Ch. 71..80

Chapter 71 - Feedback

"Yes," Shang answered as he slowly stood up.

Shang had always wanted an evaluation from a neutral party. After all, he could evaluate himself only to a certain degree.

And on top of that, Shang had already been given some feedback just now.

His headwound was proof of that.

'I didn't notice such a huge vase coming towards my head. Now that I think back, I can remember hearing the column shake, but I simply filtered it out as irrelevant information.'

'I guess that's the Vice-Dean's way of showing me that I ignored my surroundings. I can get why that is a bad habit on a battlefield.'

"Alright," Soran said as he sat back down in his chair. "Then, let's talk about your sword techniques first. Mervin?" Soran asked as he looked at the older man beside him.

Mervin nodded and looked at Shang.

"Horrible."

Silence.

Shang was waiting for more, but nothing more came. "Could you elaborate?" Shang asked.

"Your movements are fast, but that's it," Mervin answered. "You plan your next strike very well, and you unleash your strike with quite some speed, but there is no after. You fight like you only think about the current strike and not the one after that or the one after that."

"When something goes wrong with your current attack, you hesitate and pause for a moment because you're unsure about what you should do next. In essence, you are planning your attack only when it's already time to unleash it, not beforehand."

pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ "Another thing is that your attacks have no nuance. Your attacks are all very straightforward and honest. What the enemies see is what they get. You don't use feints, and you don't use your sword to manipulate the enemy's perception."

"Lastly, your only goal in attacking your opponent is to kill them. However, that is the end goal, and it can't always be achieved with one strike. Oftentimes, you have to achieve multiple subgoals in order to finally take your enemy's life."

Then, Mervin stood up and walked past the table.

The other two smiled a bit when they saw him get up of his own volition. Obviously, the youngster had woken up Mervin's teacher instincts.

Mervin took out his sword and held it in front of him as he looked at Shang. "Can you take me out with one attack if I had your physical power?" he asked.

Shang looked at Mervin. "No," he quickly answered.

Mervin's sword perfectly isolated him from everything in front of him. At first glance, he didn't seem to hold his sword in any special way, but Shang felt like Mervin's defense was impenetrable.

"Why not?" Mervin asked.

"Because of your sword," Shang answered.

"Can you get rid of my sword?" Mervin asked.

"Difficult," Shang answered.

"So, what would you need to do?"

Shang's brows furrowed. "I would need to keep attacking you and shake your balance until I get the chance to either directly strike you or get rid of your weapon."

Mervin nodded. "Correct," he answered. "I noticed that you realize these things rather quickly in a fight, but you don't realize them immediately. You first have to try something before you know that it doesn't work."

"You are essentially a beast in your fighting style," Mervin said as he put his sword away again and went back to his chair. "You are fighting honest, direct, and without a plan, just like a beast."

"The good thing with that style is that many enemies might become overwhelmed by your sheer killing intent. After all, your attacks very directly show that you are there to kill them and that you are not messing around."

"However, that style only works on inexperienced soldiers. Someone that can actually keep their calm in a battle will be your downfall. They will notice your very simple attacks and goals, and they will lead the battle into a losing direction for you."

"Imagine you attack your enemy, and they block. Then, they attack, and you block. Then, you attack again, and they block. And then, they attack. Suddenly, you are with your back to a wall, and blocking from your current position is difficult. You would much rather evade. However, you can't evade due to the wall."

"Without planning and without paying attention to the surroundings, something like that can happen to you," Mervin said. "The enemy follows their plan, and they will push you into an unfavorable position. As a warrior, you have to be able to see these things and plan around them."

"You fight like a beast, but you are a human. You are not using our strongest weapon, which is our superior mind."

"Nearly all of these things can be easily fixed by learning a couple of sword techniques. After all, these techniques are specifically created to avoid such situations. There are attacks that are perfect to use if you feel pressured. There are attacks that are perfectly suited to pressure your opponent."

"By comprehending all these techniques, you will subconsciously already plan against your opponent."

"But as it stands right now, your sword techniques are only fit for slaughtering beasts, not humans, and a warrior that can't fight humans is a warrior that won't live for very long."

After that sentence, Mervin became silent.

Shang listened intently to Mervin's barrage of words with burning eyes.

Yes, this was what he was here for!

Feedback!

Teachings!

Mervin was completely right in everything that he said!

Shang hadn't truly fought a powerful human yet, but Shang could very well imagine how such a fight would go down. It would probably go down exactly as Mervin predicted.

Humans were using many tricky techniques that Shang wasn't used to handling. A good example was Soran's swing with his spear. Soran had seemingly attacked Shang's face, and Shang had reacted. Yet, Soran had actually attacked Shang's torso.

One had to remember that Soran had made his body two levels weaker than Shang. This meant that Shang was much faster than Soran in this situation.

The most impressive part was that this strike wasn't even very hard to pull off. Shang could imagine such a strike to be a basic technique of a spear user. It wasn't some heavenly technique that one could only comprehend after having been a warrior for decades.

It was a simple application of a weapon, and if it were an actual battle, Shang would have been in life-threatening danger.

By whom?

By someone two levels below him.

Why?

Because Shang hadn't fought humans yet, and because he hadn't learned from humans yet.

"Thank you for your teachings," Shang said with respect as he slightly bowed in respect.

Mervin only snorted. "Don't mention it. I just couldn't watch someone fight this atrociously."

Then, Soran looked at Shang. "Are you fine with that feedback?" he asked with a smile.

Shang nodded. "Yes, just these few words have highlighted many of my mistakes and bad habits."

Soran nodded. "It's good that you have such a mindset. Honestly, it's rather rare to see someone have such a mature mindset at your age."

Soran chuckled a bit. "It's almost like you're already in your 20s."

Shang didn't answer.

"Anyway, let's talk about your mentality," Soran said.

 

Chapter 72 - Pain

Soran paused a bit.

"Your instincts are terrifyingly good for someone of your age," Soran said.

Shang nodded.

"In our fight, when you suddenly noticed my spear coming towards you, you immediately found a creative way to mitigate the damage. You obviously haven't seen the attack coming, and you certainly have been surprised by it. I saw it in your face."

"However, out of pure instinct, you managed to find a quick and good solution to your predicament. At that moment, you didn't have the time to think of a plan because you were lacking time, but by acting on your instincts, you managed to find a solution in that tiny moment."

"Such battle instincts can't be taught. They can only be built by going through several genuine life-threatening battles. Those are the instincts of a seasoned warrior, and they are the most important thing for any warrior."

"However, relying upon instincts should be the last thing you should do," Soran explained. "You should only rely on your instincts when your planning no longer works, and you can only rely on them when you literally have no time to plan."

"You could say that the instincts are a last, life-saving measure. They are essentially your very last defense. However, if you need to rely on your instincts, it means you are already in a losing position. After all, if you weren't in a very disadvantageous position, you would have time to plan your attacks, which means not relying on your instincts."

"But the good thing is that you are good in something that we can't teach, which gives you a major edge over the other students."

Soran took the papers in front of him and straightened them out into one pile, showing that he no longer planned on writing more down.

"In summary, you are an uncut diamond," Soran said with a smile. "You're not good in the things we can teach, but you are very good in the things we can't teach. If we teach you everything we can teach you, you will be good at literally everything."

"That's our evaluation."

Shang looked at Soran. "So, am I accepted?" he asked.

pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ Soran only smiled. "There are two more things we need to verify, but if you have been honest, those will only be a formality."

Shang nodded. "Which things?"

"First of all, I need to test the quality of your body," Soran said as he stood up again and walked around the table.

