--


    Aside from increasing his mastery over the Cosmic Furnace Spell, Cedric also honed hisbat capabilities, especially his sword arts.


    Cultivation base was one thing; fighting prowess is another, yet they can''t be without the other. They''re two sides of the same coin and are equally as important to anybody.


    Cedric has long mastered the fundamentals of the sword. He''d even go as far as to say that he''s one of the very few people who truly understood how to wield a sword.


    Even though he was mostly working on other things, he has never neglected his sword. He was constantly polishing his edge whenever he could. And even though he already knew the fundamentals of the sword by heart and soul at this point, he still makes an effort to perform each move with deliberate intent, not just breezing through it like others.


    Where most would find it repetitive and boring, Cedric persisted and saw it ''til the end. He didn''t care; even though it was mundane and simple, he never cared about those shy stuff or achieving some explosive results with each swing.@@novelbin@@


    Instead, he put his heart into each swing of his sword. Cedric had many thought chambers that usually created a nasty noise pollution in his mind, helpful in analyzing things and making decisions, but when he held a sword, all of them were silenced, focused into a single point, which was his sword.


    His dedication allowed him toprehend deeper insights about the Sword Law. And amongst many conceptws he had been studying, Sword Law was one of the very few he had taken to an entirely different level.


    And it is because of this dedication that the results other Sword Masters were chasing after their entire livese to him seemingly naturally.


    Cedric''s sword was sharp. It can sh through the fabric of reality itself if he wanted it to. He could use it to cut through all lies and facies; he could sever malice at its roots, cut through enmity, and even conceptual materials altogether.


    If people were to learn of his actual skills, they''d probably be shocked and surprised. Cedric himself didn''t know just how much of a big deal it is, so he''d probably be surprised to know that, through his sword skills alone, he could contend with any Holy Son or Holy Maiden of any race and still have the capital to win. And yes, that includes people from ''The Six.''.


    But Cedric never yearned for that level ofpetition. True to his human nature, he''s just following the natural progression of his skills because it is in his nature to seek progress.


    Don''t be mistaken; Cedric had no qualms about striking anybody who''s intent on crossing him, especially his bottom line. But he''s not one to start conflict for no apparent reason.


    Cedric has never been a war freak. But he''s not afraid of it either.


    Moving on...


    Cedric promised himself that he would start creating his own Sword Art at some point in his life. He never set a time limit for himself because he knows that he still has a long way to go before hepletely understands the Sword Law. It would take even longer for him to integrate everything he learned and turn it into a skill or a Sword Art.


    But due to his diligence, he managed to build a frame of what his sword art would look like.


    And just as he preferred, the outline for Cedric''s Sword Art was simple too. Sure, it ''can'' beplicated, but the gist was really that simple.


    He decided to call it the ''All Severing Sword Art,'' and he intends to honor the name.


    This sword art was meant to sever all. And if one strike wasn''t enough, then two it is.


    That''s it. That''s how simple it was. This sword art contains only a single move, and that is a sword sh. It doesn''t matter whether it''s a horizontal sh, vertical, or even diagonal. Hell, it doesn''t actually have to be a sh. It could be a stab, a parry, or even a pommel strike. Your next read is at empire


    What makes itplicated is within the ''All Severing'' intent that Cedric wants the Sword Art to have. Since he ns to honor the name he had given it, then he must have the necessary skill to back it up.


    The ''All Severing Sword Art'' must never know retreat because there shouldn''t be anything it encounters that it couldn''t sever.


    Whether it''s a powerful and nigh-undying physique or durability, an overwhelming tsunami of berserk energy, an ever-so-mysterious soul or spirit, or even the very building blocks that made up reality itself...the All Severing Sword Art must triumph and be capable of cutting them all down, preferably in a single sh, but it could also be two or more...the amount of shes doesn''t matter so long as Cedric''s intentions follow through in the end.


    Sure, this sounds incredibly audacious, pretentious, ambitious, etc. But like what was mentioned earlier, the basis of the sword art was simple.


    ''A sword to sever all.''


    Whether Cedric seeds in this or not wasn''t a big deal to him. What''s valuable to Cedric is that he has a goal, and he''s enjoying the journey so far. Besides, Cedric could already cut through Concept Laws with his sword, so it''s not like his progress was bad. It''s just taking time...time that he had in spades, so he wasn''t in a hurry.


    **


    Dawnbringer, report to the office when you receive this message. We have urgent matters to discuss.


    Cedric blinked, shaking his drowsiness away to read the message again. He just woke up from a good nap after a satisfying training session, and the first thing he saw was this message.


    Shaking his head, he purged any bad smell and dirt that he had worked on and changed into his uniform. Since the message said that it was urgent, he doesn''t have time to take a bath.


    The message came from Chief ckwood, who wasn''t a usual presence in his inbox, but it''s precisely because of this that it bes a priority.


    It''s a good thing that his new home was close to the building where the team operates. In just ten minutes, he arrived inside the building and was already riding the elevator to the top secret floor where the ''Test Subject'' was kept.


    The guards nodded to him and allowed him to pass without any need for inspection. It seems that they''ve been informed early on, making things easier for him.


    Cedric passed by the sterilization chambers. After that, he wore his Void Suit and ab coat from the lockers before entering the research area.


    ''Over here...'' Chief ckwood''s voice echoed in his mind through telepathy.


    He discovered where the signal came from and started making his way there. Before he even arrived, he already saw the chief, and there was a group of people huddled around him; some were people he knew, and most wereplete strangers to him.


    As he approached, he could sense their gazes turning to him one by one. Some even tried to see him past the cover of his suit, which was just rude, especially since it was done without his permission. Those people were taught a lesson by the security measure built into his suit.


    They were struck just strong enough to experience a short migraine. That should remind them to pay attention to their manners. If they dare to do it again, the security measure would respond even more harshly since it has already registered their brainwaves and life signatures.


    OooouuUuuuuU!!!


    Cedric paused in his steps, dumbstruck; he found himself slowly turning to the ck water tank where the Squaler was kept. He saw and heard it thrashing inside, looking as if it was in agonizing pain as it writhed all over the ce.


    Cedric wore a strange expression beneath his visor as he listened to it...


    "That''s why we called you." Chief ckwood, apanied by his apprentice, Willow, and their other colleagues and the strangers, told him once they were close enough.


    "It hasn''t made much noise since you scared it off. It started tame; yesterday, it was whining every now and then. We initially thought that it was bouncing back and beginning to swim around listlessly like before. But... as you can see..."


    OouuuuUuuuoooo!!


    "Yeah, it''s been like that since this morning, and it hasn''t stopped." Chief ckwood sounded exhausted. "We know it''s in pain and that it wants something to happen. But honestly, even I aming up with nks. Its words are all over the ce."


    ckwood observed Cedric''s bodynguage for a bit. And just from that, he could tell that this kid already knows what''s happening.


    "Care to tell us what it''s saying? Maybe that''ll help us with our next course of action."


    OOOOuuuuOooooooUuu!


    Cedric took a deep breath and focused.


    "It wants to get out of this ce."


    OoouuuUuooo!


    "Its home, the Abyssal Death Valley, was calling for it."


    Raaagghhh!!


    "It''s home needs their king. Because only the king could go on a pilgrimage to pay respects to the queen."


    "..."


    "..."


    "...so? It''s horny?"