《Avatars of Myths and Legends》


 Chapter 1 – An Ordinary Boy

    Spring was always a busy time of the year. The warm and soothing breeze brushed against the people entering and exiting the ramen and dumpling restaurant stationed at the main entrance of the Golden Thunder City. This particular restaurant was filled with delicious lip-smacking aroma that could make anyone drool.


    ¡°Where is that lazy boy Jin?¡± An angry middle-aged chef cutting noodle slices out of a piece of dough in his hand at lightning speed shouted. A crimson aura enveloped his right hand and his knife, a streak of red glow follows his rapid hand movements.


    ¡°I gave him the day off honey. He¡¯s only twelve, we should let him spread his wings every once in a while.¡± The wife of the chef serving a plate of steaming dumplings chided him.


    The chef could only sigh, there was no way he could win an argument against his wife. The robust chef knows full well how harsh the world is and how difficult it is to get a decent job in the world. Although he runs a popular restaurant, their family is still relatively poor compared to the countless rich nobles that reside in their city. If his son does not succeed in school, he should at least have the skills to take over the restaurant.


    Jin Wang was a relatively intelligent twelve year old boy considering no one in his family besides him ever attended formal schools for education. However he had no interest in taking over the family¡¯s restaurant business. He likes to read, paint, play music and be carefree. His biggest wish is to travel and see what the magical world he resides in has to offer. He understands that his parents painstakingly moved to this renowned city from a rural unknown village to provide him with an opportunity have a better future. More importantly, they want him to learn how to use Ki properly and become a proper Avatar user.


    A person can train their body by practicing martial arts and cultivate nature¡¯s Ki to strength one¡¯s soul. The mysterious power of Ki can increase one¡¯s longevity and raise one¡¯s strength by many folds. However it is extremely hard to cultivate fast enough by oneself so everyone in this world uses spiritual tools that contain Avatars to aid themselves. Avatars are souls released by any living being willingly and carefully stored into a host item. Souls that are released during death can¡¯t become Avatars and go straight to the afterlife. Once a soul is fused with that item, the soul cannot be transferred and will die upon the destruction of the host item.


    Almost everyone can connect with the spiritual tools that contain Avatars. For the more adept users, amazing feats such as flying through the heavens or relocating colossal mountains are made possible. Since an Avatar is basically spirit of the deceased creature, a person can communicate and learn from the Avatar. Humans prefer having a spiritual tool with an Avatar of another human for easier assimilation. The top warriors of the land all have Avatars of legendary heroes to further increase their already earth-shattering powers.


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    A user can bond with multiple Avatars but each contract is for life. One can only have eleven Avatars in their lifetimes as well. If a contracted Avatar perishes, the user will suffer severe backlash that could be life threatening. Jin himself has not gotten an Avatar yet while most kids his age already has one or two.


    The main reason is that Jin wants an extraordinary one that will grant him the ability to leave town and travel the world! Being raised in a conservative family where every penny counts also gave him a mentality of no wanting to be short changed by a few weak Avatars, he wants all eleven of his potential Avatars to be ridiculously strong.


    His father has two Avatars, both compliment his cooking skills which was the tradition carried on by his family. However due to his dad¡¯s poor inner strength, two Avatars was his max. His childhood friend who happens to be his best friend Yumi recently got an Avatar of a Rank F bunny beast that allows her to leap over ten meters into the air! An Avatar can drastically increase your personal strength tremendously.


    Avatars are ranked by letters, F being the most common and weakest. Rank F Avatars can be found by commoners taking a stroll in a wild forest. The reason being that no one in this world wants to die, most would rather condense their soul into an object instead of perishing forever.


    Holy Fire is one of the seven kingdoms on the boundless continent known as Mercai. As the name suggests, the kingdom of Holy Fire is ruled by a dynasty of extremely tyrannical fire users. Anyone one that opposes the dynasty will meet an unfortunate end. The latest King who came into power a decade ago is a man of greed and cruel tastes. Within that short period of time he had offended all the other kingdoms and nearly tripled the tax of his citizens. Discontentment is at an all-time high but commoners do not have the means to move to another kingdom.


    Currently Jin was exploring a mountain beside the city. The Golden Thunder City is an above average city within the kingdom of the Holy Fire. The ruling family of the City is headed by a D+ ranked warrior. The mountain was so close to a powerful city that most dangerous beasts have been killed ages ago. The surviving beasts are all warily of humans and in hiding. After adventuring for half a day, Jin was resting beside a creek after taking a sip of the sparkling spring water.


    Suddenly out of the blue a huge tremor that shook the whole mountain roared out. It was as if the whole mountain was about to be flipped over. The lethal quakes created fissures in the ground that stretched for kilometers and threatened to tear the mountain in half!


    The first reaction Jin had was to run for his life like anyone else but as a kid with no Avatars and low achievements in cultivation, he fell into one of the deadly fissures after a few steps!

 Chapter 2 – First Avatar, Prometheus

    ¡°Ahhh!¡± Jin screamed as loud as humanly possible, never had he encountered a life threatening situation like this before. His short life was flashing before his eyes as he realized that he¡¯ll soon crash head first into the earth and die.


    However before that happened, an eerie feeling washed over him and Jin slowly opened his eyes as he felt the air around him change. He was still falling but he was falling from a much greater height towards a well-built temple below. In fact the scene around him changed completely and he was no longer falling downwards within a narrow fissure.


    Before he could observe more, a beam of malicious energy shot in a spiral motion towards him. This profound energy filled with ill-intentions could vaporize a row of houses came from below. A blue gas appeared out of nowhere and intercepted the dark lightening that was about to take Jin¡¯s life. A bald man in strange clothing not from around the region appeared from the blue gas that neutralized the dark lightening and held onto Jin.


    ¡°Honorable stranger¡¯s skill is obviously profound, why do you attack an innocent child?¡± Jin¡¯s savior said in a regular voice but his formidable inner strength caused the surrounding air to tremor. Jin stared at him in awe, the man holding him had a straw hat and carried many beaded rings around his neck and wrists.


    ¡°It does not matter who I am you stupid monk, what I want is the Avatar from this dungeon!¡± A ghastly figure in dark robes whose face was hidden hissed out.


    ¡°Ommmm forgive me, this I can¡¯t let you have that.¡± The monk said as he raised one hand in front of him and slightly bowed. The dark figure snorted and a dark aura that was even blacker than before appeared around him, even his own figure disappeared into that ball of darkness.


    ¡°Rip that fool in half my Devil Nether Serpent!¡± The hooded figure hissed loudly and an obscure beam murkier than shadows blasted out from the abyss of dark Ki. The dark beam looked like an apparition of a devious snake-like beast that even had long fangs.


    The monk muttered some incantation that Jin couldn¡¯t understand and a brilliant aqua light appeared behind him, forming a large human-shaped figure that also looked like a monk. To Jin¡¯s surprise, the monk then proceeded to sit in mid-air and the gigantic humanoid energy figure behind him did the same.


    The beads that hung on the monk¡¯s neck were almost the size of Jin¡¯s head. They shinned with an azure light and shot towards the dark figure. Half the beads formed a pentagon shape and a protective translucent layer was made, capturing the piercing black serpent in its tracks. The rest of the beads bombarded the dark figure¡¯s aura.


    During this time Jin was sent towards the ground near the temple gently by the monk¡¯s Ki. The shockwaves from the two experts would have killed him instantly if not for the protection from the monk. Jin knew this and promptly ran inside the temple the moment his feet landed.  His own father could only produce enough Ki to cover his whole arm at best. His teachers can perhaps shoot out enough Ki from their bodies to smash down a door. These two unfathomably strong experts were flying about and unleashing enough Ki to make a storm look like a sneeze.


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    Inside the temple was a huge empty hall with well sculpted marble pillars. There was enough space to fit all the people within his city Jin estimated as he slowed down his pace. At the center was the largest and most beautiful creature that Jin had ever seen in his life. The magical creature caused his heart to skip a beat. Upon closer inspection, a tinge of pain hit his heart. The gigantic majestic white beast was slouching on the ground from a gaping wound from its neck. Judging from the shape of the scar, it was obvious the black hooded figure was behind this.


    Jin could only look pitifully at the beautiful creature, he wanted to help but there was nothing he could do. Silver blood seeped out from the wound and dripped over its snow-white body and golden mane. It had breath-taking wings that shined brightly even without sunlight and a dazzling golden horn protruding from its head.


    Suddenly a message rang throughout Jin¡¯s head. ¡°Little boy, I¡¯m Froyo one of the last living unicorns in this world. It seems like someone is bound to claim myself as well as my Avatar as their own. Would you like to be my first partner?¡±


    Jin looked around frantically but could not see the source of the voice until it dawned upon him that this divine creature lying on the ground was somehow speaking to him telepathically. Its beautiful eyes that were brighter than the sun and bigger than Jin¡¯s body was staring intently at him. There was no way Jin could refuse such a request and before he knew it, he was nodding rapidly.


    ¡°Thank you¡­¡± A fading reply whispered through his mind before a glittering decorative and overly lavish goblet appeared in front of Jin. Was this going to be his first Avatar? He had learned about creating contracts with Avatars by holding the artifact they reside in and asking for a contract. Jin grabbed onto the goblet with his right hand.


    The moment he touched the goblet, an electrifying surge of energy flooded towards the center of his very being. The sudden gush of energy was followed by the space around him warping and distorting. The feeling was not painful but it was terrifying nonetheless. The process that seemed to last an eternity was over in a second.


    A different voice from before spoke within his mind. ¡°I am Prometheus, the greatest benefactor of mankind. I look forward to having my first human partner in this world¡­¡±

 Chapter 3 – Legendary Avatar

    The majestic creature forced a smile at him before vanishing into the thin air. The dazzling golden horn was all that remains of the grandiose beast and it shrunk into the size of Jin¡¯s arm. The horn then proceeded to float towards Jin who was confused, if the goblet wasn¡¯t the artifact for the unicorn then what spirit did he just make a contract with? Before he could ask any questions, the tip of the horn slowly tapped his head and a blinding light exploded from the contact. A similar feeling washed over him once again.


    This time the previous majestic unicorn¡¯s gentle voice rang out, ¡°Hello human, I¡¯m honored to be your second Avatar.¡±


    ¡°Ow.¡± Jin said as he opened his eyes and rubbed his bottom. He was suddenly slammed into a solid surface. Looking around he noticed that he was teleported right outside the city¡¯s walls with no one around. Jin frantically searched for the extravagant goblet and the golden horn but he found nothing.


    After half an hour of contemplation, he gave up and headed home.


    Elsewhere the black hooded figure came out of an entrance of a cave and hollowed out with rage. The skies above him reflected his fury by summoning gloomy clouds which rained endless thunder. He was standing alone in a desolate land without any life in sight.


    ¡°The mythical Avatar of a mystical unicorn¡­ it was mine! Who stole it from me? I am the lord of destruction, Xervias! That monk from the oriental lands¡­ I¡¯ll definitely get my revenge!¡±


    The furious roar filled with killing intent would have been enough to wipe out an ordinary city. Little did he know that a clueless boy whose destiny had just begun took the legendary Avatar from under his nose.


    Similarly the monk that saved Jin¡¯s life earlier took a step out of the trunk of an enormous tree within a dense forest that stretched for tens of kilometers. Sounds of countless beasts could be heard in this active wild forest.


    ¡°Did that young boy gain the approval of the divine beast? Or was there another expert hiding while the two of us fought?¡± The robust monk murmured as he thought of the possibilities. He too did not believe that the boy who barely had any cultivation managed to make a contract with a Legendary Avatar.


    Within the Golden Thunder City, Jin was getting the lecture of a lifetime. The city had felt what they assumed to be an earthquake previously and his parents were worried sick over his safety. Jin wanted to tell his parents about his outrageous adventure but it was not a good time given his dad¡¯s boiling anger. He was grounded from leaving the city for a month and was sent to bed without dinner.


    The next morning Jin was lightly woken up by his mother who gave him a lunch box filled with his favorite dumplings. It was time to go to school. His dad was in charge of ramen in the family¡¯s restaurant while his mother was in charge of dumplings. No matter how many he ate, he would never get sick of them.


    There was only three courses taught at school in the Golden Thunder City. One was basic literature and history, most deem this the most useless. One was a cultivation class that taught all sorts of martial arts and cultivation techniques. The last one was the Avatar class which was the most popular. Avatar usage was only taught in larger cities, it was the reason why Jin¡¯s family moved to this city where the rent was exorbitant.


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    The first half of the day belonged exclusively to the Avatar class for obvious reasons. Jin sat beside his childhood friend who also came from the same village as him, their families had known each other since forever.


    The teacher lectured slowly, ¡°As you know, in this world people can defy common sense and even destiny with the help of Avatars. Avatars contain the essence and soul of powerful beings that managed to escape clutches of the underworld by fusing the last bit of their life force into a physical object. The soul can only grow stronger over time and no one wants to live eternally inside an object too early so usually only at the end of their lifespan do creatures choose to become an Avatar. Today we are going to learn how to communicate with your Avatar. Listen to my instructions carefully.¡±


    Yumi snickered and whispered to Jin, ¡°Looks like you¡¯ll be sitting out again.¡±


    Jin was one of the few kids that did not have an avatar yet until the events of yesterday. However the other kids who did not have one were horning their bodies and cultivations so their first Avatar could be more formidable but Jin was just outright stubborn. His aptitude for cultivation and martial arts were just average but he still dreamed big about getting a Rank D Avatar as his first ever since he started this school three years ago.


    He ignored her and slowly meditated as per his teacher¡¯s instructions. He knows the process but it was his first time trying. Jin was nervous, he couldn¡¯t tell at all if he actually made a contract with an Avatar or not.


    ¡°Human you do not need to try so hard to communicate with me, you just need to will it.¡± An old archaic voice entered his mind.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Jin asked curiously. The events of last night was a blur to him, he couldn¡¯t even be sure if it was real.


    ¡°Sigh, your aptitude is poor and you are not a hard worker either¡­¡±


    ¡°Huh.¡± Jin was confounded.


    ¡°I wonder how the cultivation in this world works¡­ well either way you haven¡¯t even started on the road to immortality yet.¡±


    ¡°Wait who are you?¡± Jin asked again.


    ¡°Sigh, your memory is also bad, I am Prometheus. I am the God that granted you humans fire countless eons ago and guided one of the very first humans to become an immortal.¡±


    ¡°God¡­? Immortal?¡± Jin asked with wide eyes.


    ¡°For now all you need to know is that I am comparable to a Legendary Avatar. You should not reveal this fact to anyone, not only for your own safety but for your loved ones as well¡­¡±

 Chapter 4 – New Abilities

    ¡°Hey, look it¡¯s that loser Jin pretending to talk to his nonexistent Avatar!¡± A youth with a long ponytail walked over with two other boys snickering behind him. This kid was Hao, son of a rich businessman that owned multiple lands throughout the city. Unsurprisingly he was spoiled his whole life and not even the teachers could do a thing to him when he steps out of line. More importantly, he was related to the lord of the city!


    Jin¡¯s eyes opened as his first Avatar, Prometheus, stopped talking to him. He was so focused on deciphering what he just heard that he didn¡¯t recognize that the class bully, Hao Chen, was making fun of him.


