《LITRPG: The Great Machine Sage》


 Chapter 7 Mission Complete

    Hax watched the ten men making a pistol with clumsy hands. One of them accidentally touched the hot metal and burn his finger.


    ¡°Put your finger in that bucket of water, and get back to work. This is your moment of truth, if you all succeed in making a pistol today, each of you will get 10 gold coins.¡±


    The ten burly men got excited when they hear that. Their hands started moving a lot slower but a lot more carefully and refined than before. Truly, money was the biggest motivation of all. Hax didn''t mind giving them 10 gold coins if he could get 1000 access points. It was a huge bargain to him.


    As he continued to supervise his students, Bodin entered the forge.


    "How are they doing, Hax?"


    "Well, they learn quick. I''m confident they can finish the pistol today."


    Bodin laughed. "I told you. If all 60 of them learn how to make a pistol, we would be able to sell it to every rich man in the kingdom."


    Hax shook his head. "We shouldn''t sell it only to the rich."


    "Why?"


    "I''m willing to teach more people how to make a pistol. That means there will be more pistols produced in a day. I''m sure, we can reduce the cost, especially when the price of materials doesn''t even reach one silver."


    "But the profit margin will be on the low end. I give you more men so we can satisfy the demand in other cities, not to reduce the price of the pistol. Think about how much money we can get and what we can do with it. Buying a lot of spiritual crystals is not a fantasy anymore."


    Hax looked at him in the eye. "It''s not just about getting wealthier, and living longer, Bodin. When you tell me that a lot of people wanted to buy my pistol, I''ve come to a decision."


    Bodin frowned. "I believe that decision is not good for the profit."


    Hax smiled. "I decide to make my pistols available to every norm, whether they are rich or poor. I want them to have this weapon not to hurt others, but to protect themselves. You told me that a lot of people are being suppressed by these magicians. Sure not all of them are bad, like your friend Gaelin. But imagine if every norm in the kingdom, and even in the entire world can walk around on the street knowing that they can be safe, that they can defend themselves if needed."


    Bodin widened his eyes. "That''s very ambitious."


    "We have the ability to be ambitious. With this weapon, every norm would be able to live their lives in peace."


    Bodin held the man''s shoulder. He couldn''t believe that the man in front of him was so kind to the norm. The man didn''t even differentiate between poor norms or rich norms. To be honest, Bodin felt quite embarrassed. Why did he chase for profits if he could change the lives of every norm? Money, wealth, longevity, would all come to an end eventually, but the dignity of a human being must be kept eternal.


    "I agree with you, Hax. I will support you will all I have. In fact, I will use a bulk of our profit to expand our reach so we can give every norm in every corner of the world the safety they needed." Bodin snatched the pouches on Hax''s waist. "In fact, I will take these gold coins to speed up our project."


    Hax blinked when Bodin snatched his pouches. He said that he would help the norms so he could use a fine argument to lower the price, who would''ve thought that Bodin was so excited about it and proceed to snatch his golds.


    "Ahem. I will need that gold. Pistols are not enough to deter a stronger magician. I will use that gold to develop stronger weapons for the future of the norm."


    Bodin slapped his shoulder and smiled. "You are right. Why didn''t I think of that? With stronger weapons, no norms in the world would be suppressed. This is amazing! But I will keep two thousand gold coins with me. Expanding our reach to other kingdoms takes a lot of work."


    Hax snatched back two of the three pouches from Bodin''s hand. "Haha, you are correct. But I think we should focus our development in the Avatar Kingdom before expanding in other kingdoms. And don''t forget that developing stronger weapons is much more important than expanding our reach, at least for now."


    Bodin snatched back the pouch. "Developing stronger weapon is important, yes. But I need more capital to expand our reach in the Avatar Kingdom. Distance between cities is vast, and we need more magic bulls to pull our carriages. Besides, it''s useless to have stronger weapons if the norm couldn''t get it."This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    Hax stepped forward. "We can sell our stronger weapons to a well-off norm at first to get the capital for the expansion. But to do that, I need more money to develop it."


    Bodin dodged Hax''s hand. "We cannot do that. We must make sure that every norm can get their hands on our weapons. Selling our stronger weapons at high prices beat the purpose of our endeavor."


    "We can just sell the pistol on low prices, while the rest of the weapon we charged a bit higher. This is in fact necessary because the process of making a firearm stronger than a pistol is hard and complicated. I don''t think the men you send to me could make them even after months of training."


    Hax and Bodin argued while they snatched each other''s pouches back and forth. The forge room was incredibly lively because of their argument. Even the burly men started to get distracted from their work.


    "Alright," Bodin said. "You can use these 2000 gold coins to develop a stronger firearm but not too complicated so we can produce them faster."


    Hax nodded. "With 2000 gold coins, I believe I can make improvement on the pistol. The damage will not increase by that much, but we can produce them faster."


    "Good." Bodin returned the pouch that he stole from him. "I''m going to start buying more carriages and magic bulls. I''m also going to employ more people so we can expand our reach faster. With our ambition, it''s impossible for the two of us to do it alone."


    "Our project will also benefit a lot of norms aside from safety and security perspective," Hax said.


    Bodin raised an eyebrow. "What else?"


    "There is more job for them."


    Bodin was intrigued. The day before, he saw a lot of norms slept on the street and hadn''t eaten for days. If he could give them a job, then they could buy food and shelter.


    "You are a genius, Hax. I will make sure to employ a lot of norms as long as our earnings allow it."


    Hax almost slapped himself. He shouldn''t have said that, because now a bulk of the profit would be spent on employing more people that they might not need. His fine argument literally backfired on him.


    ¡°I have made more than a dozen pistols. It¡¯s in that box.¡±


    ¡°You are getting faster and faster.¡±


    Bodin left the forge room to spend 1000 gold coins for something that Hax hardly cared about. Anyway, the loss wasn''t that bad considering he would get much more demands in the future. More demands equal more money. Yes, he had said that all he cared about was his past, but having more wealth didn''t hurt.


    He returned to supervise his ten students. They made a lot of errors in making the small parts, but Hax didn''t scream or shout at them for their failures. He didn''t need to waste energy on such useless action. The gold coins he dangled in front of their face already motivated them to the fullest.


    A few hours later, one of the burly men dashed towards him. "Sir, I did it! I did it! I made the pistol!"


    Hax came out of his daydream and grabbed the pistol from the man''s hand. The frame looked crude, and the handle was quite uncomfortable. It felt like grabbing sandpaper. The pistol would make the palm itch if used intensively.


    He pressed the trigger a few times so to know how it feel. It was roughly the same as his work, but the clicking sound made him realize that this pistol was susceptible to jam. Hax cocked the gun, but it stuck. He frowned before he used more strength.


    Hax eyed the burly man who was smiling.


    "Give me a bullet."


    The man rushed to the table to grab a bullet.


    "Don''t be in such a hurry."


    The burly man lowered his head with a smile. "Sorry, sir."


    Hax loaded one bullet and tried to find something to shoot. He could just shoot the wall or the ground, but he didn''t want to risk it.


    Bodin fired his gun in public space with a crowd gathering on him, but he didn''t tell Hax that part. If he did know, Hax would lecture the merchant about firearm safety.


    After a while, Hax decided to shoot the tree trunk again. This time he put less distance between him and the target.


    Bang!


    When the bullet punched through the wood, Hax was fairly satisfied, but not too much. "The accuracy is terrible. I told you to carve the barrel with care. And don''t put too much gunpowder inside the bullet. Look how that deviates the trajectory."


    "Sorry, sir. I thought the bullet will be stronger that way."


    "Yes, it will be stronger. But if you cannot hit your target, then what is the point?"


    "I will do better, sir."


    "Good. Have the rest of you finished yet?"


    "Yes, sir." They replied.


    Why did it feel like he was a teacher asking the students if they had finished their exams? Hax shook his head and inspected the quality of their work. When He was finished he would lecture them on what parts should they improve or fix. Generally, they all have their own ideas on how to improve the pistol. This was a mistake because he didn''t ask them to improve it. All he expected of them was to create the pistol according to the schematics, but the prize must have motivated them to do something more.


    "Sir, I believe a longer barrel will make our weapons stronger," one of them said.


    "Yes, you are not wrong that a longer barrel will improve the pistol. But you made the barrel incorrectly which reduce the accuracy. The advantage of a long barrel is lost because of this. Not to mention that your pistol is too heavy for ordinary people. I don''t make this pistol only for big dudes like you. I want every people, even if their body is as thin as paper, could wield these weapons. Understand?"


    "Yes, sir."


    Hax let out a breath. "Don''t worry about it. I plan to make a heavier weapon in the future. Your experience in making a longer barrel will be an advantage at that time. The rest of you can go home now."


    Hax gave them 10 gold coins each, and kick them away along with the fifty burly men.


    "Now that they are gone, I can do my business."


    [Congratulations. You have completed your mission ''Knowledge Sharing'']


    [You have been rewarded with 1 blueprint ''1000 access points'']


    "Nice!"

 Chapter 21 Better Leader

    Jharteel, Thalanil, Gormon, and Zeno stood straight with stern expressions. In front of each of them were two hundred men they would lead from today. Nesterin was in front of them too, inspecting the soldier. All of them were currently lining up in the shooting field. The practice dummies were behind them.


    "At ease!" Nesterin shouted. "The four men in front of you are veterans. They have survived the first battle norms have ever done against cultivators. So they know what all of you need to know. Listen to them and you might return alive."


    Nesterin clasped his hand behind his back. "Do you understand?" He stared at his men.


    "Yes, sir!"


    Nesterin nodded. "The sun is still shining bright. Use the time you have to prepare. We will proceed with our plan in the morning."


    Nesterin left the field.


    Jharteel stepped forward and took over. "I will be your leader when Nesterin is gone. If I''m not around then you must listen to three behind me. Alright! We don''t have much time. Take your gun and start shooting. Don''t be shy wasting those bullets. We are the elite army. Resources are abundant. What I want is result. When we start shooting at the enemy, I don''t want to see any bullets miss their targets! DO YOU UNDERSTAND!?"


    "YES, SIR!" Their voice reverberated in the field.


    "Well, then what are you waiting for?! Shoot those wooden statues like you wanted to kill them." Jharteel pointed at the shooting targets.


    The Black Wolves and the Man Hunter trained all day long. The sound of pistols and rifles firing never stopped. The dummies were constantly replaced. Some trainees slipped and fell on their backs because the amount of empty shells on the ground was too many.


    The other units were curious about what The army was up to. Occasionally, they would take a peek at what the soldiers were doing before continuing their work. No one could relax in here. There was just too much work to do.


    After hours of shooting, the soldiers fell to the ground from exhaustion. Their hands were numb from the recoil. The act of pulling the trigger, replacing the clip, and aiming the gun was carved in their muscle. There was no way they would forget about it after the grueling session.


    The sky turned dark with stars and a hexagonal-shaped moon brightening the sky. Nesterin called them out to rest. He couldn''t have them fight a war with no sleep.


    The next morning, hundreds of carriage, pulled by magic bulls, rushed inside the field. The carriages were bigger now, and they were pulled by three bulls each. The wagons that brought the supplies were even bigger, and they had four bulls pulling them.


    The trainees knew the army was serious about this operation. The cost of these magic bulls was no joke. Each bull could cost a lifetime of work. They had strong skin and muscles, not to mention they were fast for their size.


    The sight made them nervous somehow.


    Nesterin came out of his tent and walked to the field. "Don''t be nervous, men! We are the Black Wolves. It should be the enemy that is nervous when facing us. Look at how much the people are willing to spend for our army. These magic bulls came out of their pockets. Should we tell them that their money is wasted?!"


    "No, Sir!"


    "Then push your doubt away! We will not return with failure. Not anymore!"


    The Black Wolves entered their carriage. Balmar still gave some speeches to his men at the other shooting field.


    Nesterin was not going to wait for them. After all of his members climbed the carriage, he told the coachman to set off. Hundred of Black Wolves'' carriage exited the fortified gate of Barmwich. The gate was tall and thick. Hundreds of guards stood on the wall, staring at every corner for potential threats.


    The people on Barmwich were shocked to see this development, at first. But eventually, they accepted it with open arms. The amount of trades in Barmwich exploded. People could sell anything because there were too many people that came into Barmwich.


    Nesterin had never set his sight on this small town before. Who would''ve known that Hax would emerge from this town.


    The Black Wolves set their destination on Boiling Volcano, specifically, the main route of the volcano. People would use this route if they want to go to Ashbourne or the Boiling Volcano. No norms would ever go to the volcano, though.


    The Black Wolves was an exception.


    They passed by a creek on their journey, so Nesterin decided to let his men rest. The place was nice. There were trees, freshwater, and small animals.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    His soldiers exited their wagon and laid on the grass. Nesterin followed suit. The grass was comfortable. It was short and soft like cotton. Most grasses tend to make his skin itch. Maybe the nearby creek changed their texture.


    "Hey look there is a spiky eel!" A man pointed at the creek.


    "Where?"


    "Over there."


    "Go kill it. I used to hunt them when I was a child."


    Nesterin was about to ignore them, but as a commander of an army, he had to discipline his men.


    "Stop!" He stood up and walked towards the group that made noise earlier. "We are in a war, soldiers. This is not a field trip. We''re not here to play."


    "A war?" A foreign voice came from the other side of the creek.


    "A bunch of norms going to war?" A man with a red robe with swords symbols approached the edge of the small river. "I only have left the Avatar Kingdom for a decade, and now norms can wage war with each other? Haha!"


    The man looked at their pistols. "I don''t even see any weapons with you. Where''s your swords, spears, axes, and shields? Don''t tell me you''re going to war with that sticks." The man laughed again.


    Jharteel ran towards Nesterin. "Nesterin. I think he''s a cultivator."


    "Even a child knows that," Nesterin replied. He turned his eyes towards the cultivator. The man had a sword and a red robe distinct from the Nefarious Sword sect. It couldn''t be mistaken. This man was from the sect.


    "Respected sir," Nesterin called. "May I know who you are and where you come from?"


    The cultivator looked at him with disdain. "I don''t need to answer your questions, norms! I have traveled for a while now. Prepare food for me. I want the best one that you have. If I find your service satisfies me, then I would consider letting you go."


    Jharteel and Nesterin looked at each other.


    "Should we shoot him?" Jharteel whispered.


    "Well, he''s just one person, while there''s a thousand of us. You know what, I have an idea."


    Nesterin turned to the cultivator again. "We will prepare the best for you, mighty cultivator. But before we do that, let us welcome you with our song."


    "Song?" The cultivator asked. "I have heard some song on my travel. I admit that you, norms, might be weak, but you are still good at this. Fine, let me hear your song."


    Nesterin cleared his throat. "It goes like this. The thing goes skrakk! Tak! Tak! Tak!"


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    TRATATATATAT! TRATATATAT!


    The Black Wolves were prepared to fire when they realized that the man was a cultivator. They were nervous at first, but their numbers gave them confidence. As soon as Nesterin pointed with his finger, they knew what to do.


    The pistols and rifles spat out flames out of their barrels.


    The projectiles tore through clothes, skin, and flesh. It filled the cultivator''s body with holes like a bloody beehive. Not long after, the man fell to his death.


    "We killed him! We killed a cultivator!"


    "I haven''t even finished my song yet."


    Nesterin and Jharteel smiled. They knew how it felt the first time killing a cultivator.


    "I don''t expect to stumble a cultivator here," Nesterin said.


    "It''s not that far from the trade route. Maybe he''s about to go there and hitch a ride with a merchant."


    "That is possible." Nesterin looked at his men. "How about it. Does it feel good?"


    "Yeah!"


    "I want to kill more of them!"


    "Slow down!" Nesterin said. "We are soldiers, not some men who simply wanted to take revenge. Our purpose is much greater than that."


    That made a lot of them quiet. The majority of them came here to take revenge. All of them had some bad blood with the so-called immortals. It couldn''t be helped since the cultivators were so domineering in their act.


    Nesterin wasn''t an exception. He too had some terrible memory with cultivators.


    The cultivator was shot in every inch of his body. His beautiful face, typical of a cultivator, now looked so disgusting that he might puke if he stared at it for a few seconds.


    "Just leave the body for the animals. We''re not the only one that needs to eat."


    Jharteel tapped his shoulder with a smile on his face. "You know I kinda like this song of yours. Why don''t we make it our tradition? I can''t stand the Man Hunter bragging about their tradition in our face every day."


    "It''s only a few sentence song, but alright."


    Jharteel chuckled. He knew Nesterin was just kidding. There was no way they would have any face left if they used it as their tradition.


    "I''m feeling generous today. All of you can have some fun in the creek. Go have a swim or hunt some spiky eels."


    "Yayyy!"


    The soldiers take off their clothes and dived inside the creek. The water only reached their waist, but that was enough for them to have a swim. Some group of eager men ran around chasing a spiky eel. They threw a stone at the pitiful creature as it wiggle around in the water.


    One of them was about to use his pistol to shoot at the eel, but Nesterin threw a rock at the man''s head before he could do that. There was no way that Nesterin would let such dangerous action. Hax had been very strict about firearms safety.


    "We got the spiky eel"


    "Hurray!"


    "Haha, you only got while we already caught three."


    "Damnit. Then let us see who can get the most spiky eel. Come on, guys!"


    "Are they children?" Jharteel commented.


    "Let them have their fun, Jharteel," Nesterin said. "As a soldier, we should be strict and disciplined most of the time, but having an occasional fun time is good."


    "We haven''t shown them what strict and discipline looks like yet. They only joined the army recently."


    "I know, but Hax wanted us to attack in the morning. He has faith in us. I can see that. Though, he might be slightly disappointed."


    "Why is he disappointed?"


    "He has some expectation of our ability. Specifically, my capability as a leader. It''s just that I failed to fulfil it."


    "You''re a good leader, Nesterin. No one can convince me otherwise."


    Nesterin chuckled. "The death of our comrade is my fault. If I took the time to properly prepare for our battle in Boiling Volcano, our casualties would be fewer. Most of our friends would still be like them, Laughing and smiling with us right now."


    Jharteel was about to say something, but he didn''t.


    "You can blame me, Jharteel. It''s fine. It was my fault to begin with. But, I want to be better. I want to be a real leader. Someone that can lead the pack and protect them. Talking to Balmar has made me realize that I still have so much to learn. Especially, Hax. I never see him lead a group to battle, But I have a feeling that he has talent in leadership. Something about him just makes me want to follow his lead."


    "Maybe because he''s rich?" Jharteel asked. "You always  love it when wealthy people came to our turf."


    Nesterin smacked him in the head. "That''s a totally different thing."

 Chapter 22 Trade Route Sabotage

    Elyon sat in a comfortable carriage with his stage-2 cultivators friends. They took out their swords and rubbed them with a cloth. It was their habit to take care of their sword whenever they could. Well, almost every swordsman had this habit.


    "Why do you think the sect is calling us back?"


    "I''m not sure. The message is very secretive. We are probably preparing for war against other sects."


    "Haha, finally. If we can defeat the other sect, the resources we have will increase. More of our brothers and sisters will improve their cultivation. We will be the first sect to have two resource points."


    Resource point was a spiritual crystal mine for cultivators. Of course, not all resource points consisted of spiritual crystal mine. Sometimes, a place where high-spiritual plants could grow was also considered resource points. Each of these resource points was so valuable because a sect could never prosper without it.


    "The sect master must have improved his strength. If not, he wouldn''t wage war against any sect."


    "That''s true. But all this is still speculation. We don''t know the real reason why the sect is calling us back."


    "You''re right. Let''s talk about our travel. Where have you been going?"


    "Ah, I''ve been exploring many ancient temples and monuments lately. They have some unique treasures inside, though traps are always annoying."


    "That sword you have is from these ancient relics?"


    The man showed his exquisite sword. The blade was carved with an intricate golden line that ran along the blade. The line was in the shape of a coiling dragon that opened its mouth near the tip of the sword.


    "That is a fine sword you have."


    "Thank you. It''s not easy obtaining this. What about you. What have you been doing."


    "I''ve been traveling to many kingdoms and empires. Their capitals are so big. You can find stage-4 cultivators there all the time. And the weapon they sell is better yet cheaper. A lot of runesmiths gathered in the capitals of these states."


    It wasn''t actually that easy to see stage-4 cultivators even in the capitals. This was because stage-4 cultivators could act as sect leaders. In the Royal Palace, they were considered as the right hand of the king.


    "All of your travel sounds a lot more interesting than me. All I did was travel around the magic forest. Only timberwolf giants or horned ox beast is accompanying me."


    "Brother, if you want to brag there are a lot more ways to do that. Timberwolf giants and horned ox beast is hard to kill. And they have spiritual essences that can increase our strength. The price for these essences is enough to buy a good sword."


    After a good laugh, they turned to Elyon.


    "What you''ve been doing Elyon. Come on tell us."


    Elyon didn''t want to tell them his story, but that would be unfair to his fellow sect members. "I''ve been going to the Death Land."


    Their eyes widened.


    "The Death Land in the north? Brother, have you lost your mind?"


    Elyon sighed. "I know. But look what I got." He pulled his right sleeve and showed them an engraving on his hand. The engraving was messy, like a child scrambling a lump of coal on a wood. There was no clear pattern to it.


    "What is that?"


    Elyon smiled and was about to answer until the carriage stopped moving.


    They looked out of the window and saw their coachman running away.


    "Why is he running away. I promised him 5 gold coins. It''s not every day I am being generous."


    "Maybe he wanted to take a piss."


    "Bahh mortals and their dirty organs. Their waste products are so smelly that you can smell them from kilometers away."


    "You''re right. I can''t stand it either. Their toilets are a waste of space. I wonder if we cut off the organs that produce this waste, will they stop using the toilets?"


    "We should try that later."


    "I''m going to try it on the coachman after we arrived at the sect."


    "Hey look there''s a big caravan on our way."


    The caravan consisted of hundred of carriages and wagons. They were pulled by magic bulls and seemed to be filled with a lot of supplies and people. There were so many carriages that some of them even went out of the route. Elyon had never seen such a huge group of norms before. Only when the cultivators go to war would they tell the norm to bring the supplies.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    "Let''s stop them. The caravan must have a lot of good food."


    "Or some souvenirs. I forgot to buy one for the sisters. They will surely nag at me later."


    "Let''s just take the whole caravan and bring it back to the sect. Our junior brothers and sisters would be happy with that."


    The cultivators merrily laughed again. Just as they were about to call the caravan to stop. A bullet shot passed through their carriage and shot one of them. He fell with a hole in his head.


    "Sh*t! Enemy attacks!"


    A barrage of bullets rained upon the carriage. The sound of gunfire was like a violent rain with storm and lightning.


    The Black Wolves felt their blood boil. The force of the recoil shook their arms and hearts. It excited them. And together with their fellow Black Wolves beside them, they smiled as they fired at the carriage.


    A few minutes later, after seeing no response from the carriage, Nesterin ordered his men to stop. The carriage was basically destroyed. The bulls that pulled it had died, and one of the wheels got wrecked, making the carriage tilt to one side.


    He frowned. That was a little too easy. He had set up some people to pretend as coachmen and lure cultivators to the trade route. He knew the operation would succeed, but he couldn''t believe that it was this easy.


    "Nesterin, should we check inside?" Jharteel asked.


    "Tell our men to surround the carriage, but keep the distance safe."


    The Black Wolves get down from their carriage and did as ordered. Their fingers were ready on the triggers. Their hearts beat as they aimed.


    "Should we send someone to check inside?"


    "No. Just shoot the carriage again."


    The Black Wolves surrounded the enemy carriage in a half arc. It was not fully surrounded, but Nesterin couldn''t do that unless he wanted his men to shoot at each other.


    When the men heard his command. They bombarded the carriage with bullets again. The bullets hit the wheel, and the carriage fell to its side.


    The sound of wood being torn apart was drowned in the sound of gunfire.


    "Stop!" Nesterin walked to the carriage. He opened the door and sprayed his rifle at random. He stopped when he saw the cultivators were already dead.


    "What do you see?" Jharteel asked.


    "Death cultivators." Nesterin smiled. "Apparently, it''s not that hard to kill them."


    His men laughed. There was some kind of truth in that statement. All they had to do was pull the trigger.


    Nesterin looked around some more and told his men to collect the weapons. These guys must have a lot of stuff they got from their travel.


    Then he felt something pricking his hand. It felt like a sharp hot blade cutting it. He looked at his hand and saw black lines moving around. He closed his hand and opened it again. It was still there.


    Shaking his head, Nesterin ignored the carving in his hand. "Alright, there are a lot of trade routes that went to Ashbourne. We will split up into five groups. Each group will have 200 people. They will be led by Me, Jharteel, Thalanil, Gormon, and Zeno. Come on. Chop, chop. Get inside your carriage. I want a thousand death cultivators at the end of the day."


    He looked at the messy carriage. "And get this carriage out the way. We don''t want our enemy to be suspicious."


    And so they began. The Black Wolves split up into five. They ambushed the carriage or wagons that the cultivators used to travel. Most of the carriages were owned by the Black Wolves. But there were some unfortunate norms who had their carriage destroyed. Of course, said norms were not harmed. Cultivators saw no harm in the norm. Even when they pointed their guns at them, they didn''t even care.


    Killing them became much easier because of that.


    The news of norms ambushing cultivators was never spread. This was because Nesterin strictly scouted nearby carriages when he executed his operation. If there was one nearby, he would destroy or stop them depending on who rode the carriage.


    "Hax told me that we can kill gods if we know everything about them. Looking at these clueless immortals makes me think that''s actually true. If they know that the norms have powerful guns now, they wouldn''t be so dumb to let us shoot at them."


    "Did he really say we can kill gods?" Jharteel asked.


    "Yeah, something like that."


    Carriage after carriage and hundreds of cultivators fell to their death. They traveled far and wide, gaining tons of experience and equipment, but now they were dead all the same.


    Nesterin peeked from behind the hill. There was a group of cultivators walking on the trade route. It was rare to see a cultivator going somewhere without forcing a norm to serve them.


    "I think we''re already running out of carriages," Jharteel said.


    "That makes sense. Well, it doesn''t make a difference. This hill is a good spot. We can train our long-range shooting from here too. And why are you still here? I told you to split up."


    "Who would protect you if the cultivator pounced on you."


    "I don''t need protection from a boy. Go lead your team and attack them. There''s quite a few of them down there."


    Nesterin and Jharteel brought their team into position. They pointed their pistols and rifles before firing madly at the cultivators below.


    A dozen cultivators fell in an instant. The other cultivators were confused but they reacted quickly. They used their swords to block and spun around as they cut the air. A few of them even had the chance to throw a few spare swords at them. Their attempts failed.


    Against four hundred gunners, the cultivators were no matched.


    Nesterin ran a hand to his hair. "Well, that was a good exercise."


    "Sir." A scout approached him with a horse and get off. "There is a large group of cultivators in the south. They have no carriages, horse, or any animals that they use to travel."


    "What is their weapons?"


    "Only swords, sir."


    "Seems like we have another practice target, boys. Let''s go."


    Jharteel smiled as he shook his head. The Black Wolves were not as weak as before now. A few weeks ago, they barely could kill a stage two cultivator. Now, they reaped their lives like wheat.


    When the Black Wolves arrived near a valley. They were shocked to see a fully armored group of cultivators, marching beside the river between the mountains.


    "The scouts didn''t tell me about the armor."


    "Who are they? Jharteel asked. "Are they really the member of the Nefarious Sword?"


    "Those armors. I''ve seen them before. Around twenty years ago, when the Avatar Kingdom was in a war. But after the war, I never see any cultivators who wear that kind of armor again."


    "So why do these people wear them?"


    "That''s the question, Jharteel. There are two possibilities. The kingdom is planning to wage war, or they will use the armor to fight against us."


    "Can we pierce their armor?"


    Nesterin turned silent for a moment. He wanted to be a good leader. He didn''t want to disappoint Hax and the Black Wolves. For that, he needed to think this through. Every action had its consequences.


    "Call our forces. We need to gather everyone for this operation."


    "Should we prepare the ''goods'' too?"


    "Yes, use lots of them." Nesterin grinned.

 Chapter 23 Cultivator Army

    At a hill, Thalanil was laying prone with his rifle. His men were in the same position as him. Their eyes were locked at the camping cultivators. The cultivators laughed and ate to their heart''s content without knowing that a pack of wolves was staring at them.


    "Breathe properly. Steady your aim. The one who can get the most headshot will be served by the most beautiful server."


    That made them chuckle.


    Thalanil was grinning too. "Fire!"


    TRATATATATAT!


    Two hundred firearms blazed fire as they shot a barrage of metal projectiles at the cultivators. They didn''t have time to react before the bullets blasted their heads. In one round of fire, the group of cultivators was killed.


    "I see some stray bullets there," Thalanil said. "Maybe I should send you directly to the cultivator''s face to improve your aim."


    His men laughed. The cultivators wouldn''t do anything even if they do that. They were just too clueless.


    "Sir, Nesterin commands us to gather."


    Thalanil stood up. "Looks like we got more targets to shoot. Let''s go."


    His company-sized unit left the hill. It didn''t take long for them to do so as Nesterin told them to prioritize mobility. He understood why. As long as they could ride their carriage before the cultivators pounced on them, they still had the chance to survive. He had experienced firsthand what the lack of mobility could do.


    A few hours, later. Thalanil arrived at a valley where the other also gathered. He get off his carriage and greeted his friend: "Gormon, Zeno. How''s your hunt."


    The both of them smiled.


    "Those cultivators are so dumb. I give them a gun and told them to pull the trigger. They did and blasted their own head. HAHAHAHA!"


    Thalanil couldn''t hold his laughter too. He couldn''t believe that he was scared of cultivators before. Looking back, he was really stupid at that time. Cultivators weren''t that scary.


    Nesterin walked to them, and Jharteel followed from behind.


    "It seems like the operation has gone well," He commented.


    "It''s been pretty well, sir."


    "Except the parts where we have to hold our farts to take aim."


    The five of them laughed.


    "Alright, stop joking," Nesterin said. "Our men are watching us. We should set a good example for them. Hax wouldn''t hesitate to kick us out if he knows we lack discipline."


    "Why are you gathering us, sir? Is there a big group of enemy?"


    "There is. They are currently camping in the valley behind this hill."


    "Then it''s best if we act now. They are vulnerable when they camp."


    "I know. But they used armor. You know when a cultivator started to wear an armor, things get serious. Have you seen a cultivator wear armor before?"


    They shook their heads.


    "Even when a sect is at war with each other, they don''t wear armor. I don''t know why this is the case. Maybe magic armor is too expensive."


    "Hey! What are you norms doing here?" Three cultivators riding on a horse approached them. Unlike the cultivators in the valley, these three didn''t wear any armor.


    "They must be the scouts," Jharteel whispered.


    "Let''s catch them," Nesterin said.


