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Chapter 22

As I expected, the Fourth Degree transformed my blood, and the Fifth Degree reinforced my internal organs. Blood is associated with the water element, and the heart, which is the most important organ, is associated with the fire element.

His blood changed in a way that was very simple but unfathomably advantageous. His lifeblood, the source of his vitality, proliferated, and his overall physical well-being and healing ability also improved greatly. Leonard was also now immune to poisons and diseases that might enter open wounds. He wouldn’t die from lethal doses of venom, and injuries that should leave him in a critical state would only be mild.

But the Fifth Degree gave me even greater abilities.

The moment he entered the Fifth Degree Body Refining Tier, it reinforced his heart the most—the organ and source of life that circulated blood throughout his body.

A piercing sound like thunder came from his chest, and his internal organs began to transform in response. The adjustment still made his back tingle. Cardiovascular endurance, lung capacity, digestion, detoxification, energy storage, cell regeneration—he’d only increased by one Degree, but dozens of bodily functions had heightened.

These changes seem small, but when you put them all together, it’s a different story. I’m practically superhuman.

The Fifth Degree Body Refining Tier enhanced his basic biological functions, making it so that he could survive in any environment. In order to survive in Galapagos Island’s harsh climate, a person had to reach that level. That was why Bradley had made it the standard.

“... Found it.” After he left his dwelling and walked for around an hour, Leonard finally reached his destination. He was at the spatial portal, the device that had brought him to the island from the Cardenas estate. He didn’t know where Bradley was, but there was something he might be able to use to summon him.

And indeed, there was a bell hanging next to the portal. Leonard fixed his gaze on it and narrowed his eyes. I knew it.

Galapagos Island was just as difficult to access for outsiders as it was for members of the Cardenas family. Though the seashore looked peaceful, once a person headed toward the horizon, they would face hellishly violent sea currents that could swallow even the largest vessels without a sound.

Therefore, the only way to safely exchange supplies was through the spatial portal, and that necessitated a way to summon the person in charge whenever he was needed.

Ding. Ding.

The bell sounded like a normal bell. It wasn’t big, nor was it small. The sound could only travel one hundred meters at most, but it still worked.

“What is it?” Bradley suddenly appeared behind Leonard. He sounded a little angry.

“I came here to get a real sword,” the boy explained.

“A real sword? Have you already reached the Fifth Degree Body Refining Tier?”

“No. I’ve just reached the Third Degree,” Leonard casually lied through his teeth. Over the past month, he had learned more about the Body Refining Tier while he was training, so he knew that it was hard to detect a person’s power level until they reached the Sixth Degree Body Refining Tier. Though a master martial artist in the Transcendence Tier might be able to see it with their third eye, Bradley couldn’t. Once Leonard reached the Sixth Degree and his mana capacity and output proliferated, his Degree would be hard to hide.

“Hm. The Third Degree, you say?” Bradley looked suspicious. He threw a fist without even winding up. Disregarding strength, his punch was only impossibly fast. Unless someone had enhanced reflexes, they would simply be hit.

Leonard, understanding what Bradley was doing, bent back.

Woosh! Bradley’s fist grazed his nose and pulled away faster than it came. Now that he’d confirmed Leonard’s skills, the knight nodded.

“So it’s true. You have a penta-core, and yet you’ve reached the Third Degree in less than two months. You must have trained very hard,” he remarked, and some of the tension left his face. He looked straight at Leonard. He’d been wondering why the boy looked like a beggar, but when he realized that Leonard had gone so far as to neglect his appearance to focus wholly on training, Bradley only felt pride.

“Why are you asking for a sword?” Bradley asked.

“I believe that it’s about time that I familiarize myself with a real sword rather than a wooden one. Not only will it help me train, but I think it would be difficult to protect myself with a wooden sword if I fall into danger.”

He was only half-lying. Obviously, Leonard had no need to familiarize himself with a real sword. He was an expert who could do anything with a sword if he put his mind to it. But even in his hands, a real sword was more than three times deadlier than a wooden one. Because he couldn’t use sword qi yet, the material of his sword mattered.

“Hm. All right, as long as you don’t act recklessly,” Bradley warned.

He reached into his subspace pouch and pulled out a sword that was typically used during the probation period. It was no Honor Sword, but it was perfectly crafted for a member of the Cardenas family to use.

Leonard accepted the weapon and the sheathe, then fastened them onto his belt.

“If you lose it, you’ll have to pay mana stones for a replacement,” the knight added.

That prompted Leonard to ask another question. “What if it breaks?”

“You can get it fixed for half the price.”

“That’s very... rational.” This reminded Leonard that when he had first learned that the island residents were self-sustaining, he’d found out that almost nothing came for free on the island.

Bradley had been considerate to him so far because he was a fresh graduate, but if he’d been a second-year trainee, he would have been treated the same way as all the other pages.

The knight smiled when he saw Leonard’s look of disappointment. “Keeping your weapon in good condition is also a skill. But you can cover for your mistake with mana stones, so you could also say the rules are generous.”

The boy assented. “I understand.”

“Next time, don’t ring the bell. Go that way to the watchtower. I’m usually at the top of it,” Bradley suggested.

Apparently, the bell was only used for emergency situations and when outsiders came to visit. Bradley had come as fast as he could because it had rung all of a sudden, so it made sense that he was annoyed at the false alarm. The fact that he left without giving Leonard a hard scolding was a testament to his gracious character.

Bradley leaped into the air just as he had when he came and disappeared into the distance.

What an interesting lightness art. Can he use the air as a foothold? Leonard wondered. Now that his processing speed had improved by several times thanks to Body Refinement, it wasn’t hard to deduce the source of Bradley’s agility.

