Chapter 60: My Turn, Draw a Card!

"Hah!"

In the courtyard he was not quite familiar with, Li En set down the sword in his hand once more and wiped the sweat from his brow.

"As expected, a bit of morning exercise is needed to feel comfortable."

As a severely injured patient who had been unconscious for a day and two nights, the words Li En spoke were probably enough to drive the attending physician mad.

You mummy insist on morning exercise to feel comfortable? Aren't you afraid that while practicing, you'll suddenly burst with blood from your wounds and die on the spot?

But he felt it was fine, so he started practicing.

However, after a mere ten minutes of morning exercise, not even reaching his usual warm-up level, Li En stopped.

His previous claim of "I'm in such great shape" was indeed a bit hollow, a bit of an illusion.

The weakness brought by blood loss still existed; after moving slightly, he felt dizzy, and his body seemed to have started a low fever.

But this warm state after exercise made him feel the taste of being alive, even somewhat euphoric.

"You really are about to ascend to heaven; your face has turned pale again. Don't practice anymore, or you'll really die." Miss Shaliman could no longer bear it and stopped him.

Li En was very obedient; upon realizing he truly couldn't continue, he went upstairs obediently to eat and recover.

Even so, his overly vigorous appearance still frightened quite a few people.

But considering this was a former Oathbound Great Knight—er, a spiritual superman and Iron Saint Knight who practiced until death or near death—it was fine.

Li En had not yet completed the Heroic Soul settlement, even though the time remaining above was only a day and a half.

Without the pressure, he instead cherished the time spent with Brother Su Er even more.

Of course, it was also to make the most of the Heroic Soul Card's value, to devour that set of divine sword techniques with astonishing potential.

Armor-Eroding, Collapse Realm, Spell-Breaking, City-Shattering, Beast-Slaying, God-Slaying; this truly was a treasure trove.

Looking back now, the "beast" in Beast-Slaying inevitably made one think twice; otherwise, why would a mere wild beast come after "City-Shattering"?

Passing a treasure trove without looting it was simply not Li En's style; once Brother Su Er's Holy Sword Evil-Cleaving system was mastered to perfection, one could truly travel the world with a single sword.

Having already mastered Collapse Realm, the next move was the "Spell-Breaking Sword" that the little dragon girl Long Shou had been so reluctant to let go of.

This was also his signature move that left its mark in history; its value need not be elaborated.

Li En, having experienced the monkey version of Spell-Breaking, was even more envious.

Even though time and physical hardware were absolutely insufficient for full mastery, merely understanding the basics should be of great help to his future career.

"As expected, there are indeed some differences."

The evolution of species rank, the awakening of the Dragonborn bloodline's primal stone, was not simply growing some scales.

【Species Name: Juvenile Red Dragon Lineage (Primal Stone)】

【Dragonization: 8.9%, Awakened Racial Talents: Dragon Eye (Gaze into Truth), Dragon Claw (Tear Reality), Dragon Fire (Burn the World)】

On the surface, the change was not great, merely adding a new species name.

Yet it meant Li En had reached the starting point of most species in this world, possessing a complete Dragonborn bloodline.

Below "Juvenile Red Dragon Lineage," there was a series of contents, serving as the starting-point benefits for this species.

【Dragon Scale Skin (Primal Stone): The dragon scales beneath your skin are your armor; your skin is far more resilient than that of most lifeforms.】

Li En tested it; while the dragon scales seemed to appear only on parts of the body, the hardness buff to the skin was at a whole-body level, meaning there was still a layer of dragon scales beneath the skin.

This skin couldn't compare to the previous "Human-Beast" that could withstand swords and blades, but blocking flying stones and impacts posed no difficulty.

Li En tested it; a fruit knife sliding across wouldn't draw blood, but pressing down hard would still cause a wound.

Considering the slashing force of warriors, this was currently quite useless.

And this was clearly a talent that would continuously strengthen with the bloodline; perhaps in the future it could become a practical life-saving ability, like that Volcano Dragon's skin which could withstand ordinary slashes, but for now, it couldn't be trusted too much.

At the same time, Li En felt his bones and flesh had also become tougher; this should be a systemic reinforcement of the physical body.

【Flame Dragon Bloodline (Primal Stone): As a child of the Red Dragon, you possess an innate strong affinity and resistance to fire. You can resist fire damage to a certain extent and gain bloodline bonuses when casting fire magic. But as a price, when suffering from low-temperature and ice attacks, you will take heavier damage, and the difficulty of mastering low-temperature spells will increase significantly.】

This was a quite useful talent, one from which he could benefit right now.

