Power stones & Power crystals
The Patriarch of the Lanzt family was already sweating profusely, a clear sign of his genuine fear upon seeing the new golem.
Most people in the city tended to underestimate the Golem Path Mages of the Gordons clan , thinking their battle powers were inferior to those of traditional mages
And assuming that if they didn't have a Golem to match their realm, they are just useless.
That's why even though the Gordon Clan had reached the same realm as the city lord, nobody really feared them because it was believed that none of their "Big 3" golems had upgraded to Tier 7.
Upgrading a Golem to the High Rank Realm was incredibly difficult and required a significant amount of special treasures, potentially draining a family's treasury if not done with caution.
Tier 7 was considered the domain of high-level mages, and throughout history, the Gordon Clan had only few members who had successfully nurtured a Tier 7 golem.
However, George Gordon's rise to power had been different, causing the other families to secretly fear his newfound strength, though they would never admit it.
Yet, the person currently facing George was one of the weakest patriarchs in the city—the Lanzt family patriarch.
The Lanzt patriarch could feel a sense of dread just by looking at the golem.
The intense killing intent radiating from it was visibly apparent, its aura tinged with pure red.
The Golem's eyes even glowed blood red as it locked its gaze onto the Lanzt patriarch.
"I am truly sorry, George. I will compensate your family for whatever happens, but please end this madness swiftly. I can feel chills running down my spine. Recall your golem," the Lanzt patriarch pleaded.
"Let him go, old man," Alec whispered to his grandfather, not wanting him to get involved in any conflict because of him.
Alec's grandfather only snorted in annoyance.
"Because of the kids, I'll let this slide, But the power stones belong to us."
"What?! That's daylight robbery!, The younger generation of my family defended this gate, and many of our retainers were killed in this brutal exercise, we need those power stones to compensate our losses"
the Lanzt patriarch complained, his face contorted in a twisted expression.
"You're such a hypocrite,"
The Gordon Clan Patriarch sneered.
" You just claimed you wanted to compensate my clan for the crime you committed, yet you're reluctant to part ways with even an insignificant power stone, Maybe I should just beat you up for it too." George said as he cracked his knuckles, his threatening demeanor intensified.
The Lanzt patriarch swallowed hard, a lump forming in his throat as he watched the Gordon patriarch's hooligan-like behavior.
He wanted to scold the old man for acting in such a way, especially in front of the younger generations of their clans.
But the thought quickly dissipated when he realized that saying anything unnecessary might only worsen the situation.
"K-k-k-ill,"
the patriarch's golem hummed, its blood-red eyes flashing.
The Lanzt family members shivered at the golem's ability to speak.
It only made their unease grow.
"You can have the power stones, With this, I have cleared all my debts with your Clan" the Lanzt patriarch reluctantly conceded.
"How can you be so shameless?" George's anger rose, his white mustache practically bristling. "You dare to claim credit for the work my boys did in killing all those Tier 1 zombies?"
"Are you trying to steal the credit of my Grandson ?" George asked, his frustration evident.
"But the power stones are valuable, especially for the younger generation of our family," the Lanzt patriarch argued back, equally frustrated at the Gordon patriarch's shameless attitude.
"Watch how you talk to me, I'm taking these power stones, and I expect a compensation gift from your clan before tomorrow, Failure to comply will result in me paying you a visit instead,"
Alec's grandfather said, his smile taking on an evil, bandit-like quality.
"Alec, are you sure you're not just a younger version of the patriarch?, Your expressions seem too similar," Arthur whispered into Alec's ear.
"Do you want another knock on your head?"
Alec replied, causing Arthur to quickly distance himself.
"You're no different from the patriarch, You're a bully," Arthur pouted.
"What are these power stones you keep mentioning, Gramps?" Alec finally couldn't contain his curiosity and asked his old man.
"Oh, it's the core that all creatures from the other dimension form when they advance to Tier 1. So technically, all creatures from Tier One to Tier Nine have a power Stones." Alec's grandfather explained, giving a short lesson about power stones to Alec and the younger generation of the Gordon clan.
