Rewards

Ethan had returned home after his hunt, his heart still racing from the battle. He opened his inventory to check the loot he had gained from the mutated lizard, and a grin spread across his face as he saw the haul.

The first item that caught his eye was a Super Alloy Sword, a beautifully crafted weapon with a sleek, sharp blade. The description claimed that it was made using the latest technology, capable of cutting through steel and stone with ease—truly a blade that could cut through anything.

Next, he found a glowing jade slip. When he activated it, a martial technique appeared in his mind—Great Strength Bull Demon Fist. This technique harnessed incredible internal power with every strike, channeling a beastly force far beyond normal human limits.

Alongside that was another glowing jade slip, this time containing a Microscopic Movement Technique. It was a skill designed to enhance agility, allowing its practitioner to react faster and dodge attacks more effectively. This was a technique for evasion—perfect for close-quarters combat.

But the rewards didn't stop there. Ethan also found over $100,000 in cash, lizard venom, and various other materials like lizard spines—things he wasn't sure how to use yet, but they felt important.

"Talk about a jackpot!" Ethan thought, satisfied. His loot was far more than he'd ever expected.

After a few moments, Ethan stepped outside, away from the chaos of his cluttered apartment, and took the time to admire his new sword. He hefted the Super Alloy Sword in his hands, feeling its weight. It was heavy, a solid fifteen pounds or so. For a regular person, this would be hard to swing for long. But with his newly improved physique thanks to the Thunder Breathing Technique, it felt like nothing.

He swung the sword down toward a nearby tree.

Whoosh!

The blade sliced effortlessly through the bark and wood, cutting through the tree like a hot knife through butter. Ethan couldn't help but grin. This was as good as the description had said—"cuts steel and stone."

"Impressive," he muttered, retracting the sword and storing it in his inventory. Next, he pulled out the glowing Bull Demon Fist jade slip. His mind swirled as the martial technique formed in his head.

The image of a glowing golden bull appeared in his thoughts, performing rapid, powerful punches with incredible precision. Each strike seemed to have the force of a beast behind it, breaking through barriers with ease.

Without thinking, Ethan mimicked the movements in the air. His body adapted almost immediately, and with each punch, he could feel a surge of raw power coursing through him. The air crackled as his strikes cut through it. When he delivered a simple punch, the stump of the tree he had previously cut with the sword was immediately left with a deep crater in the center, splintered wood flying everywhere.

"Damn!" Ethan laughed to himself, excited by the newfound strength he felt. It wasn't just strength—it was like a beastly power surging through him. The Bull Demon Fist had already increased his physical capabilities tenfold.

Next, Ethan absorbed the Microscopic Movement Technique. As he focused on the movements in his mind, his body began to feel lighter and more flexible. His reactions sharpened instantly. The first step was to control his body's movements, anticipating his opponent's next move before it even happened.

A soft breeze brushed past him as his body began to move almost as if in slow motion. He danced lightly across the ground, his movements flowing like a leaf in the wind. Every step he took seemed to glide perfectly, each turn sharper and quicker than before.

"This is it," Ethan thought, satisfied. "Now, with the Bull Demon Fist and the Microscopic Movement Technique, my combat abilities are going to be crazy."

The next few days saw the world around him change rapidly. The internet was flooded with stories of awakened powers and mutated creatures. Everywhere Ethan looked, there were new reports of strange phenomena—awakened individuals emerging with terrifying abilities, and mutated animals wreaking havoc in some places. The world was changing fast, and the chaos seemed only to increase.

In his university's group chat, he saw more and more people claiming they had awakened powers. Out of his classmates, Lynn and Ged were already known to have awakened their abilities, but now even more people were announcing their own awakenings.

But as Ethan scrolled through, it was clear most of the new talents were pretty underwhelming. One person could change the color of their skin, another had the ability to grow taller by three inches, and another could even make their hair grow a meter long. Ethan shook his head and chuckled. These were the kinds of abilities people were getting in the early stages.

Then there was Ged, who had awakened a speed-based ability that was impressive enough to be classified as B-level. Still, even Ged's talent paled in comparison to Lynn's—her ability to control ice had a potential that seemed limitless, especially since elemental control talents were usually classified as A-level.

Ethan's curiosity grew as he read about two notable figures who had awakened S-level powers: a person called the Seraph, who could summon flaming wings to fly and launch devastating fire attacks, and another known as the Thunder King, who could move at lightning speeds and generate electric currents strong enough to kill large animals.

"They're on another level," Ethan thought. "But my Thunderstrike Bow might just give me an edge over anyone else."

As the days went on, Ethan continued his training. His Thunder Breathing Technique had reached the point where he could pull the Thunderstrike Bow to 90% of its full power. But the last 10%—the final breakthrough—remained out of reach. It felt like he had hit a wall, as though he needed a trigger, a catalyst, to push through.

He hadn't been idle, though. He'd continued practicing with the Bull Demon Fist and Microscopic Movement Technique, honing his physical prowess. The more he trained, the more confident he became that even without his bow, he could handle himself in a close-quarters battle.

Then, just as he thought his world couldn't get any crazier, his phone rang. It was Ned.