The logic was cruel: theigh her the grade of a bloodline, the more it was suppressed if it remained unactivated.

  However, Holy Blood was a treasure so rare that calling it "once-in-an-age" was an understatement. More importantly, any creature possessing Holy Blood was inevitably a being of supreme power. Why would they ever expend their own essence just to gift someone a lineage?

  This was what made the Ascending Dragon Pill so priceless.

  "Manager, here—six hundred Spirit Crystals."

  Lan Qing’er slammed down six Brave-rank monster cores and snatched the pill vial in one fluid motion. She moved with such speed it was as if she feared Kael might change his mind and take it back.

  Glancing around the shop, she noticed that this specific pill wasn't even displayed on the shelves. She surmised that his stock must be incredibly low. After all, Kael put pills that gave permanent attribute boosts on the shelves without a second thought, yet the Ascending Dragon Pill had been kept hidden behind the counter.

  "Manager, is there really only one?" Xia had been standing silently beside Qing’er until now. Only after the deal was sealed did she speak up.

  While the "Bloodline Activation" effect was useless to most ordinary people, a pill that increased all attributes with no usage restrictions was still a legendary elixir. Countless people would be willing to cough up six hundred crystals for it.

  Kael swept the six cores into his drawer and confirmed, "Only one."

  Fei Xue, having finished picking out her new armor, walked over. She had witnessed the entire exchange. She took a long, hard look at Kael and smiled faintly. "I didn't expect you to become so much stronger in just a few days, Manager."

  "You flatter me," Kael replied earnestly.

  It didn't matter how strong he became. Kael just wanted to run his shop in peace and live a comfortable, lazy life.

  "Once everyone has their gear and pills, meet at the Arena next door," Lan Ye said, arriving at the counter in a fresh set of armor.

  Kael looked at her with a hint of surprise. With the city under siege, they still have time for the Combat Arena?

  He didn't say it out loud, but Lan Ye seemed to catch his expression. She was surprised that the usually indifferent manager could show such a human emotion as "bewilderment." She explained simply, "The City Guard can handle the common monsters."

  Fair enough. Compared to the army, the Lan Ye Squad was clearly "High-Tier" combat power. They were the scalpel, not the shield.

  Kael remained silent, waiting for Lan Ye to settle the bill. He was thinking that since he’d pulled another all-nighter, he’d go catch some sleep as soon as they moved to the training room.

  "Whoa! You guys are here too? I take it you got caught in the tide last night as well?" Before Kael could finish his thought, a hearty laugh boomed from outside.

  Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  Before the echo died down, Tiger-Hunt stomped into the shop. His once-regal Refined Chainmail was now a tattered mess of links, stained with dried blood. He looked like he’d been dragged through a battlefield backward, but he didn't seem to mind.

  "Were you in the forest last night too?" Lan Ye glanced at him from the counter.

  "I had to try and grab some extra monster cores before the tide really hit," Tiger-Hunt grinned, wiping a smudge of dried gore from his face. "After all, the boss’s goods don't come cheap."

  Healing Pills could close wounds, but they didn't wash away blood. Lan Ye and her girls looked relatively clean only because they had likely freshened up before coming in.

  Kael listened to their banter but kept his mouth shut. He knew that if he chimed in, they’d probably team up to ask for a discount.

  "It paid off, though. I managed to take down a Class-rank monster. Finally... I can replace this sword," Tiger-Hunt said, unstrapping the Furious Greatsword from his back.

  The broad blade was covered in deep gouges, the edge was notched like a saw, and several hairline fractures were spider-webbing across the metal.

  Kael studied the damaged weapon. It came down to a matter of Durability. Every piece of equipment, no matter how good, suffered from wear and tear. The more you used it and the stronger the enemies you faced, the faster it degraded.

  Superior-grade gear was powerful, yes—leagues ahead of the local equipment in this world—but it wasn't divine. In the System’s ranking, there were still four tiers above Superior: Rare, Treasure, Epic, and Legendary. Kael hadn't even seen a "Treasure" grade item yet.

  Actually, it’s a good thing gear wears out, Kael thought privately. If these things lasted forever, I’d be out on the street within a few years.

  Of course, he’d never say that out loud. He could only imagine the looks of pure disdain these adventurers would give him.

  After a few more words with Tiger-Hunt, Lan Ye’s group paid up and headed to the training facility next door. Tiger-Hunt, meanwhile, marched straight to the shelves and grabbed the item he had been eyeing for a long time: the Dragon-Marked Greataxe.

  "Now this is presence."

  Tiger-Hunt stared at the axe as if he were looking at the love of his life. Kael watched him with a touch of wicked amusement, wondering if the man actually had a girlfriend or if he just planned to marry his weapons.

  "Throw in a new set of chainmail too, Boss. If it wasn't for this 'opportunity,' I don't know when I would have scraped together these four thousand crystals," Tiger-Hunt said, dumping a pile of cores onto the counter.

  Kael’s eyes swept over the pile. He didn't even need to count them one by one. Four thousand two hundred Spirit Crystals. Correct. There were Class-rank cores and Brave-rank cores mixed in. It was impressive to think how many monsters Tiger-Hunt must have slaughtered in the past few days.

  "Still, the price is brutal. I’ll leave you to it, Boss," Tiger-Hunt said, slinging the Greataxe over his back and carrying the broken sword as he walked out. He likely had enough pills left over and didn't feel the need to restock. From his hurried pace, he clearly couldn't wait to test his new toy.

  With these guys joining the fray, the City Guard should have a slightly easier time, Kael mused. Seeing that the morning rush was over, he retreated to the inner room to catch some z's, leaving Shier to mind the shop.

  Outside the Cloud Mist City Walls.

  At the City Guard camp, the bonfires had been extinguished. After a quick breakfast, the tents were packed away, and rows of soldiers stood in silent, disciplined ranks. In the face of a great battle, there was no time for rest.

  Just as Qin Ming had predicted, it didn't take long for the roars to start echoing from the forest.

  The shrieks of magical beasts were world-shaking. Accompanied by the thunderous rhythm of thousands of paws and a rising curtain of dust, a flood of monsters erupted from the tree line, charging toward the soldiers.

  Wolves, tigers, eagles, serpents—monsters of every shape and size were mashed together in a massive, chaotic wave.

  "The number of beasts has tripled... what's going on?" Qin Ming stood atop the wall, his brow furrowed as he watched the overwhelming tide approach.