God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

"Harvesting the Blood Bismuth lilies wasn't a very complicated procedure, but rather, a procedure with strict but extremely finite and comprehensible steps to follow."

"It is to be handled with hands that have been gently infused with a steady flow of mana. The mana flowing in the hand should then proceed to wrap around the stem of the herb and sever its connection to the {Appendage}. It was a short and simple process that had to be met with strict requirements. Not even a single step should be substituted and it has to be followed down to the latter."

Cain stood before a huge {Appendage} with a hand stretched out to grasp at a Blood Bismuth Lily and another hand holding onto the [Records of Akasha I]. The time had a section that was dedicated primarily to basic-level magic herbs and mutant plants, which included the procedures to harvest them, as well as the methods of their preparations.

The others stood far away, so apart from those that had perception stats higher than 20.0 points, no one else could see what he was up to. Cain even activated {Dark Cloak}, decreasing the number of eyes on him even further. Although Cain had learned to trust, he wasn't stupid.

He knew that the great knowledge hidden within the [Records of Akasha I] was bound to stir up jealousy within the hearts of people.

He was also sure that the ones who could actually see what he was doing would also be able to see the difference in their power, which would prevent them from doing anything stupid for the time being...

Cain followed the instructions of the tome and wrapped his mana gently around his fingers. His fingers brushed gently against the pulpy exterior of the fruit, causing him to raise a brow in surprise. However, he avoided distractions and continued with the process.

His mana slowly coiled out of his body like little threads and fastened themselves onto the tiny stem holding the Blood Bismuth Lily to the {Appendage}.

Snip...

There was a slight cutting sound as the mana threads severed the connection between the fruit and the devil appendage. Since his mana was wrapped around it, the Blood Bismuth Lily didn't fall to the ground, but instead was suspended in the air by the invincible threads of mana.

"So that's all? Seems easy enough..." Li, who was standing beside Stan and Sue said, but his whole attention was on the book in Cain's hand.

'Where did he get that book? Is that the secret to his power?!' Li's thoughts went on a rampage as he considered many things, but ultimately decided to drop them.

'If I even think about making a move, I'll be dead in ten seconds flat..' Li felt shivers run tthroughhhisspine when he recalled the monster Cain had transformed into during the final stages of the battle. He had no doubt he didn't have what it took to face something of that level, yet...

"It looks easy, but it isn't, which is why I can't let these people do it," Cain said as he turned to the people who had been saved by Jenny and the others.

"Instead... I have another job for them." A slight smile began to creep onto the sides of Cain's face as he addressed the crowd.

"Right now, survival is more expensive than death, and as you all are right now, you can't afford it. The difference between us must be recognizable by now..."

The crowd of people had been separated into two since the beginning, making Cain's words extremely obvious.

The ones who mattered and the ones who didn't...

The regular people who had been given the Vitality corals subconsciously separated themselves from Susan, Jenny, Hunter, and the rest. They knew deep within that they were no longer regular humans whom they could stand amongst so casually.

"Although you all finally have the most basic necessity for living in this world flowing in your bodies, that doesn't mean you are exempted from passive death." Although Cain wasn't one to give long speeches, he needed to do this as it was necessary for the next part of his plans.

"So here's a bit of advice... Follow us with your entire hearts, and in return, we will grant you more opportunities like the one you have received today..." A faint smile appeared on Cain's face once he said this.

The stick and carrot method...

Although it was a low blow, Cain didn't care, as some things were necessary if survival was their goal in the current world.

There was some murmuring in the crowd of people as the light that had appeared in their eyes seemed to dull a bit. However, alongside the dimming of that light was a conviction to survive at all costs.

Jenny, who had been silent for some time suddenly spoke up,

"However, you can rest assured. As long as you follow us diligently, your survival will be guaranteed. You won't have to worry about going hungry, dying, or losing your loved ones ever again..."

Jenny's words were like the songs from angels as the light that had dimmed in their eyes brightened up once again.

Cain stared at Jenny who gave him an inconspicuous wink. He suddenly remembered the deal he had with her, which caused the smile he had on his face to widen even further...

'That's right... I'm not alone in this... I will make use of the assets around me to increase my chances of survival and make a stronghold in this world that is breaking down beneath my feet...'

Cain could finally feel a purpose starting to appear for him...

"You..." Cain pointed to the oldest man in the group. The man looked perplexed for a moment before he took a step forward.

"S-sir?" The man looked like he was about to have a heart attack on the spot as he stuttered.

"What's your name?" Cain asked him the same way one would ask a stranger to introduce himself. To Cain, the level of power an individual possessed had nothing to do with the utility they could provide him with.

