I gave my mother a sardonic look.

“Very well, Mother.” I said. “If that is your wish, I won’t stop you.”

My mother scowled at me.

“How cold of you. Is that all you have to say?”

I grinned at her.

“Apologies, Mother. I was just joking. You and Father are always welcome to visit.”

My mother pointed a finger at me.

“Just make sure you come and visit us from time to time. Don’t hole yourself up in the Northern Annex and spend all of your time training. There is more to life than martial arts. Make sure you get out and live a little.”

I nodded.

“I know.” I sighed. “However, if I want to form my mana core as soon as possible, I can’t slack off in my training.” I scowled. “I hate feeling this weak.”

My mother grinned.

“Well then,” she said, “It’s a good thing I came over. I have a gift for you.”

She pulled an ornate wooden box out of her storage ring and held it out to me. I walked over and took the box. When I opened it, I found a dozen glass vials inside. Each vial contained a golden liquid, which faintly glowed. My eyes widened when I realized what they were.

“Are these Training Elixirs?” I asked, looking up at my mother.

She wore a smug smile on her face.

“Indeed they are!”

I looked back down at the Training Elixirs. As their name implied, they amplified the benefits a martial artist gained from training. In other words, getting twice (or more) the result with the same amount of effort. This made them invaluable for martial artists.

However, they required rare ingredients and were difficult to create, making them scarce and expensive. Most martial artists couldn’t afford even the lowest quality Training Elixir. On Earth, decent quality Training Elixirs cost the same as a house.

I pulled out one of the Training Elixirs and examined it.

“These are even better than the ones I received from my teacher on Earth.”

A displeased expression flashed across my mother’s face. I noticed it from the corner of my eye. However, when I looked at her, no traces of it remained. Maybe I was just seeing things. For some reason, Caitlyn looked amused.

“Well,” my mother said, “As my son, you won’t have to worry about resources. I may be an outcast in murim, but I still have connections. Acquiring a few piddling Training Elixirs is no trouble for me.”

I didn’t believe that for a second. Acquiring this many Training Elixirs, even if they were low quality ones, would have been difficult. There was also the cost to consider. This box of Training Elixirs must have cost a small-No, it must have cost a fortune. However, I refrained from calling my mother out. Instead, I gave her a grateful smile.

“Thank you, Mother. I appreciate it. Truly.”

My mother wore a proud expression on her face. I looked back down at the Training Elixirs and made some quick calculations.

“With these,” I said, “It should only take me a month to form my mana core instead of a year.”

Both my mother and Caitlyn stared at me with wide eyes.

“A month?!” My mother cried out. “Even with those Training Elixirs, it should take you at least three or four months to form your mana core.” She put a hand on my shoulder and regarded me with a serious look on her face. “Gabriel, you don’t have to rush. There’s no hurry to form your mana core. Take your time.”

I gave her a reassuring smile.

“Trust me,” I said, “A month is plenty of time. If I rushed things, it would only take me three-No, two weeks. However, I don’t want to make any mistakes, so a month it is.” I snorted. “Remember, I’m not a novice. I’ve been through all this before.”

My mother looked worried, while Caitlyn raised an eyebrow at me.

“Out of curiosity,” the latter said, “How many stars did your mana core have in your previous life, Lord Gabriel? And what level of mastery did you achieve?”

“I had a Sixth Star Core and reached S-rank level of mastery.” I said. “In murim terms, it’s equivalent to Supreme.”

The rank of a martial artist’s mana core determined their general power level. However, this had no bearing on their mastery of martial arts. Someone with a high rank mana core but low mastery was like a paper tiger. While they seemed powerful on the surface, an opponent with a lower ranked mana core but higher mastery in martial arts could easily defeat them.

Hunters used letters to measure the levels of mastery. Starting from the lowest and going to the highest, they were: E-rank, D-Rank, C-rank, B-rank, A-rank, S-rank, and EX-rank. Marital artists from First Murim, like Teacher, used different terms. They were: Third-rate, Second-rate, First-rate, Master, Grandmaster, Supreme, and Transcendent.

