Maximilian dodged another storm of arrows and unleashed yet another disc. His rapid advance had caused the army to shift priorities. He couldn't tell if it was the Network making the situation harder or some enemy general. One that considered him the sole threat. Either way it didn't matter. He was forced to fight. He had found a new pseudo-offensive ability. One where instead of treating his aura as binary, he treated it like a gun. He could unleash it in controlled blasts that acted like a stun grenade. It was less a new trick and more of a new thought process. Even when the enemy figured out what he was doing it didn't help. If anything, it made the trick even more effective since they would brace themselves before, he did it. The situation also felt wrong. The whole battlefield felt more and more like a literal tutorial. The enemy was trying to kill him but now that he was over the fear of dying. It was like they were simple. Or rather the non-boss enemies attacked in predictable ways.

  It felt a bit like he was in an action movie. Where the enemy could jump him but instead, they attacked in ways he could deal with. As long as he focused, he could counter them no matter how they attacked. Sure, it was possible that the counter meant he would get hit but it wasn't unfair. As long as he kept moving, he could avoid the arrows, and the constructs didn't target him. There was a major difference between intellectually knowing it and trusting it. Despite that he was forced to keep fighting. He was confident that the enemy army was limitless as well. He couldn't count how many people he had killed but there was no way they had an army this big. Part of him wanted to farm the enemy to raise his level but he decided against it. The deaths were too real for him. The hippo warriors felt too much like real people. Which brought him to the current moment. He had destroyed the last of the construct which brought out the general he saw before. He had a single war-hammer that looked like it could punch a hole in a jet.

  "I don't suppose you would be willing to give up?" Maximilian offered but he knew the answer already. He activated the barrier on his robes and braced himself for the enemy. The general lifted his hammer and rushed forward. Maximilian was about to let his barrier take the hit when his instincts screamed at him. He trusted his gut. He abandoned offense to focus on avoiding the hammer. He stepped to the side less than a second before the hammer crashed through his defenses like they weren't there. The hammer missed him by millimeters and slammed into the ground with enough force to crater it. He moved to counter with a right hook only for the general to grab his fist. A sickening pop filled the air as the general crushed most of the bones in his hand. He screamed and tried to retreat but the hippo's hand was a vice. He considered cutting his hand off to escape the pain.

  "Not bad." The general's words cut through the pain filled haze as he lifted his war hammer. A feat that should've been impossible with one hand. It was then that Maximilian realized his mistake. The general had spiritual energy. "I hope you can show me more" The general released him before he swung his hammer. Maximilian was forced to make a deal with the devil and sacrifice his left arm to block the hammer. Even with his robes redistributing the force was too much. The bones in his arm shattered but they brought him enough time. Enough time to kick off the ground and put some distance between them. Every moved sent white hot agony through him. He summoned healing pills from his bag and swallowed them as if they were candy. He bit back a scream as the medicine worked on his injuries. He wasn't sure which was worse. His vision blurred with tears as the general advanced.

  Spiritual energy surged into his legs as he avoided as many blows as he could. It wasn't enough. Neither his speed nor his strength was enough. He would lose unless things changed. He gritted his teeth and avoided another blow. He didn't wait for the general to finish the attack. Instead, he abandoned defense and pushed spiritual energy into Severing Disc. The general must've sensed the change because he didn't try to lift the hammer. Instead, he launched a fist into his chest with heart stopping force. Maximilian cried out as his ribs snapped. He refused to let it stop him. He kept up the flow of energy and Dao into his skill until he activated an empowered Severing Disc. The general wasn't willing to wait for death and charged. Time slowed to a crawl as he released his attack. The disc clashed with the hammer and for a moment he thought the hammer would come out the victor. In the next the battle was over. Severing Disc tore through the bludgeon and then decapitated the general. The skill petered out seconds after passing beyond the general's body. Maximilian released his aura at full blast in case the rest of the army decided to take advantage of his exhaustion.

  He hoped that was the last of it because he felt like he had been hit by a truck. He activated Prismatic Barrier a moment before fresh kill energy surged into him. It was enough energy to take him straight to level nine. He grinned and waited to see what the army would do next. The level up made him feel like he was back in the fight which he hoped would show on his face and in his body language. He knew that he was an arrow at the end of its flight. Fortunately, his bluff worked at least for now. He let himself rest for about ten minutes before he got up. The quest hadn't ended which meant he wasn't done. He wasn't sure if the Network wanted him to slaughter people until he reached some arbitrary number, but he knew he wouldn't. Not if he could avoid it. He imbued his voice with enough spiritual energy to let him be heard across the battlefield. "Your leaders have fallen! Your machines lay destroyed! Retreat, go home to your families. Let this battle end!"

  He lifted the broken pieces of the general's hammer into the air to punctuate the sentiment. The group went dead silent as if the world waited to see what would happen next. After what felt like an eternity one soldier dropped his weapon. Followed by another and another until the only weapons he could see were those on the ground. The scene filled him with relief, and he dropped to his butt on the ground. He wasn't sure his actions would save real lives, but it made him feel better. Like he had cleaned some of the blood on his hands or rather that he avoided adding to it. When he was engulfed by white light the last of his anxiety washed away. The Network's healing washed over him, and he sighed. He hated the way that felt but it was better than the pain. He closed his eyes and let the healing power do its job. When he next opened them, he was back in his apartment. He decided not to deal with his notifications right now. Instead, he would get a nice bath and then take a nap.

