Maximilian looked at the remains of the ape and then at the prince. He wasn't sure what you could get from an ape's body, so he leaned toward letting the prince have it. The thing had strong bones and skin, but he had no idea how to de-bone or de-skin it. "No, you can have it." He thought for a moment and decided to amend his statement. "You can consider it a gift. The same will go for anything else I kill for the rest of the assignment." He wasn't sure if earning goodwill here was worth anything. He didn't feel like carrying around the beast's parts even in his magic bag, so he figured, why not take the gamble? The others knew more than he did about the beast.

  "The practitioner is kind." The spear wielder said as he jogged over to the corpse. He hacked the ape's body for a few moments with a knife before he shrugged. He turned toward Maximilian this time with an awkward smile. "Would you mind sharing your strength with me yet again?"

  Maximilian nodded and activated Severing Disc. The blade sliced into the beast like a hot knife through butter. He spent the next fifteen minutes cutting the beast into smaller parts. Despite not taking any of the meat, the process helped him gain control over his new skill. He wouldn't say he had mastered it by any means, but he felt comfortable using it for more controlled attacks. He could hit smaller targets without losing control over the disc. Altogether, he considered the situation a win. When they had gathered up the beast's parts the best they could, the group set out again.

  "Were those spiritual techniques? Would you be willing to share them?" The prince asked after an hour.

  Maximilian looked at him for a moment and then shook his head. "It would violate the rules and would involve your people in the affairs of practitioners." Maximilian wasn't sure if his words meant anything, but the prince seemed to believe them. He decided to stick with the lie. "Further, I don't know if you could learn them. One must have a certain amount of spiritual energy to be able to use it without danger to themselves. I recently learned it myself."

  "I see, I see. There is wisdom in your words. I would not like to see what that disc can do to a group of soldiers." The prince said a few more things but Maximilian wasn't listening. He also had no interest in finding out what his abilities would do to a person. If he had to, he would but the disc well above anything they had on earth. The disc would cut through anything sort of military grade weapons like tissue paper. He was starting to think that even was a massive understatement. He still didn't have a class which meant this was nowhere near the limits of his strength. He flexed his fingers and turned his attention back to the group. He would deal with it when he had to.

  "We won't reach the army tonight. We will settle in somewhere safe." Prince Gong's words pulled Maximilian out of his thoughts and back to the world. He was about to suggest that they continue when he caught sight of the group. They were doing their best to not show it, but he could tell they were at their limit. Further the sun had already set beyond the horizon, which meant it would get dark soon. He didn't want to try and fight anything in the dark. If he could avoid it.

  "Agreed, have your men find somewhere to rest for the evening. I will make sure we aren't followed." With an empowered jump he disappeared into the trees. He wasn't much of a tracker, so he held little faith in his abilities. If this was like a video game, than there might be things he could "find". He also wanted to see what they would do if he wasn't around. Which was why he returned to the campsite around twenty minutes later. He stayed high in the trees with his aura suppressed to make sure no one would notice him. He watched as they walked around the campfire and set up a few sleeping areas. They didn't have a sleeping bag let alone a tent.

  "So, what do you think of the practitioner?" The spear wielder asked the dual wielder.

  "It's hard to say. He seems green for one of them but he's strong. I am not sure we'd be able to win if we fought him together. He seems soft though."

  "I am not sure you can consider someone capable of beating a corrogo soft." A different guard said as he sat against a tree about ten feet away from the others.

  "I didn't say weak, Zhao you of all people should know the difference."

  Zhao shook his head. "I know what you mean and I don't know if it matters. Does it matter to the ant if the foot that crushed it meant to or not? Or if felt bad after?" After that the group went silent as they went about finishing their business. When the fire was ready they sat down with strips of meat. They placed a strip of metal across a grill of sticks and then began cooking. The domestic scene was odd in the current context. He was about to jump down and join them when they said something interesting.

  "What do you think? Do you believe they actually paid for an assassin?" Zhao asked. His question wasn't directed toward anyone specific but none of them moved to answer. It became clear that they were waiting for the prince.

  "Would we have gone as far as hiring a practitioner if we believed different?" Prince Gong replied. "My royal father and I aren't sure who it is between my siblings or enemy nations. We are sure someone did."

