Tyr took a step back. He stared at the petals below him.'1... 2... 3...' He began to count.
'20... 20 petals.'
Out of nowhere, he smiled.
"Damn... I really am an idiot, huh. People have dedicated their lives to try and join this faction, and yet here I am, complaining about a simple test. All it is is an excuse. I am just complaining because I am weak..." he muttered under his breath.
He picked up the twenty plum blossom petals one by one.
'I have no clue if this will help me become stronger... but what the hell do I know anyways? Clearly... I am a nobody here. I need to become truly stronger before I can form an opinion on anything.'
He threw the petals in the air, attempting to balance them on his finger again.
'Remove my doubt.'
Tyr repeated in his head as he continued to practice.
'Don't be arrogant.'
He failed miserably again.
'And learn from those stronger than me.'
Again, he failed in balancing even a single petal.
'Remove my doubt, don't be arrogant, and learn from those stronger than me.' Tyr exhaled deeply. 'Tsk... as it stands now, I have no choice but to follow this old man's words. If that's what it takes to pass this exam, then I will happily do it with complete discipline.'
The next day arrived. Tyr had trained through the entire night, not getting a single second of sleep.
He was in the flow state of learning, completely enthralled in the process. His eyes were like a hawk's—zoning in on each petal with an unfaltering gaze.
As the sun's orange rays cloaked the landscape, a young monk entered the garden in which Tyr was training.
He crossed over the koi pond, placing a wooden basket on the floor.
He was bald, likely in his twenties.
"Tyr, your food is here," he said from afar, but his words went through one of Tyr's ears and right out of the other.
Tyr was far too locked in right now to hear anything going on around him.
"It isn't anything normal. Since you are an Elite Recruit... your meal consists of 2 S-grade cultivation pills, and highly nutritious food balls."
As soon as Tyr heard this, he turned and faced the young monk.
He dropped the three petals on his index finger and walked over to the basket on the ground.
His entire body was drenched in sweat. His hair was far more curly and thick, all drooped down and frizzled with sweat.
"2 S-grade cultivation pills?" Tyr asked.
However, the young monk seemed to be distracted by something else in his train of thought.
He spoke, "Did you just have... three petals on your finger?"
Tyr didn't hesitate to reply, "Yeah... now answer my question."
The monk's eyes widened with shock. 'Al-already? T-three petals? In less than a day...' He gulped. 'This guy... is he human? It usually takes a week or more to get a single petal for most recruits... how on Subworld did he get it in merely a few hours!?'
"Oh-uh-yes. 2 S-grade pills..."
Tyr raised an eyebrow at the monk. "If I'm not mistaken, the ranking system here for beasts is the same as in Ainsveld, correct?"
"Yes. This is due to there being more powerful beasts here in Eldraemar. The system works all across Subworld universally."
"So these are pills from Purple rank beast cores? Berserk rank beasts?"
The monk swiftly replied, "Indeed."
A smirk pulled on Tyr's lips. "Wow... sick," he exclaimed. "Thanks... now get outta here. I gotta continue my training."
The monk nodded, taking a step back. "For your information, cultivation can be performed within our main temple. Aura is more rich inside of there..."
Tyr squinted his eyes, nodding as well.
"Oh, and also, before I leave," the monk continued, "Your sleeping quarters will be—" He was cut off.
"No need... I won't be staying long enough to need that. Trust me."
The monk was taken aback. "Tyr... you shouldn't be arrogant."
Tyr faced the monk outright, "I am not saying that through arrogance... or even confidence. I am saying that through certainty. I know I can do this task within a matter of days. If I need to sleep, I'll sleep right here on the floor."
The monk was puzzled for a moment. He bowed slightly before leaving the garden. Experience more tales on m v|l e'-NovelFire.net
Tyr sat down before the pills and the 'food balls.'
The food balls were small, compact, light-brown spheres the size of golf balls. There were 5 of them in the basket.
He popped a couple in his mouth... and immediately nearly gagged them out. S~eaʀᴄh the Nôvelƒire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
They tasted as bitter as scorpion shit and smelled even worse. Despite this, as their juices flowed down Tyr's throat, he instantly felt more rejuvenated.
It was as if the muscles in his body were immediately healed, and the tiredness he felt was erased as if it was never there in the first place.
'Perfect,' Tyr smiled, but then he immediately stopped smiling. 'Well... I mean, maybe not perfect. It tastes like shit after all. But, still... this is great. Now, I 100% don't need to waste time sleeping. This will make my stay here around twice as short.'
He grinned, quickly slamming the food balls before laying his hands on the S-grade pills.
They were like little condensed marbles of Aura, perfectly blended and fused in order to create a balanced outcome.
"So these are from Berserk rank beasts, huh... from what I understand, those stem from 400-1000 in terms of power level. Two of them should give me the power of a level up quite easily."
He looked up at the tallest building peak that he could spot. "I imagine that's the main temple." He stood up. "Pills are good to cultivate, right? I'm not a big cultivator yet, but I definitely intend to be in the near future. I might as well start now then."
He began making his way to the temple.