Now, the only thing he could hope for was that the Crimson Pyrogryph would win this confrontation—ideally while entirely wiping out the team from the Flame Sovereign Sect. In this way, when he returned, the Thunder Vein Dew would probably still be there.

Of course, that was only the ideal scenario, and he wasn’t delusional enough to think it had a high chance of happening. After all, while the Crimson Pyrogryph was currently dominating and looked like it would annihilate the Flame Sovereign Sect members, he knew that this was just an ‘illusion’.

It was true that the demonic beast held the upper hand and that the Flame Sovereign Sect would probably lose some members, maybe even the majority of them, but at the same time…

It was highly probable that the son of the Sect Master possessed talismans capable of saving his life in moments of danger, allowing him to preserve himself. Maybe the others, including the Core Elder, would perish, but the Young Master would likely survive.

And all it would take was for a single survivor from the Flame Sovereign Sect to escape and for the rest of the sect—especially its high-ranking members—to learn about the Heavenly Wonder’s existence, and then…

It would only be a matter of time before the sect sent Great Elders at the latest layers of the Core Formation Realm to harvest this Heavenly Wonder.

Understanding this, Mikael didn’t delude himself into thinking that his chances of obtaining it were high. When he returned in the future, there was a very real possibility he would find it already harvested—which is why…

‘It’s so hard to accept it! But I need to, it’s the “smart choice”,’ he inwardly murmured to himself like a mantra, trying to calm down and convince himself that he had made the ‘smart choice’.

Unfortunately, no matter how much he tried to convince himself, Mikael couldn’t do it—not only because he likely let this ‘Heavenly Wonder’ slip through his fingers for good, but also, and more importantly, because he knew that if he weren’t injured, he would’ve had a real—even high—chance of successfully obtaining it.

Because of that, Mikael was full of frustration and in an especially foul mood. Even though he knew, logically, that he should be happy—after all, he had made significant gains during his exploration of the Savagefang Mountain Range…

He couldn’t bring himself to be in a good mood, no matter how much he rationalized it.

‘Fortunately,’ as he made his way out of the mountain range, there were more demonic beasts than before, pushing him to be more cautious and forcing him to focus his attention on the current dangerous situation. Because of that, he managed to shift his thoughts away from what he had missed.

However, due to his deep frustration, Mikael wasn’t as cautious as before—which, unfortunately for the beasts, led several of them to discover him. And because of his mood, Mikael didn’t bother fighting in an ‘optimal’ way or minimizing his injuries.

In truth, it was the exact opposite. He didn’t fight with precision, but with brutality—pure and savage brutality. He used the beasts as little more than punching bags to vent his frustration, and when they struck back?

He smiled. He took their blows head-on, endured them with his body alone, and crushed them through sheer, unrelenting force—tearing them into pieces. By the time the fights ended, he was bloodied… and they were nothing more than a heap of mangled flesh on the ground.

In this way, Mikael continued along his path toward the outskirts of the Savagefang Mountain Range, a calamity to any demonic beast unfortunate enough to cross his way and possess the ‘brilliant’ idea of attacking a Mikael who was in an especially bad mood.

Fortunately, after the noble ‘sacrifices’ of these brave demonic beasts, Mikael had managed to vent enough of his frustration that, by the time he finally exited the mountain range, he was far calmer. Did that mean he had made peace with having missed the Thunder Vein Dew?

Fuck no!

He hadn’t made a single iota of peace with that fact—he was still frustrated, still angry—but at least he wasn’t clenching his fists so tightly they bled anymore. That, at the very least, was a start…

It was with that mindset that Mikael continued his ‘trek’, and soon enough, he left behind the most dangerous region of the Savagefang Mountain Range, entering an area where Body Forging Realm demonic beasts made up the overwhelming majority, and not long after, even they vanished as he stepped beyond the range entirely.

At that moment, he didn’t hesitate before taking flight; the only things accompanying him were the howling wind and his lingering thoughts. In this way, he rose higher and higher into the sky until the wind was no longer a whisper, but a roar.

WHOOOOOM.

The fierce wind at high altitude made Mikael’s hair messy, strands whipping around him—yet he ignored it. Hovering mid-air, he turned to look behind him, and what greeted his gaze was the wild, jagged silhouette of the Savagefang Mountain Range.

Suppressing the frustration still bubbling beneath the surface, Mikael performed a small bow mid-air toward the mountain range.

“Thank you for what you gave out!”

He remained in that bowing posture for several seconds before straightening. Honestly, he didn’t know why he did it—it wasn’t planned or logical—but not bowing would’ve felt wrong, and saying his thanks, after everything the mountain range had ‘given’ him, just felt right.

On that odd note, Mikael cast the range one last glance before flying away. Without using Weightless Wind-Explosive Style, covering the vast distance separating the Wandering Sword Sect from the Savagefang Mountain Range would take some time.

‘And even if I could arrive at the Sect the very next moment—it’s not like I would want to…’ he thought, glancing down at his still-unregrown left arm, ‘At least not before I’m fully healed and this arm has grown back, or else…’

The images of the girls flickered through his mind. He knew that if they saw him like this, they’d worry—and he didn’t want to make them worry uselessly.

‘Especially Kiara,’ he muttered inwardly, the image of the blue-haired yandere flashing behind his eyes. A small chill ran down his spine as he imagined her reaction, one that would undoubtedly be extremely ‘tame’ if she saw him in his current state…

“Yes, let’s not do that. Let’s just find a quiet spot to heal properly, one time for good, before doing anything else,” he muttered, nodding to himself, convinced that his decision was very wise.

