Five Years of Training

Time slipped by, the years flying past.

In the blink of an eye, five years had rushed by.

Early spring, Yulan Calendar 9989.

Life was stirring again, and blossoms filled the tree-lined paths of the Ernst Institute. The Yulan Continent's foremost institute still teemed with talent, producing genius after genius.

But that spring, a single name completely changed the talk throughout the institute.

Haoyue Bolei.

Fifteen years old.

A fifth-rank Water Element mage, fifth-rank Fire Element mage, and fifth-rank Earth Element mage.

All three elements of magic had reached the peak of the fifth rank!

The news seemed to sprout wings. In just half a day, it spread to every classroom, every training ground, and every student dormitory at the Ernst Institute.

The entire institute was in an uproar.

The Ernst Institute had stood on the continent for centuries and admitted countless peerless geniuses.

Yet in all its recorded history, its fifteen-year-old Level Five Mages could be counted on one hand.

Much less one who cultivated three elements at once, all at the peak of the fifth rank-something never before seen!

Groups of students could be seen discussing it everywhere between the dormitory buildings.

"Did you hear? That Haoyue Bolei has supreme talent in three elements, the kind you only see once in a century!"

"That's ridiculous! Supreme talent in three elements? How could a heaven-defying monster like that have gone unnoticed these past few years? He kept far too low a profile!"

"He really kept his abilities hidden! He stayed low-key for five years. If he hadn't finally shown up for the last year-group test, everyone would still be in the dark!"

"The peak of the fifth rank in three elements at fifteen... his talent already puts eighty percent of the institute's older students to shame, doesn't it?"

Exclamations of amazement, envy, and disbelief rose and fell all around.

Despite the heated discussion that had caused a sensation throughout the city, Haoyue, the subject of it all, remained calm and unruffled.

Outsiders saw only his heaven-defying rise to the peak in three elements of magic, leaving the geniuses of his generation far behind.

No one knew that, throughout those five years, his truly terrifying trump card had never been his magical talent.

With From Mind to Matter combined with Dragonheart, he had become a tank mage. His physique, stamina, and defenses had long since surpassed the usual limits of his rank.

On the surface, he was only at the level of a Level Five Mage.

But in a real fight to the death, an ordinary sixth-rank cultivator couldn't withstand his assault and wouldn't last a single exchange against him.

Even against a Level Seven Warrior, he could rely on his unbeatable health, shields, and undying staying power to face them head-on and fight on equal terms!

Besides that, he had one ultimate trump card in reserve-the Tiger-Striped Warrior transformation.

He had fully unlocked that ability several years ago.

At the time, he had only just become a Level Four Warrior and had been training alone in the hills behind the institute, tempering his Battle-qi.

As the Battle-qi vortex in his dantian spun rapidly, it suddenly shuddered and fell into disorder, on the verge of collapse.

At that critical moment, an ancient power dormant deep within his bloodline abruptly awakened.

A majestic, overwhelming apparition of a white tiger rose from his dantian!

The white tiger apparition gave a slight shudder, forcibly bringing the disordered Battle-qi back into line in an instant. The scalding blood throughout his body began to boil.

The power of the Tiger-Striped Warrior hidden deep within the Bolei bloodline erupted completely!

At that moment, Haoyue's physique, appearance, and aura all transformed.

Silver-white spikes grew from his short black hair, their tips tinted pale blue.

His ears rose and turned into sharp tiger ears.

His warm black eyes abruptly became cold, sharp vertical beast pupils, crimson as flame.

Pale blue tiger stripes wreathed in flowing light spread across his face, neck, and arms, fierce yet regal.

Natural white tiger-claw scale armor formed on his shoulders, and sharp claws grew from his fingertips.

A long blue-and-white striped tail extended behind him, its tip bearing a vicious barb that made it immensely intimidating.

Half man, half tiger, he radiated untamed savagery.

At that same moment, he clearly sensed his combat strength instantly surge by two major ranks!