    Three minutes later, three cultivators with holes on their limbs were tied on the ground. Nesterin, Jharteel, Thalanil, Gormon, and Zeno sat on a wooden chair surrounding the three. A dozen soldiers stood guards with pistols in their hands.


    Nesterin stood up and kicked one of them. "Who is your boss?"


    The man stared at him with rage. "You norms will pay for what you''ve done."This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    "I heard that a lot. But this is the first time that came from a cultivator."


    "That''s right. I don''t know what you filthy norms used to hurt me. But you better release me and my friend before you get hurt."


    "I think you misunderstand," Nesterin said. "We shot your limbs with bullets. Even if we untie you, you wouldn''t be able to walk. What are you going to do? Wiggle your way to the valley?"


    Thalanil almost burst into laughter, but he bit his lips.


    "Tell me what are you doing here?" Nesterin asked.


    "I don''t have to answer you, norms!"


    Nesterin sighed. "Let''s just kill them and ambush the enemy while they camp."


    Bang! Bang! Bang!


    Nesterin and Jharteel climbed the hill and peeked at the camp. The cultivators ate lamb and bulls for their breakfast. The servants attended to their master, boiling water and cleaning equipment for them.


    "We have sabotaged the entire trade routes for weeks, but we never saw this large group before," Jharteel said.


    "That means this is not an everyday occurrence."


    "We should attack right away. It''s only a matter of time before they realized that their scouts are dead."


    "We can''t. They bring a lot of norms with them. Send someone to pretend as a servant. Let them have a talk with the servants. Who knows maybe we can get some information out of them."


    A few hours later, a man with servant attire returned to the hill and told Nesterin everything he knew.


    "The Royal Army?" Nesterin said.


    "This army came from the capital? What should we do? Should we attack them?"


    "This is too big for us. I don''t think our small rebellion is enough to fight the royal family yet. All the sects in Avatar Kingdom answer to the royal family. Removing us is easy."


    Nesterin bit his lips. "This is bigger than I thought."


    "Why don''t we inform Hax about this?" Gormon suggested.


    Zeno nodded. "I agree with that. One sect in Ashbourne is enough to make us busy, I don''t think we can fight the Royal Army yet."


    "Now that I take a closer look at them, their armor is thick and heavy. And they shine like a magical weapon. That''s at least a level-1 magic armor," Gormon said.


    "Every inch of a magic weapon cost some spiritual crystal. This is why they don''t use armor most of the time. They are too expensive. Wearing them means that they are serious," Thalanil said.


    "Send some men to Hax and tell him about this."


    A group of men entered the carriage and set off. The two giant bulls dashed. The coachman raised his whip above his head and swung down, making the bulls roared and increased their speed.


    Nesterin sat on the hill. The cultivators in the valley finished their meal and drank their water. They took off their armor and put it on the ground. The servants knelt and rubbed it inside out with a cloth.


    "They put the armor on the ground and tell the servants to clean it? Do they really want their armor to be clean?" Zeno said.


    "They just want to make the norms busy."


    "If I pull the trigger now. I would get his head," Thalanil said, aiming his rifle.


    "Don''t be rash," Nesterin said. "Let''s wait for our order and decide what to do after that." Nesterin closed his eyes to rest. The blowing wind on the hill was really nice.


    "Nesterin, the messenger is back," Jharteel said.


    Nesterin opened his eyes and stood up. He approached the messenger. "What did he say?"


    The messenger looked at them one after another. He took a deep breath and set his sight on Nesterin.


    "Kill them all."


    ¡­


    The Avatar Kingdom. Built upon the ashes of many men and women, it rosed into greatness and stood shoulder to shoulder with other low-level kingdoms. Among these men and women, there were six figures that contributed the most. So much so that the people were unwilling to accept their death. In consequence, a strong group arose. They believed that the six figures were still alive, but only in the form of soul. These souls would then possess a body, becoming the avatar of the soul.


    Over the years, the soul had been possessing the sons and daughters of the Royal Family. Each avatar had its own role in the kingdom. One rule, two enforce, and three protect.


    Adan Falkner knelt, head down, in front of a statue. It was made out of Aeternum Metal. Like the sun, it glistened and was hard not to notice. And similar to the sun, this metal was unbreakable. It was known to be impossible to break by natural causes. This statue was with this metal with the hope that the Avatar would be eternal.


    The statue was shaped into a tall man with straight flowing hair. A crown sat on his dignified head. His radiant eyes seemed to pierce into the distance. A finely crafted robe wrapped around its skin.


    Adan raised his head. "Adan Falkner, the Avatar of Wisdom. Please give me your vision."


    Blue light came out of the statue. It flew and gathered at the tip of the statue''s finger. "Arrogance will consume you. Humility will save you. Distant wrath is hollow to compare."


    The light disappeared.


    Adan Falkner stood and left the hall.


    ¡­


    Nesterin stared at the messenger. "Are you sure Hax told us to attack?"


    "I speak word for word, sir. There is no way I can forget a sentence consisting of three words.


    "This is the Royal Army we are talking about," Jharteel said. "Can we really defeat them? Even if we did, what about further retaliation?"


    "I don''t think Hax is stupid. He must have his reason," Nesterin replied.


    Jharteel nodded. "It''s hard to believe, but Hax might do have his reason. Or maybe we are stronger than we think we are. Maybe we can take over the kingdom."


    "Uhh¡­ Let''s not talk about that yet. We need to prepare a plan. Since Hax told us to kill them all then we shouldn''t leave any survivors. It''s better to take his word to the truest literary meaning."


    "You talk like you ever go to school. Anyway, What should we do? Surround them? Lure them into a trap?" Jharteel asked.


    Nesterin grinned. "I have a plan in mind. Let me ask you something. Do you know why our ammunition explodes when we shoot them?"


    Thalanil and the others got closer. They too were wondering why.


    "It''s because there is gunpowder inside the bullets. Now, this small bullet contains enough explosion for a cultivator to be distracted and even killed. Imagine if we put enough gunpowder inside a box."


    Jharteel jerked his head back. "The explosion will be much greater."


    Nesterin nodded. "And we can kill a lot more cultivators at once."


    "If that is the case, then what are we waiting for. Let''s  Prepare the crates and the gunpowder."


    "You go do that. Prepare twenty or so wagons and filled them with the box. I want to see a big explosion tonight."


    Gormon, Zeno, and Thalanil grinned. The cultivators wouldn''t know a thing. They knew how arrogant these cultivators were. They thought the norms were as harmless as a rabbit. Little did they know that rabbits can have rabies.


    Jharteel strode towards the wagons. "Come on. Fill this thing with explosives! I don''t want to see any empty space in it."

 Chapter 24 Magician

    Nesterin set his sight at the dark clouds. The air were violent and cold. The light of the sun dimmed, but their blood were still boiling. The Black Wolves packed crates after crates and put them inside the wagons. He hoped this plan work.


    "How many wagons do you plan to fill?" Nesterin asked Jharteel.


    "What about twenty five?"


    "Twenty five seemed good. We should send them all out at once and blasted them apart."


    Jharteel shook his head. "I don''t think that''s a good idea. Why don''t we use them sparingly. Maybe one or two throughout the battle. This way we could last much longer."


    "No. Our enemy are not stupid. They looked like they are because they don''t know what we can do. We should use this advantage and dealt the most damage we can do at once."


    Jharteel nodded. "You''re right. Is our enemy still camping?"


    "They are. And it doesn''t seem like they were about to leave."


    Thalanil strode towards them. "Sir, all twenty five wagons have been filled with gunpowder."


    "Then proceed with the plan. Make sure you tell the coachmen to put the wagon deep in their ranks."


    "What about the servants that serve the cultivators, sir?"


    "There''s nothing we can do about it. The cultivators would suspect something if all of their servants are missing."


    Jharteel grimaced.


    Nesterin noticed his expression. "Remember what we are fighting for, men. It''s not only for our freedom, but for every norms in the world. The price will be steep, but I''m willing to pay for it. If any of you have second thoughts, then you can return to your home and suck on your thumbs while we real men will bleed and sweat for you freedom."


    He turned to look at his soldiers. "Do any of you have any doubts?"


    "No, sir!"


    "Do you want to return to your family so they can tucked you in bed and tell you midnight stories? Or do you want to go out there put a bullet in our enemies'' head?"


    "Yes, sir! We want to put bullets in their heads!"


    "Then remove all of your doubts. They will kill you first before the enemy did."


    He tapped Jharteel on the shoulder. "You are a leader of two hundred men. It''s time to shed your innocence skin and be a leader who they can look up to."


    Jharteel nodded. "I will."


    "I believe this is the best time to officially promote the four of you. From today onward, Jharteel, Thalanil, Gormon, and Zeno will be captain of two hundred Black Wolves."


    "Thank you, Nesterin."


    "Thank you, sir."


    "Now go and organize your men. Get in position! Bring as many ammunition as you can. We have an army to shoot."


    "Yes, sir!"


    The Black Wolves prioritized coordination among many things. The four surviving member of the Black Wolves had faced a turf war many times, and they knew how to coordinate people. They were cubs that follow the lead of the pack, but now they were the alpha. How things had changed.


    The explosive-filled wagons made their way towards the Royal Army. The coachmen sweat within the cold air. The soldiers knew they were nervous.


    "You can do it!"


    "We''re counting on you."


    "We''ll get you a barrel of wine after we go back!"


    Nesterin smiled when he saw how the soldiers were encouraging the coachmen. He should make that as part of the tradition. The pack must support and encourage each other.


    The coachmen nodded and thanked the soldiers, they whipped the bulls and sped up.


    The Black Wolves prone on the hills as they watched the wagon moved below. Their rifles pointed at the Royal Army. The servants moved out again, cooking meals and cleaning armors. Nesterin wondered if these servants were paid properly.


    "Nesterin, if our plan failed, what should we do?"The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    "We have discussed that. We will run to our carriage and leave. The magic bulls is fast enough to let us escape. The time where we are massacred by the cultivators should never happen again."


    The wagons that they sent closed in on the camp. The cultivators stopped them and talked to the coachmen. Nesterin had talk to them about what to say to the cultivators. If everything was according to plan, then the cultivators should tell the coachmen to leave the wagons in their camp.


    As expected, the coachmen moved the wagon deeper into the camp, then they get off their wagon and walked away. The cultivators were too predictable. Even when they came from the Royal Army, their bandit-like nature were the same as the locals.


    "I can''t believe that actually work. They don''t even check what''s inside the wagons," Jharteel said.


    "These cultivators from the Royal Army is as dumb as the Nefarious Sword," Thalanil said.


    "Should we shoot the wagons now?" Zeno asked.


    "No, not yet. Let them gather around the wagons first. Sooner or later they would get curios."


    What Nesterin said happened a few minutes later. The cultivators gathered around the wagons and checked what''s inside. When they started to open the crates, Nesterin told them to shoot.


    "Fire!"


    Flames came out of the thousand muzzle. The Black Wolves sent waves after waves of bullets. Gunshots reverberated through the valley. Every other noise were consumed by them.


    As the barrage of bullets hit the gunpowder inside the wagons. A violent reaction proceed.


    BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!


    The wagons exploded, flame ablaze. The explosions threw every nearby cultivators and swept the tents away. The flame cooked every men and women, norms and cultivators it touched. The cultivators looked left and right, panicking. But only after hundreds of them have fallen did they found where the attackers were.


    "Enemy attack atop the hills!"


    "Vanguard units! Get in formation! Protect the others!"


    The Black Wolves keep firing their weapons as they saw the cultivators organized themselves. A group of heavy armored men with shield and spear moved to the front. Their shield looked like a square banner made out of a huge chunk of metal. The barrage of bullets couldn''t make a dent on it.


    "Don''t shoot the shield!"


    They turned their fire towards easier targets such as the tents and unprotected cultivators. They tried to avoid killing the norms, but the dense amount of bullets were too lethal. Blood blossomed out of their chest before they fall to their death.


    The bullets teared the tents apart, killing every cultivators inside.


    "Shapeshifter unit! Attack!"


    Nesterin frowned. Shapeshifter? He never heard of such things.


    Hundred of armored cultivators bit their tongue and started to ballooned in size. Their muscle bulged and seemed about to burst, as dark-purple hair covered their skin. The armors broke and fell piece by piece. These human wolves like monster roared towards the hill and dashed on all four.


    Their movements were so fast, that the Black Wolves had a hard time shooting them down.


    One or two of them occasionally shot in the head, but there were still hundreds of the werewolves rushing towards them like a tidal wave.


    "I know this would happen," Jharteel said. "Bring the crates that I told you to prepare," He told his men.


    "You prepare extra crates for this?" Nesterin asked.


    "We lack preparation in our fight in Boiling Volcano. It''s better to be over prepared this time."


    Nesterin nodded. "Well whatever you planned to do. You better do it quick. Those monster is about to climb the hill."


    After the soldiers brought the crates, they threw them down the hill and watched as it rolled downward. After it got near the werewolves, Nesterin ordered them to fire.


    Boom! Boom! Boom!


    Tens of wolf monsters burned to death. Some had flames on their fur as they hastened their movements.


    "Focus your fire on the wolves. Don''t let them climb the hill!"


    The soldiers turned their firearms and shot the monsters. One after another, the werewolves were punched full of holes by the dense amount of bullets. It tore apart their jaws and face like a hungry piranha. As all the werewolves died, something incredible happened.


    An expansive circle of light expanded in the sky. Intricate lines filled the circle and a second later¡ªrain fell.


    The rain put out the fire within the camps, and healed any wound the cultivators had. They seemed stronger and revitalized as they stood up and stared towards the Black Wolves.


    "They have magicians in their ranks!"


    "Magicians and shape shifters. What else do they have in their group?"


    "The Royal Army shouldn''t be underestimated."


    Nesterin grimaced. "Keep shooting. If those magicians heal their wounds, then we better keep hurting them!"


    The barrage of bullets continued. It poured on the cultivators like a violent wind, pushing their steps back.


    The cultivators hid behind the vanguards, but then a man with a staff in the back line pointed to the sky with two fingers before he swung down.


    The dark clouds above churned and rolled. Suddenly, tens of bright glowing spears pierced the clouds and rained upon the Black Wolves.


    "Ah! It burns!"


    The spear that hit the Black Wolves drilled into their flesh and ignite the entire body with flames.


    "Run!"


    "Run for your life!"


    Nesterin watched as the bright spears rained upon his men. His expression were filled with horror.


    "Nesterin. We should shoot those magicians. If they die, the magic will stop."


    Nesterin shook his head and removed his fear. "Calm down! Return to your position and keep firing. No matter where you run away you will die nonetheless. So why don''t you bring a few cultivators with you! Shoot the enemy or I will start shooting you!"


    "Yes, sir!"


    The Black Wolves returned to their positions and started shooting again.


    Thalanil on the other hand didn''t move a muscle. He didn''t even pulled the trigger. He controlled his breathing, stabilized his aim. And his sight were locked on the magician.


    Bang!


    The bullets shot through the air, passed the small opening of the shields and struck the magician in the head. The magicians jerked his head back, blood burst out of his head.


    The rain of spears stopped.


    "The magician is dead. Shoot them down!"


    The Black Wolves pulled hard on their trigger. They wanted to kill the cultivators! They wanted to avenge their comrades! The hatred they had against cultivators swelled.


    As the vanguard marched forward, the magicians that hid behind them swung their staff in the air and out of nowhere, balls of flames appeared and flew towards them.


    "Try to kill those magicians. They are our primary targets!"


    As the Black Wolves and the magicians fired at each other, two group of cavalries suddenly emerged from the vanguard''s flanks. They wore thick and heavy armor with a huge lance and shield. Their mounts were clad in the same setting, thick and unwieldy yet their movements were as fast as the wind.


    They bulled through all the bullets as fireballs flew above their heads.

 Chapter 25 Big Cannon

    Hax stood with both hands behind his back. In front of him, a man wore an iron armor that covered his arms and shoulders. The man held a big assault rifle that wasn''t meant to be held at all. It was the big weapon that Hax had meticulously crafted. It took him a couple of days to make one. But the most important part, the mechanical arms, took him more than a week.


    The mechanical arms were deep black and didn''t reflect any light. It was flexible and strong enough to lift 150 KG of weight.


    The high-caliber assault rifle that he called BC-75 had a firepower of a cannon, high firing rate of a machine gun, and the accuracy of an assault rifle. With this, the gun was effectively a medium-range, high damage, high firing rate firearm.


    Eight muscled men lifted a metal statue and brought it into the shooting field. After they placed it down, they took a complete set of armor and wore them on the statue.


    This was the practice target.


    "Fire when you are ready," Hax said.


    "Yes, sir."


    The man tucked the stock of BC-75 on his shoulder. He aimed with one of his eyes and pulled the trigger.


    The assault rifle spat out violent flames as it madly sprayed bullets towards the target. The high-caliber projectiles ripped the statue apart. Its armor was filled with holes and some parts were dented and deformed. The only thing that let it stand was its weight. A real human would fall the moment the first bullet hit it.


    The firing continued, accompanied by the sound of metal against metal and gunfire. Hax and the audience watched as the man held the recoil with ease.


    "That''s enough," Hax said.


    Thick smoke came out of the barrel as the assault rifle stopped firing. When the man put the assault rifle inside a bucket of water, it hissed like a snake.


    The BC-75 was 69 KG in weight and had 0.75 calibers as its ammunition. It had a drum magazine that held 140 bullets inside. Its high explosive power was enough to punch through any metal. The metal statue that acted as the target was a 55 mm meter thick folded alloy. For this weapon to do so, Hax had refined its gunpowder a bit.


    The ordinary gunpowder was too weak. He had to improve it slightly, though he couldn''t do much since he didn''t have the right knowledge.


    "What do you think, Ratha?"


    She nodded with a little more energy than she used to. "Strong weapon."


    Hax laughed. "Of course it is. But nobody can hold it without that mechanical arms that I made."


    "The mechanical arm is the key," Ratha said.


    "That''s right. If you mastered the knowledge that I gave, you could make something like that."


    "I can help dad more."


    "Precisely," Hax said. "I am but only one man. I only have two hands and one brain. If you mastered the materials, the norms would have another brain to improve its might. You do know what your dad wanted right? Freedom for all norms."


    Ratha nodded. "I will work hard."


    "Good." Hax smiled. Her progress in her study was up and down like a wave. Her cognitive ability was good, but her concentration was not up to expectation. Unless she treated it like it was her passion, her development in mastering the physics field would slow down as time goes.


    [Congratulations! For creating a new technology with your own knowledge and wisdom, you have been awarded 120 access points]


    [Congratulations! For creating a new technology with your own knowledge and wisdom, you have been awarded 100 access points]


    Hax put fingers on his chin. These notifications came at random times. Why didn''t they come the moment he finished the design or production? Only when he tested the product did the system gave him rewards. Or was that part of the process? To avoid defective products, the system had to see the result, first?


    That was quite a possibility.


    [Congratulations! Your hard work has paid off. For studying and experimenting with new tech, your intelligence has increased.]


    Hax''s eyes lit up. Finally, after a long time. He checked his status window.


    [Status]


    Name: Hax


    Race: Human


    Access Point: 1,760


    Attributes: Strength 6, Dexterity 4, Endurance 5, Intelligence 13, Concentration:  1Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Skills:


    [Mathematics]: Lv 1


    [Mechanics]: Lv 1


    [Physics]: Lv 2


    [Mechanical Engineering]: Lv 1


    He grimaced a bit. His intelligence only increased by one. What did this mean? At first, he thought that he was stupid for having 12 intelligence but he probably misunderstood how the system valued the attributes. The 6 points in strength were normal strength for a human. This meant that the low points in his attributes were normal. It was just how the systems used the score.


    Hax inspected his status again. He had enough access points to buy more knowledge. Looking at his list of skills, Hax couldn''t help but feel pathetic. If he bought a skill in chemical sciences or mathematics, he could increase the firepower of his weapon and further reduce its weight and recoil.


    He didn''t need that though. The mechanical arms could lift enough weight and hold the recoil of BC-75. He had planned to dump it all onto mechanical engineering and bought electronic engineering for later, but the firepower that BC-75 showed made him think that it wasn''t necessary.


    Upgrading mechanical engineering would let him build a full-body mechanical armor. It would be a good alternative for the power suit. His army would be stronger than before.


    Hax shook his head. For now, he had to make more of BC-75 and the mechanical arms. He would see the situation first before deciding what knowledge to buy.


    With Ratha in tow, Hax entered his workshop and crafted the mechanical arms and the assault rifle with the help of the manufacturing bots. He had more than a few of them now in his workshop, the rest were busy making rifles for the army. The muscular men he taught before were still in the forge hall helping the bots by giving them the required materials. They hadn''t worked for a year and they already felt what the age of automation dealt to the basic workers¡ªReplaced.


    He didn''t mind the development. Humans shouldn''t do the basic work. It was tedious and boring, instead, they should get their attention to the jobs that matter. Humanity''s creative and innovative nature shouldn''t be wasted on repetitive work. Wait! Look at him, only a few months passed and the system already deluded his mind with the grand scale of the human race.


    "Is the system brainwashing me?"


    "What system?" Ratha asked.


    "It''s nothing. Have you read page 57 of the kinetic chapter?"


    Ratha shook her head.


    "Well, you can start now. I will give you some test later."


    Ratha slumped her shoulder and grabbed the parchment on the table as she sat down on the plastic chair. That was her favorite spot.


    What a pathetic civilization. Even a plastic chair was considered to be a luxury. Hax wondered when he could meet the guy who invented plastic in this world. He had sent a few men to ''recruit'' this inventor.


    If he could replace the wood parts of his gun with plastic, his weapon would be much lighter than before.


    "That man better join me without a fuss. If he didn''t then I will send the Black Wolves to his door."


    Hax proceeded to make the BC-75. The name actually stood for Big Cannon With .75 Caliber. He laughed as he praised his good naming sense. As he crafted the assault rifle, he wondered what he should name the mechanical arms. Light class Mechanical Arms Weler-150? Weler-150 stood for weight lifter that could lift 150 KG of weight. It sounded good, but Hax still had some doubts. After some thought, Hax decided to keep the name.


    Weler-150. If he wanted to upgrade the mechanical arms. He just had to replace its name with Weler-250 or something.


    As Hax put away his finished product, Ratha jumped off her seat and observed him.


    "Do you want to learn how to make the BC-75?" Hax asked.


    Ratha nodded.


    All the theory must have bored her. Well, practical training was too early for her. But a little watch and learn session would do her wonder.


    The manufacturing bots printed all the parts that Hax needed in bulk. It was impossible to print BC-75 as a whole. The best the bot could do was print half of the gun, and then print another half before assembling them. But before the bot could do that, Hax had to let it watch how to assemble it by hand. The A.I chip inside the bot would record it and replicate his action.


    After that, the bot would replace Hax in manufacturing the Weler-150 and the BC-75. Just like the muscles men, even Hax would be replaced by the bots. At least, labor-wise. His creative and innovative mind, though, was irreplaceable.


    This time, Hax printed all the parts instead to teach Ratha. "You know all the names of these parts, right?"


    Ratha nodded twice.


    "Good. I will explain to you what each part could do and why it could do so. This is the recoil spring. It is needed to absorb the shock when the gun fired the bullet. Its primary use is to reduce the impact the gunner feel."


    Hax proceeded to explain every part in detail. Ratha still understood the first and second parts. But when Hax continued to explain more parts, Ratha''s mind was already in another universe.


    "And that''s how the bullet travels in the barrel. Do you understand, Ratha?"


    She blinked and returned to reality.


    Hax sighed. He knew this would be a long-term investment. It was just that he put too much hope on a child. "Why don''t you take a rest for now. Tell the guards what you want and have fun. After you that you can start studying again. Sounds  good?"


    Ratha nodded. "Very good."


    She exited the workshop and returned a few hours later with her cat and a group of waiters pulling a cart of food. As her cat found the best spot to sleep, Ratha sat on her plastic chair and enjoyed her full-course meal.


    She had told Hax that she sleep for fun. Hax guessed she had another way of having fun. He prayed for her not getting fatter because of her new hobby.


    A few days later, the four bots in his workshop printed out half of the BC-75 and another half before assembling them with atomic precision. It took the bots quite a while to learn such basic things. Was this bot defective or what?


    The bots continued to make the BC-75 and the Weler. Their production speed increased with time.


    If he bought the computer and information sciences knowledge he could modify the artificial programming. He could also make new parts with electronic engineering and improved its performance by using improved chips.


    A week later, tens of BC-75 and Weler-150 piled on the ground. Another tens of them were inside the crates that his men would move later.


    Suddenly, a bird entered his workshop through the window. It landed on his shoulder. Hax grabbed the bird and took out the tiny parchment tied to its leg. There were a bunch of talented people that could train birds, so the rebellion had been using them once in a while. Hax had told his army not to use them unless it was the state of an emergency. This was to prevent the enemy from finding out how they communicate. If they did know, and sabotage the communication, the damage done could result in confusion and miscommunication.


    The rebellion could fall apart from that alone.


    He opened the parchment and read it.


    "Magicians, shapeshifter, a squad of heavy cavalries appearing out of nowhere?" Haha! This world is really interesting. The Royal Army is strong. But the stronger they are the better. If I defeat them and parade their dead bodies to every city, the norms would have the confidence they need to rise up and rebel. At that time, he would get his hands on the power suit. Taking over the kingdom was not impossible."

 Chapter 26 Royal Army

    Adan Falkner, King of Avatar Kingdom, sat on his throne as his retinue lined on the side. His four advisers stood besides him. His true name was not Adan Falkner. It was the name of a historical figure that built this kingdom by hand¡ªAdan Falkner the wise ruler. But that was thousands of years ago. Many royal sons and daughters had become his vessels. Now it was his turn.


    One of his subordinates strode out of line and knelt in front him.


    "Your Majesty, I have received a message."


    "Please tell me the message," Adan said.


    "Our investigations have bore fruit. The one who attacked our resource point is not the Auchidian, but the undead."


    "The undead from the Death Land?" Adan said. "It''s been a while since they made a move."


    "Your Majesty, I fear that the Death King has amassed enough forces. This is why he dared to act."


    Aquilan, one of his advisers, stepped forward. "Your Majesty, we should let the other states dealt with this. Just like last time, we can make them think that the Death Land is attacking them. This way they will gather and attack the Death Land. The Death King had the word conquer carved in his bone. They all know that they had to band together to stopped him."


    Hastios shook his head. He was always had different opinion with Aquilan. Adan didn''t mind, instead he was grateful that someone had different opinions. This way he could juggle everything from different view points.


    "Your Majesty, If our trap failed to catch a rat, we all know that the rat wouldn''t make the same mistake again. In fact, the rat could insult our intelligence by placing their waste product in front of our trap. The other states that we tricked before must have learned of what we''ve done. We have to do things differently. I believe we should punch through the Death Land with overwhelming might and announce to the world that we obtain so many rare resources. The greed in their stomach would churn and squeezed their stomach until they send an army to the Death Land."


    Aquilan frowned. "I understand your example and the message you tried to give, Hastios. But your majesty, it''s better to do what has been proved to be successful rather than trying untested methods. There are times for that, and it''s not now."


    Hastios. "Your Majesty, humans learned from their mistake and past. If we want to counter it. We have to surprise them by being unpredictable."


    Adan raised his hand to silence them. "The both of you make a very good point. Since that is the case, then I will take both of your suggestions and attack the Death Land while convincing the other states to move. But I will only send a few battalion. We don''t want the Death Land feel threatened or they would put most of their attention to us. Taking a few of their cities is enough."


    Both advisers nodded.


    "Tell the sect near the Death Land to gather their forces."


    "Your Majesty, the sects have started to gather their forces a few weeks ago."


    They sure were quick in their step.


    The pair of large doors creaked open. The two guards that opened the door bowed their head and let a tall figure entered the throne room. Shandalar was one of the three protector. His muscles bulged as he approached the throne, walking on the red carpet with big steps. He wore a tight-fit red sleeveless shirt. It was his favorite.


    "Adan!" He said. "Why the hell do you surround yourself with norms. You know if I flick them with my fingers they would die right? They are just fragile little things."


    "Please treat my retinue with respect, Shandalar. Although they are norms, they have a great mind. Our victory against the Auchidian decades ago was the prove of this."


    "Humph! Those victory are obtained by my army. I train these men and I lead them to attack. How can you let them claim the honor."


    "We all know that you miss something in your narrative."


    Shandalar clicked his tongue. "Fine. Their strategy is great. And my army will suffer large casualties if not for them. But you could''ve done it yourself. If you lead us as your spear, you could have done it even better."Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    "I have too many things to take care of. Running a kingdom is not that simple. I still wonder how father have the time to spend with us."


    Shandalar grimaced. "He also have norms around him. Just like you."


    "Why are so aggressive today. You don''t say anything before. I always have norms around me the moment I took the throne."


    Shandalar stared at him and then turned his fiery eyes towards the norms. "The Royal Army has been attacked near the Boiling Volcano."


    "Are they attacked by the undead?"


    Shandalar grinned. "No. They are attacked by the norms!"


    ¡­


    Hax watched as his men loaded the crates inside the wagons with their new mechanical arms. They looked so happy as they lifted the heavy crates with ease. The bulky men stared with jealousy as a skinny man lifted two BC-75 alone.


    What were the muscles for? Even a skinny man could do better than them. They had built this muscles after years of lifting bricks and wood. But with the mechanical arms, anyone could lift a heavy weight now.


    That brought tears to their eyes. So unfair.


    The skinny man noticed their expression and flexed his solid mechanical arms. His smug expression irritated the bulky men.


    They strode towards the nearby crates and lifted it with all of their might. Sadly, the crates didn''t even budge.


    "Those crates weighed around 300 Kg. You wouldn''t even make it budge even if your intestines come out."


    The bulky men sighed.


    "We''re not needed here anymore. Let''s help the builder team. They might need some muscles to lift bricks and wood again."


    Hax watched as the able-bodied men leave the field. People with strength were also replaced by machinery in his old universe. And now they feel what those people felt. He wondered what else would be replaced in the future. Would Hax be replaced someday? He didn''t know.


    "Sir, the preparation is complete."


    "Good. Then let''s save our friend. We''ll surprise them with our big guns."


    Hax set off with more than two thousand troops. The huge line of carriages and wagons stretched far and wide. This had never been seen before by the norms, so when they saw the sight, they were amazed at what they could do.


    Was this the power of us, norms? Had we always been this powerful?


    The great numbers of troops, transport, and supplies gave them unquestioned confidence. They were sure they could save the Black Wolves without any casualties. The image of the great, powerful cultivators that had carved inside their minds for all of their lifetime faded.


    Hax smiled. He also realized this change. These men would be unwilling to move outside the fortress if he didn''t have any excuses. They looked brave but inside they were still scared of the cultivators. They wanted to holed up behind their thick walls. Hiding inside the illusion of safety. Making them proactive and letting them feel confidence will remove their doubts and fear.


