"Also, the participant who takes first place may name a wish—Kornac's Keep will grant it, as long as it's within our power to grant it."As Mole Cricks—the black-robed elder—finished, he turned to look at another white-haired elder who walked casually out of the keep and sat on an armchair placed beneath the signboard.He nodded, and Mole continued, "Then, let's not drag our feet. The first trial starts now!"At this announcement, over a dozen apprentices carried a giant cauldron filled with a herbal soup with a weird scent, placing it in the middle of the crowd.Mole then explained, "Everyone will have a chance to taste this soup. You will then list down the ingredients used and its purpose on the piece of paper given to you."As soon as he finished, the crowd was pushing their way toward the giant cauldron eagerly, dipping into it with the spatulas prepared for them and sipping the soup.Yosil Darman—the white-haired elder who was seated on the armchair—stroked his beard and sm
"One hundred points!"The crowd cheered again—the Cloudnine Sect apprentices were really something else, both scoring full points.It was clear that the first and second places were decided for the year!"Hmph…"Ira, however, snorted in disdain. "What's so surprising? One of them was just lucky getting it right, and then sneaked the answer to the other. Why wouldn't they obtain a perfect score at that point?""Oh, right, right, right…""Exactly, man…"The other participants around Ira smiled and agreed, not daring to argue with him.In reality, however, everyone had been watching, and they knew that the pair from Cloudnine Sect never said a word to each other from the start.They were clearly depending on their own skill, so Ira's suggestion that they were cheating was certainly untrue. If anything, Ira was just being a sore loser and trying to instigate the crowd.Though everyone knew that, they would not accuse Ira, as they were wary of the rich kid's influence."Alright
In reality, what Frank was doing was clown behavior to Kairo and the other Draconian traditional medicine apprentices.. After all, he did not even know the basic idea of when a soup's effects were best and was instead trying to show off.It was embarrassing, and Kairo was quietly shaking his head—he had certainly misjudged Frank by thinking earlier that he was skilled.Mole Cricks—the black-robed elder—did not hold out much hope for Frank either.Anyone skilled enough would know not to wait until the soup was cold, let alone wait until last because it would affect identification.In fact, those who came to try the soup just before Frank were just here to take part for the sake of doing so, and they could barely identify a couple of the herbs used.That was why Mole was not even interested in what Frank could do and actually only wanted it to be over with.Still, the crowd was soon left staring in surprise as Frank did not taste the soup.Instead, he merely leaned into the caul
Mole's reaction made it clear that Frank's answer was different, and Ira would only prove his own stupidity if he kept mocking him now.However, after Mole stared at Frank's paper for two minutes with various expressions alternating over his face, disappointment ultimately showed on his face as he announced, "Frank Lawrence… zero points.""Pftt… What?!"Ira's expression was at first solemn, but he promptly started laughing at Mole's announcement.Kairo was staring at Frank in disbelief too.If Frank's answer was really worth no points, why would Mole stare at it for so long and look so clearly disappointed?"Hahaha… And you were acting all mysterious with your silence, but it turns out that you only got a fat zero! You're a real comedian!"Ira's diss drew a chorus of laughter, and even those who failed to get anything right were sneering at Frank, throwing him derisive thumbs ups. "You have balls, brother! Showing off while everyone watched and then getting zero points. Amazin
Frank kept his eyes fixed on Mole as he said, "What I wrote is clear—Augustraff. That's a herb I identified from the scent."Mole held his gaze in turn. "I'm not senile enough to fail to read. My question is this—do you know what happens when Augustraff is mixed with the other herbs in this list?""Augustraff…"Nearby, Kairo did a double take before lowering his gaze and muttering to himself, "If it was really put in the soup, it would turn everything into poison! The herbs would counteract each other, and body waste would build up within the body over the next three days before whoever consumes it dies… oh!"Kairo understood right then—Frank did not make a mistake, aside from including an extra item: Augustraff.And that would in turn throw off Frank's review of the soup by a country mile.Kairo sighed and shook his head at the thought. "There's no Augustraff in the soup—my tongue wasn't playing tricks on me."If there was, that would mean that this trial is no trial, but a mas
After all, Yosil was the castellan of Kornac's Keep!Yosil slowly opened his eyes and flashed a vague smile as Frank turned to him. "I've been watching, young man—you only sniffed the cauldron and wrote down your answer. Why didn't you taste the soup? You might stand a better chance of getting it right that way, no?"Frank stopped in his tracks, but his stance clearly did not change as he retorted, "Why should I taste it when it's poisoned?"If anything, he appeared even surer now."Insolence!"Mole was snapping at Frank right then, "Watch your tongue, boy! You're speaking with the castellan of Kornac's Keep!"Frank shot him a look of disdain in turn. "And, what? Are you saying that being older makes everything right?"Mole was left flushing. "You wretch?!""Manners, Mole Cricks."Yosil held up a hand, stopping Mole from snapping at Frank as he twirled his beard. "You are right, young man. While I am a mentor and have lived for two centuries, my knowledge in Draconian traditio
