146 Assassination (I)
[Scanning Vessel
...
...
-Vessel’s ability to drive Wave has increased by 8.9%
-Vessel’s current Wave Talent is Pseudo Tier 5]
A large smile appeared on Cain’s face as he saw that outcome. The Wave Virus worked almost ten percent better than the last time, and he could feel the rise in the speed at which his body could drive Life Wave and purify it into Astral Wave.
Although Cain wanted to start his training, he was exhausted and needed a good night of sleep. He went to his bed and fell asleep in a moment.
Once Cain woke up and felt all the fatigue gone, he took out a wave crystal and Dragon Blood Grass to begin his training. The speed at which the Astral Wave was generated and circulated in his body made him smile.
After eight hours, Cain was ready to stop his cultivation and focus on his Hypnosis Master training when he felt it.
.....
Cain’s eyes widened, breaking his Embryonic Breathing state, as his entire body began to tremble. He felt an immense surge in his strength and Astral Wave.
‘My cultivation is advancing to Level 4!’
Cain’s eyes burst with red light as he made sure to heighten his focus to the peak. The meridians he had formed over the last year were finally ready to pierce into his bones.
That step was a bottleneck that stopped the cultivation path of many, as their foundation was too weak, and their meridians were not strong enough to pierce into the bones, leaving them stranded at Level 3.
If Cain were inside a Recovery Capsule, the Wave Artifact would have guided the process, but since that was not the case, he had to do it on his own.
Cain followed the guidance of the Fiend Devourer Cultivation Technique, focusing on every meridian, and using his mind and willpower to guide them through the excruciating process.
‘It is as if thousands of ants were biting my bones simultaneously.’
There was immense pain, but Cain could not give himself the luxury of using his Ego Wave to block it since all the strength of his willpower was on guiding his meridians.
Usually, a Level 3 Wave Cultivator would only need around half an hour to finish this process. Still, thanks to the Blood Refinement Art and his high percentage of marrow washing, Cain’s bones were almost twice as resilient as that of other Astral Wave Cultivators at the same level.
Luckily, due to the use of wave crystals, Cain’s meridians were more than strong enough to pierce the bones, but it would still take a longer time, increasing the pain he had to endure.
Finally, after one hour and twenty-five minutes, Cain’s body stopped trembling, and a small shock wave seemed to emerge from inside his body as he experienced an impressive boost in his strength.
Cain was exhausted, but there was an absolute thrill on his face as he felt the rush of Astral Wave through his body. And things went even better since the next second, a black substance began to emerge from his pores!
Right after reaching Level 4, Cain’s body went through another session of marrow washing!
Despite the fatigue, Cain did all he could to boost the marrow washing until a thick black layer covered his entire body. He immediately ran to his shower and did not leave before scrubbing every corner of his body.
When Cain walked out of the shower, his entire body was bursting with strength, and his skin looked even more pristine than a baby’s. Although he did not really enjoy a bald head, it would not take long for his hair to grow back.
Cain clenched his fist, and the feeling of strength filled his eyes with excitement.
“System, scan my body and show me the changes I just underwent!”
Like always, the Absolute Life Form System obeyed Cain’s order without delay.
[Scan of Vessel completed
—
Name: Cain Laurifer
Race: Godslayer Humankind
Path of Power: Astral Rebirth (Level 4 Wave Warrior)
Lineage: Lightning Lupus
Wave Talent: Low Tier 5
—
Stats:
Strength: 0.78–>1.1
Agility: 1.0–>1.2
Vitality: 1.2–>1.6
Wave: 9.7–>1.2
—
Marrow washing: 37% completion]
Cain could not contain the thrill in his heart as he saw those numbers. Not only his cultivation base improved drastically, but his Blood Refinement Art gave his strength and vitality a massive boost.
Usually, a Level 4 Wave Warrior would only have one of their stats above 1 point upon their advance, but all of Cain’s were at that level. And his most impressive stat, his vitality, was already approaching the standard of Level 5.
One of the things that excited Cain the most was that his Wave Talent finally broke the glass ceiling and entered Tier 5. Even if it was just the lowest level of the Tier, his cultivation speed advanced drastically. However, he would still have to wait and see if the Tier remained the same once the effect of the Wave Virus was gone.
Right now, Cain felt stronger than ever, and he knew that his new cultivation base enhanced the strength he could unleash through the use of the Four Basic Wave Arts and his Asura Form exponentially.
Cain was sure that if he faced Great Tyger, Young Elephant, and Young Monkey right now, he could kill the trio in a direct battle without using schemes or hypnosis.
As his strength and vitality rose, Cain felt tempted to return to the Pillars of Trial. He felt confident in securing 1st place in both the Pillar of Strength and the Pillar of Resilience, making his name N°1 in all of them!
However, while that was tempting, his new strength and skills guided Cain in a different direction. He had made a very important promise and would no longer postpone it.
‘Although my assassination training is far from over, my current domain of stealth and infiltration should be enough to fulfill this task. I should be able to end that person and leave no trace from my presence.’
Cain’s eyes grew cold as he remembered the graves he dug during his first mission, and a monstrous killing intent burst from them as the smallest one appeared in his mind.
He punished the ones who did those despicable acts, but someone else was just as responsible yet had escaped the repercussions.
“Apex, you have Clacius’ agenda hacked?”
“Yes, I did it a while ago and have kept tabs on it since then. I did the same with his secretary and bodyguard so there would be no mistakes.”
Apex’s voice was calm, but there seemed to be a slight hint of joy since he knew the path that Cain was about to embark on. He did not keep the young man waiting and displayed the trio’s agenda.
Cain went through the trio’s schedule and saw that Clacius had a meeting in a small city a few hundred kilometers away from Rouk City.
“Do you plan to attack him during his journey?”
Cain immediately shook his head when he heard Apex’s question.
“I am no longer a novice and understand the difficulties of assassinating a moving target in an unknown terrain.
Rouk City should still be under reconstruction, right?”
Apex spent most of his time hacking into the empire’s network, accumulating more and more information, so he was able to answer Cain’s question in a second.
“Rouk City’s walls have already been repaired, but the interior is still in work. Hundreds of people come in and out of the city daily due to the reconstruction effort.”
Cain considered everything, and soon a sharp light appeared in his eyes, along with a cold smile. He ordered materials from the military academy’s network before taking an unimportant mission close to Rouk City.
Even if his background was impressive, he was still a cadet and needed a reason to leave the fort. The mission he took was recollecting some herbs, which he could do in a few hours, keeping his cover.
Cain did not waste time, getting into a military truck and marking the coordinates for a forest near Rouk City. While the vehicle advanced toward the city, he took out his Genetic Chamber and created a special Wave Virus.
Although he did not have a recipe, it was not hard for Cain to create a unique Wave Virus that would fulfill a particular role with his current knowledge as a Genetic Coder.
Other than making the Wave Virus, Cain discussed his plan with Apex and was surprised to see that the input of this one when it came to assassination where not any worse than Jonathan’s.
It became clear to Cain that Apex was a master in that field, but the System Spirit did not help him before because it was his job to learn it with his own strength.
Once the military truck reached its destination, Cain vanished into the forest and made his way to Rouk City, hidden from the sight of anyone.
Cain reached the city in less than an hour and took a deep breath as he went through every step in his mind.