Chapter 410 - Returning to Combat Artist

From a mere fistfighter to a pugilist, and then to a combat artist, a Covert Martial Arts practitioner always encountered inevitable bottlenecks.

At the peak of the fistfighter stage, one had to shatter the body's natural limits to become a pugilist, and similarly, a pugilist had to break through yet another limit—sensing, touching, and manipulating Qi—in order to become a combat artist.

This process varied from person to person. Some spent a lifetime unable to break through, while others surpassed their limits in a matter of months. Yet without exception, breaking the bottleneck required a catalyst—entering a state of sudden enlightenment.

Since Cassius had once sensed it before, familiarity made it easier the second time around. He stepped off the hospital bed and sat cross-legged in a quiet, shaded corner of the room.

Taking three deep breaths in succession, he relaxed every muscle in his body completely.

Cassius released all the accumulated Savage Beast level life vibration energy within him, and at once, streams of heat coursed swiftly beneath his skin.

These warm currents swept repeatedly through his muscles, bones, and blood vessels, leaving nurturing warmth in their wake. His cells absorbed the warmth, growing stronger, richer, and more vibrant. His body, already at the pinnacle of a pugilist, now pushed toward the brink of its limits. It was like a bucket already four-fifths full, now connected to a hose pouring in even more clear water.

Sweat seeped from his flushed skin, and no sooner did it roll down than it evaporated into a white mist. Wisps of steam drifted up from Cassius's head, as his Qi and blood vitality surged higher and higher.

"Almost there..." He suddenly opened his eyes, and it seemed as though a beam of light flashed through the dim corner.

Pop!

A muffled sound of something giving way echoed inside his body.

Whoosh...

He seemed to hear the faint sound of flowing water beside his ears.

His body began to tremble as his organs responded to one another, resonating at the same frequency. Cassius could feel impurities being constantly expelled as the vibrations continued.

They mixed with the murky sweat and were swiftly evaporated by his intense body heat.

In that instant, a familiar clarity arose—a sense of total unity among every limb, every organ, every tissue in his body. As a combat artist, one could completely master the changes in one's own body.

He could now concentrate the previously untapped majority of his strength into a single point, achieving a staggering explosive force—three to five times that of a peak pugilist. And this was only the ability of an ordinary combat artist! Top-tier and extreme combat artists scaled even higher, which explained the significant jumps in destructive power at the combat artist stage.

Cassius exhaled heavily, having shattered the bottleneck and regained his physical form as a combat artist. His body temperature gradually lowered.

With a mere thought, the Qi sealed within him finally flowed freely. Immediately, billowing streams of vapor-like Qi surged forth.

They rushed impatiently under his skin, bursting through his pores. Visible currents of Qi arced in a U-shape through the air before his body reabsorbed them. This formed a long cycle, circulating Qi in and out of his body.

The air inside the room was stirred, drawing in gusts from outside and causing the curtains to flap madly against the walls.

Upon stepping into the combat artist stage, one could sense Qi through sheer will, thereby condensing it and using it to nourish the body. Normally, this nourishment was gentle, gradual, and slow, because a newly minted combat artist could not refine large amounts of Qi at once.

However, there was now an exception.

Qi at the level of a top-tier combat artist—or even close to extreme-level—was unleashed from deep within his body. It flowed forth like a mighty river, metaphorically drowning his entire form. If one compared the typical Qi nourishment of a newly advanced combat artist to a garden sprinkler, then what Cassius provided himself was more like a waterfall of crystal-clear water.

The nourishment would be explosive, swift, and untamed. Cassius felt a sudden surge of heat, as though he had leapt into a bonfire. Raging flames seemed to engulf his entire body.

His skin, which had cooled earlier, now turned vividly red, and one could vaguely see the blood vessels and bones beneath. It was an unsettling sight.

Agonizing pain spread deep inside him, yet Cassius's expression did not change in the slightest.

Having experienced four time-travels and enduring the horror of slowly turning into a dark creature before his own eyes, he could withstand this current pain and fear without difficulty.

