Charles carefully stored the formula for the green-quality miracle drug given by Hale in his storage space; just the formula itself was already quite valuable. Once back in his room, he freshened up before summoning the long-unused alchemy lab to begin researching the revival pill.
Early the next morning, Charles stepped out of the hotel and wandered through the various Beast Master shops in Riston. By noon, he had only managed to find two first-tier resurrecting serpent beast cores and some other auxiliary materials. Riston wasn’t large, similar in size to Lsengard, and there were almost no second- or third-tier beast cores available for purchase.
Charles hoped to acquire a mystical beast of at least emerald quality, believing that with the support of the alchemy lab, he might be able to craft a green-quality miracle drug in a short time. However, his morning haul was only enough to brew two revival pills.
Upon returning to the hotel and reaching his room’s door, he noticed Hale was already waiting for him.
“Here are two second-tier resurrecting serpent beast cores, sourced from the Beast Master Guild. You can try them out,” Hale said calmly, handing the beast cores to Charles.
“This… Teacher Hale, you’ve already helped me so much…” Charles replied, feeling a bit embarrassed. Compared to other recruitment instructors, Hale’s support was certainly unparalleled.
Hale waved his hand dismissively and said, “Think of it as an early investment in you. If you can manage to brew it, just give me a little of the miracle drug.”
Charles nodded in agreement. After spending all night researching the revival pill formula, he didn’t have much confidence—he could only give it a shot. After all, there was still a significant difference between the white-quality regenerating potion and the green-quality revival pill.
“Oh, by the way, the recruitment instructors and new students near Riston have all arrived this morning. Tomorrow morning, we’ll take the exclusive train to Calivia, so get ready and pack your things,” Hale reminded him before leaving.
Back in his room, Charles took out all the materials for the revival pill: two first-tier resurrecting serpent beast cores and two second-tier beast cores, allowing him to attempt the process four times in total.
“Ugh, it’s still too few. No wonder they say being an alchemist is a money-burning profession,” Charles sighed. He then focused all his energy on the alchemy lab and cautiously began his first attempt.
An hour later, as expected, the first attempt ended in failure. He hadn’t managed to control the bone-achingly cold temperature properly, resulting in one of the ingredients separating excessively.
“Second time, let’s go!” Charles took a deep breath, applying what he had learned about temperature control, ready for another attempt. Unfortunately, while he managed the temperature correctly this time, an unexpected incident occurred during the fusion of the materials, resulting in yet another failure.
“Indeed, crafting a green-quality miracle drug is far more challenging than a white-quality one,” Charles thought as he looked at the failed concoctions. He meticulously reviewed the steps and techniques, reflecting on his mistakes to glean lessons.
With two second-tier beast cores remaining, he decided not to use them yet. After all, second-tier cores were significantly more valuable than first-tier ones. He planned to find some first-tier beast cores in Calivia to practice with, and only when he felt confident would he attempt to use the second-tier cores for the revival pill.
Another night passed, and by 7 AM the next day, everyone had gathered in the hotel lobby. Charles had almost fully recovered, the discomfort from his last use of the triple-attribute black gold knife glow entirely gone.
On the side of the new students from Riston, Lan looked listless, his eyes devoid of any spark. Upon seeing Charles, he instinctively lowered his head, trembling slightly, clearly still shaken from that day’s knife glow.
As for Jace, ever since Charles had mentioned that “it’s bravery that makes one strong” and “the weak draw blades against the weaker, while the strong draw blades against the stronger,” he seemed to have taken some kind of stimulant, persistently begging Catherine to train him.
Of course, the consequences were pretty dire; Jace still looked battered and bruised. Once everyone was assembled, they boarded the exclusive train heading to Genosha Calivia.
“Charles, do you think the organization that attacked us will show up again?” Jace asked curiously, handing his drink to Charles. It hadn’t been long since the train departed, and he had already pulled out a stash of snacks and drinks, continuously offering them to Charles.
“Not necessarily. The academy is making such a bold move; they might already be prepared,” Charles replied while sipping his drink.
Sadie sat across from him, leaning against the window, her beautiful and gentle eyes gazing out at the passing scenery. Charles was quite curious about her; he had never met a light attribute Beast Master before. Her mystical beast skill, blessing of light, had been incredibly helpful for him in better merging multi-attribute energies.
Thinking of this, Charles offered some fruit from the table to Sadie, smiling as he said, “Are you hungry? Have some fruit.”
Sadie looked a bit confused but instinctively nodded and accepted the fruit, starting to eat.
