Chapter 121: Extreme Situation (1)

The training ground was so vast that the word “personal” no longer seemed to fit its name. I stood alone in the middle of it, one hand resting lightly over my chest. A speck of condensed mana, smaller than a grain of millet, formed inside my veins. Riding along my bloodstream, the Mana Bullet reached my heart, where it promptly detonated.

The sound of my heart being crushed rang. A dull, bludgeoning sensation tore through my chest, spreading waves of pain across my body. My vision flickered black, my strength drained away, but that only lasted for a moment. The soul stigmata carved into me flared with light. My shattered heart knit itself back together, restored as if nothing had happened.

Ash spilled from my breath. “Haa!”

I murmured, “Ignite.”

Pale flames rose to engulf my body. Ash-gray smoke burst out through my pores, cloaking the air around me. Ignition was a technique that roused the Primordial Flame through my death, granting me a temporary surge of immense power.

Exhaling ash-laced breath, I gripped my sword. “Haa!”

Ashen flame danced along the blade. Barely seconds had passed since I triggered Ignition, yet I could already feel the mana inside the soul stigmata draining at a frightening pace. With a harsh swing, I cleaved the empty air. I unleashed the Ashen Flame Style First Form: Ash Severance. The sword, wreathed in ashen flames, ripped through the void, and the shockwave alone shook the entire training ground.

“Next…”

I extended my sword downward and conjured projectiles in midair. It was not bullets this time, but blades of pure mana. Ashfire surged around them. I conjured the Ashen Flame Style Second Form: Flame Fang next. The conjured blades of mana, cloaked in fire, slashed violently through the air. With a flick of my fingers, the floating blades dissolved into nothing.

Now, it was time for the last one. I had learned this skill only recently, and it was still unrefined, still unstable.

Ashen Flame Style Third Form: Flame Lance.

The flames along my sword gathered at its tip. The burning ember absorbed the drifting ash around it, swelling in size, hungering, blazing wildly as if to devour everything nearby. Just as the concentrated blaze was about to be unleashed, however, a large beep resounded. The hall flashed crimson as alarms blared.

[Warning.]

[Distortion detected in the shock absorption barrier.]

Tch. I didn’t even fire it yet

, I thought.

I scowled and scattered the flame at my sword’s tip. With a long exhale, I then slid the blade back into its sheath.

Checking my soul stigmata, I found my mana nearly depleted. This technique was definitely a mana hog. Ash Severance and Flame Fang were already mana-costly techniques, but Flame Lance consumed mana far beyond both of them.

I could hear the sound of my burning flesh. Despite my mana being drained moments ago, it was already replenishing rapidly. At least in the Ignition state, the mana would keep recovering. But outside of it, the mana was impossible to sustain.

I frowned as I looked down at my body, which was wrapped in faint flames. It was not enough. My mind replayed the memory from days ago when I came face to face with the Archbishop of Madness. Just looking at him had crushed the air from my lungs. I hadn’t actually fought him, but I knew, even with Ignition, I wouldn’t stand a chance.

“If I want to fight that brat…”

Closing my eyes, I reached further back in memory to the Sealing Festival, to the battle against Astaroth, the Archbishop of Dreams and Fantasies.

“Do you even know the meaning of limits? Huh? How the hell is any of this supposed to make sense?”

At that time, flames had raged, coiling around my body. My mana had poured endlessly without limit. For once, I had been freed from the shackles of mana itself. Every technique I had ever conceived erupted into existence, and with a mere gesture, the battlefield became an inferno.

Yes, I’ll need to be in the Incarnation state, I thought.

The memory of the Primordial Flame consuming my entire being, generating infinite mana, sent a shiver of exhilaration down my spine. With that power under my control, even the Archbishop of Madness would crumble underfoot.

I let out a sigh, brows furrowed. “The problem is… I have no idea how to trigger it again.”

I had tried countless methods to recreate the Incarnation state, but none had worked. Just dying over and over wasn’t enough. Clearly, the Primordial Flame reacted to my death. But even when I blew apart my heart again and again, it never engulfed me the way it had before.

I narrowed my eyes, retracing that battle in my mind. “There must be another condition beyond death.”

Only one hypothesis made sense. “It was an extreme situation.”

A heart-pounding tension on the verge of bursting, a suffocating desperation that tightened like a noose, a crushing hostility, a pain so raw it felt like every cell of my body was being ground to dust—those emotions couldn’t be replicated just by dying alone in a quiet room. Just as massaging one’s own shoulders felt entirely different from when someone else did it, the experience of death changed depending on who the dying subject was.