    Hao on the other hand got ticked off that he was being ignored by the weakling Jin and proceeded to give him a shove. Yumi tried to pull Jin out of the way but to her surprise, Jin wouldn¡¯t budge. This was strange because ever since Yumi got her first Avatar two years ago, she was much stronger than Jin physically. Hao¡¯s hand slammed into Jin¡¯s chest and to his surprise, a strong rebounding inner strength pushed his hands back and even made it numb!


    Naturally the students beside them are all peering with interest. Hao¡¯s face grew a tad red since he couldn¡¯t afford to lose face here. He pushed forward with all his might with both hands this time. Jin unaware of the impending strike somehow leapt out of the way, causing Hao to lose his balance and tumble forward into a fall.


    The kids around laughed as Hao comically fell like a fool. Yumi was surprised at his sudden increase in physical strength and reaction.


    ¡°You little piece of turd, how dare you!¡± Hao shouted as he jumped back up, his face was flush from embarrassment. This time threw a straight punch at his face.


    It was now that Jin finally snapped out of his daze and with a confused face said, ¡°Huh?¡±


    At first fear struck him as he saw the inevitable punch gliding through the air towards his nose. Instinctively he closed his eyes and waited for the familiar pain of getting pounded on by bullies.


    The world was a harsh place where the strong is right and the weak suffers. This was reflected even in a classroom of kids. Kids with higher innate talent for cultivation or stronger Avatar bully and take advantage of the weak.


    However after a few seconds passed in Jin¡¯s mind, nothing happened. There was no bruising or cracking of the bones. Slowly raising his eyelids, Jin was surprised to see that the punch meant to send him into a world of pain was still an arm¡¯s length away.


    Did Hao have a change of heart? Jin wondered. There¡¯s no way a bully would suddenly take pity on him.


    Why does this scenery look strange? It took a few moments for Jin to realize that the space around him seems to be in slow motion! The punch came ever so slowly that Jin had the time to shift his head to the right and slowly observe Hao¡¯s fist from the side. The fist came to a pause after Hao¡¯s arm was fully extended.


    Naturally the fist rescinded and Jin had the luxury of watching it slowly pull away and come at him from another angle. He had no idea why this unexplainable phenomenon was happening but he was enjoying it. The dirt under Hao¡¯s finger nails, the complexion of his face getting redder, and the saliva splintering from his mouth were all observed by Jin slowly as he dodged with ease. It was as if time slowly grinded to a halt for him!


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    ¡°What?¡± Kids around shouted out in alarm. At first they were worried about Jin but after watching him seamlessly avoid disasters a few times without effort, their previous worry shifted to Hao subconsciously.


    Once again a punch flew towards his head but he easily slipped right past it. With each following punches, his face got closer and closer to Hao¡¯s face. This was no longer a fight, he was just experimenting his new limits. Deep down Jin was regretting not getting an Avatar earlier. Little did he know that there¡¯s a vast difference between the Avatars, he was only able to perform these feats due to the two extraordinary Avatars he acquired.


    ¡°I can¡­ feel a circle of Ki within me! Is this what the teachers were talking about before?¡± Jin thought to himself. With his new senses heightened, he could feel where the source of his new found power was emerging from. Deep within the core of himself, he could feel a mysterious area that was hidden from him previously giving off Ki.


    Ki was what all living creatures used to cultivate for strength and longevity. It was said that each stage of cultivation could be compared to a circle, once the Ki fills up the circle then you¡¯ll advanced to the next stage! However not a lot of people, especially beginners, can sense their Ki cores since only those of higher level with strong spiritual sense could do so.


    Yumi was the most surprised of them all. As the person who spent the most with Jin beside his parents, she knew full well that he did not possess any extraordinary power. He didn¡¯t even have an Avatar yet or at least she thought he didn¡¯t.


    Hao¡¯s eyebrows were now pulled down together, his eyes were wide open with a deathly glare and his lips were trembling as they shut tightly together. Never had he been so humiliated! Even the teachers at the school would usually give in to him. He had reigned unopposed at this school, even older kids stayed cleared of him due to his family backgrounds.


    ¡°You¡­ be at the back of the school by the beast building if you know what¡¯s good for you. We¡¯ll settle this mano a mano!¡± Hao shouted at him. He had lost too much face here, even if he pummels Jin now it wouldn¡¯t be a clean victory. The problem is that he isn¡¯t even confident of beating Jin. For some unknown reason, the weakling without an Avatar just toyed with him.


    The school was situated on a small hill big tall enough to oversee the whole city. The reason for such a thing was that so the senior students can practice fighting with their Avatars.


    Jin¡¯s confidence skyrocketed after the miraculous stunt displayed earlier. Instead of replying he just left the classroom for Avatar lessons. Everyone just stared at him like he was a freak. Taking a few hits and completely dodging them by a hair breadth was completely different things. Jin accomplished the latter like he was taking a stroll.

 Chapter 5 – Instances, Tombs, Dungeons

    ¡°Wow so I wasn¡¯t dreaming, I got some really rare Avatars yesterday!¡± Jin said to himself as he quickly navigated through the school, towards the library. There were many unanswered questions he had that suddenly piqued his interest. Especially what the evil dark figure that he encountered previously said, he mentioned that he wanted the Avatar of the dungeon. What is a dungeon?


    He wasn¡¯t really a hardworking student so the history teacher was astounded to see him walking through the door. The history teacher was even more stunned to see Jin approach him directly with questions. Kids these days only care about the strongest Avatars and what neat feats that could accomplish with the help of Avatars.


    ¡°Teacher Yen, what are dungeons? Do they contain Legendary Avatars?¡± Jin asked straightforwardly in an excited manner.


    ¡°Dungeons? Legendary Avatars? Where did you hear about such things?¡± Teacher Yen said with surprise. This was not something a young kid like Jin should know.


    ¡°Oh a traveling customer at my family¡¯s restaurant told me about it.¡± Jin quickly made up a lie. Besides no one would believe him if he talked about the events of the previous day anyways.


    ¡°Well alright, pull up a seat beside me little Jin. Where do I begin¡­ as you know there are different types of Avatars. The two main differentiation is whether they are an Avatar of a Hero, meaning if they are human or if they are an Avatar of a Creature, meaning beings other than humans. An Avatar of a Hero is usually rarer to come by because it requires us to reach a certain level in our cultivation. Rank D is the lowest you have to be to condense your spirit into an artifact.¡± Yen explained.


    ¡°Ah I see.¡± Jin said as he thought about it. Most people have Avatars of Rank F beasts and not humans, he always wondered why that is.


    ¡°A Legendary Avatar is a title bestowed to great heroes in the past. They are rumored to be rank A and above. I¡¯ve never seen one myself but I heard there are some in the capital of the kingdom. They are termed ¡°Legendary¡± because these humans have all created legends of their own during the time they were alive. Another title on par with Legendary Avatars is Mythical Avatars. Mythical Avatars are from creatures who have similarly reached the pinnacle of their cultivation. These Avatars are termed ¡°Mythical¡± because such creatures are extremely rare to come by. Dragons, Phoenix, Giants, and such are so rare, most only know them from myths. Why do we make this distinction Jin?¡±


    ¡°Human are weaker than creatures?¡± Jin took a guess.


    ¡°Generally yes. Even if we are in the same rank as a beast, our bodies will always be more frail than giants and dragons. Hero Avatars are easier for you to assimilate with. You can tap into their powers and wisdom far easier than Creature Avatars. The benefits from learning of their experience is priceless, they can pass down their skills to you. As for Creature Avatars, you generally get more physical strength and their unique abilities they were born with. That¡¯s why a great warrior would have both types.¡±


    Jin just nodded intently and listened on.


    ¡°Now where does a dungeon come into play you say? A dungeon is a magical space that a high ranking human or creature can create the moment they die and become an Avatar. Dungeons are mysterious places that defies common sense. The rules of the dungeon is all created by the Avatar it came from. It is meant as a test for those who are worthy and lucky enough to receive the Avatar. As you know, Avatars bind for life and in most cases they perish with their owner. Dungeons are extremely hard to come by, only those near the level of Legendary and Mythical Avatars can create them.¡±


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    ¡°So most Avatars from dungeons are rank A and above?¡± Jin gasped.


    ¡°Not really, Rank B beasts can create a small dungeon as well. The difference between the qualities of the dungeons can be distinguished by the size of the dungeon and its entrances. Now you might be wondering how you would chance upon a dungeon and the answer is luck. It seems that dungeons created by Avatars are in another dimension all together. The entrances to that dungeon would appear randomly throughout the world. Until the dungeon is conquered, the entrances will open indefinitely. As you can imagine, the competition for that Avatar would be fierce since people across the world would participate! Long ago in our neighboring city, the Frozen Fire Lotus, a dungeon entrance appeared near it. People from all over the kingdom came to try it out.¡±


    ¡°Who cleared it?¡± Jin asked curiously.


    ¡°Not sure but definitely no one from the entrance by the Frozen Fire Lotus. So many people died in their pursuit to get that Avatar. One word of advice Jin, never enter a dungeon! Once you enter it, you cannot leave. Some people have spent decades trapped in there. Only after the Avatar has been obtained will the dungeon disappear and its participants sent out from the entrances they came from.¡± Yen warned sternly. However, dungeon entrances are rare to come by so he didn¡¯t suspect Jin already gone through one already.


    ¡°You probably won¡¯t chance upon a dungeon in your lifetime but you might enter an instance or a tomb. Instances are created by Rank D Avatars, they are similar to a dungeon except that there¡¯s only one entrance near where the Avatar died. The lord of our city has conquered one such instance, that¡¯s why our city is ranked D. If you are successful enough, maybe you will be qualified to enter a tomb. Tombs are generally created by Rank C Avatars. They have more entrances than an instance but still near where the Avatar perished.¡±


    ¡°How can you tell the rank of an Avatar?¡± Jin asked curiously.


    ¡°Well there¡¯s a measuring devices that experts who battle use to gauge each other¡¯s strength. You should ask the Avatar combat teacher Henghin about that though.¡± Teacher Yen replied. ¡°Now don¡¯t you get weird ideas, lots of adventurers lose their life over trying to get a high ranked Avatar. Remember, once you are dead then all you¡¯ve done is for naught. The Avatars you¡¯ve accumulated will usually die with you too. The lord of our city has a D+ ranked Avatar but paid a hefty price for it¡­¡±


    Jin¡¯s face has transformed into that of amazement, his mind had slowly drifted off towards the countless possibilities opened up for him. He always dreamed of getting a great Avatar to travel the world and see its wonders. Since one can only have eleven Avatars in their lifetime, he wanted each of the Avatars to be special. Teacher Yen could see Jin¡¯s giddy face and knew he had lost him in his lecture but Jin¡¯s only twelve, Yen couldn¡¯t blame him so he gently sent him off his way.

 Chapter 6 – After School Fight

    The rest of day passed relatively fast for Jin who was daydreaming. He felt like a person who won the lottery. In a sense he did since the Avatars he received were from a dungeon. He didn¡¯t receive one but two! If he can harness the power from within the two Avatars, he could become a Legendary Hero himself in the future.


    As school ended a worried Yumi came to him and gave him a strong pinch.


    ¡°Dumbo, you are not going to fight Hao again right? Let¡¯s leave before they find you.¡± Yumi said with caution, her face was full of worry. It turns out that Jin had completely forgot about Hao and the incident in the morning.


    ¡°Oh I am going.¡± Jin said confidently.


    ¡°Okay let¡¯s sneak out from ¡­ What did you say?¡± Yumi said with shock. She wasn¡¯t sure if she heard correctly.


    ¡°Hao has been bullying me for so long, why should I run?¡± Jin replied with a carefree attitude. Right now with two Avatars, one Legendary Hero type and one Mythical Creature type, who does he have to fear? Prometheus referred to himself as a Legendary Avatar and the unicorn beast was obviously a Mythical Avatar.


    ¡°Have you lost your mind?¡± Yumi exclaimed as she tried to pull him away. Once again to her surprise she found that Jin was as solid as a boulder that couldn¡¯t be budged.


    Ignoring Yumi, Jin walked towards the designated location behind the school set by Hao. The area was a desolate place where no school authorities will pass by. Jin was walking with such confidence that Yumi had never seen before. Perhaps it was his new mysterious strength or his new found poise but Yumi gave up on holding him back and followed him from a distance.


    A group of kids earlier at the Avatar training class was already there. In the center of the group stood Hao and another bulky kid who was at least a foot taller than all the other kids. It must have been a student from the senior classes.


    ¡°So the fool dares to show up.¡± Hao sneered.


    ¡°Is this punk the one that humiliated you?¡± The senior student said uncaringly. Deep inside he was just annoyed that he was summoned to settle a fight between twelve year olds. This person was Jouchi, a seventeen year old student who was just about to undergo The Initiation to become a true cultivator. He was one of the outstanding students of the school that everyone had high expectations of. Due to Hao¡¯s spoiled nature and his family¡¯s connections, there was no way for Jouchi to refuse such a request to ¡°teach someone a lesson¡±.


    ¡°Yes, I want him to beg for mercy before me.¡± Hao ordered arrogantly. He wanted everyone to know what befalls those who oppose him like a little tyrant.


    Jouchi sighed with resignation. The rich definitely play by a different set of rules. If he was helping out a nobody from the slums, he would be crucified by his peers and teachers. But because he¡¯s helping Hao, no one would bat an eye.


    Instead of running away in fear, Jin stood there fearlessly as if he¡¯s the aggressor. A brilliant scorching flames enveloped Jouchi¡¯s arm as he casually grabbed Jin¡¯s collar. Just before his fingers could reach its target, Jin disappeared from his sight. Slightly annoyed, Jouchi swung his arms much faster towards Jin¡¯s new location.


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    Jin was filled with adrenaline that he has never felt before. It was as if a boundless source of energy from nowhere was his to utilize. Not only can he see everything much clearer before, his reflexes and strength has reached a whole new height. The incoming grabs were easily avoided to everyone¡¯s surprise. Jouchi froze temporary as he stared at Jin like he¡¯s so sort of freak.


    The kids around gasped with amazement as Jin sidestepped the senior student twice in succession. Jouchi looked at Jin, slightly recoiling from what just happened. Then a competitive spirit arose within him and he used 70% of his true strength to lounge at him. After Jin dodged that attempt as well, Jouchi concluded that Jin must have some true skill and an extraordinary Avatar so he decided to go all out. Two hoof-like apparition made of red aura appeared on his two feet and he positioned himself into a fighting stance. Jouchi bent down and suddenly sprung forward like a tiger chasing after its meal.


    Unlike previously where Jin could see Jouchi¡¯s movements in slow motion, the current Jouchi was like a crimson blur that Jin could barely react to. His previous confidence was shattered and before he knew it, he was dodging for his life. Jin was attempting to draw more and more Ki from his core but he now realized there¡¯s a limit to the maximum of Ki he could utilize at any one time, he couldn¡¯t just use all of his Ki for this moment. A more pressing matter in his mind was that he could sense that his core was running out of Ki at an alarming rate due to his now frantic dodges.


    If he was caught by Jouchi earlier, he would have experienced a few bruises and broken bones at best. Now that Jouchi is serious because he believes Jin to be a formidable opponent, his life is in real danger if he¡¯s hit by a real technique. Jin doesn¡¯t know how to reinforce his body with Ki or any other basic techniques!


