The next morning…
Wei and Hao woke up early to practice sword training.
But today's practice felt a little different.
"Focus your mana into your sword. And give it power."
Their Master's voice echoed in their minds.
Both of them followed his instruction without wasting a second.
CRACK—!
The moment Wei infused her mana into the blade, the sword shattered into pieces.
Hao and the Master both stared at her for a moment.
"I told you… control it!" Hao said as he walked up to her.
"Ah…" Wei took a deep breath.
"This sword is really weak…" Wei said with a gloomy expression.
"The sword isn't weak… you have become stronger." Hao said with a small laugh.
"Come on, pick another sword. If you can strike me without breaking the sword, I'll give you a reward." Hao smiled.
Wei looked up at him.
"What reward?" Her eyes sparkled.
"I'll take you to the store… and also show you the guild." Hao replied.
"Deal." Wei said.
She picked up another sword from nearby. The Master was watching quietly.
"Wei… just use one percent of your mana." Hao reminded her.
Wei tried exactly that—
and the sword shattered again.
Hao laughed.
Wei's expression turned serious now.
This was no longer just practice. She had to land a strike on Hao.
Wei lowered her mana output to almost nothing.
This time, she succeeded.
A faint glow formed around her blade—though much weaker than Hao's.
Hao blocked her strike easily,
but Wei had managed to attack without breaking the sword.
"I won. Now keep your promise." Wei said.
"Master, we'll stop here for today." Hao said.
The Master nodded.
---
After leaving the palace, they walked straight to a pendant store.
As soon as they entered, Wei noticed that all the pendants looked almost the same—each with a glowing blue crystal inside.
"Hao… these all look the same?" Wei asked.
"Yes. Their function is the same, so they are made identical. Do you want one?" Hao answered.
"Yes." Wei nodded, and Hao bought one for her.
"Thank you, miss." Hao said to the clerk before leaving.
"Is the potion store also like this?" Wei asked.
"Yes. They have bottles of green potions. Do you want one?" Hao smiled.
"No… so shall we go to the guild?" Wei asked excitedly.
"Yes. It's nearby."
Hao began walking through the town streets, with Wei beside him.
"Where is the main guild located?" Wei asked.
"In Nexia." Hao replied.
Soon, they reached a large gate. Hao pushed it open, and they walked inside.
There were many powerful-looking people inside, some holding artifacts.
Wei observed everything carefully—while many hunters were also staring back at her.
Even with her white hair tied back, her beauty still stood out.
Ignoring the looks, Hao led her to the front counter, where a girl with rabbit ears was sitting.
She greeted them politely.
"Hello miss, I want to submit slime cores." Hao said.
"How many do you have? Banni."
(Banni is the word all rabbit-type people add at the end of sentences.)
"I have 30 F-rank slime cores." Hao replied.
Wei stood beside him, silently watching.
"And I also want to check my sister's account." Hao added.
"Of course. Please follow me. Banni " The girl led them into a private room.
"Do you have your card? Banni " she asked.
"No." Hao answered.
"Then please place a drop of your blood here. Banni " She pointed at a crystal orb.
Wei placed a drop of blood on it.
The crystal lit up, and her account details appeared.
"Miss Wang Wei… you currently have 150,433 gold coins.
You also have 10 green potions, 5 high potions, and 10 magic pendants. Banni "
The rabbit girl said, surprised.
"Give her an account card." Hao said.
The girl nodded and hurried out.
"I have that much money?" Wei said, confused.
"Yes. Dad gives us pocket money every month. But you never spend yours.
So you accumulated a lot." Hao explained with a smile.
"Let's submit the slime cores now." Hao said.
They entered another room where a beastman with wolf ears sat.
"Wei, take out the cores." Hao said.
Wei took them out from the item box.
"You two hunted these?" the man asked.
"Yes. How much are they worth?" Hao asked.
"Thirty F-rank slimes… one silver each. So thirty silver coins." He said.
"Alright." Hao nodded.
The beastman handed him the coins.
---
By now, the rabbit girl returned with Wei's card.
"Mam, here is your black money card. You can use it in any store. Banni " She said politely.
