Chapter 440: A New Epiphany
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
Despite the fact that the Ivantians were somewhat accustomed to defeats, they had to take this particular one very seriously. Einherjar Wannabe didn't just defeat an Ivantian; it was a provocative act towards all Einherjars.
"Einherjar Wannabe," the name that used to carry a sense of self-pity now seemed to reflect a hint of sarcastic undertone that undermined the power of Einherjars. Little did they know that the name was just a casual banter between Wang Tong and Mr. Wannabe. One could call it either coincidence or destiny.
Patroclus had finally arrived at the battleground, but he was too late. He carried Lee Moshan back to a nearby spaceship, but found it hard to calm himself.
Li Zhedao left the room without leaving a word to his son. Andres shut off the screen and quietly sat in the darkness, absorbed in his thoughts. They both held the same question in their mind: Although the world no longer needed the protection of the Blade Warrior, did it mean that their cultivation could stop at the level of Einherjar?
Wang Tong had a good rest and didn't wake up until noon. Yesterday's fight was "trippy", since he felt like both a participant and a spectator.
Wang Tong knew that Mr. Wannabe was a badass, but he didn't know the extent of his bad-ass-ness until yesterday. His power was outright terrifying, and no wonder he had considered Lee Moshan a weakling. Meanwhile, Wang Tong reckoned that last fight had given him a valuable lesson, as it had demonstrated to him just how badly he needed to improve.
His journey had just started, and his current power was abysmal compared to the real mighty warriors. Although his power was bound to grow over time, he conceded that he needed to straighten his attitude and rid of his contentment.
As soon as Wang Tong woke up, he went straight to comfort Ma Xiaoru, who had been worrying all night.
"Don't you worry about me! I am like a ...a... main character in the Martian novel, protected by an invincible plot armor. Haha!"
Ma Xiaoru knew he was just joking, so she said, "Don't be silly. That's all fiction, but this is real life! I will help you in the bed if you need to..."
Wang Tong was lighthearted after hearing her reply, but after he noticed the dark circles around Ma Xiaoru's eyes, he reckoned that stress had rendered her sleepless. He hugged her tightly around him until her breath became even and dream-sweet.
Even in her sleep, Ma Xiaoru held on to Wang Tong's arm and wouldn't let go.
Wang Tong patted Ma Xiaoru's long hair and heaved a sigh. He had embarked on the journey of a Blade Warrior and danger was inevitable. The only way to protect his loved ones was to become stronger. Yesterday's fight was a close call, and he survived only thanks to Mr. Wannabe. Although Wang Tong had taken the backseat during the second half of the battle, he could sense that Mr. Wannabe's every move was a condensed form of centuries of knowledge and practice. However, even though Mr. Wannabe could defeat an Einherjar with ease, he still refused to call himself a Super-Einherjar. As Wang Tong became curious about the power of a Super Einherjar, he decided to call on his trusty adviser.
"Mr. Wannabe, can you come out for a second, please? Mr. Wannabe... Hello?"
After a while, charcoal appeared out of the crystal, but Mr. Wannabe was still nowhere to be seen.
"Charcoal, what is he doing in there?"
"Master, Mr. Wannabe had overspent his soul energy, so he is recuperating."
"Just normal reputation? He can't even come out and say hi?"
"Master, Mr. Wannabe had consumed part of his soul essence during last fight. I am afraid those damages are irreversible."
Sensing the seriousness in Charcoal's words, Wang Tong straightened his back and asked, "What do you mean Irreversible? You just said he is recovering."
"He can only recover it to a certain extent. To put it simply, he can only do it three more times. After that, his soul essence would be completely spent, and he would perish forever."
Wang Tong sat still as a stone as his mind raced. In the past, whenever he called upon Mr. Wannabe's aid, Mr. Wannabe could always tap into the power of the space crystal. However, the situation yesterday called for using his own soul essence in order to defeat Lee Moshan. Although the Einherjar was defeated, it was a very costly victory.
Wang Tong had never thought that yesterday's fight had such devastating consequences.
"Do you mean that as long as he doesn't use his soul essence again, he would be fine?"
"Theoretically, yes. Unlike me, Mr. Wannabe's existence was not tied to yours. However, if he didn't intervene, it would be a master who would perish."
Charcoal had to spell it out loud and clear: Wang Tong was too weak.
But, why would Mr. Wannabe force him to fight against such a powerful foe? He knew Wang Tong would lose.
Why?
As Wang Tong pondered the question, revitalization finally dawned upon him. Mr. Wannabe did so to push him to his limit. Mr. Wannabe never told him directly, but he had noticed that Wang Tong had reached a bottleneck in his cultivation.
Although it was true that battle was the best way to break the bottleneck, the price to achieve such a breakthrough was too high.
"Charcoal, why do I have to do this? If everything is fine, which they are, why do I have to become stronger?"
"Master, the end of the world is coming."
"What are you talking about? Can anyone in this world explain anything like a normal person? If you know what the threat is, then TELL ME!" Wang Tong raised his voice out of frustration.
"Can not locate answer to that question." Charcoal said with his usual mechanical voice.
Half-leaning against the wall, Wang Tong felt reality had dealt a huge blow to him. He wished that Mr. Wannabe would have discussed it with him before plunging headfirst into a deadly battle.
Wang Tong hated when people had to make a sacrifice for him. Deep down he still refused to believe his own destiny, nor did he believe in himself.
Wang Tong resented Charcoal for failing to report Mr. Wannabe's true motive to him in time. However, the innocent look on the little robot quickly changed his mind and attitude.
It was all his fault.
He should have been stronger and trained harder. None of his friends had ever asked anything from him. All they wanted was for him to become stronger.
Wang Tong slowly gathered himself and made up his mind to break the bottleneck, not to protect the world, but to the people he cared for.
"That is it for now. "
Charcoal disappeared, and Wang Tong shut off the light and went to bed. Even in the bed, he still couldn't stop thinking about the "end of the world" that Charcoal had mentioned. It could either be a civil war or a Zerg invasion, and the latter was more likely.
Ninety percent of the invitations for joining the Ark expedition had been accepted. Within a few days, flurries of young warriors, including a few young Templars as well as Zhang Jin, had arrived at the Ark to prepare for the voyage.