    Panicking now, Jin thought back to how he procured this power originally. It was by meditating and getting in touch with his inner Avatar! Right now he did not have the luxury of sitting down to enter that state so Jin just desperately willed it.


    ¡°More power, please grant me more power!¡± Jin willed it to the best of his ability but nothing happened.


    Jin¡¯s concentration slipped as he focused on trying to draw out more power from his Avatars. He had no clue on how to even use his Avatars properly. Regret from not taking school seriously tinged within his heart but what¡¯s the use? It was during that moment his balance was tipped and he fell face first into the earth.


    Although Jouchi was usually a composed person, he lost too much face against Jin. If word spreads out, he¡¯ll be the laughingstock of the school. Seeing that Jin tripped, he seized this opportunity to totally humiliate him.


    ¡°Flame Demolisher!¡± Jouchi yelled out as he sprawled forward with his palm pointing at Jin, a menacing ball of flame the size of a boulder appeared in front of him. Crackling sounds could be heard from the deadly ball of fire as it spun towards Jin¡¯s figure on the ground.

 Chapter 7 – Face to Face with Death

    Unprecedented fear was running rampant inside Jin¡¯s mind. He saw the inevitable doom that is heading towards his way. Although he felt like his life was in danger inside the dungeon previously, the sublime monk expert was helping him since the start. The dungeon¡¯s traps and trials must have been cleared by the two supreme masters earlier so there was nothing really threatening Jin¡¯s life inside that dangerous place. Most importantly, it felt like a dream so Jin didn¡¯t feel real fear.


    Right now Jouchi was unleashing his full power against Jin due to the fact that he believes Jin to be much stronger than he really is. Jin only gained slightly stronger reflexes and physical strength when he obtained his first two Avatars. In fact, everyone¡¯s innate abilities increases when they gain a new Avatar. It¡¯s just that Jin¡¯s Avatars are much superior than regular ones that an abnormal increase to his abilities made it seem like he was an expert. Jin in fact was still a novice that couldn¡¯t even tap into the endless sea of power that is within him.


    In a frantic last ditch attempt, Jin screamed out in his mind for help again as the huge fire ball came inches away from his face. Yumi who had been observing from the side wanted to leap forward to help him but fear rooted her body. There was nothing any of the bystanders could do since they were all twelve year olds.


    Although Hao was smirking to himself earlier as he look forward to seeing a beaten up Jin, he was secretly dead scared of the current situation. He could get away with bullying but if he was involved in the death of another kid, even he would be in deep trouble. Also he had never witnessed a life-threatening situation so he was naturally terrified.


    Screaming and crying hysterically, Jin did what anyone in his shoes would do. Run! More accurately, he was rolling away frantically. His mental state was a mess. He wasn¡¯t fire proof, he might be sligly faster than before but he¡¯ll still die from the flames.


    Just as the lethal flame threatened to smash against Jin¡¯s body against Jouchi¡¯s expectations, Jin¡¯s body disappeared from everyone¡¯s view.


    ¡°Huh?¡± The kids gasped with confusion. The red flames hit nothing but air and dispersed. It took them a few seconds to realize that Jin rolled himself off the cliff!


    This was outside of Jouchi¡¯s expectation. Jouchi¡¯s thought Jin would¡¯ve released Ki to protect himself or at least dodged, little did he know that Jin¡¯s own cultivation is almost non-existent and that he can¡¯t even use his Avatars at will.


    ¡°This is¡­¡± Jouchi stood there confounded, he knows once Jin had fallen there was no way he can save him. He had never killed anyone so he was in shock. This skill was an advanced one meant to fight off beasts and other experts. The special characteristic of this flame was that it could burn for hours before diminishing. The moment of insanity that gripped him left and he realize that he was in deep trouble, he could even be prosecuted by the authorities!


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    The kids around him didn¡¯t think Jin who was confidently dodging Jouchi earlier would meet his demise here started screaming and panicking. Some ran away to get the teachers, some stood there in fear but most were worrying about the trouble they were in. Yumi froze for a second and then instantly made a dash to the cliff, looking downwards. The only thing he saw was over a hundred meters of distances between her and a thick rain forest below. Then she noticed a spec of dot which she instantly recognized to be Jin. Darkness clouded her vision and she collapsed as the dreaded doom awaiting Jin overwhelmed her.


    Jouchi himself was turning around and thinking about how to contain the situation. The first thing he needed to do was silence the witnesses, making sure they won¡¯t reveal what actually happened. This was hard to do since some are already leaving the scene.


    ¡°If you know what¡¯s good for you, tell the teachers that we were attacked by a wild beast and that kid was just a casualty! Got it? All of us will be in trouble if they find out the truth!¡± Jouchi threatened in a foreboding tone. The terrified kids could only nod one by one as their minds froze in fear. Hao, the instigator of this issue, nodded along as well.


    As this was happening, Jin¡¯s body was just about to be smashed into a meat paste. His new abilities actually made this experience ten times more terrifying. His enhanced cognitive abilities made time pass even slower in his mind. This just prolonged the inevitable doom.


    ¡°Is this it for me?¡± Jin thought in despair. Jin was just at just the right age where one grasps the concept of death. Forget Jin, a seasoned warrior would still fear death. His short life flashed before him. The regrets of having lived a lazy and carefree life weighed on him as his final moments approached.


    ¡°Mom¡­ Dad¡­ Sorry I can¡¯t be a faithful son.¡± Jin¡¯s last thought ran through his brain as only a meter separates him from the netherworld.


    Silence. Emptiness. Desolation.


    ¡°Open your eyes kid.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t have all day.¡±


    ¡°Open your eyes now!¡±


    ¡°Open your eyes if you want to live!¡±


    Jin who was in a state of resignation opened his eyes and looked at the source of the overbearing primeval voice.


    An all-consuming fear that eclipsed his fear of death enveloped him from the inside out. What he saw was a being from the deepest depths of hell. A giant wouldn¡¯t even begin to describe its size. The scary monster was a vast distance away from him but its two devilish crimson eyes still looked like two enormous bloody suns.


    The more Jin looked, the more absorbed he felt. It was as if bits of his soul were eaten away by the deathly glance of this alien colossal being.


    An archaic voice boomed out from all directions, echoing many times.


    ¡°Kid, death awaits you¡­¡±

 Chapter 8 – The Deal

    ¡°¡­unless you make a deal with me.¡±


    ¡°Deal¡­? What deal? Where am I?¡± Jin asked slowly.


    ¡°You are simply in your own soul realm. Normally someone as weak as you have no hope of doing such an act but I did it as an exception since you are about to die.¡±


    So it wasn¡¯t a dream. Jin thought bitterly as he remembered the scene where he was just about to die, falling to his miserable death.


    ¡°Yes it wasn¡¯t a dream. A hot head like you thought you could rule the world by gaining a pathetic amount of strength.¡± The voice replied as if it read Jin¡¯s mind.


    ¡°You are¡­ Prometheus? My Avatar?¡± Jin asked carefully after hearing that he¡¯s in his Soul Realm.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Am I going to die?¡± Jin asked desperately. There was so much he wanted to accomplish, he can¡¯t die.


    ¡°That depends entirely on you. If you accept three conditions from me, I am able to save you.¡±


    ¡°What conditions?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll only tell you after you agree.¡±


    ¡°How do I know you¡¯ll honor your end of the deal?¡± Jin asked innocently.


    ¡°You don¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± Jin didn¡¯t know how to reply.


    ¡°You are in my Titan Domain right now. It¡¯ll only suspend time for so long. Don¡¯t you want to live?¡±


    ¡°Of course I want to live, what¡¯s the fun in dying?¡± Jin rebutted.


    ¡°¡­¡± It was Prometheus¡¯s turn to be silent.


    ¡°Alright I¡¯ll do it.¡± Jin said after a few quick thoughts. It wasn¡¯t like he was left with much choice. The demon-like being sounded like he could care less if Jin took the deal or not.


    Two unusual tinges swelled up from within him. It was as if someone branded his organs with burning iron but the sensation disappeared within a second.


    ¡°The first condition is that you are not allowed to accept any Avatars that¡¯s not of God Rank. Only Avatars from myths and legends are acceptable; Dragons, Phoenixes, Griffins, Medusas, Cyclops, and such. They¡¯ll have to go through my approvals first. Any other Avatars that don¡¯t meet the standard shall become food for me.¡±


    ¡°God Rank? Food¡­ does that mean I can¡¯t use an Avatar at all?¡± Jin exclaimed. The experience earlier made him realize that although he has powerful Avatars but he can¡¯t use their power at all because they are well beyond his reach.


    ¡°For the near future¡­ yes, you won¡¯t be able to access the full power of your Avatars. You can only wield a portion of their powers temporary. Only after you form a foundation to start on the road to immortality would you be able to start wielding a portion of our strengths.¡± Prometheus said indifferently.


    ¡°However I¡¯ll teach you ancient cultivation methods used by the very first humans who achieved godhood. With my guidance, there¡¯s a chance you could be invincible under the heavens of this world.¡± Prometheus added to prevent a pointless exclamation from Jin.


    Cultivation? Immortal? Jin couldn¡¯t process the new information but Prometheus ignored him and continued on.


    ¡°The other two conditions are that I¡¯ll be allowed to take over your body three times. It¡¯ll be when I choose so. The last condition is simple, you may never reveal my existence to anyone. I¡¯ll kill you myself personally before you get the chance to do so.¡±


    Gulp. The last sentence was spoken with such an intense killing intent that if Jin had his real body, he would have wetted his pants.


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    ¡°Tell me what you know about the elements. Don¡¯t be slow, we only got so much time.¡± Prometheus continued without giving Jin time to process everything. .


    ¡°Well there¡¯s the four elements ¨C Fire, Water, Air and Earth. Most kingdoms on our continent specializes in one of them. Our Holy Fire kingdom along with Endless Flames kingdom specialize in the element of fire. Our city specializes in the element of lightning which is a subset of fire. The kingdom of the Frozen Jade specializes in the water element and their experts can even produce ice and snow. I heard it¡¯s the hardest element to train in. Then there¡¯s the three kingdoms that specializes in the earth elements, earth element user can create earthquakes and other natural disasters so they are deemed the strongest. The Floating Cloud Kingdom is the only kingdom that uses the element air and is usually considered the weakest.¡± Jin replied as he was reminded he was on the verge of dying.


    ¡°Go on. What other elements are there?¡±


    ¡°The school taught us that we must strive to condense our flames to bring out its full power, if we can condense it enough then lightning will be born.¡± Jin said as he explained the mechanics of producing lightning as he was taught.


    ¡°Wrong wrong, all wrong.¡± The archaic voice spoke out with obvious disdain. It was if Jin said something ridiculous and blasphemous.


    ¡°There must be users who wield the power of light and darkness in this backwashed land, how do you suppose they go about it?¡± An obvious sigh could be heard.


    ¡°Oh right¡­ there are legends of people using powers outside of the four elements. I guess the power of light and dark comes from their Avatars?¡± Jin guessed.


    ¡°This world is so premature when it comes to cultivation, there must not be a lot of bright minds around.¡± Avatar Prometheus continued on sighing.


    ¡°What is cultivation? I don¡¯t really understand.¡± Jin asked shyly.


    ¡°Cultivation is the process of acquiring enough strength to become an immortal. You can think of cultivating as a means of getting stronger. The more you cultivate, the longer you will live. In this land, how are people accomplishing this? Tell me everything you know.¡±


    ¡°Stronger? Living longer?¡± Jin mused. ¡°Well most people depend on using Avatars for power. We do use Ki to train our body but usually we don¡¯t even need to be half as strong as the Avatar to use its powers. I guess if we train our body enough, we might live longer? I am not sure.¡±


    Jin then proceeded to explain the ranking system from F to A. It applies to humans, Avatars, monsters and items. Obviously the higher the letter, the better it is. Each rank also has lower, mid, and upper levels. Then just as he was explaining the usage of Ki, Prometheus finally stopped him.


    ¡°What a load of rubbish. The usage of Ki is all wrong. No wonder you didn¡¯t know about immortality. No one can reach that with such nonsense. The ranking system is equally trashy. Listen to me from now on there will only be internal strength, I don¡¯t want to hear the word Ki. As for your knowledge of the elements, I want you to forget all of it. The first set of skills I¡¯ll teach you is the Five Element Theory. After learning this¡­ you can survive this fall all by yourself!¡±

 Chapter 9 – Metal Element?

    ¡°Listen carefully, I¡¯ll only say this once. There are five basic elements along with the two extremes, Ying and Yang. The five elements are wood, fire, earth, metal, and water. They mutually generate and overcome each other. Wood feeds fire. Fire creates earth, think of ash. Earth bears metal. Metal enriches water, think of minerals. Water nourishes wood¡­¡±


    ¡°After mastering the five basic elements you can then move on to mastering Ying and Yang. Where there is light, there will be dark. The light comes from compassion, honesty, and self-sacrifice. The dark feeds on anger, jealousy, greed, and fear. In reality all elements are just forces of nature¡­¡±


    Jin wasn¡¯t the brightest kid in school so naturally there were moments he was lost. However right now even though Prometheus was speaking in the same language as him, he felt like it was as if an alien or wild beast was making noise at him. He could only pick out one basic info, there is five elements and each have a light and dark side to them.


    An uncertain amount of time passed which felt like an eternity for Jin before Prometheus finally stopped speaking. The combination of confusing knowledge and his loud voice was enough to send Jin into a coma.


    ¡°Listen carefully kid. I know you are too stupid to understand what I just said, I only wanted to explain the basics to you before I teach you the method to escape death now.¡± Prometheus said grimly.


    Jin snapped out of his daze and smiled shyly with a guilty face.


    ¡°Since you are in the country that uses lightning, you should learn the element of metal! It¡¯ll also be the easiest way for you to survive this fall.¡±


    ¡°Metal? Lightning?¡± Jin said in surprise. What did metal have to do with lightning? Isn¡¯t lightning part of fire element?


    ¡°Fool, did you not hear a word I said?¡± Prometheus asked redundantly. He could read Jin¡¯s mind like the back of his hand, he naturally knew from his thoughts just now that he understood nothing from his speech. Prometheus himself was a wise and ancient figure that had survived for eons. There were many celestial beings who would have offered up countless planets and solar systems as a gift just to get a moment of his time. Seeing Jin waste even a tiny bit of his time infuriated him but there was nothing he could do.


    ¡°The element of metal represents the minerals, crystals, and gems of the world. Metal are unyielding, rigid, persistent. It is one of the five elements that is around you, remember the five elements make up this world. By creating friction between the metal elements in the atmosphere, you¡¯ll be able to generate electricity. If you unify and condense the metal elements than you will naturally be able to create a coat of metal to defend yourself. This is how you¡¯ll survive the fall.¡±


    ¡°Now I¡¯m going to teach you a simple mantra. Do your best to remember. You¡¯ll have to be able to recite it by heart. At the same time remember this sensation.¡± Prometheus kept speaking before Jin could reply.


    Right now only an apparition of Jin¡¯s body was in this strange world. Suddenly the world around him changed slightly and turned grey.


    ¡°The Titan Domain within your Soul Realm is something only I can create in this world. Time exists differently than outside, meaning time isn¡¯t moving outside. As long as you have enough internal strength, you can hid here indefinitely. However you only have enough internal strength to hold out here for another ten days. You¡¯ll have to learn the skill I¡¯m about to teach you within that time. In my domain I can manipulate it however I want, right now I¡¯ve made it so you are surrounded by metal elements. Remember the sensation. The moment the Titan Domain ends, you¡¯ll have only one shot to survive!¡±


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    Less than seven days? Jin was shocked. Heck if he pushed any of his teachers off the cliff, there was no way any of them can survive without the use of an Avatar.


