Underwater Threat

Train, train, train...

This was the only thing Kai did during the past week. His entire body was hurting, however, he kept pushing himself. His goals were quite high, and skipping even a day of training was not an option for him.

Even today, he was lifting the dumbbells Kyle had given him, until his arms became completely numb.

"One more..."

Curling the heavy equipment one last time, Kai let out a grunt of satisfaction as his biceps bulged. As soon as he finished the last rap, he dropped the dumbbells to the ground.

Thud...

Colliding with the stone floor, the 120 lbs caused quite a noise.

Kai glanced around, half expecting for some monster to come charging at him, attracted by the noise, however, the forest was silent.

Well that was to be expected as after Kai completed the Goblin Dungeon, he began to exterminate all the hostile beings within the vicinity. He was strong enough to get rid of most of the inhabitants, making his shelter safer than ever.

"It's harder to find a meal now."

Mumbling something under his breath, Kai began to walk down the hill, going straight toward the pond where he usually washed himself.

Splatter...

Carefully dipping his finger into the water, he frowned, feeling the water's coldness. However, that didn't stop him from plunging into the pond.

Splash...

As he surfaced, Kai shook his head vigorously, letting the water cascade off his hair and body.

His entire body screamed at the chill of the water and began to tremble involuntarily, however, Kai didn't care. His mind was tampered to be able to handle such stress and discomfort.

He submerged himself fully, allowing the icy water to seep into every crevice and numb his senses.

Only after he began to feel his consciousness slipping away did Kai resurface, gasping for air.

Looking at his trembling hands and shivering body he couldn't help but smirk.

It did take him ten more minutes to warm up and stop shivering, but the cold bath was well worth it. He felt energized and rejuvenated, a good way to start a day.

Grabbing some bananas from the nearby tree, Kai began to walk toward the lake.

As soon as he reached the massive body of water, he took a seat beneath the shade of a towering tree and closed his eyes. The sound of rustling leaves and chirping birds surrounded him, creating a calming ambiance.

Kai's consciousness drifted as he began to inspect his Mana Heart, black core with a golden ring around it, that was pulsating gently within his chest.

Since the last time he checked it, the black core had grown slightly, its dark color now having a slight hue of red. The ring surrounding the sphere was also a tad different. Instead of a solid gold color, it now had intricate patterns etched onto its surface, shimmering with a faint glow.

Observing the changes, Kai couldn't help but internally nod his head.

The balance between his Mana Ring and Core was perfect. Although he had yet to fully understand the 'Mana Heart' and its capabilities, Kai knew some things for certain.

In his past life, he had heard that some demons that were caught and tortured enough gave up some information about their Mana Hearts.

First, these Mana Hearts were only able to form in demons since they had resilient bodies to withstand their power.

Second, if the balance between the Mana Ring and the Core is broken, a demon's power can become unstable and uncontrollable, leading to a loss of control and potential death.

If the Core gets overloaded with too much Mana or if the Mana Ring weakens and cannot support the Core's power, it can result in a catastrophic explosion, destroying the user's organs.

That is why it is important to train both the core and the ring.

Kai's Mana Ring was already lacking since he was quite familiar with the core because in his past life he was a conjurer. Yet, somehow, he had managed to keep up with the balance and maintain control over his power.

It was quite difficult to get used to moving Mana outside his body, however, he was getting there.

If he was paired up with a mage, he'd be able to produce the same firepower as a Rank G mage. It was a very good achievement, considering Kai was still relatively new to harnessing his Mana Heart's potential.

"!"

Suddenly, Kai's eyes shot open as he sensed a disturbance in the surrounding Mana. He quickly stood up, his senses on high alert.

However, he was a bit too late.

Splash...

A massive maw full of sharp, jagged teeth lunged out from the lake, clamping on to Kai's leg and dragging him underwater.

Everything took less than a second and Kai was simply unable to react in time.

The last thing Kai saw before being dragged under water was the massive silhouette of the creature under the water.

That bastard waited until Kai lowered his guard and struck with brutal precision. The monster was one treacherous predator.

Splash...