Chapter 28: Awards
Another six months passed and all the students gathered in the main hall. Everyone already had the body of an adult. The life-and-death battles they had survived had turned these young people into adults. Each of them now possessed the technical knowledge and skill of a Shadow Priest.
One training period was over and it was time to move on to the next.
The Deadly Training Program was all about training Shadow Cathedrals. So it wasn't going to end with reaching the Shadow Priest level.
Shadow, Cloud Demon, Jade Dragon, and other top trainers entered the hall at the same time. The children, who had been raised with military discipline, did not utter a word or move an inch until they entered.
"We have put a difficult year behind us." The Shadow began speaking as he entered the room, "The third level of training was to give you real assassination experiences. Each of you carried out unimaginable operations in circumstances that your peers could never have imagined. Every person you kill, good or bad, is your medal."
"Today we'll be giving out awards to the people with the highest success rates. And the Cloud Demon will have a little business with you. This is part of the training program."
One of the instructors behind Shadow stepped forward and held out a scroll. Shadow took the scroll and opened it.
"Having completed all 120 tasks assigned to him, Alexander, step forward and accept your reward."
Alexander stepped forward expressionlessly and took the large box the instructor handed him. Inside was a body lotion and many different pills. Each one had a different function and was sure to be very useful for him.
No one found it strange that Alexander came first. Everyone knew what a monster this boy was.
"Noah, who has completed 119 of the 120 tasks assigned to him, step forward and accept your reward."
Noah stepped forward with a smile and took the large box presented by the instructor. The only difference from Alexander's prize was that it did not contain body lotion.
Body lotions were critical for a martial artist. They strengthened the body and purified the blood and rebuilt the muscles to the next level.
Noah felt nothing despite his prize. Neither jealousy nor envy, it was a good thing that Alexander was better than him.
Others didn't think so, of course.
They too had fought to the death but were left behind by two monsters.
Ignoring their changing expressions or their out-of-control killing intentions, Shadow revealed the third. The third person was quite surprising.
"Having completed 117 of the 120 tasks assigned to her, Amren, step forward and accept your reward."
The long-haired youth, dressed in black archer's clothes, looked up startled and looked at Shadow. It was clear that he had not expected to come third. Nevertheless, he quickly pulled himself together and took his prize.
Shadow ignored the students staring at him.
"Everyone has been rewarded for their success. Anyway, this is not so important. From now on we move on to the fourth level of education. That's all for today. Meet with the Cloud Demon later this week and receive your standard reward."
Having said that, Shadow and the others left the hall. Alexander and Noah ran straight to their rooms without bothering the others. Otherwise, they could have been killed by the gaze.
After locking the door, Alexander dumped his box on the table. Noah did the same and they shared according to need. It was something they always did.
"This body lotion is for opening the pores. If you put it in your bath water and stay in it for an hour, it will help you a lot. Hm? And this pill allows you to compress the Qi. There's also a Shadow Order here. It increases your body's compatibility with Shadow Energy and increases the speed at which Qi is transformed."
After categorizing the pills, Alexander took the ones he needed and gave his prize, the body lotion, to Noah.
"Are you sure you don't need it? You mentioned opening the pores. This means Qi can be assimilated and circulate more easily. Given the level difference, you need it more. The effects don't stop there... It could be one of the best rewards we've ever received."
"It doesn't matter. Noah, you know what my body is capable of. This lotion will do you more good. I just want to take these."
Alexander took two each of muscle toning, marrow cleansing and blood purifying pills. He also took a lot of Salim Mind Pills and Solid Strength Pills. He wanted to focus on his physical body.
"Ah... I'll pay later."
With a smile on his face, Noah hugged Alexander and left to make progress. Alexander gawked after him for a while, but quickly recovered.
"Don't mention it..."
---
Alexander went to find the Cloud Demon instead of going straight to the training center. Cloud Demon was one of the people who taught them medicine. Even though his specialty was surgery, he taught them so much. He also gave them the ability to think flexibly.
If not for the Cloud Demon, half of the group would have lost their lives in the missions.
"Oh, Alexander, I've been looking for you."
Alexander met the Cloud Demon in the hallway. After greeting him respectfully, he asked why he was looking for him.
"It's the prize that Shadow mentioned. I'll take care of you first since you're the winner. I was on my way to pick you up since the preparations were already over."
"Reward?"
"You'll see when you get there."
Cloud Demon took Alexander to an operating theater. Alexander was familiar with this place. He had been here many times and had undergone surgeries under Cloud Demon's guidance. He had also conducted biological experiments on numerous species of monsters here.
The operating room was neatly set up. Even though Alexander was now outside, he could see the doctors inside preparing some fluids. These were none other than the instructors who had trained them. They were all senior Shadow Priests.
Alexander understood what was happening.
"Are they preparing for me?"
"Yes. We'll give you a special eye."
"Private eye?"
"Every Shadow Priest in the Shadow Cathedral goes through this stage. But you are more special. To gain this advantage, a Shadow Priest must at least assassinate the king of a country or make an equivalent contribution. You are an exception because you are in training."
"Private eye, huh?"
"We cannot provide you with a specific eye. Each eye has a different structure, and different abilities. But there are seven eyes we have discovered so far. These include the Wisdom Eye which enhances your memory, the Monk Eye which maximizes your intuition, the Hunter Eye which gives you a hunting instinct, the Compound Eye which increases your dynamic vision and reaction speed, the Night Eye which allows you to see at night, the Spiritual Eye that allows you to better sense spiritual beings, the Energy Eye that allows you to better sense energies, and the Blood Red Eyes that give you the power of a killer."
"Are there such things in other organizations?"
"Yes. Humanity has made tremendous progress since Elysium was discovered. From dynasties dedicated to swordsmanship to heirs raised on blood and iron... Each great organization has its own unique powers and secrets. For us, it's our eyes and our assassination techniques."
"I met a man with the power of smell from miles away."
"Most likely a mutant. Some dynasties are capable of dark experiments for the sake of power."
Alexander nodded and looked at the Cloud Demon.
"What kind of eye do you have?"
"I have the Wisdom Eye. It increases my data processing speed tremendously and I have a very strong memory."
"Do you know what kind of eyes cardinals have?"
Cloud Demon chuckled and clasped his hands behind his back.
"Normally it is forbidden to talk about these things, but I will make an exception for you. The Spiritual Eye, the Wisdom Eye and Energy, and finally the Blood Red Eyes; cardinals have these eyes."
"Wisdom and Energy?"
Cloud Demon said it with both eyes at the same time.
"Yes, a cardinal has both eyes."
Alexander sighed in admiration.
Being a Shadow Cardinal was more amazing than you thought.
"Preparations are over. We will prepare too."
"Understood."
Alexander began to get ready with excitement.