  The group went back and forth for several more minutes. Maximilian decided to rejoin them. He let himself fall out of the tree and landed a few feet behind them. He had hoped listening to them would reveal that they were programs. Video game NPCs but if anything, it did the opposite. He wasn't sure he was doing the right thing protecting this guy. He knew nothing about this royal family or what they did, but he doubted their hands were clean. You don't get to be the ruler of a powerful nation without doing something evil. Further he wasn't sure he had to complete the quest. The voice said they couldn't go back without completing the quests earlier but was it still true? Either way it didn't matter. He wasn't willing to test it out nor did he want to deal with the consequences if turned out he didn't. What if the entire world turned against him?

  "Would you like some food?" Zhao asked as Maximilian stepped into the light of the fire.

  He shook his head. "I don't need much. You all should eat all you can to recover your strength. I hadn't found anything, but I am not a master tracker. We will head out at first light." He took a seat against a tree trunk and closed his eyes. He started up his cultivation technique and grimaced. The energy here made him want to give up. If the energy in his personal chamber was like a river than this was like a brook that someone dammed up a long time ago. It would take him hours to cultivate ten minutes worth of energy. Still there was little he could do, and he needed to recover his energy. He didn't think the group would try to attack him if he chose to sleep but he didn't want to risk it. He could keep watch over them as well which should remove any chance of an ambush. At the worse he could fight back in time. He felt the other's eyes on him for almost an hour before the fire went out and they laid down.

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  Maximilian shifted his focus away from his cultivation technique and to the Dao. He had already decided on the dao of lightning or whatever variant he managed to get. It was hard to know how close he was to a breakthrough, but his gut told him he was very close. Like if he had a few hours or days he would break through the final hurdle and then he would finish. Or rather done with the first step in whatever he was doing. He felt like a snowball rolling down a mountain. Every moment brought him toward a critical mass that would—his progress jolted to a stop. His eyes flew open with. The sudden change confused him for a moment as he searched for what had happened. The clearing was empty outside of the prince's group but that did nothing to make him feel better. The skin on the back of neck stood up. The forest felt inhospitable. As if every shadow was a beast waiting to strike.

  He got to his feet and prepared to wake the others. He wasn't sure if this was the assassin or another beast but he wasn't sure he could fight it in the dark. He pushed a bit of spiritual energy into his vocal chords to amplify his voice. A trick he learned during one of the cultivation days. "Wake up." His voice shattered the silence like a thunderclap. The prince and his men scrambled up a moment before Maximilian's instincts roared. His hand was in front of his face before his mind caught up. His eyes widened as a bone spike the size of a dagger was inches from his face. Blood dripped from his hand as he processed what happened. Not only had something shot at him but he reacted to it. No, his body reacted to it. Fast enough to catch it. He decided not to gamble on his safety again and activated his robe's array.

  "What's happening?"

  "That can't be."

  "By the heavens."

  Maximilian ignored the prince and his people so he could focus on the direction the spike came from. A moment later the bloodiest aura he had ever felt washed over them like a wave. His vision blurred and it felt like he had fallen into a pool of scalding blood. He released his own aura in hope that it would counter the effect. It did more than that. For a moment the forest became the battle ground of two invisible armies. Maximilian's aura was weaker than the beasts but not by much. The battle raged for what felt like an eternity before it stopped. Maximilian withdrew his aura a moment after the beast. The forest fell into a hyper silence. Anticipation sung in his veins as he searched for any signs of the beast's location. The stillness shattered when another spike shot toward him. This time he was ready. He dropped his right shoulder as the spike shot pass him. It slammed into a tree behind him and unleashed Static Bolt. The bluish-white electricity shot into the darkness and illuminated a monstrous face.

  Its face was human-like if only, it had the body of a lion and leathery wings like a bat. It's had tail made out of skeletal like bones with a cluster bone spikes at the end. Spikes that he knew came faster than bullets. The creature looked like something a demented wizard would create at the end of the world. Only this was very much real. His heart pumped in his chest as the creature roared. The rational part of his brain wanted him to run but there was another. The part that wanted to see what he could do. That wanted to test his body. That part wanted the fight. He grinned as Severing Disc formed in his hand. There was no way the prince and his men would escape if he ran which meant he had to fight. He couldn't afford to lose the quest after all. The beast cut the distance between them in a flash. It leaped out of the darkness, its maw opened wide enough to bite him in two. He unleashed Severing Disc. His attempt to cut the head of the proverbial snake failed. The beast contorted its body at an impossible angle. It avoided having its neck slit at the cost of a slash that went through its shoulder.