Both the racial ability Dragon Fire and the Paladin class ability Holy Light Aura could receive the bonus, and the magnitude was not low.

If Li En later learned to play with fireballs and such, it would be a huge advantage of starting at the 100-meter mark right from the beginning—an advantage always a cut above one's peers; when it truly came down to competing on talent, it would become even more precious.

It could be said that Li En, now, was truly complete.

But he had already stood at a higher level than most lifeforms; even a weaker Bronze bloodline couldn't compare to him.

Considering the price and materials he paid (Silver Materials, Hero's Blood), it seemed to be a result of getting what you paid for.

"Take a nap at noon; if the condition is a bit better in the afternoon, go to the Dock District to stroll around and practice with Damon. Try to transmit more of Armor-Eroding and Collapse Sword while the Soul abilities are still active." Li En truly couldn't sit still and had already started arranging the afternoon's work.

The knights were busy; confirming Li En's condition was unexpectedly good, they each went to work overtime.

"The Dock District is a bit chaotic right now; we are busy working overtime on patrols... Lord Damon of the Radiant Guard has taken over the management of the Police Bureau and seems to be rectifying the atmosphere for a while. Although we don't expect long-term peace and stability, we hope for some stability."

Talia was busy going back to work overtime; from her cheerful expression, she probably truly expected long-term peace and stability quite a bit.

And the big shot personally taking charge of the security in the Dock District was also because of another ruthless move Li En had created, which had already fully erupted!

"The slave market is in complete chaos; the remaining number-two figure simply cannot control the place. Many accounts are in disarray; transactions are messed up, not to mention... some people even took the opportunity to attack the slave cages and warehouses, not only losing another batch of goods but also causing a batch of slaves to escape. The entire situation is very chaotic and has already affected the security of the Dock District."

While saying this, Talia was also looking at Damon, obviously somewhat suspicious.

"It really wasn't me; my wounds hadn't healed yet at that time yesterday... It's possible many people had been unhappy with them for a long time; hearing that the Volcano Dragon died, they just acted directly." Damon's tone, however, was unashamedly cheerful.

This explanation made sense; without a strong power suppressing the gray trade, a once-in-a-lifetime vacuum period, it would be strange if others didn't snatch it.

"Slaves escaped, merchant orders are in disarray, even bounties are ruined; the authority of the slave market has suffered a huge blow. We should be able to develop very smoothly during this period. I am selecting some young people to see if we can form a Squire (Knight) Corps to serve as a security militia."

This needed no concealment; it was something agreed upon long ago.

Given the current governance level of Radiant City, no one cared about a militia organization in the commoner district.

But for the people living there, it was very important; it meant the new order had the power to provide protection and escort.

"Miss Shaliman is willing to fund the construction of a new orphanage and place it together with the school..." This was undoubtedly good news; Li En even wanted to thank her.

Larry had also been watching over that place these past few days; those children needed her comfort.

And she, at this very moment, brought an invitation that left Li En somewhat hesitant.

"Not only the Emblem Church I belong to, but two other Shanshende Sect churches have all extended invitations to you. They are willing to sponsor you to become a priest, or to walk the Holy Knight path again and become a Church Guardian warrior or a clergyman — either path is acceptable."

The flexibility of this invitation itself was the greatest show of sincerity.

Just as Li En had once planned, a former classical Oath Knight, even after losing his power, would have no trouble finding a relatively stable clerical (clergyman) position.

And the fact that the other side had even brought out resources to let him walk the extraordinary path again was rather surprising.

"They were all very surprised that you were able to slay that monster."

The matter of beasts was a secret and taboo that ordinary nobles could not access, but for the upper echelons of the True God churches, who were originally responsible for this line of work, it was a great enemy they themselves had to be aware of.

The fact that Li En was able, under conditions of lacking intelligence and resources, to slay an opponent of that caliber with his broken body was enough to prove his ability — naturally worth winning over and investing in.

"In fact, not only you, but I have also received commendation and promotion within the church. Dimon, if you are willing, you too can become a member of the church. In one year you should be able to become a formal knight." This, in itself, amounted to a leap in class.

The matter of the Heroic Spirit was a secret, but the matter of the Oath Knight had still leaked out.

Li En being able to inherit this profession raised his value, and indirectly provided a guarantee for Dimon's character and potential.

