One Sword Solves It

Roy moved forward.

His Spiritual Power was highly concentrated, his pupils faintly glowing with a dangerous red light, which became even brighter against the shadows of his face.

One step, two steps…

He was getting closer.

"What is this guy doing?"

Trides and the others instantly became alert, pulling their horses to a halt, drawing their weapons in preparation.

This continent was a reserved area specifically opened up by the Wizards, with no other humans besides the Apprentices in the Towers.

In this wilderness, approaching rashly inherently meant hostility.

Suddenly, they smelled a strange odor like rotting apples.

Seeing their slightly dazed expressions, Roy immediately knew they had fallen for his trap.

His timing was perfect; he wanted to make them stop and be wary, to smell the scent of fermented rotten snake fruit drifting in with the wind.

However, this couldn't replace Orchard's Bane; it was merely a prelude.

He decisively raised his arm.

A projectile propelled by a High-Pressure Gas Cylinder shot out, transforming into an attack similar to "Acid Splash."

In their daze, the group reacted sluggishly and couldn't dodge in time.

The gas projectile hit Trides, and the "acid" bubbled rapidly, making sizzling sounds that sent a chill down everyone's spines.

This terrifying corrosiveness…

If it had splashed on someone's face, it would have surely disfigured them!

Trides was also in a panic, but soon, the strange smell, like rotting, fermented apples, changed and faintly turned into the aroma of wine.

His eyes became hazy, and he froze for a moment.

On Roy's side, the Adrenaline began to take effect.

A strange excitement surged through his body like a warm current, his heart pounded, and his blood boiled.

His steps became lighter and lighter, until finally, he was sprinting, charging towards them like an arrow released from a bow.

"Not good!"

Someone in the group finally reacted, shouting a loud warning.

Roy ignored them completely, charging straight to Trides, drawing his sword and slashing.

The physical strength and power of a Low-level Knight, far surpassing ordinary people, combined with the boost from Adrenaline…

This granted him a powerful attack far beyond what he could normally unleash at his current stage.

The hallucinatory effect of "Orchard's Bane" rendered Trides completely unable to fight back, like a live target sitting there waiting to be slaughtered.

"Ah!"

Trides screamed, clutching his sliced waist and abdomen, falling from his Necromancer Warhorse.

The blood and screams diluted the effects of "Orchard's Bane," and several Intermediate Apprentices awoke as if from a dream, screaming and fleeing in disarray.

Roy stood where he was, not pursuing, quietly calming his emotions and breathing.

After a long period of vigilance, he planted his Iron Sword on the ground, trembling slightly, and gasped for air.

This was the aftereffect of using Adrenaline.

Combined with the tension and tensed muscles, the extra energy expenditure had left him feeling somewhat weak.

But he hadn't relaxed at all; he was prepared with a second dose of Adrenaline, and the Orchard's Bane and Calming Pu Shui Xiang hidden in his pocket could be crushed at any moment.

At the critical moment, he would pull everyone into the Nightmare illusion, regardless of friend or foe.

Then, he would use the Calming Pu Shui Xiang to regain consciousness first and reap the rewards.

If those people dared to return.

However, that situation didn't occur.

Those people were clearly terrified. After fleeing, they quickly distanced themselves from the scene, completely abandoning Trides.

A moment later, Roy refocused his attention on Trides.

This person who had once threatened him and vowed to make a move against him was now dead on the spot.

A look of terror was frozen on his corpse's face, becoming his final mark.

Roy briefly checked his belongings.

Just as he expected.

The 42 Magic Stones he had given him earlier had returned, glistening, and he had even earned about 10 more.

However, he wasn't here to kill for treasure. He simply dealt with the body, threw it into a nearby small grove, and then left in a hurry.

Around 7 PM, Roy smoothly returned to the Wizard Tower to hand in his mission.

The attendant on duty this evening was not one of the apprentices from earlier. They spoke in a strictly business-like manner, reminding him, "The Wizard Tower offers preferential treatment to apprentices like you who take on missions independently. Up to half of the quota harvest can be retained for your own needs…

Do you wish to submit everything for mission rewards, or keep some for yourself?"

"I'll keep five and submit fifteen," Roy replied after a moment's thought.

The Wizard Tower possessed technology similar to storage space, capable of preserving fresh fruits for a long time.

It wouldn't matter if others consumed them through mission rewards or purchases during that period; he could always pick more.

He had tasted the benefits and didn't want to publicly reveal the secret that "Calming Pu Shui Xiang can counter mental illusions" just yet.

Furthermore, Potterning's threat still loomed, so he needed to keep a low profile and bide his time for now.

The next day, in the Wizard Tower's cafeteria.

"Trides is dead!

He was ambushed by a mysterious figure in the wilderness and ripped open on the spot. It was horrific!" Renion exclaimed, having somehow gotten wind of the news, his voice laced with disbelief.

"I told you it was dangerous outside!"

"Who would do such a thing? They're too brutal!" Nia and Andov chimed in with gasps of astonishment.

One after another…

They had already lost count of how many fellow apprentices from their cohort had met such fates.

"Oh, really? That's truly satisfying to hear," Roy responded calmly, continuing to eat his breakfast.

The others marveled, their minds filled with awe and a heightened sense of the dangers lurking outside.

As for suspicion…

It was utterly impossible.

Roy, being such a low-key and honest person, how could he possibly be so ruthless?

This kind of cognitive bias was akin to the inherent nature of a "sheep" and a "wolf."

How could anyone suspect a "sheep" of eating a "wolf"?

Roy ignored their chatter and fell into his own thoughts.

"Through this recent action, I can confirm that in my normal state, I possess strength equivalent to a Low-level Knight.

When adrenaline is stimulated, I can temporarily elevate to the Intermediate Knight stage…"

The Seven Towers Alliance uses "the power of one person" as its standard.

Converting this to Spell Power, it equates to "1 Degree."

This actually accounts for the "foundation," including soul quality.

After formally advancing, Level 1, Level 2, Level 3…

Subsequent soul awakenings and energy leaps, along with influencing the natural world and manipulating its rules…

The power of Advanced spells will reach an exaggerated level, comparable to nuclear bombs in a scientific world.

At that point, 10,000 Degrees of Spell Power will no longer be simply 10,000 times that of 1 Degree, nor a simple sum of 10,000 people.

It will be the "power of ritual" like "religious ceremonies" or "sacrifice of all souls"…

However, during the apprentice stage, such complex factors can be excluded, and calculations can be made through simple addition.

Learning the "Knight Breathing Technique" and breaking through mortal limits marks one as a Low-level Knight.

At this stage, physical strength, power, and other attributes are counted as 2 Degrees, with significant improvements in speed and reaction time.

And in the Intermediate Knight stage, physique and strength can reach over 3 times that of an ordinary person!

Combined with advanced martial arts and superior equipment, this is enough to annihilate a small bandit army single-handedly!

The statement that 10,000 Degrees of Spell Power is not 10,000 times that of 1 Degree…

This might be difficult to grasp, but if "Degree" were replaced with "Level."

Then, 10,000 Level of power is not 10,000 times the power of Level 1… which would be easier to understand.

The reason "Degree" is still used as a unit is due to the ancestral coding of the Wizarding path. This is for clarification.