Way of the Knights

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"Alright girl, what did you bring?"

*Hiss* *Hiss*

"Oh! You brought a Demonic Wild Boar. And it looks like you weren't injured this time. Good, you're improving." 

*Hiss* *Hiss*

Venus let out a joyous sound as she heard the praises of her master as he pets her head. After that, Raven picked up the boar and started dissecting it into pieces, which he would then cook for the two of them to eat.

It has been a week since he left the Kingdom. 

It took him no more than a day to leave the Yellow Zone and enter the Red Zone. He was out of the tracking range of the Skynet Array and had been adjusting to the harsh environment of the Red Zone. 

He's currently residing in a cave he found. The Diamond Dust Eclipse just ended, and since he still can't ignore the effects of the storm, he decided to take shelter and let it pass.

After the Diamond Dust Eclipse, he sent Venus out to hunt for food. Raven left most of the things he own back in the Kingdom, he only brought the things that he think he will use and some dry rations. He did this because he want to impose some sort of a challenge to himself. 

Raven was somewhat reliving his old self after the destruction of the Kingdom. Out in the wild, surrounded by dangers and basically own next to nothing. 

Like he said during his conversation with his in-laws, since the journey would be long it would be wise to make use of the time and train along the way as well. Of course, Venus is also included in this training.

Even in his current state, recklessly charging inside the Red Zone is a suicide. There are tons of dangerous creatures in here as well as inhabitable places. Even the air in this place is quite foul due to the aura's of deadly beasts in here. 

Speaking of beasts, majority of them here are Tier 3 and above. 

The strength of Demonic Beasts had been measured by Tiers after the Reform. 

Tier 1 Demonic Beasts are the weakest, mainly composed of new born beasts or those that are commonly seen. These beasts could be defeated by Fighters.

Tier 2 Demonic Beasts are the more dangerous beasts that inhabited the Yellow Zone. Most of them are definitely bigger size if not, faster or developed some intelligence. 

Tier 3 Demonic Beasts are the one's inhabiting the Red Zone. They are deadlier and tougher since they were born inside the Red Zone where survival of the fittest is the only rule. 

There are of course higher tiered beasts that are deadlier than those, but it's useless for Raven to even think about them since he won't even be able to out up a fight if he meets one. 

"My destination is the Withered Forest of the West first." Raven muttered as he cooked the carcass of the boar. "I need the bark of the Withered Dream Tree which could only be found at the core of that place. It's one of the ingredients that I need in order to cure the Queen."

Raven took a quick glance outside and sighed: "But I'm still a long way to go. I can't rush since I remember that there is a Tier 4 Beast lurking in there. I need to at least reach the Peak of Silver Knight First so that I can guarantee my safety."

*Hiss* *Hiss*

Raven smiled and patted Venus' head. "Yes, yes. You need to grow bigger and stronger too. Here." 

He picked up one of roasted meat and fed to her. Venus swallowed it in one go and happily rubbed her head on his face. 

***

*Boom!*

A huge explosion occurred, leaving a huge dent on the ground. The impact caused thick cloud of fog to raise and slowly reveal the damage. 

"No. That's not it either." Raven murmured as he held his hammer tightly and concentrated. "My timing was off and I didn't spread my power properly."

Raven took in a deep breath as he held the hammer in his hands. He assumed a pose, holding the hammer on one hand with his left foot forward and his body facing right. Raven's attention was focused on how his Chaos Force was circulating on his body.

As his Chaos Force circulated, Raven grasped a special sensation that he used to ignore whenever he fought. The sensation as he described it, was some sort of a 'momentum'. To him, it felt like a rising tide of strength that would then explode once he moved. 

At first he ignored it since it doesn't seem to do anything. But now that he thought of it more carefully, if it was nothing then why is it there in the first place? 

This gave him an idea and desire to explore this mysterious field of the unknown. He had been trying multiple times and during one of those attempts, he got a result.

With a simple act of just striking his hammer, he was able to decimate everything within 100 meters in front of him. All trees, rocks, insects or even some hiding predators were destroyed with that one swing. What's left is a massive crater that left Raven whistling.

This was an insane feat, considering that what he did was just a basic move yet it caused that much destruction. 

Unfortunately, it was like he was bewitched during that moment so he didn't remember everything that he did. It was like a short enlightenment of some sorts. He wasn't aware if he used his Destructions Laws but he felt like he didn't. Also, the hammer was not on it's 2nd Form.

Raven had been trying to get harness that feeling once more, but so far he was out of luck. This left him a bit frustrated but considering that it hadn't been long since he started studying this, he calmed down.

"No need to feel rushed." Raven told himself, "I have time, I just need to use it wisely."

He then sat down and did some simulations inside his mind. His thoughts were moving quickly as he tried to remember the feeling and identify how to properly harness this 'momentum'. After a while of thinking, he finally reached a decent idea of how to do it.

To describe it in a simpler manner, it was like shaking a bottle of wine and then popping the cork open. That will cause a loud popping sound and might even send the cork flying. 

Now, all he had to do is to follow this logic and translate it into attacking. 

"It would be wise to start with the basic movements first." Raven once again assumed a pose and grasped the handle of the hammer tightly.

Closing his eyes to concentrate, he observed the circulation of his Chaos Force. He then started to heave long breaths which cause the circulation to become agitated. To him, this is the act of shaking the wine bottle. 

He maintained his concentration, actively observing and waiting for the right moment. As his Chaos Force became more and more agitated, a strange feeling of anticipation started rising up on his chest. As the feeling became more and more intense, Raven was starting to feel impatience and irritation in his mind yet he held on. 

Then, he felt it. 

It was like something clicked inside him, like a switch that was flicked. His eyes flew wide open, he stomped forwards leaving a deep dent on the floor. The arm holding the handle of the hammer bulged as he used all of the strength bubbling inside of him to strike forward. 

*BOOM!*

A massive explosion occurred, the ground shook and the startled birds staring migrating. Clouds of dust formed, covering his vision. Raven let out a long exhale and waited until the dust cloud settled. It didn't take long before that happened and then, he finally saw the result of what he did. 

Everything in front of him was decimated, only a massive crater was left after his attack. It was like a piece of landmass went missing after he was done. 

Raven saw this sight and laughed mirthlessly, thinking that he went somewhat overboard. Yet he couldn't help but feel gleeful inwardly, thinking that he learned yet another powerful move.

There were no fancy techniques nor complicated requirements. This is just pure, unadulterated strength stemming from the depths of his body. He had it in him all this time yet he ignored it, Raven couldn't help but scowl upon remembering this.

What made this even more amazing is that, Raven didn't feel any sort of fatigue at all. Performing that move barely scratched his reserves. Almost as if he didn't need his Chaos Force at all, which makes him wonder just what kind of power this was.

Raven couldn't help but feel that he's just scratching the surface of his true strength. He felt like he could do so much more. Like performing this move on top of the hammer's second form, or performing it along with his laws and so on. He felt like there was so much that he has to discover about himself. 

*Roar!*

But first, he has to take care of the beast that he attracted from doing all that.

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