He approached Shang. "Just continue standing there. It might be a bit uncomfortable, but bear with me."

Soran put his left arm on Shang's shoulder while his right arm pressed on multiple spots on Shang's torso.

Shang was reminded of the routine doctor appointments on Earth. When he complained about trouble in his intestines, the doctors also pressed down on his abdomen in a similar manner.

Shang didn't feel anything when Soran pressed onto his abdomen.

Soran nodded in appreciation.

Then, Soran went to the sides of Shang's abdomen and pressed on his kidneys and liver.

Shang didn't show any reaction, and Soran nodded again.

Next, Soran checked Shang's stomach and lungs. There were also no issues there.

Viera and Mervin threw some surprised glances at each other.

"Argh," Shang suddenly groaned as his vision blurred for a bit.

"Just as I've thought," Soran said with a smile after pulling his hands back. "This basically confirms your claims."

"What do you mean?" Shang asked.

"About how you managed to train your body to such a powerful stage at such a young age," Soran answered. "It's hard to fathom, but the proof stands right in front of me."

"All your organs have been strengthened to the peak of the Soldier Stage except for your heart. With normal methods, that's impossible."

Soran looked at Shang with a concerned, raised eyebrow. "However, it's also sad in a way. You seem to only be about fourteen or fifteen years old, but you managed to get through so much pain."

Then, Soran frowned. "And the worst thing is that you did it willingly."

"How is that a bad thing?" Shang asked with a skeptical expression. "Shouldn't that be a positive? After all, it shows that I can get through any hardships placed before me, and it proves how much I am willing to sacrifice for my own strength."

Soran sighed. "Exactly that is the problem," he said. "Your perception of yourself and your surroundings is warped."

Shang only looked with skepticism at Soran.

"You are so used to going through so much pain to become powerful that it will be hard for you to find like-minded individuals," Soran explained. "Listen, Shang. It's not necessary to go through as much pain as you. There are easier ways to train your body."

"These ways can still be quite painful but obviously not nearly as painful as you have experienced. However, other kids and adults will perceive these ways to be quite painful while you won't."

"If you publicly make it known that you don't perceive these things as painful, you are indirectly calling everyone else a crybaby, which will isolate you."

"Additionally, your cold attitude towards yourself will also inevitably reflect on your surroundings."

"What do you mean?" Shang asked.

Soran sighed.

"For example, you haven't smiled, laughed, or chuckled even once ever since I got to know you," Soran said.

For some reason, Shang felt his insides shake a little when he heard that.

"You are a teenager, and you've just been praised by several very powerful warriors in the Commander Stage. You also managed to win against a student of ours."

"Any of these things would excite someone, especially someone as young as you."

"Yet, you always only looked with either an emotionless expression at us or one filled with skepticism."

Viera and Mervin also had concerned expressions on their faces.

"You also don't even try to fake it. You don't put on a polite smile or anything like that. Do you know what that shows me?"

Silence.

"It shows me that you don't care about what anyone else thinks. Don't get me wrong. That can be good to a certain extent, but if you're overdoing it, this will isolate you."

"Do you know what you look like to me?" Soran asked.

Shang felt a bit uncomfortable, and he didn't know how to answer.

"Like a kid that has gone through so much pain that it can't build a connection with other humans anymore."

"And that's very sad, but also very dangerous."

"Because, if you become an adult, what will you become?"

"What choices will you make when you have power over other people?"

"What choices will someone make that has no meaningful connection with anyone else?"

Soran sighed again.

"Listen, Shang," he said. "You don't need to go through this suicidal training you have been going through for months. It might train your body faster than any other method, but it will damage your mentality."

"You shouldn't sacrifice your future for an expedited path to power. You have enough time, and you don't need to try so hard."

"Look at us," Soran said as he gestured to himself and the other two. "We are already well within the Commander Stage, and we are all still young. We can all still laugh, and we have all gone through more battles than you can imagine."

"We are very experienced, and if we were subpar warriors, we wouldn't be teachers in the most prestigious academy for warriors in the world. We essentially reached the realistically achievable peak of the warrior's path, and we didn't have to go through as much pain in such a short time as you."

"Remember one thing, Shang," Soran said. "It is not the outside world forcing you down this path but yourself. As long as you don't force yourself down this path, no one will force you."

Soran sighed again.

"Honestly, if it were up to me, I wouldn't accept you into the academy. As you appear right now, I fear giving you power. In my perception, when you gain power, you will bring a lot of suffering to a lot of innocent people."

"However, the decision isn't up to me."

Soran stood up as he took the pile of papers with him. "Could one of you two please deal with the last part of the exam? I'll deliver the papers to Master."

"I'll deal with it," Mervin said as he stood up. "Come, Shang. It's time for the practical exam."

Chapter 73 - Smile?

Soran left the room to report to his Master, which was probably the dean, Shang assumed.

Viera went back to whatever she was doing, and Mervin pulled Shang along with him.

Mervin led Shang to the gates of the academy, and they quickly left it.

By now, Shang could see a busy city, a far cry from the dead city he had seen at night.

Shang could hear the constant hitting of hammers, the roaring fires in bakeries and forges, and many people loudly trading with each other on the streets.

Even more, nearly every person on the streets wore armor and weapons, showing that they were warriors.

Mervin and Shang then left the city without saying anything. When the guards saw Mervin, they simply shot him a greeting and let him pass.

Then, the two of them ran down the long street, which was filled with many different carts. The carts were all filled with different wares.

"You should listen to Soran," Mervin said suddenly.

Shang didn't answer.

Ever since Soran had said that Shang hadn't smiled even once, Shang had fallen into thought.

He still remembered his time on Earth. Back then, he had been a very extroverted and outgoing person. He had enjoyed smiling and being amongst others.

Shang had also smiled quite a bit when he had been in this world. His interactions with the villagers of Coldew Village had felt natural. Shang had smiled politely, and he had laughed with them a little bit.

When had all of this stopped?

When had he stopped smiling?

It wasn't hard to find the moment.

It was when Shang had killed the beggars and when he had decided to kill off his old persona.

He didn't remember his old name anymore, and he also didn't care. He no longer was this person.

Yet, was Shang truly the person he wanted to be?

"I don't know," Shang said. "It's a lot to think about."

"That's a good thing," Mervin said. "If your feelings have been thrown out of equilibrium by Soran's words, it means there is still hope for you."

"Listen, being more open and less self-destructive isn't only a good thing for the people around you but also for you. It makes it far easier to interact with the world, and you will find your way forward easier."

"People generally don't want to help someone they feel is dangerous or apathetic. By being as you are now, you will find it harder to get the resources you need in the future. At some point, the traders have enough wealth and power to choose their customers. There is far more demand than supply for their wares."

"When you can sell your supply to anyone you want, you will sell it to someone you enjoy the company of. Sure, you can probably also buy these supplies, but you would need to pay a hefty premium."

"Additionally, there are techniques and resources you can only acquire by being part of an organization, and many of them put a lot of value on cooperation. We humans are not lonesome beings. One of our biggest strengths is the ability to work together. Someone who appears apathetic and hard to get along with is not the first choice for these organizations."

"You are still young, Shang," Mervin said. "You have plenty of time to change. The only thing standing in your way is you."

"I'm also certain that you can change. After all, if you were truly as cold and apathetic as you appear, Soran's words wouldn't have had an effect on you."

"But in the end, it's up to you. You can listen to my words or simply treat them as the ramblings of an old man," Mervin said.

Shang had silently listened to Mervin's words, and he was honestly thinking about them.

