“Who is that guy, elder?” I approached him.

“Huh? Oh, him? That’s Ragnar, someone from my generation,” the elder replied, stroking his beard thoughtfully. “Youngsters like you might not know him since he’s been working as a professor in NorthStar for a long time.”

I nodded. That made sense, but it didn’t put me at ease.

A professor at the world’s best magic academy who excelled at masking his emotions? From the patterns I’d observed across worlds, people like him usually had knowledge of the looming threats their world faced. Keeping an eye on Ragnar seemed prudent.

“I see. Thanks for telling me.”

“No problem. We’re clansmen, we ought to look out for each other.” The elder smiled calmly, the lines on his weathered face softening.

It still felt odd to call someone who barely looked middle-aged an elder, but considering our clan’s lifespan capped at fifty years, it was appropriate. Still, Ragnar didn’t look like someone nearing the end of his days. Something about him felt... off.

“I planned on going to NorthStar with my sister. Do you think I could ask him for some help with that?” I probed carefully.

“You want to join NorthStar Academy, too?” The elder raised a curious eyebrow.

“Yes.” I nodded firmly.

“That’s not possible, I’m afraid.” The elder shook his head. “Even if he’s a professor, letting a student in without taking the academy’s entrance exams is unheard of.”

“What about being recommended as his assistant or something similar?” I pressed.

Being a student wasn’t necessary, any position at the academy would suffice. In fact, considering the quest condition of restoring Harmony through culture, joining the academy without being a student might be better.

The elder’s eyes narrowed slightly as he studied me. He pinched his chin, mumbling under his breath as though weighing the feasibility of my idea.

“That... might work.” He met my gaze, his tone more measured. “Since you can’t join as a student, perhaps joining as his assistant is a possibility. I don’t know much about how they handle things over there, so let me speak with him and find out.”

“That would mean a lot, elder. Thank you,” I replied earnestly.

He waved me off with a slight smile. “Don’t mention it. Let’s see what Ragnar has to say.”

It was a relief that joining the academy was still an option.

“That’s right. You’ve been making those little ‘inventions’ of yours since you were young. Well, younger,” the elder chuckled, his tone tinged with nostalgia. “Ragnar is a professor who teaches classes about Runes and potions, so you two might get along well.”

One of those ‘little inventions’ is going to knock your socks off, elder.

I smiled as I pulled out a Recording Crystal and handed it to him.

“What’s this?” he asked, inspecting it curiously.

“When you pour your Mana into it, pay attention to the bar and the symbols etched on its surface. Stop when the bar reaches the triangle symbol. Then, try using it near some Frozen Grass. You’ll be amazed.”

The elder turned the crystal in his hands, his expression a mix of intrigue and skepticism. “Alright, I’ll use it when I have the time. Bye, boy,” he said, tucking it into his pocket.

A small plan began to take shape in my mind as I thanked the elder again and made my way back home. When I opened the front door, I immediately noticed the absence of Sera’s boots on the rack by the wall. It seemed she was still busy gathering honey.

I retrieved the note I’d left on the table earlier and crumpled it before tossing it aside. There was no need for her to read it anymore.

The elder had already contacted the Frost Elf to inform them about Elfina’s situation. That was one task taken care of.

Now, there was only one thing left for me to do today.

With the Qi Core formed, it was time to refine my body into a vessel capable of properly housing and utilizing Demonic Qi. This would be the foundation for mastering martial arts and achieving peak efficiency.

I entered my room, closed the door, and sat on the floor in a lotus position. Closing my eyes, I began breathing in a specific rhythm — the same one I used to create my core. But this time, instead of directing Qi to my dantian, I allowed it to flow into every muscle fiber.

Seconds turned into minutes as I patiently waited for some kind of reaction. At long last, my muscles twitched — a subtle but significant sign that the first step toward body refinement was ready.

I relaxed my body and mind as much as possible, calming my nerves until I felt like a leaf drifting along a slow-moving river on an autumn day. Once I reached that state of tranquility, I directed my Qi to attack my muscles.

