Doehring exclaimed, "Lin Lei, perhaps I've been underestimating Lei Lin all this time!"
Lin Lei asked in surprise, "Underestimating him? What do you mean?"
Doehring said, "I used to think that this little fellow could break through to the Saint Realm, but with only an average affinity for the elements, he basically wouldn't be able to make any further progress after reaching the Saint Realm!"
"But just now, after he was provoked, he went all out. Now I'm sure!"
"As long as this little fellow keeps growing, he'll definitely reach the Saint Realm!"
Lin Lei: "Σ(⊙▽⊙"a, he'll definitely reach the Saint Realm!!!"
Doehring said, "That's right. He'll definitely reach the Saint Realm."
"He's already crossed the most important hurdle on the path to the Saint Realm. The only reason he hasn't broken through yet is that he hasn't accumulated enough power!"
"I'm old. I really am... old!"
"Perhaps the continent won't see another Deity-level expert, but it's a certainty that we'll at least see another being reach the peak of the Saint Realm!"
Lin Lei asked, "Grandpa Doehring, what is that hurdle one must cross to reach the Saint Realm?"
Doehring smiled. "You're not at the point where you need to think about that yet. Wait until you reach Level Nine before you start considering it!"
"For now, I should congratulate you, little fellow. If what your family's secret manual says is true, I might get to witness the birth of a so-called Dragonblood Warrior with my own eyes!"
Lin Lei was about to press him for more details when he felt a tap on the head. Coming to his senses, he looked at Lei Lin, who asked in surprise, "What happened to you just now? You were staring blankly. Was I going so fast that I shook your brains loose?"
Lin Lei came back to himself and immediately changed the subject. "Big Brother Lei Lin, you were incredibly fast just now. Is that the kind of speed a Level Seven expert can reach?"
"It looked like magic, but not quite. And it didn't seem like a battle technique either?"
Lei Lin smiled. "That's my own Lightning Step, designed specifically for escaping. Pretty fast, right? According to my teacher, my speed can already rival that of a Level Nine expert."
"And since I can fly, ordinary Level Nine Magical Beasts can't catch me. As long as I don't run into a flying Level Nine Magical Beast in the Magic Beast Mountain Range, nothing can catch me!"
Lei Lin wasn't just saying that. He had indeed put a great deal of effort into creating the Lightning Step, combining all the knowledge he'd exchanged for with various acceleration, lightening, and burst-speed spells related to lightning in the Coiling Dragon World.
After all, you couldn't deal damage if you were dead!
Of course, he'd also wondered if this might help him begin to comprehend the speed-related mysteries of the Law of Lightning, but...
He didn't have any particular feeling about it. Or rather, he couldn't tell if he'd comprehended one of those mysteries. After all, he had no one to compare himself to. Could his improved speed, which rivaled a Level Nine expert's, serve as proof?
Heh. He had a cheat on his side. Would it even make sense—would it be normal—if he couldn't outperform other experts of the same level?!
As he spoke, he quickly took out a magical container for storing precious herbs. "Lin Lei, I didn't bring any spare magical containers, and you won't be able to get Level Nine dragon blood anytime soon, so I'll hold on to these Blue Heart Grass for now!"
"Once we get back, I'll use two stalks of Blue Heart Grass to make potions and preserve them, doing my best to retain their medicinal properties. I'll store the other two in my Magic Laboratory and keep them as fresh as possible so they retain their potency."
"Of course, the most important thing is the dragon blood."
"I can't do anything about Saint Realm dragon blood, but I'll try to get my hands on some Level Nine dragon blood as soon as possible so we can test whether you can awaken. Be prepared in the meantime."
"Dragonblood Warrior, huh? It's truly something to look forward to!"
"That's enough training for now. We should head back first. We can't put off taking care of the Blue Heart Grass!"
As Lei Lin went on and on, he took out several specially made crystal tubes. "Oh, right. Let me draw a few vials of your blood first. It's a shame I only brought a few tubes on this trip, and I'm missing some equipment. I've only got enough samples to do some preliminary work."
"Once we get back to the kingdom, I'll give you a complete physical examination and make sure..."
Listening to Lei Lin's increasingly unsettling words, Lin Lei felt a chill creep up his back. He had a vague feeling that his future might not turn out too well.
"Wait, wait, Big Brother Lei Lin. The Living Dragon Blood used to activate the bloodline has a time limit. It has to be fresh, or it can only have been separated from the body for a few minutes. There's no need to rush. Besides, I plan to visit my hometown first and see my father and younger brother. Let's wait until I get back before doing the physical examination and drawing blood!"
"There's no need to hurry. Really, there's no need!"
Lei Lin paused. "You're going home? Well, you've just finished training, so taking some time to relax with your family is the right thing to do!"
"As for the dragon blood's limitations, don't underestimate my skill as an Alchemist. I only need to preserve its vitality. I have plenty of ways to do that."
He then took out two crystal tubes already filled with Magical Beast blood, poured the blood out, and used magic to clean them. "Still, you're right that there's no need to rush. So let me draw two more vials and get as much of the preliminary work done as possible!"
Squeak, squeak~ (That's enough, too much~, too much~)
Seeing Lin Lei's apprehension when he spotted the two new tubes, Beibei, whose thoughts were linked with his, couldn't help stepping forward to stop Lei Lin.
But Lei Lin couldn't understand Beibei—and had no interest in trying to—so his eyes lit up. "Come to think of it, Beibei, you're a mutated Magical Beast, aren't you? I used to think you were just a cute little fellow, but there's nothing ordinary about you if you can mutate to the point of easily slaughtering Level Seven Velociraptors!"
"Let me draw a vial of your blood too!"
"Hahaha!"
After drawing a vial of blood from both Lin Lei and Beibei, Lei Lin left laughing like an archfiend who'd just unlocked an achievement.
They were already in the outskirts of the Magic Beast Mountain Range. With Lin Lei and Beibei's strength, they were unlikely to run into any danger.
Lin Lei stayed where he was, staring at the pile of Level Six and Seven Magic Cores Lei Lin had left behind. He couldn't help but marvel, "Big Brother Lei Lin... Even if he wasn't born into a noble family in the Royal Capital, he could probably support his whole family with ease just by training in the Magic Beast Mountain Range!"
Beibei stared at the Magic Cores in Lin Lei's hand, suddenly tempted by them. He swallowed one whole and said, "Squeak, squeak~ (Boss, Lei Lin's actually a pretty nice guy!)"
Doehring, standing nearby, looked at Lin Lei too. "To make a friend like him is truly..."
Before he could finish, Lei Lin came dashing back and appeared in front of Lin Lei again. "I almost forgot. Here, take this."
Lin Lei took the crystal Lei Lin handed him. "Big Brother Lei Lin, what is this?"
Lei Lin held up an identical crystal. "A magical item I developed—the Communication Crystal. As long as we both channel magic power into it at the same time, we can communicate."
Before you continue