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n“There’s going to be a beast invasion soon.” Lloyd said severely, sitting across Liam in one of the underground restaurants.

nLiam gulped a mouthful of food and raised his brows. “What kind of magical beast?”

n“Lava Lions, hundreds. They’re monstrous beasts with the ability to conjure up magma and spew it everywhere, devastating the surroundings.”

n“Why don’t the noble soldiers do anything?” Liam asked, a bit shocked at that number.

nLloyd sighed. He had no appetite to eat anymore.

n“Invasions aren’t common. Usually, the Royce family sends strong cultivators to clear them out before it gets to that point.”

nLloyd scowled.

n“They tried to do the same… but didn’t know a Rank-4 beast was among them.” 𝗼𝘃𝗹.𝗼𝐫𝗴

nLiam stopped chewing.

n“A Zenith ranked beast?”

nLloyd gave a firm nod.

n“Regular Mortals can’t hope to hurt it — they need to have at least two centers of power at the third rank, or at least close to it… and there needs to be at least four or five of them. Only similar Zenith’s can fight it one on one.”

nLiam raised his brows in awe.

n‘To think that Zenith’s are so strong… and Celestials are even stronger.’

nLloyd rubbed his eyebrow.

n“Thing is, the beasts are heading for the peasantry, not the wealthy side of Ucladd. Which means that we won’t get any support from them against defending it.”

nLiam cursed loudly, catching the attention of the surrounding people.

n“You can’t be serious. Why can’t they just send the peasants underground temporarily?”

nLloyd shook his head with a frown.

n“These nobles are a lot more shallow than that. The underground serves as a hub for traders that come from other cities. If they hear anything about a beast invasion, they might grow fearful and avoid trading with them.”

n“There’s good news to this, though. They’ve already started building a new base for strengthening their forces. They’ll provide nourishing pills and potions for free, too.

n“Besides, the Rank-4 beast will be taken care of by a Zenith, but we’ll have to deal with its underlings until he arrives. There’s a good two weeks until the invasion, so prepare well.”

nLiam pursed his lips and nodded.

n***

nOver the next two weeks, the new guild base was erected – a large rectangular building.

nIt contained various facilities that helped the weaker ranked cultivators of the guild, including areas with higher concentration of ‘Ora’, and areas that helped speed up the expansion of the mental sphere.

nThat method of training was quite ingenious. The small inscribed area consisted of nothing except for a drugged Rank-3 Oppressive Toad in the middle, a frog-type magical beast that was mental attack based.

nThe Toad was roughly the size of a large bean bag – having blue skin with white protruding bumps on its slimy body.

nWith each croak, it applied bursts of pressure on all the cultivators around it – whoever was the closest, had the most pressure on his mind.

nAccompanied with the Psionic Rune, it could speed up the expansion by heaps.

nGranted, it hurt like balls, and too much exposure had negative effects.

nNeedless to say, nobody expected a child to sit so close to the frog. Especially since most common cultivators were way at the back.

nLiam had split his time between advancing his body and spending his time in that area, and he was close to the upper-stage.

nWhen the news of the invasion reached the peasantry, shock spread like wildfire. Many begged to be allowed inside the nobles’ side, but were firmly denied. Beaten, even.

nEve for one wanted to leave the city with her son, but Liam had stopped her from making that decision.

n“All carriage routes are blocked off.”

nEve opened her mouth but no words came out.

n“Just be patient, ma. I already said I’ll protect you, didn’t I?”

nLiam felt guilty seeing his mother look so worried, but it was for her own sake.

nOther than that, Liam’s schedule continued until finally, there was just one day left until the beast tide arrived.

nLiam was in Rogan’s forgery.

nThe businesses underground still functioned normally, since those present weren’t allowed to leave – but the nobles enticed them with wealth.

nRogan hadn’t planned to leave at all, but shamelessly accepted the payment anyway

nThe blacksmith had tired eyes and a natural scowl on his face, but in his hands, were a pair of blades.

n“Rank-3 Shadow Lykos. I spent some time on its endurance – it should take at least a month before it shatters. Apply some ‘Ora’ into it, and it’ll become ethereal without losing its sharpness.”

nLiam smiled and took the katana and wakizashi – the blades of which had a completely black sheen. The hilt was stitched with diamond patterns, and a wolf fang hung from a string at the bottom.

nSwinging it a few times, his smile grew wider.

n“Thanks, old man.”

nRogan scoffed.

n“Don’t try to butter me up, rascal. I know you have some hidden agenda.”

nLiam chuckled.

n“I’ll be leaving, then. I’ll need to prepare.”

nThe blacksmith nodded in response.

n“Next session, I’ll have you begin the Forging technique. You’re ready for it.”

nLiam nodded as he left – immediately heading back to his cave underground and throwing the bone strengthening pill in his mouth.

nThe taste was horrible, but once the contents entered his stomach, its effects were immediate.

nHis bones grew warmer and warmer, before reaching a boiling point.

nHe closed his eyes and manipulated ‘Ora’ to enter his bones, a slight frown visible on his face.

nAs the ‘Ora’ gathered on his skeleton, the bones suddenly grew a layer thicker and sturdier.

nThe process continued until all his bones had reached that state.

nLiam heaved a deep sigh with a slight smile on his face.

n‘Should be the peak of Rank-2. Now, all I need is just a few wounds for me to advance to the third rank.’

nFinally, the day of the invasion arrived.

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