Cassius maintained his cross-legged posture while exuding an immovable presence. He savored the transformations within while the subtle mysteries of breaking through for the second time flooded his mind with newfound understanding.

In this manner, an hour passed.

Compared to the fifteen minutes it had taken during his first breakthrough, this second one lasted four times as long. At last, the Qi nourishment subsided as well.

Pressing lightly with his feet, he rose gracefully. Without even moving his arms or legs, Cassius sensed the return of a mighty power coursing through him. At this moment, even without tapping into Qi, he could tear down the large sanatorium barehanded. For now, his body no longer matched a mere newly advanced combat artist, but belonged to the level of a veteran combat artist.

This did not mean simply possessing the body of a veteran combat artist. Instead, it meant achieving the combat strength of a veteran combat artist with his physical body alone! These were entirely different concepts.

At the combat artist stage, every practitioner's Qi far outmatched their physical capabilities. Even for extreme combat artists, their bodies might at best match Cassius's current state, or possibly be weaker. Back then, how had Cassius fought side by side with Feng Liusi and Saint Feinan to besiege the Blade Demon? He had relied on a formidable physique that could withstand blows, with destructive power being a secondary consideration.

"Finally, I've recovered most of my strength..." Cassius slowly pressed his right hand against his sturdy chest, his bones crackling crisply. His height had shrunk slightly, from 1.89 meters to 1.85 meters. His figure no longer appeared overly bulky, but rather optimally muscular. This did not mean a loss of strength, but rather its condensation. His body's resilience and defensive capabilities increased significantly.

"Qi of a top-tier combat artist with the body of a veteran combat artist. This level of power should be quite sufficient..."

From what Cassius had learned from Herb, even within the Dark Hunterer Organization, top-tier combat artist-level strength was exceedingly rare. Publicly, only the Radiant Hunter and the Chief Mechanist were known to hold that rank.

Whether there were any hidden experts remained uncertain.

Furthermore, the exact prowess of the Chief Mechanist was ambiguous. Twenty years ago, when he was still the Radiant Hunter, he possessed the strength of a top-tier combat artist. Whether he had advanced or declined after twenty years was anyone's guess.

Half an hour later, Cassius had freshened up and changed into clean clothes. He planned to head to the Dark Hunter Organization headquarters to claim the resources granted after submitting his honorary badge. Although he was confident he would one day feast at the source of the sacred spring, he saw no reason to pass up the resources now at hand.

Having a few more platinum sacred marks on the back of his hand would not hurt. It was better to be prepared.

He donned his hunter's attire and checked out of the sanatorium. The nurse eyed Cassius a few times but said nothing, merely making a note in her records.

As he stepped through the sanatorium's doors, Cassius was slightly surprised that no one was watching him from the shadows. Well, the royal family's representative, Lion King Soss, had been attacked, and the other two Shadow Hunter candidates were caught in a storm of suspicion. None of the three factions had time to pay him any attention now.

He set off at a steady pace toward the Dark Hunter Organization headquarters.

A dozen minutes later, Cassius arrived at headquarters and located the house assigned to Blood Axe Herb by the Hunters' Association, situated in the southeast corner.

He knocked lightly on the door and waited briefly on the lawn outside.

Creak

.

The door opened and an old face peered out, surprised at first to see Cassius. Herb opened the door wider and welcomed him inside.

"Healed so soon?"

"Yes, they were minor injuries and nothing serious."

"That incident involving you was causing quite a stir, but then the Dark Gold Hunter backed by the royal family, Soss, was attacked, ambushed by an expert at the level of a Shadow Hunter. His entire left arm was severed, and he nearly lost his life..."

"I've heard."

"You've come back to headquarters for the resources?"

"Yes."

"So... you intend to compete against those three for the Shadow Hunter position?" Herb asked.

Cassius spoke with Herb as they walked further into the house. Herb suddenly stopped and looked at Cassius. He sensed that Cassius's aura had grown more contained. It carried a silent strength.

"Yes." Cassius met Herb's gaze. He no longer cared about maintaining the White Aster persona. He had never been much of an actor. Herb only needed to know that he was not some dark creature in disguise, nor did he intend any harm to the hunters.