    ¡°But if I use all my Ki in this Titan Domain¡­ wouldn¡¯t I run out of Ki to activate any skills?¡± Jin said flabbergasted.


    ¡°Fool. I told you not to say Ki. You humans pointlessly name it Ki, Qi, Chi, and what not. Anyways you have an Avatar. Although you can¡¯t manifest his full power, you can use a portion of its strength briefly. You¡¯ll be able to have enhanced strength for a full five seconds. Don¡¯t mistaken that as a solution. All you have is access to a portion of his internal strength. That in return will reinforce you physically and fuel your skills in that time limit. To be honest, the chances of you surviving is only one in five!¡±


    ¡°Please teach me the mantra now.¡± Jin asked urgently after hearing that he only had twenty percent to survive. A hint of smile finally appeared on the devilish body of this titan as he started to recite a simple three hundred word verse. It seems like the stupid kid was finally going to take this seriously. The odds were much better than that¡­ there was no way the titan was going to let his host die, he had much grander plans for him.


    In the real world, Jin¡¯s body was only a few meters from making contact with the earth below. His soul was training in the Titan Domain within himself. In that domain, Jin can stay as long as he wants as long as he has enough Ki or internal strength to sustain it.


    From anyone else¡¯s perspective, there was no delay. The body flew straight down and a gigantic boom rang out throughout the school. The school is over five kilometer in circumference but the impact of Jin¡¯s body was loud enough to be heard by all.


    ¡°What on earth?¡± The principle of the school, a famous D ranked Avatar user instantly looked out his window. After pinpointing where the sound came from, a pair of hawk-like wings sprouted from his back. In a flash the principle saw the group of students that witnessed Jin and Jouchi¡¯s fight earlier. They were still in shock and disorganized. Similar other teachers started to mobilize.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡± Principle Beck asked sternly.


    ¡°He¡­ he¡¯s dead.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t do it. It wasn¡¯t me.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell my parents please!¡±


    ¡°Who¡¯s dead? What¡¯s going on?¡± Principle Beck said in alarm. He couldn¡¯t tell from the confusion what was going on. In the corner of his eye he noticed Yumi¡¯s unconscious body and quickly rushed over. Pressing his hand on her back, he injected her with a bit of his Ki and woke her up.


    ¡°Prin¡­ Principle! Those kids¡­ They¡­ they pushed Jin over!¡± Yumi cried into his arms.


    ¡°What! A student fell over from the cliff?¡± He said in horror as he quickly put Yumi down and leapt straight down the cliff. The moment he looked down, he sped down. Something extraordinary caught his eye.


    ¡°What happened here?¡± He gasped as he came across a crater the size of a small building. It was as if a meteor landed here. There was no student around, only thirty feet of sunken ground.

 Chapter 10 – Disappearance

    It¡¯s been a week since the incident but the star of the show is nowhere to be seen. Jin was currently missing but most major power are more interested in the huge crater that appeared in the backside of the school.


    Was it a high ranking beast?


    Was it an explosive weapon?


    Or was it manmade?


    No one had a definite answer. In fact no one is even taking into the account that the kids, especially Jin, had anything to do with it. How could a bunch of kid cause that kind of crater? They were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.


    During this time a few investigators came and questioned his parents and Yumi. Yumi did most of the answering since his parents were just as confused the masses. They had no idea why so many people were interested in their ordinary kid. She explained that Hao challenged Jin to a fight at the back of the school and that Hao brought Jouchi along to beat Jin up.


    The investigators were teachers from the school and they naturally knew the students involved very well. They did not doubt Yumi¡¯s story but Hao¡¯s group was claiming something else entirely happened. They claimed that Jin lured Hao¡¯s group out and a wild beast attacked them. If it wasn¡¯t for Jouchi¡¯s timely save, the kids would have all perished. This story was full of loopholes but the teachers were helpless from the pressure Hao¡¯s family emitted so they were forced to expel Jin in the end. Even though he is missing! This was the injustice of society, the rich gets away with everything.


    Naturally Jin¡¯s parents were outraged and extremely upset. They had given up everything to move to this city from a rural village. They knew that their son was weaker than most kids and hated confronting people. There was no way Jin challenged those kids to a fight. Some teachers were sympathetic with them and promised to take Jin back once the storm settles around this issue. Jin¡¯s parents just wanted him to be safe. Although they don¡¯t know the details, some of the kinder teachers informed them that Jin¡¯s just missing not dead.


    This incident had garnered the attention of various powers within the city of Golden Thunder. The school couldn¡¯t prevent experts from investigating so many students would encounter experts searching for clues on a daily basis for the upcoming weeks. Ancient clans, guilds, and other schools within the city have all heard about the incident from those who heard the sound that exploded across the school and those who have seen the crater.


    The school Jin belongs to is the Blazing Flames School. The other top two were the Green Fire School and Purple Lightning Dojo. Naturally the rivalry between the three schools was intense, most of the information regarding the incident was leaked despite Blazing Flames School¡¯s efforts to keep it a secret.


    Even the lord of the city, Entai the Thunder Bringer, personally came and questioned his distant nephew Hao. At first Hao lied through his teeth about his involvement but Entai was the number one warrior and the governor of this city, how could he be deceived by a kid who was only twelve years old? He easily extracted the necessary information from him and knew Jin was a person of interest. It didn¡¯t take long for Entai to personally visit Jin¡¯s house.


    Yet even the city lord with his dominating presence couldn¡¯t find anything amiss. The parents were truly ordinary peasants. Their kid was definitely an ordinary kid from his deductions.


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    So where was Jin?


    ¡°Why did I have to run again?¡± Jin muttered bitterly to himself. He was currently many kilometers away from the city, crossing a disgusting swamp with the help of a walking stick.


    Jin recalled the incident that shocked the city. The moment Jin was about to land, he performed a basic metal forming technique based off the mantra provided by the ancient titan. On top of that, he utilized his first Avatar¡¯s power! The power of the unicorn was not something to be taken lightly. It was a mythical beast from the legends. Jin could only utilize a small portion of its grand powers for a mere five seconds though. The moment Froyo¡¯s power seeped into his veins, the metal forming process accelerated ten times faster than it would have if Jin just used his own power. In an instance his whole body was covered by a thin metallic layer.


    Like jumping off a bench, Jin landed with his four limbs and leapt far away right after. Afterwards that he sprinted towards a small stream and let the current carry him away out of the city. The stream led right outside his city to a small mountain where he used to adventure alone to. He found a cave and hid there. For that short period of time, Jin¡¯s power exploded tenfold. He was comparable to the power of an early D rank.


    The first night after the incident was the worst pain he had ever experienced. Using Froyo¡¯s powers came with a heavy price. The backlash made him feel like someone was grinding every inch of his bones up. The second day wasn¡¯t any better. He was still in pain but because of the miniscule innate trait he inherited from the majestic unicorn Avatar, he had some regenerative abilities. What should have taken him two weeks to heal took him two days.


    On the third day he finally came out of his hiding spot and started heading away from the city. No one was looking for him outside the city because they could never guess in a million years that his body would end up there. This was the part where he had a bit of trouble understanding. Running away from the scene was something that Prometheus ordered.


    ¡°This was undoubtedly attract the wrong kind of attention. You need to get as far away as possible. Remember each step you take not only affects your own life but your family¡¯s lives too!¡± Jin recalled his warning. The reasoning was that the fact he survived the fall will make everyone suspicious. Then there will be those who will lust after his power and go after him. It might escalate to the point where his parents will be endangered.


    Under the titan¡¯s stern warning, Jin didn¡¯t dare take the risk. Although Jin understand the logic, he was still young and na?ve. He never experienced true hardship or cruelty. In reality it was the titan¡¯s own precaution to keep his presence a secret from the world.


    It¡¯s been over a week of running in the wildness and he was in pretty bad shape. He had been eating random berries, leaves and drinking from any water source he could find. The bossy titan did not appear except when it was time for his nightly training. The titan would basically act as a teacher and make him recite from the Classic Five Element Scripture, the first section of the metal element.

 Chapter 11 – New City

    Jin had been on the road for over a week now but he had met no monsters in the wildness.


    Why?


    He was actually sticking relatively close to the road. Roads between cities are well established and traveled frequently by bands of humans. Any wild beasts spotted will usually perish instantly and be eaten. That¡¯s why no beasts came to bother Jin.


    Each night Jin would close his eyes and enter his Soul Realm. There was a chaotic dark space where Prometheus resided in and there was a much smaller but nicer white domain where the majestic unicorn Froyo resided. Sadly Jin would have to forgo the one filled with warm sensation and go to the dark domain to ¡°learn¡± from a devil-looking colossal giant.


    In the Titan Domain time literally stops on the outside for Jin as he goes under the tutelage of Prometheus. Only an apparition of his consciousness is there but Prometheus can create a virtual reality that simulates real environments for him to train in. Right now he is still mastering the basics of the metal element.


    As this was going on for days, Jin did not realize that it was also a form of training to increase his internal strength. Each time he enters Titan Domain, all his internal strength would be burned out since he stays there for the full time limit. He would spend the whole day recovering as he traveled along the road. If an emergency did come up then he still had the option of using his first Avatar¡¯s power briefly.


    After almost two weeks on the road, Jin finally spotted the neighbor city ¨C The Hollowing Fire City. It was then Prometheus finally changed up the routine.


    ¡°Took you long enough stupid. It¡¯s been over ten days and you can¡¯t even remember the first section of the metal element from the Classic Five Element Scripture¡­ how long are you going to make me wait until you master the whole thing?¡±


    ¡°Why do you want me to master the whole thing anyways?¡± Jin asked curiously. He understood the need to learn a bit of the metal element to survive from the fall. He also knew that based on the titan¡¯s condition he can only get uber high ranking Avatars like the unicorn so he¡¯ll have to train himself to be stronger until he can use the Avatars properly. But he doesn¡¯t get why the titan insists on forcing him to learn this particular set of arts. It wasn¡¯t even a real set of martial arts, it seems more like a set of theory that he has to put into practical use himself.


    The titan ignored him and ordered him make two baskets out of wood branches and fill it with berries. Jin just sighed and followed the order. Although the titan is condescending, Jin didn¡¯t sense any mistrust from him. Maybe it¡¯s because he was too young but the unicorn Avatar seemed to have nothing but respect for Prometheus.


    The titan had promised that he could reunite with his parents within two years if he followed his instructions so Jin is doing it without complaining¡­ out loud anyways.


    Jin was not an academic, this was evident in his slow progress of learning the Classic Five Elements Scripture. He likes to be free and the two weeks of traveling, while harsh, was the most fun he had.


    Under Prometheus instructions, Jin entered the city with a group of people. The gate was over fifty meters wide and the guards were busy chatting, it was easy for him to enter without getting noticed.


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    This city was roughly the same size as Jin¡¯s home city. The brilliant red walls were different from the thick grey walls from his city. The streets where Jin grew up in where more orderly organized while the Hollowing Fire City seemed build buildings randomly. As a curious kid, Jin noted all the differences with wide eyes.


    ¡°There, go ask that man if he would like to buy the fruits from you.¡± Prometheus¡¯s voice rang out. This was after Jin wandered around for a while.


    ¡°But I don¡¯t want to¡­¡± Jin protested. It was so awkward to approach a stranger in a foreign city to buy from him.


    ¡°Do you want to see your family again or not?¡±


    ¡°Fine¡­¡± Jin muttered. If he knew how to curse, he would have.


    ¡°Sir, would you like to buy some freshly picked fruits?¡± Jin approached him and asked innocently. Jin was only a twelve year old kid, the bald middle aged man looked down.


    ¡°Huh, where are your parents little kid?¡±


    ¡°My parents¡­ they are no longer around.¡± Jin said with genuine sadness.


    The domineering bald man¡¯s face softened as he saw Jin¡¯s expression.


    This kid¡­ is he a homeless kid going around selling fruits? What has the world come to¡­ sigh.  The man thought Jin was a homeless kid based on his tired expression and tattered clothes. The new ruler of the kingdom has raised taxes while ignoring his duties as king. This displaced many families and created plenty of orphans.


    ¡°Did you pick them today?¡± The man asked. Jin nodded. ¡°Fine, these fruits look pretty nice¡­ I could use them for my restaurant. I¡¯ll take them all.¡±


    The man who turned out to be the head chef gave Jin two silver coins. Jin who never had money before, showed a wide smile and bowed.  His family wasn¡¯t rich so Jin never got pocket change before.


    The usually stern man looked at Jin pitifully as he walked away, all that joy for 2 silver coins?


    ¡°Kid, come back again if you have more fruits to sell.¡± The chef yelled after rummaging through the fruits. They were actually quite decent, some were rare too. These were carefully handpicked.


    [100 copper = 1 silver, 100 silver = 1 gold, 1 loaf of bread costs 1 silver.]


    ¡°Where did you get these fruits?¡± He asked Jin with a hint of suspicion.


    ¡°I picked them from outside the city.¡± Jin replied honestly.


    Doing hard labor at such a young age¡­ The chef pitied Jin even more. While it is true Jin suffered a bit these two weeks, before Jin was quite a lazy kid that didn¡¯t do much chores. This was all part of Prometheus¡¯s scheme. He could see all that Jin could see and with his infinite wisdom, he could easily tell that this particular person was soft inside. Just the type they needed.


    ¡°I am in need of a delivery boy. Show up for work tomorrow morning. Try not to make a living this way, it¡¯s dangerous outside the city. Come inside for some food.¡± The chef said sternly. He had a restaurant to run and he couldn¡¯t offer Jin a full time position but he worries for his safety.


    ¡°Yes sir.¡± Jin said gratefully. He had a feeling that this was what Prometheus wanted based on his silence, beside he was starving for real food.

 Chapter 12 – Running

    ¡°What will we do about that boy?¡± Natari asked her husband Shang as they watched Jin¡¯s trailing figure disappear. For the past few weeks Jin had started helping out with the basic restaurant activities on top of deliveries in their restaurant. At first she was just happy there¡¯s extra help around the restaurant but when she realized how young Jin was, she became alarmed. Her own son was a year older and was still living getting hand fed by her.


    ¡°Leave him be, he¡¯s young and going through a few things. It¡¯s good that he¡¯s learning how harsh the world can be earlier than later. I wish I could say the same about our own kid.¡± Shang said plainly as he focused on cooking. She expected her husband to be more sympathetic but surprisingly he was rather tough on Jin. In reality her husband didn¡¯t dare tell her that Jin is an orphan that is probably homeless and parentless. There were times he was tempted but for some reason, he knew that Jin was going to be a self-made man like him who didn¡¯t need charities. What he needed now was to toughen up.


    Back to where Jin was at, he was carrying two large containers of food enough for twenty people! The city of Hollowing Fire designed to be compact even though its area is exceedingly large. This was different from the Golden Thunder City he grew up in where the streets were wide and spacious. It was because of this that personal delivery was much faster than delivery by horse though.


