Rei and Dell trekked deeper into the dense canopy of the Sky Cloud Forest. The damp, misty air hummed with ambient mana, and the towering trees stretched so high their tops were lost in the low-hanging clouds.
"Currently, we are in the Sky Cloud Forest," Rei said, adjusting his blindfold as his silver air lightly pulsed outward to map their surroundings. "These forests are known to house magical beasts that are far stronger than a full group of A-rank hunters, so stay alert."
Dell shrugged, rolling his shoulders. "Really? Seems pretty much harmless to me so far. Oh, look, there's a clearing up ahead."
As Dell stepped into the open space, the ground suddenly dropped off into a massive cliffside. Standing directly in front of them was a monstrous creature—an Ice Shard Bear. It loomed nearly thirty times their size, its back covered in jagged, crystalline spikes. The beast opened its maw and roared, revealing rows of smaller, needle-like teeth lining the inside of its throat.
"Now this is getting completely illogical," Rei muttered, tracking the internal structural changes of the beast. "This is an Ice Shard Bear. It has the power to breathe concentrated ice fumes that instantly freeze anything they touch."
"Don't worry, let me handle this," Dell said, a fierce grin crossing his face as he ignited his bloodline power.
The bear lunged, exhaling a massive wave of absolute-zero frost toward the boy. Before the vapor could reach him, Rei raised his hand. "No, you don't." With a swift movement of his scepter, Rei generated a focused gust of wind that dispersed the freezing fumes into the atmosphere.
With the breath weapon countered, Dell jumped high into the air. "You're not getting away now!" He threw a powerful punch, striking the massive bear and sending it flying through the air before it crashed heavily into the dirt.
"We need to keep moving, let's go," Rei said, walking toward the beast's lair.
"Yeah, but before that, let's take the materials inside the bear's den," Dell suggested.
Inside the cavern, they found a hoard of rare, high-level beast components left behind by the bear's previous hunts, including Minotaur horns and Dark Python scales.
Dell sighed, looking at the pile. "Too bad we can only take one of these and not all of them. I'm taking the Minotaur horns; they'll make a good armor."
"I will take the Ice Unicorn's horn," Rei decided, picking up the rare, pale artifact. "It can help me keep cool in the summer and can be used to craft high-grade wands in the future. They are rarely found in the wild."
Suddenly, the black winds of the scepter swirled outward as Pandora manifested. Without warning, she used her dark aura to shroud the remaining pile of treasures, drawing them completely inside the Chaos Scepter.
Rei blinked in surprise. "Pandora, can you take out the Dark Python's scale?"
Pandora nodded happily. The black wind surged again, materializing the heavy, dark python scale onto the ground.
"Put it back," Rei instructed, and she promptly absorbed it once more. Rei stared at his weapon, deep in thought. How is she using the Chaos Scepter as a spatial storage device? This violate the established laws of space and mind connection, meaning this scepter is hiding something far deeper than I initially calculated.
"Come on, let's go, Rei," Dell called out.
"Sure. Pandora, stay out for a bit," Rei said as the girl floated alongside him, her form anchored to the dark winds. "It's time to start teaching you."
As the trio walked through another clearing, they spotted a lone Stone Monkey sitting on a boulder. Its body, typically covered in protective, rocky skin, was heavily bruised and battered.
"A lone Stone Monkey? Something's not right," Rei murmured.
"What do you mean?" Dell asked. "He's just sitting there by himself."
"Exactly. That's the part that makes no sense," Rei explained. "Stone Monkeys are strictly pack creatures. They never travel alone."
The Stone Monkey spotted them, let out a desperate cry, and dashed forward. Dell began to ignite his bloodline power to defend them, but the monkey stopped short, frantically gesturing toward a deeper part of the forest.
"Looks like his pack is in danger," Dell said. "Should we help him?"
Rei stepped closer to the trembling creature. "If we help your pack, your life belongs to me from now on. Understand?"
The Stone Monkey nodded frantically.
As they followed the creature through the thick brush, Dell asked, "What do you even want with a Stone Monkey, Rei? They're the bottom of the barrel. Their strength is incredibly low, and they're classified as a deadly beast, not even a true magical beast."
"I want to start an experiment," Rei answered calmly. "I want to see if a beast can be artificially granted high intelligence and become stronger than an average human. He happens to be the perfect baseline specimen for my research."
Dell shook his head with a small laugh. "Sometimes I don't know whether to support your crazy ideas or fight you."
When they arrived at the pack's nesting ground, the scene was grim. Dozens of Stone Monkeys lay dead across the torn earth. A massive White Snow Tiger was actively hunting the survivors, cornering them against a rock wall.
"Why would a high-tier beast like a snow tiger even hunt Stone Monkeys?" Dell asked, confused. "Their skin is hard as rock and they aren't tasty at all."
"Look at its eyes and movements," Rei noted. "It's in a berserker state."
Dell watched the tiger. Instead of eating the closest monkey it had just killed, the beast lunged erratically across the clearing to attack a completely different one further away. "You're right. It's completely out of its mind."