"L-Ling, S-sir!" The old man, Ling nearly had a random organ jump out of his mouth as he bowed his head to Cain.

Cain had a confused expression on his face as he wondered what was wrong with the old man.

"Relax..." With those words, Cain activated {Blood Regeneration} and let the threads of blood flow into Ling's body, causing his bent body to straighten up.

"I need you to do something for me..." Cain said as he gazed straight into the eyes of the terrified old man.

"O-okay!" Because of the Blood elemental energy Cain put into his body, his accelerated blood flow as well as his turbulent heart had been forcibly calmed down.

'System, what elemental attributes do all these people have?'

{Replying to host: These humans all only possess the water element of varying degrees of affinity. The old man before you has the highest degree of affinity at 71%, the second highest is that lady over there with an affinity of 65%. The rest all have their affinities at or lower than 50%...}

'Only the water element?'

{Replying to host: Due to the deal made with the Sea god, Levron, their affinities have been changed to match that of the god they offered their divinities to...}

'I see... I'd like to purchase some mana shards, system...'

{Replying to host: How many would you like to purchase?}

'A lot...'

***

2 hours later...

The darkness of the night had eased up a bit, indicating that morning was approaching. Cain stood before the huge {Apoendage} with his eyes closed. Placing his palm on the dried tree stump, he let strands of his mana coil out of his body and move around the tree like snakes.

These strands of mana rolled around every single Blood Bismuth Lily on the {Appendage} with grace and finesse. Cain's brows creased a bit as he pushed his concentration to the max.

Snip...

This time, the Blood Bismuth Lilies didn't release any light at all as they were harvested. This showed that they had been harvested perfectly.

On a single {Appendage}, there were about 10 Blood Bismuth lilies, which meant on 22 {Appendages}, they had managed to harvest a total of 220 Blood Bismuth lilies.

Since it would take too long for him to harvest them all by himself, Cain had split the task between those who had the highest mana control in the group. These included Vincent, Susan, Steve, Sue, Jenny, and Li.

Although Sue was a bit hesitant at first, she was easily convinced by Jenny. Each of them was able to clear out 2 {Appendages} each. However, Cain, who had greater control over his mana was able to clear out 10 {Appendages} in the same period.

"Tch! What a freak..." Li couldn't help but say when he saw the way Cain harvested the 10 Blood Bismuth Lilies all at once.

"Are you sure it is a good idea to let all those people move on their own?" Jenny asked Cain.

Cain nodded his head slowly as he directed the Blood Bismuth Lilies gently into his hand, placing them in his inventory one by one.

"We can't babysit them... We need them to find ways to get stronger by themselves if they want to survive in this world. I have already helped them in the best way I can. The rest is up to them..."

Since they had no way to access the system store, Cain used his points to buy a decent amount of water elemental mana shards and distributed them among them. Since absorbing the mana from mana shards could grant special skills or spells depending on the level of affinity, Cain wasn't stingy at all as it would end up boosting the power of the group in general.

Using the destroyed {Heavy Armor}, he was able to create enough weapons for the 19 people using {Metal Manipulation}.

Out of the entire group, only the old man Ling and Maya, who was the other female with a 65% affinity for water, could activate any skills or spells.

The old man was able to acquire a skill called {Water Tranformation}, which granted him the ability to turn water from its liquid state to solid or gas. Meaning he could turn ordinary water immediately into ice or steam. And because it was an internal skill, it could be upgraded as well...

Maya on the other hand acquired a rather unique spell, {Water Dragon Blast}. This spell enabled her to summon a phantom dragon of water that generated powerful jets of water that could rupture steel. Since it was just an external spell, its potential was limited, and could only become more powerful if she encountered more fortune in the future.

The rest were only able to acquire increased resistance to water attribute spells. Under the leadership of Old Man Ling and Maya, the group would easily be able to face off against a level 10 to 20 elite Tier mutant beast.

"Besides, all the devils have been killed off, and only weak mutant beasts are left. There is little to no danger for them. They can use this as an opportunity to accumulate as much power as they need. They can't absorb power through the system, but they can absorb power through us..." Cain said with a wink.

"Hunter is also following in front of them, so if anything happens, they'll be safe," Susan said matter-of-factly.

Hunter had volunteered to scout the forest for the path to the central region of the school. The only thing he had left behind was a huge white wolf as he dashed off into the distance.

Suddenly, the white wolf that had been sitting as still as a statue stood on all four and disappeared, immediately replaced by Hunter who had a confused expression on his face.

"Did you find anything?" Cain asked.

"Yeah... But not what I was expecting..." The shock on Hunter's face was very obvious for everyone to see.

This caused a frown to appear onto Cain's face, "What's wrong?"

"It's best you come see for yourself..."