Chapter 4 - Steel Body

Clyde walked towards Emelssha. He saw Emelssha with her tattered clothes covering only her dangerous parts. (you know what I mean)

He then said mockingly, " Am I still weak in your eyes little miss?"

Emelssha just snorted and looked away from him. Then Clyde pulled a robe from his storage space pouch and threw it at Emelssha. Emelssha grabbed it but refuses to wear it.

"You will pay for this Clyde." Then she crushed a small seal and then light enveloped her for 10 seconds and then she vanished.

"She actually used a teleportation seal eh?" he then turned his gaze towards the charred body of the Red-furred Bear. Even if its body turned to charcoal, its horns, fangs, claws and some part of its bone are undamaged and still can be sold at the kingdom or for Clyde to be used.

After looting the valuable parts of the bear, he continued to go deeper into the forest.

******

A beautiful fountain with gardens surrounding it is placed in the heart of the kingdom. A lady with burnt clothes appeared out of nowhere and now lying near the fountain unconscious.

"Is that….."

"That is Fairy Emelssha!"

"What happened to her?"

Then the nearby people around her rushed to her and helped her. She is now surrounded by so many people.

She slowly opened her eyes. Peoples who currently attending to her needs become agitated and they asked what really happened. She is now sitting on a chair provided by the people around her.

"I was framed up by Clyde." She said to them.

"Clyde? Who's Clyde?"

"Clyde?hmmmmm."

"The number 1 weakling Clyde?"

When she heard someone said that, she nodded.

"What exactly did he do to you?" People nearby asked.

"He lured a Red-furred Bear towards me and he let me fight it. Then when Bear injured me by its attacks, Clyde seized the opportunity and gave me a blast of fireball and because of my wounds, I don't have the chance to defend myself and I fainted. Afterwards, he lures the bear away from me and then he robbed my belongings but a Teleportation seal was hidden in my secret pocket and I used it to teleport here." Then she cried.

"We will make Clyde pay for this. Right my fellow citizens?" a man shouted.

"YES!!"

******

Clyde continued on traveling in the forest. He killed some beasts and took away their valuable parts.

"I acquired enough for me to buy the equipment I needed." He nodded as he checked the contents of his storage space. All of this happens because his speed is faster than anyone in the forest because he is using quicksteps constantly. His quickstep reached level 5.

"I dived too deep. The sun will gonna hide soon I must sell this and get home immediately.

"What is that book over there?" He saw a book not too far away from where he is standing. It was lying besides a tree. He walks towards it and then grabbed it. |It was somewhat thin to be called a book.|

The book was entitled 'Steel body'. He read it's content and learned that it was a skill solely for making his body tough.

How can I level up my newly acquired skill?| Clyde asked Alice. This skill is really different from others. This is a passive skill while his other skills are active. The active skill requires him to use them so he can gain EXP.

Just receive damage. Let someone hit you or damaged yourself and please don't forget not to be killed when receiving blows.| Alice said.

Hmmmmm, that is acc-| he stopped in the middle of the sentence as if he realized something. "WHAT?!" he subconsciously shouted when he realized what is needed to gain EXP on that certain skill. It is a form of humiliation and self-mutilation.

Do I really need to do this?| He asked himself. Then he nodded and said, "GO!".

He really needed to make his body tough so that his chances of surviving are higher. Staying alive is his main goal and being strong is a part of it.

"I just need to endure the pain. Yeah, I really need to train it so my survivability will go higher." He consoled himself. He cut some trees nearby him and piled it like a box with space inside. He then sat inside the piled logs. Then he removed his clothes. His clothes are not fire-resistant so it will naturally be reduced to ashes if he started to train because the way he will train is to damage his body using fire. Then he burned the log and he is inside the burning log, burned along with it.

"ARRGGGHHHH!" He shouted in pain. His skin is burned along with his hair. Clyde continued to burn himself. His whole body is filled with burn marks. He felt his skin tingle as the fire burns his whole body.

"OHHHH MY GOD! IS THAT MY ROASTED HOTDOG?" he stared at his groin like an idiot as he cried. He cried for his sword being burned.

The pain he felt grew lesser and lesser but the fire is burning constantly. He assumed that the reason why the pain is lessening because the skill he is cultivating right now has leveled up.

The logs finally burned out to ashes and the only thing can be seen there is a man that is as black as charcoal sitting in a lotus position.

Activated its effect| Then he turned normal and his hair has grown back. Before he did this self-humiliation training, he drank a full restoration potion. He realized that he can use a pill or potion's effect any time he wants as long as it is inside his body. Even if he drank it at 8 am he can activate its effect at 8 pm.

The restoration potion heals the whole body of everyone who consumed it. Hair can be grown back and his injuries will be healed up.

Status Check|

CULTIVATION LEVEL: LEVEL 3 ENERGY CONDENSATION STAGE

EXP: 90/400

SKILLS: FIREBALL

LVL: 4/10

EXP: 137/160

WATER BLAST

LVL: 4/10

EXP: 90/160

QUICKSTEP

LVL: 5/10

EXP: 54/320

BODY ENHANCEMENT

LVL: 2/10

EXP: 10/40

EARTH WALL

LEVEL: 1/10

EXP: 10/20

WIND BLADES

LEVEL: 4/10

EXP: 9/160

STEEL BODY

LEVEL: 6/10

EXP: 243/640

"It actually reached level 6?! That must be the reason why I don't even feel the slightest pain in the last 15 minutes of the fire burning." He is actually happy by the result. Having a strong body that can endure attacks deserved to be celebrated. He can receive a blow from his enemy's attack without taking any damage or injuries.

"Time to head back to the Kingdom and sell these things!" Then he used quicksteps from time to time as he runs towards the kingdom. He doesn't care about his energy depleting. His system, Alice, is the one who absorbs natural energy for him and cultivates for him. So every time he used energy on skills, Alice will replenish it for him and that is also the reason why he kept on using quicksteps. And also, quicksteps uses a smaller amount of energy because it already has high-level mastery.

He rushed towards the kingdom happily. He can see the kingdom in a distance now and he noticed adventurers congregating in front of the kingdom's gate.

What are they doing there?| Clyde wondered. Then, he continued on running while using quicksteps. Soon, he reached the kingdom's gate and then stopped on his track.

"You still dared to come back after what you did to Fairy Emelssha?" one of the adventurers said. There are roughly Thirty adventurers present in front of the gate.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Clyde scratched his head as he stares at the adventurers confusedly. |Emelssha? The hell! I helped her, it was that bad?|

"You still have guts to ask those questions in front of us? Being the weakest is one thing, but to be that shameless? Uggghh! Someone's going to receive a blow from me and there is no need for you to even guess, IT WAS YOU!" then the man pointed at him while his face is filled with anger then he shouted again in a loud voice, "LET'S GO AND PUNISH THAT PIECE OF CRAP." Then he rushed towards Clyde and the other adventurers followed him.

Clyde was startled by what happened. |Shit! I need to run I do--- wait, if I take a blow from them then I can train my Steel Body skill to a higher level. Their attacks are something I can endure with my Steel body's current skill. Then let's accept this blessing, I mean beating| then he stood there like an idiot while facing attacks from the adventurers.

An adventurer appeared in front of him and he swung his war hammer and it landed on Clyde's stomach and he flew away into the mid-air and then he landed at a stony area near in the kingdom. He created a loud bang when he landed.

"UGHHH! So weak!"