    The norms would truly fight for him from now.


    After a few hours of traveling, Hax and his troops arrived. The Black Wolves and the Man Hunter were already running around the hills with a squad of heavy cavalry chasing their back. There were a group of heavy armored soldier with thick shield marching from afar. Behind these soldiers were people with robe and staff.


    Those must be the magician. The Black Wolves said they could summon an entire heavy cavalry out of nowhere. Hax believed that. But there must be limits to their power.


    "Split up into two teams. One will help the Black Wolves. The other will attack the infantry."


    His men relayed the message to all of his troops. Hax didn''t set up a proper hierarchy yet. He didn''t have the time. Setting up a message relay group was the most he could do. Because of this, the coordination between his troops were terrible. When Hax told them to split up, they didn''t know who to follow and instead randomly chose one of the group.


    Some men did try to take commands. Whether or not they would be obeyed was another thing.


    As his forces split into two and rushed to the enemy. Hax observed the battle from his carriage on top of a hill. Four carriages containing guardsmen with heavy equipment parked beside him. There was no way that the norms would let Hax left unguarded.


    Hax ignored the guardsmen and the forces that attack the cavalry, instead he stared at the enemy''s infantry. He wanted to see the power of these magicians with his own eyes.


    Sure enough. As his army approached, the magician waved their staff and fireballs appear out of nowhere before shooting at his army.


    His army split up into smaller division and circled the army as they fired their firearms. The sound of BC-75 barraging the enemy reverberated. They fired madly from the carriage. The high-caliber bullets stormed the thick armored troops. At the first second the bullets only dented the armor, half a second later, the metal barrage crashed them into the ground and punched holes to their armor.


    Those magic armor were quite tough. Their shields were tougher, but the impact from the .75 caliber bullets threw their shields away, leaving them defenseless.


    As the magicians threw fireballs and his troops fired bullets at each other. A strange thing happened.


    A magician waved his staff raised two fingers and slapped the air. A transparent field of light protected the army like a bubble. When the bullets hit this field, its trajectory was redirected and thrown to the other side.


    "Interesting. There are long-range warfare in this world, so these must be the countermeasure they developed."


    There were a bunch of technology that could do the same thing. Of course, Hax didn''t have the facility or the knowledge to make it yet.


    There seemed to be a major weakness to this spell. The magicians stopped throwing fireballs. Did this meant that the enemy could only stay inside the bubble defensively? If that was the case then this battle would be the battle of attrition. Hax didn''t believe the magician could keep the bubble forever. Every motion, every movement required energy. And energy was limited.


    Hax waited for the magician to ran out of energy. But the other magicians started to move weirdly. The raised two fingers, mumbled something under their breath, and pointed at his army.


    Hax frowned. "What are they doing?"


    Suddenly, a small holes opened on the small bubble, and a flaming laser beams struck his army.

 Chapter 27 A Parade

    The Royal Army and the rebel shot projectiles at each other. One send a barrage of metal, the other fired laser beams. The protective shield still protected the Royal Army, preventing the bullets from hitting them. The rebel army weren''t so lucky. The rod of flames struck their wagons, exploded and burned with flames.


    The norm split up even further, making smaller division again. This made them a harder target to hit and the flame rod missed its target periodically.


    As tens of laser beams struck the norms, Hax still observed the battle from the hill.


    "Sir. Our army are losing," A guard said. "Some of them already start to retreat."


    Hax watched as a few carriages stopped shooting and distanced themselves from the enemy. "I put too much hope in them. They are no warriors. They retreat the moment the enemy got a slight advantage. Tell them not to retreat. Send the bird."


    "Yes, sir."


    His men release the bird with a small note on its leg. They would be sent to his spokesperson and that person would relay his order. The spokesperson could not order around the army as he wish because he was not a leader. He was merely a messenger.


    Just as the bird flew to the sky and approached the norm, a flaming rod shot it down from the sky.


    "Sir, they took down the bird."


    "I can see that," Hax replied.


    "What should we do? We can''t tell the army your message. Should we send someone?"


    "No they''ll shoot him before he could approach the army." Hax looked at a man who had both hands on his stomach. "It''s time for you to be useful."


    The man nodded and raised his right hand. After that, he moved his finger here and there. The man was actually a sign language interpreter. As tons of people wanted to help Hax, some people with seemingly unrelated talents were also interested in helping him. At first, Bodin told them that they could do nothing to help, but Hax had different ideas.


    He knew it would take a while for his army to communicate with their fingers, if that was the case then why don''t use someone that already knew how to?


    After the interpreter put down his hand, the spokesperson shouted at the norm. The carriages turned back and fired their weapon again. A few of them still retreated, but they at least fired their weapons towards the enemy.


    "Cowards," Hax said. "They better don''t behave the same way after this battle."


    "It''s not their fault, sir. This is the first time we fight against cultivators. Not to mention an entire army from the Royal Family."


    "So? If you use that as excuses then why don''t you put down your gun and return to your pathetic lives. Let the cultivators or the magicians stepped on your head whenever they want. Let them lift your butt and spank them. Is that what you want?"


    The guard started to sweat. "No, sir."


    "The magicians are not invincible. Their power have limits. Look." Hax pointed towards the valley.


    The transparent shield that enveloped the Royal Army flickered and burst like a bubble. The barrage of metal stormed them again. The sound of metal against metal reverberated like rain drop.


    The disappearance of the transparent shield made the norms active. The ones that retreated earlier, turned their carriages back and fired madly at the enemy.


    The magicians still retaliated with flaming rods and fireballs, but as the bullets slipped passed the shields and punched through their throat, the number of magician decreased.


    Hax turned his sight to the other side where the Black Wolves and the Man Hunter was. The heavy cavalry received attack from every direction. The norms circled around the cavalry in small division and fired at the cavalry. Nesterin shouted and screamed on top of the carriage. He coordinate the Man Hunter and the reinforcement unit to confuse the heavy cavalry.


    "Having an officer that can micromanage the army is essential," Hax commented. Then he saw four other people that shouted around like Nesterin. They seemed to be his helper as they helped managing the troops.


    "The Black Wolves have begun setting up a proper military hierarchy. Did their experience as a mafia let them learn about this?" Hax smiled. "Or maybe Nesterin is not as simple as I think."


    Nesterin pointed at the cavalries that was charging towards him. "Are all of you blind? Move this carriage to the side. Those on the flanks keep firing! Try to hit their legs. The heavy weight of the armor must have put a lot to the horses."


    His carriage moved to the side as the norm from the flank stormed the cavalry with bullets. The shot dented their armor all over, even their shields started to get holes in them.


    "Sir, the cavalry is on our tail. They seemed determined to kill us."


    Nesterin grimaced. "Damn! Send the wagons that is filled with explosives."


    A few coachmen pulled the rein and charged towards the cavalry with their explosive-filled wagons. They were not asked to sacrifice their lives, so after they directed the wagons, they jumped to the side and rolled on the ground.


    The bulls rushed towards cavalries. As they slammed their humongous body into the enemy, the wagons they pulled exploded.


    BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!


    Tens of cavalrymen fell with scorched mark all over. Their horse didn''t fared much better.


    But like a flaming knights, the cavalry charged through the flame and set their bloodshot eyes towards Nesterin.


    "They hated me," Nesterin said. "They look at me the same way I look at them. Pure hatred." Nesterin laughed. "That''s how it feels sucker!"


    He fired his rifle at the approaching enemy. He didn''t care if he only made a few dents on their armor. Pissing them off was his main objective.


    "Kill me if you can! Weaklings! You need to use thick armor just to kill a norm? Bah! Why don''t you eat my bullets!"


    The cavalry increased their speed. And just as they were about to rammed Nesterin with their lances, a group of magic bulls slammed them from the side. The crashed hurt the bulls more than the cavalries, but they succeed in making the enemy fell to the ground.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    Losing their mobility, the cavalrymen found themselves helpless within the barrage of bullets. They held their shield high and gathered in a circle formation to protect each other.


    Nesterin told the coachman to stop the carriage. "We need to destroy their formation. It will take too long to breach their shield."


    "Sir, I think this development is good enough. It will take time but the enemy will certainly die."


    Nesterin shook his head. "That''s too long. Our allies are still fighting the infantry troops. And they have magicians with them. Who knows what will come out of their armpit. Sacrifice more bulls to break their formation. Tie some explosives to their back or just use the entire wagon if you can."


    "Yes, sir."


    Balmar get down from his carriage and approached him. "Nesterin what are you going to do?"


    "Blast their formation and rain them with bullets. After that we need to reinforce our friends in the valley."


    Balmar nodded. He was a hunter that had a lot of experience, but coordinating a large amount of people were never on his list. This skill, he had to learn from Nesterin.


    Nesterin watched as his men finished preparing the bulls and the explosives. "Send them all!"


    The coachmen whipped the magic bulls and they accelerated towards the shield formation. As they were about to ram the enemy with their horns, the cavalrymen stabbed the bull with their long lance. The Bulls couldn''t move a muscle the moment the weapon pierced their head.


    But there were other bulls that succeed in breaching the formation. They used their entire weight to crashed into the enemy. As a bullet hit the crates they brought, another round of explosions blasted the cavalrymen.


    "I love these explosions," Nesterin commented. "And I was the one who invented it."


    Hax raised an eyebrow as he watched how the Black Wolves used the gunpowder creatively. What they made was a crude example of a bomb or a grenade.


    "Maybe I should make proper bombs for them."


    As the formation fell apart, the norm stopped their carriage and bombarded the cavalrymen with bullets. A few seconds later, all the enemy were down with scorched wounds and holes. What a tragic death.


    Nesterin raised his hand. "We''ve won the first round. But now we need to help our allies. Let''s go quick!"


    The Black Wolves, the Man Hunter, and the reinforcement unit rushed to the valley. The plain and hills where they fought were filled with blood, flames, and dead bodies. A dying cultivator with one arm crawled to his comrade. He dragged his body with a hand, leaving a trail of blood on the grass before he drew his last breath.


    "War is cruel," Hax said. "These people didn''t even know each other. But the classification of norm and cultivators is enough for them to hurt one another."


    "The cultivators are cruel, sir."


    "Did they born as cruel? If you married a woman and she birthed a cultivator, would you end his life?"


    The guard hesitated. "I¡­ I don''t know, sir."


    "The cultivators is not our enemy," Hax said. "Their mindsets are. To change that we need to show them that we are not weak. And we need to educate cultivators in our ranks and family that life is more than power and strength. Only when norm and cultivators respect each other can all of us live in harmony."


    The guard bit his lip.


    "You think I''m wrong?"


    "I apologize, sir. But I see no future where cultivators and norm can live in harmony. They are just too arrogant and the hatred we have towards them is too big."


    "That''s because you also need to be educated. When you feel hate. Have you ever ask why you feel that way? Why do you direct your hatred towards cultivator? Is all of them do you wrong or only a couple few? It''s the same for norm. Not all of them are good. There are norm that rob from other norm, right?"


    The guard nodded.


    "When you hate something. You need to know who you hate specifically and why. If you hate an entire classification of people or people with certain occupation, skin color, region, and nationality, your life will always be filled with hatred. In the end, all of us are humans."


    "All of us are humans," the guard muttered. "Do you really believe in that, sir?"


    "Of course."


    "I think you set your sight too far, sir. We haven''t even defeat the Nefarious Sword, yet."


    Hax looked towards the valley where the Black Wolves and the other stormed the enemy. "They''re already dead in my eyes."


    After withholding the attacks from every front, the Royal Army finally collapsed. The rebel army get off from their carriage and approached the battlefield.


    "We''ve done it. We¡­ We killed the Royal Army. There is no turning back now. The whole kingdom is our enemy."


    Hax also ordered his coachmen to drive the carriage closer. He wanted to see their equipment.


    As the rebel norm circled the corpses, all kinds of mixed feelings ran in their hearts. Some felt scared, the others felt hopeful and happy.


    Hax on the other hand was quite disappointed. Usually, if one side lose the battle, the majority of them would choose to surrender. It was very rare for the entire enemy to be killed.


    "Maybe because this is a world of cultivators," Hax said. Holding them hostage is not as simple as tying their hands with rope. Some cultivator group such as the sect or the kingdom must had the tools to disarm the enemy.


    Nesterin and Balmar strode towards Hax.


    "Sir, what should we do next?"


    Hax looked at Nesterin and nodded. "You have done well. Since we have no time to waste, stick the dead bodies to a spear and parade them along with the armor. We wanted everyone to know that the norms are not to be underestimated."


    A few days later, the norms were shocked when they heard the news that the rebellion defeated the entire Royal Army. The majority of them didn''t believe it. They still think the cultivators were invincible and no norms could kill them even when a lot of cultivators were killed by pistols. The norms had started to feel more at ease when they went to bars, restaurant, or shops. If a cultivator made trouble, then all they had to do was pull the trigger. The cultivators started paying because of this.


    Even when they saw with their own eyes how much their life change, they still wouldn''t budge. They keep convincing themselves that the norms were too weak. There was no way they could defeat an entire army of cultivators.


    That was what they thought until the rebel army parade the corpses and the armor of the Royal Army from city to city. With a line of soldiers equipped with BC-75, rifles, mechanical arms, and magic bulls, they trod the street with chins pointed straight to the sky.


    The norm opened their windows and stared at the parade


    The sight of dead bodies paraded on a stick with their armors and insignia of the Royal Army gave them excitement. The civilians cheered and threw flowers at the parade.


    The rebel soldiers kept their stern expression. They were the soldiers that defeated the Royal Army. Not just any norms could achieve this feat! Not just anyone could leave their homes and volunteer to fight!


    The wild cultivators that watched this event could only keep their heads down. They tried to be invisible and some even pretended to cheer on the rebel soldier to blend in.


    But those who were blinded by arrogance had different thoughts.


    A cultivator stopped in front of the parade. "Those dead bodies are fake! They are not cultivators! There is no way that a group of norms could defeat a cultivator, not to mention the entire Royal Army! What you see is fa¡ª"


    Bang!


    The cultivator got shot in the face and his entire head was blasted to pieces. His lifeless body fell to the side.


    Nesterin pointed his BC-75 to the sky, smoke came out of the barrel.. "If there is any cultivators who would like to prove us wrong, then I will be very thankful if you show yourselves and let me put a bullet in your face."


    He looked around. "Is there any cultivator around here? Or are you scared to show yourselves?"


    A cultivator put his head down and was about to walk away.


    "He''s a cultivator!" Someone pointed. "Look he has a sword with him."


    The cultivator panicked and started sweating.


    Nesterin stared at him. "Are you a cultivator?"


    "N¡­ no, I''m not. This sword is just decoration. I am actually a baker and this sword is made out of cake. Look I will prove it to you." The cultivator bit into the hard cold sword and snapped a small chunk of it before chewing it in his mouth.


    "I see¡­ Well, I believe you. You can go now."


    The cultivator sighed in relief as he ran away to a far alley. He spat out the metal inside his mouth. "That was dangerous. The norms are so scary now."


    As the parade continued, Nesterin made an announcement that shocked the norms in every corner of the city. "From today, the Hax Rebel Army declared that it will take over the Avatar Kingdom. The Royal Family and the sects leader within the Avatar Kingdom must go to Barmwich and swore their loyalty to Hax."


    The norms trembled when they hear that. The cultivators were shocked.


    War would come. If the Hax Rebel Army was truly a strong opponent, then the Avatar Kingdom would enter the state of chaos and anarchy. It would be something that had never been seen before.


    Hax sat on his workshop with Ratha beside him munching on a sweet bread. He smiled when a panel appeared in front of him.


    [Congratulations. You have completed your mission ''Start a Rebellion'']


    [You have been rewarded with 1 random power suit blueprint]

 Chapter 28 Night Disappear Operation

    [You have received 1 power suit blueprint ''Prime Gear PG-14'']


    Prime Gear? That sounded generic to Hax. The name really needed some more creativity. He clicked on the blueprint.


    Name: Prime Gear PG-14


    Protection: A


    Damage: A


    Maximum load: C+


    Battery: D-


    Range of Motion: B


    Speed: C


    Hax clicked his tongue. The information listed is very unspecific and vague. Protection A. What did that even meant? If the system describe the status specifically such as 60 mm of steel, 550 horse power, or 65 KWH of battery,  180 degree range of motion, 76 KM per hour speed, or something like that, then that would be better. He could plan out what to do with the information and simulate many event of how his army could use it.


    For example, he could place his army 120 KM away from the enemy, and since he knew the power suit had the speed of 120 KM per hour, he would be assured that his army would arrive in an hour.


    Ding!


    Name: Prime Gear Pg-14


    Armor: 150


    Power: 220


    Maximum Load: 300


    Battery: 25 KWH


    Weight: 95 KG


    Max speed: 120 KM/hour


    Range of motion: 95


    Alright¡­ It was still a little vague, but that was enough. With specific data in weight and speed he could calculate how much force it could generate. The battery was terrible though. He would need a supply chain to bring a lot of batteries for the power suit. Its armor, power, and maximum load seemed good. The numbers were still a little vague. It was unknown if the numbers meant in thickness, strength, or the universal mass metric system. But he was sure that he could make a heavier and stronger weapons for his army.


    Hax simulated dozens of possibilities in his mind. How the power suit could effectively be used and its limit.


    By his analysis, the power suit was suitable for a short yet high damage operation. The battery size was so pitiful that Hax could cry every time he saw the numbers. The power suit could at least travel about 150 Km before it ran out of energy. It wasn''t bad if it only needed to travel. The problem was, the power suit was not a car, it was a machine used for war. Depending on how strong the enemies were, the power suit was always on a time limit.


    "This means that the power suit can not be used for prolonged siege unless there is batteries nearby." Thankfully the norms had something called magic bulls that can pull the wagons for the batteries. They were much faster and stronger than the vehicle he currently could make. What he needed to build was better wagons but still use the magic bulls to pull them. Of course, he could also use the wagons to bring the power suit to battle to save its energy before a fight.


    It was fine that the power suit ran out of energy quickly. What matter was the firepower. He wasn''t sure how strong the leader of a sect was. But with this power suit, he was confident that he could defeat them.


    Now all he needed was to build the 3D printer before manufacturing the power suit.


    "I hope Bodin got the materials I tasked him to." He turned to Ratha. "How''s your study goes?"


    She swallowed the last piece of bread. "It''s good."


    "I can''t tell whether you are talking about the bread or your study."


    "Both." Ratha smiled.


    "Where''s your cat?"


    Ratha shrugged. "I''ve been looking, but I can''t find her."


    "Well, she''ll come back later on her own."


    "I hope so."


    "Do you know where your father is?"


    "I think he''s out of town."


    Hax sighed. "He better returned early. I can''t wait to build this power suit."


    Ratha moved her leg up and down as she sat on her plastic chair. It was hers, now.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    "Why are you not studying?" Hax asked.


    "I finished them."


    "Are you sure?"


    Ratha nodded.


    "Then I will give you a test." Hax wrote some simple test on the parchment. Most of the questions within asked for a detailed explanation of various theories related to physics. The theories mentioned energy, force, and motion. Understanding these theory would help her in practical test later on.


    He gave Ratha the parchment. "Take your time to answer them.  I''m going for a walk."


    Hax left his workshop and strode through the forge hall. Manufacturing bots constantly printing out rifles and were placed inside a crate as they brought them out. The muscled men greeted him as they busied themselves.


    The 100,000 gold coins that the investors gave him almost ran out. The materials, magic bulls, carriages, wagon, and food consumed the fund at an alarming rate. Funds was always a problem regarding the military.


    They always consume a lot of resources and didn''t really have anything to make money.


    Currently, only pistols were allowed to be sold to norms that didn''t join the rebel army. Rifles, BC-75, and Weler-150 were only available if they join the army. Of course Hax told his men to show them off in the city. The sales allowed the army to fund itself, though he didn''t believe he could increase the amount of production for now.


    As he exited the forged hall, Nesterin and his parade group drove their carriage on the shooting field. The shooting field was located right in front of the forge hall. This made testing new weapons much easier. The field was large enough to accommodate hundreds of carriages and thousands of people.


    Hax planned to make a huge army in the future, and he knew his numbers would rise, so he had told Bodin to make the huge field. The town had to be expand to since more people would join the rebellion.


    As the Black Wolves jumped out of their carriage, Nesterin ordered the people he recruited to the administration building. Hax had sent the Black Wolves and the Man Hunter to every city in the Avatar Kingdom not just to show strength, but also to recruit more people. As thousands of people strode to the administrative building, the plan seemed to work very well.


    Nesterin noticed him and ran towards him. "Sir, I have completed the parade and recruited more than 30,000 men for our army.


    "Did you only recruit soldiers?"


    "No, sir. I also recruit builders, cooks, doctors, and other occupation that might be useful for our army."


    "You also include the sign language interpreter to that, right?"


    Nesterin smiled. "Yes, sir. I plan to train our men in sign language so they can communicate in different way."


    Hax couldn''t imagine their face the moment they learned that he could make a long-range communication device in the future. Well, he needed to save his points for now.


    "Except birds. Is it possible to send a message in long distances?" Hax asked.


    "I''m not sure, sir. But I heard that magicians can draw a circle that could send voices. But I am not sure if it''s true."


    Interesting.


    "And you guys don''t know its limitation too?"


    Nesterin shook his head. "But I believe the magicians and the cultivators have a lot of ways to communicate in long distances, sir. My men loves to hang out around bars and shops, and they sometimes heard something when the cultivators were talking. They told me that a magic archer can send a message with its arrows. I don''t know how they do it, though."


    Sending a message through arrows? That made Hax entered a deep thought. Could this arrow enter a building? Open a door? And how did it find its target? The mechanism of magic was so complicated. Hax didn''t understand any of its rules and limitation. He only knew that the spell required energy but that was all.


    Suddenly, Hax heard something pierced the wind and an arrow landed beside his feet.


    Nesterin and Hax looked at each other.


    "There is a note tied to the arrow," Hax said.


    Nesterin picked it up and opened the note. "Sir, I think this is for you."


    Hax took the small note and read it. This is a message from the Royal Family. As a sovereign ruler of the Avatar Kingdom, the Royal Family will not relish its rule and will take the action of the Hax Rebel Family as a minor insult. The punishment for this insult is the dissolution of the Hax Rebel Army and the disarmament of the entire norms in the Avatar Kingdom. Hax, the leader and founder of this rebellion, is to come inside the Royal Palace and apologize personally to the king.


    Hax scoffed. He didn''t care how the arrow landed beside his feet or the possibility that it could land on his head the next time. The message was crystal clear to him.


    "The Royal Family is afraid. They are afraid of something."


    "Are they afraid of us, sir?"


    "No, that can''t be. They have something greater to take care of. And they can''t move their army as they wish. When you parade around the cities, have you heard of anything?"


    Nesterin shook his head. "No, sir."


    "Then the threat must have come from outside the kingdom or from the shadows. Nesterin, you were a mafia before right."


    "Uhh¡­ Yes, sir."


    "You have experience in obtaining information correct?"


    "Yes." Nesterin nodded.


    "And do you know where the Royal Palace is located?"


    "I do, sir."


    Hax looked at him in the eye. "You know what to do."


    Nesterin saluted. "I''ll get it done."


    The Black Wolves gathered again. They asked around what they were gathered for, but no one seemed to know. Their leader, Nesterin, Jharteel, and the others didn''t want to open their mouth.


    "Sir, where are we going? Who are we going to fight? Is the Royal Army coming for us?"


    Nesterin wore his Weler-150 and cocked his big BC-75. "The Royal Army is not coming to us. We are coming to them. For now, that is all you need to know. This is a secret operation."


    The Black Wolves whispered among themselves.


    "Can we win?"


    "We have big guns now, so maybe we can."


    "But the Royal Army is strong."


    Whispers like this spread among the troops.


    Nesterin ignored them as he invited Jharteel and the other to his carriage. Unlike the other carriage where it was designed to fill as much soldier as possible, his carriage contain stacks of parchment that contained the list of troops, the command hierarchy, and maps of various cities, sect, guild, and union.


    He was a leader now. A leader of more than thirty thousand men. He must plan, and prepare before he execute his operation. The terrible massacre in Boiling Volcano must never repeat. He didn''t want to had regret because of insufficient preparation.


    "Nesterin, my men are nagging me for an answer. What are we going to do?"


    "This is a secret operation, Jharteel. The less people knew the better. But I will tell the four of you. We are going to the Royal Palace."


    Jharteel and the other widened their eyes.


    "Are we going to attack the Royal Family right away?" Thalanil asked.


    "No, I don''t think we are strong enough for that. Remember how much trouble the Royal Army gave us?" Nesterin said.


    "That was in the past. We have big guns and a huge army now," Gormon said.


    "We don''t have a huge army yet," Nesterin replied. "What we have is untrained and inexperienced men who might run away the moment they see a swordsman staring at them."


    Nesterin eyed them one by one. "This is why we will only bring those who already experience a battle. Our objective in this operation is not to defeat the enemy, but to obtain information. We will run our old Night Disappear operation."


    Jharteel let out a breath with a smile. "Night Disappear operation. I still remember the time when you kidnap me like it was yesterday."

 Chapter 29 Goliath The Fox

    Hax stood in the field as the Black Wolves set off with their carriages. He was about to look for Bodin until Gaelin and Ailmon approached him. Both of these men were cultivators. They liked to call themselves pugilists because they primarily used their bodies to attack and defend. Hax still didn''t know the system of this world. Some norms called the humans with a superpower as cultivators, some called them magicians, and some called them with specific titles such as pugilist, archer, fighter, guardian, and swordmaster.


    He didn''t know the details for each of those titles. What was the difference between fighter and pugilist? And the last one split the system into three, namely warrior superhuman, magicians, and psychic warrior.


    It was a very complicated system. Well, considering how vast the world was, it wasn''t surprising.


    Hax sighed. When he conquered the kingdom he would make a simple system that everybody had to use. And why would people call superhuman cultivators? Cultivators sounded more like farmers rather than people with superpowers.


    "Sir," Gaelin said. "We have come back from the sect."


    "What''s the situation? How many numbers do they have?" Hax asked.


    Ailmon, Gaelin''s brother, replied: "There are 24 temples and each temple has one elder overseeing them. These elders were stage-3 swordsmen."


    "So they have twenty-four stage-3 superhuman?"


    "No, sir. They are swordsmen."


    "Whatever. What about their numbers? How many swordsmen does a temple have?"


    "At first, each temple only has a few dozens apprentices, sir. But the sect has been calling its members to return to the sect. Now, their numbers expand into the thousands."


    "And these returning members have the experience and power in battle."


    Gaelin nodded. "I saw them practice their skills every day. Even the stage-1 swordsmen could kill a magic beast by themselves."


    "Are magic beasts hard to kill?" Hax asked.


    "If the cultivators only rely on power alone, then it''s impossible. They must have the skill, technique, and judgment to defeat the beast in the same stage.


    Hax nodded. "Alright. I get the rough idea."


    "We would like to return to the sect again, sir. We will report if we find another change."


    Gaelin and Ailmon left Hax alone in the shooting field. As he watched them walk away, Hax can''t help but felt defenseless. If Gaelin and Ailmon were enemies, they could kill Hax with their superhuman strength.


    "I should have some bodyguards following me." Hax called for the guards that protected the forge hall. He told six of them to follow and let the rest guard the building. It would be bad if someone sabotage the weapon factory. The production of firearms would stop and the rebel army would have a hard time equipping its soldiers.


    As the six guards circled him with their bulky BC-75, the people that passed him bowed in respect as they walked away.


    There was a small town hall in the center of the town, but Hax basically owned Barmwich by now. No one cared if he changed anything. In fact, they would support him with all they had.


    Hax walked around the street. He noticed tens of builders building a wall that circled the forge hall as its center. It was a few hundred meters away from the forge hall. The walls were taller than the outer wall and even incorporate some steel on their surface.


    Tall towers stood around the entrance. Hax believed that would be the place where the soldiers would be when the walls were breached. He also saw some people filling a crate with gunpowders and placing them beside the gate. It seemed like these walls were not for holding the enemy out, but just to gather the enemy in one place. This would make the explosions much more effective.


    It was a crude strategy and had many ways it could go wrong. What if the enemy didn''t breach the gate and made their own entrance instead? Well, at least they made some efforts.


    "Hax!" Bodin called and approached him. "What are you doing?"


    "Just taking a walk."The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    Bodin nodded. "Too much work is bad too. You need to breathe some fresh air to clear your head."


    "I know. Tell me about the materials."


    "I have got them. The miners we recruited are very experienced. He has mined for the cultivators all his life. He didn''t get paid but he did learn a lot about minerals and metals.


    Hax''s eyes lit up. "Where are the materials?"


    "I have ordered them to be sent to the forge hall. I believe your order will come in a few days."


    "Perfect."


    ¡­


    Elaith sat in his bedroom with a bowl of spiritual crystal placed on the table in front of him.  He grabbed one and crushed it. The crystal cracked and shattered as powerful energy seeped into his nose like smoke. His skin glowed and his wound started to heal. The energy strengthened his skin, muscles, and internal organs.


    Goliath hopped on his window. He was a lava fox that lived around the Boiling Volcano. Wiggling his red tail, Goliath pounced on Elaith from behind and licked his neck.


    "Goliath. You''re such a naughty boy. Have you been eating those fire beetle again?:


    Goliath ignored his questions and licked his face.


    Elaith was overwhelmed by the attack, but he grabbed the fox''s stomach and lifted it up. "Goliath, I think the weather is getting cold. Why don''t I give you a blanket to stay warm?"


    The small fox opened his mouth and spat out a breath of flame that hit Elaith in the face.


    "Is that how you refuse my goodwill?" Elaith pulled the fox into his chest and squeezed it into a hug with all his might.


    The fox struggled for a few seconds before it bit his chest.


    Elaith released his hand. "Ahh!"


    The fox jumped out of his arms and wiggled his butt at the stinky human.


    Elaith chuckled. "Stop eating those fire beetles. Here have this instead." He put a plate of huge meat in front of the fox. The meat was from the flame ox that his friends killed for practicing their skills. It was hard, yet juicy enough.


    Goliath''s eyes lit up and wobbled the meat. Not even a minute passed and the Fox already laid on the bed with a bulging stomach. His expression showed satisfaction.


    "There goes my lunch."


    Goliath turned around, stood on his feet, and rubbed his head on the human''s hand.


    Elaith enjoyed the soft fur that moved around his hand. He wanted to hug Goliath, but he wouldn''t like it.


    Goliath climbed on his thigh and pooped out a smoking waste.


    Elaith panicked and slapped it away as Goliath leaped on the wall. "Goliath!


    His clothes had a small hole now. The heat didn''t hurt him in any way, but it was bad to see a poop-sized hole in his clothes.