Shang had also noticed that Mervin was truly someone that cared about others. He tried to act like a grumpy old man, but he actually wanted to help his students.

Mervin obviously didn't like talking too much, but he had said so much to Shang in such a short time, which showed that he definitely cared about Shang's development.

For a moment, Shang wasn't certain what he should say.

Should he thank him?

Should he start a discussion with him?

Should he smile and tell him that he will try to put these changes into effect?

In the end, Shang did nothing.

All of these potential reactions felt like they weren't important.

So, the two of them only continued jogging in silence down the road.

Mervin noticed with furrowed brows that Shang didn't react, and he silently sighed.

Shang hadn't given Mervin an answer, but Mervin saw Shang's answer by his inaction.

In a way, pleasing Mervin was something that would help Shang in the long run. After all, Mervin was an experienced teacher, and the better their relationship, the more Mervin would be willing to teach Shang.

Shang obviously knew that, and Mervin knew that Shang knew that.

Yet, Shang didn't even make an attempt at pleasing him.

At this moment, one had to pay attention that one didn't understand Mervin incorrectly. Mervin wasn't someone that liked it when people tried to please him. This was not what he was concerned about.

The thing he was concerned about was Shang's inability to try to make his life easier.

It was so easy for Shang to make his life easier.

He only had to thank Mervin for his advice.

That was it.

What was so hard about doing that? It was simply a mere formality.

Yet, Shang didn't say anything.

Just going through this tiny formality could make his life so much easier, but he didn't even do that.

It was like Shang was actively trying to make his own life harder and trying to make himself unlikable on purpose.

Of course, Mervin knew that this was not Shang's intention. However, this was the effect of Shang's actions, intended or not.

Of course, Shang also knew these things. He had lived on Earth, and being polite was something very basic that everyone could do. Back then, Shang had been polite to his teachers, strangers, customers, his employers, and everyone else.

Saying please and thank you was normal.

Giving a mere polite smile was normal.

But now, Shang didn't even do that, even though he had learned these principles and lived by them for his entire life.

Shang realized these things. He had a great affinity for introspection, which allowed him to analyze himself from a detached, objective perspective.

pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ He had noticed that he appeared very uncooperative at this moment, and he knew that this could make his life harder in the future.

Yet, for some reason, Shang simply felt like it wasn't important.

It felt like it was too much work for too little return.

However, Shang also knew that this basically didn't count as work. How could a couple of perfunctory words and a light smile be called work?

'What's wrong with me?' Shang thought in uncertainty. 'This shouldn't be hard, but for some reason, it feels so hard.'

'I don't want to smile, and it feels like work.'

'Why? Why does it feel like so much work?'

"We're here," Mervin said as he stopped.

Shang had been occupied with his thoughts, and he hadn't noticed where they had gone to.

At the moment, Shang stood in front of the Wild Forest. Shang remembered that the Wild Forest was filled with beasts in the First Realm, the Soldier Stage.

Was he supposed to kill a beast?

"Kill a Pest Cat," Mervin ordered.

"When you've killed a Pest Cat, you will be accepted into the academy."

Chapter 74 - Not About Can, But Should

When Shang heard what he had to do, his mind quickly changed directions.

He put his earlier thoughts to the back of his mind as his old instincts from the wilderness returned.

Without saying anything, Shang shot towards the Wild Forest. Mervin watched him from afar and slowly followed him from a distance.

As soon as Shang reached the first tree, he jumped to one of the branches in near-perfect silence. Then, he simply jumped from branch to branch with practiced ease.

Shang looked at the ground of the forest for the entire time while always quickly checking the tree he would jump to next.

Shang hadn't even realized that Mervin had essentially made it harder for Shang than necessary.

Pest Cats were only active at night. Right now, it was morning, and the sun was already shining down from above. This meant that the Pest Cats were hiding inside their nests, which were nearly impossible to find for someone that didn't know about the Pest Cats' habits.

When Mervin saw the methodical method at which Shang was searching for the Pest Cats, he sighed.

He wanted to teach Shang a lesson. Shang had acted in a self-destructive way by not at least pretending to be polite, and Mervin wanted to make it a bit harder for Shang as a lesson.

Action and consequence.

Shang wanted to make his life harder? Sure, Mervin would comply and make it a bit harder.

However, Mervin had underestimated Shang.

Shang had been living in the wilderness for over half a year, and he had been forced to learn the habits of the beasts around him. After all, if he didn't, a Pest Cat might have jumped out at him from its nest if he didn't notice it prior to that.

Pest Cats might only be active and hunt at night, but if some prey decided to directly stroll right past its home, it wouldn't decline the meal.

After a couple of minutes of jumping from tree to tree, Shang noticed some dried drops of blood on the ground.

Pest Cats hunted every single night because they needed a lot of food to produce offspring. Pest Cats were famous for their astounding ability to reproduce quickly.

When Pest Cats hunted at night, they carried their prey to their burrow to consume it over the day. The Pest Cats had an impressively fast metabolism, and their stomachs were very efficient in digesting food.

However, there was still only so much Pest Cats could eat at once, and they often hunted rather big prey.

Because of that, they had to eat their prey over half a day, one stomach-load at a time.

After around a minute of following the trail, Shang found an area with light scratch marks and some dried blood here and there.

Shang looked over, and he saw a small but wide hole below a tree. The hole looked like an enlarged version of a mailbox's slit, thin and wide.

Due to their form, Pest Cats could make themselves very small while still being able to move very quickly.

When Shang found the small hole, he looked at the tree from all sides. Sure enough, there was another slit on its other side.

Shang didn't climb onto the tree above the two slits since the Pest Cat would be able to feel the vibrations.

Then, from the other tree, Shang readied himself.

SHING!

Shang threw his sword towards the entrance of one of the slits. His sword hit the ground in front of the slit and vibrated.

Shang looked at the other slit and readied himself.

BANG!

Suddenly, Shang heard a commotion from the other slit, and he looked over with some surprise.

The Pest Cat had jumped out of the first slit and had attacked the space above the sword, which was something Shang had not expected.

However, Shang quickly adapted and shot toward the Pest Cat by pushing himself off the tree with all his power.

The tree creaked under the power of Shang's legs, and Shang shot with incredible speed right at the Pest Cat.

The Pest Cat was still confused about why there was no enemy in front of it, but it was already too late.

BANG!

Shang's kick hit the Pest Cat's spine near its chest, easily breaking it.

The Pest Cat collapsed, and Shang also broke its neck. His body was more powerful, which made it rather easy for him to kill it from such a position.

The task had been completed.

"Well done," Mervin said as he silently appeared beside Shang. "You can go back to the academy. I'll quickly catch up with you."

Shang looked at the corpse below him. "What about the corpse?" he asked.

"You can keep it or sell it to the academy," Mervin said. "By keeping it, you can sell it for gold. By selling it to the academy, you can get some contribution points."

SHING!

Something appeared in Mervin's hands.

It was a large, black blanket.

"That's a Beast Sack. As its name implies, it's something to transport beasts. You can't just drag a bloody corpse through the streets of the cities since that would make the entire city stink of blood and guts. That's why you have to carry it inside a Beast Sack. They're inexpensive, and they're meant to be used only one time," Mervin explained. "You can have that one."

pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ Shang nodded. "Thanks," he said absentmindedly as he grabbed the Beast Sack and put it around the corpse of the Pest Cat.

Shang didn't think of his actions, but Mervin noticed it.

'Interesting,' Mervin thought. 'Earlier, he had issues with thanking me, but now, he does it easily.'

"No problem," Mervin said. "Get on with it. I still have something to do."

