(Do you wish to fight a Tier 12 Beast?)

Richard suddenly received a question, and before him appeared several Tier 12 Beast manifestations.

After gaining 1500 additional Aether, he was naturally in a state ready for battle.

He nodded in response and chose a golden gorilla as his opponent.

Immediately after, he was transported by an invisible force.

This time, he appeared atop a massive tree branch, and on another branch stood a golden-furred gorilla about six meters tall, staring at him ferociously.

Although its height didn't seem excessive, its body was packed with overly massive muscles.

No one knew Richard had entered this space.

People outside were still waiting for him to appear, expecting to see if he would continue his challenge.

Since they didn't know, no one thought of displaying the golden gorilla's chamber on the screen.

Everyone assumed he was still in the training space after receiving rewards related to cultivation.

Only when the top ranking list suddenly updated did they realize.

(Rank 1, Rebecca Moonshadow, Tier 14!)

(Rank 2, Lilith Holystar, Tier 14!)

(Rank 3, Enzo Holystar, Tier 13!)

(Rank 4, William Anderson, Tier 13!)

(Rank 5, Richard, Tier 12!)

His name appeared, replacing Luca's.

Although both had defeated a Tier 12 Beast, Richard was clearly considered younger, so his rank was placed above Luca's.

"Richard, who is this?" People were confused at the sudden appearance of a name they did not recognize.

"Quick, check the Tier 12 portals," one of them said.

There were only about seven Tier 12 portals, and they were almost always empty.

Naturally, it didn't take long for Richard's presence to be discovered—standing beside the corpse of a golden gorilla, its neck severed.

"He killed a Tier 12 Beast."

That sight left everyone in awe.

Richard had no difficulty slaying the golden gorilla with the help of his Mind Attack.

When struck by the Mind Attack, the beast even struggled to leap.

Richard assaulted it with repeated waves, injuring its internal organs before severing its neck.

This battle, in fact, felt even easier for him.

Then, he was presented with another reward list, and once again he chose Aether.

This time, however, the reward was only 1100 Tier 3 Aether, lower than before, but that was because the previous total had been an accumulation from Tier 7 to 11.

He absorbed the 1100 Aether, training once more.

As a result, he drew even closer to advancing.

[Aether: 8683/10,000 <Tier 3>] +1100

[Aether Accumulation: 13,683 <Tier 3>]

Now, he only needed 1317 more Aether.

He didn't even need to rely on rewards—he could reach it simply by training on his own.

And for the moment, he decided to stop.

He had missed out on many extraordinary rewards because of his impatience, always choosing Aether rather than waiting a few days. Now, he decided to change his plan: train on his own until his Aether was nearly at maximum. A mere thousand more wouldn't take long, especially here in the capital.

After that, he could return and directly challenge Tier 15, 16, or even 17 portals.

Whether he could succeed—that was something only time would tell.

When he chose to stop, he was transported out, appearing directly beside Sister Lisa.

The stares around him—awed, astonished, incredulous—were exactly what he had anticipated, so he was not surprised in the least.

He had practically become famous, at least within the capital.

"Young man, may I know where you come from? Did you study somewhere in particular?"

Someone suddenly approached Richard—a man in his thirties, clad in a black hooded robe. He seemed to be from some special organization, though his robe bore no insignia.

Richard hadn't expected someone to immediately inquire about his background.

As he was still considering whether to answer, Sister Lisa suddenly grabbed his hand.

"Let's go," she said.

Richard was slightly surprised, but naturally followed.

"Sister, who was that man?" he asked once they reached the door.

For Sister Lisa to be wary, that man was likely not good news.

"He's from the Dark Star Legion," Sister Lisa replied.

"Dark Star Legion? What is that?" Richard had never heard of it before.

Yet this was the Holy Star Kingdom—just the thought of a legion naming itself with the words Dark Star sounded almost deviant.

"As you know, this royal family once had two Great Ancestors. The first was the founder, and the second was someone who also competed for the World Magic Aether, though he failed. The Dark Star Legion was founded by the Second Great Ancestor," Sister Lisa explained.

"Then what's wrong with them?" Richard was somewhat confused.

"They're an official force, so of course we can't say they're problematic. But they are known for being extremely harsh in their training. And they're connected to the Order of the Crimson Veil, because the Second Great Ancestor himself joined that Order."

"Order of the Crimson Veil." Richard narrowed his eyes at those words.

He had heard of it before when Olivia taught him about the world.

It was a Magus organization not far from the Holy Star Kingdom, with a long and ancient history—older even than the Dragon Knights, certainly older than the kingdom itself.

It was said they ruled over a region—small, yet extraordinary—where everything there possessed magical power of its own.

One could say they were among the strongest factions in the Land of Human.

Most strikingly, in history, three people from the Order of the Crimson Veil had succeeded in obtaining the World Magic Aether, leaving them with immeasurable inheritances.

"They surely want to recruit you, considering your talent, but you should refuse. I heard from Lilith that they usually train their young members by forcing them to fight each other to the death," Sister Lisa added.

"That's so terrifying." Richard hadn't expected it to be like that.

After leaving the Monster World, they immediately headed to another district.

Richard suggested to Sister Lisa that they rent a luxurious inn that only accepted payment in Nature Spirits.

He had too many Nature Spirits, and of course, he didn't want to stay in an ordinary place.

Even when Sister Lisa tried to find a cheaper option among such inns, Richard chose one where a single room cost 200 Nature Spirits per night.

Naturally, the facilities matched the price. Its security was to the point that there was no need to worry about attacks or intruders. Each room even had formations that aided in cultivation.

Since Richard wanted to train seriously, he naturally needed such a room.

Upon entering the chamber, its luxury amazed him, and the bed was so soft that he ultimately chose to sleep first.

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