“In other words, to recreate that situation, I need to experience a proper death again.”

The problem was that lately, I had become so strong that there were barely any opportunities to die. Of course, if I really wanted to, I could ask someone else to kill me, but that was no different from simply taking my life with my own hands.

“Haa!”

It meant I would have to throw myself into an extreme situation, like carrying oil on my back and leaping into a blazing fire. But that was easier said than done. If extreme situations were so easy to create, they wouldn’t be called extreme.

Moreover, what counted as extreme varied from person to person. For one, bumping into a stray dog on the street might feel like a life-or-death crisis. For another, a bug bite could be terrifying enough. And for someone else, it could be when their mother suddenly barged into the room in the middle of the night while they were comforting themselves. Well, I’d call that extreme too.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have a mother who would suddenly fling open my door at night. With an immortal body, it was hard to truly feel that something was an extreme crisis unless it was a situation far beyond the ordinary.

Frowning, I sifted through my past life’s memories. “There is a way, though.”

There was a method to push myself into a true life-or-death state, even with my current strength, but it was risky. It was a risky gamble. Still, it was not like I had another choice.

Letting out a heavy sigh, I stepped out of the training ground. Just like gambling required chips, my plan needed something to make it possible.

***

I visited Professor Kane’s office. He looked utterly drained, as though he hadn’t slept at all from grading the final evaluations. I explained to him my reason for coming here.

His expression twisted in irritation, and he said, “You want a leave permit? Don’t you know cadets aren’t allowed outside during finals?”

“That’s why I came to ask if you could make an exception.”

During the exam period, cadets could leave academy grounds only with their supervising professor’s permission.

“Also, our party’s evaluation is already finished under Professor Baldwin, isn’t it?” I continued.

Professor Kane shook his head firmly. “Rules are rules. I can’t give you a pass during the finals.”

“What if it’s something Professor Bianca would appreciate?”

“Not happening.”

Clicking my tongue, I sighed at his stubbornness. Sure, I could sneak out since there were no more classes. But if I get caught, that would be a straight path to disciplinary action. I had just secured first place in the finals, so I wasn’t about to ruin it all by getting punished.

Maybe I should just wait until later, I thought.

After all, even if I went there, there was no guarantee I would find the clue I was looking for to reach the Incarnation state. Forcing my way out didn’t seem worth it.

At that moment, the office door opened, and a tall woman in a sleek black suit stepped inside. “Well, now, that sounds like an interesting conversation.”

It was Professor Baldwin. The way her eyes glinted as she strode toward made it seem like she had overheard our exchange.

Professor Kane frowned at her. “What brings you here, Professor Baldwin?”

She chuckled and tapped the mountain of graded papers piled on his desk. “My work is finished, so I thought I would lend a hand to my poor junior here who’s been buried in papers all night.”

“Oh! In that case, please help me with Class B’s—”

“I changed my mind.”

Professor Kane blinked in confusion. “What?”

Professor Baldwin glanced at me, her smile deepening. “From what I heard outside, Dale was asking for a leave permit.”

“Ah! Yes. But according to the rules, cadets can’t leave campus during finals.”

Professor Baldwin stroked her chin, lips curling mischievously. “Hmm! Is that so? Funny… That’s odd, though. Because I distinctly recall a certain cadet sneaking out during finals to buy a gift for a female cadet he fancied.”

Professor Kane stiffened like a statue.

“Now, what was that cadet’s name again?” Professor Baldwin muttered.

Professor Kane slammed his desk and shot to his feet, flustered. “P-Professor!”

Professor Baldwin only smirked at him. “You’ll give him the permit, won’t you?”

Grinding his teeth, Professor Kane opened his drawer, scribbled on a piece of paper, and tossed it to me.

“As expected, Lucas is such a good junior, always listening to his seniors.” Professor Baldwin smiled in satisfaction before turning her eyes on me. “That settles it right, Dale?”

Still dazed from her unexpected intervention, I accepted the leave permit. “Thank you!”

Now I could carry out my plan in peace. Or so I thought, but Professor Baldwin had her own ideas. “But, if we give special treatment to only you, it could cause a stir among the other cadets.”

Arms crossed, she tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Hmm! I have a better idea.”

“A better idea?” I asked, worried about what she would say next.

Her smile brightened, carrying a strangely excited edge. “If you leave under the pretense of accompanying me on an official task, then no one can complain, can they? So then, Dale.”

Professor Baldwin reached forward, tugging lightly on my tie. Her tongue brushed over her lips, as if savoring the thought. “Why don’t you go with me?”

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