    Trying to catch the little fox, Elaith leaped around his room. His feet were stuck on the wall as he reached out to grab the tail. But Goliath quickly jumped to the side and rolled on the bed.


    "You''re not getting away after that." Elaith continued to chase the fox.


    As he and his fox ran and jumped around the bedroom,  Elder Tasar opened the door.


    "You seem to be having fun."


    Elaith slipped on his feet but he quickly stabilized himself and landed gracefully. He couldn''t shame himself in front of the elder.


    "We''re just playing, Elder Tasar."


    The elder smiled. "I don''t mind. Having fun and relaxing is good sometimes. Don''t burden yourselves with other thoughts."


    Elaith sighed. "It''s my fault, isn''t it? I led the attack."


    "It is not you to blame, Elaith. It''s your weakness. If you are strong enough, you can defeat your enemy. Go outside and train with your brothers and sisters. They don''t blame you and neither do anyone else."


    Elaith wanted to refuse and stayed inside his room forever, but he respected the leader too much to do that. "I will."


    "The volcano is getting active these days. Maybe you should go to the crater and train with the magic beast."


    Elaith nodded.


    The elder smiled as he walked away from his bedroom.


    Goliath hopped on his shoulder.


    "What do you say Goliath? Are you ready to hunt for some magic beast?"


    The fox licked his ear.


    "Let''s go ask the others."


    Elaith walked with big strides as he went to the square. Thousands of apprentices trained with each other using the exquisite swords that they found in their travel. A lot of stage-1 swordsmen went out to travel the world when they felt that they reached a bottleneck. If they were lucky, they would become stronger.


    The ones on the stages were mostly stage-2 swordsmen. They fought with better skills, technique, strength, and speed than the stage-1 swordsmen. Unlike what most stage-1 swordsmen expected the battle between them didn''t only consist of using the swords.


    "Laeroth! You''re much faster than before."


    "I can say the same to you, Vamir! You couldn''t lift a sword a decade ago, now you''re stronger than a mountain ox."


    "Enough talking! I will make you eat my dust!" Laeroth dashed forward.


    The both of them attacked each other like the wind. The movement of their swords was almost invisible. Sparks came out of the collision. Laeroth was quick, but Vamir was steady. He didn''t take any step back as he was attacked by Laeroth.


    Facing these attacks, Elaith wouldn''t be able to react before he was cut into pieces.


    Vamir slashed down, but Laeroth dodged. Laeroth grabbed his collar and stabbed his neck. Vamir caught the sword and snapped it in half.


    Laeroth panicked. He released the sword and punched the man in the chin. The punch jerked his head to the back.


    Immediately, Laeroth moved behind him and performed a choke hold.


    Vamir grinned. "Bad move." He grabbed Laeroth''s hand and squeezed.


    Laeroth grimaced. "You really are strong. But I''m not done yet."


    His hand flashed in rapid speed. He took a small knife from his thigh and stopped an inch away from Vamir''s neck. He did this in less than the blink of an eye.


    "Nice trick, Laeroth. But if this is a real fight I would have snapped your arms already."


    "Then, let''s take it as a draw because I could have cut you up and served your meat to our brother and sisters before you blink."


    "Alright."


    The both of them put away their weapons and shook hands.


    "Why don''t we go to a nearby tavern," Laeroth said. "I want to hear about your travel."


    Vamir laughed. "Good idea. I want some magic beast on my stomach."


    "I don''t think norms could sell that."


    "Then I want some strawberry juice."


    "I don''t think it exists in the Avatar Kingdom."


    "What? This kingdom sucks!"

 Chapter 30 Magic Beast Hunt

    Elaith saw Laeroth and Vamir strode away and approached them. "Senior brother!"


    The both of them turned around.


    "Oh. Junior brother Elaith, how have you been?"


    "Nothing much," Elaith replied. "Are you busy, senior brother?"


    "Not really," Vamir said. "We''ll just about to hang out in the tavern."


    Elaith shook his head. "I suggest you don''t go near the norms, senior brother."


    "Why is that?" Laeroth asked.


    "The norms now have a weapon that can kill us."


    Vamir couldn''t believe his ears. "What? Is that true?"


    Elaith nodded.


    Laeroth sighed. "I leave this kingdom for a decade and it has already changed so much."


    "You don''t seem very surprised," Elaith said.


    Vamir chuckled. "When we go out and travel, we have seen many things. This is not the only place where norms found a way to defeat us, cultivators."


    Elaith widened his eyes. "What? The norms in other kingdoms actually found a way to kill cultivators?"


    Laeroth nodded. "Most of them use gunpowder to hurt us."


    "That''s exactly the same thing they use to defeat us,"


    "Well, you''re lucky then," Vamir said. "I have seen someone throw a liquid at a cultivator, and his face melted to the bone."


    Elaith shivered. "I can''t believe it''s that bad. The norms can''t be underestimated."


    Vamir grabbed his shoulders. "The world is filled with weird stuff. Norms hurting cultivators is just one on the list. And it''s not that bad, actually. If you reached stage-3 cultivation then the norms couldn''t hurt you."


    "That might take a while for me."


    "What are you talking about," Laeroth said. "You''re the most talented disciple we have. Come on, let''s just hunt some magic beast in the volcano."


    "Ahh, I was about to ask you for that, senior brother."


    Vamir released his hand. "Go ask the others if they wanted to join. The more the merrier."


    "Wow, where did you find that saying?" Laeroth asked.


    Elaith left their side and went around the square inviting everyone for a hunting trip. Most of them agreed immediately the moment they heard that two senior brothers would accompany them. After gathering a few dozens of apprentices, Elaith returned.


    "Senior brothers, this is every one that wanted to join the hunting trip."


    Vamir nodded. "Let''s go."


    Elaith and the hunting group exited the temple and strode towards the crater. The volcano was very active today. Thick smokes billowed out and lava burst into the sky before falling to the ground. It then slide down, bringing in spirit crystals and other minerals.


    Tens of norms with a straw backpack approached these crystals and collect them. These were the slaves that the Nefarious Swords used for obtaining the spirit crystals.


    "I''ve been wanting to ask," Elaith said. "Why don''t we build our sect near the Boiling Crystal Mine?"


    "To understand that you have to know our history," Laeroth said. "A long time ago, when the first sect master found this mountain, he saw an opportunity to occupy its rich spiritual crystal mine. At first, he stumbled upon a large chunk of crystal on a large mountain. He dug the crystal by himself, one by one, but as he found that the crystals seemed endless, he started to use norms to dig it for him. Years of digging later, the mountains turned into a large hole. Using tens of thousands of norms, they turned the biggest mountain the sect master had ever seen into nothing. Curios, the sect master told them to keep digging until now."


    "The norms can move an entire mountain?" Elaith asked. "I truly have underestimated them. But senior brother, that didn''t answer my question."


    Laeroth smiled. "I was about to continue. The sect master had actually built the sect in that crater. The crater was filled with rich spiritual energy and an abundance of large spiritual crystals. But the sect master found out that the crater has an anomaly."


    "What anomaly?"


    "Every year, the Boiling Crystal Mine would explode with high spiritual energy. The energy entered the body of every living creature and exploded them. Hundreds of elders died, and thousands of norms burst into dust. The sect master is the only one that survived."


    "Are we still mining the crystals?"


    "Of course, thousands of norms collected the crystals and brought them to the Master Temple. If you are curious, I can take you there sometimes."Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    Elaith nodded. "Thank you, senior brother."


    "Senior brother, I would like to join too."


    "Me too."


    "I also want to see the Boiling Crystal Mine."


    The junior brothers and sisters flocked to him like ducklings.


    "Alright, alright. I will bring all of you."


    "Yayyy!"


    The hunting group continued their journey. Sometimes they stumbled upon a weak magic beast but the juniors swarmed them and pounded them before the seniors could explain anything. As they walked upward, the magic beast they faced became stronger and tougher.


    When they faced a group of crimson werewolves, the juniors were pushed back.


    The crimson werewolves stood on two feet just like humans. It had the face and mouth of a wolf with bulging muscles of an ape. Its claws were deadly and vicious just like their eyes.


    Vamir watched as the juniors fought the werewolves with difficulty. "I can''t stand this sight. I will tell you a great tip to defeat them. The weakness of the crimson werewolves is isolation. If you don''t understand that much then tough luck."


    The juniors understood immediately. They isolated one werewolf and attacked it as their friend protected their backs. When one wolf fell, the juniors repeated their strategy and killed all the wolves.


    Vamir smiled when he saw his juniors getting stronger and better as they fought. But when he turned his head to the side, he was shocked at what he saw.


    Elaith fought two crimson werewolves by himself. Using unmatched speed and strength, he blocked and pushed the wolves. One Wolves growled at him and pounced.


    Elaith raised his sword as a distraction then punched its jaw. The punch knocked its face back and he used that timing to cut its neck.


    The other wolf dashed and clawed him, but Elaith reacted quickly by grabbing its hand. He squeezed and broke its arm before he stabbed its heart.


    Elaith pulled his swords, and the wolf fell to the side.


    "Now that''s what I call a true prodigy," Vamir said.


    "I''m very sure he could fight three at the same time," Laeroth said.


    "You''re in luck," Vamir said. "There are six more coming after him."


    Six crimson werewolves rushed towards him and attacked. They leaped with supernatural strength and bared their teeth and claws to kill him.


    Elaith shoved aside two wolves with his kick. As the other wolves closed in, he tucked and rolled. The beefy wolves approached and clawed him.


    He blocked their strike with his sword and punched their stomach before parrying another claw to his face. A wolf slashed his back, and it burns with pain.


    Elaith grunted. His feet fluttered as he retreated and deflected their attacks.


    "You can do it, Elaith!"


    "Kill those wolves!"


    The wolves charged towards him. The wolves were too many for him. He couldn''t isolate them even if he wanted to because they had great teamwork.


    Elaith raised his sword, it glittered in his right hand. Suddenly, he slapped a rock on the ground. It shot forwards, straight towards the face of a wolf, and slammed its mouth.


    The other wolves also got hit, the rock struck their face, and the moment they turned their head to the enemy¡ªthe sheen of the blade was right in front of their eyes.


    SLASHED!


    At once, Elaith''s blade cut through the neck of the wolves. Blood spurted out of their red fur and they fell with a thud.


    "He makes it look easy," Vamir said.


    Laeroth crossed his arms. "That''s a very smart trick. Using rocks as a distraction and then attacking them. I might have to copy that."


    "To be honest I expect the fight to be a lot longer than that," Vamir said. "I guess Elaith is just too talented."


    "He''s too strong compared to us when we were at stage-1."


    "Do you think he will be ready when they come?" Vamir asked.


    "Let''s just hope he is."


    Elaith flicked his blade and all the bloodstain disappeared.


    His brothers and sisters approached and flocked to him.


    "Elaith, you are so strong."


    "So fast too."


    "How did you do it."


    "Teach us, Elaith."


    "Yeah, teach us!"


    Elaith was helpless in their pleading. "Okay, we will train when we are back at the sect."


    "Yayyy!"


    Vamir turned his sight at the crater. "Let''s test him with stage-2 beast."


    "Are you sure? He could get hurt."


    "We are here to protect him. Nothing will happen," Vamir said.


    "In that case, I will bring the banefreak," Laeroth said.


    "Uh¡­ are you sure?"


    "You''re the one who suggested it first. Why are you doubting yourself, now?"


    "The banefreak is a speed-type monster. Who knows what it could do before we react."


    "It''s fine. I am faster than any banefreak in the world."


    "Braggarts. Go do it, then."


    Laeroth dashed towards the crater. His feet left dust and dirt behind.


    "Show off. He could have run without the dust."


    A few minutes later, Laeroth run back towards them. A humanoid monster was chasing him from behind.


    It looked thin and skinny. There were blades that seemed to be made out of bone, protruding out of its arms, shoulder, and other joints.


    "Elaith!" Laeroth shouted. "Try to fight this guy. If you can win, I will give you a level-2 magic sword."


    The juniors were shocked. Level-2 magic swords were expensive and hard to find. A lot of stage-2 swordsmen in the Nefarious Swords only had level-1 magic swords. As for the elders, they had level-3 magic swords with them. The sect used all of its resources to obtain these weapons. And they had to because they don''t want to shame the elders.


    Elaith raised his sword. He actually didn''t need the level-2 magic sword from Laeroth because the elder already promised to give him one. But he was grateful for the act. "Don''t turn on your words later, senior brother!"


    Elaith leaped towards the banefreak. He raised his sword above his head and swung down.


    The banefreak noticed him and blocked the attack with the bone-like blade on his arms.


    "You are such a weird creature," Elaith said.


    The banefreak seemed to take offense in that. It roared in his face, showing its rotten teeth and spiky tongue. It kicked Elaith in the gut, throwing him back tens of meters away as he rolled on the ground.


    Elaith groaned in pain. That one attack made his internal organ throbbed.


    The banefreak landed in front of Elaith and for a moment, Elaith saw three banefreak came slashing at him. He was confused about which one was the real one. He tried to block the one in front of him, but it seemed like that was a fake as his left shoulder spurted in blood.


    The banefreak kicked his chest again, throwing him back. The creature seemed to be playing with him. It was not the human and pet type of playing, but the predator and prey type of playing.


    Elaith regained his feet. His left shoulder suffered from pain and it was hard for him to use it. This would be a hard fight.


    He raised his sword in a defensive position as he stood in a crouch. He waited for the banefreak to attack first. His red robe was covered in dirt, but he didn''t have time to care about that.


    The monster attacked. It rushed towards him with unprecedented speed, zig-zagging as it moved like a blur.


    It snapped forward, swiping Elaith''s face with the blade on its arms. Elaith had the advantage of reach because of his sword. He leaned back his head and stabbed forward. But he banefreak easily twisted its waist and spun around to cut his cheek.


    Blood flowed to his lips.


    The banefreak was fast and there was no way Elaith could match its speed. He didn''t know what to do. Being reactive meant that Elaith would slowly be defeated. He had to take the initiative to attack.


    Elaith grabbed a handful of dirt. He raised his sword and charged forward. As he feinted to attack with his sword, he threw the dirt at the creature''s face, dropped the blade, and went behind it for a chokehold.


    "If I can''t defeat you with speed, then what about strength!"

 Chapter 31 Banefreak

    Elaith used all of his strength to hold the banefreak in place, but he forgot that his enemy was a stage-2 monster.


    It was known that magic beasts were stronger and faster than the human cultivators. They have instinct built into them the moment they were born and did not need spiritual crystals to increase their strength. The magic beast had a large and unfair advantage over the humans.


    So when Elaith realized that, the banefreak already grabbed his hand and slammed him to the ground.


    As Elaith was about to stand, the monster kicked his face and he was sent flying a few meters away. And before he could even land, the banefreak rushed towards him and kicked him again.


    The attack flipped Elaith to the sky. Falling towards the ground, Elaith prepared himself to crash. Yet the monsters attacked him again, sending him rolling on the ground.


    The monsters keep attacking him left and right. With its super speed and agility, Elaith couldn''t retaliate. The monster cut his cheek, and blood spurted again. It spun and cut a deep wound on his thigh.


    All of this happen while Elaith was one meter above the ground. The creature didn''t even wait for him to land.


    After a series of attacks, the banefreak punched and slammed him to the ground. His face hit the ground first.


    Elaith stood up with wounds and bruises all over him. Blood made his clothes feel sticky. Surprisingly, the wounds and the attack didn''t hurt him that much. Instead, he felt revitalized. Like a contained energy within him was held inside his stomach. He couldn''t explain the sensation. But he knew he had to keep fighting. His mind, body, and the energy was urging him to fight.


    "Is that all you got?" Elaith breathed with difficulty. "I have all day to do this. Come at me!"


    The banefreak took that as a challenge and rushed towards him. Its movement was like a blur that was followed by a cloud of dust. It appeared in front of him before he could even blink.


    Elaith raised his sword to block. But the creature was fast to react. It spun and slapped away the sword before slashing his chest. Blood spurted out.


    Elaith grabbed the creature''s arm and punched it in the face. It looked surprised that a mere stage-1 human could do that to it. The creature was about to pull his hand before Elaith spit in its face and head-butted it.


    The banefreak roared. It then spun behind Elaith and razed his back with wounds.


    Elaith turned to face the monsters. It grabbed his wrist and stabbed his arm. The bone-blade pierced through his bone.


    Wincing in pain, Elaith stabbed the creature''s eyes with his fingers. The creature pulled back its blade and was blinded for a moment. He threw another handful of dirt before grabbing his sword and charging at it.


    He went in for the kill. Unfortunately, the creature kicked him back.


    His dirty tricks had failed, but he wouldn''t give up. Grabbing a handful of rocks, he threw them at the creature. Targeting its eyes as his primary target.


    The creature easily dodged the rocks. His aim was precise, which actually made it easier for the banefreak to dodge since he didn''t have to guess which direction to move.


    Elaith grabbed his sword and threw a few rocks again.


    As the rock shot towards the creature''s face, it slipped his head to the side only to be greeted by the sharp point of the blade. The creature twisted its neck, avoiding a certain death injury. The sword pierced its cheek and went to the other side. The creature now had a sword in his mouth.


    It pulled the sword and threw it away.


    Elaith grimaced. This creature was really hard to kill. Almost every trick he threw at it was countered or dodged. Facing a speed-type monster was never easy. But then the energy inside his body started churning. It told him to fight again.


    Elaith breathed out. "Come on!"


    He charged and attacked, but the banefreak was a step quicker. It ducked and cut his abdomen.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    Elaith roared and send a punch to the creature''s chest. He gave his all in every attack.


    The banefreak dodged. It was about to cut his arm before Elaith pulled it back. The monster slammed his face, sending him flying again.


    Elaith stood up. His feet wobbled, and he felt pain all over his body. But suddenly, like a crystal shattering, the energy contained within him burst and healed his wound. The nasty gash on his arm was enclosed as fibers and muscles regenerated before being covered by the skin.


    "What is this power?" Elaith asked.


    The banefreak dashed and slammed its feet into him. It cracked his bone, and the bone stabbed into his heart.


    Elaith coughed out blood. Just as he thought he was about to die, the energy healed him again. The bone returned to its place.


    The banefreak attacked again. Elaith could only block and tried to dodge as much as possible. The monster sent out a flurry of attacks. Hundreds of cuts appeared on his body. His red robes now seemed like a beggar''s clothes. The monster''s movement was like the wind. Hard to see and quick. The bony-blade only appeared like a flash of glistening light as it cut his body time and time again.


    But there was a certain pattern to the creature''s movement. Elaith studied them. When he thought he found a pattern, he moved in a certain way to avoid getting cut. When he failed he analyzed the pattern again. He kept falling and failing. Wounds all over his body.


    Yet, As time passed, Elaith learned how to avoid fatal injury to his body. He copied how the monster moved, by twisting his body left and right, or by spinning around.


    It was to the point where the banefreak almost couldn''t land a hit on him. Elaith moved gracefully, predicting the monster''s movement like it was a dance that he had memorized for years.


    The swish and swash of the banefreak blade echoed around the volcano. The banefreak increased its speed, and it seemed the creature was rather desperate to land a hit. Elaith kept on dodging. He zigzagged, rolled, and ducked. Sometimes, he didn''t even need to see the banefreak to dodge.


    Laeroth and Vamir were impressed by the movement.


    "He''s not faster nor stronger than the banefreak, but he dodged all of its attack," Laeroth said.


    "He knew the pattern of the enemy''s attack. Monsters aren''t that intelligent compared to humans. This is why they can be defeated with techniques."


    "That may apply if the monster and the person have the same stage of power. Elaith is just a stage-1 swordsman."


    As Elaith rolled on the ground, he threw a rock straight at the banefreak''s face. The banefreak knew this trick. It grinned as it thought how foolish the human was for using the same trick again. It slapped the rock away with its blade.


    The rock was cut into two horizontally, and what appear between that horizontal gap was a bright blazing blade! The sword landed on the banefreak''s arm, crunching its bony blade.


    Successfully deceiving his opponent, Elaith swung the sword to the other hand. The blazing fire was like a raging wave, as it cut the creature''s wrist.


    The banefreak roared. Its hand fell to the ground, five fingers wriggling. It was shocked at how easily the human cut its hand. He was a fast-type monster but his body was not fragile.


    Elaith noticed the reaction of the creature and used that opportunity to push his sword straight to its abdomen. The move however left his face wide open for a counter-attack. The banefreak reacted quickly. As his blade pierced through the creature and out of its back, the monster slashed his nose.


    Elaith had pulled back his head when the blade landed. Only a shallow wound was left across both cheeks and nose.


    The energy within him raged. Like a violent wave in a sea storm, it exploded with thunder and lightning and crashed all over his body.


    "Ahh!"


    His eyes glowed fire. A volcano within him was about to erupt. He didn''t know where this energy came from and why was it there. But Elaith knew he had to expend it somewhere.


    With gritted teeth, Elaith made a fist. His muscles bulged. Then a huge flame burst out of him, covering his body from top to bottom. He rushed towards the monster. His feet made a hole on the ground, cracking it. Followed by a trail of fire, Elaith punched the monster straight to its face. With the speed of thunder, he crashed into the monster, blasting its face and burning its body into ashes.


    Elaith roared like an apex predator defeating a worthy foe. His scream was loud, shaking the rocks around him. The blazing fire on his body blared. Like an erupting mountain, it burst. Exploding towards the sky, his roar cracked like thunder.


    "He''s a stage-2 now!" Laeroth said.


    "I can''t believe he gets to this level that quick," Vamir said.


    "Brother Elaith is so awesome!"


    "It''s only been a few years since Elaith joined the sect. How could he advance so fast!"


    "This is why the Elder is taking care of him personally. He knows that Elaith is talented."


    Laeroth glanced at the juniors. His mouth turned into a smirk. If they knew that Elaith was expected to be the future sect master, how would they react?


    He then looked at the distance. But would that time arrive before they come?


    Vamir tapped his waist with the back of his hand. "When the time comes. We have to take him away."


    "I know."


    Elaith approached them with tattered clothes yet his skin was in pristine condition. There was no bruise or any other wounds that were visible.


    "Senior brother," Elaith raised both of his palms.


    Laeroth smiled. "You have made us proud, Elaith. Now that you are a stage-2 swordsman, you don''t have to call us seniors." He grabbed the sword on his back and gave it to Elaith.


    Elaith shook his head. "I don''t want your sword, senior brother."


    "You''re going to make me look like I''m turning on my words."


    "No one is going to think that way," Elaith said. "I just wanted to thank, you. You need the sword more than I do. And I will still be calling you senior brother."


    Laeroth laughed. "So you''re saying I need the sword more because I''m weaker? Alright, I think I need to teach you who''s the senior here."


    "Please teach me as much as you can."


    "You know what I''m in a good mood today. Why don''t we go to the Boiling Crystal Mine."

 Chapter 32 The Dark Reckoning

    Nesterin, Jharteel, Thalanil, Gormon, and Zeno were in a bar in a small town near the Royal Palace. They sat on a stool and drank a few sips. The rest of the Black Wolves was hiding in a forest. Nesterin couldn''t let their movement be known. If thousands of men suddenly entered the town at once, the Royal Palace might notice it and confronted them. His experience in turf wars gave him some valuable knowledge.


    The bartender wiped the mug in his hand and put it in the drawer before taking another mug. The bar was full of chattering. Each person had a drink at minimum, while some ordered a plate of steak with rice, and a bowl of soup on the side.


    Nesterin and his men stayed silent. They tried to hear any relevant information about the Royal Palace. Though Nesterin didn''t have any hope they would get something from norms, there were a few cultivators there enjoying their time.


    "Why don''t you go home yet. You''re married now. You shouldn''t spend your time in the bar."


    The man sighed. He grabbed his drink and took a sip. "Being home is stressing me out. To be honest with you, I prefer being at work rather than at home."


    "Why is that? Everyone in town knows you love your wife."


    The man sighed again. "I don''t know. I love her, but sometimes I can''t stand her, you know."


    "This is why I refuse to marry. At least, not yet."


    "You''ve been with that girl for over 3 years. You''ve slept with her too, why don''t you get married yet?"


    "So I don''t be like you. Look at you now. A few years ago you would always look for your wife, now you avoid her like she was a pest."


    "How''s that related to marriage?"


    "When you''re in a relationship, you tend to show your best side and hide your worst. Tell me, isn''t that what you did?"


    "Yes? But that''s only natural."


    "Yes. It is good to show the best of to our lover. But in marriage, all of that disappear. You''re not only getting the good but also the bad. The wife you are living with right now is the true her, you just didn''t know it before."


    "Then what should I do?"


    "The one you fall in love with is the old her. What was it that you say? Charming? Kind? Sweet? Now all of that disappear. She''s not what she used to be, right?"


    "How do you know?"


    "My dad was just like you. My uncle too. I don''t want to make the same mistake as them."


    The man gave another sigh and throw back his head as he drank the whole mug.


    Nesterin told the waiter to refill his drink. As he paid the waiter, he noticed Jharteel was in a daze. "What are you thinking about?"


    "Is that why you''re not married yet, Nesterin? You''re afraid that the woman you love will show her true side?"


    This kid. What was up with the big question all of a sudden? Now that he thought about it, this bar was filled with people complaining about their wives.


    A man sighed and pulled out his hair. "I don''t want to go home. She doesn''t love me anymore. I think it''s because I''m gaining weight."


    Another man put his face on the table. "She used to sing me a song every day. Her voice was like an angel. Now she screamed every time she see me like I''m a ghost." His eyes turned red and wet. He sobbed.


    "You don''t fall in love with who she is, but with who she was."


    That last line seemed to stab deep into people''s hearts. Like a huge hand crunching their chest. Some of them had a hard time breathing. Regretting their decision to tie the knot, they drown themselves with alcohol.


    Poor lot.


    Nesterin noticed Jharteel letting out a breath. He was probably nervous or something. "Don''t let them scares you from finding a wife. Just listen and learn what to avoid."


    Jharteel shook his head. "We''re here to spy on the Royal Palace. I don''t have time for that."If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Nesterin bit his own lip and whispered. "Lower your voice next time you say it. There are cultivators here. don''t ruin our disguise."


    "There''s no information to obtain here¡ª"


    "Shush," Nesterin stared at the mug in front of him, but his mind and ears were elsewhere. Beyond the wail and whine of regretful husband, a pair of cultivators gulped their drinks.


    "Are you sure the Dark Reckoning will come?"


    "Yes, it will be the second Dark Reckoning in history."


    "Then we should leave this continent."


    "Where there are dangers, there are opportunities. Haven''t you heard of this saying? We travel far and wide, searching for wisdom and power. And have you seen someone leave the continent before? Only the mid-level cultivators can have the chance to leave."


    "The wisdom I got tells me to leave this continent. As long as I stay alive, opportunity will come."


    "So be it. Leave this continent if you can. But I will remind you that the Sea of Monsters or the Strait of Death is not easy to pass."


    The cultivator clicked his tongue. "Hiding in the forest is the only way then."


    "Fighting them is the only way."


    The man scoffed. "I might not be in the first Dark Reckoning, but the event has been written meticulously. I don''t want to die a meaningless death and got my soul consumed."


    "There is no safe place. It doesn''t matter where you hide. They will find you. The living have a strong smell, you see."


    The cultivator slapped the table lightly. "So does the dead. Let us prepare for the worst, then."


    Both of them stood up and left the bar. They of course didn''t pay, but the owner was grateful enough for them not destroying anything or killing anyone.


    What they talked about was very confusing. Something about the Dark Reckoning. Nesterin didn''t know what that was. In fact, he never heard of it. They also mentioned something about their souls being consumed. What kind of creatures could eat souls?


    "Dark Reckoning," Nesterin mumbled under his breath. "Consume souls."


    "What did they talk about, Nesterin?" Jharteel asked.


    "I also don''t know. But we don''t come here for nothing. I heard them say about preparing for the worst. If that was the case, then maybe we should also do the same thing. I think something big is about to happen."


    "We can''t return to Hax with such vague information."


    "I know. That''s why we are going to the Royal Palace."


    "But only cultivators can enter that place."


    "That''s not true. There are norms that can enter the palace."


    "Who?"


    ¡­


    Nesterin came out of the kitchen and strode to the dining hall. A group of armored cultivators with golden spears on their side sat on the cushioned seat as they talked with each other. Nesterin avoided eye contact, focusing on stabilizing the food tray as he put the food down one by one in front of the diners.


    Jharteel followed suit from behind. He wore a white tunic wrapped in brown jackets that had six golden buttons loose except the bottom one. With what seemingly assured steps, Jharteel put the drinks in the right place.


    After both of them finished their task, they went to the corner and put both hands behind their back.


    They didn''t speak, move their heads, or twitched even a little bit. At maximum, blinking was the only thing they did.


    For hours, Nesterin and Jharteel stood like a statue, listening to every bit of words the cultivators said.


    "Pass me the jalape?o."


    "I really like this spiky eel."


    "Meh, these timberwolf giants are much better."


    "You guys don''t travel the world enough to know what a real delicacy is. This hard geoduck is the best thing a woman can ask for. A man is also welcome to try. Look it fits perfectly in my mouth."


    "You''re doing it wrong. You need to slap it first."


    "Really?" The woman slapped the geoduck and it turned hard. "Oh, you''re right! Where did you learn this."


    "I''m experienced."


    Nesterin stayed silent as he listened to all the bull crap. The cultivators loved to talk about the foods in their mouths. Despite being immortal, they still like eating nice food, just like any other norm. They truly weren''t so different after all. Nesterin wondered what similarities they had.


    Do they fart or poop too?


    Probably not, because no one had seen them go to the toilet.


    "Hey you," A cultivator called to Nesterin. "Get me some bronze durian. "


    "Right away, sir. Come on, Jharteel."


    They strode out of the dining hall. Closing the gate as the sound of utensils clanging against the plate dimmed. Side by side, they walked along the hallway and saw two men with brown trousers and yellow jackets, sweeping the floor and paintings on the wall.


    With a quick movement, Thalanil, who was disguising as a cleaner, slip a small note to Nesterin''s hand while he swept the floor with his broom.


    Nesterin and Jharteel kept on walking to the kitchen. When they arrived, Nesterin opened his palm and read the note.


    "What does it say?" Jharteel asked.


    "It says that the king is going to hold a banquet. He will invite every sect in the kingdom to the Royal Palace in about a month."


    "They must be preparing for the Dark Reckoning."


    "We can''t say for sure. For all we know, the ramblings about the Dark Reckoning might be something that doesn''t affect us at all," Nesterin said.


    "That''s impossible. The cultivators are planning to prepare for the worst. Surely the worst for them is also not good for us too. In fact, I''ve been suspicious of their movement. The sect is gathering their forces, but they didn''t attack the norms. How many weeks has it been since we eliminate the Royal Army? Yet the Royal Palace didn''t even send a single cultivator to attack the rebellion army. Even the Nefarious Sword sect is silent. It seemed like they wanted to avoid killing.