His gaze swept across the surroundings in search of a suitable recovery spot, and after a brief moment, it locked onto a small rocky alcove nestled in a relatively hidden section of the terrain.

‘There!’

Without wasting a single instant, he quickly made his way toward it. The alcove wasn’t perfect, but it was secluded enough, and the thick natural stone surrounding it would offer at least some degree of protection.

Once inside, he let out a quiet breath and sat down, finally allowing his body to relax as he prepared to begin his recovery—this time, properly.

In the stillness of the alcove, time passed quietly. Days blurred together, one folding into the next, until eventually, two full weeks had gone by.

***

Two closed eyes slowly opened, revealing the emerald pupils hidden beneath—within them lay a calmness that seemed like nothing could affect it, as if even the destruction of the world wouldn’t make the owner of these eyes blink.

Of course, that was… only an illusion.

An illusion that shattered moments later when a “Fucking finally!” escaped Mikael’s mouth as he rose from his meditative position.

Hop hop, swish swish.

Mikael did a few small jumps in place, then threw a couple of quick shadowboxing moves at the empty air to test himself—and more importantly, his newly regrown left arm. After a short sequence, he confirmed what he already sensed. “I’m fully healed!”

Vrrrmmmm.

Sangrelia, lying on the ground just beside where he had been meditating, vibrated with joy—clearly, she shared her master's happiness at seeing him fully recovered.

A smile on his face, Mikael turned toward her, about to say something, but the moment his gaze landed on her cracked form, the words caught in his throat and his joy evaporated.

“Ahhhhh.” A desolate sigh escaped his lips as he stepped closer, lifting her into his arms. Gently, he traced a finger along the length of her obsidian-black blade, its blood-red edge now marred by a web of hairline cracks.

“I’ll have you ‘treated’ soon enough. Don’t worry—you won’t have to stay in this dreadful state much longer.”

Hmmmm.

Sangrelia in his hand softly vibrated with what he could have sworn to be joy.

With warmth in his eyes, he gave her another look. “I can’t thank you enough for the sacrifice you did, burning yourself to help me… I know it wasn’t easy for you, and without you, it’s doubtful I could’ve achieved a Partial Enlightenment. I would probably have needed to use my talismans just to survive, so… thank you.”

“...natural…” An extremely soft female voice reached his ears—the sound was so faint that for a moment, he wasn’t sure if he’d really heard it or if it was just his imagination.

“Sangrelia?” His voice, full of surprise, echoed slightly as his doubtful gaze landed on the cracked longsword in his hand. He wasn’t certain, but he voiced the doubt aloud anyway, “D... Did you just talk?”

He waited for her to vibrate like she usually did, but contrary to usual, she remained completely still, not vibrating in the slightest. A frown appeared on Mikael’s visage at this scene, “Sangrelia? Why aren’t you reacting?”

He waited—a second, then two, then three… until nearly half a minute had passed, yet still no answer came.

This situation was highly unusual and would have normally been a source of concern for someone else, but Mikael wasn’t worried because he understood what had happened.

Far from being concerned or anything of the sort, he was actually ecstatic. He was certain he hadn’t hallucinated, that he had truly heard a female voice, and with no one else present here except him and Sangrelia… it could only be her.

Which meant her sentience had progressed to the point where she could ‘talk’. As for her lack of response afterward when he called out to her, he was convinced it was due to the energy she had expended to speak—especially in her current… less than optimal state.

“Sleep well,” he murmured, and with a smooth motion, he sheathed Sangrelia’s cracked form across his back, securing her in her favorite position—one she had wordlessly confirmed through yes-and-no conversations, and who was he to deny her such a comfort?

‘Maybe she will sleep better in this way?’ he thought to himself before taking flight and leaving the small alcove he had been recuperating in for the past two weeks.

Weightless Wind-Explosive Style.

Cloudbreaking Stride.

Now that he was no longer injured, he didn’t hold back and erupted with his full speed—instantly, the terrain below became nothing more than a blur as he moved at a pace that would have been incomprehensible for a mortal. Even a Core Formation Realm cultivator in the first layers would find himself outmatched against his full speed.

In this way, it didn’t take long for Mikael to cross insane distances and quickly breach the space separating his current location from the Wandering Sword Sect.

💬Got Thoughts? I read every comment, and your words genuinely shape Mikael’s path.

———

A/N:

A lot of things happened in this chapter, there was the continuation of the difficult choice of abandoning the Thunder Vein Dew, at the same time… poor demonic beasts that were punching bag for Mikael to vent, wouldn’t have liked be them, that’s for sure.

Another thing we see is that Mikael leave the Savagefang Mountain Range after 30 chapters! Honestly he stayed here longer than I initially planned but at the same time his gain are also higher so it counterbalance in a way… at least I think so but maybe you have another opinion? I would be interested in hearing it.

At the same time we finally saw Mikael heal completely, nearly 10 chapter of him being injured, the consequence of pushing far far beyond one limit while using Ferocity Mark II in conjunction couldn’t be clearer but at least the aftereffect are finished so that’s a good news.

———

📚 Chapters ahead await on Patreon: www./SDASLUMMY

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Glad you’re walking this path with me.

— End of Chapter —