    ¡°Are you sure this is the best way to train my body?¡± Jin said between breathes with much difficulties. The restaurant owned by Shang had two floors, could seat over a hundred and fifty seats and was busy all the time. It was not like the small joint his parents owned back in his town. There were over ten delivery boys and hundreds if not thousands of delivery orders daily.


    ¡°Yes, before you try to run you must be able to walk. Your stamina is extremely poor, we cannot start the real training yet. You can¡¯t even control your internal strength properly.¡± Prometheus¡¯s regal voice rang out. Jin was expecting to practice the metal element again soon but he was never told to. In fact Prometheus just wanted him to do deliveries until he is ¡®passable¡¯.


    Jin gritted his teeth as his arms trembled like they were made of noodles. When he first started, forget jogging, he could barely walk to the customers¡¯ homes. There were times he puked or simply dropped everything which meant he needed to go back to the restaurant and start all over. Shang would of course scream at him and even deduct the spoiled food off his wages.


    Jin stopped entering the Titan Domain for the full duration shortly after the deliveries started. Now he goes in there for half the maximum time so he has half his internal strength to start the day. The Titan Domain provide valuable mental training. It¡¯s like the shadow boxing boxers do but it¡¯ll never replace real physical training. The titan just wants him to memorize the first section of the metal element of the scripture. Jin didn¡¯t even dare ask how many sections there are.


    The simplest way Jin could work out while earning a living was to use his internal strength in his everyday routines. However he had to overcome a very elementary problem first, he had to control his internal strength better. When he just started, he would be alright until the noon when he is completely depleted of any internal strength. Now he can almost make it till the end of the business day.


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    This was a huge improvement but still far from the first milestone set by his demonic teacher. He needed to be able to run at full speed for the whole day before they could start on real training.


    At first he thought training would be much more fun and the results would show much sooner but he was very wrong, he wasn¡¯t even qualified to start training yet! His determination was tested to the extreme and there were times where he wanted to take a day off. However he does not want to be the old Jin who slacked off anymore. He knew that it was a once in a lifetime fortune that he got two Avatasr of the highest tier and it was up to him to change his own destiny.


    Another two months passed and the icy phenomenon known as winter approached. Soft but delightful snow blanketed the whole city as people braced themselves for the cold weather. Jin was busy as ever with deliveries now since customers were more inclined to stay home.


    A nimble figure was seen gliding from the rooftops of stores from the marketplace. Utilizing the ice that formed from the melted snow, Jin was utilizing the minimum strength needed to reach his destination. The stamina was there, now he was just polishing the balance and concentration needed to reach his targets.


    He was doubting the instructions from the titan from time to time but without realizing it, he was beginning to enjoy running as he slowly noticed the progress he has made. Sure there were times where he fell and injured himself. There were even times where he was late and got food thrown back at his face but he can feel the changes within his body. Getting started was the hard part, now he¡¯s slowly reaping in the benefits. He could even see the outline of his abs forming just from running.


    The restaurant owner Shang started to realize how much faster Jin is than his other delivery boys and relied more and more heavily on him to deliver most of their food. Each time Jin got used to one style of delivery, Prometheus would instruct him to deliver with some handicaps. For example he would have to deliver without the lids on the food. This was a huge setback for Jin, he was spilling food left and right. The purpose of this was to increase his control to the next level. This took Jin yet another month to fully master. Each turn had to be done intricately or else the broth of the food would be spilled.  Then came variations such as using the left hand only or balancing the plate on his head. Each one seemed more ridiculous than the previous but Jin was whole heartedly doing as he was told.


    Just like this half a year had passed for Jin since he escaped to this city. He easily grew half a foot during this time. He more or less has the introductory section of metal. Every night the restaurant owner¡¯s wife would offer him to live at their home but he would politely refuse and secretly sleep inside the restaurant when every worker left. Jin had a suspicion that the bossy owner Shang knows but chooses not to say anything about it.


    ¡°Today we¡¯ll be trying something different. We¡¯ll be reinforcing your body with the metal element.¡± Prometheus¡¯s voice instructed in his mind.


    ¡°Really?¡± Jin was pleasantly surprised since he completely forgot about using the elements after half a year of gruesome running. He only focused on mastering his own puny amount of internal strength when he ran.

 Chapter 13 – More Running

    The metal element as Jin understands it has two fundamental abilities. It can create metal or generate lightning. As to why Prometheus made him learn this element first was¡­ because Jin¡¯s an ¡®air head¡¯ according to the titan.


    ¡°Gather the metallic particles around you and focus them on the bottom of your feet.¡± The titan instructed.


    Jin did as he was instructed and as if it was magic, a coat of metal was between him and his sandals. This shouldn¡¯t be too surprising since Jin had been practicing in a simulated environment inside the Titan Domain for a long time. The running was just to bring his physique up to standard to carry out those techniques practiced with the titan.


    Seeing how easily he could produce a coat of metal made Jin smile from ear to ear. He couldn¡¯t believe how far he has come. Half a year ago he has never even heard of the metal element and would never have believed it was a real thing even if his own parents told him


    ¡°So what do I do now?¡± Jin asked with excitement.


    ¡°Keep delivering. Keep the metal on your body. Start with your feet, once you are comfortable then add them to your arms, legs and torso beneath your clothes.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Jin exclaimed. Disappointment swelled up, he finally thought he was going to do some real training.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be disappointed, you are progressing a bit faster than I predicted. I promise you, you will be able to see your parents in another six months.¡± Prometheus¡¯s indifferent voice echoed.


    Jin was happy to hear that however he had come to understand the titan within him a little over the past six months. He wouldn¡¯t be surprised if Prometheus knew all along that he could see his parents in a year but said two years initially.


    The happiness was cut short as he realized the metal was pretty much meant to make his deliveries much more difficult with the extra weight. Not only did he need to use his own strength to maintain the materialization of the metal, he had to run around doing so too.


    ¡°Forget a year of training, a hundred years is nothing. The first mortals that reached the same heights as Gods secluded themselves to trillion years of training back in the days. Whether its mortal realm or the heavenly realms, once you show off your powers and get noticed¡­ the stronger ones will stop at nothing to crush the cockroach you are. Do I need to remind you again?¡±


    Jin didn¡¯t even understand the word ¡°trillion¡± but it was enough to keep him quiet. Jin was shown random flashes of memories from the ancient titan when he was hesitant about running away from home. They were all scenes of human greed, vengeance and hatred that have claimed the lives of many innocent men. Examples of strong martial artists and cultivators winning many battles but only to find their loved ones assassinated. The horrible scenes were enough to sway him from returning home right away.


    Jin had come to know why people preferred using Avatars more than training themselves. An Avatar can increase their Ki or internal strength, as Prometheus prefers, tenfold easily while the user can be much weaker than the Avatar themselves. Most people would get a Rank F Avatar first, train with the Avatar then slowly get a stronger Avatar. However there is a limited about of Avatars one can get, a total of eleven. The reason why no one goes for all Rank A Avatars is because they can¡¯t defeat them or wield their powers at all.


    ¡°Hey peasant boy.¡± An irritated voice called out. A fashionable boy slightly shorter than Jin was seen standing by the door way of the restaurant. Usually Ryu sleeps in the restaurant until sunrise and sneaks out so it could look like he just showed up for work later.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what your game is but thanks to you I¡¯m forced to experience this ¡°real life¡± my old man has been talking about.¡±


    ¡°You must been Yoon! Hi I am Jin.¡± Jin introduced himself and held out his hand. Natari, wife of the owner, had often compared and talked about her son to Jin.


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    ¡°Hmph. I¡¯m not here to be your friend.¡± Without further ado, Yoon turned around and left.


    Inside the restaurant before the business day started, Shang was telling the kitchen staff what kind of orders are in already. The cooks were busy busting their chops while the delivery boys were ready on the side.


    Yoon obviously stood out with his flashy clothes and confident look. As if he wanted to show off his superiority, his swung his right arm outwards. His nails grew, a rich brown fur coat appeared on his arm and half his face grew slightly savage. He had half transformed into a bear!


    ¡°Ha don¡¯t be surprise, as a student of the Golden Medallion School this is nothing. Last time we went on an Avatar beast hunt, I personally captured two beasts!¡± Yoon bragged as he bathed in the wows and woos from the other delivery boys. Although their ages were older, they were poor and never went to school. Without money and tutorage from a school, it was almost impossible to own and use an Avatar.


    ¡°Now now don¡¯t feel too bad if I outperform you guys. Back at the school they call me the Demolishing Bear because I can smash a boulder with my bare hands!¡±


    Yoon seemed to be taunting Jin specifically but Jin was actually admiring him wholeheartedly. He was missing school and wondered what he missed out on. Avatar beast hunt? He always dreamed of attending one when he was qualified back in the days. Finally the deliveries started and Jin didn¡¯t get to see Yoon until the end of the day.


    The rest of the day went fairly uneventful. Jin had now been recognized as a polite and reliable delivery boy. Some of the nicer customers would tip him and compliment him. This of course reminds him of his own parent¡¯s smaller restaurant and fuels his desire to complete his training so he could get home.


    ¡°Pathetic, I send you to the private school for three thousand gold coins per semester and you can¡¯t even perform a simple deliveries properly? Jin did a hundred eighty deliveries today while you only did a measly thirty. Thirty! The other delivery boys did around fifty as well. ¡±


    ¡°Dad it¡¯s not fair. He has been doing this for much longer. I am just not used to it.¡± Yoon¡¯s frustrated voice replied. He had over used his Ki from the first few deliveries and for the rest of the day, his physical strength couldn¡¯t keep up. He stopped and took many breaks in between deliveries.


    ¡°That¡¯s your excuse? What about the proud alpha dog Avatar and the a hundred year old bear you have? What Demolishing Bear? All you know is how to brag. Did you know Jin doesn¡¯t even use an Avatar?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because ¨C wait what¡­?¡± Yoon¡¯s voice suddenly stopped as he heard the shocking news. He had assumed that Jin outperformed everyone based on his Avatar which might specialize in speed.


    ¡°You heard me. Usually Jin does over two hundred deliveries too. He must have felt sorry for your poor performance so he slowed down.¡± Shang¡¯s angry voice didn¡¯t hold anything back. That wasn¡¯t the case, Jin just began to practice the metal element starting today.


    ¡°Impossible, he must have an Avatar¡­ what kind of country bumpkin doesn¡¯t have one?¡±


    ¡°Not everyone¡¯s a spoiled hopeless brat like you. From now on you¡¯ll have to earn your own allowances!¡±


    Slam. A fuming teenage boy walked out of the restaurant. The first thing he saw was Jin. If looks could kill then Jin felt that Yoon¡¯s stare would have obliterated him. Shang came out right after Yoon and was about to lecture more until he saw Jin.


    ¡°Boss, I¡¯m done for the day. See you tomorrow.¡± Jin bowed and left uncomfortably. He did not know how to deal with this type of awkwardness.

 Chapter 14 – Now You Are Ready

    The next day Yoon didn¡¯t show up as Jin would have expected. Although he didn¡¯t hear anything from Shang, Jin still felt bad. It was true that Jin doesn¡¯t use any of his Avatars power to perform the deliveries but he still gained innate talent from just having his Avatar Froyo and Avatar Prometheus. Also the ancient titan was making Jin undergo a unique training curriculum.


    Every night Jin would actually be burning up over half his internal strength instantaneously to maintain his presence in the Titan Domain. The maximum time he can stay within the Titan Domain has nearly tripled! Every morning he would be utilizing and controlling his internal strength for physical labor on top of training his body. Even if Yoon was taught by the best to utilize his Avatar, he can¡¯t match up to Jin¡¯s progress over the last six months.


    Every now and then Jin would see Yoon hanging out with two rough and shady looking characters during his deliveries. There would be smoke coming out of their area. Two things Jin¡¯s mother warned him to never do was smoke or drink alcohol. Sometimes their eyes would meet and Jin would feel his stare piercing his body. The kid hated Jin tremendously.


    It was obvious that Yoon was skipping classes but Jin did not know if he should tell his boss. In the end he chose not to, due to his honest nature he felt like he would be ratting a fellow kid out.


    One day Jin got curious and stood on a roof top where Yoon was hanging out with his ¡°friends¡± and listened in on their conversation. A stench of foul smell drifted upwards, it took Jin all he had to not make a sound.


    ¡°Pft my old man doesn¡¯t understand me, he never went to school himself!¡±


    ¡°Mine is worse, all he cares about is grades. Because I failed the F+ exam, he refuses to buy me my second Avatar!¡±


    ¡°Ha that¡¯s nothing. My old man favors some homeless kid working at our restaurant. My mom¡¯s always comparing the two of us. He even took away my allowance to give to that kid!¡± This was obviously Yoon¡¯s voice, twisting the facts to make him sound like the victim.


    ¡°Just wait until I become a Pathfinder! I¡¯ll show them.¡±


    ¡°Pathfinder? What¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you know that Pathfinders are Avatar hunters who can pinpoint locations of tombs and dungeons? They are the ones who find treasures and make the big bucks!¡±


    ¡°Psh that¡¯s nothing, they are just cowards who guide the raid. A true man would choose to fight as one with their Avatar! Avatar Synthesis is the way to go!¡± Yoon said proudly. Jin thought back to the scene where Yoon became half a bear and became even more curious as to what other usages there are.


    ¡°Avatar Synthesis is nothing, Avatar Summoning is better! Can you beat a horde of Avatars?¡±


    Jin listened for a while before departing. He learned quite a bit from them since he did not attend school anymore. However he also learned of Yoon¡¯s deep hatred for him so he made a mental note to avoid their smoking hideout.


    It took Jin less than a month to freely manipulate the metallic elements around him. The metallic element presence is something he can feel without trying now. Not only that, he found out he didn¡¯t even need to sleep or eat as much before. In fact Jin was relatively strong for someone his age, if an expert evaluated him then he would have guessed Jin started special training at a young age. If you tell the expert Jin doesn¡¯t use his Avatars in a fight then he would never believe it. Jin was oblivious to this though since Prometheus rarely compliments him and calls him stupid more than a few times.


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    On one particular night, just before Jin was about to enter the Titan Domain the ancient titan¡¯s voice entered Jin¡¯s head. ¡°No need to come today¡­ you are ready for practical training now.¡±


    Under Prometheus¡¯s instructions, Jin snuck out of the city with ease. The city is more or less known like the back of his hand.


    ¡°Pick up that branch over there.¡±


    Jin took the meter long wooden stick with ease in his hands. With a bit of effort, the whole stick was covered with a layer of grey radiance. Starting from the base of the stick where Jin held it, metal started materializing. Jin¡¯s face was covered with glee since it succeeded on his first try until a large growl came from nearby. It was so loud that it echoed in the desolate night.


    ¡°Did you know a beast is here? What do I do?¡± Jin asked in alarm.


    ¡°Even without my body, I can read the simple vegetation of the mortal world. If I had my corporeal form, I can foretell everything in this world and any divine events.¡± Prometheus¡¯s said proudly.


    That¡¯s not what I meant! Jin panicked.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry you are ready. The simpleton will leap at your head, keep your eyes above. Don¡¯t let it tear your head off.¡±


    Tear my head off? What?


    Jin instinctively swung the metallic stick like a baseball bat and struck the wolf¡¯s torso as it leapt towards him. Strength from every part of body naturally flowed to his arms and into the metallic stick. Jin¡¯s feet pivoted and his upper body twisted in sync as the strike made maximum impact.


    Bang!