However, Shang didn't go, and he looked at the burrow of the Pest Cat. "Are you going to deal with the offspring?"

Mervin frowned. "That's not something you have to be concerned over. You've done your task, and that's that."

Shang looked at Mervin with a neutral expression. "Do you think I can't deal with the image of several babies being killed?"

Mervin's frown deepened. "It's not about being able to deal with it or not," he said. "It's about if you should or not. Even if you can deal with it, you shouldn't have to. You are a new student, and you aren't even an adult. Killing a dangerous enemy is different from killing something that is no danger and hasn't threatened you."

As Shang heard Mervin's words, he got reminded of the night he had killed the several beggars.

Shang rarely thought of the night since thinking about it always made him uncomfortable.

Mervin noticed that Shang's eyes became absentminded for a second when he said that, and Mervin quickly realized what that meant.

'He has already done something like that before,' Mervin thought without changing his expression. 'That explains quite a lot.'

"Go," Mervin ordered.

Shang threw one more glance at the burrow.

As soon as he had seen the Pest Cat jump out of the wrong hole, Shang had realized that it had probably offspring in its nest. That was the only explanation he could come up with.

Pest Cats in the Wild Forest should be used to humans, and humans should be the biggest danger around here. No sane Pest Cat would attack a human with a weapon that had suddenly appeared in front of its nest.

Unless it had something to protect.

In the end, Shang took a deep breath, put the Beast Sack over his shoulders, and walked off.

For some reason, it was rather difficult for Shang to just leave like this.

When Shang had left, Mervin looked at the burrow of the Pest Cat with narrowed eyes.

Then, a green bottle appeared in his hands, and he poured the contents into the hole.

After making sure nothing left the burrow, he left the forest and caught up with Shang.

The job was done.

Chapter 75 - Realms

A couple of minutes after Shang left the Wild Forest, Mervin caught up to him. Shang didn't ask Mervin how it went since there was no point to the question.

"Are you planning to sell the corpse or give it to the academy?" Mervin asked.

"Academy," Shang answered.

"What's your choice based on?"

"I have enough gold," Shang said. "Speaking of gold, I haven't paid the fee for the exam yet."

"You don't have to," Mervin said.

Shang's eyebrows rose in surprise. "What do you mean? I thought I needed to pay five gold."

"The fee is only there to stop weak warriors from wasting our time," Mervin explained. "Weak warriors have issues with getting so much gold. Of course, we still get some requests from some rich kids. That can't be helped."

"But when they inevitably fail, they will at least reimburse us for the time wasted. In short, you only need to pay if you fail the exam. You obviously didn't."

Shang thought about Mervin's words, and he realized that Mervin's words made a lot of sense, but there was still something that irked him.

"But why are you not accepting the gold from the ones that manage to succeed in the exam?" Shang asked. "Doesn't the academy need gold?"

"No, it doesn't," Mervin said. "95% of our spending goes to the support of the teachers. You have to remember that the teachers in the academy are still interested in becoming more powerful, and the academy gives them resources to support them in this endeavor. Of course, they have to teach the students in exchange."

"Okay, but that doesn't explain why you don't need money," Shang said. "After all, you have to pay the teachers."

"Warriors at the Commander Stage are the most elite warriors you can find," Mervin explained. "Nearly all the teachers belong to some kind of organization or power. The academy isn't directly paying them but giving them access to valuable resources. The only thing the teachers get is the ability to purchase these resources. We are essentially spending zero money on them."

Shang's eyebrows rose. "So, the teachers are only working in exchange for some kind of membership for some exclusive shop?"

Mervin snorted. "The wares the teachers have access to are of the highest quality," he explained. "There are expensive and rare pills and tonics from all across the world. There are weapons and techniques that are exclusive to some countries and organizations. There are ores and materials deep from inside danger zones."

"And most importantly, there are materials from beasts in the True Path Stage."

"True Path Stage?" Shang asked.

"That's the name of the Fourth Realm for warriors," Mervin said. "It's the equivalent of a High Mage. The name comes from our dean. Since he is the first warrior that reached the True Path Stage, he got to name it."

"The first three Realms are named after the jobs the warriors took up for the Mages. Warriors in the Soldier Stage are mostly soldiers. Warriors in the General Stage are mostly officers. Warriors in the Commander Stage are the leaders of the armies."

"However, in the eyes of the Mages, that's it. The highest a warrior can ever become is the leader of an army."

"They can't become nobles or leaders of actual organizations. They can only lead armies."

Then, Mervin smirked.

"That was until the dean managed to break the mold. He was the first that managed to step out of the Realm of being a servant and managed to step onto the very level of actually important leaders."

Shang's mind imagined the power and prestige of the dean.

The first person that managed to speak to the Mages eye-to-eye.

However, Shang's brows furrowed as he remembered something.

'The God has asked me nine questions, and I get one answer after every major breakthrough,' Shang thought. 'I am in the First Realm, and I have gotten the answer to my first question. I will most likely receive my second answer when I reach the Second Realm.'

'Yet, there are nine questions and nine answers.'

pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ "Is there a Realm above the High Mage Realm?" Shang asked.

Mervin frowned. "Why are you suddenly so interested in Mages?" he asked with a snort.

"Because, since the dean is the strongest warrior, we don't know if there is an after. However, the Mages should know if there is an after," Shang asked.

For a bit, Mervin remained silent.

"Fine," he said. "Yes, there is a Realm after the High Mage Realm. It's called the Archmage Realm, and it's the most powerful Realm in existence."

"I've heard that you met Duke Whirlwind before. Duke Whirlwind is a High Mage, and he is the ruler over three Zones, the Ice Wyvern Zone, the Storm Eagle Zone, and the Empress Cobra Zone."

"The Whirlwind Duchy is theoretically an autonomous Duchy, but it unofficially belongs to the Skythunder Kingdom. The King of the Skythunder Kingdom is an Archmage," Mervin explained.

Shang's mind quickly went to the most logical question. "Are there also Emperors?" he asked.

"No," Mervin answered. "In order to be crowned an Emperor, someone would need to reach an even higher Realm. For the past thousands of years, the goal of every King has been to become an Emperor."

"But no one has succeeded up to now."

By now, Shang and Mervin had already entered Warrior's Paradise again, and they were in front of the gate of the academy.

Shang didn't ask any further questions, but he fell into thought again.

'The Archmage Realm would count as the fifth Realm, but that would only answer my fifth question. There are still four more to go.'

Shang threw a covert look to Mervin.

'That's probably the extent of what he knows. I don't know why, but not even a warrior at the Commander Stage knows what's beyond the Fifth Realm.'

'I'm unsure if Duke Whirlwind knows about the Realm beyond the Archmage Realm, but for now, I should assume that everyone believes that the Archmages are the most powerful Mages in existence.'

'But one thing is certain, there are at least eight Realms to being a Mage. I'm not sure if there are truly nine or if the last question was simply a hail Mary from the God to get me to reach a place no one has been in before.'

'However, one thing is certain. There are at least three more Realms after the Archmage Realm.'

'Yet, funnily enough, the strongest warrior in the world is the dean. I don't believe that the God has lied to me about that.'

'The people in this country believe that the dean has managed to step out of the rank of servants and look the Mages into the eyes, but they don't realize the true power of the Mages.'

'The dean is in the fourth Realm.'

'The strongest Mage is, at least, in the eighth Realm.'

'The most powerful Mages probably look at the dean as an especially outstanding child. He's very impressive for a child, but he's just that, a child.'

As Shang and Mervin stepped through the gates of the academy, they saw Soran waiting for them.

Soran saw the Beast Sack on Shang's shoulder and nodded.

