System Upgrade

Chapter 12

System Upgrade

Lye and Song set up a mile-wide perimeter around the 'camp' and patrolled patiently, waiting for the boar to come. Naturally, neither believed that the boar was a threat to the hermit, and were beyond convinced that he had orchestrated the entire thing as a means of testing them. Though both wanted to rush back to the Sect and let their Masters know that they were fine, they put it off precisely because of this--because they wanted to form a connection with the hermit that went beyond simply being saved.

As such, they both decided to put on the best display of their abilities that they could in hopes that the hermit would teach them.

It was around two hours past the midday that the first signs of the encroaching beast appeared--the ground began to shake ever so faintly before it grew louder and larger. Lye and Song converged north of the camp and caught glimpse of the beast--much to their relief, it wasn't akin to those fantastical animals that surrounded the hermit. It was a Gaeon Boar, a relatively common beast most often found in the Whispering Woods, north of their Sect.

The distinguishing parts were the yellowish stripes across its fur that were marks used to channel Qi through and cultivate. As the Senior said, the beast was only in the Fourth Stage of the Foundation Realm, but even so, neither of the two dared be careless. Beasts were usually difficult to kill at the same realm, and even a few realms above, because they often had incredibly resilient bodies and stamina to outpace the cultivators.

Gaeon Boar, especially, was mostly know for its ability to take a beating and still land a deathly blow even in its own death troves. As such, despite having the upper hand stage-wise, both took the fight extremely seriously even beyond simply wanting to show off.

The boar stomped and crushed all the trees in its path, finally coming into view.

**

Leo observed everything from a safe distance, shaking in his boots.

Lucky! He thought. Omygod, I was so lucky these two kids showed up! What the hell is that?! That ain't a boar! That's a goddamn dinosaur!

The 'boar' in question was well over twenty feet tall, built like a tank, huffing and puffing to the point that smoke blew out its nostrils like it was a comic. Each one of its steps shook the ground within two hundred feet of it, nearly toppling the unstable Leo off his feet.

He curled up unto himself, with the nearby animals gently nudging against him as though to comfort him. Feeling a bit safer, he once again thanked whatever higher power--or, well, evil power--drove the kids into the forest. Though he was a bit scared for them, seeing how neither stepped back or even flinched, it meant that they had some confidence.

It would be Leo's first time watching cultivators fight, so he swallowed his fears the best he could and paid close attention.

The first one to make the move was the boy, Song. A sword appeared in his hand from the seeming nowhere, long and thin, almost like a rapier, and he bolted forward. Leo was barely able to keep track of the boy as he crossed nearly twenty feet in the blink of an eye.

Blinding light coalesced atop the sword as he stung it forth--it ripped through the boar's thick skin and caused a spray of blood as the animal roared and swung with its head at the boy. The latter's feet suddenly caught fire as he leapt over twenty feet into the air.

"Senior Sister!" he cried out, drawing Leo's attention over to the girl.

She'd clasped her hands together and began moving her fingers in strange ways. Right then, above her head, a bolt of thunder appeared, violently spasming like a leashed beast desperate for freedom. It grew until it was some three feet long and as thick as a grown man's thigh, whereupon it flew off like a cannonball, striking the boar's head squarely.

The beast staggered and nearly collapsed to the side as blood began to spray and dye the ground beneath. All the while, it roared, its voice a quagmire of pain and agony. The boy, in the meantime, landed on the nape of its neck and began thrusting the sword down repeatedly--it was so fast that Leo couldn't actually see individual stabs, just fading blurs intermingling with the beast's blood.

While it tried to shake the boy off its back, Lya ran off to the boar's flank, all the while doing that thing with her fingers again. One by one, needle-sized bolts of lightning began to spawn around her, following obediently, until there were nearly a hundred of them.

"Junior Brother, now!" she called out, prompting the boy to suddenly stop attacking and kick himself off toward her. The sword began to glow in a blinding, cyan light for a moment as he stabbed it one last time, fully in flight and away from the beast, stabbing it in the side. Unlike the previous thrusts, however, that were needlepoint, this one was wide and seemingly all-encompassing.

