Chapter 399
Days passed in the blink of an eye, and before they knew it...
It was finally here.
The day the Aspirants would leave the Corps behind.
During the past few days, the cohort hadn’t spent their time resting.
Despite being told to relax after surviving the Forgotten Lands, every one of them threw themselves back into training and preparation.
Van practically lived inside his workshop.
Now that they were technically no longer ordinary Aspirants, curfew no longer applied to them.
So he devoted every waking hour to designing, inventing and building whatever came to mind, determined to strengthen himself before stepping into the Vanguard Order.
Chloe and Trisha trained side by side almost every day.
The two girls relentlessly sharpened both their individual abilities and their teamwork, determined to become an even deadlier pair on the battlefield.
Caster gradually drifted away from the group.
Although they had survived countless life-and-death situations together, he still couldn’t bring himself to fully insert himself into their circle.
For reasons even he couldn’t properly explain...
...it simply didn’t feel right.
Felix, on the other hand, practically became Ray’s personal instructor.
The werewolf focused on teaching him how to properly utilise Partial Werewolf Transformation.
Although Bruce possessed the instincts of a werewolf, Ray himself had never truly experienced controlling a transformation.
Whenever Bruce transformed, Ray merely watched from the sidelines.
Now...
He had to learn everything from the beginning.
Muscle control.
Balance.
Power output.
Timing.
And there was no better teacher than someone who had lived as a werewolf his entire life.
Their sparring sessions became a regular spectacle.
Every clash shook the training hall.
Walls trembled.
The floor cracked.
Even the Militants passing outside occasionally stopped to wonder what monsters were fighting inside.
Whenever Felix finally became exhausted and called it a day...
Ray simply continued alone.
He shifted his focus towards his Celestial bloodline.
Hour after hour...
He experimented with Partial Celestial Manifestation, learning how to summon and dismiss different portions of the transformation while gradually becoming familiar with the strange divine energy flowing through his body.
Every single day ended the same way.
Collapsed on the floor.
Completely drenched in sweat.
Every muscle aching.
Yet satisfied.
He pushed himself relentlessly, determined to master every new ability before graduation arrived.
One thing still bothered him, however.
Nebula.
He desperately wanted to summon her and test the strength of her humanoid form.
But doing so inside the Corps would be unbelievably reckless.
If anyone sensed the presence of an Emperor-rank beast...
...the entire base would descend upon him.
So, despite his curiosity, he resisted the temptation.
During those few days, Ray also focused on another task.
Absorbing the beast cores he had gathered throughout the Forgotten Lands.
His harvest had been enormous.
Sixty-five Advanced-rank cores.
Six King-rank cores.
One after another...
He absorbed their Meta Force.
By the fourth day, he finally reached his limit.
Now...
[MF: 200 >>> 500/500]
Even after reaching his cap, he still had twenty Advanced-rank cores and five King-rank cores remaining.
Since he had no immediate use for them...
He simply stored them inside his inventory.
Van had already reached his own Meta Force limit as well.
Unfortunately...
Neither of them knew how to help him break past his bottleneck.
His ability remained far too mysterious.
There were no known records.
No manuals.
No teachers.
Nothing.
As for Ray...
He already knew the answer.
Only another evolution would allow him to surpass his current limit.
Until then...
Five hundred Meta Force was his ceiling.
For now...
He had become stuck.
Another surprising development during those few days was Berg’s complete disappearance.
The Legacy hadn’t shown his face once.
And there was a very good reason why.
News of his humiliating defeat had spread throughout the entire Corps like wildfire.
Every retelling made the story even worse.
Some claimed Berg never managed to land a single hit before being knocked unconscious.
Others swore Ray defeated him with just one punch.
A few even insisted the proud Legacy had begged for mercy.
With every passing day...
The rumours became increasingly ridiculous.
But regardless of which version people believed...
The conclusion remained exactly the same.
Berg had become the Corps’ biggest joke.
A laughing stock.
A cautionary tale.
Unable to bear the endless whispers and mocking stares, the proud Legacy locked himself away in seclusion.
But today...
He wouldn’t be able to.
Every Aspirant had been ordered to assemble at the training grounds by exactly twelve noon.
Uniforms had to be spotless.
Hair neatly groomed.
Boots polished until they reflected the sunlight.
No one dared appear less than perfect.
As a result, countless Aspirants hurried across the Corps, making their way towards the grounds as quickly as they could.
It wasn’t because they feared arriving late.
It was because they feared making a terrible first impression on the distinguished guest arriving that day.
And who was important enough to throw the entire Corps into such a frenzy?
The Commander himself.
The head of one of humanity’s Big Four Legacy Families—
The Blade Family.
The supreme authority overseeing the Aspirant Corps, the Iron Corps and even the Vanguard Order.
Today...
Was no ordinary graduation ceremony.
The Blade Family’s leader rarely showed himself in public.
Much less visit the Aspirant Corps personally.
His appearance alone was enough to make even veteran Militants stand straighter than usual.
Reaching the grounds just in time were Ray and Van.
The pair had ended up slightly behind schedule because Van had stayed inside his workshop until deep into the previous night.
By the time he finally woke up...
Ray had no choice but to wait for his best friend to get himself together before they hurried over.
And now...
Here they were.
"Oi! Over here!"
Kai’s voice rang out above the chatter of the packed training grounds.
Ray and Van carefully navigated through the sea of Aspirants until they reached the handsome Legacy.
Kai wasn’t alone.
Standing nearby were Trisha, Chloe, Felix and Caster.
The seven naturally gathered together once more.
Or perhaps...
The other Aspirants simply refused to get close.
Whether consciously or not, everyone maintained a respectful distance from the group.
After everything that had happened...
No one looked at them the same anymore.
Particularly because of the icy pressure radiating from one specific individual.
Trisha.
"Having the Ice Queen around is truly a blessing," Felix chuckled.
"People save us the trouble of asking them to move."
A few quiet laughs escaped the group.
Turning around, Ray surveyed the gathering.
Thousands of Aspirants stood in perfectly straight rows with disciplined spacing between each line.
Although the cohort occupied different positions in separate rows...
They remained close enough to exchange glances or quietly talk whenever they wished.
At the very front stood a raised platform.
Simple.
Plain.
Functional.
There were no decorations.
No colourful banners.
No unnecessary ornaments.
Everything had been constructed entirely from earth through Meta abilities.
Even the staircase leading onto the stage had been moulded from compacted soil.
It perfectly reflected humanity’s current reality.
There was no room for extravagance.
Not while the world remained locked in an endless war.
Then...
The clock struck exactly twelve noon.
Whrrr...!
The rhythmic chopping of helicopter blades echoed across the entire training ground.
Every head instinctively tilted upward.
High above them...
A military helicopter hovered over the field before slowly descending in search of a suitable landing position.
The Commander...
Was here.
Or...
Was he?
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