However, Mole did not identify the Augustraff added into the soup, but Frank did.Did that not mean that Mole, despite being an elder of Kornac's Keep, lost out to one of the participants in terms of herbology and medicinal knowledge?!While he was scowling terribly, he turned toward Yosil with an exasperated look and tried to hide his embarrassment as he asked, "Chief, we've always been cordial to outsiders and potential apprentices. How could you poison everyone in a trial?""That's right!"The other participants were panicking too—what was Kornac's Keep scheming by poisoning everyone?!"Hahaha… It was just a whim I had in the spur of the moment."Yosil laughed, holding up his hands. "This yearly trial is really getting boring—it's time we try something new, don't you think?""Well, if I'm not mistaken…"Frank spoke calmly as everyone watched, "The second trial would be to identify the symptoms, thereby tailoring an antidote to counteract the poison?"While everyone gasped i
"Since you're all demanding fairness, I will play along this one time so that you don't get to argue anymore."With those words, Frank lifted the cauldron with one hand and swallowed the remaining soup and all the sediments whole."What?! No!!!"Even Yosil was left gaping, throwing up his hands in protest. "There's not much soup left, but the poison of the sediments is especially potent! If you drank that much, you're not going to… to…"Mole was frowning too.The participants only tasted the soup with spatulas or with their fingers, which meant that the poison was at least manageable.However, Frank must have chugged twenty people's worth and even at the sediments! He was clearly suicidal!"Sir, what…"Mole turned toward Yosil, unsure what to do."You've made a mistake, my friend!" Yosil slammed his fist on his table, sighing as he saw Frank was bleeding black ooze from every orifice.He thought highly of Frank, but the kid proved too hot-tempered!Yosil was especially sho
Frank snorted. "Alright, I'm hanging up. I'm getting started over here soon.""Yeah. Good luck," Jouri replied.Hanging up, Frank looked up at the waterfall overhead, and then at Skyler, who was standing beside him. "So? Is it time yet?""Almost… Now!" Skyler's eyes were glowing even as she stared at her watch."Alright."Frank looked up just as the skies abruptly darkened. "Ah, there it is—the eclipse."The sun seemed to disappear, and the world was suddenly shrouded in darknesses.And beside him, a stone door imbued with the power of the spiritron vein also rumbled as it parted."Got it!" Frank rushed inside without another word as soon as he saw it."Hmph. I'm surprised that you could reach this place." A cold, wrathful voice resounded inside even before Frank got a hold of his surroundings.Looking up, Frank found a youth in a black cossack and sporting grey-white hair, standing upon a cliff as he looked down on him.Frank chuckled. "Hehe. Like I said, I've come to kill
Frank narrowed his eyes. "Is that so?'Crane shrugged. "I don't mind giving it to you straight—members of Torrent are actually… Ahem. A part of Torrent himself."Frank paused. "What's that supposed to mean?""You don't get it, do you?" Crane grinned. "Then let me put it to you this way—every member is a clone of Torrent.""A clone?" Frank gasped in realization."Yes," Crane nodded. "That's why I believe that challenging Crane is just suicide. You have no idea how powerful he is—only death awaits you down that path."Frank smirked. "Oh, but I don't think so."Crane rolled his eyes. "Fine, whatever—now listen closely. You will find Torrent in the Mystic Trail, but you would only find that place when the sun and moon coincide, and the entrance is beneath the waterfall south of Horton."As he finished, he snorted coldly. "I have no idea if you can actually do it, but I'm hoping you do kill him… Heh. I'm getting tired of being stuck under his control for so long."Then, waving off
Frank abruptly turned, immediately noticing one of the Cranes crouching, ready to spring forward and blindside him."Got you!" He laughed."Hah! You fell for it!"Just as Frank swung a punch to pulverize that Crane, he suddenly burst into pus that splashed at Frank's face."Damn it!" Frank took a step back, surprised that the clone's presence was identical to the real Crane, and a trap on top of that!"Die!"The Cranes around him each whipped out a dagger, all of them stabbing at Frank at the same time."Get off!" Frank bellowed, unleashing a shockwave that sent all the Cranes flying across all directions."Frank! Above you!" Skyler suddenly shrieked."Yes! I'm right here!" A strange laughter sounded above Frank just as he wiped the pus off his face.Crane was suddenly directly above him, launching an aerial kick straight at Frank's head, and Frank had no time to dodge!"Die!" Crane's smile curled into a twisted angle as he saw that too.He was very confident with this kick
