At a specific point south of the Kingdom of the Waves, there was a large forested region even more extensive than the entire Black Plain.

That place was filled with trees of different types and heights, some even reaching 200 meters in height. In part, this forest was completely dense, with many trees side by side, creating a zone of twilight, given the fact that the light rays did not reach the ground in these places.

Elsewhere, woods and fields dominated this forest. Together with that, several rivers passed through these areas, with great water bodies, such as a large lake in the central region of this location.

And in this distinct habitat and large domain, several spiritual beasts lived there, subdivided into tribes, which, in general, were in specific areas.

Unlike the Black Plain, where the beasts typically followed in groups from one place to another in a nomadic way, the local beasts had their own territories.

In Minos' territory, there was not much food available, and the native beasts of the region had to travel constantly to get food. Sometimes the food was the human... Other times it was other species of spiritual beasts found regionally.

Anyway, in that desolate territory, spiritual beasts needed to work hard to survive, even considering that their characteristics helped them in their survival...

But in the Flooded Valley, this forest region in question, there was not so much the lack of food, and there were beasts smart enough to enforce specific rules.

Several beasts could reach the 5th stage of cultivation in this region, including a few that could reach the 6th stage!

Because of this, many tribes with intelligent beasts existed throughout the Flooded Valley, forming a dynamic similar to those of human territories.

Each beast had its tribes in certain areas, such as cities led by noble families, and there were also free places, not restricted, nobody's territory.

And in the midst of this region dominated by spiritual beasts, in a place with a great density of trees, almost as dark as night, even though it was day, two youths were fighting.

One of them was only in brown trousers, while his defined chest was bare, without clothes or protections. He just held a wooden stick in his hand as if he were wielding a sword.

This young man had brown hair, and even though he was constantly moving, there wasn't even a drop of sweat on his body.

On the other hand, a woman with blue hair was constantly attacking, occasionally defending herself with everything she had. She was completely soaked in sweat, and her beautiful face was pale at the moment.

She wore blue armor over her dress, which displayed a golden

"M

" symbol within a blue circumference.

These two, of course, were Minos and Abby, who had already left Diamond City about four days ago, and were now training in some part of Flooded Valley.

After leaving that city, the two had not encountered any problems so far, as they had barely reached the core of the forest.

That forest could not be crossed by them quickly, even with a 4th stage beast like the one with them. And to make matters worse, the two were not traveling in a hurry. Instead, the two were cultivating and training as they traveled, so they had barely left the south side of this forest region.

Consequently, the weaker beasts in the surroundings of this forest would not approach Minos and Abby due to their spiritual power.

As for the training Minos was doing with Abby right now, that was something the two of them had started practicing the same day they left Diamond City.

For Abby, this training, while very difficult, was something that could significantly increase her cultivation speed, given the pressure Minos was putting on her during their matches.

This young man was limiting his power so that she could have chances to counterattack while he was using neither the Devouring Art nor the Spatial Sword.

After all, if he used such techniques, Abby wouldn't even have a chance to train!

Consequently, it would make no sense for Minos to pressure her that way.

What he was using against her were his other two techniques, focused on defense and movement, to dodge and defend against Abby.

However, with the help of sticks, Minos could still use his Spatial Sword understandings to create spiritual attacks without using the power of this technique.

That was somewhat similar to the way Emlyn could use her claws to create air blades...

And so, Minos could attack Abby with blows of a similar level to hers, which would force this young woman to defend herself, having to use her defense technique constantly.

Finally, the two of them were training twice a day in this way, while they still stopped practicing each of their techniques and cultivating. Both wanted to improve their strength, especially Abby, so they were very motivated in this travel and training routine.

Anyway, at this moment, Abby, who was already completely tired and dirty due to the falls she had suffered, finally stopped after seeing Minos' gesture.

"You're trying so hard, Abby. That's fine, but don't push yourself too hard. Too much effort can result in muscle stress…

" Minos gave her some hints as he used his senses to scan the surroundings.

"Hah... Hah... If I don't do this, I'll just be a burden to you in no time...

" She replied breathlessly, trying to recover slowly.

Minos then came up behind her and lightly hugged her, not wanting to pressure Abby's body, which was already sensitive due to their fight.

"That bothers you a lot, huh?

" He asked with a smile on his face as he smelled the sweet scent of his friend's blue hair.

But she didn't answer him, just tried to pull away as she said something.

"Don't hug me like that. I'm dirty and stinking!

"

But he didn't care about such a thing. Abby's smell couldn't be considered bad even with her all sweaty and dirt-smeared. Minos then brought her back into his embrace and said.

"What about this? I'll let you learn the Silver-grade techniques I had promised the Elite Squad soldiers.

"

After hearing this, Abby turned to him and looked at his face in shock.

"But… No, that I won't accept. Every soldier in the army dreams of these techniques, and will you just give them to me without my doing anything to deserve them? Isn't that very unfair to them?

"

Minos then smiled at her and said.

"It would be more unfair if someone of a noble family competed with them. A person who grew up learning Black-grade techniques, with superior talent and level than most of them, people who until recently had never fought in their lives...

"

"This…

" Abby tried to say something, but nothing could be said to counter Minos' words. In fact, if she were to compete against those soldiers in the exam that would take place in less than a year, she would undoubtedly pass.

"But I also didn't make any contribution...

"

"Hmm, that's right...

"

"But think of it as an investment that any leader would make in the most talented and trusted people. Then we'll give a chance to another soldier of humble origins because you won't be able to take the exam if I teach you the techniques now.

" Minos said as he held her in his arms.

Minos wasn't suggesting it for just that reason, of course. Otherwise, he would have offered it before, just as he could have done the same with Peter, Robin, and Barbara.

Even though they didn't have the same advantages as Abby, these three still had very high chances of making it to the 20 selected for the Elite Squad.

However, they didn't have two things that Abby did. First, the reliability, something generated by the fact that Minos has known this young woman for many years. And second, because she was living with him daily, without any chances of leaking any information, even if she didn't want to.

Also, Minos would genuinely like to have someone else with the strength of a Spiritual King. Even if Abby didn't have the required level yet, she could achieve it by the end of the trip if she started using Silver-grade techniques now.

That was an investment for the Black Plain, a way for him to split the weight on his shoulders and a way to relieve his partner's mental pressure...