After being driven out of the merchant house, Abhimanyu did not stop even once and headed straight toward the forest.
His steps were fast, but his heart was heavy.
After reaching the forest, he did not practice martial arts this time.
Today, he had chosen a different path—magic.
Abhimanyu knew that fire magic was not merely an independent power; it could multiply the lethality of martial arts many times over. Carefully, he took out the three materials he had gathered for practicing fire magic.
Mixing them in the correct proportions, he prepared a thick paste. Slowly, he applied the paste to his palms, took a deep breath, and began his practice.
At first—nothing happened.
But then—fsssh…
A faint warmth emerged from his palms, followed by tiny sparks. Within moments, flames burst forth, far stronger than before. A sharp gleam appeared in Abhimanyu's eyes. He continued practicing without pause—three… four hours passed.
When he finally stopped, there was a small yet unmistakable improvement in his fire magic. He understood immediately—this paste was extremely effective.
He had learned this method from that mysterious book, and even the enigmatic voice had hinted at it. Making the paste wasn't difficult—one only needed to remember the correct technique.
After finishing his fire magic training, Abhimanyu took out the remaining two herbs and mixed them together to brew a different concoction.
The moment he drank it—
Something inside his body began to spin violently.
Lightning magic.
It felt as though electricity was racing through his veins. Abhimanyu's body trembled—not with fear, but with excitement. He wanted to master lightning magic as well.
He refused to lag behind.
He wanted mastery in every field.
As soon as he sensed the lightning circulating within him, he immersed himself in practice. Time slipped by—
Evening fell… night deepened… and the training continued until midnight.
The effects of the concoction were terrifying. It felt as if his entire body had been seized by lightning. Every movement became faster. Every reaction multiplied several times over.
When he finally stopped, a satisfied smile appeared on his lips.
Today, he had not fought a single battle—yet his magic had grown at an astonishing pace.
Then—
That same mysterious voice echoed in his ears.
"If you continue learning like this, you will advance very quickly.
But you have no understanding of real combat.
In a real battle, you would die."
Abhimanyu's heart pounded violently.
"That is why tomorrow, you will fight beasts of your own level—using magic alone."
With those words, the voice disappeared once more.
Abhimanyu was no longer afraid of it. In the beginning, it used to make him tremble, but now he had grown accustomed to its presence.
He looked around and noticed a cave nearby.
"I'll rest here tonight…" he thought, stepping inside.
But the moment he entered—
His hair stood on end.
A strange sensation… as if something was watching him.
Suddenly—he looked ahead.
Two golden eyes.
Abhimanyu's heart sank.
A wild dog stood in the darkness—a magical wild dog with glowing golden eyes. It was a Wind-element beast—extremely fast… extremely lethal.
A Level Two, low-tier magical beast, far stronger than the Primary Level.
Its strength was comparable to that of a Martial Disciple.
Abhimanyu was just about to retreat when—
The voice echoed again.
"You cannot outrun it… you know that."
"This is a Wind-element dog. Its speed and power far surpass yours."
"Even if your magic has reached the peak of the Primary Level, you are still weaker."
His throat went dry.
Still—
He planted his feet firmly on the ground.
Then the voice spoke again.
"But perhaps… this is the best opportunity for you to train."
"Fight it using magic."
And once again, the voice vanished—as if it had nothing more to do with him.
Silence filled the cave.
The golden eyes gleamed in the darkness, and Abhimanyu knew—
This was his true trial.
It was a dark night, deep within a dense forest—where even moonlight hesitated to slip through the leaves. In the heart of that forest stood an ancient cave.
Inside the cave—
A magical beast and a human stood facing each other.
The air was motionless.
The silence so deep that even the sound of breathing was clearly audible.
Both stared at one another.
Both wondered the same thing—
Who would attack first?
Abhimanyu's heart pounded violently. His eyes were locked onto the magical dog before him—sharp fangs, hardened claws, and glowing eyes.
At that moment, he realized—
If this beast attacks first… I won't survive.
Making his decision, Abhimanyu took a deep breath. Slowly, he extended both his hands forward. Blue-white lightning crackled between his palms.
