Matthews dragged his injured body along, split open the head of the Eighth-Level Magical Beast, the Green-Eyed Blood Mastiff, and took its Magic Beast Core.
When Matthews reached the battlefield where Asolun was fighting the Seventh-Level Magical Beast Iron-Armored Dragon, he saw Asolun still locked in combat with it. Asolun had no sharp claws, so he could only attack with magic.
But his magic couldn't deal the Iron-Armored Dragon a fatal blow, so he still hadn't managed to take it down.
When Matthews arrived, Asolun flew over to him.
"Sorry, boss!"
Asolun shrank down and coiled around Matthews. Matthews said indifferently, "It's fine!"
Seeing the Iron-Armored Dragon run away, Asolun asked, "Boss, is your fight over?"
"Yeah!"
When Matthews nodded in confirmation, Asolun asked curiously, "Who won?"
"Your boss, of course. But I'm injured too, so let's find somewhere to rest and recover."
"Boss, you're amazing!"
Matthews and Asolun found a canyon to cultivate in. Matthews wanted to train for a while, further deepening his insights from the battle. His swordsmanship had reached the third realm, and he had begun to comprehend Light as Heavy. That meant he could try to grasp the momentum of heaven and earth before reaching Level Nine.
In the canyon, Matthews's figure flickered with flashes of lightning. His blade easily sliced through the trees in its path. Only after he had passed did they topple from the force of gravity.
As Asolun lay nearby, Water Element gathered around him like a tide with every breath. His body rose and fell as he absorbed the Water Element between each breath.
"Roar—"
Asolun let out a roar that didn't sound like a snake. Then his excited voice rang out in Matthews's mind. "Boss, I've broken through to Level Seven!"
"Hahaha, excellent!"
Matthews praised him. Asolun was like a child, and a little praise always made him happy. Matthews had taught Mia martial arts the same way. Unfortunately, ever since that girl became a mage, she no longer wanted to put in the hard work of martial arts training.
Time passed quietly as Matthews and Asolun cultivated. A year went by in the blink of an eye. That day, Matthews was still practicing his swordsmanship, trying to incorporate his understanding of Light as Heavy into his usual attacks.
As he circulated and mobilized the Battle Qi in his body, it suddenly quickened. After completing a set of sword moves, Matthews quietly sensed the flow of Battle Qi within him. The breakthrough came naturally.
"Boss, you broke through?"
Asolun sensed his boss's aura suddenly grow stronger and asked excitedly. Matthews nodded calmly. "Yeah. Your boss has broken through to become an Eighth-level Warrior!"
"Hahaha, that's great! I've been wanting to go out and challenge a Seventh-Level Magical Beast for ages!"
Matthews could hear how eager Asolun was. They had spent the past year cultivating in the canyon, and Asolun had long wanted to wash away the shame of his earlier defeat by challenging an Iron-Armored Dragon.
"Good. It's time we moved on."
After they left the canyon, Asolun deliberately sought out a Seventh-Level Magical Beast, an Iron-Armored Dragon, and fought it. After a long struggle, he killed it with Water Blade Technique. Satisfied, he followed Matthews onward into the Magic Beast Mountain Range.
"Hm? There are people up ahead!"
Hearing Matthews, Asolun instinctively asked, "Boss, should we kill them?"
"No. They look like an old acquaintance."
As Matthews and Asolun drew closer, the Eighth-level mage spotted them too and immediately grew wary.
"Hey, I didn't expect to run into you here!"
The mage across from him frowned. He didn't remember knowing the man in front of him. But Matthews remembered clearly: this was the fire mage who had been imprisoned alongside them and then sold at auction.
"Don't come any closer! I don't know you!"
"Hm? Weren't we imprisoned together in the Bright Empire by slave traders from the Maple Leaf Family?"
Only then did the fire mage remember that shameful chapter of his past. Back then, his lust had gotten the better of him, and a beauty had seduced him. After she got him drunk, he'd been fitted with Magic-Sealing Shackles and sold to the Maple Leaf Slave Group.
Once he came to his senses, he looked Matthews over carefully. Years of warrior training had changed Matthews's build, but his face still looked much like it had back then.
He asked uncertainly, "And?"
"We were sold at the Bright Auction House. Then someone—no idea who—rescued us. You mages sure are worth a lot. I was worth only a hundred thousand gold coins back then, but you were worth two hundred thousand!"
Hearing that, the young man finally recognized him as someone who had shared his misfortune.
He smiled at once. "It really is you! When you jumped into the river, we all thought you were dead!"
Matthews chatted with him. After sitting down, he took out some meat and cut off a piece for him. Then he took a piece for himself and began eating. "By the way, I jumped into the river back then. How did you escape?"
The young man saw Matthews eating too, then took the meat Matthews had handed him and began to eat.
"Hey, you didn't need to run in the first place. The Divine Beast Sect rescued us. It was the Church of Light that captured us!"
Hearing this, Matthews immediately realized how lucky he'd been. If the Divine Beast Sect hadn't rescued him, then—he'd read the original story, after all—the Church of Light would have sacrificed pure souls or used powerful bodies for Angel Descent.
His body back then had clearly reached the peak of Level Six. With more training, it could have reached Level Seven. The Church of Light could have used his body to summon an angel at Level Nine or even in the Saint Realm.
It seemed he had a grudge against the Church of Light now. He wouldn't mind killing a few of its people to vent his anger.
"Oh, really? I'm Matthews. What about you?"
The young fire mage smiled. "I'm Lucas."
"Nice to meet you. If we get the chance, let's join forces and wipe out the Maple Leaf Slave Group!"
Lucas nodded, then said, "Taking out the branch where they held us shouldn't be a problem. But the Maple Leaf Slave Group seems to have a Saint Realm expert backing them. They have forces in the Bright Empire, the Divine Beast Empire, and the Dark Empire. We can't afford to provoke them!"
After hearing him, Matthews remembered. They even had a presence in the capital of the Furio Empire, ruled by the Divine Beast Sect. And those people had once brazenly ambushed him.
Before you continue