    "What are you saying, Jharteel?"


    "I am saying that they have something bigger to fight. Something a lot more dangerous, that the entire kingdom has to ignore their pride against the norm."


    "What you said is merely speculation. We don''t know if that is true. We can''t rely on that. We need more information," Nesterin said.


    "The banquet is the best time. They will surely talk about the Dark Reckoning."


    "I hope it''s that easy. Sadly, it''s not. The palace held a few banquets before, and none of them let any norms to join even as a servant. The guess that comes will be the sect leaders and the elders. Maybe even the guilds and unions will come too. These are important people and the Royal Palace is not going to send norms to serve them."


    "Then what should we do?"


    "We''ll let the night disappears."

 Chapter 33 Make Them Disappear

    The Black Wolves integrated themselves with the palace servants. Every day a few members of the Black Wolves would enter the palace as servants. They sweep the floor, built something, and fixed roofs. Most of them became a cottar, the lowest servant that did the odd jobs. Those who were skilled could become a cook, falconer, or shoemakers.


    There were many jobs available within the palace and the Black Wolves filled them all.


    Nesterin was surprised by this development, not because of what his men did, but what the cultivators didn''t do. Infiltrating a rival gang was never easy. Each member was checked multiple times and was even tested with all kinds of techniques. The cultivators did not do that. They didn''t even care that the palace had an influx of servants.


    They only took slight notice of how fast and efficient things became. The building got fixed a lot faster now that there were so much more builders available. A wide variety of clothes, shoes, and accessories could be made. There were hundreds of carters that could bring stone and wood to the construction site, making building a new structure a lot faster.


    Everything became so fast, but the damn cultivators only give small attention to the change.


    With ears in every corner, Nesterin received so much information that he even knew where the cultivators hid their mistress. In fact, with the information he had, it was possible to create huge unrest amongst the cultivators by spreading rumors as long as it was blanketed with a little bit of truth.


    He couldn''t help but recalled what Hax said. Even if we are ants, we still can defeat them as long as we have enough information.


    That sentence clicked with this moment perfectly.


    But he still didn''t know anything about the Dark Reckoning. It surprised him that a pair of cultivators in a bar would talk about something important, yet the soldiers in the palace didn''t seem to know anything.


    "Maybe we look at the wrong place," Jharteel said. "The palace is divided in three levels. The outer, the inner, and the core. We only stay at the outer area. And there is only stage-1 cultivators here. I don''t think they are important enough to know something."


    That made Nesterin think. He was planning to kidnap a cultivator in the outer area, but since Jharteel mentioned that, he might have to kidnap a stage-2 cultivator.


    "It''s not possible to kidnap them inside the inner level. There are too many guards," Jharteel said.


    "Then we should wait until they go outside the palace. We still have a lot of members in the forest," Nesterin said.


    Jharteel shook his head. "The men have learned of their schedule. There is no way that these stage-2 cultivators are going out unless they have to escort someone. These escorted could consist of twenty-five or even fifty stage-2. And if the guess is important, they might have a stage-3 protecting them."


    "We have to lure them out somehow."


    "How can we lure stage-2 royal guards? They have money, status, and strength. There is no way we can lure them out with something."


    Nesterin scoffed. "I think we can. Those cultivators always asked for more when the food tastes good. If we lure them with something that can increase their strength, I am sure they will rush out of the palace like a dog."


    "We don''t have anything that is valuable to them."


    "Yes, but our enemies do. Remember all the cultivators we killed? Where do you think their stuff goes to?"


    "Since norms can''t use them, then I''m guessing to the dumpster."


    "No, it''s in my storage. The Man Hunter didn''t want them anyway."


    "Why would you do that? Most of those weapons are super heavy even though they looked lightweight."


    "Let''s just say I like shiny stuff and decided to keep them."


    "You plan on luring them with this shiny stuff?"


    "Yes,"


    "What''s going on?" Thalanil walked up to them and asked. They were currently in a kitchen. Now that the palace had so many servants, their absence didn''t really affect anyone.


    "Perfect timing," Nesterin said. "Thalanil, I want you to contact our forces outside and tell them to bury some magic weapons in the forest."


    Jharteel raised his eyebrows. "You brought the magic weapons? I thought you said you put them in storage."


    "The wagon can act as a storage, right?"


    "Who cares! Who put magic weapons into a wagon and bring them to espionage operation?" Jharteel said.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    "Me," Nesterin said. "Now where are we? Right, bury some magic weapons in the forest.


    Thalanil hesitated. "Uhh¡­ What is the intention of burying them, sir? I''m pretty sure we can sell those weapons for good money."


    "Good money will not do us any good. Just listen to me and tell our forces to bury them. Don''t make it obvious, but make sure it can be found."


    Thalanil nodded. "Right away, sir."


    Nesterin watched him sprint out of the kitchen.


    "Well, now what?" Jharteel asked.


    "We wait," Nesterin said. "I know young people like you feel like you need to be active, but in this operation, you need to have a different mindset. Waiting will be what you do most of the time. Thinking is the second priority. And too much thinking will not do you any good."


    Jharteel sighed. "I hate waiting."


    Nesterin hit his shoulder. "For now, spread some rumors that there are magic weapons in the forest. Make sure you talk loud enough for the cultivators to hear."


    Jharteel nodded and left the kitchen. Nesterin leaned on the table. His shoulder hit a hanging pot. The cooks were busy chopping meat and vegetables, while the server came in and out of the kitchen with trays. The furnace was lit with blazing fire. The chefs put in a stack of firewood and it burned even more. A wave of heat struck his face as the soup inside the giant pot boiled. A water bubble popped on the soup.


    Another chef stirred the pot with a giant wooden spoon. He seemed to have a hard time stirring as time went by.


    A chef put a plate of meat on the counter table. As the server was about to pick the place, Nesterin grabbed it and ate the steak with his hand. Smoke came out of his mouth and his hands felt slightly burned.


    "That tastes so good. You never cook back in the barrack," Nesterin said.


    "Sir, we already have a cook back in the barrack."


    "That''s true. You''re so good at cooking. What makes you join the army instead?"


    The chef grabbed another piece of meat and chopped them skillfully. "The same as everyone else, sir. I don''t want cultivators to step on our head anymore."


    "Do you hate cultivators?"


    "I do."


    That was quick, Nesterin thought. Then he recalled that one of his soldiers copied a question from Hax. "Let''s say your wife is pregnant, and she birthed a cultivator child. You don''t want to ki¡ª"


    "I will throw him away."


    Nesterin was quite surprised by the answer. "Why?"


    "Because that''s what my mother did to me."


    "Your parents are cultivators?"


    "Yes, sir."


    "Sorry to hear that."


    "It''s nothing, sir."


    Nesterin turned silent. He watched as the chef chopped up some vegetable and brought it into the furnace.


    From what the chef said, Nesterin guessed that the man wanted to rid of all cultivators in the world. No matter who they were, as long as they had the power of cultivators, then they deserved to be killed. That must be the mindset this man had.


    But was that really the correct way? Would he kill his own son because he was a cultivator? What if Jharteel was a cultivator, would he kill him?


    The two guards that protected Bodin were also cultivators. Should he kill them?


    No, he shouldn''t. It didn''t matter who they were, what mattered was what they did. Evil cultivators that stomped on people deserved to be killed, just like how there were bad norms and good norms.


    This was his own thought. He was aware that many people might think differently.


    Nesterin shook his head. Thinking about this stuff stressed him out. "I should focus on the operation."


    The Black Wolves spread the rumor in every corner of the outer palace. They talked to their own and sometimes to the other servants in the Royal Palace. If they saw cultivators nearby, they would higher their voices. So far, the plan seemed to work. The Black Wolves in the forest reported that they saw some cultivators walking around at night.


    Nesterin saw his chance when he read that report. He told one of his men to take one magic weapon and report it to one of the royal guards.


    The plan worked perfectly.


    After his men reported that he found a magic weapon in the forest, all hell broke loose as hundreds of cultivators entered the forest.


    Nesterin smiled. His plan had just begun. What he buried on the ground were merely the level-1 magic weapon. He still had a few level-2 magic weapons and some of them looked very valuable. It was probably a rare weapon that the cultivator found in their travel.


    But he needed to wait to use them.


    As days passed and the rumors heated up, more cultivators joined in on the fun. The captain of these men didn''t seem to bother about what they were doing. Because of this, the hunt for the magic weapon got even more boisterous.


    That was when one of them found a rare level-1 magic weapon. This weapon was inscribed with unknown glyphs that let the wielder shoot a sharp wind with the sword. The news shocked the royal guards, and the captain started to notice.


    Nesterin didn''t know the sword had that ability. He just thought the sword look cool so maybe the cultivators would like it.


    A week later, the Black Wolves reported that they saw the cultivators bringing their tracking hound to the forest. These chubby, bulking, four-legged creatures sniffed the ground left and right before digging the soil with their claws.


    Some of them even found a treasure that the Black Wolves never put. The effectiveness of the tracking hound wasn''t limited there. A dozen of Black Wolves members were tracked by these hounds, but the cultivators ignored them and continued their search for treasure.


    They even slapped their dogs when they found a lowly norm instead of a treasure.


    That made the Black Wolves breathe in relief. They also moved their supply wagons much farther to avoid being tracked.


    The treasure hunt continued for another week until they saw that no one got any treasure anymore. They left the forest dejectedly with their hounds.


    But someone still persevered. Even when his dog was tired and out of energy, this man still searched for the treasure. He even tried to use his own nose to sniff one. He failed miserably in the last part. But after a few days, something shocking happened.


    Under a conic shape tree that had dark-green needle-like leaves, the man dug out the ground and found a weapon. And it wasn''t just any weapon. It was a level-2 magic weapon.


    After he returned and bragged about his findings, the Royal Guards were shocked.


    Another flood of cultivators entered the forest, bringing with them more dogs than they possibly could. Seeing this, the stage-2 cultivator finally seemed to be interested. A few of them joined the treasure hunt and entered deeper into the forest.


    They cut through shrubs and thickets as they looked for the treasure.


    But there was no more treasure to be found. Nesterin had run out of magic weapons to bury. He only had a few more but he must keep them for later use. But that wasn''t a problem. Now that he successfully lured the stage-2 cultivators, he guessed that they would stay for the long term until they found something.


    His presumption came true. The stage-1 cultivators gave up after a few days while the stage-2 cultivators kept on going inside the forest. To prevent them from giving up, Nesterin told his men to bury a few level-2 magic weapons for them to find.


    "Nesterin, our men asked what we should do next."


    Nesterin looked upward towards the sky where the hexagonal-shaped moon shone ever brightly.


    "Make them disappear," Nesterin said.

 Chapter 34 A Waste of Time

    Faelanan felt something under his foot. It must be a treasure, he thought. He crouched and dug the ground with his hand, and surprisingly he really found a magic weapon. It was a sword carved with golden line in the shape of a coiling dragon. The dragon roared at the tip of the swords. It was such a finely crafted blade.


    "Faelanan, you found a magic weapon?"


    "Yeah, look!"


    "Wow, that is a fine weapon."


    Faelanan imbued the sword with his spiritual energy and attacked a nearby tree. A raging flame blazed on the blade. The moment it touched the tree, the flame engulfed its entire body. Not even a second passed, yet the tree already turned into charcoal and dust.


    "Impressive."


    "This is the best weapon that I ever have," Faelanan said.


    "Let''s look for more treasure. There has to be something around this forest."


    They looked around the forest again. As they urged their dog to sniff for treasure, all of a sudden, a projectile shot towards them with great speed. And then dozens of them came.


    Faelanan reacted quickly. With his new sword, he cut down every projectile that came towards him. But he was shocked to find out that these small metal objects were very powerful. Every time he cut one of them, it shook his arms so strongly that he could feel the strain. Normally, only a magic bow could achieve this power. But he felt no spiritual energy within this metal object.


    He tried to dodge the projectiles, but there were too many of them and they seemed to come from every direction. After a while, the shooting ended and Faelanan breathed with difficulty. His chest went up and down as sweat fell of his face.


    "Surrender yourself!" Someone shouted.


    Faelanan gritted his teeth and brandished his sword towards the voice. "I''m one of the Royal Guards. The soldier of his Majesty, the King. Show yourself or the Royal Palace will hunt you!"


    "I think you don''t understand your situation. Look behind you."


    Faelanan was still wary but he did look behind his back. The sight he saw was shocking. All of his comrades fell with holes in their bodies. Fortunately, the holes were mostly in non-vital spots. The swords near them were deformed so badly, and most of them snapped to pieces. How could such a thing happen?


    Then he recalled how the metal projectile strained his arms. It must be that thing. The projectile was too strong it destroyed the sword.


    Faelanan looked at his new swords. But it didn''t destroy this sword because it was much stronger.


    "Who are you? What do you want?" Faelanan shouted.


    "Drop your weapon and we will not kill you. As you can see your friends is not death."


    That was true. Faelanan could hear them breathing on the ground. Their legs were terribly wounded so it was impossible for them to stand. But he didn''t want to drop his weapon. Who knew what they would do to him.


    "Don''t be stubborn my friend."


    Faelanan focused on his hearings, trying to find the source of the voice. He tried to look beyond the leaves and twigs but there didn''t seem to be anything.


    "This is my last warning. Surrender now!"


    Faelanan closed his eyes.


    "Hey! I''m talking to you."


    There!


    He rushed towards the thicket then suddenly threw his sword upward. The sword flew straight to a branch, cutting it. A man was hugging the tree and the sword hit the spot above his head. Faelanan almost got him.


    Just as he was about to jump and caught the man, a barrage of metal struck him from the side. Was he a magician? Faelanan thought. The man didn''t seem to conjure any spell so this attack was probably coming from another source.


    As a squad of men came out of the thickets, he knew his speculation was correct, but there was nothing he could do about it. His arms and legs were crippled. It was astonishing how precise their attacks were. None of the projectiles hit his vital spot.Stolen novel; please report.


    Nesterin climbed down from the tree. "You almost got me there. Thankfully, I have the wolf sense."


    Jharteel rolled his eyes from that.


    "You." His mouth fell open. "You''re a norm? All of you are norms?"


    "Surprise!"


    "Ah, I heard about you. You must be the rebel army."


    "That''s correct. And everyone here would kill you if I wasn''t here to stop them."


    "What do you want from me?"


    Nesterin smiled. He ordered his men to bring the other cultivator to other places where someone would interrogate them separately. This was to prevent the enemy from making lies.


    "Where are you taking them?"


    "That''s not important. Tell me. What do you know about the Dark Reckoning?"


    The cultivator flinched and trembled when he heard the name. "How do you know about that?"


    "Just tell me what you know."


    "You don''t want to know. It doesn''t matter to you norms."


    "Just tell me or I''m going to destroy your heart!"


    The cultivator took a deep breath. "The Dark Reckoning is a great war in the Zaechora Continent. I don''t know much about it. But people had been telling me some stories about this war. They say it was the darkest of age. So dark in fact that it seemed no one knew the detail of this war. Everything I know is merely hearsay."


    "Continue."


    "Have you ever heard of the Death land?"


    Nesterin nodded. "It''s the wasteland in the north, right?"


    "I never went there in my travel, but I heard people never return when they entered the land. Of course, there were people that said they did, but most of the time they couldn''t prove it. They said that the saw monster that hunts the living. These monsters hungered for our souls and will stop at nothing to get it."


    "How is this connected to the Dark Reckoning?"


    "The Dark Reckoning is said to be the event where the monster in the Death Land came out and hunt. I never saw them. But every person I asked would describe them as the living nightmares itself. Only something that came straight out of the deepest and darkest hell would resemble their appearance."


    "Is this true?"


    "I don''t know. If you truly want to know the truth then go to the Death Land. Just remember that you might not return¡­ alive."


    "Is the Royal Palace know about this?"


    "They probably do. I''m merely an escort guard. I am not talented or important enough to know the inside information."


    "Why do they make it a secret?"


    "I also don''t know why."


    "I heard the second Dark Reckoning will come. What do you know about this?"


    The cultivator shook his head. "It''s probably nothing."


    "Stop lying."


    "I''m just an escort guard. I know nothing."


    "Then I will shoot you."


    "Wait, I know something. The Royal Palace is holding a banquet that every sect in the kingdom would attend. I heard that they will be discussing attacking the Auchidian. We have had bad blood with them for years."


    "Those alcoholic men?"


    "Yes. Our kingdom has a spices farm that they need to make specific alcohol. They really liked this drink and now they want to take the entire farm."


    Nesterin clicked his tongue. Things just got a lot more complicated. He wasn''t sure which one was correct. Was the Dark Reckoning true? Or was it the Auchidian that was truly attacking the kingdom? This stressed him out so much that he wanted to shoot the cultivator to calm down.


    He felt that weeks of operation for this was a waste. He didn''t receive any information that he could be assured of. The way ahead was full of fog filled with vague information.


    Nesterin pointed his BC-75 at the cultivator''s face. "I have enough. Any last word you want to say?"


    "Wait, you can''t kill me. I''m a stage-2 swordsman and a Royal Guard. Most people would ransom captured enemy."


    So that was why this guy seemed so calm. The Royal Army that he eliminated before didn''t surrender and asked to be ransomed. So why was this one different?


    Nesterin could only shake his head. Cultivators were really weird.


    "I think I prefer to kill you instead."


    "Wait!"


    Bang!


    After he fired his weapon, Nesterin heard a few more gunshots before his men returned to him. He asked them what the enemy said and the information was mostly matched. And that was bad because they still didn''t know if the Dark Reckoning was real for sure. But he confirmed that the kingdom was preparing for something.


    Hax was right. It was shocking that the man could discern the situation just by reading a single letter. He worked his ass being a server, trapped a cultivator and he still stood in one place.


    "We need to do more investigation," Nesterin said. "We should kidnap someone more important. Should we kidnap one of the Royal Family members?"


    Jharteel shook his head. "That wouldn''t be necessary. We know that every sect in the kingdom will come here right. We can just capture one of them."


    "Those that come to the Royal Palace would be stage-3 at minimum," Nesterin said. "We never fought someone that strong before. And we only bring a fraction of our men."


    "I don''t think we need thirty thousand troops to capture a stage-3. Our men is enough. We have big guns now," Jharteel said.


    Nesterin nodded. "Hundreds of our men are currently disguising as a servant but I don''t think we can''t pull them out yet. But I believe that''s fine. Put some men around the Royal Palace. I want to be informed if any cultivators are going to the palace."


    "Yes, sir."


    The Black Wolves send some members to various places. They went to the plains, hills, forests, rivers, and even the cliffs. Disguising as a merchant or explorer, these men kept their eyes open for any cultivator that may pass.


    Nesterin and Jharteel returned to the Palace. The disguised members had so much information to share with him, but none of them seemed relevant. There was one that interest him though. The location of the weapon and pill storage. He had never seen someone bring a magic pill before.


    He had heard that these pills could increase strength, cultivation, or even turn a mortal into a cultivator. Now that he had big guns, who cared if he didn''t become a cultivator.


    "What about giving it to Hax?" Jharteel asked.


    "Why would we turn Hax into a cultivator?"


    "So he can have a long life and makes it harder to kill him. If he survives long enough, I am sure the norm would receive the treatment they deserve."


    Nesterin moved his fingers to his chin. "Interesting."

 Chapter 35 Gorre

    Hax studied the 3D printer blueprint on his desk. Ratha was studying beside him while the cat slept on her thigh.


    He had been studying them for a while now. The materials that Bodin ordered were late by a few days. They said they would deliver it today with some extra materials as compensation for the delay. Hax almost burst into anger that time. He couldn''t wait to make the power suit because he wanted to take the Boiling Volcano. Defeating an army was not enough. He had to conquer an entire sect before the norms could be truly moved by his strength and valor.


    "Sir, the materials you ordered have come."


    "Finally," Hax said. He stood up and brought Ratha outside the forge hall.


    Dozens of wagons pulled by magic bulls arrived at the shooting field. His men immediately unload the crates and put them next to the forge hall. Hax planned to make the 3D printer right next to the forge hall.


    After all the crates were unloaded, Hax called his manufacturing bots. This time, he called every bot available to help him. Building a warehouse-sized printer wasn''t easy.


    The bots hovered out of the forge hall and he commanded them to eat the materials and print out the necessary parts. This process was already tedious enough. Printing all the parts would take a few days if not more.


    "Thankfully, I have made a lot more manufacturing bots in my free time."


    A dozen more manufacturing bots came from the forge hall. Hax had delegated a few of his bots to make more bots. Because of this, weapon production increased exponentially. He was confident that he could arm one hundred thousand men within five months. Of course, he could only arm them with rifles within that time span. If he wanted to give them the BC-75 and the Weler-150 then it would take longer than that.


    Now, he had a lot more manufacturing bots in other forge halls, but he couldn''t use them because they were still used to produce more weapons for the army. The army which had a flood of new members was in dire need of weapons. The thirty thousand from the Black Wolves, twenty-five thousand from the Man Hunter, and more than sixty thousand from Bodin. Of course, this was possible because of the parade. The Man Hunter and the Black Wolves couldn''t recruit many people at that time because they still needed to put some thought before joining. After a few days, they traveled to Barmwich and joined the army through Bodin''s administration team.


    That said, Barmwich was also being expanded almost every day. Because there were a lot of new members joining in, the army had to make more space to make houses or barracks.


    The new members had strained the financial situation of the army. But Hax fixed that by making more than a dozen forge halls and letting them produce weapons that would be sold to the norms. The sales saved the army from collapsing.


    It was justified that the entire existence of the army relied upon Hax. Without him, the army would almost collapse immediately, Unless someone could takeover his coat.


    As Hax oversaw the bots printing out parts, a group of guards dragged a man in front of him. The man growled as he pushed himself with his pale white hand. He rubbed his red nose and scratched his messy hair. He tidied his wrinkled clothing before he turned and faced the guards. "Don''t you know who I am? I am the one and only plastic maker. My loyal customers would hunt all of you down for treating me like this."


    Hax coughed.


    The man turned around and looked at Hax up and down. "You must be the boss. Listen, I will not teach anyone how to make plastic because there is only one person that could make it¡ªme."


    Hax showed him a pistol and shot the ground. The gunshot made the man jump.


    "Can you make something like this?" Hax asked. Then he took the guard''s rifle and sprayed the ground with bullets. "What about this?" Then he told someone with BC-75 to come over and basically destroyed the ground with it. "And what about this?"


    The man had his mouth fell open. "This stick can shoot powerful metal projectiles? How is that possible?"


    "I''m not done, yet." Hax ordered his manufacturing bots to come over and the man was shocked to see a flying object.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    "How can that thing fly?" The man put his hand under the bot, a little wary because the tool arms looked a bit scary.


    The bots printed out a pistol out of its mouth. The timing was perfect when the man was about to see inside of it. It made him jump again, and his head almost hit the bot.


    "How is this possible? This weapon comes out of this thing? What kind of creatures are you?"


    "It''s not a creature. It''s a robot."


    "What''s a robot?"


    "A mechanical machine that can be programmed to execute a certain task or carrying out a complex series of actions."


    "Can you repeat that again?"


    "Basically it''s a tool that can do what humans can do."


    "Can it farm?"


    "Yes, it can."


    "Can it clean?"


    "Yes, but those are not their main function."


    "You''re such a dumb person. If these bots can farm and clean by themselves, you could have stayed in bed while they make money for you."


    "We''re not short in money because we can sell weapons. You might already know, but this weapon can kill a cultivator."


    The man raised his eyebrow. "No way. How can this small thing kill a cultivator. Only a magic weapon can do so."


    Hax was surprised by this. "You didn''t know? This weapon is all over the kingdom now. Haven''t you ever heard of the Hax Rebellion Army?"


    "Nope."


    "Have you been living under a cave?"


    "How did you know?"


    Hax turned to his guards. "Is this guy serious?"


    "Yes, sir. It took us a while to find him. Most of his customers were very reluctant to share his location."


    "Then how do we get plastic chairs if we didn''t know his location before."


    "His customers were mostly resellers, sir. They buy from him and then they sell it back in the area."


    "You''re a rich man. Why would you live under a cave?"


    "Who said I''m rich? Does this unwashed clothes look rich to you?"


    "Your products are expensive. Surely you must have a few thousands gold coins in your home."


    "My products are expensive? Hell no. One plastic chair cost around a bowl of rice."


    "A bowl of rice? They didn''t pay you in coins?"


    The man shook his head. "No, they said my products are not worth it at that cost."


    "Who said that?"


    "My customers."


    "Why continue making plastic chairs if it was that bad?"


    "It''s the only thing I know. I never farm in my life. I never go fishing, hunting, or any other stuff."


    "Who taught you how to make plastic?"


    "It was my father. He was a great sorcerer. He could make hard objects soft, and soft objects hard. It was always weird things that interest him. One day he make this thing called rubber. It was just material that bounced all the time. He said it would change the world one day. I never believed him. How could a bouncing rubber change the world?"


    "What do you mean by sorcerer? Was your father a cultivator?"


    The man shook his head. "No. It''s just people call what we do as sorcery. So they call him a sorcerer."


    "Well, from now on you''re going to call it science. Sorcery is for the cultivators. While science is for the norm. Do you understand?"


    "Right. But let''s put that aside for a second. Why do you tell your guards to bring me over? What do you want from me."


    "I want your specialty. Make plastic for me and I will give you the best life you could ask for."


    With that promise, Gorre, the plastic man, shook hands with Hax and proceed to work.


    Gorre listed out all the materials he needed and someone under Bodin immediately got it for him. The materials were simply oils and plants. To turn them into plastic, Gorre had to refine them into ethane and profane. These ethane and profane are then treated with high heat. This was done to turn them into monomers. The rest of the process was very complicated. The curious onlookers that saw the process commented that it was like seeing sorcery.


    After Gorre fed a molted polymer into a pipe, it turned into a long plastic tube as it cooled. He then cut them into small pellets and put them in a crate. He would later melt and mold these pellets later on according to what Hax needed.


    After a few days, Hax and Gorre worked together to teach the bots how to make plastic and integrate them into the weapons. The result was satisfactory as the weapon became much lighter. This way, the soldiers wouldn''t tire much faster than they were supposed to.


    When they were done, Gorre asked how to make the guns and the bots. Hax immediately put him into his workshop and told him to study together with Ratha.


    Ratha finally had her first classmate. Though the study materials they learned were very hard, it was much easier now that she had a friend to discuss a problem with.


    Gorre finally knew what a good life was. He could order any food he want. And every time he was thirsty he could ask for orange juice for an unlimited amount of time. As he enjoyed more food with Ratha, both of them started to like each other. Ratha was just a sweet little child, while Gorre was just a caveman sorcerer¡ªscientist that never talked to people for more than five sentences.


    Gorre cherished Ratha as she was the first person he could talk to extensively after his father.


    "Gorre, try this out. This is one of the best food we have. It''s called stir-fried cloud chicken."


    "Cloud chicken? I don''t think cloud would taste good."


    "The chef said they called that way because they can fly towards the cloud."


    "Why not just call them birds if that is the case?" Gorre said.


    "¡­"


    "I also don''t know. Go have a bite."


    "Sure." Gorre stabbed the tender chicken with his spoon and took a bite. The meat melted inside his mouth and the smell and taste was so good that it felt like he was flying in the clouds. "It''s fantastic!"


    "I told you," Ratha said.


    Gorre looked at the menu. "I wonder what other food is on the menu. Soft Scaled crocodile, Tenderized Fire snake, and Chubby Cat. Hmm, the last one seemed interesting. Should I order it?"


    Ratha pouted. "The chef is pranking me again!"

 Chapter 36 Making the 3D Printer

    Hax watched the 3D printer come into being. It''s been more than two weeks, and the progress was quite satisfactory now that more manufacturing bots came and helped.


    Like a normal 3D printer, this one was no different in shape. It looked like a huge box with all kinds of cables and machinery inside it.


    Two manufacturing bots were currently working on their printer bed. This square-looking stage was where the object would be printed. The size of this printer bed alone was enough for five wagons, pulled by four bulls, to fit in it.


    Hax had done the complicated part such as configuring the motherboard and setting up the display screen. There were still other parts that he needed to do later. For now, Hax let the bots do their work.


    After the bots finished working on the printer bed, they moved to get some parts from the muscled men and worked on the frame. This frame would hold the extruder. This was one of the essential components in a 3D printer, because it was responsible for drawing, melting, and pushing the materials. Normally, a 3D printer would use a filament to print something. This was the perfect material as the filament was a plastic that melt rather than burn when heated, but his advanced 3D printer could melt iron, steel, and any other metal.


    Naturally, this used a lot of energy. The harder it took to melt the material, the more energy was consumed.


    Gorre stood beside him with an orange juice. "I can''t believe something like this exists. It''s so¡­ SCIENTIFIC!"


    "You''ll see what science could truly do in the future. This is just the beginning," Hax said.


    "Science," Gorre said, seemingly deep in thought. "We norm isn''t so useless after all. With science, we have a role and a place in this world."


    "Are you interested in learning more about science?"


    "If that means I can make cool robots and weapons then hell yeah!"


    "It will be hard."


    "I know. I''ve been studying with the kid a lot. That kid is smart. Where did you find her?"


    "In a cave, just like you."


    "Haha, I know it. Living in a cave makes people smarter. I should share this method with other people."


    "I''m kidding," Hax said. He didn''t want the norm to have a mass conversion into a caveman.


    "Hey, what''s that pointy thing?" Gorre pointed towards the nozzle.


    "That''s the part where the melted materials will come out. It conducts the thermal energy provided by the heating cartridges to the materials to keep it from melting."


    "And what''s that spinning thing?"


    "That''s the cooling fan. It prevents the heat from melting the nozzle."


    "Cooling fan? What do you mean?"


    "It produces cool air."


    "Then why the hell is your workshop so hot? It''s already hard enough to study the materials you gave, combine that with hot and humid air, and you could kill a man."


    "The ventilation holes aren''t enough for you?"


    "Of course not. Even my cave has better ventilation."


    "You could always study in the shooting field or any other building. You can even study in the forest if you want."


    "Your workshop is the only place where I can look at the physical parts and compare them with the drawings. It''s easier to learn because of that."


    Hax considered the suggestion. Installing the cooling fans inside the workshop seemed like a good idea. He would think about that later.


    As the manufacturing bots finished the frame, Hax proceeded to make the power supply for it. How big was a power supply needed to power a building-sized 3D printer? Really big! The blueprint showed that the power supply was so big that four wagons, without the bull, could be stacked upon each other inside it.


    As six manufacturing bots floated around him, churning out the electronic parts necessary, Gorre followed from behind and observed. Because the electronic parts for the power supply were too big, the bots had to churn them by parts and then assemble them. It took quite a time for six bots to do the work, but there were no more bots for Hax to call, so he had to make do with them.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    Hax explained each part and what their functions were to Gorre. The list of parts such as voltage-capacitors, transistors, rectifier, filter, and a large number of diodes made him dizzy.


