The Hunt in the Wild

For the next few days after Amden returned from his visit of his maternal grandparents, he focused on increasing his strength.

During these days, he sparred frequently with Cilia, Lucas, and Luna.

Although he had to hold back considerably against the twins and only Cilia was able to give him some pressure, it helped him deepen his understanding of his basics and techniques. He had the memories of the ancient god but he required the practice to smoothen his movements and the usage of techniques.

The sparring sessions, on the other hand, greatly benefited his companions. The twins made remarkable improvements.

Luna had recovered from her condition by absorbing the excessive and the overflowing spiritual energy from her body- she was now in peak form.

The new Villa Complex had been completed, and his father had decided to hold his birthday banquet in the new villa.

Amden's family was extremely excited about the upcoming event and spared no expense to turn it into a grand, luxurious, and extravagant celebration- a celebration befitting the status of heir of two elite families. Amden let them do as they pleased.

Meanwhile, Amden was traveling through a forest near the town of Azalia to hunt wild beasts.

Although he sparred regularly, he wanted to hone his skills in a real battle—even though the chances of encountering a life-or-death situation were extremely slim.

Cilia trailed him like a shadow. Since Amden was not venturing too deep, she would be able to handle any sudden danger. Even Lucas and Luna had wanted to explore the wilderness but were firmly denied permission.

Amden moved through the wild with great alertness. Although he was confident in his skills, this was the first time in two lifetimes that he was going to engage in a real battle- a battle in which blood would be spilled.

After traveling for a few minutes, he finally found his first hunt: a mid E Rank, ice-attributed wolf. Since this forest was located in colder regions, the beasts here were mostly ice-attributed.

For his first fight, Amden did not want to take any risks. He moved his hands, and the fire element enveloped his body. The flames soon transformed into a lotus with two petals, roughly the size of a fist.

This was his battle technique, "Nine Petals of Lotus." For now, Amden was able to form only two of the nine petals.

He then with a push of his palms thrust his hands forward, and the lotus blasted onto the wolf. A loud explosion followed, and the wolf was blown to bits, leaving only its monster core.

Amden was stunned. Although he knew he was powerful and that his skills were formidable, he had not expected to display such raw power without using much of his strength. From this, he determined that even as an E Rank, he could defeat any ordinary D Rank. Even Cilia, who had been hiding in the dark, was stunned by the power of the small-looking lotus.

For the next few hours, Amden kept hunting. He used every skill he had learned, except for the sword skill 'Heaven Cleaving Sword Strike'.

Just as he was about to return, a sudden noise startled him. It was a very large snake—black in color with crimson eyes. It was a peak D Rank, but not an ordinary one; the beast's strength rivalled that of an early C Rank.

Cilia reached near Amden in an instant, and she was about to kill it when Amden stopped her.

"Cilia, I have not yet been able to test my true strength. Let me fight it," he said.

She was about to object when he continued, "If I get into any danger, you can kill it instantly. Let me fight it."

After a moment of contemplation, she nodded in agreement and stepped back but kept a vigilant eye on the snake.

Amden moved closer to the snake. The snake eyed Amden for a moment and then lunged at a very fast pace.

Amden used his movement technique "Dashing Steps of Gale" to swiftly avoid the attack.

The beast then hurled a fireball at him. Amden simply dodged it and used his 'Dance of the Sword' to strike the snake, though it only left a shallow cut on its skin.

He continued to evade the snake's strikes and attack regularly; although he had the upper hand, he did not do much damage.

Then, suddenly, Amden leaped into the air and used the wind element to propel himself higher.

He raised his sword and struck with the 'Heaven Cleaving Sword Strike.' There was no fancy or dazzling movement accompanied by this technique- a simple sword ray left Amden's sword and it struck the head of the snake.

The beast's head was instantly severed, and it was followed by a long, deep, thin cut on the ground.

This came as no surprise to Amden—he knew how powerful this technique was. However, using it left him exhausted; it had drained almost all of his spiritual energy.

Cilia was stunned at the damage the sword strike had done to the ground— this was something that an ordinary C Rank would struggle against.

Now that Amden had spent almost all of his spiritual energy, he had to return.

He was completely exhausted and if not for his pride, he would have gladly allowed Cilia to carry him.