Viridis, Dia's Biome and Viers' homebase.

A few days after the Arcanum Club's first meeting and establishment. In this green paradise, a farewell was happening.

"Uuuu… Luca will be lonely."

Luca the dark purple-haired girl with a darkness 5 affinity was crying during the send-off. Gwen, who was her age, tried to calm her friend.

"Don't worry, little swan, you'll be fine," Viers patted the little girl's head.

Unlike the others who would be going to Sinclair, Luca had living and well parents who cared for her. Viers personally gave them the offer to enroll Luca at a foreign prestigious school. They were worried but wanted the best for their child and Luca herself wanted to go.

Viers also met Luca's newborn little brother when he was there.

"Well then, Lord Viers, we'll take our leave," Farley bowed.

"Thank you, big brother Viers," Gwen also bowed after her sister.

"We'll inform you once we've arrived. Thank you for your hospitality," Jessica smiled.

"Hehehe, I'll be as strong as Boram the next time we meet!" Tim confidently puffed up his chest.

Jessica, Tim, Luca, Farley, and Gwen. These five would now travel to the Sinclair Academy. Croix, Alfred, and Boram would go later. The two groups would go using different routes. Boram had been instructed to act as if he didn't know the people of the other group even if they met there.

In the end, Farley decided to enroll as a student while Jessica would not. They planned to rent or buy a house at the academy city so they could live together.

"Goodbye everyone, I hope you the best," Paina waved. She too was wearing traveling clothes like the rest of them. A necklace that would serve as Clarissa's soul anchor was hanging on her neck.

The second group would consist of Paina, Clarissa, Faiya, Futon, and Dia. These five would brave the hot desert climate of Zetel. This group was quite eccentric in its make-up, but Viers was confident they would be fine.

Both groups didn't seem to bring a lot of supplies besides the clothes they wore but their spatial items were filled to the brim.

"Dia, Faiya, Futon, the three of you must listen to Paina and Clarissa's instructions, okay? And don't cause trouble for them," Viers warned.

"Yes, kin!"

"Yaaa!"

"Fuuu!"

The elementals were excited to visit a new land. It was like a holiday trip overseas for them.

"Zerri, too. Bye-bye, plump hatchling. Grow healthy," Clarissa patted the white worm on top the head of a Pukupuku who served as the Xerg queen's personal palanquin.

Zerri replied by munching on Clarissa's finger.

"Ahahaha, it tickles. Stop that~"

After the two groups finished their goodbyes, they went inside two different portals. Viers had no portals directly to their destinations so the exit was at the nearest place, even with that, the distance was considerable, especially for Paina's group.

All Viers Corp's employees had left for a company business trip. Only the CEO remained on his lonesome.

Zerri didn't count because she was a baby.

"One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do~"

Viridis could run on its own. The Pukupukus were able to tend to anything that needed tending without supervision anymore. After a last check on security measures and anything important, everything was in order so Viers began his Level 4 Ascension.

He sealed himself up in the pocket dimension next door, the Velvet Sea. This place was anchored to the larger Biome without becoming a part of it. It was like a secret room in a house.

"...Here we go."

He had been preparing for this for weeks and scheduled to start after the send-off. Viers started an Arte activation sequence, and suddenly, everything below his solar plexus exploded into a pile of blood of gore.

Viers screamed from the unimaginable pain. Blood flowed from the remaining part of his body that was still intact. While in the perilous state, he confirmed the method was working as intended and he began opening his life force reserve. With bountiful vitality, his healing factor began to work mending his body.

His regeneration speed had improved greatly since he got it as a Level 0 but it still wasn't as fast as Wolverine's.

His mind was fully occupied operating his Unreality Field so his body didn't die of blood loss and other complications from major physical trauma.

The hours felt utterly cruel as minutes felt stretched to infinity because he had to battle with the pain and boredom. Not only of the physical body, his soul was similarly shredded.

This was the Forbidden Arte, No Pain No Gain. Viers modified the old version, adding and subtracting parts from different sources enough to make it sufficiently different from the old one, and gave a new name for it.

Despite what it looked like, this wasn't a body cultivation method. It was similar, but this Arte was solely for the purpose of improving someone's ascension to a higher Level.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

After extremely damaging the body made a complete recovery, the Arte would produce a mote of light that represented his efforts. This mote would then be absorbed by his Intio. The more motes he had, the easier it was to level and it would make everything more powerful.

The mote of light had another name in cultivation terms, a piece of world's truth, but Viers didn't really bother remembering it. He thought of it like a piece of Dao from the xianxia stories.

"...Huff, huff… That's one down."

Based on his first experience, Viers planned on gaining one mote every day. Once he was proficient enough, he would destroy even more parts of his body. The more damage he suffered, the greater the quality of the mote he would get after complete recovery.

Viers dared to cultivate using this demonic method because he had his healing factor. Records said in the past users of this technique were super rich people with deep enough pockets to keep healing the user or possessed some form of extraordinary self-healing like Viers.

Of course, they had to have the iron will to see it though.

If he could heal faster and thus be able to do more cycles of destruction and mending he would, but his healing factor's speed was maxed out as a Level 3.

This method also carried extra benefits. It simulated death and rebirth, the same concept as his Serpentes Renovamen Profound Codex.

Viers already mastered his Profound Codex enough to begin the next step to Level 4. However, more mastery was never bad, not like he had reached the peak mastery of life and death anyway.

