Breaking Through to Seventh-Level Warrior

Matthews stood beneath the waterfall and began swinging his blade, cutting through the falling water.

He remembered the training scenes from the TV dramas he'd watched, where swordsmen practiced with their blades. They would slash at waterfalls, and if the cascade split apart in a flash of steel, it meant they had reached a certain level of mastery.

So Matthews stayed there and began swinging, hoping to reach that level himself.

He trained like this for two years before finally mastering the second level of swordsmanship. He had now touched upon the third level, and could at last swing his blade and cut through the waterfall downstream.

"Boss, I brought back a magical beast's leg. Let's have beef today!"

"Sure."

Matthews sheathed his blade and wiped the water from it, then went to look for some edible wild vegetables. After eating meat all year, he had lost a lot of weight, so finding some greens was a must. At Asolun's request, he roasted the leg for this meal. Matthews himself wrapped some of the roast meat in edible leaves and ate it, too!

"Boss, where are we going next?"

Matthews looked at Asolun, who was now a Fourth-Level Magical Beast, and said, "We're running low on salt, so let's start heading back."

"Okay."

That day, Matthews started making his way out. He saw a wounded warrior approaching him.

"Don't come any closer. If you do, I'll attack."

"I mean no harm."

The wounded warrior dropped the spear he was leaning on and gestured to Matthews to show that he wasn't a threat.

Matthews was no longer the naïve young man he'd once been. When he'd first arrived in the Magic Beast Mountain Range, he might have been arrogant and overconfident. Now, he wouldn't let anyone approach so easily. "Is some magical beast chasing you?"

"No."

"Stop right there!"

Seeing the suspicion in Matthews's eyes, the warrior spread his hands to show that he meant no harm. He was injured and wanted to ask Matthews for help.

"All right, then. I'm leaving."

With that, Matthews walked away. In his mind, Asolun asked in confusion, "Boss, why is that man following us?"

"Maybe he saw we were traveling alone and decided to make us his target."

"Then should we kill him now?"

"No rush. Let's see how this plays out."

The wounded warrior followed them all the way. That evening, Matthews gave Asolun a piece of the meat he'd roasted earlier. Then he took out a small knife and cut some for himself.

"Brother, could I have a piece? I'm getting hungry, too!"

Matthews gave him a knowing smile. "Aren't you afraid I poisoned it?"

"Hahaha, I'm no naïve kid. I saw you eat it first. Besides, I mean no harm."

As he spoke, he edged closer to Matthews. Once he sat down, he continued, "I trust you wouldn't kill me for no reason."

"Whatever makes you happy."

Matthews tossed him the beef, then picked up and ate the last piece. That night, he had Asolun stay alert while he pretended to rest. Nothing happened all night, as if the warrior really were injured and simply hoping Matthews would help him.

The next day went much like the one before: Matthews walked, and the man followed. At lunchtime, Matthews pretended he'd run out of salt and got the man to take some out. He used it to cook a meal, and only after the man had eaten did Matthews sample a few bites.

If he doesn't make a move tonight, I'll kill him. I can't waste much more energy dealing with him.

That night, Matthews went to sleep. The warrior knew Matthews was wary of him, but had now crept to within five meters.

He watched Matthews coldly, waiting until his breathing grew faint and he fell asleep.

"Kid, you were on your guard, but you're nowhere near as careful as the last one I killed. He kept me waiting four or five days before I could get within five meters of him. Don't blame me for your death. Blame yourself for being so green."

Grinning to himself, he crept closer to Matthews. Then he suddenly surged forward, thrusting his dagger at him.

"Clang—"

The warrior stared in disbelief at his blocked dagger.

"How is this possible? I only made my move when I heard your breathing grow faint!"

Matthews shook his head and smiled. "You gave yourself away in too many ways. In a place as dangerous as the Magic Beast Mountain Range, what warrior would throw away his spear?"

"Hmph. So what if you saw through me? We're both Sixth-Level Warriors. Killing a rookie like you will be as easy as turning over my hand."

"Cut the crap. Even if you hadn't made a move, I was planning to kill you tonight."

At Matthews's words, the man snorted and charged again, attacking first. Matthews's swordsmanship had already edged close to the third level. He quickly killed the Sixth-Level Warrior.

Matthews searched the man and found the salt he'd used before, along with several Magic Beast Cores.

"Sure enough, this one was much more cunning than the one who tried to kill me last year. He had a lot more Magic Beast Cores on him. Look, there's even a Sixth-Level Magical Beast Core!"

After collecting the spoils, Matthews left. He'd planned to head straight back because he was running low on salt, but it looked like he could keep training for a few more years.

Three years later, Matthews sat atop a massive boulder, absorbing the lightning elements between heaven and earth with all his might. Most of the magical elements he'd absorbed before had been taken in by the lightning orb in his dantian. Today, he was finally going to condense Battle Qi within his dantian that could completely envelop the orb's lightning.

"Boom—"

Matthews immediately felt refreshed from head to toe. The Battle Qi that had enveloped the lightning orb remained in his dantian as liquid. Lightning occasionally flashed from the solid orb, helping purify the lightning Battle Qi within him.

Matthews knew that, by this world's system of cultivation, he had reached the Seventh-Level Warrior stage. Thanks to the lightning orb, his Battle Qi was far more powerful than that of an ordinary Seventh-Level Warrior, and he could sustain it much longer in battle.

"Boss, you broke through!"

"Mm. Your boss has reached the Seventh-Level Warrior stage."

Asolun looked at Matthews with excitement. "Congratulations, Boss! My heartfelt congratulations!"

"All right, stop flattering me. You're still only a Fifth-Level Magical Beast. You need to break through soon."

"Mm, I feel like I'm close to reaching the Sixth Level."

Matthews knew that magical beasts capable of changing their size without reaching the Saint Realm were generally no ordinary beasts. Asolun would surely become a great asset to him in the future, so Matthews was happy to encourage him to cultivate.