Chapter 197: Unknown Danger

Damian sparred with Kong many times and each time they would end up engaging in close combat and reaching a stalemate since both of them didn't want to go too far and accidentally harm the other.

Kong's close combat skills had improved greatly and it was learning from how Damian fought and quickly developing, which was shocking to witness.

The Monkey Beast was learning faster than even humans, who are supposed to be the more intelligent creature, would be able to, but Damian was happy that it was the case since it had become his Beast Pet and companion.

A second week in the beast woods passed in the blink of an eye and Damian had met all of his targets.

He had broken through into Rank 5 both Internally and Externally, and if he went all out and also harmonised his cultivation types as much as he could, Damian was sure that he could rival even ordinary rank 7 cultivators.

And with the support of Kong, who could understand what he was thinking and feeling after their Blood Bond was formed, he might even be able to face cultivators even more powerful than that.

However, Damian knew that it would be different against other prodigies of the new generation such as his friends and Clay, who even if he was at the same cultivation level as, would struggle against.

There were too many prodigies at once and the Gobe Country was too small and restricted to hold them all so it was only a matter of time before they all left to explore more of the continent.

However before then, there was the Akegria Academy Tournament at the end of the year, which was slightly over 6 months away and Damian was excited for it, since he would be able to observe and fight against many interesting and powerful individuals.

It would also display the power of the new generation prodigies and there would be many changes and big events that occur after that.

"Kong, come over here" instructed Damian, who was sat leaning against a tree on the edge of the Inner Part of the Beast Woods.

He had explored quite a few beast areas and spent a lot of time fighting, training or sparring with Kong, but his time outside of the academy was over and Damian wanted to tell Kong a few things before they made their way back towards the academy.

"You must stay in your small form at all times and must follow my instructions when we are outside of the beast woods as there are many dangers and you will get yourself and me in a lot of trouble. You must also act like a weak beast and you are not allowed to reveal your power or switch forms unless we are in private, I allow you to or it is a life and death situation" 

Kong could see the stern and serious expression on Damian's face, so nodded his head and understood all of Damian's conditions, but it couldn't help but be excited to go back to the city with him.

Damian could see its excitement and assured it that he would make sure that it had fun and also had time to cultivate and improve.

With a bag filled with many high level beast cores, a bow over his shoulder and a small Monkey Beast sat on his other shoulder, Damian made his way towards the village he had previously entered the beast woods from.

He hadn't been in the city centre that he was used to for an entire two weeks and hadn't seen many people, so was looking forwards to see his friends and mother after having a very eventful two weeks.

[Clay, Darren Shan, the Crown Prince and my friends are all the prodigies that I have come across or heard of. There are probably quite a few more, but I would guess that there are no more than a hundred within this country. If all of them are as capable as the ones that I have seen, then a war involving them would destroy the entire country and kill thousands of people. It would be best if they all decided to leave the country just like I am hoping to do after I am ready, that way we can all progress and develop, while the Gobe Country won't face the threat of destruction] thought Damian to himself while dashing towards the edge of the beast woods.

However, he knew that what he was hoping for was unlikely to occur and the friction between Akegria Academy and the Royal Academy was too high to suddenly be fixed.

But with power, one could do anything and Damian was going to become powerful enough to stop the conflict or take down the Royal Academy with minimal casualties.

Damian's power had taken a massive leap over the past two weeks and he had also now trained in 3 forms of energy and had quite a high mastery over all of them, making him a very skilled, versatile and capable cultivator overall.

He was also planning to continue permanently copying the Innate Ability of others' Soul Spirits and also practise temporarily copying them.

As Damian neared the village that he had previously entered the beast woods from, he suddenly had a bad feeling and everything was too quiet and he could sense that Kong felt the same way.

Through the village was the only way to get to the main path that led back to the city centre of Aria City and it was the fastest route and also the only place he would be able to get a carriage to go back to the city.

Finding another route would be difficult and inconvenient, while going through the village seemed to be a dangerous option for an unknown reason. 

[Could it be the Royal Academy Students. Maybe they brought with them reinforcements that I won't be able to handle. Either way, I will check it out as it is the only route I can take and if I can't handle the danger, I will retreat back into the beast woods that I have become very accustomed to] decided Damian as he communicated with Kong to prepare itself for combat, just in case.