"Put that to the side for now," Soran said, gesturing to the Beast Sack. "You have more important things to do."

"The dean wants to see you."

Chapter 76 - The Dean

When Mervin heard that, his eyebrows shot up in surprise.

Shang was also quite surprised. "The dean wants to see me?" he asked.

Soran nodded. "Follow me," he said as he turned around.

Shang looked at Mervin, but Mervin only shrugged. "I wanted to show you where you can deliver the corpse to, but I might as well do that for you now. I will add the contribution points to your emblem when you get it."

Shang nodded. He guessed that the emblem Mervin referred to was probably some form of identification, similar to the ID cards in companies on Earth.

Shang handed the Beast Sack over to Mervin and followed Soran.

Soran led Shang to the side of a hallway and up some flights of stairs.

"Why does the dean want to see me? Is that normal for new students?" Shang asked.

"I don't know, and no," Soran said. "Usually, It's either the other Vice-Dean that welcomes the new students or me. The dean doesn't come into contact with students much."

Some seconds of silence passed as they climbed up another flight of stairs.

"So, am I part of the academy now?" Shang asked.

"That's up to the dean," Soran answered. "I gave him the report, but before he gave his okay, he told me to bring you to him."

Shang didn't answer as his brows furrowed.

Why would the dean want to meet him?

Sure, Shang had great instincts, but Soran and Mervin were acting like this was something unusual. If it were normal for talented students to meet the dean, they wouldn't have acted in such a manner.

When they reached the fifth floor, the highest floor, the two of them went back to the hallway.

"This floor is reserved for the teachers," Soran explained. "Students are forbidden from accessing this floor without being accompanied by a teacher."

Shang looked around, and he noticed that there were not that many doors. He guessed that the rooms beyond the doors were probably rather sizable.

The two of them walked to the big gates at the end of the hallway and stopped before them.

"Come in," someone said from beyond the door. Shang thought that the voice sounded like the voice of a middle-aged man. The voice reminded him of one of the managers Shang had been under in his career as a fighter back on Earth.

"Go in," Soran said, gesturing to the door with his head.

Shang looked at the door with a frown.

He had no idea why someone like the dean wanted to meet him, but it was suspicious.

However, even if the dean had some ulterior motives, there was nothing Shang could do. No one but the three of them was currently around, and if they wanted to do something to him, they wouldn't need to put on such an act.

So eventually, Shang took a deep breath and opened one of the two doors as he stepped into the room.

When Shang saw the room, the first word that came to his mind was simple. There was only a table and a chair in the room. A black spear stood at the corner of the room, but it obviously didn't belong here.

That was it.

It looked almost like an interrogation room.

Was this truly the dean's office?

Shang could also get a clear look at the dean for the first time, and the first word that came to his mind when seeing the dean was general.

The dean looked exactly like one would imagine a general in a medieval movie to look like.

He wore a fitting black suit of armor. There were no great designs or anything on the suit of armor, but it gave off a feeling of experience, time, and status.

As for the dean himself, he was a middle-aged man. He had long black hair that went past his shoulders, and he had one of these beards that circled his mouth. Shang didn't know how they were called.

The dean currently had a stack of papers in front of him, and Shang noticed that these were the papers Soran had prepared while interviewing Shang.

"Please close the door," the dean said without looking up from the papers.

Shang noticed that he was still keeping the door open, and he quickly closed it.

After Shang closed the door, some kind of small statue appeared in the dean's right hand. The dean put the statue onto a circled part of his table, and the circle around that part suddenly began shining in a white light.

When that happened, Shang felt that the density of Mana was decreasing inside the room.

Just like Duke Whirlwind, the dean was absorbing a ton of Mana from his surroundings. However, there was no new Mana entering the room.

"That is an Isolation Magic Circle," the dean commented. "It serves as protection against Scouting, Scrying, and Inquisition Magic. As long as a High Mage isn't directly trying to listen in on us from beyond the door, no one is going to hear anything we will be discussing in here."

"Please, sit down," the dean said, lightly gesturing to an empty spot in front of the table.

SHING!

A chair appeared at that spot.

Shang was still uncertain, but he followed the dean's instructions and sat down.

After some seconds, the dean put the papers to the side and looked at Shang with his azure eyes.

For some reason, Shang felt that the dean's gaze held a deep meaning. It was almost like the dean knew something important about Shang.

pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ After looking at Shang for a bit, the dean's eyes wandered toward Shang's sword.

When the dean's gaze went towards Shang's sword, Shang felt his sword shake for some reason, which made him more nervous.

Up to now, the sword had only shaken if there was danger present.

"Put your sword on the table," the dean said.

Shang's frown intensified.

Had the dean noticed that his sword wasn't as simple as it appeared?

Nevertheless, Shang complied. There was nothing he could do anyway.

Shang took out his sword and placed it on the table.

The sword began to shake more and more, and for some reason, Shang felt like he had betrayed his sword. Up to now, it had only shaken when there was danger, and judging by the intensity of the shaking, the sword probably sensed life-threatening danger right now.

"You seem surprised," the dean commented.

Shang threw a look at the dean, but he didn't answer.

"It seems like there are a lot of things you don't know," the dean said. Then, he gestured towards the shaking sword with his head. "Watch."

Shang wasn't sure what the dean meant, but he looked at his sword.

Crk. Crk.

The shaking became more rhythmic, and the sword moved a slight bit to the side.

Crk. Crk.

The sword moved faster and faster, but it still moved relatively slowly.

Shang looked with surprise at his sword. It was moving in one specific direction, and that direction wasn't him. It also wasn't the dean.

Shang looked at the spear in the corner of the room.

Why was his sword trying to get to the spear in the corner?

When Shang looked back at his sword, he noticed that it was about to fall from the table.

But then, something in Shang's peripheral vision moved. Shang looked over, and his eyes widened.

The spear was hovering!

The spear slowly flew to the sword, and the shaking of the sword intensified as the spear approached it.

Clack!

Then, the sword leaped forward and touched the spear, and as soon as it did, it was like they became inseparable. It was like they were magnetized to each other.

The spear floated back to the corner of the room with the sword and landed again.

"What's happening?" Shang asked.

"Teaching," the dean said as he looked at the two weapons with a melancholic expression. "I still remember when I was in your position. I had just been here for maybe a year."

Shang felt like the dean wasn't referring to this Zone or this country.

"Time passes so fast," the dean said with a sigh. "Seems like I've fulfilled my purpose in his eyes."

For a second, Shang became confused, but his eyes widened when his mind connected the dots.

"So, you're the new one, huh?" the dean asked as he looked at Shang.

"Anything interesting happen lately on Earth?"

 

Chapter 77 Purpose

Shang almost couldn't wrap his mind around the words he had just heard.

Was the dean also someone from Earth?

Shang had thought that he was the only one!

"Surprised?" the dean asked as he looked at Shang with an even expression.

However, Shang's expression only changed into confusion.

"What are you talking about?" Shang asked.

When Shang said that, the atmosphere in the room took a monumental turn. It was like the temperature had dropped by several degrees.

"I don't have time for these games," the dean directly said. "Gleipnir is only teaching your sword because I allowed it to. I can also order it to consume your sword."

Shang took a deep breath as he looked over. The spear hadn't changed, but it felt far more dangerous now.

"How can I believe you?" Shang asked with an aggressive tone to mask his fear. "What if this isn't an illusion, and you are trying to get me to divulge information?"

pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ The dean's eyes narrowed. "And what if that were the case?" he asked with annoyance. "You've seen my secret, and you would die regardless. Might as well tell me more about that God you encountered so that I can more easily seek my death by knowing too much."