He had soared straight from a feeble Level Four Warrior to the level of a Level Six Warrior!

Haoyue later came to fully understand how the Tiger-Stripe Transformation worked.

The Tiger-Striped Warrior bloodline increased combat strength by one to two ranks upon transformation.

His bloodline awakening was exceptionally high, giving him a perfectly stable increase of nearly two ranks in combat strength.

Now, in his normal state, he was a peak fifth-rank warrior.

Once he activated his Tiger-Striped True Form, his combat strength would leap across the ranks and firmly reach the level of a peak seventh-rank warrior!

Peak fifth-rank magic for ranged attacks, paired with the close-range explosive power of a Level Seven Warrior, plus an unbeatable sixth-rank physique, health, and shields.

Invincible at his own rank, crushing sixth-ranks! Able to kill seventh-ranks! An eighth-rank gale... oh, no, he could withstand eighth-ranks.

After five years of arduous training, one concern still lurked in Haoyue's heart, leaving him anxious.

His attack power was still his weakness. (Commonly known as insufficient-firepower anxiety.)

His toughness and staying power had long since exceeded the norm for his rank.

But his basic strength and close-range destructive power remained confined within the usual limits of his rank.

Since the end of last year, his warrior rank and his three elements of magic had all been stuck at the peak of the fifth rank, unable to even touch the bottleneck to the sixth rank.

It wasn't a lack of talent or foundation.

It was because the Ernst Institute's environment was too safe.

Training hard in a greenhouse, cultivating in safety, could never hone the edge of a life-or-death battle or force out the body's hidden potential at its limits.

His comfort zone had trapped him on the path to a breakthrough.

Haoyue stood before his dormitory window, gazing at the distant, unbroken mountain forests, his eyes deep and sharp.

He silently counted down in his heart.

One year remained.

Yulan Calendar 9990.

Linley Baruch, the fated protagonist of the original story, would turn eight and enter the Ernst Institute.

From that moment on, the gears of fate across the entire Yulan Continent would begin to turn much faster.

Imperial conflicts, the Church's power struggles, Saint-level experts, hidden currents among gods and fiends, upheaval across the planes...

Countless top-tier experts, heaven-defying opportunities, and deadly crises would appear one after another in the space of a few decades.

That supreme Sovereign of the Dark Forest, whose name could not be spoken directly, and the hidden currents that had lain concealed for a trillion years would ultimately shake the order of the world.

And there were those experts in Gebados Prison.

An age of chaos was approaching, and heroes would rise from every corner.

"If I don't hone my killing skills and break through my limits, I won't even qualify to be cannon fodder when the chaos comes."

Haoyue's fingers clenched abruptly. The more he knew, the more anxious he became; such was the fate of a person cursed by knowledge. A resolute look flashed in his eyes.

His days of safe cultivation ended here.

He needed life-or-death combat, the tempering of desperate situations, and the brutal trials of the Magical Beasts Mountain Range!

Inside the dormitory.

Five years had stripped the once-inexperienced boys of their youthful immaturity.

Kaluo had grown into an upright young man, 1.8 meters tall, with handsome features and a sunny air.

With high-level talent in two elements, he had also made something of a name for himself among the lower and middle grades.

Now he sat in a wooden chair, his brows tightly furrowed and his face full of worry.

"Haoyue, are you really going into the Magical Beasts Mountain Range alone? It's too dangerous!"

Lei'en, standing against the wall, was as taciturn as ever.

For the past five years, he had remained aloof and solitary, speaking very little.

His talent was solid, and he cultivated both Battle-qi and magic. He was a Level Four Warrior and a Level Four Mage.

He looked up at Haoyue, fell silent for two seconds, then uttered a single cold, terse warning.

"Be careful."

Beside him, Luo'en leaped up in excitement, his face alight.

"Take me with you! I want to train in the Magical Beasts Mountain Range and broaden my horizons too!"

Haoyue glanced sidelong at him, his tone flat and blunt.