    Hax didn''t expect him to learn it immediately. Even he had to study the blueprint for a while to understand it.


    "What are those yellow lines on the board?" Gorre asked.


    "Those are the copper metal traces that carry the electric signals. Without those lines this board is useless."


    "What does it do exactly?"


    "It sends signals and tells each part what to do."


    "Wow, so they kinda talk to these parts?"


    "Precisely."


    Hax worked on the power supply for a few more days. The bots had helped him greatly. There was no way he could finish it in a matter of days without them. Ratha also joined in and observed what he was doing after she finished her study.


    Both of them asked what each part did, and why it was necessary. Hax explained them with as many details as possible. The questions helped him more in understanding the machine and its workings. Having more brains, even though not as capable, was very useful.


    After Hax installed the fan, connectors, and power plug, he ordered the bots to cover them with a thin sheet of iron.


    He needed two of these power supplies. One for powering the printer, and one for the melting machine. Using one power supply to power both of these machines would be impossible.


    "And it''s done," Hax said. A bot came and wiped his sweat with a white cloth.


    "It''s so big."


    Gorre nodded. "That''s what she said."


    Hax asked for someone to bring him a chair. Ratha and Gorre pleaded to have one too. After they sat down with a small round wooden table beside them, a server gave them their drink of choice.


    "Ah, I really like this cold orange juice. It''s amazing how this small block called ice could make something taste so good. How do they make them anyway?" Gorre asked.


    Hax also got curious. He never saw a refrigerator in this world, so that was impossible.


    "They collect the ice from the top of the mountains," Ratha said. "Because the mountaintop is cold, it freezes water and it becomes this ice block. There''s also a building called Glacies Pit that could make ice."


    Hax smiled and sipped his drink. Norm was truly creative. The two methods mentioned by Ratha were either very hard or took a very long time to do. This meant the drink they enjoyed now was very expensive.


    He could make a refrigerator if he created the refrigerant. It was a substance in the form of liquid that absorb heat in its surroundings. If he put them in a small box and circulate them with a fan, the temperature inside the box would cool and everything inside would be cold, just like a fridge.


    Hax couldn''t make the refrigerant without the right knowledge. So it was impossible for now.


    "That''s interesting," Gorre said. "Anyway, I''ve been wanting to ask. What is this giant structure for? You said it was a printer? And it can make stuff quick?"


    "You know my manufacturing bots can print out pistols right?" Hax said.


    "Yes¡­"


    "Well, now scale that as large as a building. What do you think will happen?"


    "You can make bigger weapons?"


    "Precisely. It''s that simple."


    "I can''t imagine anyone holding a house-sized pistol. How do you aim with it?"


    "That''s just the general idea of it. I will not make a house-sized pistol." Hax handed him the power suit blueprint. "This is what I''m planning to make.


    Gorre stared at the blueprint. He made a variety of expressions such as interest, and confusion. "Is it armor?"


    "You want to make armor? The local blacksmith can make one for you. But note that cultivators could kill you with or without it."


    Hax shook his head. "This armor will make our army as strong as a cultivator. You know they could lift heavy stuff or run very quick, right?"


    Gorre nodded.


    "It''s possible for the norm to do that with this armor."


    "Wow, and it mentioned here that it needs a battery. I see you make one for the printer, but why would an armor need one?"


    "It required a lot of energy to run fast or lift heavy stuff," Hax said with simple terms. He didn''t want to confuse the man. "The mechanical arm I made doesn''t require energy but its design has limited capability. Only with a battery could the machine show its true might."


    "What happens if they run out of battery?"


    "The armor is too heavy for any norm to wear and move without power. So the person inside has to get out if that ever happens. But I plan to make a supply squad that focuses on taking care of these armors whether in the battlefield or in storage."


    "Can we really defeat the cultivators with this?"


    "I don''t expect them to win against cultivators with one versus one, but I believe our odds are higher with this armor."


    "I see," Gorre said, drinking his orange juice. "You guys really want to defeat them, huh?"


    That made Hax curious about this guy. "Most people have bad memories about cultivators. What about you?"


    "I''ve seen the things they do, yeah. My father and I would always avoid them. But they never did anything to me, so I''m not really into that."


    "If you say the wrong thing to them, they could kill you. And if they want something from you, they can take them. Doesn''t that make you angry?"


    "I guess it would."


    Hax nodded. "Then you understand why these people want to defeat the cultivators."


    "I think so," Gorre said. "It''s kind of pitiful if you think about it. But it has always been that way. Ever since I was born and until now. Norms are treated no differently even before I was born."


    "Things can change. And it can change for the better. Some day, I will make a place where norm like you can enjoy orange juice every day without being scared of anyone."


    Gorre lit up. "That''s a fantastic goal. This orange juice is fantastic. If everyone can enjoy it then that would be for the best."


    Hax smiled and shook his head. The man didn''t even mention anything about the norm being scared of the cultivators. Years of isolation inside a cave must have turned him into this. This guy had customers, though, so that might be the only thing that kept his sanity.


    "You guys want to eat something?" Hax asked.


    "I want a cheesecake," Ratha said.


    "It''s stir-fried cloud chicken for me. That thing is really good," Gorre said.


    "Go order your food. After that, we''ll continue working on the printer."

 Chapter 37 Power Suit in The Making

    The manufacturing bots buzzed around the printer and scanned its structure and parts. After they were done, They returned to Hax and showed him the parameters.


    It was dusk, and Hax still worked on the printer. Ratha and Gorre enjoyed their food while watching him.


    ¡°The printer is done,¡± Hax said. He took a couple of steps back and set his eyes towards the building-sized printer.


    He couldn¡¯t help but be amazed by the machine. And for a split moment, images of his fragmented memories flashed one after another in his mind. It showed trillions of power suits being produced in millions of factory worlds. These power suits were then shipped to the various fortresses that guarded against the aliens.


    Hax shook his head. He didn¡¯t know why but it seemed fighting aliens was the only thing his past self was doing. Will I be like that too?


    Who knew what the future held. Hax just had to get stronger to see it. He needed to return to his universe. Why was he here? Who brought him here? And who he truly was?


    ¡°Going to another universe will not be an easy feat. I have to take all the resources I can.¡±


    ¡°If you want resources then you should take over the Boiling Volcano,¡± Gorre said, chewing his stir-fried cloud chicken.


    ¡°What can I get from the Boiling Volcano?¡±


    ¡°Spirit crystal. That shiny, transparent stuff is very expensive and cultivators value them greatly. If you can take the source, then basically you would have unlimited money since any cultivator would be willing to buy it for a high price.¡±


    ¡°If that is the case, then why don''t these sects trade with each other?¡±


    ¡°Because they needed it themselves. Those who have more spirit crystals will have an increase in overall strength. So selling them is like weakening themselves. They¡¯re not as valuable as magic weapons, though, so sometimes cultivators are willing to trade the crystal for these weapons.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s true,¡± Hax said. ¡°The spirit crystal can increase their strength internally, while magic weapons are only an external object. So unless the magic weapon is exceptional, the price is affordable, or there was an influx of spirit crystal, there is no way cultivators would be willing to trade.¡±


    Gorre raised his eyebrow. ¡°That makes sense. I only tell you some things and you could already think of this stuff. No wonder you¡¯re called the savior.¡±


    Being called a savior didn¡¯t have anything to do with being smart, Hax thought. ¡°But I don¡¯t need their spiritual crystal or magic weapons. I only need their money or other basic resources such as metal, gunpowder, and other elements that cultivators don¡¯t need to increase their strength. With how much they valued the crystal, they would probably be willing to sell an iron mine for a few crystals.


    ¡°That¡¯s true. Iron is like dirt for them,¡± Gorre said. ¡°But won¡¯t the cultivator refuse to buy crystal from you? You are the enemy after all.¡±


    ¡°Where will they buy the crystal from then?¡± Hax smiled. ¡°There¡¯s no other sect that is willing to sell their crystal. I¡¯m the only source. And if they don¡¯t want their rivals to defeat them, they would have to buy it from me even if they don¡¯t want to.¡±


    ¡°Won¡¯t that make your enemy stronger?¡±


    ¡°That can only happen if I sell the crystal to one of them. But if I sell to every sect, then the increase of their strength would not put me at risk. Besides, the resources I could get from them will make the rebellion army far stronger.¡±


    Gorre nodded and smiled. ¡°Nice. So what¡¯s next? Are you going to attack the Nefarious Sword?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the plan. But I¡¯m not sure about the strength of their elders and sect leaders.¡±


    Suddenly, a man on a horse approached Hax. ¡°Sir, I¡¯m the messenger from the Black Wolves. I have a message to tell you.¡±


    ¡°Go on,¡± Hax said.


    The messenger proceeded to tell Hax everything he knew about the Royal Palace. The numbers of guards in the outer area, their strength, defenses, warehouse, and other vital information. ¡°We also confirmed that the Royal Palace is going to hold a banquet within a few weeks, sir. All the sect leaders and elders will be invited to this banquet. And lastly, Nesterin, the leader of the Black Wolves, apologizes for not giving you valuable information, sir.¡±


    ¡°Every information is valuable. Especially the last one.¡± Hax smiled. ¡°Since all the leaders and elders will be invited then the Nefarious Sword sect is basically free for me to take.¡±


    The messenger was shocked. ¡°You¡¯re planning to take it, sir?¡±Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    ¡°We¡¯re strong now. I understand that years of oppression make it hard to believe, but we can defeat the norms. Haven¡¯t you got a chance to kill a cultivator with your hand?¡±


    The messenger nodded. ¡°I did, sir. I pulled the trigger and watched them fall to their death. I see their eyes looking at me like they still don¡¯t believe that I can kill them.¡±


    Hax laughed. ¡°Good. Then you have nothing to doubt. Tell Nesterin to stay in the Royal Palace and send me any information that I need to know immediately. Don¡¯t use any birds if the situation is not urgent.¡±


    ¡°How would you attack the sect if the Black Wolves is in the Royal Palace, sir?¡±


    ¡°We have so many new members. And the Man Hunter is training them non-stop. I Believe it¡¯s enough to take over a sect without their strongest members.¡±


    The messenger sighed, seemingly disappointed that he couldn¡¯t join the fight against the sect. ¡°I understand, sir. I will relay the message.¡±


    ¡°Go.¡±


    The messenger rode on his horse and left.


    ¡°Ratha,¡± Hax called. ¡°Tell your father and Balmar to prepare the supplies. Tell them that this is the moment that they have been waiting for.¡±


    Ratha nodded and ran off. She didn¡¯t forget her cheesecake and grabbed it as her little feet raced on the grass.


    A few minutes later, Bodin and Balmar came running towards him.


    ¡°Hax, are we really going to attack the Nefarious Sword?¡±


    ¡°Sir, do you mean what you said?¡±


    ¡°I recalled I never joke about anything before,¡± Hax said. ¡°Bodin, when I tell you that the pistol can kill a cultivator. Was that a joke?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Bodin replied.


    ¡°When I tell you that I can give the norm a life where they wouldn¡¯t be oppressed was that a joke?¡±


    ¡°No, Hax, it wasn¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Precisely. But I¡¯ll tell you again. I¡¯m planning to take over the Boiling Volcano. And to do that, we need to eliminate the Nefarious Sword sect.¡±


    ¡°But they have thousands of cultivators. And a lot of them are stage-2 cultivators who have a lot of experience from traveling outside the kingdom.¡±


    ¡°Yes, they indeed have thousands of cultivators. Gaelin and Ailmon already told me. But we have hundreds of thousands, no? After our victory against the Royal Army, we have convinced the norm that we can stand our ground. I thought that was enough to topple the entire kingdom, but it wasn¡¯t enough. We need to defeat the Nefarious Sword. Not just to reach our goal in the beginning but to convince the norm that we can win.¡±


    ¡°The other sect will attack us if we do that,¡± Bodin said.


    ¡°We attacked the Royal Army before and they did nothing. They didn¡¯t even move a muscle except writing a few sentences to me. This is our best chance. If we don¡¯t do it now, the cultivators will eliminate us and step on our heads once more.¡±


    Balmar and Bodin looked at each other. The sweat that fell from the forehead indicated that they were scared. It was good that they feared this decision. This meant that they were not reckless. Hax should have put more people with this temperament in charge, but sometimes he needed someone like Nesterin too.


    That man might be reckless, but he was brave and willing to take the risk to achieve his goal. Hax chuckled when he recalled the Black Wolves stormed the sect without preparing anything. A gang fight worked much differently than a war.


    ¡°Alright,¡± Bodin said. ¡°If you think it¡¯s wise to attack then I will prepare what you need.¡±


    Hax nodded. ¡°Calculate the number of supplies that we needed to bring and try to predict how long we could last in a prolonged siege. I¡¯m confident we can defeat the enemy, but preparing an umbrella on cloudy days will save a lot of men.¡±


    Bodin nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve heard of that phrase.¡± He smiled. ¡°I will get it done.¡±


    Balmar then said: ¡°I will prepare the soldiers, sir. How many men do we need to bring?¡±


    ¡°Everyone. But that would put a lot of strain on you. So go pick a few captains and let them be in charge of a few squads. You¡¯ve been learning from Nesterin, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir. I have learned how to coordinate my army. Even though I''m not as good as him, We¡¯re very effective in the jungle.¡±


    Hax smiled. Balmar underrated the Man Hunter too much. In fact, their value wasn¡¯t that much different compared to the Black Wolves. Despite their lack of experience in coordination, their hunting skills were enough to fill that weakness. They know how to be patient, how to blend in with the environment, and survive under harsh conditions. Hunting animals required a set of skills since they¡¯re trying to kill something that always wary of their environment. This skill let them kill effectively. The enemy almost couldn¡¯t react before they died.


    They''re the ideal soldiers. Each one of them.


    ¡°I have expectations of you, Balmar.¡±


    His eyes widened. ¡°I don¡¯t deserve the honor, sir.¡±


    ¡°You do. Because I have expectations for all of you. Train your men properly if you want them to return alive. They have families and loved ones waiting for them.¡±


    ¡°I understand, sir. I will train them as hard as I can.¡±


    ¡°Their lives depend on it,¡± Hax said. ¡°Go now.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir.¡±


    As he watched Balmar dashing to the barrack, Hax opened the blueprint screen with his mind and clicked on the power armor.


    The screen popped out and showed the 3d model of the armor at various angles. The parameters were also on the screen. And at the bottom, a list of required materials was written.


    Hax approached the printer and turned on the display screen. It immediately showed him a software where he can draw his designs and form them like a 3d model. On the side, a toolbar showed various tools that he could use to make his model.


    Judging by the fragmented memories inside his mind, he might have used the printer before, but he couldn¡¯t remember their function and how to use them. So he had to try out all the tools and features available within the software. After a few hours of experimenting, Hax finally felt ready to draw the power armor model.


    First, he tried to make a helmet. It had a simple shape, simply a round helmet with a metallic appearance, that was all. But he failed miserably.


    Within that helmet were various electronic parts and he couldn¡¯t make a round shape unless he disrupted these parts. That was not an option. These electronic parts were the motion sensors that let the user see something moving through a wall. It would give a tremendous advantage when there were obstacles such as fog or smoke in the way.


    ¡°Let¡¯s try it again.¡± Hax wiped his sweat and told one of his bots to grab a chair for him. This would take hours, but he was fine with it. This sensor was important and could decide whether his army would lose or win.


    He opened the blueprint panel and watched a video of how to design the model within the printer. This was a very useful feature of the system. But even with that Hax still made some mistakes and he had to re-watch the clip to see where he was wrong.


    ¡°This is a lot of work. And I need my coffee.¡±

 Chapter 38 A Dream

    Hax stared at the display screen. The sky had turned dark, and even the bots were sleeping. Black bags dangled under his eyes, and his coffee had long turned cold. He couldn''t afford to sleep. He only had a few weeks of time before the operation. In war, every minutes matter.


    He stood and stretched his body for a few seconds and returned on his chair to continue the work. For a moment he felt like an average office worker under pressure to fill a certain quota, but he removed that thought immediately and focused on his work. The helmet were finished, now he worked on the shoulders. He draw a lot of mechanical parts on the shoulder and the amount made his head dizzy. It was required for the range of motion and it was very important. Punching and swinging were the main advantage of having a high range of motion.


    With this his army could swing a 200 Kilogram sword with great force.


    His men wouldn''t be vulnerable in close-combat anymore. The cultivators were trained to kill, but the armor would absorb all the blow for his men. The cultivator might stood a better chance considering their experience, magical power, and techniques, but if he swarmed them with people in power armor, the enemy would die sooner or later.


    This power suit was truly a game changer. With motion sensor, great flexibility, and high maximum load, his men would be considered as superhuman. The load it could bring was double the amount of Weler-150. He could armed his men with much powerful weapon than the BC-75. Maybe he could make a smaller version of a Gatling cannon. This weapon was usually installed in a plane or a bar according to his fuzzy memories.


    Guess the aliens weren''t the only problems.


    When the Hexagonal moon hovered straight above his head, Hax finished designing the shoulders and now had to work on its chest. The chest were simple enough. It didn''t need any electronic parts inside it as it would receive the most amount of damage in combat scenario. Installing a fragile parts inside it meant that it would break most of the time, rendering it useless.


    Goras approached him with a mug of coffee and a plate of roasted spiky eel. "Please take of your body, sir. Working under the moon is not good for your health."


    "Why?" Hax asked as he received both the food and coffee.


    Goras shrugged. "I''m not really sure why, but Balmar always told me that. This is why we always hunt during the day. Though that might need to change considering we''re in a war."


    Hax smiled. "We all need to change. If we don''t adapt to our situation then the situation will kill us without mercy."


    "Can we win this battle, sir?"


    "We have to," Hax said. "There''s no other choice. Have you heard the phrase ''failure is not an option''?"


    "I think I have, Sir. From a wandering philosopher I met a few years back."


    "Wandering philosopher?"


    "I don''t know who they are, but I know what they do. From what I know, they traveled around places and spread the word of wisdom to people. They also give advices if you ask them."


    "Do they ask for payment?"


    "No, they will not receive anything that we give them. Every time someone tried to give them something, they will reply: All I ask is for you to listen."


    "Have their action resulted in anything?"


    "Well, not really, but people considered that meeting one of them as a sign of luck."


    "I see. Thanks for the coffee and the eel. I''ll eat them as I work."


    "Please do, sir. You need to prioritize your health. The burden of our sin rest on your shoulder, sir."


    "Sin?"


    "Our weakness is a sin, sir." He walked away, leaving Hax in deep thoughts.


    Then he chuckled. "Weakness is a sin. These backwards place are really interesting."


    Hax called one of the bots to wake up. He ordered it to feed him the food and tilt the mug if he wanted to drink his coffee as he worked on the power armor.


    Hax opened his mouth and the bot sliced the meal before stabbing it with a fork and fed it to Hax. This was very convenient as he just had to open his mouth and the bot would feed him.


    Drinking the coffee was quite a challenge though. The bot failed to make the perfect tilt where Hax could drink the coffee comfortably. But he had not time to complain.


    Quickly finishing the chest parts, Hax leaned on his chair took a breath and started working on the legs. The legs were slim and slender. The overall look of the armor were like that which made it more amazing as it could lift 300 KG of weight. His Weler-150 looked bulky as an elephant foot and it could only lift 150 KG of weight. The technology disparity was all clear to see.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    Hax drew the artificial musculature within the legs, using his physics knowledge to change the location and form a bit to reduce the amount of force it received when taking a hit. The armor became much stronger just from that little change. Knowledge was useful.


    The inner thigh of the power armor was much thinner than the knee and shin. This meant that it was the glaring weakness of the armor. He tried to fix it by drawing a thicker armor on that part, but then the system simulation screen popped in front of his face and showed him the effect of the change. It was bad.


    By thickening the armor on the inner thigh, he made it harder for the armor to move in harsh landscape such as hills, mountains, and forest. The form also became unbalanced, making it hard for the armor to set its footing and stabilized any shock or to create kinetic force for swinging.


    He tried a few solution such as covering some part of the inner thigh instead of fully covering it, but the result was terrible.


    "Thankfully the system helped me. It would be terrible if he already produced thousands of them and made this mistake."


    He hadn''t touched the simulation menu since the beginning since he didn''t want to rely on it too much. It was just simulation. Sometimes reality didn''t work as intended.


    "I should use that feature a lot as long as it is effective."


    Hax stretched his neck left and right and drew the arms. This one was interesting. There were many artificial musculatures inside despite its lean appearance. The biceps parts were bulged a bit. He failed a couple of times when installing the artificial muscle, but he succeeded in the end.


    Hax opened his mouth again. The bot quickly cut a piece of the eel and fed it to Hax. Wonderful.


    After a tasty reward, Hax worked on the last part of the power armor. The back. This was where the battery would be, so it had a thicker armor than the rest. A direct hit to it still be fatal, though. So his army must not turn their back against the enemy when they wore this.


    He should tell his army about this weakness. It would make them reluctant to retreat even when the situation turned for the worse. It would be bad for the morale too if they saw their strongest unit running from the enemy. Only when his army charge without hesitation or doubt would morale be high.


    Luckily, even though the battery was very vulnerable, there were more than one battery. So if one shut down, the other could still power the armor.


    "Alright. It''s finished."


    He pressed the ''produce'' button and fell on the grass, closing his eyes. Bodin had put the necessary materials inside the printer. Everything was prepared and now he could fall asleep.


    Hax opened his eyes. He was sitting on an iron throne with cyborg men standing as guards in some kind of a throne hall. Where am I?


    Suddenly, the tall gate of the throne hall dematerialized, and phased out of existence. A squad of weird looking creatures appeared. They had a form of a human with green scales and wore weird technologies all over their bodies.


    They raised their sharp tails like how a warrior brandished their swords. "Bulug gulug galag gagag golog gagg. You humans take everything from me. If so, I will take all of yours!"


    Suddenly, the cyborg guards flashed and clashed against the aliens. The shock wave of their fight peeled the hall layers by layers. They moved so fast that sonic boom occurred every second, but Hax could see their movement. He saw how they moved with great detail and even found a pattern.


    Zip!


    An electric current surged from his mind and seemingly transmitted something to the cyborg guardsmen. After a fourth of a second, the cyborgs gained a great advantage. They dodged every attack from the aliens like they could see the future. And every counter-attack was lethal as it downed the aliens in one strike.


    One aliens burst with power. A shock wave came from its body that pushed the cyborg away. It then disappeared and all of a sudden appeared right in front of his face. The giant sharp tail were on its way to impale him. But he didn''t felt any adrenaline. He didn''t panic. It was like watching a boring movie where he couldn''t wait to get up and leave.


    He felt nothing at all.


    Brrmmm!


    A sound of engine blared and a transparent force field enveloped him. It blocked the tail from reaching his face.


    He studied the alien''s expression. The alien always seemed to have the same face. But they all had their own unique identity just like human.


    Wait, where did this voice come from? Who''s there in my head?


    This one had revenge in mind. Yet now that expression turned into despair. There was nothing it could do to reach its goal. From the moment it stepped into the hall, it was already dead.


    Who said that? It wasn''t me. Who? Why are you inside my head?


    How many alien races had seek my life for vengeance? With millions of races within each galaxy, a single universe was too many to count.


    Tell who are you. Why are you saying all of this?


    I had lost count. But it doesn''t matter.


    Are you me?


    "The aliens must be eradicated. Humanity must prevail."


    Hax''s body moved by itself. His left hand pierced through the alien''s belly where its hearts was. Pulling it out, he watched as it pumped out a sticky, blue liquid.


    No, this one had another heart. His arm moved again. It pierced¡ªphased through the scale and took another heart.


    "So, you''re a puppet," Hax''s lips moved.


    "I''m no puppet. Not to you or anything else."


    Hax squeezed and a golden ring came out of the heart. "This ring controls your emotion. Emotion controls your minds Your mind controls you. You let them plant this within your hearts. For power. For revenge. They always know how to play with emotion. You wouldn''t believe how much trouble humanity had from fighting them."


    The alien fell to the ground.


    So it already dead. What a waste of breath.


    Hax flicked his fingers and the fallen cyborg guards floated above the ground as its parts gathered and fixed themselves. They returned to their position, leaving the dead aliens as another decoration among other dead aliens in the halls.


    "Humanity must prevail."


    Hax opened his eyes and sat up immediately. He looked around and then tried to moved his hands left and right, up and down.


    "What was that? A dream?"


    It felt so real. Like he was there. Was it a dream or not? Was it his memories?


    Was the one in the dream him? He sounded different¡­


    Hax sighed. He didn''t know what just happened. He was about to sleep again, but the sun already rose with splendor and basked his face with a morning shine. Then he recalled what the man in his dream said.


    "Humanity must prevail. But why?"

 Chapter 39 Its Not That Simple

    Life is complicated. We are born from the universe but the universe wants to kill us with everything it has. Yet, life continues to thrive. By relying on each other, the cycle never ends. And all of this started with a tiny spark. ¡ªThe Wandering Philosopher


    Hax stood on his feet and stretched his body. He blocked his mouth with his hand as he yawned. How long had he been asleep for? More importantly, how was the power armor doing.


    He immediately looked to the side. The Humongous printer churned out armor after armor before they rolled out of the output tray. A dozen manufacturing bots and a squad of muscled men helped lifting these armor to the side so another one could be printed. The muscled men apparently had wore the Weler-150.


    They finally traded their pride for strength. Before, they would refuse to wear the mechanical arms because they think their muscle was enough. Now, they smiled as they could lift the power armor by themselves.


    "Hax! I can''t believe it worked!" Gorre shouted and ran to him. "Those giant machines could really create armors. And they''re quick too. I don''t think any blacksmith in this kingdom could match the power of this machine."


    "Good morning, Hax," Bodin greeted with Ratha following behind him. "Sorry for letting you sleep on the grass. We don''t want to disturb your sleep."


    "I''m fine. How much armor have been printed?"


    "Currently we have forty armor in the storage, and as you can see, we''ll keep on counting."


    Gorre lit up. "A blacksmith needed days or even weeks to create a single set of armor. This machine doesn''t even run for a day, and yet it already produced forty armor?! Hax, are you a god?"


    "No, I''m an engineer."


    "Engineer? What a terrible name. Since you are playing with science, then you should call yourself scientician."


    Hax sighed. "Call me whatever you want." He then turned to Bodin. "Have any of our men tried to use the armor yet?"


    "Well, we tried. But our men doesn''t know how to get inside the armor. We don''t want to break it so we avoid touching any parts."


    "It cannot be called an armor if it breaks just by touching."


    Bodin shrugged. "What can I say. We never see something like this before. Who knows what will happen if we touched something."


    Hax forgot to put the instruction on how to use the armor. He should teach them soon.


    "Do we have any blacksmith in our army?"


    Bodin nodded. "We have, but they don''t make weapons anymore."


    "What do they make then?"


    "Tools for farming, cooking, or for supporting a structure. The wall that is reinforced with iron is also made by them."


    "Go call them here. Tell them that I want them to make a weapon."


    Bodin raised his eyebrow. "They can only make swords. Their weapons are not comparable to yours."


    "Just tell them to come here first. You''ll know what I have in mind."


    Bodin nodded and went out for his task. Ratha chose to stay.


    "I''m useless," She said. "You can make all these things that help the norm tremendously. I have done nothing at all."


    Hax looked at her, kneeled and grabbed her shoulders. "At least you know you''re useless."


    That made her eyes watery.


    "I told you how to help your dad. The rest is up to you."


    Ratha nodded and ran to the forge hall. She probably would study until she ran out of energy.


    "I never saw someone talk like that to a child," Gorre said. "You know, we don''t usually say: At least you know you''re useless to children."


    "She can take it," Hax said.


    "No, she don''t."


    "Then I''ll just tell the chef to make a cheesecake for her later."


    Hax sat on a chair and drew something on the parchment.


    "What are you drawing?"


    "A sword."


    "A sword? I''m not a blacksmith but that sword is too long for anyone to hold."


    "Anyone?"If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    "Anyone except cultivators."


    "Don''t worry about it. My armor can use this sword perfectly."


    "Hax, I brought the blacksmith."


    Four men with a thick beard approached him and saluted. "Sir, we are at your service."


    "There''s only four of you?"


    "I only brought the best," Bodin replied. "The rest are not very experienced."


    Hax nodded. "What do you think of this sword?"


    The four of them leaned on the table and studied the drawing.


    "It''s too long and too heavy, sir. I don''t think any norm could hold this sword properly."


    "The grip is too short too."


    "And there is no handguard."


    "It''s very unbalanced, sir."


    Hax raised his hand. "Can you make the heaviest sword possible with this length?"


    The four of them looked at each other.


    "It''s possible if we have the materials."


    "Is materials all you need?"


    "Yes, sir."


    "How heavy will this sword be?"


    "We can make the sword as heavy as 100 KG, sir."


    So they could scale weight in this world. That was reassuring.


    "It''s not enough."


    "What about 130 KG, sir."


    "Not enough."


    The four of them turned silent for a moment. Hax waited on his chair. He eyed them one by one. Finally, one of them stepped forward. "Is 200 KG enough, sir?"


    Hax smiled. "Perfect. How do you plan to make it?"


    "To make this weapon we''re going to need Blaucium, Edgeskin, and Oracle Silver, sir."


    The four of them sweated.


    "What''s wrong?"


    Bodin stepped in. "These materials are extremely rare and hard to obtain, making them very expensive."


    "If that is the case then the sword must be a good one."


    "Sir¡­ The cost of each sword is enough to buy twelve magic bulls. Are you sure about this?"


    "Bodin, how is our finance?"


    "Let''s just say that we are filthy rich right now. Ever since I started selling the weapons to other kingdoms, money have been flooding our fortress."


    "You already sold the weapons to other kingdoms?"


    "Of course! I always wanted to trade to other kingdoms, but there is no route to take and a lot of dangerous beast are prowling around."


    "But now you can do that since we have the guns?"


    "Yes! With just a few squad of soldiers, we can protect the convoy from beast and bandits. It''s our primary source of income."


    "I didn''t know about this."


    "I wanted to surprise you."


    "It does surprised me. So how much power armor and sword can we make without hurting our financial stability?"


    "We can afford to make ten thousand power armor and swords. The materials needed for the armor was very expensive, though it almost couldn''t compare to the 3d printer. If not for a mysterious group sending the materials to us, our army might have gone bankrupt already."


    "Someone send the material to us?


    "Yes. I don''t know who they are and they don''t answer when I asked."


    "I see." Hax turned to the blacksmiths. "You hear him. Don''t worry about money."


    "Yes, sir."


    "You can leave now. Bodin will take care of the materials for you."


    "Bodin, sit down with me first. I bet you have a lot to tell me about our army."


    Bodin sat down and glanced at Gorre who was circling the printer. "Is that the guy?"