The Lanzt patriarch watched, feeling a mix of anger and resignation.
He realized that George never took him seriously, and arguing with him seemed pointless.
It was clear that he was not going to get anywhere by continuing the battle of words.
"I'll be taking my leave now,"
the Lanzt patriarch informed, deciding to retreat from the situation.
He swiped his hands and used the wind to levitate himself and the rest of the Lanzt family members, disappearing from sight to avoid further embarrassment.
"What a shameless and spineless man, running away so quickly when things don't go his way," Alec's grandfather scoffed.
"Well, never mind that, Let's claim our spoils of war." He turned to face Alec and the gang.
"That was so cool, patriarch!" Arthur exclaimed, his hands pumped with excitement.
His eyes seemed to sparkle with admiration, The other kids nodded in agreement, showing their acceptance of Arthur's sentiment.
The patriarch couldn't help but laugh heartily.
The scene was surprisingly peaceful, as if a battle had never taken place.
The bodies of the defeated zombies lay scattered around them, giving the illusion of a serene environment.
The patriarch outstretched his hand, releasing a wave of transparent energy that entered the bodies of the Tier 1 zombies, including the (Peak) Tier 1 zombie.
Shortly after, eight sky blue gems emerged from their bodies, each looking slightly different from the others.
The gems flew straight into the patriarch's waiting hands.
The Patriarch threw the power stone that emitted the brightest light to Alec, which was clearly the ( Peak) Tier 1 zombies Power stone , accompanied by intense mana fluctuations,
This leads to Alec receiving a system message
[Power Stone Detected]
[Do you want to consume the power stone for 200 exp? {Y/N}]
Deciding to ignore the message for now, Alec didn't want to display his use of the system's powers in front of his family.
He contemplated evolving his remaining golems discreetly, treating them as his hidden trump cards.
All of his golems had already reached the point of evolution, having slain over a hundred zombies each.
Alec dedicated his mana to repairing their bodies, unwilling to lose any of these golems he considered his personal elite force.
Observing Legion, the patriarch's eyes nearly bulged out in disbelief.
"How the fuck did you craft an elite golem?, You're just a Tier 1 mage!" he complained, tears almost welling up.
"It was actually kind of simple," Alec replied, scratching his head.
The patriarch felt his heart shatter into tiny fragments upon hearing his grandchild's words.
"I guess I made the right choice in making you a golem mage, You're incredibly talented, Alec, and I believe you might even surpass me one day," the patriarch said, his words echoing with sincerity.
"Ohhh!" the other kids exclaimed, genuinely surprised by the patriarch's comment.
It was clear he wasn't simply complimenting Alec because he was his grandson.
Before Alec could continue, he was interrupted.
"Ohh, don't worry, We harvested the other Tier 1 zombies at the North Gate during the battle. They'll be deposited into the clan's treasury for safekeeping and can be earned by those below the (Peak) Tier 1 realm with enough merit points to redeem them," the patriarch explained, wearing an innocent smile.
"Bullshit!" Alec responded, feigning anger.
"Those are my spoils of war! I killed those zombies, so I earned them, Why do I feel like you're scamming me?"
"Don't worry, Alec, You will receive some power stones as a reward, but the rest belongs to the clan, It's important to learn not to be selfish," the patriarch reassured Alec, surprising him with the extent of his grandfather's hoarding tendencies.
"It seems those power stones are quite valuable, considering that even that shameless Lanzt patriarch, was about to get it with force at first, You old man, you're really shrewd," Alec complimented, recognizing his grandfather's cunning nature.
"Well, you are my blood after all, And don't pretend like you're not shrewd yourself."
" Now, enough chit-chat. Let's head back to the clan. The city lord's soldiers will take care of the zombie bodies, and the whole clan is eagerly awaiting your return," the patriarch stated, urging Alec to join him and leave the Battlefield behind.