Basically, the better someone was in their Profound Codex, the stronger their Imaginary Domain.

Viers was greatly anticipating the day he would be able to do Domain Expansion.

Would my Domain's nature be similar to Unlimited Void or more leaning to Malevolent Shrine? Mwuhuhu, I can't wait.

The old technique aimed for a hundred motes and then broke through to Level 4 in one year. It was not the standard, but the optimal amount. Viers' No Pain No Gain improved it.

"One down, nine-nine-nine more to go."

Viers planned on a thousand motes in three years.

Not only would he overshoot the max strengthening limit of the old forbidden Arte, but there was also the 500% boost of Horizon to the Arte.

Only improvements like this could result in an overpowered Apex Villain the likes of Fang Yuan. It was the only way he wouldn't get beaten by the similarly overpowered MCs!

Madness and lust for power sparked in Viers' eyes and the Velvet Sea witnessed a bloody scene once again.

***

"Master, you look… tired."

Boram, who came to say goodbye to his master, was looking at a haggard-looking Viers.

"Haha… just tired from Pathseeker training is all. Don't mind me."

For two months Viers had spent almost every day in a pool of his own blood and pain searing every fiber of his being. He was almost driven to the point of insanity.

Fortuitously, a timely doctor stop was preordained in the form of his Profound Codex. Once every ten days after not being activated, Serpentes Renovamen would activate on its own, killing Viers the Pathseeker. The water and soul bender was no more, turned into a powerless mortal.

Naturally, No Pain No Gain Arte was not an option during that period so he had no choice but to rest. It worked wonders on his sanity.

Croix, Boram, and Alfred were about to go to Sinclair. They left Stormberg and stopped by the Shore before going. Part was because Boram and Croix wanted to see Viers and the other was because Croix wished to see the village he helped to build from the ground up.

"Do you have any words for me before I go, Master?"

"Sure. First, a question. Do you want me to release you from my servitude?"

"Umm, no?" Boram did not understand the meaning of the sudden question.

"Why?"

"Because… You always said you'd release me from slavery after I paid my debts to you. Master, you took me under your wing and granted me a new life. The least I could do is to save your life at least once. I haven't, so it doesn't seem right."

Viers approved of Boram's answer.

"Then here's my advice. At Sinclair, you'll get into fights. It is inevitable, that place where highborns and commoners mix? No matter how much the academy tries to forbid it, the divide between the social classes will become a source of conflict. The fact you're a slave will also make people look down on you. Some of these people will try to oppress you. You are not weak but it is a mistake to think you'll be able to win every fight. Even if you win the fight you could lose overall. My advice is do not be a bullhead that only uses violence to solve problems, nor be a pushover who passively accepts the persecution of others."

Viers was rambling a bit there so it became too long. Nevertheless, Boram put his master's advice to heart.

"Thank you, Master. It's goodbye for now. I hope you succeed in your own endeavor."

"Hmm," Viers nodded. "You are forbidden to die, get it? You might be Croix's bodyguard but there will never be a scenario where it is acceptable for you to die. I will not accept it. Understand?"

"Yes, Master."

"Then I wish you good luck in your studies. It is a rare opportunity you've been given. Do not let it go to waste."

After Boram, Croix came forward next. He dismissed Alfred because he wanted to talk privately.

"I still think it is a shame you won't come with us, Master Avel."

"A pity indeed, but the stars simply aren't aligned. Rest assured that I'll definitely finish my matters before the Grand Prix."

The prince's face brightened. "So you've decided to join?"

"It depends on whether there will be a tournament battle format. And if all goes well, I'll be a Level 4 at the time. Will I even be able to compete there?"

Countess Grace told Croix that the Grand Prix would become a place where the nobles assess the capabilities of the candidates for the throne. Would Viers entering make any difference? Also, their power disparity would be vastly different. If he could enter the competition to help Croix then what was stopping others from bringing a Level 5 for their team?

"I suppose… Before I leave, there's something I want to give you."

Croix gave mana crystals to Viers, payment for the side trips on his flying carpet during the journey to Archion Volcano. The prince remembered and paid his debts. Which was a plus mark in Viers' book.

The prince didn't know that if the sum of value in Viers' eyes were at a minus, Viers would have off-ed him himself and use his assets to recoup the losses.

Kinda like the bank's seizure.

If anyone thought Viers was a bad guy for doing so, they should first blame the banks who taught him this life lesson.

Viers also gave Croix some advice. Alfred and Grace had the battle part covered. He was sure the two had taught Croix well. The prince was idealistic unlike Viers with a jaded world view but he was a good kid. Viers wanted him to do well.

The villain had long suspected the prince had what he would call an MC factor. The fact he could do two legendary feats at the Archion Volcano put some weight to this. He wondered what Fate had in store for the young prince and how much he would benefit by staying under his shadow.

Viers considered giving Croix a white card, an invitation to the secret gathering but refrained. Boram, Farley, and Jessica were already at Sinclair. They would cast a wide enough fishing net for the opportunities there.

After a brief visit, the three went to Sinclair with Viers seeing them off at the village's main entrance along with the villagers who felt only gratitude for Croix.

Unknown to most, including Viers, Grace Weiss was also secretly watching from the sky, hidden. After confirming Croix's well-being, she glanced at Viers for a short while. She didn't linger long.

After his courtesy session was over, Viers went back to the Biome to resume his daily dose of self-harm.

A few weeks later, he found out from Boram that Croix was at death's door.