    The wolf broken body flew for meters at a rapid speed before slamming into a trunk of a tree. The body couldn¡¯t even limp after taking such a blow. Shortly after a blue glow appeared as its body disappeared. The blue spark floated towards Jin and a finger sized claw fell into his hand.


    ¡°Congratulations. That was your first beast hunt! Even though it¡¯s a fairly weak monster, it¡¯s probably a rank F. Now snap out of it, you¡¯ve only defeated the wolf on guard. The whole pack should be here in any minute now.¡±


    Monsters are divided between ranks from F to A. Within each rank there is minus, regular and plus.


    [F-, F, F + etc]


    ¡°Huh what?¡± Jin didn¡¯t know how to respond, is the titan trying to help or kill him? Did it know that Jin was disappointed when Yoon was bragging about his exploits?


    The sounds of a horde of wolves slowly grew louder as Jin stood there uncertainly with a dumbfounded expression.


    There was no way he was trying to make me feel better. Jin decided after a dozen shadows charged at him.

 Chapter 15 – The Rising Sun Auction House

    ¡°You look like you didn¡¯t get any sleep.¡± Shang noted. It was rare for him to comment on Jin¡¯s appearance. Jin¡¯s hair was in a disarray, his clothes are even more tattered than usual and even the soles of his shoes looked completely worn out.


    Jin could only give a weary smile in response. Last night was a horror that he didn¡¯t want to recall just yet. There were many moments where he thought he would have died.


    ¡°Boss, can I have a lunch break today? Actually can I have a two hour break from now?¡± Jin asked.


    ¡°Of course you can darling.¡± Natari said kindly.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Shang said in surprise. Even though all of his delivery boys work around six to eight hours a day. Jin had slowly grown to work the full twelve hours that the restaurant is open for. He never ever took breaks for the past few months. Everyone has gotten used to his strangeness but most attributed it to the fact that he is homeless and in dire need of money. Since he is kind and helpful around the restaurant and has a great attitude, no one objected to the fact he wants more shifts.


    ¡°What do you think has gotten into him now? Do you think he has met a girl?¡± Natari asked her husband after Jin ran off for his first delivery of the day. Shang scoffed as he resumed work without answering.


    When the break finally came, Jin strolled around into a clothes store and bought a brand new set clothes. The seams of the clothes were all made with golden silk. Jin had never wore anything this soft and light in his life. This was also the first time he spent a penny from his earning as a delivery boy. He had been wearing second hand stuff from Yoon through the charitable donations from Natari. However the titan instructed him to buy the most expensive clothes possible which was almost eighty percent of his savings!


    As a kid he instantly recognized the change in attitude when the shop owners see him with new clothes. Jin naturally trusted his mentor even if he was a dictator but the purchase still stung. He continued to visit many shops, some sold weapons, some sold medicine, some sold Avatars and some sold cultivating resources. He even visited the public library to read some books the titan was interested in.


    Jin continued to spend his breaks doing these seemingly pointless tasks for a few days before finally the titan told me to visit the auction house. He had been here before in the past but the prices of items were all out of his reach. Even if he worked for another ten years, he might not be able to afford anything.


    ¡°Sir I would like to auction off twenty-seven rank F wolf beast Avatars. There¡¯s also an alpha wolf which is rank F+.¡± Jin approached a distinguished gentleman who was just walking into the auction house. He held a sack and revealed a pile of claws inside.


    ¡°Oh?¡± The man said with amusement. He wore a fancy suit and had a pair of stylish glasses on. The aura around him was on a businessman. Behind him was a simple looking lady carrying a notepad, writing down stuff he was saying.


    ¡°Impressive. Did you hunt all these yourself?¡± The man asked after a brief inspection. The moment he said these words, an invisible force pressed down on Jin. A slight red glow came out of the man. Other people around the auction house instantly felt it and moved out of the way.


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    ¡°Under the tutelage of my master I was able to do so.¡± Jin replied humbly. The pressure intensified slightly but Jin who just faced a life and death situation a few nights ago did not flinch one bit. Actually compared to the horrifying aura and colossal figure of the titan, it¡¯ll not be easy to make Jin scared. Jin rotated the internal strength within him and stood his ground.


    ¡°Rank E-¡­ impressive. Why did you pick me?¡± The man praised. He wanted to continue testing but he did not dare harm a kid who was less than half his age. Although Jin showed bravery, he was at his limit under the assault of his Ki.


    ¡°Actually I was told to talk to the young mistress of the auction house by my master¡¯s instructions.¡± Jin replied honestly as he looked at the assistant.


    This caused the two of them to briefly gasp before the seemingly normal assistant smiled.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are talking abo-.¡± The man said but the assistant cut him off.


    ¡°May I know who your esteemed master is?¡± The female assistant asked.


    ¡°The name¡¯s Metallic Lightning Dragon.¡± Jin replied. Everything was done as instructed as Prometheus ordered.


    ¡°Alright. We will auction them off tonight. Ninety percent of the profits will go to you, I promise you it¡¯ll be more profitable then selling to a store. You can come tonight to the auction if you want to confirm.¡± She replied as she handed him a purple badge with an insignia of a sun on it.


    ¡°No need. Thank you.¡± Jin bowed and left.


    ¡°Should I find out his background?¡± The man asked the lady assistant as Jin left.


    ¡°Of course not Manager Kao. To be able to withstand your pressure earlier¡­ and know my identity, that kid must have a formidable master. Also how can we tarnish our reputation, the Rising Sun Auction House does fair business while keeping our clients anonymous.¡± The lady smiled as she stared at Jin¡¯s departing shadows. The man nodded as they continued into the auction house. He too was curious about the boy who could rise to Rank E- at such a young age. It wasn¡¯t unheard of, some prodigies of powerful families are able to groom their heirs like that. If they heard that Jin had only trained for less than a year to go from no rank to Rank E-, they would no doubt faint. It was simply impossible.


    After walking a few blocks away, Jin finally let out a huge sigh of relief. Although he did not show it, he was on the verge of collapsing earlier. Manager Kao was on a level which could crush him without lifting a finger! Even if Jin used his trump card, using the majestic unicorn¡¯s power for a brief five seconds, he would still be crushed like a bug. It was all too scary.


    ¡°Now you know the world is full of people who can kill you with a simple thought.¡± Prometheus voice reminded him. Overconfidence was fatal to any cultivators, especially to one as young as Jin. Although the titan was semi-manipulating the kid, he only does so for his own good.

 Chapter 16 – Entering the Instance

    Next day when Jin went to the counter of the Rising Sun Auction house and showed the purple badge he received earlier, he got a bag full of coins. After carefully opening them in a safe location, Jin was shocked to find thirty-three gold coins. They had been price scouting earlier so they knew that rank F wolves don¡¯t go for more than thirty silver coins. Even the titan was surprised but he didn¡¯t let Jin know. From Jin¡¯s deliveries he only earned a measly five gold coins!


    ¡°Wow I am rich!¡± Jin exclaimed. He was already thinking ahead, if he can earn even just ten gold coins a day then he can have three hundred gold coins a month! If he can give that much to his parents, they¡¯ll be ecstatic!


    ¡°There must be another usage of Avatars that we don¡¯t know about¡­¡± The titan said to himself. ¡°Kid, ask that chef about spare Avatars.¡±


    Why? Don¡¯t you know everything? Jin wondered but he did as he was told.


    ¡°Extra Avatars? Why do people buy them?¡± Shang was surprised Jin would ask him about Avatars. He was just starting to think Jin was the only kid who wasn¡¯t interested in one since he didn¡¯t use any.


    ¡°Well simply put they can become food to the Avatars you own. The only way to upgrade your Avatar is to absorb similar types or species. For example if I have a fire type Avatar, I can absorb other fire type Avatars instead of officially owning them. If it¡¯s the same species then the absorption will be even more effective. However the base type of your Avatar is very important, if you have rat type Avatar then no matter how you upgrade it, it won¡¯t evolve past Rank F. If your Avatar has the potential to be rank A like a phoenix, in theory you can upgrade it from rank F if you ever own a baby phoenix Avatar.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± Jin said as he listened. He realized now why everything sold for so much. Someone must have bought the whole bag of his wolf avatars. The buyer must have took the pack leader as his own and absorbed the rest.


    ¡°Damn it kid why didn¡¯t you tell me earlier, this changes everything.¡± The titan disgruntled voice shouted at him.


    ¡°Changes what?¡± Jin sent the message back mentally. He got not answer.


    The deliveries continued as did the nightly activity of Avatar hunting. Most nights Jin fought rank F beasts that roam around the jungle outside the city. On some occasions there would be other humans doing the same but thankfully the titan would warn him so he never made contact.


    One particular night Jin ventured into a stone quarry. He had become extremely proficient at fighting wild animals. Although he can cover his body with layers of metal, it still hurts if he got struck. This forced him to read the movements of the animals and react accordingly. His main weapon was still a wooden stick that he reinforces with metal.


    The night was quiet and the sky was clear. Not even a hoot could be heard for kilometers. Jin slowly approached a small cave. There was only rank F beasts in this jungle and maybe a few rank E monsters occasionally. After walking inwards for a few minutes a large eagle-like beast flew at him out of nowhere. Its speed exceeded that of Jin¡¯s expectation and he was knocked back. If he wasn¡¯t protected by the metallic element then he would have been sliced in half. The bird was extremely hard, its feathers were made of rocks!


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    ¡°What has gotten into the bird?¡± Jin wondered as he braced himself. As the bird flew back, its speed was even faster than the first strike. It took Jin all he had to dodge it. Jin finally realized that this bird was not afraid of dying! It was aiming to take Jin down at the expense of its own life.


    Suddenly more stone birds flocked towards them from the direction of which he came in from. Ten¡­ twenty¡­ thirty¡­ too many! Jin can¡¯t handle this many, if enough blows come at him then even his protective metallic armor will break. These birds must be of the earth element type! If they were just regular bird beasts then Jin wouldn¡¯t be as afraid.


    ¡°Run out the cave.¡± The titan said plainly. Jin frowned and threw his stick at the first bird to delay him and without looking, he turned and ran deeper in to the cave. He wanted to listen to the titan but right now the entrance was clogged with aggressors.


    The fruits of his physical labor showed as he outran the birds but only slightly. They were still pursuing him like mad animals without a care in the world. More stone birds appeared on the way, the cave which became an endless maze was filled with these birds.


    ¡°What is that?¡± Jin asked as he approached a huge craven. A large corpse as large as a house was at the center of it. After observing the skeletal structure Jin realized it was that of an enormous bird! The flock of birds which now numbered over fifty continued to chase him.


    ¡°Are they guarding the corpse of their leader?¡± Jin wondered as he ran to grab a huge bone to protect himself. The moment he stepped near the large corpse, he fell downwards. He slipped through solid ground somehow.


    ¡°Ahh something is ripping me apart.¡± Jin cried out as he felt himself been dragged by an invisible force.


    Cough. Cough. Jin found himself on the ground of a dusty surface. The temperature around him felt fairly warm, too warm in fact. There was also an odd humming noise coming from the distance. After collecting himself Jin found himself in a sandy environment, he was in a middle of a desert!


    ¡°Is this¡­ an Instance?¡± Jin asked but received no response from the titan. Instances¡­ they were something that came from a passing of a Rank D being! Rank F and E humans and beasts can only enter an item when they pass away in the real world. Rank D beings however can form an Instance!


    Jin was starting pick up a few things that he noticed about the titan. Although it contained an immeasurably depth of wisdom and knowledge, it didn¡¯t know a whole lot about Avatars. In fact everything he knew seemed to come from Jin and what Jin learned along the way.


    Whoosh.


    Jin heard a noise but nothing was in sight. However he is no longer the na?ve boy he was before, although it wasn¡¯t much he has a bit of battle experience in him now.


    Below! Jin used a fair bit of strength and leapt upwards. A second later a ginormous grey crab-like creature appeared from the sand where he stood. Like him, the monstrous creature seemed to be covered in a layer of metallic armor. The creature waited patiently for Jin to land from the air, two scissor-like pinchers were waiting for him.

 Chapter 17 – Lightning Strike

    ¡°Ahhh!¡± Jin screamed out.


    ¡°Don¡¯t panic. Feel the metallic particles between you and the monster. Feel the metal element that makes up the monster. Instead of gathering them, create friction between them!¡± The titan¡¯s confident voice rang in Jin¡¯s head, calming him.


    Just as he started to fall down, he held his right hand forward facing the monster. Manipulating the metallic element, he had practiced almost every night in the Titan Domain. The scripture from for the metal element had been hammered into his head. Jin quickly attempted what he was told to do.


    Although it is the first time he had done so in real life, he managed to create electricity! A streak of lightning appeared from the air and struck downwards. Not only that, as Jin got closer to the monster he managed to do the same within its body. Lightning busted outwards from his insides.


    ¡°Gah!¡± The crab-like beast screamed about, its pinchers which were pointing upwards dropped. Its metallic body flailed about as a course of electricity ran through him. The lightning from within his body was outside its expectation.


    ¡°Quick, aim between its eyes.¡±


    Jin quickly withdrew the lightning and gathered all the metallic particles towards his right arm. His fist grew three times its normal size and became a gauntlet.


    Bam!


    The grey crab monster tumbled backwards and collapsed. Not taking any chances Jin quickly threw another punch without any restraint at the same location. The head of the beast caved in and a small grey flash shot out. After the blinding light, a small metal pincher was left on the ground.


    ¡°The boss of this dungeon can have other avatars working for him?¡± Jin said as he panted. He had used up most of his strength. If that second blow didn¡¯t finish the monster off, Jin would have had to use his trump card.


    ¡°That must be one of the Avatars from the owner of this dungeon¡­¡± Prometheus mused. Jin knew better to interrupt when the titan was talking to himself.


    ¡°Whoever made the laws of this world is an eccentric¡­ If my theory is right, you can absorb the Avatar.¡±


    ¡°Make it my third Avatar?¡± Jin didn¡¯t understand.


    ¡°No, you can refine the power of that metal type Avatar and make it your own.¡± The titan proceeded to explain the process.


    ¡°Allow the energy of the Avatar to flow into me and make it my own¡­¡± Jin repeated as he sat down. Grabbing the claw, Jin attempted to sense the energy the titan was referring to. It took him a second but he instantly felt a familiar force. It was the metallic presence that he had been painstakingly training for months to sense. The claw was filled with an abundance of that force!


    ¡°Carefully extract a small amount of it. Let it flow into the center of your body where the rest of your internal strength is. This is where your core is. Right now it¡¯s just a container and you have to fill it up.¡±


    Small streams of energy started flowing into Jin. The energy was disobedient and fought every step along the way, if Jin tried to absorb the crab¡¯s spirit in its entirety at once then he would have seriously injured himself and failed. Following the titan¡¯s method, Jin forcefully suppressed the foreign energy and rotated it with his own.


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    The assimilating process took a while, Jin had no way of telling how long it took to absorb half the beast¡¯s power. The blazing orange sun in this environment showed no signs of changing. The more Jin absorbed, the harder it was to continue. After Jin rotated the crab monster¡¯s energy into his own, he had to filter out the impurities that was not of pure metal element. The result was that eighty percent of energy from the Avatar had to expel as waste.


