Nick Crane carefully examined the changes within his core and discovered that his inner force capacity had doubled compared to before. His consumption of inner force during combat was now enormous. If his core's internal reservoir couldn't keep pace, serious problems could arise. Seeing these physical improvements, he breathed a sigh of relief. As long as there was progress, that was what mattered.He rubbed his fingertips together lightly. A small cluster of lightning sparks flickered to life in his palm, the electricity causing him no harm whatsoever. At his current level, this was the extent to which he could manifest the lightning sparks. To break through further and achieve the massive sphere of lightning that had surrounded Damon Ashford that day, he would probably need to reach the Warlord Ascendant tier.With that thought, he felt at peace. When it came to Martial Warrior cultivation, there was absolutely no room for carelessness regarding one's foundation. Damon A

Nick Crane pulled his car to a stop in front of the inn. The building had been converted from a stilt-house, though it still retained its original form. The area around the foot of Thundercrest was utterly silent, wrapped in a stillness that felt unnatural. Stranger still, the mountain forest held no trace of insect chirping, not even the faintest buzz or hum. Nick glanced around, scanning the shadows between the trees and the dark outline of the inn. Once he was satisfied there was no immediate danger, he stepped toward the entrance.The moment he pushed the door open, the aging floorboards groaned beneath his weight, each creak echoing through the dim interior. Every head in the room turned toward him. The gazes that met him carried a mixture of surprise and something sharper, something hostile.Seated near the far wall was an ashen-faced old man, his hair streaked with gray like frost clinging to dead branches. His entire face looked withered, sunken, and his eyes held

Nick Crane's words sent the Miresong folk who'd seized the girl into a fury."Today you'll learn what happens when you stick your nose where it doesn't belong!""Get him!"The men snatched up whatever they had at hand and swung at Nick. The middle-aged proprietor of the stilt-house inn shrieked in panic."If you're going to fight, take it outside! Don't wreck my place!"Every patron in the inn settled in to watch the show. No matter how frantically the innkeeper protested, the Miresong folk had no intention of leaving. The crowd made no move to intervene either.The Black Miresong men wore expressions of keen interest. This fool was asking for death, daring to start trouble in the Miresong Marches. By tomorrow they'd be looking at his corpse.Beside the Warlock, the corpse-child's face lit up with delight."Master, if he dies, can I eat him?"The corpse-child's question drew a contemptuous wave from the Warlock."Once he's dead, he's

The girl watched Nick Crane ignore her, and that only made her more determined."Hey, hey, hey, you're really no fun at all, you know that?"She pressed herself against the glass, craning her neck to stick her head as far inside as she could manage. The jewelry piled in her hair tumbled loose and clattered onto the seats, but she didn't even glance at it. Her expression was nothing short of gleeful, her delicate features lit by the car's interior light in a way that made her look almost disarmingly sweet.She grinned at him. "I can tell you what you want to know." Nick raised an eyebrow, mildly surprised. But he knew better than to think she was offering out of the goodness of her heart. There had to be a catch."All right. What do you want in return?"There was no such thing as a free lunch. If she named too high a price, he'd walk away without a second thought. Seeing that he understood the game, the girl pulled her head back out just as smoothly. Her voic