    "Yes, that''s the plastic guy. Now, tell me what I need to know."


    "It''s not that I keep a secret from you, Hax. I just want you to focus on your work. And looking at the power armor, BC-75, and the Weler-150, I think it has been good so far."


    "I want to know the status of our army."


    "Our finance is good. We have more than enough manpower. Resources are abundance, and everyone is happy and motivated."


    "And we''re still recruiting, correct?"


    "We got more than a thousand applications every day."


    "Correct. I have to strictly screen for other positions except doctors and soldiers just like you asked."


    Hax nodded. "Good. We''re going to need every soldier we have if the plan goes wrong. The time window for the attack is too short. At most we can only get 1,500 power suit before we attack the sect."


    "I understand. But why don''t we screen doctors and soldiers?"


    "We will need those two the most."


    Bodin shook his head. "The moment a cultivator throw something at us, we''ll already be dead. It doesn''t matter how many doctors we have."


    Hax smiled. "When our fellow friend is wounded on the way back to base, do you have the heart to tell them that there''s no use returning to base because we don''t have enough doctors."


    "I¡­ I don''t think I do."


    "Then how would you think the soldiers feel when they saw their comrades lay on their arms, badly wounded. But they know that as long as they return home, they will be saved. They know that we will protect them and take care of them as long as they return."


    "They will feel relieved."


    "Yes. Preventing unnecessary death is a must if we want our soldiers to fight with all they have."


    Bodin nodded. "You''re right. I don''t know much about this stuff. That said, how do you know all this thing? I never got the chance to ask, but who are you really?"


    "I don''t know myself," Hax said. "The moment I open my eyes, I was already in that plain. A few moments later, I see your carriage being pulled by a magic bull."


    "It''s actually a pair of magic bulls."


    "Don''t mind the details," Hax said. "Anyway, it would be nice if you can find more people like Gorre. His skills helped me tremendously in reducing the cost and weight of our firearms. If we can recruit more people like him, I''m sure we will have a better time."


    Bodin nodded. "I will leave now. There''s so much things to do. Just tell someone or Ratha to look for me if you need anything. Or you can use one of those messenger birds if you want to."


    "Sure. Go get busy."


    After the conversation, Hax approached the 3d printer and watched how the machine perfectly printed each parts and rolled them out. The printer was currently outside the forge hall. There was no way to get it inside, so Hax had to tell someone to build a structure around it later.


    Though, he kinda like it that the printer was in open space. There''s soft grass. Fresh air, and he could watch the printer at work while sitting down and enjoying an orange juice or spiky eels.


    But that decision was not very wise.


    Other than protecting it from nature, placing the printer inside a building made it harder for anyone to sabotage it. If a cultivator sneaked in and destroyed the printer, the production would halt and that would be a terrible outcome for the army.


    The Rebellion Army would rely on this armor for now. He didn''t know when he would make better armor or weapons.


    "The armor needs some variety," Gorre said. "Add some colors to it."


    "There''s no use in doing that. Color doesn''t affect performance."


    "But it affects identity," Gorre said. "You have the Man Hunter and The Black Wolves, right. Let them paint their own armor. I''m sure they will appreciate it. Not to mention the army have a lot of creative artists."


    Hax nodded. "I''m planning to attack without the Black Wolves since I can''t wait for them to return. So all the power armor will be for the Man Hunter, at least for now."


    "Nice. I can''t wait what those artists will come up with. Their drawings are so beautiful. If you let them design the power armor from the start, It would look amazing."


    Hax smiled. Creativity alone wasn''t enough to design the power armor. Even with a deep understanding in physics, mechanics, and machinery, Hax still had a lot of trouble designing it. It just showed the difficulty in creating it.


    "It''s not that simple."

 Chapter 40 The Baron of Death

    Nesterin smiled as he watched the messenger leaving the kitchen. Jharteel, Thalanil, and the others were also there.


    "So it''s time," Jharteel said. "The army will attack the sect in a few days."


    "Yes, they will attack. And Hax will use every soldier we have to do it."


    "Except us," Thalanil said. "We''re too far from Barmwich or the Boiling Volcano. It would take more than a week to return."


    "We have our own role," Nesterin said. "And it just happens to be information gathering. Don''t feel so bad. The information we got is useful. Without it, we won''t know that there is an opportunity to attack."


    Gormon sighed. "I want to fight the sect too. But I guess it''s fine."


    "The Man Hunter will brag their kills to us."


    "And the messenger said that Hax made a new weapons. It was some kind of armor? Why do we never enjoy his new weapons first?" Jharteel said.


    Nesterin smacked him in the head. "Don''t be a kid. Those are weapons, not toys. I''m sure when we return we''ll also got our own armor. Let''s just do our job properly and gather more information that Hax might need."


    A man came running into the kitchen and immediately approached Nesterin. "Sir, news from the scout! A strong cultivator has been spotted. It''s possible that he''s one of the elders."


    "Where is he?"


    Nesterin led his men, traveling through the hills with their magic bulls. He currently had 800 men with him, the rest were still in the Royal Palace. But he believed it was enough to ambush one man. Even if he was an elder, how strong could he be?


    Soon after, Nesterin saw a massive winding ravine with a river that as dry as his throat. He took a water sac and gulped all the water inside. The air became hotter and humid as he approached the canyon.


    He would kill for a minute under the shade right now. His throat sore because all of this heat. All around, he started seeing dead animals and their bones. This was a harsh place, why would an elder of a sect traveled through this place?


    The wind whistled in the distance, over a tall, smooth spires.


    Nesterin pulled out a cloth and wiped his sweat. The dry wind blowing his hair didn''t help with anything. In fact, it made it worse.


    A man with waved towards him in the distance. He signaled for them to stop. They did and approached the man on foot.


    "There, sir." The man pointed beside the dried river bed. "He was resting in that small caves for a few hours, after that he continued his journey in a slow pace."


    The man had a sword on his waist. He wore a red robe with sword symbols all over.


    "That guy is from the Nefarious Sword sect," Nesterin said.


    "How can we be so lucky to stumble on him?" Jharteel said.


    "What do we do now? Do we attack immediately?"


    "We''ll use our usual plan," Nesterin said. "Send a few carriages with gunpowder towards him and ignite it. After that we shoot him until he died. We did it a couple times, I''m sure it''ll work."


    Jharteel nodded. "I like that plan. We defeated the Royal Army with it."


    "That''s right. That elder wouldn''t suspect a thing."


    "Let''s do it then."


    Jharteel ordered a squad of wagon to go to the canyon. The river was dry, so the coachmen could bring their magic bulls there.


    They were experienced. In the battle against the Royal Army, they were the one who brought the wagon to them. They still felt proud after their operation was successful. And the were glad to do it again. Especially, to kill the elder.


    The coachmen circled the canyon and went into the distance. There was a slope where the carriage could go down from there.


    The Black Wolves waited patiently. Most of them were not allowed to peek since Nesterin didn''t want their position to be known. He also told them to split up so they could attack from multiple directions. This would confuse the enemy even more. He knew because he tried it before when fighting the Royal Army.


    The wagon were in sight. And they approached the elder slowly before stopping to a halt in front of him. The coachmen offered a sac of water to the elder, and they talked to the man trying to bait him to steal their wagon.


    Nesterin ordered his men to aim. It wasn''t the time yet. He must wait for the coachmen to leave before he could ignite the gunpowder.


    And as predicted, the coachmen left their wagon and ran away. When Nesterin felt that the coachmen were in a safe distance, he ordered his men to fire.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.


    "Fire!"


    The Black Wolves pulled their trigger. Rifles and BC-75 roared and exploded the wagon into a burst of fire. They continued to stormed the place with bullets. The flame couldn''t let them see the elder, but they didn''t care.


    And then something shocking happen. The flame swirled and spun like a tornado before it vanished completely.


    "Continue to shoot. Don''t let that man live!"


    The firing never stopped. They had already prepared their ammunition on the ground. If they ran out of bullets, they could take a clip below their feet.


    The elder touched the handle of his blade and suddenly the wind around him flashed, deflecting and cutting the bullets that flew towards him.


    He was unscathed.


    In fact, he didn''t even seem like moving. Standing still like a statue yet nothing could touch his skin or even his clothes.


    The elder looked up, staring towards them with curiosity.


    "Are you the rebellion army?" The elder asked.


    Nesterin didn''t reply. He just wanted the man to drop dead like any other cultivator. But his mood dropped as time goes and the elder still stood like nothing happen.


    "You young people don''t know when to give up, eh?"


    The elder pulled out his sword and held it with one hand. "Let me introduce myself. I''m Elwin. The sect leader of the Nefarious Sword."


    Nesterin had his eyes expanded. The sect leader? He didn''t expect to meet one. Who would''ve known a random cultivator in the middle of nowhere was actually a sect leader.


    But he had something more urgent to take care of. How to defeat this man? If he couldn''t be killed then all of his men would die.


    Suddenly, Elwin disappeared. Where was he?


    "Where did he go?"


    "Hey."


    A hand tapped his shoulder. And to his shock, Elwin was there, right in front of him with a gentle smile on his face.


    "Are you the leader?"


    Nesterin aimed his BC-75 to the man''s face and fired.


    Clang! Clang! Clang!


    The man didn''t even move yet all the bullets were cut in half and fell to his feet.


    "Why don''t you die already!" Nesterin expanded all his bullets until it ran out. Smoke came out of the barrel as he dropped his weapon and tried to punch the man. The next thing he knew, his right arm lost its feeling and he couldn''t move it.


    "What have you done to me!"


    "Calm down young man. Can we just talk for a moment?"


    "I have nothing to talk about!" Nesterin swung his left hand and yet it didn''t even budged. He couldn''t feel it too.


    "Nesterin!"


    "Leader!"


    His men aimed their weapons towards the sect leader. They didn''t dare to fire since the Nesterin was close by and friendly-fire was highly possible.


    One of the BC-75 in a man''s hand suddenly disappeared. Then it appeared in Elwin''s hand like magic.


    "What an interesting weapon. You norms alway surprise me."


    "Shoot him!" Nesterin shouted. "I don''t care if it kills me! Just shoot him!"


    The soldier hesitated and none of them shoot.


    "Damn! Just shoot him!"


    "No, Nesterin, I can''t," Jharteel said.


    "You have a good friend," Elwin said. "I can see loyalty and brotherhood in each of you. What a lovely group."


    Nesterin gritted his teeth. "You know nothing."


    "Ah, of course. Young people always think that they know everything. I''ve lived for a thousand year, yet the young would always reluctant to listen to me." Elwin shook his head. "It''s hard to be an old man."


    "If you''re so strong then why don''t you kill us. Why do you waste your breath to talk. Isn''t you cultivators hated it when you look at the norm?"


    "Hate? Ah, you mean the superiority complex that young cultivators have? Yes, that''s a problem isn''t it. I tried to fix that, but you know the young hardly listen to me. Even if I was their sect leader, my disciple just won''t listen to me. But they''re still a child. Won''t you forgive their naughty act?" Elwin bowed slightly.


    Vein pulsed on Nesterin''s forehead. "You cultivators killed my wife and daughter and you ask me to forgive them?! To hell with you! I will kill every single one of you Nefarious Sword. I will cut your sect apart and parade your disciple around the kingdom!"


    "Nesterin," Jharteel said, shocked at the revelation.


    "Just kill me!" Nesterin said. "Don''t talk to me like you have nothing to do with their act!"


    "Men! Let''s save our leader!" A squad of men charged towards Elwin they swung their BC-75 at him.


    But then blood burst out of their throat and they fell to the ground.


    "Oh no. I didn''t meant to do that," Elwin said. "This is not good."


    "Don''t make me laugh," Nesterin said. "You cultivators have always kill us whenever you like."


    Elwin looked at the distance. "Not this time."


    "Why?"


    "Because they can smell the dead."


    "Who?"


    "That." Elwin pointed towards the distance.


    A giant monstrosity walked towards them with steady yet humongous steps. In its two arms were a large blade, seemingly made out of bone. On its back were spears that went through and out to his chest. The monster had a giant pair of tusk in its mouth. Its eyes were dark, staring at their souls, wanting to consume it.


    The smell of rotten flesh pierced his nose. Nesterin winced from the smell. It was such a foul smell that only came from a wet rotten corpse. The monster were still a distance away, yet its smell couldn''t be contained.


    "Ganulf, The Baron of Death, we have meet again," Elwin said.


    The soldiers trembled and their legs seemed to turn into twigs as they retreated.


    Nesterin stepped back. He never saw such monsters. He had never heard of its existence before. How could something like this exist.


    "You have aged well," The monstrosity said with a harsh voice like sandpaper going against each other.


    "People always tell me that I look young."


    "I''m not talking about your skin."


    "Ah, you mean my soul?"


    "Let me have a taste."


    "Only if you can kill me." Elwin moved into a fighting stance.


    "You can''t defeat me. I have become stronger. Your soul shall be mine to have."


    "You come alone?"


    The monster grinned. It send a shiver to Nesterin''s spine just to witness it.


    "I don''t want anyone else to take you."


    "I''m flattered."


    Boom!


    A mysterious force pushed all the norms away, throwing them tens of meter before they rolled to a stop. Elwin and Ganulf stood still as they stared at each other.


    Nesterin fell face first, and then Jharteel helped him to stand. He still couldn''t feel his arms.


    Hiyah!


    The monster roared and raised his enormous greatsword. It slammed down, towards the sect leader, but Elwin was already gone. The ground cracked and exploded rock and dust upward.


    The sect leader jumped to the side and attacked the creature''s waist. Rotten flesh fell of, and Nesterin winced again. The soldiers couldn''t stand it too. They closed their nose like the smell could take their life.


    Ganulf pulled his sword above his head. Elwin took a step back and rolled around, yet the monster didn''t move yet.


    Only when Elwin was about to stand did it send a sweep attack with both swords.


    Elwin dodged, his face almost got crunched.


    When the sweep attack reached its end, Ganulf spun to the opposite direction, sending another sweep attack toward Elwin.


    The sect leader didn''t expect that move. He blocked with his sword and the ground exploded from their clash.

 Chapter 41 To Barmwich

    Elwin and Ganulf circled each other on the canyon rock. Their blades glistened under the torturing glare of the sun. They''d been fighting for hours now, yet victory and defeat seemed so far.


    Nesterin and his men still watched from afar. He started to felt his arms again which was a relief.


    "Nesterin," Jharteel called. "We should leave. This is not our fight."


    "No. We''ll kill the ones that survive after the battle. I''m sure they''ll tire themselves."


    Jharteel nodded.


    Elwin stopped and Ganulf did the same. The sect leader stood in an elegant stance, his blade at the ready. It seemed quick and precise even though it didn''t even move yet. Ganulf on the other hand stood strong, rough, and tough. He was like impenetrable boulder compared to Elwin.


    But Nesterin knew appearance meant nothing in this fight.


    Ganulf raised his greatsword, extending it all the way towards the sky. Elwin sprinted, circling the giant monster, trying to dodge the incoming attacks. But as last time, Ganulf didn''t attack but turned only turned his body towards Elwin.


    That monster was smart. He knew Elwin could dodge its attack very easily, so it waited for Elwin to move.


    His guess were correct. When Elwin charged towards the monster, Ganulf slammed his weapon not towards Elwin, but towards where he moved. The monster changed the course of his greatsword mid-swing and it happened really quick.


    Nevertheless, Elwin came out unscathed and slashed at its rear. The monster didn''t let out a groan or showed an expression of pain. The wound on its body spurted out rotten flesh and some kind of black, sticky liquids. None of it touched the sect master. His movement were quick and graceful.


    While Elwin was on its rear, Ganulf swung its sword to the back, its arm was so flexible and it almost reached the sect master.


    Leaping backward, Elwin hopped on the greatsword and struck like a whip. Nesterin only saw a line of light flashing on the monster''s face, before dark blood spurted out of the wound.


    The attack didn''t seem to injure the monster much.


    Ganulf raised its weapon again. Unlike Elwin, the gigantic monster attack focused on delivering the most possible momentum and weight behind each strike. Elwin stepped back, missing the blade by a strand of hair.


    The ground under them shook and cracked. It exploded dust, and rock up into the air.


    Nesterin couldn''t see their battle from all of the debris. But then another force exploded from the battle, throwing all the dust and rocks towards the soldier.


    "Duck!"


    "Be careful of those rocks!"


    Hundreds of rock with various sizes shot towards them.


    The Black Wolves threw themselves in prone position. Holding the back of their head with their hand. Jharteel also pulled him to prone, but Nesterin didn''t budge. He wanted to see where this would go.


    With all the obstruction gone, Nesterin had a clear view of the battle.


    Elwin jumped out of the way, his limbs were nimble and quick. Any attack from the monster were easily dodged.


    The favor seemed to be on the sect master''s side. But he was wrong.


    The thick bone-like vambrace on the monster''s arm cracked and a dark air leaked out.


    What was that?


    Ganulf roared. Shaking the ground and sky. It rattled his ears and making it hard to breathe.


    "Such power. Does the norm still have a place in this world," Nesterin said. "Can we defeat something like that with our own hand?"


    The monster stared at Elwin. It charged and not with the usual slow, hulking steps. It was the quick, hulking steps. With the speed of a hundred magic bulls, the monster crashed into Elwin, knocking him into the air.


    Blood came out of the sect master''s lip. It was the first time Nesterin saw him injured.


    The attack didn''t end there. While Elwin was in mid-air, Ganulf spun and slammed his greatsword.


    Boom!


    Elwin were knocked to the ground. The rock cracked and a burst of blood came out of his nose. The monster stepped on him.


    One.


    Two.


    Three.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    Four.


    Five.


    Each step shook the earth like an earthquake.


    Ganulf raised his greatsword again.


    But before it could struck, a long line of light starting from the ground and end on top of the monster flashed through the monster''s wrist.


    A dark goo of blood blasted out. Elwin came out of the hole and charged. He got into its face and stabbed through the neck. The monster released its sword and was about to grab him. Yet Elwin became much quicker, he yanked the sword and leaped away.


    Ganulf seemed irritated. It grabbed the greatswords again and bashed it against Elwin tiny body. The attack was quicker than expected. Elwin couldn''t dodge and the attack made his feet ran deep into the rock. The sect master held on with gritted teeth. His sword blocked the direct attack but the force was still unbearable.


    Elwin slipped to the side and¡ª


    SLASH!


    A golden line flashed for a split second, lighting up the world.


    One greatsword fell. Followed by the left hand of the monster.


    Elwin successfully cut the monster''s arm!


    "He''s strong," Nesterin said.


    But it wasn''t over yet.


    Unexpectedly, the monster didn''t become weaker after it lost its hand. In fact, it became stronger and faster. It struck over and over. The frenzied assault left not chance for Elwin to counter-attack.


    There was no gap to dodge, and Elwin had to block the attack with his sword. Nesterin could see Elwin taking a lot of strain. The ground beneath them were very much destroyed as every step and attack cracked them even more.


    But it wasn''t just the ground that was broken.


    CRACK


    Like the sound of a thousand bone being shattered, the sword in Elwin''s hand broke into pieces. With nothing to use as shield, the greatsword slammed against the sect master.


    This time, Ganulf didn''t left any chances. It sprinted towards the man and pummeled with heavy yet quick strikes. Each strike was brutal and lethal. If a norm were to be the receiving end of the attack, their body would be crushed.


    The monster became faster and faster as it send out relentless attacks. Its arm constantly flashed left and right, leaving no breathing room for the sect master.


    Blood covered the land. And Ganulf whipped the greatsword back over his head, before slamming down towards the sect master.


    Yet in that split moment, Elwin flashed forward. Golden light enveloped his figure and he pierced through the creature''s torso.


    The monster swayed in the wind before it fell. It tried to grab the sect master, seemingly unwilling to accept its defeat.


    The monster had lost.


    And Elwin stood not in triumph but in fatigue and emptiness. Blood sprayed all over him and his clothes were tattered into a rag. His knees fell to the ground. Dark blood dripped from both of his hand.


    "Nesterin. This is our chance," Jharteel said.


    "Surround him!" Nesterin ordered.


    The Black Wolves approached the sect master. Though the fight earlier made them scared, they still had to obey order.


    Elwin lightly scoffed before smiling.


    "You still here?" Elwin asked. "A curios one, I see."


    "You''re weak now," Nesterin said. "We can kill you whenever we want to."


    "Go on kill me. I have lived long enough and made a lot of legacy."


    "You legacy. You mean the Nefarious Sword? Humph. Just so you know our army will attack your sect in a few days. You will have no more legacy when we raze it to the ground."


    Elwin smiled. "You haven''t been listening haven''t you, young one."


    "I don''t care about anything you say."


    "You should."


    "About what?" Nesterin stared at the man. How could the man still stayed calm even when his life was at stake. And what was he talking about.


    I don''t need to listen to you¡­ Wait.


    Nesterin turned to the monster and his eyes expanded. His feet swayed and he looked at Jharteel.


    "It''s bad."


    "What''s going on, Nesterin? What do you mean by bad?"


    "These thing can smell the death."


    "What''s wrong with th¡ª" Jharteel realized the implication. "Oh no. We need to tell the army about this. If they attack then these monsters would come for them!"


    "Barmwich is at least two weeks from here," Nesterin said. "The army would probably attack or even conquer the sect by that time."


    "There must be something that we can do," Thalanil said. "We can''t let them die."


    "I can help," Elwin said.


    "You?" Nesterin said. "You think we''re going to believe what you said?"


    "Kill me then. And you will lose all your chance to save your friend. Beside, I also don''t want my sect to be destroyed."


    In normal situation, Nesterin would immediately put a bullet into the man''s head, but he currently considered the offer.


    "If Hax die, the rebellion army would collapse," Jharteel said. "Even if we can''t save everyone else, we at least need to save him."


    "Hax?" Elwin asked. "Is that your leader? The one who made all these weapons?"


    "Shut your mouth for a minute," Nesterin said. He pulled Jharteel away. "We can''t trust him. He will kill Hax not save him."


    "Then what should we do? Using bird is also not an option."


    "Didn''t I tell you that a magician can send a message through a magic circle?" Nesterin said. "Maybe we can find a magician that can do that, and then we''ll force him to send the message."


    "Will Hax believe a message that came from a magician? What if he think someone was trying to trick him. He wouldn''t believe the message we send. Sending the sect master is our best choice."


    Nesterin turned his sight to Elwin.


    The sect master blinked and smile at them.


    "There''s no way I would trust that man. Just look at his face. And Hax wouldn''t believe a cultivator anyway, especially when he''s the sect master."


    "At least he can stop Hax."


    Nesterin sighed. "Fine. But I will go with him. Take this." Nesterin pulled a small note out of his pocket and gave it to Jharteel.


    "What is this?"


    "It''s the blueprint of the gun. If I don''t return in a few weeks, then you should give this to someone smart. Hax has paved a way for us. His legacy and our rebellion will continue even if he died."


    "Where did you get this?"


    "I stole it," Nesterin said. "Now, organize our men and quickly return to the Royal Palace. Keep on gathering information. Who knows what you''ll find."


    Jharteel was speechless for a moment, but then he pocketed the note and nodded. "I will do as you say. Be safe, Nesterin."


    Nesterin turned to his men. "All of you will listen to Jharteel from now. I will go Barmwich with this man." He pointed at Elwin.


    Elwin smiled. "People usually don''t point at me like that or addressed me like I am unwanted."


    "Let''s go guys," Jharteel led his men to leave the canyon.


    "Wow so they just gonna leave us like that?" Elwin asked.


    "Shut up. Tell me how you plan to go to Barmwich before our army attacked."


    Elwin watched the caravan set off into the distance. "You''re a reckless one."


    "What? Because I''m traveling with you?"


    "No. It''s because you didn''t even ask for supplies for our travel. Don''t you norms need to eat and drink ever so often?"


    Nesterin just realized that too.


    "I''m fine. I can go without eating for a few days."


    "Don''t cry on me if you''re hungry or thirsty. The air is quite hot these days."


    "You talk too much. Just tell me how do we go to Barmwich."


    "We use our feet, of course."


    "Are you playing with me?!"


    "What? you expect wings to come out of my back?"


    "How can we reach Barmwich quickly just by running?"


    "How do you think?"


    "I''m the one who''s asking idiot!" Nesterin shouted.


    "Oh."

 Chapter 42 Demonstration

    A line of power suit walked out of the warehouse. A BC-79 strapped on their back. It was easy to modify the original weapon, but it still took a bit of time. And it was worth it. The BC-79 was armed with 20 MM ammunition. It was usually used for defense turret or tank hunter airplane. It had high penetration and velocity making it the deadliest long-ranged weapon he currently had.


    But that wasn''t all. The soldiers reached to their waist and brandished a long, slim, slightly curved sword out of its sheath. The wavy pattern on the blade gleamed under the sun. The sword had no cross-guard. And the grip was large enough for it to be wielded with two hands.


    Its appearance was deceiving because it wasn''t a lightsword. Each blade weighed around 200 KG. The steel to made them was a mix of the heaviest, strongest, and sharpest materials they could find. The cost wasn''t cheap. Ten of these sword matched the cost of making one power suit. And that was considering only Hax could built these suits.


    One of the blacksmith stood beside Hax. He was the leader of the team and designed the sword personally.


    "Do you like the sword, sir?"


    "I love it. You''ve done a good job."


    "Naturally, sir. I cannot waste such a good material. Normally it is impossible to give such a slim sword much weight, but Blaucium is extremely heavy. Sadly, it is very easy to break it. That is why I covered it with Oracle Silver, these metal is very strong that it took hours to heat. But the most important material is the Edgeskin. Taken from a level-2 magic creature, Phantomedge, their skin were sharp enough to make a cultivator bleed just by touching it. And I found a suitable name for it¡ªDoom Sword


    "That sword cost a lot," Hax said.


    "I know, but it''s worth it, sir."


    Hax scoffed. "What''s your name?"


    "My name is Rolim, sir."


    Hax nodded. "If your weapon proved to be effective in battle. I will keep relying on you. All the resources will be yours to use."


    "I thank you, sir."


    Four hundred power suit strode to the shooting field. Dozens of muscled men with Weler-150, and manufacturing bots lifted a bunch of large metal statue and put them in the field.


    This would be the practice target.


    His men hadn''t used to the armor yet. It would be bad if they make a mistake in battle.


    The soldiers approached the metal statue with a Doom Sword in hand. The sword was kind of weird where it turned into blood red for a moment then returned to its normal color. The wavy pattern seemed moving too. It wasn''t a magic weapon, but it might as well.


    Raising their sword, the soldiers slashed the statue and Hax didn''t hear any sound of metal against metal, it was just the sound of the wind, brushing against the blade.


    But the statues fell in half. The lower body was still standing, it didn''t even receive any force. The cut was so smooth that a mirror might hide from shame.


    "Good. This is a good sword. The cost truly justified its quality. The norms are very creative. If not for their weak body, they can wield these sword and rebel against the cultivator without any technology."


    But were these sword better than a magical sword?


    He doubt it. A magical sword was created by a runesmith. They were blacksmith cultivators that could imbue weapons with magic. In fact, the army had a lot of magic weapons in storage. They got it from the battle against the Royal Army, but no one could use it properly without having a spiritual energy. It was heavy too, though not as heavy as the Doom Sword.


    That meant magical weapons didn''t rely on their sharpness or weight, rather they rely on their magical property.


    After the soldiers were satisfied with their close-range weapons, they took out their primary weapons and fired upon their target. This one was nasty.


    A loud blare of sound reverberated. Metal against metal, gunpowder exploded inside the barrel. Everyone closed their ears, Hax followed. But the sound still thumped his heart, and for a moment he thought the ground was shaking.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    The weapon was much stronger than he had expected. One reason might be because the refined gunpowder that he created for the ammunition. It required more materials to make it, but the result spoke for itself.


    "Stop!" Balmar shouted inside the power armor. He was the leader of the Man Hunter, So of course, Hax should give the man a suit.


    After they stopped shooting, the people nearby clapped. They shook their heads in amazement by the display of power. They started cheering and shouting that they could win the battle. That there was no chance for the norm to lose.


    The holes in the statues were enough to fit in four bottle of beers. The statue was made out of iron, imagine if a human was the target.


    Death was certain.


    Like a blooming flower, a new hope arose from inside their hearts. It was beautiful, yet fragile. A single hand could tear it apart, and all their dreams would be crushed.


    The power they had now was merely an illusion that was sustained by one thing¡ªhim. Without Hax, all of this wouldn''t be possible.


    And they knew. The people turned towards him. Becoming even more amazed, they praised his intellect and wisdom.


    "Sir, you''re the best."


    "I will give my life for you, sir."


    "With sir Hax on our side, we can takeover the kingdom!"


    Hax simply smiled, not letting the praise getting into his heart. Praise were merely words. So did insults. They were nothing but a sound wave under the atmosphere or digital data displayed as letters on the screen.


    A power armor approached him. It opened the helmet, showing Balmar''s face. "Sir, this suit is awesome."


    "I know," Hax said. "I''m the one who made them."


    "I believe we are ready to strike, sir. In fact, even with only four hundred power suit. I believe we can take over the Nefarious Sword."


    "I''m not willing to take such risk. Now, because of how special this armor is, I want to make a new units called the Prime Soldiers. The member of this unit will all wear the power suit, and their primary task is to reinforce the main army."


    "Why don''t we make them as our main army, sir?"


    "We can''t. The Prime Soldiers is an elite unit in our army. The resources it takes to create one set of armor is enough to feed ten family for an entire generation. This is why I want the best soldiers you have. Test them, train them, and torture them! I want them to stay sane in the worst situation possible. Throw them in the furnace, drown them in the ocean, and starve them in the wasteland. I can give you a list of my ideas if you want to."


    Balmar was terrified. "No, sir. I will train them as you asked."


    Hax nodded. "Good."


    Balmar saluted and left.


    Gorre strode towards him and watched as Balmar went. "You forgot to say to dehydrate them in a desert."


    "We don''t have a desert in this kingdom."


    "I see. Anyway, have you noticed that there''s less and less people dying these days."


    "What are you talking about?"


    "Cultivators can be rough on the norm sometimes."


    "The norms have my weapons. It''s natural that the cultivators don''t dare to mess with them again."


    "Maybe you''re right."


    "Hax!" Bodin waved and ran towards him. "You won''t believe what I''m about to say?"


    "What?"


    "Someone in other kingdoms can make a gun, just like yours. The design are a bit different but it''s basically the same. A small metal ball came out of the tube and it is pushed by the explosion of the gunpowder. It''s amazing how similar his work compared to yours."


    "Is it more powerful than mine?"


    "Sadly, no. It''s very weak. The range is worse than a crossbow, and it can''t penetrate an armor like your pistol did. I showed him your pistol and he was really surprised. He begged for your other weapons, so I just gave it to him."


