Chapter 185: Floating Island in the Clouds, Artificial Sun

Chapter 185: Chapter 185: Floating Island in the Clouds, Artificial Sun

"Dad! Over here! This is Lance, the man who saved us in the forest!"

Seeing his dad appear, Toby jogged over excitedly and made the introduction in a loud voice.

Toby’s dad took two steps forward, looking Lance up and down carefully.

Because of a certain special Specialty, he could sense the frightening Burst Power contained within Lance’s body.

Then, the tower-like man let out a hearty laugh.

He reached out a huge hand and clapped it unceremoniously on Lance’s shoulder.

"Good kid! You’ve built yourself up real solid!"

The blow was full of force, about equivalent to a punch from a Big Goblin. A regular Adventurer would have probably staggered from the hit.

But with the Power from his constantly active Breathing Technique, he only swayed slightly, his feet remaining firmly planted on the ground.

"You saved my son, which makes you our family’s greatest benefactor! You have to stay for dinner tonight and try our signature roasted meat!"

It was an offer too gracious to refuse, so Lance stayed.

Dinner was served at a giant oak table in the courtyard behind the farm.

In the center of the table was a sumptuous roasted pig’s head, its skin roasted to a crispy, golden-brown, and emitting a rich, enticing aroma.

Beside it were several barrels of ale, chilled with well water, their surfaces covered in a fine layer of condensation.

What surprised Lance somewhat was Toby’s mother.

She was a quiet, middle-aged woman.

She wore a coarse cloth apron, her hair tied up in a bun, and a gentle, friendly smile played on her lips.

She didn’t say much, simply moving gently as she served the three big men steaming hot food and carefully filled their mugs with frothy white ale.

This quiet woman, the boisterous Toby, and the hearty, rugged Toby’s dad seemed to be from completely different worlds.

Watching her busy figure moving between the kitchen and the table, Lance sighed inwardly.

’What a curious family combination.’

After a few rounds of strong liquor, Toby’s dad became much more talkative.

Holding his giant wooden mug, he endlessly recounted his glory days as a young Adventurer to Lance.

"Kid, have you ever been to Aksu in the south?"

The old man let out a drunken hiccup, a look of excited reminiscence in his eyes, as if he had returned to those passionate, thrilling times.

"Not only does it have the largest Underground City on the entire continent, it’s also where the Adventurer’s Guild headquarters is located."

"The place is incredible. The entire city is built on floating islands in the clouds."

The old man gestured with his hands, drawing an exaggerated circle in the air.

"There are even three artificial suns, created by a Legendary Mage using an array network, to supply the entire city’s energy consumption."

Hearing these myth-like descriptions, the hand Lance was holding his mug with paused slightly.

’Legendary Mage?’

’Three artificial suns?’

’Floating islands in the clouds?’

’The level of Alchemy and Magic in this world has actually reached such a magnificent scale?’

This completely overturned the shallow understanding he had built up in this small border town.

It seemed that he, a frog in a well, still had many, many unknown sights to explore.

"The life of a Professional Level Adventurer and a Non-Professional Level one are two completely different worlds."

Toby’s dad gulped down a mouthful of ale, wiped the corner of his mouth, and his tone became profound.

"Later on, I got really tired of life in the Underground City, the kind of life where you have to sleep with one eye open."

He turned his head, his gaze incredibly gentle as he glanced at his wife, who was cleaning up the dishes in the kitchen.

"It wasn’t until I met Toby’s mother that I finally made up my mind to leave my old identity behind."

"I retired to this countryside place to peacefully run a farm and live the life of an Ordinary person."

He once couldn’t find his way in life, but after meeting one person, he knew how he wanted to live the rest of it.

But soon, the old man cast aside this sentimentality and began to enthusiastically recount the dangerous adventures he had experienced in the Underground City.

Although Toby had heard these old, worn-out stories countless times growing up, every time he heard them, the passionate young man would sit beside him like the most loyal audience, clapping excitedly and even helping his dad fill in some of the exciting battle details he’d forgotten from drinking too much.

The night wind grew cool, the torches in the courtyard burned with a CRACKLE, and everyone was a little tipsy.

Toby’s dad put down his mug, turned his head, and stared intently into Lance’s eyes.

"Kid, you’re strong."