"Thank you." Wei accepted it.
"Let's go." Hao said.
"Where?" Wei asked while following him.
"I think you can raise your rank further." Hao answered and kept walking.
Wei followed without question.
---
Soon, the two of them stood outside the Dusky Forest again.
Wei assumed they would hunt slimes again—but she was wrong.
Hao entered deeper into the forest. Wei followed.
They reached a dungeon.
Hao put the magic pendant on Wei, and one on himself.
They entered.
First, they encountered F-rank monsters.
They defeated them easily.
"If any monster appears, attack immediately.
But don't lose control of your mana.
I'll protect you from behind." Hao instructed.
After walking a bit further, they found a small goblin clan.
They looked like E-rank.
"Use Lumina on them." Hao told her.
"Mhm." Wei nodded.
She extended her hand and used less than half of her usual mana.
Lightning Strike.
[ Goblin Defeated ]
[ XP +40 ]
[ Goblin Defeated ]
[ XP +40 ]
… and so on, more than ten times—
[ Level Up ]
Level 4 → Level 5
[ XP Reset: 400 / 600 ]
"Ohhh… nice attack. Now quickly put their ears into the item box." Hao praised.
The goblins' bodies vanished when killed, leaving only their ears behind.
Wei collected them.
They continued deeper into the dungeon.
"Look… wolves. Probably D-rank." Hao explained.
"Understood." Wei said.
She only injured them lightly, just as she planned.
"Hao, I think you should level up too." Wei smiled.
"But if I use mana, my MP won't reset…" Hao hesitated.
"Then fight physically. Don't use mana." Wei suggested.
Hao liked the idea.
Soon, he and Wei took down the wolves together—Hao using only physical attacks.
They reached the final chamber.
There stood a B-rank Monster King.
"That's a B-rank. Can we defeat it?" Hao asked.
Hao had only ever entered C-rank dungeons—and always with a full team.
But today, it was only the two of them.
"Will you gain XP if you defeat it?" Wei asked.
"Yes." Hao replied.
"I'll stay here. Use your full strength and attack." Wei said.
"Oh wow… yesterday I protected you, and today you'll protect me." Hao thought.
"Exactly." Wei answered calmly.
Hao launched the first attack.
"Whatever happens, I'll deal with it."
With that determination, he continued striking.
The monster fought back fiercely, but Hao's level had increased, so he could handle it.
---
Meanwhile…
Wei was sitting comfortably, talking to Ares.
"Ares… do you think I can defeat this monster?" Wei asked.
> "Of course." Ares replied.
"How many strikes would it take?" Wei thought aloud.
>"Half a strike." Ares answered.
"So… it's that weak?" Wei was surprised.
"Is there any spell that will let Hao deal the final blow and get the XP?" Wei asked again.
>"The one who makes the final hit gets the XP.
If you restrain the monster, Hao can finish it." Ares explained.
"What magic can restrain a monster?" Wei asked.
"Any magic—just shape it into a rope." Ares said.
"Can I use vines?" Wei asked.
>"You want to use Earth element—yes, you can." Ares replied.
Wei sat there and began forming a vine rope from magic.
She failed a few times, but soon succeeded.
---
On the other side—
Hao's attacks weren't enough to break through the monster's healing.
His MP was nearly gone.
"I don't think I can defeat it alone…" Hao said, breathing heavily.
"I'll help you." Wei said.
She used the vine rope to bind the monster king.
She had used a lot of mana, making the monster almost unable to move.
"Hao! Quickly! The final strike must be yours!" Wei shouted.
Hao gathered every bit of remaining magic and cast a fire attack.
The monster king, already weakened, took the hit—
and death.
Hao was exhausted, barely able to stand.
A treasure box emerged from the floor.
"Ohhhh… treasure appears too!" Wei's eyes sparkled.
Wei opened the box.
"There's a sword… and potions." Hao observed.
As soon as Wei picked them up, the box began sinking into the ground—
and in the next moment, both of them appeared outside the dungeon.
Right in front of them,
the dungeon itself slowly sank back into the earth.
--