Reborn as the General's Useless Daughter-Chapter 234: The Ancient Ruins (Part-6)

By the time Zora finally completed her breakthrough and opened her eyes, the scene before her made her pause.

Black and White were sprawled on the ground, their chests heaving, and their fur in complete disarray, looking as if they had just survived a fierce battle.

A trace of amusement and confusion flickered in her clear eyes.

There were only the three beasts and herself in this stone chamber. Who had these two little fellows been fighting?

"What happened to you two?" Zora asked, unable to hide her curiosity.

"Huff... huff..." Black barely managed to sit up, waving a paw weakly. "Master... I’m... exhausted."

White wasn’t in much better shape, but his eyes still gleamed with excitement, as if something incredible had just happened.

"What happened?"

Zora’s brows lifted slightly. Judging from their condition, something unusual must have occurred while she was in seclusion.

Black finally caught its breath and hurried over, carefully placing a small object into her palm. "Master, this is for you."

Zora lowered her gaze to the key resting in her hand. Its shape was ancient and delicate, clearly not an ordinary item. A trace of surprise surfaced on her refined features.

"Where did you find this key?"

Almost the instant she saw it, she was certain. This was the key to the black iron box. Yet that certainty only deepened her confusion.

White puffed out his chest and began recounting everything that had happened, from the strange Essence Fruit that refused to be caught, to the frantic chase, and finally to the key hidden within it.

As the story unfolded, Zora’s expression grew increasingly thoughtful.

The mind behind this ruin was truly meticulous.

From the moment she stepped into this stone chamber, everything that followed had clearly been planned. Only after absorbing all the Essence Fruits would the final one reveal itself. Only by catching that elusive fruit would she obtain the key. And only then would the path forward truly open.

If she had missed even one step, she would have been trapped here indefinitely.

"So that’s how it was," she murmured softly. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

"How long have I been in seclusion?" she asked, suddenly realizing how much time must have passed.

"Half a month," Black replied slowly, his tone tinged with grievance.

"Half a whole month. We were bored to death."

Zora couldn’t help smiling. These two had spent far too long confined within the Ring of Chaos. Loneliness was the one thing they feared most.

"I wonder how Kael is doing now..." she murmured under her breath.

The sudden separation still weighed on her mind. Half a month inside the ruins was no short time. She could easily imagine how worried he must be.

Her gaze soon shifted back to the black iron box in her hands.

Whatever was inside had been guarded by layers of trials. It could not be ordinary.

With a soft click, the lock gave way.

As the lid opened, a cold, luminous glow spilled out, instantly drawing her breath away.

Inside lay a slender sword, long and crystalline, as clear as frozen ice. A chilling aura radiated from it, sharp yet elegant, as though the blade itself were alive.

Even with her vast experience, Zora felt her heart stir.

Of all the weapons she had ever seen, none compared to this.

As the sword slightly shifted, its edge flashed with a cold, killing light. Beneath that clarity, a faint red hue flickered, like blood sealed within crystal.

Beautiful. Deadly. And quite Irresistible.

"Wow..." Black gasped in amazement. "This sword is incredible."

White leaned closer, its eyes went wide. "Look carefully. There’s a trace of red inside the blade... It’s like blood."

Hearing White’s words, Zora finally noticed that within the crystal-clear blade, there was indeed a faint trace of blood-red color.

The hue was extremely light. If one didn’t look closely, it would be easy to miss.

"This sword is definitely not an ordinary item."

Her voice was soft, yet tinged with emotion. Her gaze lingered on the sword in her hand, growing increasingly focused. From the moment she saw it, she could tell that this blade was extraordinary.

Even lying quietly inside the black iron box, it carried an indescribable sharpness and killing intent. It was calm, restrained, yet dangerous.

Without a doubt, this was a sword that had drunk lots of blood.

"Master, you should bind it with blood first," White urged.

"Once we leave this stone room, who knows how many people will covet it. If you bind it now, it won’t be so easy for others to snatch it away."

Zora nodded slightly. That had already been her intention the moment she laid eyes on the sword.

She had long lacked a truly suitable weapon. This blade appeared at precisely the right time. With it, her combat strength would surely rise to another level.

Without hesitation, she lifted her hand and lightly cut her fingertip.

A drop of fresh blood fell onto the blade.

The blood did not immediately merge with the sword. Instead, it slid smoothly along the crystal surface, tracing a thin crimson line from the hilt all the way to the tip.

As Zora infused her spiritual sense into it, the blood was slowly absorbed.

In the next instant, a bright white glow bloomed across the sword, shimmering like the light that filled the ruins themselves.

Then, elegant yet razor-sharp characters gradually appeared on the crystal blade.

"Eira," Zora murmured.

So this sword was called Eira.

Even the name suited it perfectly.

"This sword is incredible," Black muttered, its eyes gleaming. "It’s definitely no ordinary weapon."

White nodded in agreement, equally astonished. "Congratulations, Master!"

Yet Zora gently shook her head. "No, I’ve only left my mark on it. This isn’t true recognition."

"What?" Black and White stared at her in surprise.

"There’s still a seal on the Sword," she explained calmly. "Breaking that seal won’t be easy. With my current strength, forcing it would do more harm than good."

She paused briefly before continuing, "For now, it’s enough that it bears my spiritual imprint. We’ll deal with the seal later. The priority is leaving this ruin."

The two beasts exchanged glances and nodded. They now understood that truly powerful treasures were never simple to control.

Zora stood up and turned her gaze toward the stone door ahead. She had been trapped in this chamber for far too long. It was time to move on.

Just then, her eyes caught something unusual.

On the right side of the stone chamber, there was a small, almost hidden door. Beside it sat a mechanism so plain and understated that it was easy to overlook.

With a thoughtful look, she stepped forward and turned the mechanism.

"Click."

A clear sound echoed through the chamber.

The next moment, the heavy stone door in front of her slowly began to open.

After all that effort, the iron shoes truly weren’t worn in vain.

That was the shared feeling of Zora and the two little beasts. They had searched high and low for mechanisms earlier, exhausting themselves without result, yet in the end, the stone door opened with such ease that it almost felt unreal.

Before Zora could even take a full step out of the stone chamber, a familiar, cheerful voice rang out.

"Zora, you’re finally out!"

There was only one person who could sound so lively and full of relief.

Before Zora could react, she was pulled straight into a tight embrace.