Catherine, sitting beside Charles, glanced at Sadie and then subtly looked at Charles. For some reason, she felt an instinctive urge to distance herself from Sadie.
Just then, the train suddenly began to brake sharply, causing everyone in the carriage to lurch to one side.
Those who had experienced the attack panicked instantly. Jace instinctively tried to hide, but upon seeing Charles remain calm, he gritted his teeth and struggled to steady his trembling body.
He kept mumbling to himself, “Only the brave can become true warriors.”
“Charles, are you all right?” Hale approached from the carriage, concern evident in his voice.
“It’s fine, Teacher Hale. But I wonder what’s happening up ahead?” Charles replied.
Seeing Hale reassured Charles, but he was also acutely aware that this was likely a trap. There would undoubtedly be powerful figures from the Cyber Academy ahead; otherwise, Hale would have been on the front lines.
As if confirming his thoughts, Hale said, “No need to worry. The academy has dispatched an eighth-tier Beast Master along with three seventh-tier Beast Masters. They’ll ensure that our opponents can’t return!”
At this, Charles wanted to lean out and catch a glimpse of the eighth-tier Beast Master in action—he had never witnessed such a battle before. Unfortunately, their carriage had poor visibility, and they couldn’t see the fight ahead; they could only feel the ground trembling beneath them.
After about a minute, all the commotion ceased, plunging them into silence. The train started moving slowly again.
Looking out the window, Charles saw that the distant forest had been leveled, and even the nearby mountain had been shattered, leaving only its bare base standing there, stark and empty.
“Wow, is this the power of a strong warrior? They smashed an entire mountain to pieces!” Jace couldn’t help but swallow hard, momentarily forgetting his fear as he fantasized about becoming an eighth-tier Beast Master one day.
Charles gazed at the remnants of the battle, feeling a deep sense of awe. Indeed, in the world of Beast Mastery, strength was everything. If such a battle occurred in a city, who knew how many would be caught in the chaos? Those without power wouldn’t even have time to escape!
He resolved to become stronger—no matter the reason, whether it was to find his parents or for his own sake, gaining strength was the only way forward. Taking a deep breath, he watched the scenery recede, and his determination to grow stronger solidified.
After a long journey, they finally arrived in Calivia just before dusk. Stepping off the train, Charles was shocked by what he saw. The station alone was over ten times larger than Lsengard’s! An endless sea of people flowed in every direction, and the cacophony filled the air. Charles thought to himself: This is Calivia! Only in a place like this can I continue to grow stronger!
Following the welcoming crowd from Cyber Academy, they boarded a vehicle, and after another two hours, they reached the academy’s entrance.
Two towering red stone pillars, each about twenty to thirty meters high, stood majestically at the entrance. One new student exclaimed, “This is flame stone! My goodness, such massive flame stones must cost hundreds of gold coins each!” freewebnvel.coɱ
“Country bumpkin, each of these costs over a thousand gold coins!” someone scoffed.
“A thousand gold coins! No wonder it’s the Cyber Academy—such wealth! Aren’t they worried about being robbed?” another added.
“Who would dare steal? This is the Cyber Academy!” someone else retorted.
A thousand gold coins? Charles glanced at the stone pillars and then thought about his entire savings—only a few dozen gold coins. The pillars at the entrance of the Cyber Academy were worth more than he could even imagine. With that kind of money, he wouldn’t bother crafting a revival pill; he could just buy an emerald-quality mystical beast egg!
But alas, it was just a fleeting thought.
“Time is getting late. The academy has arranged dormitories for everyone—single rooms, and each group will be led by their respective recruitment instructors. Tomorrow morning, we’ll gather and start the formal enrollment!” a teacher announced.
—
The next morning, forty-two new students gathered in front of the academy’s plaza.
“Teacher Hale, is that all the new recruits this year?” Charles asked curiously.
Hale’s expression turned somber as he sighed before replying, “There were originally fifty-two new students.”
So, of the fifty-two recruits, only forty-two had safely arrived at the academy, meaning ten had perished in the attack.
Charles frowned, realizing just how dangerous the world of Beast Masters truly was. Those who had thought they secured their spots at Cyber Academy and envisioned a bright future had met their demise along the way.
Just then, all the students’ attention was drawn to a group of people nearby. Fifteen coffins were being carried to the podium in the plaza.
A loudspeaker blared, “New students, the enrollment ceremony of Cyber Academy officially begins! Please observe a moment of silence!”