The Draft

A Level 9 Warrior's physical strength was comparable to the power unleashed by a Level 6 Warrior using Battle Qi. Such power was extraordinary. That was why Carl considered Level 6 Warriors the pinnacle of the ordinary, while anyone from Level 7 onward possessed extraordinary strength.

But only those who entered the Saint Realm could be considered to have attained sainthood.

Extraordinary. Saintly.

For a warrior to reach the Saint Realm, he had to comprehend the Momentum of Heaven and Earth. This was a power belonging to heaven and earth, and it represented a transformation from within to without.

After reaching the pinnacle of Level 9 Warrior, Carl realized that to break through to the Saint Realm, he had to master the power of an element. This was the bridge between the extraordinary and the saintly.

In fact, anyone capable of cultivating to Level 9 Warrior through their own efforts had tremendous talent. They were among the very best. Those with a talent for magic, if they trained in Battle Qi, could more easily connect with heaven and earth and thus comprehend its momentum.

That was why it was so difficult for Mages to reach the realm of Level 9 Great Mage, but once they did, they could attain the Saint Realm in time.

Carl's own talent was limited. The reason he had reached his current strength was the passive breakthroughs granted by his automatic training. For example, when he had been a Level 8 Warrior, after cultivating his Battle Qi to the peak of Level 8, he had bought a minor epiphany from the Mall. That had allowed him to master Weightless as Feather. With that ability, Carl's Battle Qi had become purer, and he had naturally broken through to Level 9 Warrior.

The tea had gone cold.

Carl gradually came back to his senses. He took one last look at the elemental attributes in the Mall, each costing a million points. Though he was sorely tempted, he knew he still didn't have enough points.

He set down his teacup and glanced at his anxious-looking son. Without changing his expression, he asked, "What's happened now? Why are you in such a state?"

At that, Lin Taros, who had been sitting on pins and needles, quickly got to his feet.

"Father, Duke Slod has sent someone. He wants to recruit some soldiers from the town."

"Slod?"

A thoughtful look flashed through Carl's eyes. He remembered the man. They had once served together, and Slod had been an exceptionally talented prodigy. He had joined the army at sixteen and taken only six or seven years to advance to Level 6 Warrior and join the kingdom's elite forces. Over the following decades, he had risen through the ranks, climbing from Baron to his current position as Duke. It was the highest title Anlan Kingdom could bestow on someone outside the royal family.

Slod had become a Duke, and he was naturally a Level 9 Warrior as well.

"He wants to recruit soldiers? Give him any boys who are at least sixteen and have reached Level 1 Warrior."

Carl spoke as if it were of no consequence. Spark Town was a large township; the next level up was a town. People in positions as town lords were usually peak Level 8 Warriors, while the lords of certain strategic passes and important cities had to be Level 9 Warriors.

Spark Town was a large township on the Yulan Continent, where official roads existed but bandits were rampant. Few people could leave their hometowns. It was only after the autumn harvest each year, when large-scale recruitment began, that many sixteen-year-old boys joined the army.

As a result, Spark Town now had a population of over eight hundred thousand. Thanks to the knowledge Carl had brought from his previous life on Blue Star, the elderly had been cared for, children had been provided for, and the town had enjoyed a century of stability. Naturally, its population had grown rapidly.

If its medical care had been better, the population could have doubled again.

"Father, if he only wanted ordinary soldiers, that would be one thing. But Duke Slod wants elite troops this time. He's demanding that they be at least Level 3 Warriors." Lin Taros wore a bitter expression.

Level 3 Warriors were considered valuable talent in Spark Town. Members of the Security Team were usually around that level. Some were veterans who had returned after ten years of military service; others were talented recruits whom the town had kept and trained.

"Elite troops? Tell him I'll give him at most three thousand. He won't get a single man more."

Carl's expression didn't change as he spoke in a low voice.

Anlan Kingdom had begun to show signs of decay. Of the Four Saint Realm experts who had once carved out its territory, some had fallen and others had left. Their descendants were the only four royal families in Anlan Kingdom's history, but after years of power struggles, only the Anlan Royal Family remained.

As for the other three royal families, some had fallen out of Anlan's center of power because their bloodlines had weakened over generations, while others had harbored treasonous ambitions and been crushed by the army.

Without Saint Realm experts to keep it in check, the kingdom's upper ranks had long since been corrupted by power. Slod's attempt to recruit elite troops might well be a way of building a force that wouldn't obey the king's orders.

But none of that mattered much to Carl. They could fight over power all they wanted, as long as they didn't drag all of Spark Town into it.

"Yes, Father!"

With his father's answer, Lin Taros felt as though a heavy stone had been lifted from his heart. His unease vanished, and he immediately felt at ease.

Lin Taros, Carl's eldest son, was already 239 years old. If he hadn't been fortunate enough to break through to Level 7 Warrior and greatly extend his lifespan, he would have died long ago. Even so, Lin knew that his life was nearing its end.

The Taros Family had only been formally established after his father's hundredth birthday. Lin himself had been nearly eighty when he broke through to Level 7 Warrior. His disciple and his mother had both died of old age long ago, and he had been the one directing most of the family's affairs for many years.

After all, he was his father's eldest son and one of the few Level 7 Warriors in the territory. That status gave him a say in many matters, especially since his father had handed over power to him years ago.

Even so, Lin Taros didn't dare be careless when dealing with a Level 9 Duke. Whenever something arose that was beyond his control, he left the initiative to his father.

A Level 9 Duke wielded enough power to dominate a city and, by extension, exert influence over an entire province. The only force capable of opposing such a Duke was someone of equal strength.

That was his father.

With his father's support, Lin Taros felt much more confident. He had flatly rejected the Duke's envoy's demand for a large number of recruits, allowing him to take no more than three thousand elite soldiers.

Most of the three thousand elite troops were members of the Security Team. Many were battle-hardened veterans with plenty of experience. Under the Duke's envoy's command, they left Spark Town in a great procession.

Though Duke Slod, far away in the province, was deeply displeased, he wouldn't lightly antagonize a Level 9 Warrior.

And so, the recruitment seemed to come to an end.

Spark Town seemed to return to its usual peace.

Every morning, everyone gathered in the Central Plaza. Afterward, they worked from sunrise to sunset.

As Carl looked at the points in the Mall, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.