    That surprised him a bit. According to Bodin, there were many kingdom in this continent but norm generally couldn''t travel outside the kingdom because there were many magic beast. Only cultivators could protect themselves against these beast, and even so, the chance of dying was still high.


    This was why the norm couldn''t share their knowledge to other people in another kingdom. If it was possible for them to communicate with each other, they would develop their own weapon without Hax.


    Exception might exist. If the kingdom was very near, then it was possible for the norm to travel there.


    "That''s good. Did you manage to recruit him?" Hax asked.


    "Actually," Bodin said. "He begged me to bring him here. He''s currently in the carriage. I''ll bring him here."


    Bodin ran back to the carriage and dragged a man trying to fix his tie and suit.


    "Hello, sir. My name is Adam. And I admire your works." He reached for a handshake.


    His hand showed burn mark all over. It seemed to recover long ago, but the scar were clear to see.


    Adam pulled his hand back. "Sorry to let you see such a hand, sir."


    Hax grabbed his hand and shake it. "This is a hand of a true craftsman, Adam. You don''t need to be ashame of it."


    Adam smiled. "Thank you, sir."


    "Do you know what you''re going to do here?"


    "Yes, Bodin told me in the carriage. I am expected to learn from you and help you in your scienvicik research? I''m not sure, but it''s vicik something.


    "It''s called science."


    "And our occupation is called scientifian," Gorre said.


    "It''s actually scientist. Try not to take any of his words seriously."


    "That hurts."


    Hax tapped his shoulder. "Go for a rest now. Gorre here can help you with your accommodation."


    "I can help too." Ratha appeared out of nowhere. "I''m the senior here."


    "Who teach you about seniority?" Bodin asked.


    "The chef. He said I should be in charge since I''m Hax''s first student."


    "What about me?" Gorre asked. "I''m the oldest."


    "Seniority first," Ratha said.


    "I think age speak louder, kid."


    "That''s not what the chef said."


    "I''m older than your chef."


    "Stop!" Hax said. "No one is in charge. All of you are my students and will be treated equally. Those who can apply their knowledge will receive resource for their own experiment, and if your invention proved to be useful, you will receive more resources. Do you understand?"


    "Can we collaborate with each other?" Adam asked.


    "Yes, you can."


    Adam turned to the other two. "We should work with each other. Tell me what both of you can do?"


    "I can make plastic."


    "I can make pancakes."


    Adam turned speechless. He turned to Hax.


    "Yeah, they''re pretty useless for now," Hax replied.

 Chapter 43

    Balmar strode the field with four hundred Prime Soldiers standing in lines beside him.


    "Men! You have given the honor to don this divine armor. It gives you strength, it gives you speed, but it doesn''t give you courage because courage comes from within! Today we are here to pull that courage and show it to the world! Our sir told me to train you all even if it takes your life, so if you''re scared then get out of the power suit and don''t show me your face!"


    Balmar observed them with sharp eyes. "Anyone?"


    "No, Sir!"


    "Good! Then don''t cry if you return without a soul. Today we are going to the Endless Moors with a limited supply. Our goal is to hold on for four days in the moors without food. The only thing that will enter your stomach is water and smoke. Am I clear?"


    "Yes, sir!"


    Balmar saw some men trembled inside their power suit. He knew. He could feel it. It was just like his first hunt. Excitement. Fear. Intermingle with each other creating a complicated feeling within a man.


    "This is your last chance! If you have doubts, step out and don''t let anyone judge your decision. Your life is at stake! Think of anyone back home who will be waiting for you."


    Some hesitated. They moved their feet slightly, doubtful if they should step out. They clenched their hand and pulled their feet back. They decided to fight.


    Balmar smiled. "Get your ass inside the carriage then! We have no time to waste!"


    The carriage had been modified to accommodate the Prime Soldiers. They were slightly taller and wider. Yet, only four Prime Soldier could fit in a single carriage. Making it bigger was impossible unless they want to reduce their mobility. Climbing hills or harsh terrain would be difficult.


    Maybe Hax will surprise them with something in the future.


    Balmar had expectation for the man. And many were already achieved.


    He tapped the sword in his waist and clenched his armored fist. "It''s all possible because of that man."


    He entered his wagon. Only Goras was here with him.


    "So," He started. "Starving ourselves in the Endless Moors while fighting a bunch of deadly magical monsters. Sounds fun. And is there really monsters in the Endless Moors? People have gone there back and forth but no one mentioned anything about monsters.


    "Of course there are monsters there. I told you about it before. The Prime Soldiers need to train. And we can''t train them like an ordinary soldier.


    "Prime Soldier. I like Hax and I really think he''s a smart guy, but his naming sense need some work."


    "What''s wrong with Prime Soldier? I think it sounds great," Balmar said.


    "You old people are so out of date."


    ¡­


    "Hey." Nesterin held on Elwin''s shoulder as he piggyback him. "When are we going to arrive."


    "In a few days. Or maybe more than that."


    "Stop playing! Just tell me when."


    "Who knows. Why would you think I know?"


    "Well, you''re a stage-5 cultivator who is also the sect leader of the Nefarious Sword. You think I should ask the bushes instead?"


    "Good idea."


    "I''m serious!"


    "Don''t be."


    "I really want to hit your head right now."


    "Don''t do."


    "I would if you keep this up."


    "Can you show a little respect to a sect leader?"


    "I have no respect for you!"


    "Said the guy sitting on my back."


    Nesterin groaned. "I felt like I''ve heard of that before."


    "Probably from your mom."


    Nesterin frowned. "That irritates me somehow."Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


    Elwin chuckled.


    Nesterin sighed and turned his sight to the landscape. Then he realized something. "That''s the same bush that I saw a earlier. I know because I plucked its leaf. We''re running in a circle! Stop!"


    "What''s wrong?"


    "We''re running in a circle! Don''t you hear what I just said?"


    "You mean ''I''m running in a circle''."


    Nesterin grabbed the BC-75 from his back and shoved it to Elwin''s face. "Get me to Barmwich, now!" He knew Elwin was strong, but he was too angry to care.


    "Relax. It''s just the Illusion Forest. It makes you think we''re running in a circle but in reality we''re going in a straight line."


    "Really?"


    "Truly, my friend. It does so to protect itself. Anyone thinking they walk in a circle would return to the way they come from."


    Such thing exist? He had never heard of the Illusion Forest before. The world was vast and there were still many things to see.


    "If that is so, let us continue."


    Elwin sprinted. He was quick that the sight almost turned into a blur. The wind didn''t hit his face. Nesterin didn''t know why.


    Some sort of magic probably.


    Nesterin shook his head. He hoped Hax haven''t attack yet. That creature was strong. If the army had to fight something like that, then who knew what would happen. The fight shook the land and cracked the ground. Even the wind from their battle was enough to threw them away.


    Yet Elwin defeated it.


    The sect master lost his sword, but Nesterin considered it''s worth the cost. No one could stop such monstrosity. If it set loose in a village, a town, or a city, all would die.


    Could the norm defeat something like that? A monster that seemed to came straight out of hell.


    "Hey," Elwin called. "Sorry about your family. I''m the one who''s responsible for not teaching them properly."


    "Don''t be. You know if you''re not strong I would already put a bullet in your head."


    Elwin chortled. "Weakness is a sin. Have you heard of that?"


    "Yes, from the wandering philosophers. I disagree with that phrase. If someone born with the inability to cultivate, does that mean he sinned?"


    "A good argument. But that''s not what they meant. You will sin if you don''t use your strength to cover for your weakness."


    "Use strength to cover weakness? That doesn''t make any sense."


    "It doesn''t have to."


    Nesterin clicked his tongue. "Don''t speak too much. Focus on the road. I want to arrive in Barmwich as fast as possible."


    "We all want to be somewhere as fast as possible. But haven''t you heard that traveling is about the journey not the destination?"


    "I have zero concern of that."


    "Life before death, journey before destination."


    "Where did you heard that?"


    "I read it from somewhere."


    "It sounds stupid. Of course we live before we die, and we travel before we arrive. Why say something that is very obvious."


    "That''s not the point. Sometimes we have so much in our head that we forgot that we''re all going to die. It doesn''t matter what happen, in the end we''re all going to be buried under the mountain."


    Nesterin scoffed. "You''re strong but dumb. If what happen doesn''t matter then nothing is matter. Why wake up from bed if nothing matters. Why do we eat good food or drink nice coffee if nothing matters."


    "I didn''t expect that answer."


    "Many people don''t expect anything from me. But the one that does, I cherished them greatly."


    "Your wife and daughter was one of them?"


    "Yes."


    "How does it feel?"


    "What?"


    "To have something that matters?"


    "It feels warm and whole. It feels like nothing else matters anymore."


    "Must be great."


    "It was."


    Both of them turned silent for a moment.


    "Stop," Nesterin said. He got off his back and approached a nearby plant. A thick, green vines dangled from the tree. Nesterin snapped it. Clear water came out of the vine and he let it pour into his water sac.


    "I didn''t know you can do that."


    "And you said you have lived long enough." Nesterin grabbed a water beetle on the ground and squeezed it. Water came out of its butt hole, pouring into the sac.


    "You want to drink that?"


    "Yes."


    "I wouldn''t."


    "Your choice."


    The wind whistled through the leaves. Dark clouds moved ahead. Lightning flashed. Storm was brewing.


    "We should find a shelter," Elwin said.


    "No, I want to be at Barmwich quick."


    Elwin shook his head. "That''s not an ordinary storm. It won''t kill me. But you will die."


    "Stop lying! I never see a storm could kill a man."


    "You haven''t seen enough storm in your lifetime."


    "If you run quick enough, we can pass the storm."


    "Impossible. The Wrathful has begin. The only thing we can do is hide."


    Suddenly, the trees moved. They bend their trunk to the direction of the wind. The shrubs pulled themselves into a hole like they was hiding from something.


    "If you don''t believe me," Elwin said. "Then believe in nature."


    "Fine."


    Nesterin climbed on his back. The act embarrassed him. How could a grown man did something like this.


    "Don''t be embarrassed. With my age, you''re more like a grandchild to me."


    Elwin sprinted. The wind burst into them. It swayed his footing a bit, but the sect master got it under control. He leaped through the trees, using their trunk to pass another.


    Ahead of them was a cave. It wasn''t big, but enough for them to get inside. The wind was chilling. He didn''t feel it when he was outside, but now he did.


    Nesterin shivered from the cold. The weather was usually hot in the Avatar Kingdom. He had never felt cold before. It was such a strange feeling. The cave should warm him, but it didn''t. The cold felt like it started to seeped into his bone. Like a blade piercing through his skin, he felt a numbing pain.


    "Don''t you die on me." Elwin grabbed his shoulder, and he felt a warming energy surged from it. It spread all over his body, removing the cold and he felt alive again.


    "What did you do?"


    "Saving you."


    "Try to do it again."


    The warm energy came in again. He felt it from his shoulder the most. He felt so comfortable and it seemed to strengthen his body. The energy massaged his body from the inside. His stomach and heart felt better. It was like he was a teenager again.


    "I¡­ I''m reborn."


    "No you are not. Unless you are a phoenix."


    "What did you do to me exactly."


    "I simply channel my energy to you, my friend. This energy will fix you and protect you as long as it stays there. But you are not a cultivator so it simply dissipated the moment I stop."


    "Can you make a norm stronger permanently with this energy?"


    "I can. But the effect isn''t that good. Your body has limit and the most it can do is to make you feel better."


    "I heard there is a magical pill that can turn someone into a cultivator."


    "Yes, there is. In fact, there''s a lot of pills like this. But we won''t give them to the norm since they couldn''t cultivate pass the stage-1 cultivation."


    "Cultivators have uses for these pills?"


    "Of course, we can increase our cultivation with these pills. It''s not recommended to rely on pills though."


    "Is it possible to buy them from you?"

 Chapter 44 Endless Moor

    "Welcome to the Boiling Crystal Mine. The one and only resource point of our Nefarious Sword."


    Below them was a giant crater where dirty, ragged norms clumped like a sea of ants. Some of them climbed the fragile wooden stairs that were placed on every wall. One or two of them would fall to their death occasionally. It reminded Elaith that the norm was weak and should serve the cultivators as their master. As for how things should be.


    The norm dug out the spiritual crystal in the crater and threw them inside a bucket-shaped bag that was made with sticks and twigs. They used their dirty hands to pick these important crystals. It made Elaith angry just by looking at them.


    At the edge of the cliff, where the stairs led to, a few cultivators stood in post. They seemed to be the ones who were tasked to guard and oversee the norm. And beside every cultivator was a wagon where the skinny, fragile, dirty norm would take a small piece of hard bread for themselves. They were only allowed to eat if the cultivator guarding the wagon allowed them. Those who didn''t bring enough spiritual crystal were directly kicked to the crater. Whether they would survive the fall was not anyone''s concern.


    This was how things should be. This was the true place for the norm.


    "What do you think of the place, Elaith," Laeroth asked. He seemed to feel bad to not giving Elaith the promised sword, but Elaith truly did not need it.


    Laeroth probably found that sword in his travel. It was an important artifact for every cultivator that had gone through a journey. Elaith couldn''t possibly have the heart to take it from his senior brother.


    "This place is beautiful, senior brother. Sadly, those norms ruined it for me."


    "Haha. I also think the same. But they''re too useful to be removed."


    "I understand, senior brother. It''s good a place like this exists. We can remind the norm that this is where they truly belong."


    Elaith and the others approached one of the wagons. He winced when a nasty odor pierced his nose. When was the last time these norms cleaned themselves? Disgusting. They should be cleansed with fire. In fact, he could do it now. With his new power, he could burn them and let them scream!


    He looked at the norm. Their body was very malnourished. Bones seemed about to burst out of their skin. Something crawled under their skin and Elaith saw something wiggled inside their eyes. Narrowing his sight, Elaith tried to take a closer look. For the peaceful soul of the swordmaster! Those were worms!


    Elaith took a step back. How dirty! How disgusting! These norms let themselves be infested with worms? He would never touch them. He wouldn''t even use his power to touch them.


    How could the ones who were tasked to stay here deal with this? Elaith turned to the side and noticed that the swordsmen were actually standing a distance away from the wagon. Most of them were. Some seemed to be used by this and stood beside the wagon, kicking a norm or two when they didn''t bring enough spiritual crystal.


    Elaith wouldn''t even kill them with his blade. What if their blood dirtied his sword? He had to throw it away if that happen.


    A norm took off his bag and poured out the spiritual crystal beside the wagon. Maybe someone would move that crystal later. Wait! These crystals were touched by these dirty norms. Didn''t that mean all this time had touched what they touched?! Looking at his hands, Elaith had a split moment of an urge to cut them off and regrow them.


    He shook his head and turned his sight to the crater. It went deep down. It took several stairs to reach the bottom. And these stairs were always in use. These worm-infested men were at least smart enough to pick on stairs to get down and the other stairs to climb up. It was a whole lot of mess down there.


    A few norms fought among themselves. They pulled a piece of bread from each other''s hands, screaming, kicking, punching, and biting. Truly disgusting.


    "Let''s return to the temple, senior brother," Elaith said.


    "What''s wrong, Elaith. We just got here."


    "I don''t want to be near these dirty norms any longer. Just by looking at them made me uncomfortable."


    "If this makes you uncomfortable then let us return."The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    It took quite a while for Elaith and the others to return to the temple. When he arrived, he took in a deep, long breath, filling his lungs with all the clean and fresh air nature could offer. The difference was like hell and heaven.


    Elaith sat on a circular marble chair surrounding the trunk of a Tibrove tree. The trunk was as thick as five men and as tall as seven. It had lovely pink flowers and lush leaves with blue vines dangling all over. The floral scent comforted his nose, cleansing all the filth within. Two tootsiepoop birds returned to their nest, carrying colorful berries in their mouth. They chirped and whistled.


    "Elaith, are you okay?" Vamir asked, Laeroth walking beside him. It was weird for them to be so close to each other considering their specialties. One focused on speed, while the other maximized in strength.


    They could cover each other''s weakness with that combination, though. It might be the reason why they were so close.


    "I''m fine, senior brother. Just need some fresh air."


    "I heard you have increased your cultivation, brother Elaith. Apologize. I meant; Senior brother Elaith. Congratulation on your advancement."


    A man with black, short hair approached him. He had a bright face, contrasted by a black ink tattoo of a bear paw on top of his left eyebrow.


    Elaith smiled and nodded. He didn''t mind making more friends. Actually, everyone in Nefarious Sword was more than a friend to him. They were family.


    "Thank you. I never saw you around here before. May I know your name?"


    The man let out a slight chuckle. "Yes, I am new here, senior brother Elaith. Let me introduce myself. My name is Gaelin."


    ¡­


    Balmar looked out from his carriage. Hundreds of wagon and carriages stretched across the heath-land. The wheels rolled over scrubby bushes, passing stunted trees or running over them. The magic bulls were more than enough to destroy a tree as small as a man''s arm.


    Boulders and rocks dotted the landscape. There seemed to be no animals in this dread place but creatures lurked behind the shadows. He could feel it.


    Something screech. Most men would merely think it was just a bird. He would meet these creatures again. He could finally take revenge.


    For they had taken his father from him.


    "Stop!" Balmar shouted.


    The carriages and wagons nearby shouted for the others to stop too. It took some time for everyone to still. Silent. Balmar inhaled sharply. The smell of acid and wet earth.


    He got off his carriage, Goras followed from behind.


    "I see no monsters around here," Goras said. "Not even an animal. Wait, now that I get a clear look, there''s not even a proper tree or a bug around here. It''s a wasteland. The ground is wet and damp. Nothing can live in this place."


    "You don''t believe in me, Goras?" Balmar asked.


    "I have no reason to doubt you. But I have eyes. And these eyes see nothing. Why don''t we go to a magic forest and hunt some magical beast."


    "Just wait, and you''ll see. Tell the others to put the carriage and wagon close to each other. Make a circle around it."


    "Why?"


    "Just listen to me."


    Goras proceeded to shout at everyone. The coachmen moved their wagons closer to each other, grouping them into a tight circle with a small space enough for the Prime Soldiers to pass through.


    The Prime Soldiers went to the edge of this circle of wagons and carriage, surrounding it in all directions.


    The wind blew. And everything was silent. The magic bulls were never known to make any noise. And his soldiers were hand-picked. A slight grunt and they would be disqualified from being chosen. Hax taught him how a true soldier should act. Looking at their straight and solid stance, Balmar knew they were one step closer to reaching Hax''s expectation.


    They twitched. Impatient and curious about what''s ahead.


    Suddenly, the clouds above their head turned dark. Lightning flashed and the bright, colorful land turned into black and white. The trees, shrubs, and plants died. Rocks crumbled before turning into dust. The wind howled, whispering in his ears.


    Balmar shivered inside his armor. Not from the cold, but from the excitement for what was about to come.


    At the edge of their horizon, stretching across the land, and from all directions, a massive horde of beasts trod the land with their sharp claws. They growled. Yellow mucus came out of their jaws and a pair of tusk went over their mouth.


    "They''re real," Balmar exclaimed. "I wasn''t mad after all. My memories about them taking my father was true. People have been treating me like I am crazy and they don''t believe a word I said."


    "What are they?" Goras said. He always said that he believed what Balmar said, but the man was quite critical and wouldn''t believe anything until he saw it himself.


    "They are the Foulclaw."


    "People have gone here before. Why none of them say anything about these creatures."


    Balmar didn''t reply. He let the wind blow one more time before taking a deep breath. "Ever wonder why cultivators came here and never return? It was said that they are looking for something within this moor, and the Foulclaws killed them.''


    "That doesn''t explain why the norms were never attacked before."


    "That''s because they never look."


    Goras turned speechless, eyes expanding. "Then why was your father attacked?"


    Balmar turned to Goras. "Whatever those cultivators are looking for must be important. And we''ll look for it with all we have."


    He avoided the question.


    "No! We come here to train our soldier, not searching for some non-existence artifact."


    "It will benefit them greatly if we found it," Balmar said.


    "You mean it will benefit you? Balmar, I have always followed what you told me without much fuss, but this is delusional. We won''t find anything in this place. Let''s get our men inside the carriage and escape from this place. With our firepower, we can pierce through one side and leave this moor."


    Balmar shook his head. "It''s too late for that. The Foulclaws have surrounded us from all sides, and we''re deep within the moor. The only way to survive is if we stay together and protect our supplies."


    Goras gritted his teeth. "I can''t believe you put us at risk for this."


    "You don''t understand, Goras. I have prepared all of my life for this one moment."

 Chapter 45

    "It''s do or die for us now," Balmar said.


    "Whatever you are looking for, it''s better be worth it," Goras said. "Everyone! Fire whenever you are ready. Those monsters aren''t going to kill themselves."


    The Prime Soldiers tucked their weapons, aiming. Not long after, the Endless Moor exploded with the blaring sound of gunfire. The BC-79 was like a roaring dragon. It spewed a cone of flame out of the barrels, flashing the colorless landscape with lights.


    In the distance, the beasts screamed and fell by the hundred. They died wave after wave. Stepping over the corpse, these creatures screeched as they charged towards the Prime Soldiers.


    The air reeked of gunpowder and metal. Balmar could handle it at first, but the scent became nauseating. Bullets kept on raining down in rhythm. The horde of beasts didn''t have the chance to approach as they died the moment the bullets pierced a large hole in their bodies. The hole was enough for a few bottles of beer to fit in. Sometimes the bullet was so powerful that it pierced through three monsters at once, killing them ruthlessly.


    Under the barrage of more than four hundred Prime Soldiers, the Foulclaws were shredded like linen. Blood splashed, covering the moor with greenish, yellow goo.


    "The monsters are being pushed back," Goras said. "We can win this battle."


    "Not so fast. Remember that our soldiers need to reload, the delay would give the beast a time window for them to advance."


    His analysis was true. When the Prime Soldiers reloaded, the beast sprinted towards them at an alarming speed. In every direction, and even beyond the horizon, the Foulclaws covered the land. The beast reached a distance where it could threaten the army, but after reloading, the Prime Soldiers immediately pulled the trigger in full blast, pushing the beasts back once again.


    The acidic scent of their blood drifted. Mixed that with the thick smell of gunpowder and it was enough to intoxicate him.


    "That was dangerously close," Goras said. If our men were late to push them back just by a little bit, our whole formation would be destroyed."


    A bullet shot through a monster''s head and it exploded, splattering blood all over.


    "That is true," Balmar said. "We need to divide the soldier into two teams. One team will attack and hold the monsters back while the other is reloading."


    "That''s impossible. If we do that then our overall firepower will reduce and some monster might slip in. Even though each Prime Soldiers were heavily armed, we only have around four hundred of them."If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    The Prime Soldiers ran out of ammunition again. They hastened to reload their weapon and fired again but some of the monsters got close and slashed with their claws.


    SCRANG! CLANG!


    The Prime Soldiers pulled out their sword and attacked. They shot the other monsters as the one they''d cut fell in half.


    "We need to think of something quick. These monsters are dangerously close," Goras said.


    Balmar frowned. His stomach hurt from all the nauseating smell. Now that the beast died close to them, the sickening scent became much stronger. What should he do? All these blaring sounds and awful smells made it hard to think.


    Veins pulsed on his forehead. "I have an idea. We divide the soldier into two teams. One will only use swords while the other should stand on top of the carriage to provide support."


    "No way. The soldiers would tire themselves."


    "We can have them rotate. The rotation would give the monsters a time window, but it''s better than the current situation."


    "The carriage couldn''t possibly hold their weight. The power suit, the blade, and their gun combined almost reached 300 KG in weight."


    "Then let them stand on the magic bulls. Those creatures are strong enough to hold almost any weight."


    Goras nodded and tell the messengers the order. It wasn''t possible to shout his order with all the explosive sounds. Balmar could barely hear Goras speak any word.


    The messengers urged them horses. They quickly approached the captain of each squad and they further relayed the order to their subordinates. The Prime Soldiers complied. One team put the BC-79 on their back and brandished their sword before charging towards the beast. The beasts were twice taller than them.


    But these men wrestled a bear for a side job. Not literally. Size didn''t scare them. The soldier maneuvered around, dodging claws and bites before stabbing their sword through the jaw of the creature. The wavy pattern on the blade gleamed as it pierced through the brain.


    The Prime Soldier pulled it out and cut off the creature''s neck. Two pairs of beast pounced on him, they bared their fangs ready to devour them whole. Too bad for these creatures, the Prime Soldiers had climbed on the magic Bulls and were finally firing their weapons to provide support. Each Prime Soldier had two Prime Squire with them. Their primary task is to provide ammunition when needed. The ammunition restricted their movement quite a bit. Bringing the BC-79 and the Doom Sword was already hard enough. This was why they let other people bring the ammunition for them.


    Naturally, these assistants didn''t follow the first group who were currently cutting monsters in the front line. They would die if they do that.


    The beast got pushed further and further. The Prime Soldiers went to work. One team cutting them down and the other blasting them apart with bullets. The close-range team also didn''t need to worry about their safety since the long-range team focused on supporting them. They could cut any monster they like without worrying about getting jumped.


    Balmar saw some talents among the close-range team. They moved supernaturally, twirling the Doom Sword in their hand and slashed left and right."


    "The monsters are being pushed back again. I wonder how many have we killed. We don''t even lose a single soldier."


    Balmar nodded. "Imagine if we have the power suit when we fought the Royal Army. Those guys won''t stand a chance against us."


    The Prime swordsman weaved nimbly. They seemed to get better at what they were doing as time passed. Some claw attack and bite found their way to the armor, but the armor bounced them off while only receiving a few dents and marks.


    As the Prime Soldiers cut a monster in half, their movement turned sluggish all of a sudden. They couldn''t raise their blade and the monsters kept trying to pounce on them as the long-range team shoot them down.


    "Oh no." Balmar shook.


    "What happens to them?"


    "They ran out of battery!"

 Chapter 46 Blob

    ¡°Quick. Get some batteries for them!¡±


    The Prime Squire in the back line sprinted with a pack of battery in their arms. They ran with bullets wheezing above their heads. The distance was quite far since the monsters were constantly being pushed back. Tightening the battery in their arms, they gritted their teeth and reached the Prime Soldiers. Quickly, they pulled a lever behind the armor, and a small compartment for the battery popped out. With strength, they yanked the battery out and replace them with new ones.


    Some panicked and drop the battery to the ground. The Foulclaws almost killed them for that delay.


    With a new battery, the Prime Soldiers turned to life again and they started a massacre. The soldiers seemed angry as they tore through the ranks of monsters with their long blades gleaming. Covered with blood and innards, the Prime Swordsman cut limb after limb. Their swords rising and falling, before they retreated.


    It was time for the switch. The assistant had long been gone after they completed their task.


    The long-range team sprinted to the front line, firing their BC-79 with stabilized accuraccy. As the two team met, they switched their weapon and swapped place. The switch let the monsters closed in on the supplies, but the new team pushed them back again. The long-range team raced to the magic bulls and hurried to climb them.


    After they were in positions, they shelled the monsters with powerful shots.


    ¡°This plan work,¡± Goras said. ¡°But I don¡¯t think we can¡¯t keep this up. Our men can still be tired even with the armor.¡±


    Balmar nodded. ¡°You¡¯re right. We can¡¯t keep this up. Maybe we should do a rest period rotation.¡±


    ¡°I have a better idea. Look over there.¡± Goras pointed towards a towering circular rock.


    ¡°We should climb that rock that way we can defend our position only in one direction.¡±


    Goras frowned. ¡°The only way to climb that rock is through the steep hill. Not to mention it was quite a distance away from us. And if we failed to defend that spot, there is no way to escape since there is only way in and out.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s better to put our force in one direction. We can do much better in that situation with our weaponry.¡±


    ¡°The problem is how to get there. We need to cut a straight path through a large horde of Foulclaws and then fight them off while we climb the steep hill.¡±If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    ¡°I have a plan. I believe we can go there if we fight for a few days. As long as we have food, our army would have enough energy to fight for a while.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a problem. We don¡¯t bring any food.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re serious?¡± Goras said. ¡°I thought you were joking! Damn! We¡¯re going to starve to death before these beasts could kill us. If that is the case, then we don¡¯t have any time to waste.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s your plan?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll let the Prime Soldiers protecting the caravan in a circle and pushed through.¡±


    ¡°Reloading, and replacing the battery will be hard while we are on the move,¡± Balmar said.


    ¡°I know. But it¡¯s better than staying here.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s do it, then.¡±


    He send the messenger to the captain. This time, he told them to use the birds since the enemy was not the cultivators. They were beast. How would they know how to sabotage the communication?


    Goras coordinate the caravan. He told the coachmen and the Prime Squire about the plan. And they prepared themselves for what was about to come.


    After everyone understood the plan and made preparation, The caravan moved. The magic bulls pulled the wagon and carriages as Prime Soldiers rode on their back, providing support fire.


    The close-range team moved along with the caravan, carefully protecting it and not letting any monsters slipped by. The movement gave the Prime Soldiers a hard time. They clumsily fell when they had to follow the caravan while fighting the monsters. The other soldiers helped them quickly.


    Even so, casualties started to appear. One Prime Soldier fell down and a bunch of Foulclaws savagely bit on the armor. The teeth sank into the battery, rendering the armor useless and it wasn¡¯t possible for the soldier to get out of the armor since he fell on his stomach.


    A lot of Prime Soldiers gathered to help, but they must do it quickly because the caravan couldn¡¯t possibly stop for them. The caravan was too large for it to move with precise coordination.


    The gunner focused their fire on that side. The close range-team protected the others as they flipped the armor.


    The armor opened up and the man sprinted towards the caravan.


    One armor lost.


    It was fortunate that the soldier survived but the lost of the armor was quite a significant loss.


    The soldier leave the armor and fixed their formation. No one seemed to realized that if they kept on losing power suit, their firepower would reduce by a notable margin. And if their numbers reduce to half, all hell would break loose.


    Continuing their mission amidst the scream and reverberating gunfire, the close-range team called out for a battery replacement. Apparently, there was an indicator inside the helmet to know how much energy they had left. That lack of information could cost the entire caravan.


    It reminded him of Hax¡¯s teaching who always point out how important information was.


    The Foulclaws hugged each other. Clumping on top of one another. They turned into some kind of green, slimy liquid. The liquid pulled each other like water, and it got bigger as time went.


    The soldiers fired at this liquid. The bullets went inside and nothing happened. It was like a giant blob of green lake water.


    ¡°What is that?¡± Goras asked.


    Balmar didn¡¯t reply. He set his sight to the blob of water, trying to peer what¡¯s inside. His eyes widened, and he didn¡¯t even realized Goras yanking his shoulder back and forth.


    ¡°Balmar. What¡¯s wrong with you.¡±


    ¡°We¡ª We need to be quick. Tell the Prime Soldiers to focus on running. Tell everyone to focus on running.¡±


    ¡°Why? What is that thing?¡±