The sensation was excruciating. It felt as though millions of ants, armed with tiny, spear-like legs, were stabbing every inch of my muscles ten million times per second. My muscles broke down, reformed, broke down again, and reformed once more in an unrelenting cycle.

The first time I experienced this, I had nearly lost my mind. If not for my master staying by my side, guiding and supporting me, I wouldn’t have been able to endure it.

That memory lingered, a testament to how far I had come.

I was far too accustomed to the pain that came with this process, more than I cared to admit.

Slowly but surely, the agony began to subside. A foul smell assaulted my senses, a revolting mix of rotten eggs and decaying carcasses. A tar-like substance oozed from my pores.

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The first step, muscle refinement, was completed.

“Interesting,” I muttered, flexing my fingers and feeling the newfound strength surging through me.

Although my body mass remained unchanged, the power coursing through me was undeniable. However, one issue persisted. Qi, much like Mana, still leaked out whenever it passed through my heart. While my core worked automatically to replenish the loss, this Void Heart remained a persistent inconvenience.

“Next.” Closing my eyes, I focused once more and began the second step — refining my bones.

This time, I guided the Qi into my bones and allowed it to merge before commanding the attack.

*Ding

[Full body restoration activated]

With this cheat at my disposal, there was no reason to take the safe yet time-consuming path of refining one bone at a time. The fastest method was to let Qi break down all my bones simultaneously while relying on the cheat to restore them. Whenever my Qi ran out, the cheat refilled it. It was brutal, but it worked.

I had stumbled upon this reckless method back when I woke up in the middle of a malevolent spirit-infested cave. Those spirits fed on life force but, strangely enough, were repelled by Qi. A Qi Core alone wasn’t enough to deter them, so I had to make myself utterly repulsive to them. After getting eaten alive more times than I cared to count, I did the only “sensible” thing — risk everything.

Once my flesh was refined, the weaker spirits avoided me, but escaping required getting past a much stronger one. To survive, I refined every part of myself, turning into something no spirit would dare approach. It was an unpleasant but undeniably effective experience.

Now, as I pushed forward with bone refinement, my muscles constricted tightly to stabilize my skeleton and prevent my bones from breaking in the wrong direction. Unlike the constant, burning pain of muscle refinement, the pain from refining bones was erratic and crushing — like ten sledgehammers slamming into me at random, without rhythm or mercy.

Abruptly, the agony stopped, and tar-like substance once again seeped from every pore on my body, adding to the vile pool beneath me. The smell was beyond horrific, but I paid it no mind.

The second step was complete.

I had no intention of cleaning up twice. Much like navigating a crowded shopping mall on a Sunday afternoon, I wasn’t about to take two trips when everything could be done in one.

Breathe in, breathe out. With every exhale, I felt my bones harden, becoming stronger than steel. Each time Qi coursed through them, they trembled with savage delight, as if relishing their newfound strength.

Time for the final step — organ refinement.

And if the first two steps had been excruciating, this was going to be worse. Much worse.

I took my time, procrastinating the inevitable agony as long as I could. But the putrid stench of the tar-like substance pooling beneath me forced my hand. The faster I completed this, the sooner I could rid myself of the vile smell that seemed to claw its way into my lungs.

With a resigned sigh, I directed Qi toward my organs, unleashing its destructive force.

Pain exploded through my body, raw and merciless, as if a thousand knives were tearing through every inch of me from the inside. My heart, lungs, liver, and every organ felt like it was being shredded into pieces and reassembled over and over again.

I doubled over, unable to suppress the wave of agony. A mouthful of fresh blood surged up my throat, and I spat it out. Its bright cherry-red color mixed with the black tar below, swirling into a dark, viscous crimson. The blood floated on the tar's surface, glistening like oil on water.

Each pulse of Qi felt like a hammer strike, breaking me down and rebuilding anew. My body was screaming for me to stop, but I couldn’t. This was the final step. If I endured this, my body would be far more resilient — strong enough to face whatever came next.

I clenched my fists and gritted my teeth, determined to see this through.

