Mystical Journey

The large pile of White Peacock Stone fragments was absorbed by the blue lines before flowing into Garen's body continuously.

On the Attribute Pane inside his vision, the changes within the Hellfrost Peacock Technique had gradually occurred.

'Secret Technique -- Hellfrost Peacock Technique: Living Secret Technique, origins unknown. Level Two Heart Reformation uses the Hellfrost Peacock's blood as the standard for the Heart Reformation to achieve the aim of strengthening the physique of the entire body progressively. Reformation time: completed.'

'Level Three Stomach Reformation has been completed. Peacocks possess great swallowing abilities and their stomachs can digest almost any substance. Once it has been integrated with Heart Reformation, it will create the Devour ability.'

'Natural ability obtained: Devour (The Queen of Peacocks' basic but strongest talent). Produces Distorted Seeds.'

'Completion rate of Level Four is at 78%.'

From 78%, it slowly crawled to 80%, and then jumped to 90%... 100%!

The moment it reached the one hundred percent mark, Garen suddenly felt a cold sensation surging out from his heart and flowing towards the various parts of his body. It felt as if he had suddenly jumped into an icy pond on a hot sunny day. It felt really nice at first until the temperature grew colder and caused his entire body to ache!

"Mmm…" Garen could not help but make a noise. However, he had yet to notice that many special changes had already occurred in his body while he sat cross-legged in the car.

It felt as if his entire body was pulsing like a beating heart. Meanwhile, a thin blue icy layer had covered the surface of his body. This icy layer was constantly extending itself towards his surroundings. It extended from the floor inside the car towards the other objects around it.

His hair was gradually turning somewhat blueish as well. It seemed as if his Secret Techniques were beginning to modify his physical body and its properties progressively. The color of his pupils was darkening to an extremely dark blue.

The icons on his Attribute Pane were currently transforming from blurry images to clearer ones, and changes had begun to appear throughout the information and messages regarding the initial Hellfrost Peacock Technique.

'Secret Technique -- Hellfrost Peacock Technique: Living Secret Technique, Level Four. Completion rate of Level Five is at 7%.'

'Natural Ability Obtained -- Devour (Devours various living things to restore body)'

'Natural Ability Obtained -- Distorted Seed (Creating chaos is the Hellfrost Peacock's favorite pastime)'

'Natural Ability Obtained -- Cold Chaos (Causes fluctuations in time and space naturally and releases cold air naturally within an area of ten meters to create a chaotic low-temperature area with the lowest point at ten degrees. Simultaneously, there is a low probability that it will trigger confusion within the minds of its enemies, causing them to attack randomly)'

"It seems like Cold Chaos is the ability that I gained after completing Level Four. I get new abilities even before completing new levels. This is pretty good," Garen examined his abilities carefully. Strangely enough, each ability that was formed by the Living Secret Techniques had corresponded with his body completely like the Natural Abilities. When he used them, it felt the same as using his Attribute Abilities. It felt as if he had been born with these talents.

"They are truly mystical Living Secret Techniques," he turned around and looked at his surroundings. Everything around him, including the floor of the car, was releasing gloomy cold air faintly. Moreover, the source of this cold air was his own body.

"The effects are not that great but they would probably be very useful in the Secret Technique World instead. Since this is a powerful world with Mechs that can destroy planets, these abilities are not as significant anymore."

He studied the dispersing cold air carefully. It did not consume a large portion of his energy as it was almost the same temperature as his own body. He tried to suppress and restrain this cold air slowly.

"A range of ten meters. If I suppress it for some time before it's released suddenly, perhaps it can be used to scare others. After engaging in a fierce battle for a long time, releasing it will probably affect my opponent's bodily temperatures as well. This is not bad."

Although there were temperature cycle systems inside the Mechs that would help them remain at constant temperatures, these objects require specific resources. Meanwhile, Garen's chill could seemingly pass through the Mech's materials. Moreover, there was a low probability that it could affect his opponent's minds as well. Therefore, these abilities would have unimaginable uses during large scale battles if he developed and strengthened them properly.

Garen sucked the chills back into his body and investigated the other changes that he had undergone. The most important part was his Willpower.

'Willpower -- Lower Level One, (Obtained an additional level of strengthening and increasing abilities from the Living Secret Techniques)'

(Training Method: Blackboard Manipulation, Blackboard Academy's free Training Method. Continuous training weakens its effects and its progression speed has been set at every twelve years for each level) The highest level is Level One.'

"Finally…" Garen was extremely emotional at this moment. He had been constantly anxious about relying on the Moonfang all this while because he was worried that someone might see through him. Moreover, he could not fight for extended periods of time because the Moonfang would collapse and stop working after exceeding a certain time frame.

Now, however, he had finally been able to achieve the true standard of Level One!

At this moment, he was truly standing on the same starting line as the other geniuses in the Academy. Although he had a late start and was slightly slower, it was still better than when he could only disguise himself and use the Moonfang previously.

Lower Level One was where most of the Elites in the classes of the Academy were located. The first three seats in each class would rightfully be placed in that position. The First Seat was not achievable right now, but he had definitely surpassed the standards and levels of most students already. If he needed to retake certain subjects to reach his standard, it was also possible for Garen to request for graduation exams now as well.

While looking at the box full of high-energy fuel powder, Garen poured the solution that he had brought with him inside and stirred it for a little while to conceal the traces of his absorption.

