at Blaine, unmoving. Yet from their expressions, it was clear that their hearts were filled with tension and anticipation.
After all, Wakanda's inheritance still depended on the heart-shaped grass. Now that it was gone, they did not want T'Challa to become the last Black Panther in Wakandan history.
Under everyone's gaze, Blaine stopped being polite. With T'Challa's guidance, he confirmed that the scorched land before him was indeed where the heart-shaped grass had once grown.
Standing on the burned earth, Blaine examined it carefully. The fire had utterly destroyed everything. Just as he had expected, not a single branch or leaf remained. He did not even find a seed. It seemed that this task truly required him to create something out of nothing.
Blaine squatted down, grabbed a handful of ash left behind by the fire, rubbed it between his fingers, and spread it back onto the ground to confirm once more. It was a pity—another treasure that had once made Wakanda a world-leading nation had been reduced to nothing but ash.
"Hey… is a ton of Vibranium really enough for this?"
At this point, even Blaine felt at a loss. It wasn't that there was no solution, but what exactly was he supposed to do with a pile of ashes? He had long mastered the copied healing magic, but using it on ash—one could easily imagine the outcome.
'System, is there any product that can solve the current problem?'
With no other choice, Blaine turned to the system for help.
After all, with so many people watching and the bold claim he had made, Blaine did not want to fail for the first time in his career as a Bounty Hunter.
[Two solutions have been found for the host.]
'Say it. Say it.'
Fortunately, the current version of the system could automatically recommend options. Otherwise, with so many eyes on him, if Blaine had to search item by item, who knew how long it would take. By the time he found something, his reputation would already be in ruins.
So now, Blaine pretended to survey the terrain, carefully inspecting the ashes of the heart-shaped grass while listening to the system's explanation.
[First option: [Weakened Version of the Time Gem Ring]. It cannot be upgraded, but it can still be enhanced.]
'Huh? That's… that's good.'
'It can be enhanced, which makes it much stronger than the weakened version of the Space Stone Ring.'
'How much?'
The moment Blaine heard it was another ring, his interest skyrocketed. The weakened Space Stone Ring had already brought him enormous benefits—how could the Time Gem Ring be any worse?
After all, time was an even more terrifying concept than space. Space merely allowed travel across distance. Time, on the other hand, was one of the most mysterious forces in the universe. The ability to traverse the past and future—anyone would be tempted by that.
[One hundred billion.]
'One hundred billion? That's not expensive. The weakened Space Stone Ring also cost one hundred billion.'
'Buy'
With this ring, was there even any need to worry about restoring the heart-shaped grass? He could simply reverse time to the past, take a heart-shaped grass, copy it, and the mission would be complete. The task would be finished, and he would still get a ton of Vibranium. It was an absolute bargain.
'Wait—wasn't there a second option?'
'What's the second one?'
Suddenly, Blaine remembered that the system had mentioned two solutions. Although the first one already excited him greatly, thinking carefully, hadn't the system tricked him often enough already?
Every time, it liked to make a fuss over small details. Blaine had fallen into those traps more than once. For example, presenting two options, letting the first one stir his emotions, and after he bought it, revealing that the second one was actually more suitable. Wasn't that just a perfectly dug pit, waiting for him to jump in?
He had to admit, this Superman-level artificial intelligence was terrifyingly clever. Even when you knew there was a trap, you still felt tempted to jump. Fortunately, Blaine had learned from experience and did not let himself be blinded by impulse again.
[The second solution is a disposable consumable.]
[Rejuvenation Potion: It can bring the dead back to life.]
[Not only animals and plants, but humans as well.]
'Huh? Why is it a one-time potion?'
'How much?'
After hearing the system's explanation, Blaine frowned. Logically speaking, no matter how convenient a disposable potion was, it still couldn't compare to reusable equipment like the weakened Time Gem Ring. One could only be used once, while the other could be used repeatedly—clearly a long-term investment.
If the prices of the two were not significantly different, Blaine would naturally choose the long-term option: the weakened version of the Time Gem Ring.
*************************************
You can get access to early chapters on patr*on
If you like my work and you want to support me then you can become my patron on patre*n.
My patr*on account is Lord_Immortal_0170