*Ding

[Full body restoration activated]

The more Qi destroyed and reformed my organs, the more blood I spat out. At first, it was bright cherry-colored, pooling at my feet and mingling with the tar-like substance below. But as the process continued, the crimson hue deepened, darkening with each cycle of destruction and reconstruction. Eventually, the blood wasn't blood anymore. It turned into a viscous black jelly, thick and slimy.

Each time I spat out the jelly-like substance, my insides burned as though molten iron coursed through me. And as if the torment wasn’t enough, the jelly occasionally got stuck in my throat, forcing me to cough and gag to clear it. It was the worst, far worse than refining my muscles or bones.

The burning agony threatened to consume me, but I focused on the rhythm of my breathing, on the Qi flowing through my veins. If I could endure this, my organs would become a fortress, resilient against whatever horrors lay ahead.

I wasn’t some kind of pervert who enjoyed pain. And I’ll deny any baseless allegations to the contrary. As a dignified modern citizen, I’d never enjoy this. This way is just faster. More efficient. That’s all.

But efficiency came with a cost.

*Ding

[Your body has been fully refined. You have reached the peak physical condition of your body. You can now gather and circulate Qi more efficiently]

The reward for my suffering was as sweet as honey. With my body fully refined, gathering Qi with every breath was now possible.

I sat motionless, letting the calm after the storm settle within me, and assessed how much Qi was still leaking due to the Void Heart.

Had I solved this problem completely?

The answer was a disappointing no.

Despite my newfound ability to subconsciously gather Qi 24/7, it still wasn’t enough to offset the amount leaking from my Void Heart. This condition was an ever-present thorn in my side, an annoyance I would have to live with for this lifetime.

I'll manage.

Just as I began to consider my next course of action, a pungent odor shoved its way into my nostrils like a rude intruder. My spine shivered as I looked down at the sticky black tar-like mess covering the floor. It was a horrifyingly grotesque reminder of the refinement process.

I sighed and rose to my feet. The increase in Qi efficiency was a significant boon, but cleaning up this disgusting sludge was not. Sticky, icky, and downright revolting, it was the price I paid for power.

Half an hour later, I stood triumphantly over a spotless wooden floor, wiping nonexistent sweat from my brow with a grin of satisfaction. With that done, I headed toward my bookshelf.

There weren’t many books — twenty or so at most — but I was searching for one in particular. The book on legends and myths. It might hold a clue as to why the so-called Guardians weren’t doing anything about the Demonic Arts users.

I scoured the shelf, checked the table, and even peeked under the bed, but I found nothing. Not a single word related to the Guardians.

Great, I thought, rubbing my temples.

If there was no written record, my next best bet was the elder. The oldest member of the village surely had some stories to tell.

I stepped out of my room and headed toward the elder’s house, my mind swirling with questions about the Guardians.

On my way there, I took a moment to observe the bustling activity in the village. Parents were busy grinding herbs and brewing remedies for their children. Winemakers darted back and forth, working hard to complete the latest batch of mead, a crucial commodity for trade.

With the expedition team from NorthStar present, tomorrow marked the day we would head toward the Frost Elf’s village and participate in their small trading festival. A rare opportunity for us to secure valuable resources. For once, things seemed to be looking up for our little village.

When I reached the elder’s house, I knocked on the wooden door. Multiple voices murmured from within, raising my curiosity. The elder lived alone, so the presence of others could only mean one thing — members of the NorthStar expedition team.

“Coming,” the elder’s voice called out from inside. Moments later, the door creaked open, revealing his familiar warm smile. “Karl, come in, my boy. We were just talking about you.”

That simple statement confirmed my suspicion. The people inside weren’t villagers — they were from NorthStar.

I stepped inside. By the fireplace, Ragnar stood up from his chair, his every movement precise. His immaculate white shirt and dotted yellow bow tie added to his polished demeanor. A Recording Crystal sat on the table next to him, unmistakably one of mine.

“You made this, right?” Ragnar said, pointing at the crystal, his tone calm and measured. Then, with a smile as perfectly crafted as his appearance, he extended a hand toward me.

“Shall we discuss your future at NorthStar Academy?”