    However the changes he felt was instant even though he only got twenty percent of the total energy from the beast. It was as if he was high on caffeine, Jin felt invincible as his internal strength reached a new height. After getting evaluated as an E- Rank fighter, Jin didn¡¯t feel his strength improve as fast afterwards. It is to be expected since each level is exponentially harder than the previous. Jin could confidently say he must have crossed over from E- to E Rank now.


    ¡°Good, now practice the lightning strike again until you can perform both the lightning strike and metallic reinforcement simultaneously. You don¡¯t know if there¡¯s any more guardian left in here or if the boss will show up himself.¡± The titan instructed.


    Jin nodded, he totally forgot about the danger he was in. Focusing his attention, Jin tried the skill again and felt his control over the metallic particles increased. With ease a streak of lightning appeared as he directed it downwards from the sky and into the sand. The trick was to make sure the particles are always moving, always rubbing against each other. If they clump up and slow down, the power of the electricity will drop tremendously.


    ¡°Alright now let¡¯s head east before you dry up.¡± Prometheus said indifferently after twenty minutes. Although Jin didn¡¯t need to eat much under regular conditions, under this scorching heat he might just die from dehydration!


    ¡°Ah!¡± Jin cried out after he kicked something. He nearly tripped but after he saw what he made contact with, he fell down.


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ it¡¯s a person!¡± Jin gasped. There was a silhouette of a skeletal remain of a person.


    ¡°He must have died in here.¡± The titan said plainly.


    ¡°Is there no way to leave this place without beating the boss?¡± Jin asked in alarm with a shaky voice.


    ¡°Go see if he has anything useful for us.¡±


    ¡°But¡­¡±


    ¡°Just do it, do you want to end up like him?¡±


    Jin was reluctant but after a few breathes of time he inched forward and dug the skeletal remains out. Beside a tattered robe, there is only a steel spear with a broken blade and a ring on its finger.


    ¡°Inject some of your internal strength into it. You can take the items out with your thoughts.¡± Prometheus instructed.


    Jin picked up the ring and did as he was told. A series of items appeared on his mind; a small pile of gold, a few daggers, spare clothes, a few scrolls, some books, a few yellow elixirs, and three pills.


    Before Jin could take any items out though, a sudden gust of wind originating from afar hit him. Waves of sand followed and suddenly the sky darkened. A large flying creature was obstructing it, the only thing Jin could see was a pair of cold red eyes.

 Chapter 18 – Hit once, hit hard

    The deadly creature screeched from high above but even then the noise managed to make ripples on the ground. Because its feathers were all made of rocks, each flap of its wings generated enough wind to topple over trees.


    Jin felt his organs vibrate and he instantly coughed up blood. He quickly summoned a coat of metal around his body but the vibrations still injured him.


    ¡°Grab the spear. Play dead.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Jin exclaimed. Play dead? In a few minutes he¡¯ll really be dead if this continues! So this was a D Rank beast. Its prowess can¡¯t be compared to the metallic crab earlier at all. All it needs to do was continue screaming from high above and Jin will die a painful death. There¡¯s nothing he can do about it! Even if Jin could summon lightning, it¡¯s still restricted to a short range because that¡¯s the limit of his control.


    ¡°Even though it¡¯s dead, it still has some appetite.¡± The titan mused as it ignored Jin. Jin could only purposely fall down although it wasn¡¯t hard since the powerful noise was getting to him. He was starting to feel nauseous.


    ¡°Listen carefully, it seems to have retained its habits as an aerial creature when it was alive. If I am right, it¡¯ll come down to eat you. You¡¯ll only have one chance to kill it. Hit once, hit hard.¡± Prometheus said solemnly.


    This was the first time that Jin had heard his tone like that. It seems like his chances of escaping unharmed was low. Heck there is a chance he might not make it out at all.


    Screech. The majestic bird that screamed from the air as if it was looking down at its subjects as a king finally stopped. Jin¡¯s body had long stopped moving and was lying flat on the ground.


    Whoosh. The sovereign of this Instance shot down like a bullet. A tempest formed as it did so, the sand around the area swirled around as it couldn¡¯t bear the force of its owner¡¯s descent.


    ¡°Wait for it.¡± The titan said as Jin was about to turn around.


    The air pressure got heftier, if it wasn¡¯t for Jin¡¯s training in the metal element then he would have suffered heavy internal injuries already. Jin wanted to turn around and face his predator but waited impatiently for the titan¡¯s signal.


    ¡°Not yet.¡±


    Jin could feel the death omen surging from within him. The shadow from the humongous bird already eclipsed everything around him. All the sand around him got blown away, including the skeletal remains.


    ¡°Now!¡±


    Grabbing the spear, Jin flipped around and threw the spear with everything he had. Just before the spear left his hand, he called forth the majestic unicorn Avatar. Avatar Froyo¡¯s power surged from within him and flooded every meridians of his body. His senses heightened greatly. All of the metallic particles from around him suddenly bent to his will. The broken spear reformed into a grand spear tripling its original size. That wasn¡¯t all, at the tip of the spear was a powerful blue aura. Under the influence of his Avatar, Jin was able to completely condense the electrical powers into the blade. The blue aura contained the power of multiple lightning strikes!


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    The ancient aerial Avatar that reigned over its Instance for many years sensed doom and tried to reverse its dive at the last minute. Somehow its prey which was a mere Rank E human suddenly exploded with the strength of a Rank D expert! If Jin had started off with that power then the arrogant bird would still have ways to deal with him. However because it thought Jin was already half dead, it relaxed its defenses and went down to peck Jin¡¯s body out of habit. This was its downfall!


    The spear shot through the large stone bird¡¯s neck like it was cutting butter and the moment the head started falling off, everything around Jin distorted. A familiar feeling of falling occurred and Jin was launched out of the ground from where he came from. He was back in the cavern where a large corpse of a bird stood.


    A hundred pair of eyes were closed as they were sleeping but suddenly they shot open the moment Jin came. However before any of them can attack Jin who was completely drained of any power after using his trump card, a blinding light came from the corpse of their former patriarch.


    The light transformed into an enormous stone feather that was three times Jin¡¯s height and dropped downwards beside him. The resulting landing made a small crater. Seeing this all the stone bird beasts flew out in panic. They knew what this meant, this boy had somehow managed to clear the Instance! By doing so their patriarch must have been defeated.


    Jin¡¯s conscious slowly slipped away as he saw all the birds within the cavern vacated their home in fear.


    Dad¡­ Mom¡­ Yumi¡­ Jin was dreaming about the good old times he played around without a worry in the world. His mom would feed him all his favorite food and his dad would play catch with him.


    Then suddenly a malevolent creature that looked more evil than the devil himself appeared.


    ¡°Run hahaha Run!¡± The wicked monster shouted as it whipped him.


    ¡°I¡¯m running, I¡¯m running!¡± Jin cried out as he jumped up. As he did so, every inch of his body felt like it was breaking and he quickly fell down.


    ¡°Took you long enough.¡± Prometheus said unsympathetically. ¡°You were lucky enough to clear this Instance. If the dumb bird didn¡¯t take the bait, you would have died even if you were twice as strong. Now that you have a storage device, you need to stock up on food and extra accessories. If the stupid bird didn¡¯t come out, you could have been lost for a long time. Also it is time for you to start training in a second element. Since you are as dense as a rock, might as well train in the earth element. You can absorb the stone bird to accelerate your stone element cultivation as well¡­¡±


    Jin sat up slowly as he rubbed his head. The lecturing from the tyrannical titan gave him an extreme migraine but he didn¡¯t dare protest. He could only elevate his pain as he cuddled against the stone feather containing the Avatar of the Rank D flying beast. It¡¯ll take him at least a full day to recover, that¡¯s a lot of listening to do Jin thought.

 Chapter 19 – Bursting with Anger

    Even though Jin was significantly stronger than the time he first activated Froyo¡¯s Avatar, his body still couldn¡¯t take the stress from using a power much greater than his own. It took him a whole day before he could walk on his own two feet.  Another half a day before he recovered fifty percent of his strength. After recovering nearly most of his strength, Jin finally left the stone quarry that used to be home to the stone flying beasts.


    It was the first time Jin wandered around the wildness in broad daylight. He stored the large stone feather containing the spirit of the Rank D spirit. It was not something that could be sold yet, unwanted questions will be raised. Although he successfully cleared his first instance, he agrees with the mighty titan that it was mostly luck. There were so many other scenarios where he could have easily died. Thinking about it sends the chills down his spine.


    The first thing Jin noticed as he was walking back was that the air was much livelier. Usually when he comes hunting at night, mostly nocturnal beasts such as bat type, cat type, fox type and wolf type beasts were around. A few of the beasts tried attacking Jin but they quickly met their demise since the jungle near the city was no longer a challenge for him. Rank F beasts are only hard to deal with if their numbers are great and Rank E- beasts just take Jin a bit more time.


    ¡°Boss Shang must be furious with me.¡± Jin thought to himself as he navigated his way through a bunch of trees and bushes. He had never missed work before.


    ¡°Having a weapon makes a world of difference too.¡± Jin thought back to the broken spear he found inside the Instance. Without it, there was no way he could have won against the Rank D beast no matter how many chances he got. When it comes to confronting a beast and their natural superior body, human hands and feet just don¡¯t cut it.


    Jin also realized the exponential difference in strength between each ranks now. According to Prometheus, the stone bird-like beast in the Instance earlier was only a D- but it was strong enough to kill Jin a thousand times. Killing a hundred E+ beasts was easier than taking one D- beast on in Jin¡¯s opinion.


    Just as Jin was about halfway back to the city, a familiar rustling sound of an enraged beast heading towards him could be heard. The sound of trees getting pushed down and boulders getting crushed warned him how formidable the incoming beast was. Jin was used to such assaults when he hunted low ranked beasts at night.


    ¡°A Rank E+ beast?¡± Jin cried out after seeing the destructive aura it exhibited as it neared. Jin instinctively felt fear towards the beast. The current Jin right now would struggle greatly against a Rank E+ beast. It would take him a great deal of time and there is no guarantee he would win without Froyo¡¯s powers.


    However, something about this particular incoming beast was off. Its roars were loud but a hint of distress could be heard. It was almost as if it was crying.


    Bam! A huge white blur slammed into the ground where Jin was at a second ago. Jin had leapt backwards to gain some distance from the beast. The beast turned out to be that of a medium-sized gorilla beast. Its size was only slightly larger than Jin himself but it had budging muscles as thick as Jin¡¯s head. The beast was hysterically trashing everything in its path. Even though it saw Jin, it didn¡¯t attack him.


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    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Jin was speechless. The gorilla creature was holding a huge black club that was almost equally as large as itself. In its other hand it was holding a small hairless creature that looked like a human baby. However what shocked Jin the most was that there were at least five arrows embedded in the gorilla¡¯s flesh. Each were aimed at non-vital locations as if someone wanted to maximize the pain.


    ¡°It¡¯s far too late for him. The arrows are laced with poison.¡± The titan¡¯s voice rang in his ears, answering his thought before it occurred. Jin had felt so sorry for the beast that he wanted to try saving him. He wanted to help its cub that was inside its arms. However after the titan spoke, Jin saw the dark purple blood that dripped out from the intelligent beast. It had indeed been poisoned.


    The creature made eye contact with Jin and slowly its frenzied movements stopped. No sounds were made but Jin understood what it was imploring him to do. The proud beast wanted to die an honorable death. Although Jin had hunted beasts before, he never had a case where the beast itself wanted to be put out of its misery. The scene in front of him sent a tinge of pain to his heart.


    The gorilla slowly approached him with shaky movements, it could not even kneel down due to an arrow protruding from his back. It dropped its gigantic black club that it was carrying and fell back against a tree. It whimpered softly as it continued to beg Jin with its dimming eyes.


    Jin braced himself as layer of metal congealed around his fist. He raised his shaky arm and slammed downwards with his eyes closed. He did not hold anything back because if he failed to end the beast¡¯s life, it would just go through more pain. The punch contained everything he had and his own soul screamed out sadly at the same time. The last thing he heard was a soft moan that sounded like thank-you from the beast before Jin ended its life. A patch of fur formed from its disappearing body as its spirit became an Avatar. Jin carefully stored it into his new storage ring.


    ¡°This is¡­¡± Jin was flabbergasted as he realized the baby of the gorilla beast laid motionless on the ground before him. A tiny graze could be seen on its chest, one of the poisonous arrows must have scraped him.


    ¡°The young one must have been too weak to form an Avatar¡­¡± Prometheus reminded him. Jin knew that while most beasts can become Avatars, weak ones such as baby beasts can¡¯t. They needed to mature a bit to become a Rank F- creature at least. Until then, they are just regular animals. Likewise humans who don¡¯t become Rank C can¡¯t become Avatars either.


    Just as Jin bent down to dig a grave for the deceased little one, he was interrupted.


    ¡°Commoner, did you see where my preys went?¡± An arrogant and boastful voice shouted from behind.


    Jin turned his trembling around and saw three smug figures riding on horses approaching him. The middle figure was a teenage kid in fancy clothes and covered in jewelries. In his arm was a golden bow and on his back was a quiver filled with the same arrows from before.


    Something snapped within Jin and for the first time he asked the titan Avatar to help him. The three conceited figures that enjoyed their sick ways of torturing the beasts they hunt was making Jin furious like never before.

 Chapter 20 – The Shion Family

    *** Ranking system explained a bit in characters page here</a>


    "Can I beat them? Jin asked plainly through a mental message. He appeared and sounded calm but beneath his tranquil exterior was a raging volcano waiting to explode. These sickening men that toyed with lives as if it were a game needed to be taught a lesson.


    ¡°Depends¡­¡± The titan replied cryptically. Inside the titan¡¯s mind he couldn¡¯t decide if he should force the boy to retreat. The three poachers did not look ordinary at all. It¡¯s easy to deduce that they have strong backings. Even if Jin manages to beat them or even kill them, only trouble will follow. However, people don¡¯t grow when everything is handed to them on a silver platter. They¡¯ll only truly grow in the face of real challenges. The titan is willing to throw the dice on this one.


    ¡°Hohoho. This peasant dares to glare at me? Woken, Jinha go knock some sense into him.¡± The young master carrying the bow sneered.


    ¡°Yes master Deri.¡± The guards spoke in unison.


    There were two guards beside the fancy clothed youth. They were both slightly older and looked around twenty-five years old. The one named Woken was carrying a large blade while the other was carrying two short daggers.


    Peng! In a flash one of the guards closed the distance between the two and hacked down with his large sword. The guards and their young master were all E ranked like Jin. However they did not realize Jin was of the same rank as them.


    As the crescent shaped blade arched down at Jin¡¯s shoulder, Jin materialized a coat of armor over his body and threw a punch past the blade. Jin¡¯s steel fist slammed into the guts of Woken while Woken¡¯s blade simultaneously made contact with Jin.


    In reality Jin was in the same rank as them so it should not have been as one-sided as what just occurred. If Woken took precaution and utilized his higher ground and weapon, he could have put up a more decent fight. Nevertheless he underestimated Jin so he was propelled up into the air and flipped a few times before landing on the ground.


    Woken¡¯s mount ran away terrified as Deri¡¯s cocky expression turned into a confounded look. Deri had always been a proud kid. He was praised by his clan as a prodigy and was given the best resources to train with. Naturally he could not understand how someone almost ten years his junior could exhibit such might.


