Matthews furrowed his brow. "Do you know which Saint Realm expert is backing them?"
"I'm not sure."
Seeing that Lucas didn't know either, Matthews didn't ask any further. Instead, they talked about what they'd been through over the years. When Lucas learned that Matthews had also settled in the capital of the Furio Empire, he said happily, "That's great! I'm serving the Divine Beast Sect now, too. Come find me for a drink sometime!"
"Absolutely!"
After chatting for a while, Matthews and Lucas were about to part ways.
Unexpectedly, Lucas said, "I came here hoping to contract a magical beast. Would you be willing to help me, Brother Matthews?"
Matthews hadn't expected him to ask. After all, they hadn't seen each other in a long time. They had faced hardships together, but their friendship wasn't that close.
"Uh, didn't you just say you're an eighth-level mage? Why not wait? Once you reach level nine, you can contract a Level Nine Magical Beast and find a Saint Realm magical beast core to help it reach the Saint Realm. Wouldn't that be better?"
Hearing this, Lucas looked at Matthews in surprise.
"Uh, Brother Matthews, Saint Realm magical beast cores aren't easy to come by!"
Only after Lucas explained did Matthews realize he'd been taking things for granted.
"Hahaha, I didn't think it through!"
As they spoke, Matthews agreed to Lucas's request. Asolun asked, "Boss, you're really agreeing to help him?"
"It's fine. Even if he turns on us, we can handle him."
Half a day later, Lucas led Matthews to the edge of a cliff. After observing the area for a while, Matthews heard Lucas explain, "I've checked this place. It's the territory of a pair of Level Eight Wind Dragons."
"I'll take the opportunity to subdue one of them. I'll need you to deal with the other, Brother Matthews!"
"Sure!"
Once Matthews agreed, Lucas attacked the female Wind Dragon guarding the nest.
"Dance of the Fire Serpent!"
Lucas cast the level-eight fire magic spell that had been described in the original story. Two fire serpents surged toward the Wind Dragon! The female, brooding over her eggs, had no choice but to fend them off with her wings, sending two tornadoes rushing at the serpents.
The wind fanned the flames, forcing the Wind Dragon to rise and dodge. Its eggs were thrown from the nest and began falling toward the ground. Matthews sprang into the air and caught both eggs.
The battle between the Wind Dragon and the fire mage soon drew the male Wind Dragon back from its hunt. Matthews kept his word and held it off for Lucas.
The fight on the other side ended quickly. The female Wind Dragon had been weakened from brooding, and Lucas soon subdued her and signed a Master-Servant Contract with her.
Matthews also easily subdued the level-eight male Wind Dragon. Lucas came over and congratulated him. "Thanks for your help, Brother Matthews. You can contract this level-eight male Wind Dragon, too!"
Matthews already had Asolun, a magical beast who could change size at will. If he was going to sign a Master-Servant Contract with another beast, it had to have at least Saint Realm potential—or already be a Saint Realm magical beast.
So he declined. "No. Since you've contracted the female Wind Dragon, why not contract the male one as well?"
"Well, then, thank you, Brother Matthews!"
At first, the male Wind Dragon refused. But after Matthews brought out the two Wind Dragon eggs, it signed a contract with Lucas.
Just as the two men were celebrating, a Level Nine Magical Beast—a Purple-Striped Black Bear—appeared nearby!
"Watch out! A Level Nine Magical Beast is approaching!"
As soon as Matthews spoke, Lucas controlled the newly contracted Wind Dragon and took off. Matthews drew Cold Light Ghost Shadow and swung it at the charging bear.
"Bang—"
With a single blow, Matthews was sent flying and spat out blood.
"Dance of the Fire Serpent!"
Lucas didn't abandon Matthews. Instead, he cast the fire spell he was best at.
"Run! It's a peak-level nine Purple-Striped Black Bear!"
Seeing that his boss had lost his ability to fight, Asolun grew larger, lifted him onto his back, and flew away.
Lucas didn't stay to fight either. He controlled the Wind Dragon and fled.
After Asolun had carried Matthews a long way, he asked, "Boss, how are you?"
Matthews spat out a mouthful of blood and replied weakly, "I'm all right."
Matthews hadn't expected to be knocked flying and lose his ability to fight in a single exchange, despite being an eighth-level Warrior who had comprehended Light as Heavy.
From the Level Nine Magical Beast's attack, Matthews could tell it had already comprehended Heavy as Light. That foolish-looking bear had swung its paw so lightly, yet the instant it clashed with Matthews's Cold Light, he felt the blow descend with the weight of ten thousand pounds.
From that one strike, Matthews could also tell that the Purple-Striped Black Bear was close to comprehending the power of the world. It had advanced further in that regard than he had.
Fortunately, Matthews had also comprehended Light as Heavy. An ordinary eighth-level Warrior would probably have died from that blow.
"Find somewhere for me to recover."
At Matthews's request, Asolun had no choice but to turn back, returning to the small canyon where they had been training.
Matthews lay down in the spot where they had rested before. "Go stand guard. I'm going to regulate my Battle Qi."
After briefly regulating his Battle Qi, Matthews lay there to recover from his injuries. At the same time, he repeatedly replayed the black bear's paw strike in his mind, trying to understand and analyze the image of the paw imbued with Heavy as Light.
Two months later, Matthews held his sword and began practicing Heavy as Light. He made some progress, but because the sword was a light weapon, the results weren't very good.
At his current level, Matthews had no chance of defeating the Level Nine Purple-Striped Black Bear, so he and Asolun changed direction and continued on.
After that, Matthews began challenging peak-level-eight magical beasts, using them to hone his understanding of Heavy as Light.
One day, Matthews and Asolun passed a volcano. Seeing occasional streams of lava spilling from it, Matthews decided to forge a heavy sword. After all, a heavy weapon was better suited to practicing Heavy as Light.
Matthews acted on the idea at once. At the volcano's mouth, he used its heat to melt some of the iron ore in his Space Ring, then began casting a sword.
First, he shaped wet earth into a heavy-sword mold. Then he poured molten iron into it. Once it cooled, it became a crude iron sword.
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