219 Invitation
Over the next month, soldiers and the students had several encounters, and there were times when battles almost started. It was common for those children of Noble Families to look down on regular soldiers, so they were enraged by the fact that they were taking down the packs they sought to kill.
However, there was nothing the students could do since they could only depend on their strength in this place, and the backing of their families did not matter.
Cain made sure that the soldiers knew they had to avoid conflicts and focus on increasing their power so they could face the Late Wave Champion Beasts but also gave the order to answer to any act of violence from the student side with absolute prejudice.
Antony and William were growing more and more powerful, having solidified their cultivation and making strides to the Middle Wave Champion level. Both were now using Wave Artifacts that greatly enhanced their battle powers and mastered new and more powerful techniques, making their combined power equal that of a Late Wave Champion Beast.
It would not be hard for both of them to take on the Hell Ape on their own if they faced this again, but the problem was that the packs at Blade Mountain's peak had more than just one Late Wave Champion Beast.
Simply relying on the duo would be foolish since there was not enough time to raise their cultivation to a level where they could take care of multiple Late Wave Champion Beasts independently.
The entire military force had to grow powerful enough so they could at least hinder the movements of Late Wave Champion Beasts.
Cain understood that, which is why he focused on improving the power of the soldiers and his own. Right now, he was in his tent, and there was an expression of absolute focus on his face as his Astral Wave burst with power, and a foul substance emerged through his pores.
He had suppressed his cultivation as much as he could. Yet, right now, his meridian had finally extended over his entire muscular system and pierced his skin, generating a direct path from the Rebirth Heart to the outside.
The power of Cain's Wave Cloak, Wave Focus, and Wave Burst grew exponentially after finishing with Level 6, and now he needed to branch his meridians again.
In Level 7, a cultivator must branch their meridians, generating a path from the outside world into their Sacred Organs. It would form a route for the Life Wave to enter the body, drastically improving your cultivation speed and stamina.
A cultivator's meridians were like a new extremity, so branching them was an excruciating process, but Cain's eyes exploded with red light as he suppressed the pain. He could not allow any distraction as he had to focus on using his bursting Astral Wave and Blood Energy to cleanse his marrow.
Every second counted, and Cain would not allow anything to mess with the improvement of his foundation, erasing everything from his mind other than the purification of his marrow.
After his Astral Wave calmed down, Cain relaxed. He opened his eyes and waved his hand, generating a blast of Blood Lightning that burned all the filth covering his body.
Cain clenched his fists, and a large smile appeared as he felt his strength and energy improvement. That thrill only grew stronger when he saw how all the fingers in both hands transformed into blood gems, and the force began to extend to the rest of the fist.
Once Cain managed to alter both hands, he would have reached the limit of the second level of Blood Hand. He would have to wait to become a Wave Champion to start the third level or achieve Flawless Marrow.
"System, scan me."
The Absolute Life Form System followed Cain's command as always, and it did not take long for a stream of information to appear in his mind.
Despite the improvement of 4% in his marrow washing, his Wave Talent did not improve, but Cain expected something like that. The higher the Tier, the harder it was to improve.
The only thing that bothered Cain was the improvement of his marrow washing. It was 4%, which was very good, but even if he could keep that rate, which would be extremely difficult, he would only reach Flawless Marrow before becoming a Wave Champion.
Many geniuses took Flawless Marrow as their goal, and Cain was among them until not too long ago, but now he wanted to rise even higher. To achieve a level that even the greatest geniuses of military Noble Families could only dream of, a 100% marrow washing!
"I need to find a way to drastically improve the tempering of my bones if I want any chance to reach that level."
Cain was determined to do all in his power to reach that goal. It would not be easy and force him to push himself beyond his limits repeatedly, but the gains would be incredible if he managed to do it. Just his foundation would attain a level where Wave King would not be a possibility but a certainty.
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After Cain's rise to level 7 and the upgrades of William and Antony, along with the overall improvement of all the soldiers, the military force was able to once again march higher into Blade Mountain, facing packs led by Late Wave Champion Beasts.
Nine months had passed since The Hunt's start, and the military force had risen over thirty thousand meters into Blade Mountain. At that point, the area had all sorts of craters and fists indentation. Most believe it to be the remains of a battle between King Beasts, but those were actually left by a certain clash between three very powerful cultivators.
Cain returned to his tent when night fell, and he was so exhausted that he fell to the ground. They had just faced a pack with two Late Wave Champion Beasts, and the pressure he, Antony, and William faced was overwhelming.
It was not the first time they faced that particular pack, but today was the day they pushed themselves and used every ounce of power inside their bodies to kill the Late Wave Champion Beasts instead of just making them flee the battlefield.
Just as he was about to fall asleep, Cain saw that a message had reached his [A.I. Chip Module], and the one that sent it was no other than his counterpart in the student force, Dominic.
There was no doubt that Dominic hated his gut, and he had no problem with that since the feeling was mutual, which is why Cain was so confused to see this one sending a message to him.
He had nothing to lose by seeing what was inside, so he opened the file and got an invitation. Dominic wanted the soldier force led by him, Antony, and William to help the student force take care of a pack.
Dominic knew that Cain would have many questions, so he wrote all the details into the file. It turned out that the student force had come in contact with a mine full of wave crystals, and it seemed there were mid and even high-quality wave crystals inside.
Although the scion would have wanted to keep everything for himself, there was a strong pack with four Late Wave Champion Beasts protecting the mine and devouring the wave crystals inside it. If they did not move fast enough, those beasts would eat everything and leave nothing, so speed was of the essence.
After reading that letter, Cain had a lot to consider, but the first thing he did was rest. He closed his eyes, and after making sure the Absolute Life Form System surveilled the area, he fell asleep.
Five hours later, Cain opened his eyes. He was still tired but had regained enough strength for a reconnaissance mission. Dominic did not reveal the localization of the wave crystal mine in the message, but it was not hard for Cain to predict the movements of the student force using the times they clashed with the soldiers as a reference.
Cain left the encampment after ensuring Antony and William were ready to handle any possible night incursion. Then he traveled to the side of the mountain occupied by the student force, and after almost two hours, a mine full of wave crystal appeared in his Ego Wave.