Qi surged rapidly through his veins.
This was no ordinary spell.
This was a Primary-Level Advanced Spell—
"Falling Lightning."
Abhimanyu knew—if he used a low or mid-tier spell, the dog wouldn't even consider it a scratch. He had chosen his most powerful spell.
The moment the incantation was completed—
⚡ BOOM! ⚡
A massive bolt of lightning tore down from the sky, rushing straight toward the beast.
But—
The dog, which had been standing perfectly still until now,
Suddenly raised its paw.
BANG!
He blocked the lightning attack with all his strength.
In that very instant—the silence of the cave shattered.
The next moment—both of them lunged at each other.
Abhimanyu kept using lightning magic without pause, but the truth was simple—he was still new to real combat. He possessed power, but lacked experience.
On the other hand, the magical hound was also confused. Until now, every human it had fought relied solely on martial arts. But this power—was different. Strange.
Because of this uncertainty, the hound focused mostly on defense at first. But it didn't take long for it to understand.
The human before it was weak.
Its attacks suddenly grew ferocious.
This hound was a wind-element magical beast. It opened its mouth—
"Shuuuu—"
Razor-sharp streams of wind shot forth like blue blades, racing straight toward Abhimanyu. He barely managed to evade the first strike.
But—the second attack—
Bang!
The wind blade slammed into his body. Abhimanyu staggered and crashed into the cave wall behind him. His breath was knocked out of his lungs.
At that moment—the mysterious magical voice echoed once again—
"Is this how you fight?"
There was a hint of irritation in the voice.
Then, it began explaining the finer points of battle to him—when to attack, when to defend, and how to seize the enemy's weakness.
Abhimanyu clenched his teeth and began following the instructions. Gradually—his movements changed.
Confidence returned to his eyes.
And—for the first time—the hound began to struggle.
Once again, Abhimanyu condensed a sphere of lightning in his palm.
Then the voice commanded—
"This time—feint first.
Then, Thunderbolt.
And finally—seal its path with fire magic."
Abhimanyu did exactly that.
He hurled the lightning sphere. The hound leapt to the side to evade it.
"Now," the voice said.
Abhimanyu began chanting and shouted at the top of his lungs—
⚡ Thunderbolt! ⚡
Lightning descended from above. The hound was scorched, yet somehow managed to remain standing.
The very next moment—
🔥 Fire Arrow! 🔥
The burning arrow shot forward and pierced straight into the hound's right eye.
"SKREEEEE—!!!"
Driven mad by pain, the hound let out a shrill scream. Its eye—was its greatest weakness.
Blinded and frantic, it tried to flee.
But—there was only one path left.
Straight toward Abhimanyu.
In its agony and loss of vision, it slammed into the cave wall.
At that moment, the voice thundered—
"What are you standing around for? Attack its other eye!"
Without thinking, Abhimanyu unleashed—
⚡ Thunderbolt! ⚡
But this time, the lightning struck not the eye—
It pierced straight into the hound's nose.
BOOM!
The lightning exploded from within. The hound's head burst apart like a smashed melon.
Its body collapsed to the ground—lifeless.
Abhimanyu sank down where he stood. His breathing was ragged and out of control.
His entire body ached.
For the first time—he had faced death from such terrifying proximity.
Ten minutes later, he somehow forced himself to stand. He extracted the hound's soul stone and kept it with him.
Hunger began to burn inside him.
He cooked the meat. There were no spices, yet the aroma was enough to make his stomach twist in anticipation.
While eating—
Clink!
His knife struck something hard.
A stone—about the size of a fist.
"What is this?"
Abhimanyu muttered.
At once, the magical voice responded—
"You are very fortunate, Abhimanyu."
It explained that this was a storage stone—small, yet extraordinarily valuable.
The smaller the storage item, the higher its worth—and the greater its capacity.
In the end, the voice said—
"To open it, you only need to infuse it with your Level-5 Qi."
What would happen next?
Who did this storage stone belong to?
Would Abhimanyu be able to open it?
And what kind of storm would this discovery unleash upon his life?
The answers to all these questions—
Await in the coming chapters.