"Additionally, do you actually believe that someone on my level can glean such high-level information from your mind? Do you honestly believe the God didn't put up any defenses?"

Shang didn't like hearing that his life was not under his own control, but he had to admit that the dean was right.

Eventually, Shang took a deep breath as he looked into the dean's eyes.

"You don't seem like someone from Earth," he said.

"Neither do you," the dean answered coldly. "You have the eyes of someone that has killed innocent people."

Shang's mind immediately went back to that fateful night, but he only looked back at the dean. "I had my reasons."

"Your reasons don't matter," the dean said with a direct voice.

When Shang heard that, he grew angry. As if the dean hadn't done things he regretted. Shang was certain that it was nearly impossible to reach such a level of power without killing a human or two.

However, the dean's following words were different from what Shang had expected.

"On the path to power, we kill people," the dean continued. "It doesn't matter what they have done. As long as it helps us to become more powerful, that's reason enough."

For a bit, Shang's eyes widened, but then they narrowed. "Quite interesting to hear that from someone from Earth," he said.

"When an extreme switches, it can often switch to the opposite extreme," the dean said coldly. "Yes, this kind of attitude is something only psychopaths and serious criminals have on Earth, but you should already know in what kind of world we are."

"Individual power reigns supreme. The common people have no say in how the leaders run things. On Earth, the leaders had to be careful of a revolution, but in this world, a revolution doesn't matter."

"As long as I'm not included, Duke Whirlwind could defend himself against the united forces of his entire Duchy. He would rain devastating spells down from the sky and leave towards a safe location when he runs out of Mana. On top of that, beasts in the True Path Stage wouldn't have anyone stopping them anymore, and the casualties would pile up into mountains."

"I can see that you haven't been in this world for very long," the dean said. "You haven't seen what kind of atrocities are considered normal here."

Shang only looked at the dean with an unfriendly expression.

Originally, Shang had expected that he would be able to find a friend in the dean. After all, they had something that intrinsically connected them.

Yet, the dean felt way too direct and brutal for Shang. According to what the dean had said, he would be fine with killing everyone as long as their death would benefit his power.

Shang wasn't like that.

He wasn't afraid of killing his enemies, but he also didn't want to kill just anyone.

"You don't seem like your two disciples," Shang commented.

"They are them. I am me," the dean said. "But that has nothing to do with you. I didn't call you here to answer your questions."

"Why did you call me here?" Shang asked with a neutral voice.

"I'm here to tell you your purpose," he said.

"And that is?" Shang asked with skepticism.

"In order to make you understand, I have to tell you about my predecessor," the dean said. "My predecessor managed to reach the Peak of the Commander Stage, but he wasn't able to reach the True Path Stage, no matter how hard he tried."

"For many years, he attempted to find a way to break through the shackles that have bound the warrior's path for thousands of years, and in the end, he managed to find a way."

"However, he had only theorized that path. His background from Earth gave him a great ability to find a solution to very complex problems, but his training and his kind of training have ruined his prospects. It became impossible for him to advance."

"That was when I turned up," the dean said. "We two met, and my predecessor put his ambitions on my shoulders. He would teach me everything about how to reach the Fourth Realm, and I would put his theories on how to reach it into practice."

"Eventually, I succeeded. It was like I was a perfect test subject for his theories," the dean explained.

Then, the dean looked at Shang. "Now, onto you."

Shang didn't react.

"Just like my predecessor, I managed to theorize something. However, it is impossible for me to test it on myself, and it's difficult to make this method more accessible to everyone without a successful example."

"And then, just when I was about to throw away decades of my work because all the previous procedures have failed, I get this stack of papers," the dean said as he waved around the papers Soran had written.

The dean put them in front of him and went through them.

"Memory loss."

"Has only been in the wilderness."

"Warrior's body."

"Outstanding reflexes."

"Young."

"And most importantly," the dean said as his index finger pointed to one specific sentence on one of the pages.

"Extremely high pain threshold."

The dean put the papers back together again. "In short, you are perfect for my procedure. You are nearly as perfect as it could get."

"And you think the God sent me because of this procedure of yours?" Shang asked.

"Yes," the dean answered. "By now, I'm quite confident in the God's goals. His end goal is obviously the resurrection of the warrior's path, but you can't achieve such a goal in a single go from our current standpoint. You need smaller goals along the way."

"My predecessor's purpose was to theorize the Fourth Realm."

"My purpose is to reach the Fourth Realm and theorize a method to move warriors to the same level of relative power as the Mages."

"And your purpose is to put this method into practice and probably to theorize a way to reach the Fifth Realm."

"That's what you're here for."

Chapter 78 Trust?

Shang didn't know what he should think about the dean's words, but for now, the dean's words made a lot of sense.

"And what do you mean with reaching the same level of power as the Mages?" Shang asked.

"Basis of power per Realm," the dean answered. "Do you know what a Mana Source is?"

"Yes," Shang said. "When I met Duke Whirlwind, he told me about them."

The dean nodded.

"Then tell me, why would Apprentices need something above their own level to reach said level? Are they unable to reach it themselves?" the dean asked.

Shang frowned. "Probably not. It's probably possible to also become an Adept without one."

"Correct, it is possible," the dean said. "However, if an Apprentice doesn't absorb a Mana Source, they will reach the Adept Realm without having an intrinsic connection to their Affinity. This makes casting spells harder, take longer, and waste more Mana."

"With a lot of practice, said Adept can overcome these limitations, but that will take at least three additional decades, and that's assuming that the Adept with the Mana Source doesn't practice at all. As long as the Adept with the Mana Source actually trains their abilities, the gap will only widen."

"As you know, the Mages are supreme in this world. Us warriors don't even count as second-class citizens in their eyes. Why?"

"Because any random Adept can beat over 90% of the warriors at their same level. A matchup between an Adept and a warrior in the General Stage will end with the Adept winning 19 out of 20 times. Only the most elite warriors can take on an average Mage."

When Shang heard that, he took a deep breath.

That was a terrifying statistic. Sure enough, the Mages reigned supreme.

"Even worse, the gap only widens in the Third Realm. In general, it needs a team of at least three elite warriors in the Commander Stage to kill an average Mage."

"This gigantic gap exists mainly due to the Mana Sources. Without the Mana Sources, we warriors could take on the Mages on an almost even playing field," the dean explained.

"And you're trying to create something similar for warriors, I assume?" Shang commented.

The dean nodded.

"Bloodline Injection," the dean said.

"Bloodline Injection?" Shang asked with a raised eyebrow. "Like a blood transfusion?"

"Similar but not entirely the same," the dean explained. "We don't only replace the blood but also the marrow."

Shang took a deep breath when he heard that.

"The marrow?" he asked, his voice shaking a bit.

The dean nodded again, and he looked at Shang. "Your resistance to pain is the most important aspect."

Shang felt a hole open up in his chest.

Replacing someone's marrow.

Such a procedure would go beyond painful, and Shang guessed that, since the resistance to pain was so important, they couldn't do it under anesthesia.

"What do you get out of this?" Shang asked. "Not only does such a procedure have a very low chance of success, even if it has succeeded before, but I also don't understand what's in it for you."

"You did say that everything is fine as long as it increases your own power, right?"

The dean looked at Shang neutrally.

"Pride, knowledge, and revenge," the dean said.

"Pride, because I can say that I managed to elevate the world of warriors. I'm just a human, and just like every other human, I want my name to never be forgotten."

"Knowledge, because understanding more about the body of a warrior might allow me to further increase my strength."

