Chapter 220: Too Many Shortcuts

And results took time, especially at scale.

“I can handle other things for now.”

He turned and walked out of the room. The moment the door closed behind him, the quiet space he left behind didn’t stay quiet for long.

On the screen…

0 purchases.

Then, a single number appeared and a second later, it changed again to 3 before the count began to climb.

Within moments of Adam leaving the room, the forum reacted. Sixty-three techniques, all released at once, all marked under a single anonymous creator. That alone was enough to disrupt the normal flow of the marketplace.

It didn’t make sense.

Even if they were only Profound Grade, the volume was abnormal. Masters weren’t supposed to produce techniques in bulk like that. There was a known limit, every martial artist understood.

Ten.

That was the requirement before reaching Lord rank, but sixty-three? That wasn’t pushing limits, that was breaking them entirely.

And in the martial era, anything that broke the norm meant one of two things.

A trap.

Or an opportunity.

The D and E rank martial artists didn’t hesitate long. For them, the risk was worth it.

They chose to act.

The moment the listings stabilized, the forum exploded.

Threads began appearing one after another, discussions stacking faster than moderators could process them. The name attached to all sixty-three techniques—Reaper—spread across the interface like wildfire.

“Hey, an anonymous Master just released 63 manuals!”

“That’s impossible. No Master can create that many. Stop lying if you’re trying to trend.”

Instead of slowing down, the argument intensified.

“Then go search for Reaper yourself!”

“Stop spreading nonsense and get a life.”

“If you don’t believe it, fine—but don’t make the forum worse with your ignorance.”

The replies came in waves, each one sharper than the last.

What started as disbelief turned into conflict. What started as conflict turned into attention. And attention, especially chaotic attention, had a way of pulling more people in.

Reaper’s name rose rapidly through the rankings, pushed not just by curiosity, but by sheer volume. Every argument became exposure. Every insult became advertisement.

And behind it all, the numbers kept climbing.

The discussions didn’t slow. If anything, they grew more intense as people started thinking past the surface. Sixty-three techniques wasn’t just shocking, it was logically impossible under everything they understood about progression.

Masters had limits.

Everyone knew that.

Once a Master created their tenth technique, they would naturally break through into the Lord rank. It wasn’t optional. It was a threshold built into the system itself. That was why no one ever exceeded it.

So sixty-three?

That number didn’t just break rules, it shattered them.

“That means… six Lord breakthroughs?”

“No, that’s impossible. No one can suppress progression like that.”

“If it’s not one person, then it has to be multiple Masters working together.”

That theory spread quickly.

It made sense on the surface. Different Masters pooling their techniques under a single name. That explained the volume without breaking the rules people trusted.

But then another idea appeared.

“What if the techniques are connected?”

That single question shifted everything.

All sixty-three techniques were tied to four affinities, fire, earth, wind, and lightning. It wasn’t random. It looked structured. Intentional. Like pieces of something larger.

“Maybe if you learn all of them… something unlocks.”

“A hidden effect?”

“A combined technique?”

Now the excitement changed direction.

For those who possessed those affinities, the appeal skyrocketed. Fire users, earth users, wind users, lightning users, they all saw the same opportunity. Not just individual techniques, but a potential hidden path.

Something more.

That was enough.

Martial artists began moving immediately. Some rushed out to gather existence, preparing to learn everything they had purchased. Others didn’t wait, using whatever reserves they already had to start immediately.

The gamble had begun.

And in the middle of it all, Adam stopped walking.

He had just stepped into the manor corridor when the notification appeared, freezing him mid-step. His eyes dropped instantly, locking onto the panel as the number settled in place.

[Enlightenment: 55,000]

Adam blinked once, then exhaled slowly.

“That was fast…”

Adam’s gaze lingered on the panel, watching the Enlightenment total settle. Fifty-five thousand already. That wasn’t a small gain. In fact, it was close to what he had just invested not long ago.

The return rate was fast.

For a brief moment, Adam considered the implication. That amount alone was enough to support the creation of multiple techniques. More than that, it already crossed the threshold most Masters needed to trigger progression.

A breakthrough should have followed.

But nothing happened.

Adam stood still, waiting for the familiar shift, the internal change that marked advancement. Seconds passed. Then more. The silence stretched, and the absence became clear.

No breakthrough.

A faint breath left him as the realization settled.

“Guess I can’t bypass everything…”

There was no frustration in his voice, just acceptance. He had forced too many shortcuts already. Doubling Enlightenment. Simulating affinities. Producing techniques far beyond normal limits.

Of course there would be a restriction somewhere.

Adam’s eyes narrowed slightly as he thought it through. He had already exceeded the standard condition. Creating ten techniques should have been enough to push him forward, yet he had gone far beyond that.

And still, nothing.

“It’s not that simple,” he muttered.

His wind affinity alone had produced more than enough techniques. Nineteen, if he counted properly. If affinity alignment was the key, he should have broken through already. But that wasn’t the trigger.

Something else was required.

Something he hadn’t fulfilled yet.

Adam dragged a hand across his face, exhaling slowly as he let the thought go for now. There was no immediate answer, and forcing it would only waste time. Like everything else, it was another rule to understand later.

“I’ll figure it out.”

His focus shifted instantly.

There were still priorities waiting. Enlightenment was flowing for now. And more importantly, he still needed existence to expand, and push further.

Adam’s eyes sharpened slightly as a new target settled in his mind.

“For now… I need to get Judgement.”

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