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"Just an advancement in rank, what's so surprising about that?"
Faced with Circe's astonishment, Luo En rolled his eyes habitually and replied somewhat indifferently.
"The key is you're only sixteen years old!"
Circe involuntarily raised her voice a few notches, complaining to her wayward disciple and foster son as she counted on her fingers.
"You reached the Gold rank at just twelve, and then in a mere four years, you entered the peak of Gold. I've never heard of any human advancing so fast!"
The Great Witch inadvertently did some calculations and the more she spoke, the more shocked she felt. Even the way she looked at her student and foster son began to seem a bit strange.
"No, it's even more than that!
Not even the supernatural creatures of the Sea of Okeanos, nor the half-Titans on nearby islands have ever been so outrageous!
I'm beginning to wonder, are you really human?"
Under Circe's sharp scrutiny, Luo En cleared his throat lightly and his gaze drifted somewhat.
"Maybe I'm just luckier than most."
According to the rules of mythology and magic, mystical powers often follow this characteristic:
—The older it is, the more mysterious; the more mysterious, the more powerful.
When the world was still in chaos, beings called "the gods" were born from the purest essence.
Absorbing magic power factors and mastering natural laws was as simple as breathing for them, an authority inherent in their being.
Therefore, the first of these existences had the highest starting point and virtually endless room for growth.
But as heaven and earth parted, the sun, moon, and stars rose and set; as time and space were divided, and the concepts of life and death, flourishing and withering took shape, the framework of the world also gradually stabilized.
In this process, the species on earth exchanged and evolved batch after batch.
They once could absorb magic power and be linked to the essence in their blood, but it became degraded and diluted over time. The ceiling of their growth was consequently being lowered progressively with the stabilization of the world's structure.
Even across different mythologies, there's a similar consensus in the descriptions of the primordial world.
Initially, the air was filled with high concentrations of ether factors, food was everywhere, the earth flowed with milk and honey, and all things grew freely.
With his current slight abilities, let alone being caught up in world-class missions like "Olympus Elegy," "The Wrath of Zeus," or "War of the Gods," even if he encountered epic instances such as the "Argonaut Expedition," "The War of Troy," or "The Twelve Labors," if by chance he carelessly collided with any of the gods in disguise who descended to Earth or a whole bunch of legendary Demigods lurking in the corners, these would pose tremendous risks for him.
A slight misstep, and he would still have to kneel.
As for reaching Gold or the peak of Gold, it is probably just a matter of kneeling sooner rather than later.
Just the thought of that night sixteen years ago, with the suffocating, rampaging thunderbolts filling the sky, Luo En would reflexively feel a heart-pounding fear.
This feeling of not being in control of his own fate was terrible.
Not enough, far from enough!
The sense of crisis gnawing at his bones left Luo En without any joy of promotion, instead turning to earnestly look at his teacher.
"I have now reached the peak of Gold, what should I do next to become a Demigod?"
"To have reached such a state, and still, you are not satisfied?"
Circe looked at her student in surprise, somewhat unable to understand.
"Is studying and cultivating, these dry and bothersome affairs, that fascinating to you?"
"Fascinating is not the word I would use..."
Luo En shook his head, his eyes deep and distant.
"It's just because learning might be the simplest thing in this world. Effort is rewarded, hard work leads to results..."
—And besides, it's the only thing I can do right now.
He silently added in his heart, then gathered his thoughts, and once again turned to his somewhat stunned teacher to bring the conversation back on track.
"Tell me, what should I do?"
Hearing the call, Circe shook her head, snapping out of her daze, but instead of answering directly, she threw out a question with profound implications.
"Do you know why in the mystical system the first four tiers of power—Iron, Bronze, Silver, and Gold—exclude Demigod?"
Luo En frowned and thought for a moment, answering uncertainly.
"Because being a Demigod is fundamentally different from the previous four stages?"
A flash of surprise passed through Circe's eyes, yet her face didn't show much of a ripple of shock.
After all, having been accustomed to spending time with her student, his overly mature mentality and insight beyond normal humans had already become something she took for granted.