The E-gan Steel Death Demon.
Race: Light and Shadow Creature.
A non-intelligent lifeform, filled with savage instincts. It attacks using its four arms, two of which can change form freely. It is inherently brutal in lee combat and highly destructive. The observed individual strength of this species ranged from the Fourth Stage at its lowest point to Fourth Stage Perfection at its highest. No individuals have been observed reaching the Fifth Stage.
Lucilia was writing in her bestiary about the Dream Realm creature they had encountered earlier. This was a creature Alka had discovered long ago and observed for a substantial period, with Lucilia taking notes beside him. The reason Alka had spent so much effort observing this creature within the Dream Realm was that it could compensate for his other shortcomings—naly, his lacking lee combat skills and rudintary lee approaches.
As the Magic Gathering Stone above the watchroom was deactivated, Alka walked out, covered in sweat. Looking at Lucilia, who was writing in the bestiary beside him, he asked, "How long have we been on this island?"
"Fifty-one days and nights."
"Has it been that long already?" Alka said, sowhat surprised.
Hearing this, Lucilia put down her pen and tilted her head to look at him. "What did you expect? What stage has your strength reached now?"
"Sixteen Spirals, two more than when we first arrived," Alka responded.
"Exactly. So what's so strange about it taking this long?" Lucilia retorted, once again focusing on the bestiary in front of her.
"Indeed. I didn't expect we'd already been on this island for so long," Alka said. He couldn't help it; this Trial Island was just too good, making one reluctant to leave. After all, the Tower of Trial offered weekly one-on-one, targeted training sessions with an exclusive instructor to improve one's strength—such an opportunity was incredibly rare.
The main issue was that they had not yet t the qualifications to undertake the challenge. According to his own coach, to attempt the challenge, one had to be significantly stronger than peers of the sa tier to even qualify. This essentially implied they didn't even possess the ability to obtain a Golden Treasure. However, this applied only to Alka and his companions.
"Alright, once you've finished writing, let's head down," Alka said. "Today is a significant day."
"I know, just a mont." After another short while, Lucilia nodded in satisfaction. "Now, Chadite just needs to illustrate it."
After stowing the bestiary, the two of them leaped down from the watchroom. They arrived at the dining area in the sterncastle and began eating breakfast. The others were already awake. Juanlu and Matilda were at the table eating, but it was evident both were distracted.
"There's no need to be so tense. Didn't your instructors say you have the requisite strength now?" Chadite comforted them from the side.
Hearing this, Juanlu rely took a deep breath, quickly finished the food in front of him, and composed himself. Matilda, however, still seed sowhat troubled.
"But my instructor also said my combat instincts aren't strong."
The only two on the ship without any Treasure were preparing to undertake the challenge mode today. Alka and his companions were not eligible for the challenge mode because their strength had not yet t the standard. According to their coach, attempting it now would undoubtedly be a waste of a once-in-a-lifeti opportunity.
Yet, Juanlu and Matilda faced no such problem. Since they possessed no Treasure, the challenge mode's Difficulty was naturally calibrated for those without one. In that context, the individual requirents weren't high. For them, swiftly clearing the challenge mode to obtain a Treasure was paramount. They had fallen further and further behind the others in terms of strength.
Over this period, both had reached Third Stage strength, but they were completely stuck there. Advancing even a single Spiral would require a long period of accumulation—at least half a year to start, even with the aid of the Magic Gathering Stone. Yet others, like Alka, had quickly reached 16 Spirals. Everyone else was between 12 to 14 Spirals. The boost from the Magic Gathering Stone for them was even more substantial.
The widening gap made it increasingly challenging for Juanlu and Matilda to keep pace. Although their roles on the ship were not primarily combat-oriented—more akin to logistical support—sailing in the Endless Sea required maintaining at least a basic level of strength. Falling too far behind would only make them a burden. Not to ntion, they had far greater goals.
「 」
After finishing breakfast, everyone hurriedly went to the Tower of Trial, standing beneath it. Alka looked at Juanlu and Matilda. He stretched out his hands, weaving together golden and silver Energy mixed with Dream Realm materials and so of his own blood. Through his rights as a Divine Descendant and Dream Realm King, he forged the seal representing his influence.
Alka's King's Seal was a sphere constructed of blue tallic lines, cradled in a palm, with a faint pink mist swirling around it. The two accepted it, looking at the tallic seal. Alka had given them his King's Seal previously, but this one looked more formal. After all, neither Matilda nor Juanlu were among those who could bypass formal qualifications. Although Matilda was a Saint of the Sea God, the problem lay in the fact that their race bore a curse. Unless it was cleansed, they could not receive the Sea God's formal blessings until the curse was purged. Juanlu rely held a simple faith in the Holy Mother, which was completely unrelated to being a Saint.
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