It was so powerful, in fact, that it managed to topple the massive beast on its side; as it fell, it shook the ground beneath it, ripping a massive crater below its body. At the same time, Lya seemed to have unleashed the bolts of lightning--Leo noticed that the beast's belly didn't seem as tenacious as the rest of its body, and it was proven right quickly with how violently the needles ripped it apart.

Roaring and thrashing was useless--it only served to speed up its bleeding and, within less than a minute, it whimpered its last hurrah. At the same time it drew its last breath, Leo got the confirmation window in front of him.

<Congratulations! You have slain the Boar's Mate and survived your first hurdle in world!>

<System XP increased by 3!...>

<System Leveled up!>

<System Level 2!>

<The following benefits have been unlocked:< em>

Basic Glossary -- terms, phrases, and bits of knowledge that the children as young as 4 learn.

Construction Journal -- track all your blueprints in your mind, with permanent access to the requirements to build them

<Simple Steps Art> -- foundational Movement Martial Art. Must be trained every day.

<Bead of Nirvana> -- guarantees a perfect foundation while breaking through the Foundation Establishment Realm>

<System 0 20 Level: 2; XP:>

<Continue struggling, even though it may be futile!>

Leo sighed inwardly, having hoped to get something like those bolts of lightning Lya used. Heavens weren't so generous, it seemed, however. Nonetheless, he did get a decent amount--a bundle of knowledge flew into his mind, mostly in regards to the very basics of cultivation in this world, as well as some of the auxiliary fields supplementing it.

It was all very limited, however--for instance, he was only aware of four Realms as of now--Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, and Spirit Creation.

Disregarding it all, he braved the storm and went ahead to the dead beast. Even lying down on its side, it still towered over him, casting a shadow that would have swallowed him whole had it been alive. He shook, though did his best to keep it inside; though he expected a 'challenge', truthfully, part of him believed that he would have been able to deal with it even head on. Though he kept it hidden deep inside his heart, there was a trace of thought that he was just a little bit special and different than the rest.

However, no trick, and especially his own strength, would have been enough to survive this beast had it not been for the kids. Even the animals would have all been stomped over like blades of grass, let alone him.

"Senior, it is done!" Lya and Song appeared in front of him and bowed. Unlike just a few moments prior, where they looked like championed soldiers who'd seen death a thousand times, they once again looked like kids.

"Hm," Leo nodded knowingly, as though it wasn't a big deal. But, naturally, it was a massive deal. So massive, in fact, that he considered bullshitting the kids into staying here permanently. But that was too dangerous, ultimately; playing a role of a powerhouse for a few days might be fine, but the longer they spent here, the greater the chance that he might slip and become just like the boar in front of him. "Good job." He added.

"Should I skin it, Senior?" Song asked, seeming quite excited.

"Sure," Leo nodded. "We'll have some boar meet for dinner, I suppose."

While Song began cutting up the boar, Lya and Leo went back to the clearing with the mud huts. She followed him precisely three steps behind, not one more or less, as though she could perfectly predict his pace. Though it was a bit creepy, he didn't say anything. On the way back, quite a few animals joined, though they seemed entirely unfazed by the fact that there was a dino-sized boar lying dead just a few hundred feet behind them.

"Senior," Lya said as the two reached the mud huts, prompting him to turn around. "Song and I... we, could we depart tomorrow?"

"..."

"I--I know, I know that we are being wholly graceless and ungrateful for all your help," she quickly bowed. "But our Masters--they, they might be worried. I understand that it is much to ask, but--"

"--of course you can go," Leo said, smiling. She shook for a moment, but remained bowing still. "However, I do have a favor to ask of you."

"A-anything!" she exclaimed.

"When your Masters ask, 'How did you survive?'," Leo said. "What will you say?"

"... we ran into the Nameless Forest to escape our pursuers," Lya replied rather candidly. "We stayed on the outskirts and waited until they left. Luckily, we haven't encountered anything or anyone. The reason we were so late in returning was that we wanted to restore our bodies to the peak."

"Hm," Leo smiled faintly. "Sounds like you got quite lucky."

"Heavens blessed us, fortunately," Lya straightened up and smiled as well.

"Time to start preparing for the feast, then," Leo said, sighing inwardly in relief--there shouldn't be an army of cultivators rushing the forest to take him away or, worse yet, kill him. Oh Gods, please make her an honest kid!