Possesing Strength of Genesis Source

 When the dust cloud was cleared, their celebration came to an end, along with their smile, as Ryker glared at them. He punched the ground, and to the horror of the mercs, the formation they had depended on broke apart.

 "H-how?! That formation should be strong enough to handle anything a Genesis Core expert could throw!" the leader yelled. He had tested the formation before so he knew the threshold of the formation's durability. To see it was destroyed with a single attack was a great shock to him.

 He then came to a horrifying realization 'Unless his strength is already equal to a Genesis Source expert!' the thought made his entire body shiver uncontrollably, as even a 1st Stage Genesis Source realm expert was something that his group couldn't hope of escaping, much less stood a chance against.

 He was about to order his man to retreat when Ryker opened his mouth, "I don't like to use this technique, but for this moment, I will make an exception," 

 Ryker waved his hand as grey clouds spread all over the area. As the grey cloud descended towards them, the mercs' instincts went haywire as they sensed the danger the grey cloud posed.

 Quickly, all of them took the flight option, trying to outrun the grey cloud. However, most of them were too late as the grey cloud already landed on them. In an instant, they feel their life force being sucked as the grey cloud seemed to sap the life out of them.

 The only one who was able to escape was the leader, who was much faster compared to his subordinates. He was so fast that he was able to take a quick look at his men.

 "Curse it," he yelled, watching as the people who had been with him for a long time slowly dying from the grey cloud. He greatly regretted he had been blinded by greed, assuming the preparation he had made was enough to beat a single expert, no matter how strong he was.

 "I need to run away! When I get to the city I will hide myself and then escape to another nation! That way I can escape the monster!" the leader said to himself as he forced himself to fly faster.

 However, a voice behind him made his heart go cold, "Hah! As if I will let you do that!" Ryker kicked him from above, sending him crashing to the ground.

 As the leader fell to the ground, a crater was formed from the impact. The leader tried to get up, badly battered but still alive despite the strong kick. He quickly climbed out of the crater, hoping the monster thought him dead from the attack.

 "Do you think I'm stupid enough to let you escape?" Ryker said, appearing in front of him and grabbing him by the throat. The leader clawed at Ryker, hoping to get put down but Ryker remained undeterred.

 In fact, he even tightened his grip, making the man slowly suffocate from being strangled. "You should know this, if you tried to take a job that you can't handle, expect to fail," he tightened his grip, a loud 'snap' was heard as the leader went limp.

 Ryker dropped the body, and left, but not before grabbing the storage ring of the leader. He then went to the place of massacre, seeing the grey cloud he created still lingered. He waved his hand, this time dispelling the grey cloud.

 What was left was horrific as only dried-out corpses were left, the consequences of being inside the Death Mist. While it was a terrifying sight for the one unused to it, he had already prepared himself so he was not too affected by the sight.

 Still, he still grabbed the possession of the mercenaries as quickly as possible, not wishing to remain in the area any longer. With all the possible loot already claimed, Ryker headed towards the city, hoping to clean himself after massacring the merc's group.

-x-

 While he could go to his house, he decided to stop at the Hal Family Estate first. After all, he wanted to see if he could fool the ancestor. When he reached the mansion, he was stopped by a servant.

 "Young master Ryker, the ancestor wished to meet you," he nodded at the servant, before heading towards the place where the ancestor cultivated. When he arrived, he spotted the ancestor meditating.

 The ancestor of the Hal Family opened his eyes when he entered the room. He glanced at Ryker before nodding in approval. "You had become a Genesis Core expert. Congratulations on achieving such a feat at such a young age.

 With your strength before, there is no doubt you could hold your own against an expert in the Genesis Source realm. How about a quick test?" Ryker gave the ancestor a quick bow.

 "Yes, I would like that,"

-x-

 As Ryker left the room, Solail entered the room with his father, slightly wary as they heard a loud sound coming from the chamber. To their shock, the normally pristine chamber had some cracks and debris falling from the walls and ceilings.

 As for the ancestor, to the two reliefs, he looked fine. Though just to be sure, Solail decided to ask, "Ancestor, are you alright?" he knew it was a stupid question but he needed to know the ancestor's condition.

 The ancestor looked at him, making him shiver. Before he could apologize for his insolence, the ancestor laughed. Loudly.

 "Hahahahhahahahah!" the two other people loose at each other in dismay, both of them have the same thought, 'The ancestor went senile!'

 Seemingly able to read their thought, the ancestor glared at them but didn't say anything despite already stopped laughing. While the two wished to ask the reason for his laughing, they didn't want to draw his ire.

 Thankfully, the ancestor was in a good mood, "The reason why I laugh like a madman was because the barony has another powerful expert protecting it!" the man continued to laugh, but the two could hear the distinctive happiness in his tone.

 "What did you mean by that, father?" Solail's father asked, hoping his father, the ancestor, would shed some light on what he meant.

 "The reason why this place looked worse to wear is because I had decided to test the boy, and this is the result," while the ancestor was not forthcoming on what he meant, it didn't take the two long to understand it.

 "This is the effect of the two of you fighting, or at least something similar?" Solail asked. The ancestor merely nodded.

 "I tested him, and I confirmed one thing," the ancestor stopped speaking, making the two feel anxious all of a sudden. 

 Then, he continued, "That young man possessed the strength to defeat a Genesis Source expert,"