Chapter 105: Chapter 105
These potions were enough to last Ron until he advanced to Knight, but he wanted to accelerate. Morris’s death had bred a profound sense of insecurity within him, and he desperately wished to gain greater strength in the shortest time possible.
And to achieve this goal, the only thing he could do right now was to increase the frequency of his Ignition Potion usage, which would inevitably cause a fair amount of waste to a certain extent.
During the first month, he had consumed a total of six vials of potions. One of them was the most wasted due to his complete lack of experience when using it privately, and there had still been some waste even afterward.
If calculated purely based on sustaining training, three vials would have been more than sufficient, and this was already predicated on the fact that Ron’s actual training (enhancement) hours far exceeded those of other apprentices.
If it were other apprentices, they wouldn’t even consume two vials in a month. The fact that the territory only distributed two Ignition Potions per month to apprentices was likely based on this very consideration.
But if one wanted to maximize both enhancement efficiency and enhancement speed, three vials wouldn’t quite cut it. Even five vials wouldn’t be quite enough; more was needed.
Previously, Ron had always factored the quantity of Ignition Potions into his considerations alongside enhancement efficiency and speed. But now, he tossed those concerns aside entirely. He was going to fully leverage all available resources to push his physical enhancement to Level 3 as quickly as possible.
That is to say, what the local Knights referred to as “Knight-level physical strength after the Second Limit Breakthrough.”
With a Knight-level body, even if Ron temporarily couldn’t truly achieve one hundred percent Whole-Body Force, he could rely on his Secret Pattern Programs to briefly enter the Formal Knight state, unleashing nearly all the capabilities of a Formal Knight.
From his own perspective, this was already the only improvement he could obtain within a relatively short timeframe.
Furthermore, once he possessed a Knight-level body, he could declare that he had already advanced to Knight.
If Meredith hadn’t lied about the inheritance of Instructor Morris’s Transcendent Weapon longsword, then he would be able to obtain the Transcendent Weapon from Mrs. Nina when the time came.
Such a powerful external force like a Transcendent Weapon was also a crucial factor driving Ron to accelerate his enhancement speed regardless of Ignition Potion waste.
Instructor Morris’s assertion that “only a Transcendent Weapon can counter a Transcendent Weapon” still echoed in Ron’s mind to this day.
Although a newly advanced Junior Knight wouldn’t be sufficient to unleash the full might of a Transcendent Weapon, it would still be far superior to an ordinary Standard Longsword.
Additionally, there was the Standard Armor issued to all Formal Knights. Even ordinary armor devoid of any Transcendent Power would provide far greater protection than his current leather armor.
Even though such protection amounted to practically nothing in the face of a Transcendent Weapon, Ron didn’t care. Consumed by intense anxiety, he simply wanted to acquire every possible means of protecting himself.
…
Packing thirteen vials of potion into a small pouch and leaving one out, Ron didn’t hesitate for a moment. He uncorked the vial and downed the Ignition Potion, which glowed with a fiery radiance, in a single gulp.
Employing the Ice Breathing Technique, which he had practiced until it was second nature, combined with the 【Fire Concealment Method】, Ron did his utmost to preserve the Life Energy trend co-generated by the Breathing Technique and the Ignition Potion, or what could be termed 【Quasi-Life Energy】, within his body.
Neither 【Quasi-Life Energy】 nor 【Life Energy】 was a genuinely existing energy. Rather, they represented a reactive state between Transcendent Factors and the body, an artificially defined, quantifiable virtual energy.
Yet this virtual energy could indeed be utilized to enhance oneself.
Had he not already gained a sufficient understanding of the essence of Life Energy, even Ron would likely have mistaken this energy for something that truly existed.
Right now, his body was saturated with 【Quasi-Life Energy】 and 【Life Energy】. The former, provided his body had sufficient nutrients, could rapidly convert into the latter, thereby contributing to his physical enhancement endeavors.
Simply put, after drinking the Ignition Potion, as long as Ron kept eating, he would be able to produce ample Life Energy.
Of course, if left unspent, the surging Life Energy would dissipate on its own and wouldn’t automatically enhance him. Therefore, high-intensity training was also indispensable during this process.
But abundant Life Energy could provide higher enhancement efficiency and faster enhancement speed, as if this virtual Life Energy had acquired some sort of potential energy characteristic. This was also the fundamental principle behind Ron’s “pay-to-win” strategy.
…
Next, Ron entered the Knight state and conducted Whole-Body Force training equivalent to Sword Stance training through his every movement, whether walking, sitting, or lying down.
However, he didn’t train for much longer. Although his mind barely required any rest, his body did. The more urgently he needed strength, the calmer he became instead.
Accelerating his enhancement speed was necessary, but if he ruined his body in the process, the losses would far outweigh the gains.
Yet even after stopping physical training, Ron still had no intention of letting himself idle.
He withdrew his consciousness from his body, allowing it to recover rapidly in deep sleep, while his consciousness returned to his true form to conduct research and analysis on Pollution Secret Patterns.
After understanding that Pollution Secret Patterns and the Transcendent system represented by the Knight’s path might exist in an opposing yet mutually transformative relationship, Ron no longer held any prejudice against Pollution Secret Patterns.
It was just that he hadn’t yet thought of a new name for them, so he continued using the previous designation for the time being.
Researching Pollution Secret Patterns carried profound significance. In the long run, it might help Ron comprehend the true nature of this world, allowing him to genuinely establish himself here.
In the short term, it could also potentially grant him the ability to resist the ambient mental pressure of the environment outside the territory, affording him the freedom to venture into the wilderness.
On this point, Ron cared deeply.
If another upheaval were to occur in Sis Territory, he needed the option to flee under necessary circumstances. And the key to fleeing was how to integrate into, or even exploit, the broader environment outside, which was practically saturated with Pollution Secret Patterns everywhere.
If he could find a practical and viable method to utilize Pollution Secret Patterns, then not only would he himself benefit, but anyone else willing to leave with him would also gain the same immunity.
If some catastrophe did occur, and Liya’s family or others were willing to leave with him, Ron naturally wouldn’t abandon them.
…
After perceiving hundreds of similar Pollution Secret Patterns, Ron felt his very thoughts beginning to stagnate. He knew that his mind, which seemingly never needed rest, had finally reached its limit.
If he didn’t rest now, the consequences could be very severe.
“What a pity. If only I could obtain a Wastelander corpse.”
Ron still couldn’t stop thinking about the absurdly powerful bodies of the Wastelanders. It wasn’t just that their bodies were inherently powerful, but also their compatibility with Pollution Secret Patterns.
If he could study a Wastelander’s body, he might be able to find a method to manipulate Pollution Secret Patterns.
Unfortunately, those Wastelanders killed back then, Ron had never seen the final disposition of their corpses. If they had been buried, could he perhaps find an opportunity to dig one up for research?