The Greatness of Humanity

"Daughters are useless, especially when they aren't pretty!" That was what the man called father had said, and those words left a deep impression on little Dessa's heart.

She had merely been the product of her merchant father's one-night dalliance. Her mother had been nothing more than a powerless commoner. After a natural disaster, she had no choice but to bring six-year-old Dessa to seek out that father, who had been single-mindedly climbing toward high society.

In the end, her mother had worked in the caravan with utmost humility before the merchant reluctantly allowed them to stay. Most merchants were like that—cold toward affection and concerned only with profit. Without profit, even a woman with whom they had once shared a night, even a daughter carrying their blood, would receive no attention at all. Only when some benefit could be gained would they bestow a little affection.

Dessa had grown up in the caravan. Her mother had worked herself to death there, and most of what she received in return was ridicule. Though Dessa had been furious, she had also come to understand one fact about the world: most of the time, women were merely men's appendages. If one was not strong enough oneself, one would never gain others' recognition.

She worked hard to learn every kind of useful knowledge, gradually becoming someone rather important within the caravan. Those who had once looked down on her slowly began addressing her as "Miss."

Perhaps it was a trait inherited from her father, or perhaps it was because of what she had endured as a child, but Dessa had never been willing to rest. Every moment, she was either making herself stronger or seeking opportunities to do so.

Using money, she had asked an elderly mercenary to teach her swordsmanship. Yet on the first day, the old mercenary had mercilessly pointed out that women were naturally weaker than men, so no matter how hard she worked, she would never achieve much in swordsmanship.

Her opportunity had come when the caravan reached Reastmia. Seizing the chance, she had left the caravan without hesitation and chosen to become a Crow Man. That was simply the sort of person she was—someone who could seize every opportunity.

"Komoro is already dead. No matter what, Rea's forces will change. At a time like this, only by rendering merit and displaying my own abilities can I gain a chance to rise further."

"The Crow Men are absolutely not my destination!" Dessa watched as blood mixed with the Black Crow Pathogen coated her rapier. She assumed her thrusting stance once more, her deep gaze fixed on Chris opposite her.

When she had become a Crow Man, she had chosen to implant the Black Crow Pathogen into both hands. It made her hands exceptionally steady and brought her swordsmanship to an extremely high level. The old mercenary who had once predicted she would achieve little could no longer receive even a single strike from her.

"Defeating you is my chance to climb higher, and I will seize it no matter what!" Rapier in hand, Dessa lunged forward in an instant. Her blade flashed like lightning toward Chris's mouth and nose. "Chris, your strength is built upon the Breathing Method, and your weakness is the Breathing Method as well!"

"That sword is coated in that black substance. Getting stabbed by it definitely won't be anything good!" Chris sensed the surrounding Rhythm as he evaded Dessa's frenzied thrusts.

"Now! Rhythm Gold!" Chris drew a deep breath. The pores across both hands closed, and they even took on a metallic sheen. With extreme precision, he caught the incoming rapier between his hands, twisted them, and snapped it in two. Tilting his body, he closed in on Dessa, and his Rhythm Fist smashed toward her without hesitation.

I've caught my chance... Dessa paid no heed to Chris's incoming fist. Her cheeks puffed out, and she sprayed a mouthful of blood mixed with Black Crow Pathogen toward Chris's mouth and nose.

Dessa took the punch squarely in the face and flew backward. Several bleeding teeth fell onto the ground, standing out with particular clarity.

Those black pathogens wriggled like living things, trying to bore into Chris's mouth and nose, forcing his Breathing Method to stop. The extraordinary perception brought by harmonizing with the Rhythm of all things gradually vanished as well.

"She deliberately coated the rapier with blood and the like, not to make the sword more powerful, but to draw my attention with it. Then she kept thrusting at my face, making me focus entirely on her sword and overlook the moment when she put some of that black substance into her mouth."

Chris was slightly flustered as he tried to tear away the black substance sealing his mouth and nose and burrowing inward. Without the perception granted by the Breathing Method, he felt deeply uncomfortable, like someone accustomed to seeing with his eyes suddenly being blindfolded.

Dessa struggled to her feet. Her face had already swollen, making her, who had not been pretty to begin with, look even more comical and ridiculous. But she did not care. To seize an opportunity, one naturally had to pay a price.

Although she had implanted the Black Crow Pathogen into her hands, her physical constitution had still been greatly enhanced. Otherwise, after taking Chris's punch head-on, she should normally have already fallen unconscious.

"I've won..." Dessa did not choose to press her advantage. Covering Chris's mouth and nose with the Black Crow Pathogen and crippling his Breathing Method was already a victory. Within the caravan, she had only been an illegitimate daughter. If she had not been cautious and careful at every turn, she might have died during one of those trading journeys long ago.

Chris's Breathing Method was now crippled, but he might still have some trump card. There was no need to rush up to him.

"Someone, kill Chris! Whoever kills him, I will ask Lord Negary to grant him the qualification to become a Crow Man!" Dessa shouted loudly through her toothless, leaking voice.

After a moment of silence, several people who had emerged from who knew where cautiously approached Chris with weapons in hand. Black Crow Pathogen suitable for implantation in the human body did not reproduce particularly quickly, so places to become Crow Men had always been scarce.

The battle between the Crow Men and Chris had shown these onlookers the might of power. The chance of obtaining the Breathing Method from Chris was far too slim, and even then it required talent and diligent training. How could that compare to becoming a Crow Man?

With his breathing obstructed and his brain deprived of oxygen, the scene before Chris began to turn hazy and unreal. He could only make out the silhouettes of people approaching with ill intent.

Ten years ago, in the Great Snow Mountain, those pursuers had approached him with the same malicious intent. At the time, he had been temporarily blinded by snow blindness and could only vaguely see their figures drawing near.

"I'm no longer that panicked person who still needed saving back then." Chris simply closed his eyes and recalled what the person who had taught him the Breathing Method once said: "When you fall into desperate straits, you will face the interference of fear. And humanity's greatness lies in remaining calm when facing fear and despair. Only by calming down can you find a way out of desperate straits!"

An image flashed through his mind of Dessa biting through the back of her hand, black substance flowing along with her blood. Chris exerted force with both hands again, as though he understood something. He hurriedly dropped to his knees and repeatedly slammed his head against the ground in a kowtow.

Thanks to Changsun Yinning, w0x0f, Not-Fat Big Brother, Chao Clan Research Institute, This Qin Is Not This Qing, Me, K Feng Shui, Half-Month's Zombie, Void's Black Child, All Things Wither, Only I Live Alone, Insomnia zz, Silver Shiny 7, Strangers Keep Away, Sichen, Nianjie, Akemi Homura, and Xi Huang V for the rewards. Thank you all for your support, truly, thank you!