    The remaining guard instantly took out his daggers and shouted out, ¡°Master Deri, please retreat and find Master Rushan. This kid is actually E ranked!¡±


    ¡°Retreat¡­? Me? Ha, no need, we are also E Ranked. We can take his head. How dare he disrespect our Shion family? He must be using some doping medicine.¡± Deri hissed with anger. Jinha frowned inside. Although they were both E Ranked, the battle power between them was obviously imbalanced.


    ¡°You people are from the Shion Family?¡± Jin remembered hearing about the Shion family before. It was extremely familiar.


    ¡°Which sect or clan are you from? You are too young to be in a mercenary group?¡± Deri sneered as he saw Jin¡¯s hesitant expression. He thought Jin finally realized his wrongdoings. The Shion family was one of the most influential families around, not even the Lord of the city dares to cause trouble for them without reason.


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    ¡°This is our Shion Family¡¯s youngest master. If you know what¡¯s good for you and your family, apologize now and maybe we¡¯ll spare your life.¡± Jinha shouted haughtily as he held two daggers in a combat position. He felt uncertain against his chances against Jin but perhaps they could just use the Shion Family¡¯s background to intimidate him.


    ¡°Apologize? I want him groveling and beaten to death.¡± Deri shouted furiously. What joke was this? How could this trash get away with offending him by just apologizing?


    ¡°You guys are the ones that should surrender and apologize for your lives.¡± Jin heatedly replied. The arrogance displayed by these people who are only a few years older than him disgusted him to the extreme. They showed no disregard for life and acted like they were superior humans. Jin¡¯s battle senses had been sharpened like a blade ever since he met the titan. Although he can¡¯t perform spiritual sense yet, he can tell he was stronger than them by instincts alone.


    Not only that they dared threaten his family? Now Jin finally understood what the ancient titan meant when he said Jin should thread the path of cultivation alone carefully. If his identity was revealed then his family¡¯s lives would be in grave danger. However the anger boiling inside him had erupted, any thoughts of running disappeared from Jin¡¯s mind.


    Whoosh. A golden arrow ripped through the air in an instant as Deri snapped. How dare a commoner disrespect him like this? This arrow was crafted from special material from foreign countries, he had used it to slay many Rank E beasts.


    He watched as the arrow neared Jin with a huge smirk. The bow he used was a Rank D weapon bestowed to him by his great grandfather, the patriarch of the Shion Family. With that the arrow is capable of penetrating a twenty meter thick rock. He almost giggled like a school girl as he watched Jin raised his hands up in an attempt to catch the rumbling arrow.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    There was no impact, no blood drawn. The menacing arrow was caught by Jin singlehandedly. The arrow head was crushed by his fist and he threw the broken arrow on the ground in front of him.


    ¡°What kind of Avatar Synthesis is that?¡± Jinha muttered in horror as Deri stood there dumbfounded.


    Of course the pair of surprised aggressors didn¡¯t know what Avatar Jin used. It was because it was not an Avatar. The practice of training oneself to perform elemental attacks had been long lost. Why go through the trouble when you can just get an Avatar of the same attribute?


    ¡°Did you not hear? This is the young master of the great Shion Family. The patriarch is equivalent to a lord of a city! We also have Master Rushan who is a Rank D Path Finder right behind us.¡± Jinha reasoned once again as Jin approached. Seeing as how Jin caught an arrow barehanded, his confidence took another dive.


    ¡°What boloney. He¡¯s only a commoner, kill him.¡± The spoiled heir to the Shion Family impatiently snapped at his servant. His pride was blinding him from his own fear. He was furious that his arrow failed to kill a mere brat who was younger than him. This was a Rank D weapon! Although he can¡¯t bring out its true might, it should have been enough to help him overcome someone in the E rank like him.

 Chapter 21 – First Kill

    Deri took out more weapons from his storage, a pair of daggers with completely red blades were tossed towards Jinha. The weapons looked more like bloody fangs than weapons. The aura given off was impressive and enough to intimate regular E ranked practitioners.


    ¡°Use it to kill him! If you do, you can have them.¡± Deri ordered feverishly. He was not short on treasures and spared no expenses to get what he wanted.


    Jinha¡¯s fear was instantly replaced by awe and greed. A pair of D ranked weapons costs a fortune. Even if he were to sell all his worldly possessions, he would not be able to afford one. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity. With such weapons how could he fear some lone boy?


    Jinha promptly picked up the two deadly daggers and the moment he did so, he could sense surges of power running through the blade. Weapons and armors are forged by using Avatars as the core. Even if it doesn¡¯t come close to a Real Rank D monster, the pair of dangerous daggers are still extremely formidable.


    Jin could also sense the horrible aura of the blade from where he was standing. He immediately picked up the giant black stone club the ape beast was holding before he put it out of its misery. The club was larger than himself but with his reinforced strength from the hellish training, it was an easy task.


    ¡°Ha!¡± Jinha dashed forward bravely, the two daggers were clutched to the sides like claws. This was the Falcon Assault technique from the Shion Family, one of the perks of working for an influential power. The body of the guard blurred as he leapt into the air like a flying beast.


    Jin swung the huge stone club in an attempt to ward off his incoming attacker. Jinha¡¯s speed had increased tremendously and he became extremely nimble, bouncing off trees around Jin like a ball. It was like a stalemate at the moment since a blow from Jin would be devastating enough to crush Jinha¡¯s body and a slice from Jinha is enough to rip Jin into pieces.


    Bam! Once again an arrow was shot out of Deri¡¯s golden bow. Unknown to him Deri had already started to fear Jin so instead of using a close ranged weapon to attack, he had subconsciously chose to support from afar.


    With Jin¡¯s reflexes, dodging such an arrow from afar was easy. In fact this was what he needed. Deri viewed Jinha as a dispensable tool. The two had never worked together either. So when the barrage of arrows came, it was Jinha who ended up dodging for his life. It was much more inconvenient for Jinha to fight under such conditions. However, as his servant how can Jinha say anything?


    Jin raised the heavy club above his head after dodging another arrow. The speed at which they came were much slower than the first one. Deri was running out of spiritual energy while Jin hasn¡¯t even broken a sweat yet. With a burst of energy rushed through Jin¡¯s body as he slammed the weapon down into the ground.


    A huge crater exploded forth and Jinha¡¯s footing immediately got disrupted. The trees around trembled and cracks appeared on the ground. It was at this moment that Jin¡¯s club slammed into his torso as he stumbled. Even before the club reached him, a deadly wind pressure from the club already damaged his inner organs. The result was obvious, Jinha was sent flying over many trees. If not for Jin holding back, he would have been smashed into a meat paste.


    Finally Deri dropped his bow and started running, without his guards he didn¡¯t feel confident at all. He was going to run back to his master. Master Rushan was still a fair bit away dealing with the rest of the ape tribe though. Deri beat the horse mount he was on as hard as he could to escape this nightmare.


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    However, in a flash Jin caught up. The endless running he had done for months paid off. His physical strength enhanced by his own internal strength already placed him well above an average E ranker. Deri¡¯s body was instantly lifted up by Jin with one hand. An agonizing pain vibrated through Deri¡¯s body as he was thrown against a tree.


    ¡°You fool, you are dead! I¡¯ll make sure you and your family die a miserable death if you lay your hands on me.¡± Deri screeched. Even when he feared for his life he didn¡¯t know how to plead. He never had to. The threat reignited Jin¡¯s fury once again.


    ¡°You think I don¡¯t dare?¡± Jin angrily shouted out as he started pounding the young master of the Shion Family. It only took ten seconds for dark bruises to appear all over Deri¡¯s face. Deri had lost the power to even talk back. For the first time in his life he had felt true pain. No one dared to raise their hand against him, not even his own parents. He was the favorite great grandchild of the Shion Family¡¯s patriarch. His family even hired a prestigious Path Finder as his master!


    Why is this happening? Why is he so strong? Deri could not understand. They were both in the D Rank but why was Jin so much stronger? There were many reasons. First of all Jin had much superior tutelage from the ancient titan. He also followed the Classic Five Element Scripture which teaches the purest form of cultivation.


    Deri himself only got to where he was by consuming many expensive resources from his family. Whenever he is out hunting, he is always under the safe protection of his guards.


    ¡°Master¡­ Master Roushan help!¡± Deri screamed out. With his back against a tree and his hands over his face, it was truly a pitiful sight to see. He did not want to die. With his family¡¯s wealth, he had a long and comfortable life ahead of him.


    Jin wanted to teach this punk a longer lesson by beating some more sense into him but the threat of a Rank D expert nearby loomed over him. It¡¯ll be nearly impossible to escape when that time comes. Actually the humiliation inflicted upon Deri now was enough for Jin.


    ¡°Apologize.¡± Jin said as he held him by the cuffs of his fancy clothes.


    ¡°I¡­ I was wrong¡­ I am the trash¡­ please just let me live.¡± Deri cried out.


    ¡°You better remember the value of a human life¡­¡± Jin said threateningly as he walked away.


    ¡°WATCH OUT! Behind you!¡± The titan¡¯s urgent voice warned him.


    After so many real life experiences in the wildness, Jin instinctively summoned a layer of metal around him, mainly on his back.


    Bang! A bone shattering pain thundered through him as he flew forward. He didn¡¯t know what hit him but the force was great. If he did not have the metallic protection, his body would have been split in half. Jin¡¯s body flew five meters forward before landing against some gravel.


    Cough. Jin unsteadily got up and turned around and to his horror, a splintered piece of wood had nailed Deri against the tree trunk he was leaning against just now. The piece of arrow not only pieced through Deri but it went through his head.


    ¡°He¡¯s¡­ dead?¡± Jin crawled back a few steps, he couldn¡¯t control his trembling voice. As much as Jin detested the man, he didn¡¯t think about killing him. This was his first time killing another human being. The sensation was life-altering.

 Chapter 22 – Kill to Live

    ¡°Look at his right side, that foolish one had a secret weapon.¡± The titan said plainly. An odd object based on a bow but assembled horizontally was laying on the side of Deri¡¯s body. There were many metallic bolts holding them the thing together which Jin would have found fascinating if not for Deri¡¯s death. It was obvious that as soon as Jin started walking away, he took it out and tried to end Jin¡¯s life in a sneak attack. Never in a hundred years would he have guessed that the secret projectile would splinter into pieces and kill him instead.


    Jin was in a state of shock though. For a fifteen year old to kill someone, even by accident, was a life changing event. He lived in a civilized environment, his parents raised him up to be a proper person so he could succeed in society and he had never seen a person die, never mind killing one. Hunting Avatars was one thing because technically they are still alive in the form of Avatars. Also it is socially acceptable for humans to hunt beasts.


    The grief and bereavement in this accidental killing of a boy only a few years older than him tormented him in ways he couldn¡¯t even begin to describe. His gut churned as he felt like puking. The site of Deri¡¯s bloody head and lifeless body grossed him out. What had he done?


    Will his parents still love him if they knew what he had done? He could imagine his father¡¯s stern forlorn look. His mother¡¯s endless sobbing. What if they look at him as if he was a monster?


    Has he become a criminal? Those serial killers that have wanted posters around the city? Guilds and mercenary groups are always hunting for those who have committed heinous crimes. Killing another man, can it get any worse?


    Will he go to hell? Holy Fire is one of the two fire element based kingdoms on the limitless continent known as Mercai. There is a prominent religion, the Sacred Infernos, which a lot of the civilians from the two fire kingdoms believe in. Even though Jin isn¡¯t a faithful follower, the religion posits that a sinner will be tortured for all eternity by Firelord Ferreros in hell!


    Before he knew it he arrived in the Titan Domain that resides within himself. It was the special space created by the Avatar Prometheus. In this mysterious space, time is stopped on the outside. As long as Jin has enough internal strength, he can have all the time in the world and remain in there.


    ¡°What Firelord¡­¡± The titan scoffed as he read Jin¡¯s mind. ¡°Kid calm yourself down.¡±


    ¡°What have I done? What about his family?¡± Jin muttered, his mind was chaotic. He could just imagine what Deri¡¯s own parents will go through.


    ¡°Ah you hopeless kid, what kind of useless family raised a trash like him?¡± The titan mocked. However Jin was still panicking by himself so the titan decided on another approach.


    ¡°Let me ask you, what would have happened if his sneak attack got to you instead?¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± Jin didn¡¯t know how to reply. He didn¡¯t think about the obvious question, wouldn¡¯t he be dead if he didn¡¯t fight back?


    ¡°You would be dead. Now let me ask you, what if you escaped and they went after your family? What if to vent his anger, this kid went and took your woman? That Yumi girl. What about the chef¡¯s family, do you think he¡¯ll spare them?¡±


    Jin didn¡¯t know how to answer but he was slowly calming down. The repercussions of letting them leave were humongous. Everyone he cared about could have been hunted down by this Deri person. It was definitely possible, he seemed to have the right connections.


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    ¡°I have lived for countless eons¡­ let me tell you this. While humans are weak, they have great potential. However due to that potential, they become corruptible and evil, more vile than most creatures in the universe actually. Human beings are just another creature. Wild beasts kill each other all the time over territory and resources. If you were a wild beast then you would have been killed to be an Avatar ages ago. So why is it so wrong to kill another human?¡±


    ¡°But we have laws¡­¡± Jin weakly replied.


    ¡°In almost every single world I have seen, humans try to be civilized with their principles and laws in order to live properly. Yet in the end only the strong get any say. If you were killed, who was going to mourn for you? Who was going to get revenge for you? Revenge for that poor baby monkey? Did you think that kid was going to obey the law and let you live? Do you think he was going to be punished by the law you speak of?¡±


    ¡°¡­ how do I know what I did was justified?¡± Jin asked. He agreed so far with what the titan was saying but something still didn¡¯t feel right.


    ¡°You don¡¯t. The world is not perfect. I have seen some outstanding human Immortals. They have left their legacies and wisdom behind for their fellow humans and for a time, balance and order is kept. Inevitably if no worthy successor show up then all will be for naught. Nothing lasts forever¡­ that wasn¡¯t my point. Let me ask you this, would you kill an evil one to save two innocent one?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Jin replied instantly.


    ¡°Alright, you just killed one to save yourself and any future victims. Why is there a need to feel bad?¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°If you feel like something is wrong with this concept, you will have to get stronger. The strong are always right. The weak will always obey the strong. That concept is universal, it even applies to the land of the Gods. In some ways what you did makes you a hero.¡±


    ¡°A hero?¡± Jin asked.


    ¡°You might feel it¡¯s immoral to take a man¡¯s life and have his blood on your hands. However would you rather let him go and let him ruin countless other lives? If his past and future victims knew what you have done, I believe you would be their hero. Lastly don¡¯t forget one last thing, you want to live.¡±


    Jin sighed as he meditated on the titan¡¯s words for hours. His mind wandered everywhere. He thought about all the scenarios that he could think of. The Shion Family heir wanted to kill him, it was obvious by his last desperate act. The titan¡¯s last words echoed around his mind. He wanted to live, why should he die on a whim of Deri¡¯s command?


    There is so many wrongs in the world and there is nothing he can do. However if he continues to get stronger, perhaps he can be those Immortals that the Titan has mentioned and at least bring peace to his own world.


    ¡°Alright. What should I do?¡± Jin asked after reaching a temporary conclusion on this moral issue of killing. Killing so he could live, killing so other innocent people could live. He will bear the consequences of his action.


    The titan covertly smiled as he instructed Jin on his next steps.