"Disgusting…" Skyler murmured through her hand.Despite being skinned and scalped, the women were all still alive and singing to the music that was playing despite their anguish."Talk about a terrible fetish."Frank was scowling too—why were all the members of Torrent such sick deviants? It seemed like his plan to wipe them out was absolutely correct!"So, you killed my clone?"The lanky man on the couch slowly turned to level his bloodshot eyes at Frank.His lips were wet with bed as they curled upward into an eerie smile."Clone?" Frank narrowed his eyes."Hehe. It's a sage art."Crane shrugged as he stood up and wiped the blood off his lips. "It's only natural that you don't understand… Still, you deserve praise. If you can kill my clone, that means you're not just slightly stronger than Ghost."Naturally, the man was none other than the real Crane.Still, as Skyler studied him from a corner, even she could notice the strange twitch of his fingers, and his veins were pro
Even as Crane ran, he was looking over his shoulder, his heart pounding. "No… I won't win in a one-on-one!"No, as long as I get back to my real body… we can do this together!" He frowned, having seen how Frank sliced off the pinkies of those hood rats. It hence quickly dawned on him that Frank was not just slightly stronger than Ghost, as Torrent had put it!"Almost there!" He gasped when he saw the signboard of Pegasus Showtown in the distance. "As long as I get there and rendezvous with my real body, that brat will lose—"That was when he turned and saw that a shadow had caught up with impossible speed."What?!" Crane's eyes almost popped out in bewilderment. "What speed is that?! Are you kidding—"Even as he spotted the shadow, the shadow turned into a youth with an impassive visage.His fist outstretched, he was clearly punching toward Crane's forehead!"Argh…"Even as Crane looked on, the youth's punch slowed down by tenfold, but his fist kept closing in.Then, whe
Seeing Skyler sigh, the tattooed thug presumed that his extortion worked.He strode up, grabbing Frank's shoulder. "No one's gonna help you, boy. Pay up, or you're not leaving.""Exactly! You're not getting away!" the crowd of hood rats hollered. "Last chance."Frank's eyes were cold and fixed on Dani, however. "Are you going to intervene? If you do, you can keep that check. If you don't…""Ugh. Fuck off! I don't care!" Dani spat, her expression smug as she folded her arms before her chest. "Who do you think you are to threaten me?!""Exactly! Pay up, and you can leave!""Yeah! Ten grand, at least!""You probably don't know my boss Wyvern, but when he's here, you won't get away with just ten grand!"Even as the crowd closed in, Frank shook his head. "Well, you had your chance. Don't blame me for what happens next.""You're giving us a chance?! Hah! Who—argh!"Even before Dani could finish gloating, Frank was suddenly in front of her, grabbing her viciously by the wrist."Arg
"Five grand?! Did you hear that?! He just threw five grand!""Must be a rich kid coming here for a secret rendezvous, out of prying eyes? Those types are the easiest mark!""Fuck! And Dani got one of us… It hurts me more than losing at the races!"Frank could hear the buzz around him but ignored it as he strode past the men flanking him and headed toward the street that stank of blood."Stop!" A big tattooed man grinned sinisterly as he intercepted Frank.As his buddies encircled Frank as well, Frank snorted—it seemed that they took his reaction for a sign of weakness and thought that he could be cowed.The tattooed man rubbed his chin as he leered at Skyler's voluptuous figure, chuckling. "Look, boy. I'm short on cash, so let me take a loan. I'll pay you back some other day, how about that?"His friend laughed. "Exactly! You just gave Dani five grand, and we won't ask for more… just four, how about that?"Skyler scowled in turn and glanced worriedly at Frank beside her—was he
Frank himself had just stepped out of the nightclub when his eyes narrowed."Blood," he murmured, his nostrils twitching."Blood?"Skyler sniffed the air, puzzled. "I can't smell it.""It's from the opposite street… I smell the blood of over a dozen people.""A dozen?!" Skyler did a double take.He could identify the number of people who were killed?! That was just ridiculous!"Come on, let's take a look."Just as Frank led the way toward the source of the stench, a woman suddenly came up, catching Frank off guard and throwing herself into his arms."Hmmm?" He looked down to see that she had thick makeup, average looks, and a rather pudgy belly."Argh! He touched me!" she pointed at Frank and shrieked even before he realized what was happening."What?!" Skyler was staring at the woman too, mystified."Oh, sister! You just didn't see it!"The woman kept hollering, pointing at Frank's face. "Your boyfriend grabbed my ass! Is that how you teach him manners?!""Teach him ma
Wyvern screamed even as he clutched the stump that was his hand, screaming so shrilly one might mistake his voice as inhuman."Oh, just shut up." The lanky man glowered and launched a kick, reducing Wyvern into puddles of blood and pieces of innards, splattering all around the lobby. "Argh!!!" the devilish lady screamed as she watched the carnage unfolded."Another sound, and you'd end up just like him." The lanky man turned and frowned at her impatiently."Hngh…" The devilish lady promptly clasped a hand over her mouth, tears welling up in her eyes as she trembled."What the hell?!"Outside, Wyvern's lackeys heard the screams and ran inside, looking for him. "Hey, where's Wyvern?!"However, the lobby was too dimly lit for them to notice the blood and guts scattered around the walls, and they only sensed that terrible stench."Hngh…" The devilish lady was too scared to speak, and tears trickled out of her eyes."Fuck!"One of the lackeys strode up and seized the lanky man