"Revenge," the dean's eyes became cold, "I want the Mages to be thrown off their thrones."

Shang raised an eyebrow. "You had problems with Mages?"

"That's none of your concern," the dean said coldly. "What's of your concern is your compliance."

"You do want to become more powerful, right?" the dean commented. "The God wouldn't have sent me someone without any lust for power."

Shang looked with an evaluating expression at the dean. "I'm obviously interested. However, I don't trust you."

"You don't have to trust me," the dean answered directly. "If I wanted to kill you, I would have already killed you. Additionally, your survival is paramount to my plans. If you can't survive, my theorized method hasn't been proven yet."

"I'm not helping you. I'm helping myself, and you are simply an additional beneficiary of my help."

Shang definitely didn't like how the dean talked to him.

However, for some reason, Shang felt something he hadn't expected he would feel.

Respect.

Shang had no goodwill towards the dean, but he respected him.

Why?

Because, as far as Shang could tell, the dean wasn't someone that lied. Additionally, he hadn't even been vague with his answers.

He had been very direct, and instead of sneakily evading some questions, he had either fully answered them or directly told Shang that it was none of his business.

This was something Shang could respect.

However, for some reason, Shang still couldn't stand the dean. Shang wasn't certain why.

He just didn't like him.

Clank.

Shang heard something and looked at the table.

pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ His sword had returned. The silent sound had been the sword touching the table a bit while slowly flying towards Shang.

Shang put forward his hand and touched the sword.

Then, his eyes widened.

Shang could feel feelings coming off the sword!

"Our weapons have Spirits in them," the dean said. "The more powerful they become, the smarter they become. I would suggest that you find any Rank Two metal to strengthen your sword. Having an intelligent weapon will help you in your training."

Shang only barely heard the dean since he was preoccupied with his weapon.

What was his sword feeling?

Curiosity.

Closeness.

It was like the sword had met Shang for the first time, but for some reason, it felt very close to him.

It was like a child looking at its parents for the first time.

"When will you be ready for the procedure?" the dean asked, pulling Shang out of his thoughts.

Shang looked over, and his brows furrowed.

"Getting cold feet?" the dean asked emotionlessly.

"No, it's not that," Shang said.

"Then what? I don't have all day," the dean nearly growled.

Shang wasn't certain if he should tell the dean his thoughts, but in the end, he decided that he would go all in.

"I want an Affinity," Shang said.

The dean raised an eyebrow.

"I saw your disciple, and I believe that the path of a Magic Warrior is more fitting for me. However, the God hasn't given me an Affinity."

"So, is there a way to get an Affinity?" Shang asked.

"No," the dean answered directly. "Affinities are based on the soul of a person. If you wanted an Affinity, you would need to switch souls with someone that has one, and switching souls literally means switching bodies. In short, you would enter the body of the other person, but you would still not have an affinity."

Shang released a sigh.

When the dean saw that, a cold gleam shone in his eyes. "You lied," he commented with a cold voice.

"I had to," Shang said. "As I've said, I don't trust you. Because of that, I wanted to make sure that my Affinity couldn't benefit your power."

For a while, the dean only looked at Shang.

Then, he snorted.

"Smart," he commented. "Alright, so what is this Affinity about?"

Shang took another deep breath, and then, he decided to tell the dean everything he knew about his Affinity.

He even told the dean about the Pure Mana Source he had absorbed.

When the dean heard the details, he scratched his chin.

"It's definitely not an Ice Affinity," he said. "Additionally, you said that the God told you that it's a special Affinity. With his capabilities, it could be a unique one that doesn't even exist in nature."

The dean looked at Shang. "However, he wouldn't give you something useless. I guess that there is a way for you to unlock this Affinity by mixing different Mana Sources. If you want to take advantage of your Affinity, you maybe need to absorb another Mana Source to create a perfect mix."

"Let's try that out."

SHING!

Shang's eyes widened in shock.

What!?

The dean was so rich!?

Just now, the dean had taken out eight Pure Mana Sources with different affinities!

"You can keep whatever you can absorb, but I want to be paid back in the future," the dean said.

Shang looked at the Mana Sources.

Then, he looked at the dean.

"Deal!"

 

Chapter 79 Temperature

Shang looked at all the different Mana Sources with shining eyes.

Elemental Mana began to fill the room, but the Magic Circle kept the Mana isolated, making the different kinds interact with each other. There wasn't much Mana in the surroundings, but the different forms of Mana still created some minor phenomena.

The temperature in the room fluctuated wildly. Some bolts of lightning appeared and disappeared in the surroundings.

Lots of tiny things appeared.

pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ Shang also noticed something very interesting very quickly.

The dean hadn't summoned a Mana Source for Ice Mana, but there were still eight different Mana Sources.

Yet, according to what Shang knew, there were only seven affinities.

So, why were there suddenly nine, including Ice?

Shang quickly checked each Mana Source.

Orange ethereal spire that released a ton of heat? Got to be fire.

Brown ethereal spire that summoned rock around it? Shang knew that one already. That was earth.

Green ethereal spire that created tons of wind? Probably wind.

Deep blue ethereal spire that summoned water in the air, which rained down around it? Water.

Silver ethereal spire that summoned bolts of lightning? Lightning.

Grey ethereal spire that seemed to vibrate in the air? Shang wasn't that certain about what it was, but based on what he had already seen and what was missing, Shang was rather certain that this was metal.

That left the last two.

One ethereal spire looked like a black tear in space. It completely absorbed all forms of light and let no light escape.

Shang remembered that he had once believed the Pest Cats to have a Darkness Affinity, but he hadn't heard of any form of Darkness Affinity from other humans.

Was this darkness?

That would also explain the last Mana Source.

The last ethereal spire lit up the entire room, and if the darkness Mana Source weren't here, Shang would have needed to protect his eyes.

This was probably a Mana Source for light.

"I didn't know darkness and light also existed as Affinities," Shang commented.

"They're very rare," the dean said. "There are some beasts that have these affinities, but they are truly rare amongst humans. Most of the world thinks that darkness and light affinities can't exist inside humanity, but they do."

"Some true Mages know of the existence of a couple of humans with these affinities, but only High Mages get to meet them occasionally. Their existence is mostly being kept a secret to surprise a potential enemy."

"In comparison to the other Affinities, studies on the Darkness and Light Affinities are not made public and not conducted in the public. That means that a human unfortunate enough to receive such an affinity won't be able to become a powerful Mage without selling themselves to a big power."

Shang scratched his chin. "Why is it like this?" he asked.

"Variation," the dean answered. "Every power knows what sort of abilities all the Mages with all the Affinities have. However, they also know that the enemy might have some Mages with the Light or Darkness Affinity."

"Now, do you protect your attacking force with a Magic Circle that costs only ten gold that can deal with the known Affinities, or will you spend 10,000 gold for one that can also deal with light and darkness? Of course, the prices I just mentioned are only an example and don't reflect the real prices."

"Additionally, the enemy might have spells that could turn the entire situation around as long as you decide to do a certain thing. However, you don't know what that certain thing is since you don't know the ability."

"It could be something like gathering several Mages to Synchrocast a huge fireball. The enemy wouldn't know that they shouldn't do that, which is why they are doing it. So then, you use your Light Mage to suppress the light of the fireball and the Mana it gives off, confusing the surrounding Mages about its power and making it explode in the middle of them."

Shang listened with rapt attention and absorbed all the knowledge.

"What kind of Affinity do I have?" Shang asked as he scratched his chin.

"None of the ones before you," the dean answered. "Those only represent the pure Affinities. There are also Mixed Affinities, but they are very rare. A good example would be the Empress Cobra. It lives in a swamp filled with nothing but poison, and it rules over all the poisons in the world."