"You can't even beat a fourth-rank magical beast one-on-one, so you'd better not go in. Once you reach the fifth rank, I'll go with you."

Luo'en's face immediately fell, and he looked aggrieved.

Of the four, his talent was the most ordinary: high-level in the Wind Element and mid-level in the Water Element. His progress was unremarkable.

But his family was wealthy, and he spent generously.

Luo'en had volunteered to cover most of the starting funds and supply expenses for Haoyue's trip to the Magical Beasts Mountain Range.

Haoyue raised a hand and patted his shoulder, his tone softening a little.

"Stay at the institute and train. When I get back, I'll bring you all some top-grade magical beast meat and magicite cores."

With that, he bent down and dragged a heavy coarse-cloth bundle out from under the bed.

He unwrapped it layer by layer, revealing a long saber with a fierce design and sleek lines.

Its slender blade measured three feet and seven inches, slightly curved and gleaming coldly.

Its one-foot-two-inch hilt was wrapped in nonslip cloth and felt solid and steady in the hand.

The entire saber had been forged in one piece from refined iron. Tough and sharp, it was far beyond the ordinary weapons of this world.

It was a Ming-style miao saber, custom-made from a design Haoyue had drawn himself based on memories of his previous life.

Having been a martial arts enthusiast in his previous life, he understood the essence of cold weapons.

The miao saber combined a saber's slashing power with a sword's thrusting and flicking techniques. It served both offense and defense and was suited to every kind of close combat.

He had spent a fortune hiring Fenlai City's finest blacksmith to forge a perfect replica.

He reached back and deftly slung the long saber across his back, tightening the straps.

Then he tucked the mage's staff Luo'en had sponsored for him into his belt.

"I'm off."

After saying goodbye to his three roommates, Haoyue strode out of the student dormitory where he had lived for five years.

On an inner street of Fenlai City stood a two-story building facing the road.

Five years were enough to change many things.

His mother, Martha, had long since left behind the hardship of making a living at a stall.

Through diligent work, she had gone from a small stall to a storefront. Now she owned a two-story shop facing the street, selling daily necessities, snacks, and assorted goods.

Her life was stable and comfortable, plain and happy.

At the building's entrance, Martha looked at her son, who was about to leave on a long journey, her eyes reddening slightly.

The years had been kind, leaving few marks of hardship on her face, but the worry in her eyes could not be hidden.

"Haoyue, must you go to the Magical Beasts Mountain Range?"

Her voice trembled slightly, full of worry.

The Magical Beasts Mountain Range was immensely dangerous, overrun with magical beasts and riddled with deadly peril.

Even knowing her son was extraordinarily gifted and powerful, as his mother, she could never put her worries aside.

Haoyue looked at his gentle, loving mother, a warm smile lifting his lips.

"Mom, don't worry. I know what I'm doing. I'll only stay on the outskirts, and I won't push myself."

He reached out, took out a heavy money pouch, and pressed it into Martha's hand.

"This is everything I've saved from the institute's rewards over five years of training. Keep it to help with household expenses. When I get back, we'll move to a bigger shop."

The heavy gold coins weighed on her palm, and warmth reached straight into her heart.

Martha could no longer hold back, and tears slipped quietly down her cheeks.

She stepped forward and gently embraced her son, who was now a head taller than her, lightly patting his back.

"I don't ask you to become rich and powerful or famous throughout the world. I only ask that you stay safe and come home soon."

"I'll wait for you to come back."

Warmth filled Haoyue's heart, and he nodded firmly.

Without another word, he turned and walked away.

After traveling a long way, he suddenly looked back.

At the building's entrance, that slender, gentle figure still stood in the same place, waving and watching him in the distance.

The spring breeze lifted the hem of her clothes, gentle yet persistent.

Haoyue raised a hand and waved, then resolutely turned away without looking back.

His steps were firm as he strode toward Fenlai City's gates.

It was time to test the results of five years of training.

Magical Beasts Mountain Range.

I, Haoyue Bolei, am coming!