“Supreme?” My mother asked. “That’s amazing!” She chuckled. “And at such a young age too! My son is a genius. I’m a little envious, actually. I’m only at Grandmaster.”

Caitlyn gave me a skeptical look.

“Forgive me for saying this, Lord Gabriel, but I find it difficult to believe that you reached Supreme. I don’t know what it was like on your previous world, but standards here on Lumina are much stricter.”

My mother gave Caitlyn a warning look, which the latter ignored.

“Would you like me to prove it?” I asked, grinning at her. “I can’t use any techniques without a mana core, but I can still demonstrate the fighting styles I know. Rather, I can go through the motions.”

“You don’t have to, Gabriel,” my mother said, “Caitlyn is just being a sourpuss.”

Caitlyn rolled her eyes.

“And you’re being indulgent. One of us needs to be skeptical.”

I nodded.

“I understand. In your shoes, I would feel the same way.”

With that, I set aside the box of Training Elixirs, before walking over to the weapons rack and picking up a wooden single-handed sword. While I was okay with other weapons, I was best with the sword. Afterwards, I walked over to an empty area and took a stance. My mother and Caitlyn followed me. Leroy stopped his own training and joined them.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to center myself. My body still ached from my training earlier, but I had enough energy for this. As long as I didn’t push myself too hard, I would be fine.

After I centered myself, I started moving. Teacher taught me the Mist Sword style. Its practitioners sought to become as elusive and illusory as mist. They were difficult to perceive, let alone attack. Their movements were bizarre and unpredictable. Despite this, the style didn’t lack offensive power. In particular, it excelled at sneak attacks.

In addition, its practitioners could create blades and even clones out of mist. At the lower levels, these were best used for distraction and evasion. However, at the higher levels, both could be used to attack.

I went through the forms of the Mist Sword style. Thanks to my mastery of it, my movements were perfect, even though I lacked a mana core. Slow, graceful, and ethereal. However, going through the forms strained my body. Despite the training I put myself through over the past few days, I was still in poor shape.

When I finished with the last form, I kept going instead of stopping. However, I switched to a different style. The Mist Sword style was powerful, but it didn’t make use of my affinity for Lightning. To make up for this, I created my own variation, which I called the Storm Cloud style. I mean, when it came down to it, there wasn’t much difference between clouds and mist.

The Storm Cloud style was fiercer than the Mist Sword style. Its attacks were quick and aggressive, like lightning. I even created a series of techniques inspired by my heritage as a storm dragon’s descendant.

Going through the forms of the Storm Cloud style strained my body even further, and there were a few times where I almost faltered. However, I gritted my teeth and pushed through. By the time I finished, I ached all over. Sweat coated my entire body, and a wave of exhaustion washed over me. I took a moment to catch my breath.

Afterwards, I opened my eyes and looked over at the others. They stared at me with shocked expressions on their faces.

“How was that?” I asked, grinning. “Do you believe me now?”

Caitlyn nodded, as if in a daze.

“I need… I need to go and meditate, before I lose this insight.”

“I need to go as well.” My mother said.

Together, the two of them turned and left the Northern Annex. Leroy watched them go, disbelief written all over his face. I wore an amused smile.

“Did… Did they gain enlightenment from your demonstration?” Leroy asked.

“It appears so.” I said.

Leroy sighed.

“How fortuitous for them.” He said, the envy in his voice clear.

I chuckled.

“Don’t worry,” I said, “I’m not going anywhere. You’ll have plenty of chances to see me in action later on.”

Leroy nodded, his eyes filled with determination, before he resumed his training. I took another break, before I followed his example. My nerves thrummed with excitement the entire time.

One month. That’s how long I needed to wait. In one month’s time, I would be able to form my mana core and put the next stage of my plan into action. As my mother said, I couldn’t hole up in the Northern Annex and spend all of my time training. I needed to go out and live a little. In that case, why not go on a little adventure?