"According to some advanced studies, the Poison Affinity is comprised of the Water Affinity and the Darkness Affinity. However, as far as I know, the existence of a human with a Poison Affinity is only theoretical."

"If the God said that your Affinity is very special, it could theoretically be everything. It might even be something never seen before. It might even be something so confusing that we don't even know what it is."

"Try it," the dean said. "I would be lying if I said that this didn't interest me."

Shang nodded and walked over to the closest one, earth.

Of course, Shang already knew that he didn't have an Earth Affinity, but he wanted to feel how it interacted with him again.

Shang touched the brown spire, and it quickly entered his body. After a couple of seconds of circling around in his body, it left through Shang's mouth again, just like that last time.

SHING!

The Earth Mana Source vanished as the dean pulled it back into his Space Ring.

Then, Shang went to the next Mana Source, wind.

Shang absorbed this Mana Source as well, and just like earth, it left Shang's body after some seconds.

Shang's Affinity wasn't related to wind.

The next one was water, and just like the previous two, it simply left Shang's body.

Then, Shang looked at the next one, fire.

Shang already suspected that his Affinity might involve fire. After all, his left arm was also heating up while using his ability.

Shang touched the Fire Mana Source, and it entered his body.

It tried to get to Shang's head, but after realizing that it couldn't get there, it went to Shang's left arm. When that happened, Shang became quite nervous. He hoped that his left arm wouldn't explode due to the opposing forces.

However, nothing like that happened. When the Fire Mana Source entered Shang's left arm, it simply began to eat the Ice Mana Source.

Of course, the Ice Mana Source fought back, and the two of them began to enter a fight for supremacy. After several seconds, they entered a stabilized state.

Shang felt like the two Mana Sources were rotating counter-clockwise. The image reminded Shang of that ouroboros picture on earth, the one with the two snakes eating each other forever.

"Fire and Ice," the dean said from the side. "Opposing forces, but their fusion makes sense."

Shang looked at the dean.

"What you described sounded like an Affinity for Temperature. However, I didn't suspect it to be an Affinity for Temperature since that felt far too boring for something that the God would call very special," the dean said.

"Try it out. You can't damage this room."

Shang looked with interest at his left arm.

Then, he pointed it towards the wall.

SSHH!

A hot wind left Shang's left arm, and Shang felt like he had just opened a pre-heated oven.

At the same time, Shang's left arm became very cold, and he nearly lost all feeling in it.

When Shang felt the power of his attack, he could only frown.

"How underwhelming."

Chapter 80 Not Temperature

Why was it underwhelming?

Well, just as said previously, it was like opening a preheated oven. A preheated oven often had 200°C hot air coming out of it, double the temperature of boiling water.

In a way, this was insanely hot.

However, the only thing a human did when confronted with such a blast was to feel discomfort and maybe protect their face.

That was it.

And in return, Shang's arm nearly got frozen.

In short, this ability was supremely useless. It would only be useful as a way to cool Shang's arm after unleashing the Ice Mana from his arm, and maybe also to use it as a way to move around with the backdraft.

'Well, now that I think about it. It's actually not as useless as I've thought. I can use my ability more, and being able to move around in the air can give me far more flexibility. There's certainly something I can do with this,' Shang thought.

Shang pointed towards the wall again to heat his arm to a comfortable temperature, but two things happened that he hadn't expected.

First of all, Shang's arm suddenly felt like it had been thrown into fire, even though Shang had only heated it to a comfortable 20°C.

The second thing was that quite a strong wind had appeared in the room.

When Shang saw that, his eyebrows furrowed. 'I can create wind by unleashing cold and hot air. However, my left arm gets damaged during the process. Cooling something hot down in an instant isn't so bad since it's simply hardening something flexible.'

'However, heating something cold will result in tissue being torn at certain places. I mean, my arm is still usable, but it definitely isn't comfortable. Additionally, the temperature hasn't fluctuated as much.'

Shang looked at his left arm.

'If I unleash a powerful gust of hot air to shoot myself at an opponent with the draft, I could cool my arm to a terrifyingly low temperature, which allows me to unleash a horrifyingly cold explosion of cold wind.'

Shang narrowed his eyes.

'However, such an action will most likely tear my entire arm apart. It might even explode into a bloody shower. At that point, my left arm would be useless.'

"You don't seem to realize the true potential of your Affinity," the dean suddenly said.

Shang looked over at the dean with furrowed brows. "What do you mean?"

"Do you have problems with coming into contact with light?" the dean asked.

Shang wasn't certain why the dean asked such a question. "No?" he asked skeptically.

"What about a laser?"

For a second, Shang wasn't certain what the dean meant, but his eyes widened when he made the connection.

Concentration!

"Can I do that?" he asked absentmindedly as his mind fell into thought.

"It should be possible," the dean said. "The amount of Ice and Fire Mana you can release is a lot, but it's spread over a huge area. If you can spread it over a smaller area, you can intensify the effect."

"Additionally, the power of the Temperature Affinity only unveils its true strength later down the line."

"What do you mean?" Shang asked.

The dean pointed at Shang's arm. "Your body," he said. "The more powerful your body, the heavier it gets. The heavier your left arm, the more power is needed to cool or heat it. The more power is needed to cool or heat it, the more power you can unleash with your ability."

Shang's eyes widened as several images shot through his head.

Shang imagined himself pointing his arm backward, unleashing a powerful wind of cold air.

Then, Shang arrived in front of his opponent with a steaming arm and pointed at their head.

BANG!

A concentrated laser was unleashed, burning a hole through their skull.

Now, Shang could definitely see the potential of his Affinity.

pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ Shang looked at his left arm with shining eyes. 'My Affinity is not that useless after all.'

"If you're done dreaming, try the remaining Mana Sources," the dean said.

Shang looked at the dean with confusion. "Why?"

"As I've said previously, I doubt that the God gave you something as simple as a Temperature Affinity. Temperature is probably only a component or a base concept of your Affinity," the dean explained.

Shang's brows furrowed again, but he still decided to go through with it.

The first ethereal spire Shang touched was the one for lightning, and after a couple of seconds, it also left his body.

Lightning wasn't the way to go.

Then, Shang touched the Mana Source for metal. Shang felt a bit uncomfortable when touching the Mana Source. For some reason, the Mana Source for metal felt very dangerous to Shang.

However, Shang had worried for nothing. The Mana Source exited Shang's body just like the previous one.

Shang went to the next Mana Source, the one for light.

Suddenly, Shang's eyes widened.

What was going on!?

Shang felt the Mana Source for light enter his left arm and remain there.

'What? Why?!' Shang thought to himself in confusion.

All of Shang's previous dreams were thrown out of the window after this development.

Light?

Shang couldn't imagine how light could be related to temperature.

Did it have something to do with a star, maybe? After all, the sun was hot and bright, right?

But then what did that have to do with ice and cold?!

After the Mana Source for light entered Shang's left arm, it simply shone on the other two Mana Sources.

However, something very surprising was that the other two Mana Sources reacted the same way. Shang had expected the light to strengthen fire since the two of them were related, but it didn't only strengthen the fire but also the ice.

As Shang looked at his left arm in shock, the dean looked at Shang with narrowed eyes.

It was just as he expected. Shang's Affinity wasn't as simple as just an Affinity for temperatures.

"Try the darkness one," the dean said. "I have a feeling that you can also absorb that one."

Shang looked over, and he looked at the Mana Source for darkness.

Then, he touched it.

And sure enough, it got absorbed.