"Haha boy! You finally decided to turn your weakness into strength. I feel very proud of you." Mad Beast Emperor patted Mike's shoulder as both of them entered their room. Daniel was still outside doing some of his works.
"Hush!" Although Mike also felt proud of his master's praise, he was still thinking about Jenny. Even though he succeeds in controlling his tears, he couldn't bury down his sadness.
"Don't fall in the abyss of darkness! If you ever fall down, nobody can pull you out. Although it's hard to accept it, you must make your heart solid. This is the second step. You might feel sad, crumbled, anger, but if you make your heart solid, then nothing can bother you."
"Use those attitudes growth in the first step make your heart solid. It will take time. Don't be anxious and just keep your heart steady and soon, everything will be changed." Mad Beast Emperor chuckled as he tried to cheer him.
At the same time, he took out a few potions bottle filled with red blood and stuffed them in Mike's hands, saying "Since you have faced a genius-level character just now then you should know the difference. Not to dishearten you or anything, but even Seru is only low-level geniuses between other geniuses."
"Olive in the same position though you might be now a Middle-Level Genius. As much as I want you to win, I don't want to hasten your growth. So, I didn't support you financially. Now that you have proven that you can turn your weakness into strength, I feel like it's time to make you a High-Level Genius."
"Before that, let me tell you something about the level of geniuses. Currently, we have differentiated geniuses based on their fighting power. As a human, we have a lot of options. And such, we can choose from a whole bunch power systems."
"First and foremost, we have our own Cultivation System. Here, you awaken an innate ability that determines your level of talent. Having S-Rank Innate Ability puts you in the position of a Low-Level Geniuses. This includes your mastery of skills and your fighting styles."
"This allows making a gap between geniuses even in the Low-Level Genius rank. There can be people at the bottom and some people at the top."
"Second, we have Gene Modification Fluid which is another power system. It also has the same ranking as Innate Ability. That means having an S-Rank Gene will put you at the Middle-Level Geniuses. But you clearly do not possess S-Rank Gene."
"Now, here comes a twist. While you might not have S-Rank Gene, you possess Yellow-Level Spirit which is a trademark for High-Level Genius. Yes, in short Blessings and Spirit can rank us in the High-Level-Genius Rank."
"But to reach that rank, you also need trademarks of previous ranks. You need S-Rank Innate Ability and S-Rank Genetic Modification. As much as I hate the fact that you do not possess S-Rank Genetic Ability, you still fill that gap with a unique strength of yours. It feels like inhuman strength from human logic."
"After all, you possess the strength of two thirteenth rank soldiers. And, you also have taken two drops of dragon blood. But, it is still hard to rank you up in the High-Level Genius because you do not possess that strength."
"Since I don't want you to receive the blessing from other gods, these resources are the gifts from me. Use it to strengthen yourself. It will probably take two days to finish the first stage, so take your take."
"By the way, since I am already telling you about the power system. Let me make something clear for you. There is another power system known as Bloodline Power System. It is common among other races but it's also the limit for them."
"Bloodline gives you a powerful boost in strength and growth with few ancestral abilities. It has the same ranking as others. Even those genes, blessings, spirits, and bloodlines are power systems, our main power system is Cultivation System."
"No matter what the primitive human tried to achieve, we still differentiate each other based on Cultivation System. Other Power Systems are just a reasonable boost for growth and strength. Now, take a rest for few hours and start cultivating."
Creek!
Saying so, he ended up leaving the room. As he came out, Daniel was standing next to the door.
"So, you couldn't stop yourself," Daniel spoke with a calm tone.
"Hahaha Daniel, you should have noticed the anger in his heart. I have seen that anger. It was the same level of anger he showed previously but this time, he didn't shed tears of blood. He kept the anger in his heart until he got alone."
"Crying alone might be depressing but it is also the only way to relieve the stress faster. Upcoming battles will be much worse, he needs to get stronger." Mad Beast Emperor with a burst of laughter and a sharp look in his eyes.
"But, you forgot to tell him about the Superior-Level Geniuses." Daniel sighed as he shook his head with helplessness.
"Nope, he shouldn't know about that right now. There are less than eight people in the tournament. If his luck is really rotten, he might face them. But if it is not, then it will be a blessing for him. Those monsters will slaughter him if he can't get stronger." Mad Beast Emperor spoke with a grim expression on his face and walked away.
Daniel turned his head at the door and followed his master while mumbling "Innate Ability, Bloodline, Genes, Blessing or Spirit, I hope his luck won't be so terrible."
Inside the room, Mike leaned on the walls for two hours with a blank expression. The potions were already at his system space. After two hours, he dials room service and orders food. At the same time, he walked towards the washroom and washes his face.
Slap!*2
After splashing water in his face, he slaps both of his cheeks at the same time and smiles, consoling himself 'Alright Mike, you have already wasted two hours. You can't waste any more time. Let's start the cultivation.'
But before that, he went to the table and sat down.
One minute... Two minutes .... Ten minutes.....
He waited for the food with patience. But when the doorbell rang, it was done by another person, not a member of the hotel. Olive was standing in front of the door. He got no choice but to welcome her. But suddenly, a silence spreads in his room.
"Umm….. Are you angry with me?" Olive made an embarrassed expression and asked. She waited for two minutes but chatterbox Mike didn't speak a single word. And, seeing his anger at the end of the battle, she felt a little conflicted.
She felt as if Mike was angry with her. She mustered up her courage and asked. But before Mike could reply, a growl rang from his stomach. Mike clutches his stomach with an embarrassed expression but still stayed silent. He felt like he would pass out any moment if he spoke a single word.
Food! He misses her food. And more importantly, he was extremely hungry. They reached Imperial State at three in the afternoon. After two hours of break, he only had two cups of coffee. Then, he had to fight until his stamina is completely exhausted.
It is already eight in the evening. And now, he was feeling hungrier than ever.
"You are hungry?" Olive swallowed her laughter and asked with amusement.
Mike nods his head in reply.
"Did you order the food?" Olive asked trying to make a conversation.
Mike nods his head in reply.
Finally, Olive stayed silent. She doesn't understand why Mike was not even trying to speak. But she sighed a breath of relief when she found he wasn't angry with her. Suddenly, her face started blushing as she thought 'Why am I getting so interested in him?'
'Did he win my heart in just a few hours? That's impossible, right? Then, why do I get this kind of feeling towards him?'
Her heart started fluttering over each thought. But suddenly, her thoughts were shattered with a doorbell.
"Room Service!"
A man standing with a trolley with food shouted from outside. Mike hurriedly walked in as the man brought the food inside. After delivering the food, the man walked out with a strange smile on his face.
Neither Mike nor Olive noticed his smile as he walked out. There were various types of food. He started serving food on a plate for himself and then looked at Olive asking if she needs one.
Olive declined by shaking her head with a red face. After that, Mike puts the plate on a table and starts devouring the food at a rapid speed.
"Slow down! Food won't go anywhere. You might choke if you keep eating so fast." Seeing his eating speed, Olive tried to calm him down but after a minute, Mike suddenly felt a burst of pain in his head.
"Blegh!"
Spitting food on the table made Olive disgusted only until Mike's hoarse voice rings in her ears.
"P---oison! Food is poisoned!"
Thud!
With these words, Mike fell to the ground.
"Mike!" When she heard him, she couldn't process those words. Only when she saw him falling to the ground unconscious, she rushed to support him.