"For someone at the Non-Professional Level, you’ve honed your body to a terrifying degree."

"In all my years, I can count the number of young people I’ve met who can compare to you on one hand."

The old man’s tone shifted, his voice becoming low and serious.

"But you have to remember, in this world, you are not the most special one."

"Especially back in the day, when I had the honor of participating in a ranking competition for the Earth-Sundering Monarchy."

"It was there that I witnessed with my own eyes young people who were clearly at the Burning Fire Level, but whose strength was monstrous."

The old man’s words were filled with emotion.

"Those monsters all possessed terrifying Talents, and on top of that, they were built up by immense powers from behind the scenes, using massive amounts of resources."

"Among them, some had just advanced to Professional through the ceremony and already had more than ten practical Combat Specializations solidified on them."

"Some had even accomplished great deeds recognized by the world while still an Ordinary person."

"And then there were the Close Combat Madmen whose individual Attributes broke through class restrictions, and Casters who held dual Magic System Professions at the same time."

Listening to Toby’s dad’s story,

the trace of arrogance Lance had developed from his recent rapid increase in strength was quietly worn away.

He had always been limited by the narrow perspective of a border town, unable to imagine how big the outside world truly was, or how monstrous the real geniuses were.

But tonight, from Toby’s dad’s words, he had seen a wider world.

Although his inflated confidence had subsided slightly, his curiosity about this world had become even more vigorous.

’So these are the top geniuses of this world?’

Lance mused silently.

’Even though I have a cheat like the system’s Biological Research bonus, my growth period has been too short.’

’Compared to those geniuses who are nurtured with the continent’s top resources, my foundation still seems a little thin.’

’I absolutely can’t get complacent just because I’ve achieved a little success in a Newbie Village like Gray Rock Town.’

"It’s precisely because I’ve seen those despair-inducing geniuses with my own eyes..."

Toby’s dad let out a long sigh.

"...that I was finally able to extinguish that unrealistic pride in my heart and willingly return to this land to be a simple, Ordinary person."

He reached out his broad, thick hand and patted Lance’s shoulder heavily again.

"But I can tell from your eyes that you’re completely different from me."

"You’re about to cross that threshold and compete against those real monsters in the same arena."

The night wind blew, dissipating some of the alcohol from their breath.

Toby’s dad raised his wooden mug high, a sincere blessing on his face.

"Kid, I hope that on your future adventures, you get to witness sights that are both plentiful and magnificent."

"When you get tired of seeing them, or if you get hurt, come back to Baihua Town and have a drink with the two of us!"

This was the purest form of romance between men.

No need for overly sentimental words of parting, just a strong drink.

Lance smiled happily.

He raised the half-full mug of ale in his hand and clinked it heavily against Toby’s dad’s.

The wooden mugs collided with a dull thud.

"I will."

In the summer breeze, the night passed quietly in peace and harmony.

「The next morning.」

Just as the eastern sky was turning a fish-belly white, Lance was already up.

He didn’t wake the still-sleeping Toby and his family. Instead, following yesterday’s plan, he headed downstream along the creek next to the farm.

He spent several hours as a ruthless cleaner.

He completely wiped out every Slime colony he found along the way, leaving no survivors.

Standing on a creek bed, he looked at the Research Progress bar on his panel, which was finally overflowing.

And the notification that he could now draw a Talent.

Lance stood on the puddle-filled flats and let out a long, satisfied breath.

’All the pre-Profession preparations are finally complete.’

As he washed the slime from his hands and picked up his bag to leave, Toby’s dad was already standing at the farm’s entrance, having waited for a while.

"Toby told me you were fighting Demons all afternoon yesterday, and today I see you ran off early in the morning to clear out miles of creek bed, and you’re not even breathing hard."

The old man looked at the energetic Lance, giving him a thumbs-up and clicking his tongue in amazement.

This was a gesture of appreciation he had just learned from Lance last night.

"I knew I wasn’t wrong. You, kid, are a monster of stamina in disguise."

Amidst the warm farewells of Toby’s family,

Lance jumped onto the public horse-drawn carriage heading back to Gray Rock Town.

As the wooden wheels rolled, the tranquil scenery of Baihua Town gradually receded behind him.

Lance sat in the bumpy carriage, his gaze calm as he looked ahead.

Next,

it was time to face his own Profession initiation ceremony.