  The beast retreated a step and Maximilian unleashed Static Bolt. He could tell that the beast was faster than him and more durable which meant he had to be smarter. His attack went wide as the beast charged. Maximilian doubted he could endure one of its attacks. Especially if it landed anywhere lethal. Prismatic Barrier formed as the beast swung its club like tail. It slammed into the barrier with the force of a runaway train. Cracks spread across the impact site faster than he could repair. He gritted his teeth as he debated whether to abandon the shield. One of the prince's guards joined the battle. The spear wielder unleashed a jab aimed at the beast's heart. Only instead of the creature the spear snapped. The metal head might as well have been glass for the good it did. The beast focused on the warrior and Maximilian made his move. He imbued his right hand with as much energy as he could and slammed into the beast's head. When it was about to bite the warrior in half.

  It felt like he had punched solid concrete. Bones in his wrist shattered but he succeeded. He forced the beast back a step. "Get back and protected the prince. Use the ape's meat if it gets passed me. Your goal hasn't changed." Maximilian gritted his teeth as he glared at the creature. It had to be at least ten levels above him. How the hell was he supposed to be something like this while protecting people? A voice in in the back of his mind offered a solution. One he rejected. One he refused to entertain. He summoned both Static Bolt and Severing Disc. The beast snarled and pointed its ugly mace like tail at him. He was about to charge when he noticed that the beast's tail hadn't recovered. It hadn't gotten its spike back which meant they weren't unlimited. An idiotic plan sprouted in his mind as he stared at the creature. "Well might as well gamble it all." The beast charged.

  Maximilian let the beast slam into his barrier. It held for less than a second, long enough to arrest the creature's momentum. He preyed on that moment to unleash both of his attacks. Static Bolt shot for its face while Severing Disc went for the tail. Maximilian grinned as the beast reared back to protect its face. Severing Disc tore through its tail, removing several of its bone spikes. Time seemed to slow as Maximilian leaped for them. He grabbed two of the three and shifted into a roll right before his instincts screamed at him to move. The monster slammed down where he had been second before. He activated the array on his robes right before the beast swung the last of its spikes at him. The barrier managed to slow the spike enough for him to get out of the way.

  Maximilian glared at the beast and imbued both of his hands with spiritual energy. He wasn't sure if the spikes would be strong enough to get through the beast's hide. He would have to try it anyway. He launched the first one to watch the beast's reaction. The beast almost panicked in its attempt to dodge so he decided to go ahead with his plan. He activated both Severing Disc and Static Bolt. He locked eyes with ugly monster and braced himself. This would be the last time they would clash. Either he would win, or he would die. As he accepted that a strange calmness settled onto his shoulders like a blanket. He took a deep breath as the monster roared. The beast charged. Maximilian stood ready to receive it. He launched Static Bolt. The beast decided to charge through the minor electrical attack. Something that was fine with him. As soon as it got within ten feet he launched Severing Disc. The blade shot forward with finality. A testament to the beast's power and control, it stopped its forward momentum and leapt to the side. This time the disc severed a part of its back left leg.

  It was then that Maximilian made his move. He imbued his legs and arms with spiritual energy and arrived as the beast landed. Spike aimed like a spear at its heart. This time the attack succeeded. The bone spike dug into chest almost half an inch before it stopped. Maximilian brought his other hand down like a hammer and slammed it into the spike. Once, twice, three time and then the beast stopped moving. He slammed his fist into it one more time to be sure and then retreated. His spiritual energy was almost gone so if it somehow survived, he'd be in trouble. When the surge of kill energy flooded into him, he grinned. He had won. He had actually won. His elation died when his instincts warned of danger. He leaped to the side a cloaked figure appeared out of nowhere. He avoided a nasty serrated dagger covered in a horrible purple liquid. The figure spun and disengaged.

  The person was a man from what Maximilian could see. They wore purple leather armor with a serpent emblem on the right side above the heart. He wore a black hooded cloak that covered their face with two identical daggers, one in each hand. "I had hoped to take you out then but fortune doesn't always smile on us."