He had not reached the factory yet but Garen was not anxious at all. He continued to sit inside the car and began to check the upgrades that had occurred in his Peacock Technique this time and the changes to his physical body.

He had memorized the initial data clearly.

'Nonosiva Lin -- Strength 1.7, Agility 1.5, Vitality 1.8, Intelligence 1.5, Potential 0%. Soul Limit 40.'

His gaze shifted to check his current data.

'Nonosiva Lin -- Strength 2.1, Agility 2.0, Vitality 2.7, Intelligence 1.9, Potential 0%. Soul Limit 40.'

"Strength has increased by 0.4, Agility by 0.5, while my Vitality has increased by a maximum of 0.9. That's certainly expected of a living creature that consumes Vitality. Finally, my Intelligence has increased by 0.4. My qualities seemed to have increased evenly except for the emphasis on Vitality."

Garen stood up and felt the sensations throughout his vastly improved body.

His physical qualities had already reached his peak levels in the Secret Technique World. Most bullets and weapons would be ineffective towards his current self. However, it was different that time. The Secrets Techniques that he'd practiced previously were Golden Statue Techniques which were widely known as Defensive Secret Techniques that were used for guarding. Once he had entered the highest realm, he realized that they were completely different from the normal grade levels. Therefore, the current qualities of his physical body had not necessarily achieved the actual combat abilities that he had previously possessed in the Secret Technique World yet.

"In other words, my Living Secret Techniques do not have any specific combat or attacking experiences yet. Perhaps an inclination towards one of my body's physical qualities during training or a certain aim is improving my Vitality levels," Garen murmured when he'd suddenly thought of this point.

The Hellfrost Peacock Technique continued to deepen and upgrade continuously because of his training, while some vague development towards reaching inhuman levels had also appeared. Garen had noticed this point as well.

After gathering his thoughts, he took care of the high-energy fuel powder quickly and closed the lid of the box. This thing was as precious as gold.

The car had begun to slow down as well. It was a sign that they had almost arrived at their destination.

After a short while, Garen felt the car jolt suddenly before finally rolling to a stop. He got up and took the cover off the monitor.

"We've arrived, Mr. Nono," the driver's voice echoed from the monitor.

"I know."

Garen opened the car door and got down while carrying the box that weighed more than a hundred pounds and walking directly into the nearby factory.

This place was a desolate area that was surrounded by fields. There was not a soul in sight, and the lonely factory sat a short distance from him.

Four to five bodyguards got down and encircled Garen before accompanying him towards the factory.

It was important to note that the box that Garen was holding was worth millions of Universal Units. Therefore, extremely strict guarding measures were naturally important.

They had only taken a few steps before all of the guards inside the factory came out. There were more than ten of these men and each of them had laser guns and knives at their waists. Their bodies exuded powerful vibes.

They were obviously professionals who had previously seen blood.

There were no incidents during the handover as Celine and Vivienne's subordinates were among these people, and people from Blue Narcissus were observing them as well. Their surroundings had seemed desolate but there were actually many hidden individuals who had been stationed there secretly.

After receiving profits of hundreds of thousands several times, all three parties had started to value this business because there was still a possibility for it to increase continuously.

The factory manager's name was Geen and he was a young man with blonde hair. He was dressed in a suit and leather shoes when he walked out to greet Garen. He observed every single person around Garen carefully as if he was trying to discern something.

"Mr. Nono, although our personal relationship allows us to somewhat talk personally despite being strangers, as you are a major shareholder that controls four layers of profits, I think that you should look for bodyguards."

"Where's Kendall? I will consider this aspect," Garen nodded. He had already thought of recruiting some subordinates to guard his personal safety. He had an income of over one million Units each month and a business that was constantly improving. It would mean bad news if he was targeted by others. The weapons in this world were not as simple as those in the previous worlds. Who could be sure that an unknown, extremely powerful weapon wouldn't appear suddenly?

"Mr. Kendall had left for Sicalia earlier, but he should be on his way back now."

"Yes, I was the one who asked him to go there. But since he hasn't returned yet, could he have encountered some problems on the road?" Garen nodded.

"It seems that the garrison had cordoned the road off temporarily and delayed his return."

"In regards to bodyguards, do you have any good suggestions?" Garen asked directly. He knew that this man was from foreign lands and previously had social connections to elite talents. This man had sought refuge with six different forces before finally leaving with his own. He was the type of person whose heart could not settle down. The most important aspect was that he was not one of the three main cooperative forces.

"Speaking of candidates, I actually have a few," Geen smiled and walked into the factory while being guarded by a separate group of people just like Garen.

"The Giant Shark Mercenaries hail from the Maria Region. They have twenty members and are rumored to possess the strength of forty people in a terrifying net of firepower. There is also the Charm Mercenary Troop that is filled with only the finest and most beautiful mercenaries of a high standard. They have six members and if each of their beauties is worth their price… You should know what that means…" Geen cast a perverted gaze at Garen.

"I'm only looking at their strength and cost," said Garen while his expression remained unchanged.

"In terms of strength, both of these groups are first-rate mercenaries. Their average strengths are at Level Two while their Commanders and Vice Commanders are at Level Three standards and possess their own unique skills. As for cost, it's good timing that they're off-duty now and living casual and relaxed lives. Therefore, they won't be expensive to hire. The Giant Shark Mercenaries cost two hundred thousand each month excluding food and living expenses. Meanwhile, Charm costs one hundred and forty thousand each month," Geen clearly had some connections with both of these mercenary groups.