  When he awoke several hours later, he felt like a new man. His mind and body were refreshed. Which only made him jittery. Assuming nothing had changed that was the last quest. Which meant they would return home soon. He would be back on Earth. Regardless of the tutorial he would have to deal with real people soon. Real lives. It was a somber thought, and he had no idea how he would deal with it. He couldn't even tell how strong he was in comparison to everyone. He shook the storm of thoughts that had flooded his mind. He would deal with it later. For now, he had other things to deal with. First, he pulled up his status screen and spent his free points. All six went into Intelligence. He considered putting the points into his other attributes. Six points weren't enough to have everything break the 100-point barrier. He decided it was better to focus at least until he had an idea on what the world would bring. He was pretty sure most enemies wouldn't be as strong as his last few quests. Or rather there was little chance the Earth would survive. Forget fighting for their new home, the majority of people would be food for the monsters. When he finished with his points he decided to review the new totals.

  Man seeing the credits area made joy form in his stomach. If credits were dollars he would be in the 1% maybe even better. Who knew what he could've accomplished with that? It was a bittersweet feeling. The dwarves were clear that money meant a lot. Further he was confident would advance his Dao comprehension soon. Which should come with a new round of advancement. He also had the title upgrade to deal with. He couldn't help but chuckle to himself. "This was definitely not his final form." He wiped the screen away and focused on the rest of his notifications. Excitement overpowering his efforts to stay calm.

  Quest 9 Complete. Quest Grade: S. Reward Distribution has begun. Tutorial Title has been improved. Tutorial title has been modified. Tutorial Title is now Permanent.

  He raised an eyebrow at that, but he didn't need the Network or the dwarves to explain it. He opened his menu and sure enough. His Limited Titles line was now empty. Tutorial was now with the others. He focused on it and pulled up its information but that was it. The title was the same as before. He took a moment to think about it and decided the reward was better than a normal upgrade. Mixed with the one from the last quest he should have four slots. If he assumed that everyone didn't get the change. Then he got to keep the benefits of title while freeing up that slot for a new one later. Of course, that idea assumed that Limited Titles were better. So far, the Network hadn't provided bad rewards, so he decided to trust it. As he finished with status screen for the second time a gift box appeared in his lap. Since there was no mention of what the final reward was he assumed he didn't get a choice. He removed the lid and cocked his head at what he found.

  There were two things inside. First was a small ceramic pill bottle, no wider than his thumb. The second was a jade slip. The slip was covered in symbols, so it wasn't hard to figure out what it was. He picked it up and sent a bit of energy through its array. When the information finished pouring into his mind he grinned. He reviewed it three times to make sure he didn't misunderstand anything. The item inside the pill bottle was a pill called the "Apotheosis Pill". It was a pseudo–Formation Realm pill. Which meant that it was Foundation by energy, but its rarity increased its rating beyond peak. It was a miracle pill if even half the benefits it mentioned were true. It would provide several benefits, first it would reinforce the body. It was a process like when his ancestry upgraded. Only instead of removing impurities it strengthened the base. His muscles, bones, skin, even his blood would be improved. It wouldn't do enough to push him into the next realm. It would make him stronger compared to the other people of Earth.

  The rest of the benefits were as impressive. It would purify his spiritual energy which would make his energy go longer than it should. He would need less of it for his skills so he could fight longer than anyone else. Third it would smooth the path forward for when he broke through. He had no idea what the tribulation or challenge he would face would be. If the pill could help even a little. It would be worth it. He reviewed the information one last time. The pill would be worth it for the other benefits alone. The only problem was that the pill was too strong. It would take him a day at least to absorb. Which meant he would have to wait until after the lesson. He figured it would be best to give his body a day and a half. Just in case things went longer than expected. The other option would be to wait until he returned to Earth.

  There was no guarantee that upon doing so he would be safe. Let alone find a spot he could hide long enough for the pill to work. Of course, if it took him longer than he might be in that situation anyway. There was a third option. He could take the pill today. The dwarves never said they had to attend the meetings. The question was it worth missing the information they would provide? Knowledge or Power? He went back and forth for a few moments before he placed the pill in his bag. He would stick with his original plan. He would do things like normal tomorrow and then take the pill. He couldn't risk missing out some important piece of knowledge before going back to Earth. That and he was already strong. He doubted he was in desperate need for the pill's benefits. Next, he pulled up his skill list. He had made quite a lot of progress on that front as well. At least he thought he had.

  

  
1. 
   
     Million Voices (NA)
   
     


  
2. 
   
     Static Bolt (Peak)
   
     


  
3. 
   
     Prismatic Barrier (Middle)
   
     


  
4. 
   
     Severing Disc (High)
   
     


  

  He was pretty sure he could advance Prismatic Barrier if he spent a few hours on it. Which meant he had almost maxed them all out. He still needed to reach level 27 to unlock the class system, which would bring about a new set of skills. So, it wasn't like he was anywhere near done, but it was progress. There was something about tracking his progress through these screens that made it feel real. He was worried that it was doing something to his mind, but it didn't matter. There was no one he could complain to and compared to all the stuff he had done, that was the least of his worries. He closed the menu and took a breath. He then got up and entered his cultivation chamber. It was still too soon to let his foot off the gas.

  He decided to focus on advancing his skill. He doubted he could make any progress on his remaining offensive skills. He decided to focus on barrier. After that he would do his Dao. He closed his eyes and started up the Ninefold Lightning Canon. The cultivation technique both calmed him and filled him with power. It felt like he had become the storm. Like he could control the power of the sky, the power of lightning. He let himself relish the feeling for a few minutes before he focused. He had work to do.