King's Rule: Creating the Strongest Kingdom With My Broken Talent-Chapter 23: Onwards to Crosshawk Kingdom
After everyone woke up, including Vesh, who slept longest as he had been awakened for many days, and the last day was especially hectic, the floating kingdom finally began moving towards the north.
Destination?
Crosshawk Kingdom. Viana’s birthplace.
It was six in the afternoon.
In Vesh’s own mansion’s hall, the squad was gathered while the rest of the citizens were idle in the garden, as there was nothing to do anymore. All the raw materials were processed, and there was nothing in this area to farm with a pickaxe or a woodcutting axe.
"So, Viana, how strong is your Kingdom?" Vesh asked. "Tell everything you know about it."
"But my lord. Now that you know about the tracker inside her, why aren’t you removing it?" Arga curiously asked.
"We’ll use it." Vesh grinned. "Let more of them come, except that their compass can’t point upward, so they’ll find us below, but we will be right above them. And we will be above the palace of Crosshawk Kingdom."
"And drop on them like reapers." Kayan grinned.
"Well, can’t disagree." Rovina coldly smiled. "All of us have broken through to Sprout-rank now."
Thanks to the whole design of this territory, there was always D-rank refined magic energy (R.ME) present, released from the bottom section of the crystal tower, and now that this territory was up here, it was also storing B-rank R.ME.
So the island also acted as a storage for refined magic energy, capable of holding 100,000 P.ME as well, and Vesh had filled it to the brim, so it remained constant with the production speed of the whirlpool.
"Crosshawk Kingdom..." Viana paused and then wryly smiled. "It’s weak. It’s been losing wars and territory for the last decade. Now it only has one port city and one capital. Their strongest powerhouses are King and Commander, both being Root-rank powerhouses. Among the remaining nobles, there are only six Sprout-rank powerhouses, but there are also fifteen princes and princesses at Sprout-rank. Since things have been tough, the king is spending treasury to empower his talented children. The rest are Seed-rank powerhouses. Probably a few thousand."
"Eh? But if he has thousands of Seed-rank troops, can’t they get resources to become stronger and become Sprout-rank?" Vesh rubbed his chin. "Is it so hard to get D-rank resources?"
"It is hard..." Viana was speechless. "Only they have pure and concentrated enough magic energy that can increase one’s force, unlike you, who can refine it from the atmosphere itself."
Vesh chuckled. "All of us will spend today training and getting stronger. We have all the way up to B-rank refined Magic Energy now that we are up here. For starters, we’ll reach the peak of Sprout-rank."
The citizens were also required to cultivate daily to increase their Seed Force. All they needed to do was to meditate and do breathing exercises, guiding the P.ME into their Seed.
Something many people die for was now readily available on this small piece of land flying in the sky.
...
Time passed.
Everyone was absorbing the energy and raising their Sprout Force and Seed Force.
Vesh was done the fastest. In just one hour, he went from less than 500 Sprout-Force to 10,000.
"Jeez, the difference is big." Vesh looked at his hands.
His hands felt harder than steel. Not at the surface level, but at the cellular level.
He could scan his own body and thoroughly analyze it before comparing the before and after.
The change was foundational.
The very molecules that made up his lifeform were vastly different.
Scientifically, he was no longer human if he compared himself to the standard of humans.
With the physical strength that could lift 100,000 tons with ease at 10,000 Sprout Force, Vesh was akin to a god.
But if considered the visual and spiritual structure of his life form, he was still very much a human.
[Vesh]
[Life Rank: Sprout | Sprout Force: 10,000]
[Combat Power: 871,919]
[Territory: Ananta]
— Titles —
— Talents —
[King’s Rule | SSS-rank | Potential 25✧/100✧]
[Swordsman | C-rank | Potential: 10✧/10✧]
[Wheel of Elements | SSS | Potential: 25✧/100✧]
[Ascension Storm of Heaven and Earth | SSS | Potential: 25/100✧]
— Inventory —
[Slime Sword (S-rank)]
— Builder Mode —
[Blueprints]
"Alright. Now I suppose it won’t be that easy to break through to Root-rank." Vesh wondered and asked his first question of the day.
[From the seed you were, you have sprouted. After reaching 10,000 Sprout Force, you must accumulate a growth of at least ten days during which the realm will absorb your thoughts, actions, and trace your path while you were in Sprout-rank. This will result in the manifestation of your Roots after ten days, and the granting of a Growth-type Title based on your accomplishments.]
’Wow.’ Vesh’s eyes sparkled. ’This will be fun.’
’I have to accumulate some awesome accomplishments in the next ten days since I have already reached Sprout-rank. I don’t have much time.’ Vesh’s eyes danced with excitement.
’But first, I want to gain some more combat arsenals. The fun ones.’
Vesh grinned.
’King’s Rule. I train until the other four reach the peak of Sprout-rank, gaining as much mastery over Sword as possible by unleashing my full potential. I stay fully in focus, but if my focus wavers...I die.’
[King’s Rule Created]
[Difficulty: Life or death]
Vesh flew up and covered himself in a translucent crystal bubble, allowing energies and air to pass through, but blocking everything else, like sound, physical objects/attacks, and magical attacks.
Since he made such a King’s Rule, he had to make sure nothing external disturbed him until Arga, Rovina, Kayan, and Viana reaches the peak of Sprout-rank.
Suspended in the bubble by weaving a small patch of grassy ground beneath his feet using elements, Vesh began training and began focusing as his new sword appeared in his hand. A sword he made himself using all eight elements as its foundation. Slime Sword.
A familiar phantom appeared before him, who always possessed infinitely stronger sword mastery and power than Vesh and an exotic crown above his head.
There was no beating this phantom because it was impossible. The phantom was his path to infinite growth because whenever he got stronger, the phantom would rise two steps above and beat him down in terms of technique, innovation, and creativity. But Vesh liked that because whatever it produced, he could easily learn and produced, as it felt like those came from him in the first place.
Ultimately, the phantom was the manifestation of his own potential.
Time passed.
One hour.
Two hours.
Three hours.
Kayan opened his eyes first.
His eyes flickered with bright crimson.
10,000 Sprout Force!
Looking around, he saw everyone in the garden except for Vesh.
But soon, he noticed a flow of R.ME going upward and looked up.
’Huh?’ Kayan’s eyes soon widened in shock.
Sparks were flying with two figures in some sort of black-gold translucent metallic armor clashing at each other so fast he couldn’t follow up with the current visual power of his eyes despite reaching 10,000 Sprout Force!
’What the hell...same force, but such difference in combat power.’ Kayan’s fist clenched. ’I want to become that strong.’
