Innate Great Emperor

Chapter 18: Core Socketing

"Squeak... cluck..." Mumu's cries grew sharper.

"Are you hungry?" Ye Jin frowned.

Mumu burst from the pet space. Its eyes went wide at the table full of cores. It let out a cheer.

It circled the pile. Then it lunged at an Emerald Treant core. It sucked hard.

A green flame rose. Streams of green light poured from the core into its body.

The treant core dimmed. Poof. It shattered to dust.

"Squeak... cluck..." Mumu grabbed another core. It ate like a starving beast.

Three wood-attribute cores later, its little belly bulged.

Ye Jin didn't care. His Ye family was one of the ten great clans of the capital. Money was the one thing they never lacked.

Spend it all.

Mumu zipped through the air in fast loops. Then it pressed against Ye Jin's cheek. It licked him.

Its plump body twisted. Fine vines sprouted from its skin. They wrapped it up with a soft hiss, like silkworms spinning silk.

The little creature went silent.

Was it evolving? Ye Jin stared at the round pod in his hand. Faint snores came from inside.

"Strange little thing. Evolve, then. Get stronger. I need the help." Ye Jin shook his head. He waved it back into the pet space.

It had only been a low-rank pet from his transmigration. But they'd survived life and death together. In his heart, it was family.

Without it keeping him company, distracting him from despair, Ye Jin knew he'd never have survived that black cell and those endless nights.

He socketed the six cores into the bracers he'd just made. The two brass bracers were crude. He'd carved three grooves into each.

Around every groove, intricate runes and formation patterns were engraved. They were made for socketing cores.

Socketing wasn't simple. The bracer material had to match the core's element in a generating cycle. A wood core needed a water bracer.

The right runes and formations also had to gather and nourish the core's mana. Only then would the power last. Use it longer, and it grew stronger.

Runes and formations were the heart of any socketed artifact. Without them, the core's mana would leak away. Eventually, it would be worthless rock.

Ye Jin picked up three Wind Demon Xiao cores. He studied their quality.

The Wind Demon Xiao was a primate-type wind beast. It was agile. Older ones had strength enough to tear tigers apart.

So their cores carried agility—and some strength.

Ye Jin socketed the three Xiao cores into one groove. Blue light flashed. A pale cyan wave spread along the formation patterns like water.

It filled every engraved line on the bracer. The silver-gray bracer turned deep cyan. A misty glow shimmered on its surface.

Martial cultivation needed constitution, agility, and strength. Spell cultivation needed will and spirit.

"Core socketing successful!"

"Demon Xiao Bracer: Agility +15×3. Strength +10×3."

"Storm Wolf Bracer: Strength +16×3. Agility +9×3."

"It worked! I didn't expect stats this strong." Ye Jin was thrilled. These cores boosted him more than the gear from the family vault.

A beast core condensed all of a beast's essence. It could add this much?

Ye Jin strapped both bracers on. He closed his eyes. New power flowed through his body.

"Someone come!"

The door opened. The boss, waiting outside, scurried in.

He saw the shattered core powder on the table. He froze. "Young Master Ye, what did you—"

"I'll take these three Wind Demon Xiao cores and the Blaze Storm Wolf cores. Plus the three treant cores I broke. Put it all on my tab." Ye Jin stroked his bracer. He held out the purple jade dragon-pattern card.

"Yes! Yes! Eighty thousand taels. I'll fetch it right away." The boss bowed and scraped.

As long as you pay, wasting money is your right.

The boss muttered to himself. He took the card and ran out.

With that card, you could withdraw money directly from Ye family shops. Every top noble son in Yujing City had one.

Ye Jin walked outside the counter. He sat in a chair. Through the crystal counter, he studied the gems.

These gems also carried attributes. But their bonuses were balanced. Not extreme like beast cores.

And they lasted far longer.

Smack! A folding fan tapped his shoulder. Ye Jin frowned.

"Yo! Isn't this the Ye family's eldest young master?" A shrill voice rang out. "I heard you got locked in the ancestral hall for stealing a woman's undergarments? How come you weren't executed?"

Ye Jin turned. A richly dressed youth strolled in. He waved a jade-bone fan painted with mountains and rivers. His whole air was spoiled and flashy.

This little dandy—barely old enough to have peach fuzz—already had two women with him. Both were stunning young courtesans. Ye Jin felt a sharp pang of jealousy.

Ye Jin quickly scanned his memories. His expression changed.

This youth was Huangfu Yu. Fourth son of the current Huangfu clan chief. A notorious dandy in the capital. Domineering and arrogant. Always causing trouble.

Even Ye Jin—strictly raised, a good kid—had been provoked by him before. Ye Jin had nearly beaten him half to death, despite not having mastered martial arts yet.

After checking the guy's file, Ye Jin felt a wave of jealousy he couldn't stop.

Comparing people was infuriating. Other noble brats barely had hair on their lips, and they were already busy with marriage alliances, concubines, brothels, mistresses, and harassing decent women.

But Ye family children had to stay in a secret country estate until their coming-of-age ceremony. Study by day, train by night. Either getting smacked by the teacher's ruler or whipped by the instructor.

Miserable didn't cover it.

The youth snapped his fan shut. He rapped it on the boss's counter. "Boss, watch your counter. Don't let anything go missing. This one's hands aren't clean."

The noble dandies behind him burst out laughing. They mocked Ye Jin with everything they had.

The boss's face turned ugly. He glanced at Ye Jin's blank expression. Then he muttered something and slipped away.

These secrets between great nobles were better left alone. Mocking Ye Jin was a privilege for these noble brats. He had no right to overstep.

Ye Jin slowly turned. His cold eyes swept over the dandies like arrows. A few of the lower nobles couldn't take his pressure. They dropped their heads.

You can't get fat from one meal. Three generations can't make a noble. The pride and aura of the Ye family came from generations of ancestors who'd served as ministers and generals.

Ye Jin's gaze passed over Huangfu Yu. It landed on the noble brats laughing behind him. His finger traced a slow arc.

"Anyone got the guts to laugh again?" Ye Jin's voice was light. Calm. No kingly aura.

But the naked threat in his cold tone choked them.

A few lower nobles coughed. Their laughter died awkwardly.

The old Ye family and the newly rich Huangfu family were peers. Ye Jin might not be able to touch the Huangfu family. But crushing these small fry? Easy.