Born in Blood



Liam headed towards the Armory after finishing up a few more tests with the King's Eye.

A few minutes after, the Shadow Clone simply fell apart and dissipated after his control over it waned.

The clone simply took too much mental energy to function properly, and Liam would need to spend hours of cultivation and rest to refill his centers of power.

'Other than the massive consumption of energy it takes, it's an amazing spell… I wonder how much better it would be as a Rank 3 Magus.'

Eventually, Liam arrived at the Armory.

Behn, the Armorer, was pleasantly surprised to see him, and the stern-faced man cracked a broad smile. 

He couldn't help but respect how mature and stronger the boy looked compared to half a year ago.

"Kid, you have any idea how infamous you are around this place? Everyone's screaming "Golden-Eyed Vagrant", or whatever that is. Where the heck were you?"

A curse almost left Liam's lips, but he stopped himself.

"It's nothing. Just useless gossip between retards. If the Headmaster didn't tell you where I was, neither could I." 

Behn raised a brow. 'Aren't you a kid, though? And what's with that answer?' he thought.

"Forget that, I have to cash in my rewards," Liam said, taking out his academy token. 

Behn accepted the token with pursed lips, and his face grew into shock as he realized just what Liam was owed.

"All of this together is worth more than 500K! Were the rumors true? Were you actually sent to kill a dragon? Or kidnap an Elf princess?" 

Liam was taken aback. Just what kind of dumb rumors flew around when they were gone?

He shook his head.

"If you could hurry it up please. I still have other places I need to visit."

The Armorer chuckled awkwardly, then fixed himself and began to summon the different spells and techniques Liam was to choose.

"Rank 4 martial art specialized in dual-swords, four Rank 3 spells, and one Rank 3 cultivation technique."

"Also, show me the Rank 4 darkness spells you have available," Liam added, causing the Armorer to raise his brows.

"You have enough?" 

Liam nodded. 

Currently, Liam's ring held a little more than 450,000 'Ora' Stones. Obviously, he was going to buy a Zenith ranked spell that would boost his strength. 

However, the rest would be useful for any future needs. 

Money was still an issue for weaker cultivators, and Liam couldn't brute force through his problems with power alone.

More than a dozen different scrolls flew to Liam, and he eagerly began inspecting them, beginning with the martial arts. 

There were only three to choose from, but he wasn't surprised. 

'Shadow's Embrace. Rank 4.'

'Harness the darkness.'

'Close range, dual-wielding art that focuses on defense. Two forms. Consists of powerful attacks that utilize physical strength, enhanced by darkness.'

'Paired with 'Ora', a thick armor of darkness covers the user briefly, depending on his core stage. The first and second form allow the armor to switch from offense to defense.'

'Blade of Twilight and Dawn. Rank 4.'

'The path between two worlds.'

'Swift and unpredictable movements that focus on lithe but instantaneous attacks, and a balanced mix of defense and offense. Four forms.'

'Mid to close range effectiveness, with the last form focused on a singular, long ranged attack. Paired with 'Ora', the user will gain a burst of speed and power.'

'Phantom's Edge. Rank 4.'

'Ghostly.' 

'Focused entirely on speed and lethality, but sacrificing defense and strength. Fighting style will make the user resemble a phantom due to the swift attacks and unpredictable movements. Three forms.'

'Close range effectiveness. Paired with 'Ora', the user could instantly change the direction of his blades mid swing.'

Liam hummed to himself in thought. It was between 'Blade of Twilight and Dawn' and 'Phantom's Edge'. 

'Balance can never go wrong…but my body will be heavily speed oriented once I advance to the fourth Rank.'

'No point in changing styles now…I'm becoming a Wraith and a Phantom.'

With that, Liam picked the Phantom's Edge, before shifting his attention to the Rank 3 spells.

'I need spells that enhance my prowess and defense, since that'll balance out my martial art's weaknesses. A mental attack spell would be nice too.'

After a long silence and deep assessment of the spells, Liam chose the four spells and cultivation technique he was going to use. 

'Vanishing Steps, Obsidian Skin, Corrosive Mind, Piercing Blade, and the Shadowfire cultivation technique.'

Liam ended up buying two mental type spells, one for defense and one for offense. 

Vanishing Steps would give Liam the ability to change his direction instantaneously, and with incredible speed to boot. 

Obsidian Skin was the spell Liam had chosen Umbral Needles over, but it was pretty self explanatory. Defense would no longer be a major issue.

Corrosive Walls was a defense spell that would cause any mental assault aimed at his sea of consciousness to reflect damage back at the attacker.

Piercing Blade was the last addition, a simple but effective mental attack.

The Shadowfire cultivation technique was an unorthodox method of cultivation. 

It consisted of burning away the impurities within the core by using the corrosive properties of the darkness element. 

Too much of it would no doubt damage the core walls and possibly maim him, but the rate of progression it promised had already enticed him.

Finally, Liam moved to the Rank 4 spells.

There were only three, but two of them weren't particularly useful for his needs since they involved speed and defense, which Liam currently had plenty of.

'That leaves me with you, then…' 

Firm in his choice, Liam picked out the 'Surging Burst' spell, then bid the Armorer farewell. 

'I'll get ready to move out in a bit.'

///

Rishe Voist sat on his satin sheeted bed in quiet cultivation, a slight smile on his face.

He had just advanced to the second Rank of the core!

An amazing achievement for a youth barely aged 19.

Just for that, Riche had dismissed his women and had the entire mansion to himself. 

Yet his peace was shattered by the academic token flickering brightly in his robe pocket. 

Answering it, a woman's monotone voice rang out. 

"Lawrence has challenged you for the House of Honor. Do you accept?"