Martial artists couldn’t bend naturally occurring energy to their will until they reached the Transcendental Realm, but it was very likely that the knight had a wind mana core that allowed him to step on air. Though Bradley’s technique limited his movements and consumed more stamina compared to windwalking, it had the advantage of being accessible to those in the Apex Realm. In addition, it removed the defenselessness of being in the air.

Shaak. Shaak. Leonard casually unsheathed his sword and cut his shaggy hair. He trimmed it just enough so that it wouldn’t get in the way, and he even trimmed his fingernails and toenails. Though he still didn’t look agreeable, he seemed slightly less dirty. If he wanted to fix his appearance, he would have to wash his face or shower, but it wasn’t time to go back yet.

According to this map, there’s an area with demonic beasts to the north of the beach and the spatial portal. They’ll make good hunting targets.

It was called the Forest of Wastes. It was the habitat of monsters who’d been forced out of the deeper parts of the forest due to their weakness. They barely survived by stealing scraps.

There was a small sign that rated the level of danger with one skull. In small writing, it read: Minimum recommended party: Three pages, Eighth Degree Body Refining Tier or higher.

However, Leonard only took the words to mean that the Forest of Wastes was a good place to warm up.

“The scale on this map is atrocious, so I’m not sure how far it is... I should take the opportunity to document the area in more detail,” Leonard muttered to himself. He stuck the dirty map into his pocket and began walking toward the Forest of Wastes.

His sword was still in his right hand. He hadn’t even bothered to sheathe it, preferring to feel its weight.

It had been a long time since he’d held a real sword. Perhaps that was why a sharp stench of blood began to radiate off Leonard as he walked step by step.

***

Galapagos Island had been isolated from the outside world for centuries, possibly millennia. Because of the violent currents, boats couldn’t approach it. Even if someone happened to end up on the island, there was no way to leave. If the Cardenas ancestors hadn’t deemed it a good training ground, it would still be empty of people.

Because Galapagos Island was overflowing with mana, the flora and fauna were also very unique. In fact, the island was teeming with animals and plants that had mutated and were very rare in the rest of the world.

Despite the island’s extreme conditions, it was most notorious for the fact that it was a Corroded Realm.

Kree! Kree! A group of hobgoblins were carefully making their way through the forest. The color of their skin blended into their environment, allowing them to camouflage, and the horns on their heads marked them as being in the Mature Demon Tier. They were evolved versions of the weakest monster, the goblin, and stood one Demon Tier above them.

The demonic beasts went through a process similar to Body Refinement, but because of the difference in species, their classification system was very different from humans’.

First Stage, Fledgling Demon Tier.

Second Stage, Mature Demon Tier.

Third Stage, True Demon Tier.

Fourth Stage, Chaos Demon Tier.

Fifth Stage, Celestial Demon Tier.

Unlike the humans’ system, their classification system did not have Minor Tiers, and every time a monster advanced a stage, their appearance changed and they became an entirely different species. Hobgoblins, therefore, were simply goblins who’d reached the Second Stage, the Mature Demon Tier.

Of course, that didn’t mean they could overpower ogres that were in the First Stage. Biological differences in power enabled monsters to defeat others that were one or two Demon Tiers above them. So, monsters were assessed by their species as well as their individual power rankings.

It went something like this:

<Hobgoblin>

Goblin Species Classification: Rank E

Major Tier: Mature Demon Tier

Overall Rating: E2

<Ogre>

Ogre Species Classification: Rank A

Major Tier: Fledgling Demon Tier

Overall Rating: A1

An E2 monster couldn’t be defeated by a well-built man. There had to at least be a platoon of trained soldiers, or a page or two.

However, there were tens of E2 hobgoblins, not just one or two. And though they were primitive, they had weapons and were moving around as one group.

Kree! The hobgoblin at the head of the horde gave a signal, and all the others behind it immediately dropped to the ground in a practiced move. Because they were short, hiding was quick and easy.

Kreee! Kree! Their leader gave another order, and one hobgoblin broke away from the group and climbed up a tree to get a better vantage point. As soon as it reached the top, it spotted the enemy—just as Leonard had planned.

Kreeeeee! There was a human with a steel sword. He looked smaller and younger than the ones they usually saw. The hobgoblins’ eyes glinted with bloodlust. Though the hobgoblins were at the very bottom of Galapagos Island’s food chain, they became unbelievably vicious whenever they came across a being weaker than them.

The hobgoblin climbed down the tree and reported to the leader. It wasn’t even able to hide its bloodlust.

Swoop! Its head was cut clean off before it could finish its barbaric cry. Blood spurted from the base of the neck.

Kree?! The hobgoblin panicked as the blood suddenly sprayed across its face, making Leonard smile insidiously.

Hunting hobgoblins was a completely different sensation from hunting rabbits and other small game. It had been a long time since Leonard had beheaded an opponent, and the feeling excited his inner Sword Emperor self.

“You know, I was planning to wait until you came to me, but I suppose I’m not disciplined enough yet,” he declared.

Indescribable terror came over the hobgoblins. This human didn’t look bigger or stronger than them, so how could he have the same aura as the demonic beasts deeper in the forest?

If they fought, they would die.

If they ran, they would die.

Trapped between two impossible choices, the leader barely managed to collect itself and let out a sharp scream.

Grooooo!

Kill him, it ordered. At that, the hobgoblins charged in, waving their crooked spears and clubs.

Leonard appreciated their reckless courage. “You are brave. I’ll kill you relatively painlessly.”

As soon as the monsters got closer and met his eyes, the instincts they’d honed from surviving in the Forest of Wastes for years began to scream.

No.

No.

If they tried to fight this monster—

Splat! Leonard cut through a hobgoblin’s neck as if it were a rotten radish, and the head flew into the air. It was the beginning of a one-sided bloodbath.