The Dark Hunterer Organization welcomed powerful individuals from the populace, and the same went for experts from the Covert Martial Arts community. Now Cassius needed to present himself as one such Covert Martial Arts expert for Herb to see—an honest performance of his true self.

Herb fell silent for a moment before returning to his normal expression. He spoke seriously, "If you want to compete for the Shadow Hunter position, it's not enough just to have a slot and strength. You also need backing. Soss has the royal family, Solomon has the council, and Claire has the Chief Mechanist. Let me introduce you to some old friends. They've rushed here from the Dark Hunter Organization branches because of your matter, and they're planning to stir things up at the Hunters' Association. They're upstairs on the second floor right now..."

Five minutes later, on the second floor of the house, in a sunlit living room.

Four or five elderly men and women, along with one younger face, were all examining each other.

"Allow me to introduce them. This is the Farr County branch leader, Butcher Krog, once the number one Shadow Hunter." Herb pointed to the far left, where a burly old man in gray clothes stood, hair disheveled and white, face rugged and rough. Though clearly advanced in years, he showed no signs of frailty, and his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's.

"And this one here is the Laurent County branch leader, Warblade Kames, formerly the number four Shadow Hunter." To Krog's right, a lean old man sipped tea, appearing around sixty or so. He was missing his left ear and left arm, the sleeve hanging empty. His right eye was hued in black, as though countless ants had gathered there.

"This is the Fort County branch leader, Iron Face Jem, once the number five Shadow Hunter." In the center sat a man of about forty or fifty, quietly composed. He wore a well-fitted black suit, neatly tailored at the joints, and a wide-brimmed hat atop his head. A gray mask covered his face.

"And lastly, the Farr County branch Instructor, Wind Whisperer Elaine. She tried for the Shadow Hunter position back in the day but lost to me. We've been old rivals ever since..." Herb's tone carried a hint of nostalgia as he spoke.

On the far right stood an elderly woman in a floral dress, her white hair neatly tied back. Judging by her facial structure, she had surely been stunning in her youth. She gazed silently at Herb, seemingly displeased with the introduction her old rival had just given.

Cassius's gaze skimmed over the assembled individuals, sensing their respective strengths. Butcher Krog and Iron Face Jem had an aura comparable to Dark Gold Hunters, while Warblade Kames and Wind Whisperer Elaine barely clung to Dark Gold level. Their strength had long since declined from its prime, beset by injuries, age, and the essence of calamity. Maintaining such power was no small feat.

Of course, their strength was not the main factor here. It was their prestige in the Hunters' Association that mattered. Among the current Dark Gold Hunters, some had been their disciples, and even certain Shadow Hunters had once benefited from their guidance.

If these old hunters united, they would still be the weakest faction, but they would at least have the right to participate in the struggle.

For the current Cassius, it was like adding wings to a tiger.

Other than that, he had another idea. These veteran hunters, tormented by age, injury, and calamity, had suffered severe declines in strength. If Cassius could remedy their condition, he might gain a formidable force in return.

Cassius aimed to become a Radiant Hunter, but Radiant Hunters and Shadow Hunters did not share a strict superior-subordinate relationship. Shadow Hunters enjoyed considerable freedom. He needed a loyal faction of his own to hold influence over the entire Hunters' Association, preparing for the eventual collapse of the Hongli Federation.

Cassius intended to leverage the Hunters' Association to challenge the Gate organization of this era, to see just how formidable that hidden force truly was.

Would Xiadu emerge when the Hongli Federation fell apart? Thoughts whirled within him, and Cassius slowly withdrew his gaze.

The veteran hunters also sized him up, silently approving that he showed no hint of fear. These former Shadow Hunters carried a potent aura of killing intent. Facing them without flinching hinted at Cassius's solid willpower, marking him as a promising candidate.

Seated on the sofa, the burly Butcher Krog suddenly spoke. "Not bad, kid. Your aura is refined and well-concealed. I can't discern your true level, but you're certainly not just Black Copper. We're all friends of your mentor here, so no need to hold back. Show us what your true strength looks like..."