"Let's stop it," Rei said. "Dell, you go fight it. Don't you want to test your body's limits?"
"Yeah, I'm on it," Dell said. He purposely left the mountain-breaker gauntlet deactivated on his arm, choosing to face the tiger using only his bare fists and his inherent bloodline strength.
Dell lunged forward, throwing a heavy punch straight into the tiger's skull. The force hurled the massive predator sideways, crushing it into the dirt. The White Snow Tiger roared in fury, pushing itself up and exhaling a freezing white fog that rapidly blanketed the clearing in thick snow.
Dell simply leaped through the mist, instantly appearing behind the beast. Months ago, back when he was a standard rebel, a high-tier beast like this would have given him an incredibly difficult, life-threatening fight. But now, after all his training, the terrifying tiger felt like nothing more than a stray cat.
Dell grabbed the tiger by its massive tail, lifting it off the ground and swinging it around like a rag doll. "Well, this isn't even a fight," Dell laughed. "This is just me playing around."
With a powerful heave, he hurled the tiger straight up into the sky. As the beast reached the apex of its launch and began to fall back down, Dell leaped up to meet it. "Get ready to die!" he shouted, driving a heavy fist directly into its chest, shattering its ribs and destroying its internal organs in a single blow.
Dell landed smoothly in the snow, pumping his fists. "Yeah! I've gotten so strong, baby! Yeah!"
Rei turned back to the trembling Stone Monkey that had led them there. "Now, you belong to me." The monkey, thoroughly terrified by the display of strength, bowed its head and submissively followed them.
Meanwhile, in the noble's estate, the atmosphere was thick with tension. The corrupt Noble and his elite General walked out into the grand courtyard, facing Kaiser, Hella, Adriel, Sentry, and the mysterious beggar, Axel.
"Well, look at them," the Noble sneered, gesturing at the intruders. "Trying to destroy what my family has built over centuries. General, will you please show these vermin their proper place?"
The General drew a massive, heavy greatsword. "With pleasure, my Lord."
Kaiser stepped forward, unsheathing his blade. "Let me show you who really needs to learn their place."
While Hella, Adriel, Sentry, and Axel bypassed the vanguard to pursue the fleeing Noble, the General focused entirely on Kaiser. "I saw your previous battles, boy. Your wind techniques won't affect me."
"Oh, yeah? Then take this! Wind Hurricane Slash!" Kaiser unleashed a rapid succession of flying wind blades. As the sharp currents neared the General, the man executed a flawless Imperial Sword technique, cleanly cutting right through the magical winds with his heavy blade.
Kaiser paused, his eyes narrowing. "But how?"
The General laughed. "Did you forget, boy? A master martial swordsman can cut straight through magic. Your tricks are useless."
"That changes nothing," Kaiser replied smoothly, shifting his stance. "It only means I have to rely on my actual sword techniques."
"Fine then, let's spar!" the General roared. He brought his greatsword down with immense, bone-crushing force.
However, Kaiser's Central Sword Style, perfectly integrated with the legendary Sword Saint technique, was built entirely on the foundation of an absolute, unbreakable defense. Kaiser caught the massive blow seamlessly on his blade, absorbing the kinetic shock through his stance.
The General's eyes widened slightly at the perfect block. Shifting his weight, he spun and delivered a rapid horizontal strike toward Kaiser's flank, but Kaiser deflected it with equal ease. The General backed away, catching his breath. "That sword style... it looks like the Central Sword Style, but there's a distinct twist to it. I thought that defensive style was forgotten centuries ago."
"I am the living proof that it lives on," Kaiser said.
The General let out a harsh laugh. "But not for long!" He unleashed a vicious upward slash. Kaiser firmly rooted his feet into the earth, executing a textbook parry. The General quickly pivoted, spinning backward to launch a diagonal strike, but Kaiser deflected it effortlessly.
The General's brow began to sweat. He knew that the longer this duel continued, the more dangerous it would become for him. The core mechanic of the Central Sword Style was its ability to meticulously scan an opponent's patterns and weaknesses while maintaining a perfect defense, leading directly into the 7th Verse: The Counter—a customized strike meant to instantly defeat the foe.
The General launched a desperate upward strike followed by a sudden, low kick to catch Kaiser off guard. But Kaiser had already predicted the movement. He lightly jumped over the sweeping leg, delivered a swift kick to the General's shin, and as the officer stumbled back in pain, Kaiser unleashed a chaotic, blindingly fast flurry of wild slashes that completely defied tracking.
"No! This isn't the Central Style!" the General screamed in panic as Kaiser's blade precisely severed his sword-arm at the wrist.
Kaiser stepped back, his blade dripping with blood as he unleashed his sorcery. "I will show you now—my very own custom sword sorcery technique."
Water rapidly materialized around Kaiser, swirling into the massive, roaring shape of a serpentine dragon.
"Flood Dragon Slash!"
The massive elemental dragon surged through Kaiser's blade and devoured the General whole, washing him away into the courtyard walls. Kaiser sheathed his sword with a calm click. "You targeted the wrong people."