"Heh, absent when the fighting was happening, but here to pluck the peaches when the fruit is ripe — truly worthy of the lords. No thanks, I'm fine right here. Larry, help me find a few polite words to respond to them — I can't afford to offend the lords." Everyone knew Dimon would definitely give this answer.

Larry nodded, and did not waste any more breath, only hesitating for a moment before continuing to speak.

"Once your militia (knight) organization is formed, I will pick some squires from within it."

Some words only need to be said halfway — the inheritance of the "Law Knight" was still quite sensitive in the early stages, and it was best to avoid the True God churches.

The current dock district might well be a very good place of origin.

This had been discussed before; it was just being confirmed now.

"No problem. But you have to give the money and the treatment." The Dimon family had limited resources and would not raise other people's men for them.

"Fine, their identities will be my knight squires. As the future head of the family, I do indeed need to keep a batch of retainers."

Larry seemed to have had an awakening as well, but from another angle, the fame earned this time was indeed the most helpful for her development — a direct gilding, successfully transforming from a recruit talent into a reserve cadre.

Everyone had a bright future, especially Li En — it seemed that with just a nod, the glorious Church-affiliated extraordinary path lay right before his eyes.

"…They value that you activated 'that thing.'" As a fellow conspirator and the proxy of the Dragon Hunt, Miss Shaliman, who had been observing all along, suddenly added a line.

Being able to activate a component of the Hero's Set meant having the potential to become a Hero.

Even if he could not become that outrageously overpowered inherited profession, it still proved that Li En definitely had the potential to strike back from desperate circumstances and make a comeback.

Once the True God churches learned of such a person, they would naturally try to recruit him into their ranks.

Miss Shaliman opened her mouth, but did not put forward her own conditions. She did not need to recruit Li En — but the Kingdom did.

The Princess, however, behaved rather subtly at this moment, even somewhat hesitant.

Clearly, the Kingdom's Hero inheritance had already been broken, yet she had never initiated a new Hero selection ceremony, and also seemed to have little interest in Li En as a Hero candidate.

It might be because of Li En's status as a degenerate species, or it might be because there were already several better candidates — let him grow for a while, and once Li En truly came into his own, perhaps she would recruit him again.

Miss Shaliman was actually a little anxious — Her Highness had clearly helped so much, so why was she hesitating at this moment?

If they waited until Li En made his comeback again, recruiting him then would put them in a completely different position. Adding flowers to brocade through reinvestment cannot buy loyalty, but sending charcoal in the snow to provide timely aid might.

"Forget it, Her Highness probably has her own thoughts." Miss Shaliman, it seemed, could only think this way.

But regardless, Li En's party slaying evil had indeed made a name and reputation for themselves, and naturally received recruitment offers from major powers and organizations.

"…Let me think about it."

What was Li En considering? Of course, when to draw the Mage card and fulfill his Mage dream!

If he had a choice, he truly did not want to go to a True God church to enjoy cabbage, tofu, and ascetic merit-accumulation.

Time passed quickly; in the final day and a half, Li En truly did not waste a single moment.

"…Finally."

After the final sprint of sword practice, the time of "Soul" had finally reached its end.

【Sync Rate 70.1%, Satisfaction 54.9%】

After slaying the evil in the underground cavern, the numbers had surged sharply.

Perhaps the elder brother's recognition was the most meaningful commendation for Li En.

When the time count returned to zero, Li En no longer hesitated and directly chose to settle.

【…Settled. The Heroic Spirit commends your effort and dedication, rated as Extremely Excellent!】

【Rewards are as follows: two random Heroic Spirit Codex cards, Holy Knight profession level…】

The delighted Li En no longer had the mood to look at the specific rewards — the treasures at the very opening alone made him ecstatic.

"Two cards? This has to draw the Mage!"

Immediately, without hesitation, he returned to his room, opened the book page, and began drawing cards.

"My turn! Draw!"

But when the face of the first card came out, he was completely dumbfounded.

【Heroic Spirit activation… random completion. Heroic Spirit 'Continental Hero' Laikes Suo En descends! Soul module activating】

This — wasn't he the Queen's husband, the Princess's father, that faceless man in the portrait? He was also Li En's predecessor?!

Li En was so shocked he was speechless, but even more outrageous things were still on the way.

【Heroic Spirit Laikes Suo En has refused your activation.】

【This card has entered cooldown. You may attempt to fulfill any one of three conditions to forcibly activate this Heroic Spirit card.】

【Do not awaken me, please forget me — Laikes Suo En】

At this, Li En was completely dumbfounded.

(End of this chapter)