"David, have you ever consumed a Level 2 Strengthening Potion?" Galen asked when he saw that David's aura was stable. He could sense the improvement in David's physique.
"Father prepared a Level 2 Strengthening Potion for me a few days ago, but I haven't consumed it yet because I've been feeling like I'm on the verge of a breakthrough in Bodywork," David answered.
"David, you shouldn't consume that Level 2 Strengthening Potion. If you encounter difficulties in the breakthrough to becoming an armorer, the Level 2 Strengthening Potion will be able to help you. Of course, it is very likely that your breakthrough will be an easy one!" Galen said emotionally.
Intermediate-level Bodywork was a straightforward path for breaking through and becoming an armorer, and after the breakthrough, the improvement one experienced was naturally a lot higher than of the average armorer. The most important thing was that the foundation was more solid.
Galen continued in a deep voice, "David, Maron, you must be clear to you that 1,000 kilograms is the limit of our bodies and Bodywork is the key to breaking this limit. Many people resort to an abundance of resources to push their limits up to 1,000 kilograms and forcefully become armorers, thus neglecting the importance of their Bodywork. That cuts off future growth potential. I hope that you will try not to use assistive means like Strengthening Potions, putting it off as far as possible. Try to choose the most primitive strengthened meat as your resource. Although it will give a smaller boost, it will not cause any hidden problems later on."
"Uncle Galen, does that mean that we can't use Strengthening Potions anymore? I've already consumed two bottles of Level 2 Strengthening Potions!" Maron asked worriedly.
"Why did your father only provide you with two bottles of Level 2 Strengthening Potions and not more? You're stuck in a bottleneck, and if you are given just one more bottle of Level 2 Strengthening Potion, you will naturally break through. He is protecting you. He doesn't want you to hurt your fundamentals, encouraging you to rely on improving your Bodywork instead in order to break through to become an armorer," Galen said with a broad smile.
Having understood the reasoning behind the action, Maron nodded.
"David, you are in a special situation. Since you have not taken any Level 2 Strengthening Potions, your body is extremely pure and has not been affected by the Strengthening Potions yet. Some of the ingredients in the Strengthening Potions will have some effects on your body, so it is best to keep improving yourself through Bodywork until it is absolutely necessary. You will understand the benefits when you become an armorer later on," Galen said as he turned towards David again.
David nodded. In his understanding, Strengthening Potions might contain ingredients like stimulants, which could be harmful to the body.
In order to allow more people to become armorers, they had no choice but to increase the production of Strengthening Potions, thereby increasing the number of armorers.
"Maron, contact your father and ask him to send over two warhammers. David is lacking in everything here," Galen demanded, no intention of being polite to Maron present.
"Uncle Galen, do I have to use a war hammer in the future too?" Maron asked with a look of dismay.
He had been practicing the longsword for a long time and he was confident that he had some talent with it. He really could not bear to switch to a warhammer.
"Oh, you can choose other heavy weapons. However, the warhammer is the only weapon I learned how to use, and I can't guarantee that the teaching results for the other heavy weapons will be good," Galen said indifferently.
"Uncle Galen, I don't understand why we must choose a heavy weapon. Can't a longsword do?" asked Maron, who was still insistent on using his longsword.
"Maron, if you don't want to be an armorer who fights the bugs, you can choose whatever weapon you want. However, if you have to fight the bugs, then using a longsword will not only harm you, but also your companions," Galen said, seeming to have thought of something that brought a tinge of melancholy into his tone.
The longsword was a weapon that was favored by many because it could be carried around easily and was rather light. It could also be wielded very easily and was more likely to attract the attention of girls than other weapons.
However, one would need intense concentration in order to deal with bugs with greater lethality, even if their shells were made of the same level as the weapons. The main use of the longsword was for stabbing things, but its effects were inferior to that of the long spear. In terms of hacking and launching heavy strikes, it was not as good as the heavy axe or warhammer.
Of course, there were powerful armorers who used longswords on the battlefield. However, they were all armorers who were at their peak and had strength that had long reached the limit of 2,000 kilograms. Under the premise of guaranteed attacks, the flexibility of the longsword could also bring about more lethality.
However, that was only the case for armorers at the pinnacle. The average armorer would still have to focus on the effects of heavy strikes. Given the speed of the bugs, the chances of the armorer achieving a successful strike were slim, and every strike had to be launched with maximum attack power.
"Uncle Galen, I'll learn the warhammer from you," said Maron, who chose to trust Galen even though it was unclear if he had understood the reasoning behind the choice.
"David, stop training for today and get some rest," Galen instructed David. He then turned to Maron and said, "I'm going to give you some instructions and guidance on Bodywork. We'll start with the first movement."
Maron watched with envy as David left the underground gym.
As soon as David had left the room, he picked up his pace and returned to his bedroom with eager anticipation. Since there were two more people living with him now, the only place he could enjoy undisturbed privacy was in his bedroom.
The stealthy Shadow Servant flew towards David, who put his hand on it, after which the familiar attribute panel appeared before him.
Name: David Karl
Strength: 3.0 (1)
Agility: 1.9 (1)
Physique: 3.0 (1)
Mental Energy: 3.0 (1)
Literature (3% Intermediate), Mathematics (5% Intermediate), General (51% Beginner), Bodywork (1% Intermediate), Longsword Mastery (5% Beginner), Electronic Warfare Retaliation (98% Proficiency)
He had broken through and reached 1% Intermediate in Bodywork. At the same time, he had also achieved a huge breakthrough in strength, speed, and physique.
With 3.0 Strength, his strength had reached 800 kilograms and his Agility, which was at 1.9 arbitrary units, allowed him to achieve a pace of 8.4-seconds for a 100-meter sprint. Those stats qualified him to apply to Nan University.
In terms of Physique, the important factor that Galen mentioned, he had already reached 3.0 arbitrary units, which was on par with his Strength. Given his previous experience, his Physique had already reached beyond 800 kilograms.
David then looked at the Agility attribute on his attribute panel, which was the lowest of all the attributes.
"It's a pity there's no method that can allow us to train agility alone. Maybe we'll learn it in college!"
In fact, speed had always been the weakness of many armorers. Even with the enhancement of the exoskeleton armor, their speed could not be compared to those of the bugs, which was the reason that the armorers had to defeat the bugs by sieging them.
David detected the Shadow Servant's Warhammer Mastery (82% Intermediate) Knowledge Orb and ordered the Shadow Servant to transfer it into his body. Galen would be teaching Maron and him how to use the warhammer next. Hence, he had to learn the Warhammer Mastery (82% Intermediate) as soon as possible.
While the orb was fusing with his body, his body suddenly trembled and a sanguine realm appeared before his eyes.
Although David had long been prepared for this, the scene before him nonetheless gave him a great shock.
At this moment, he was standing on a vast land, which had a dark, brown-colored ground. The air was full of the horrendous stench of blood and decaying bodies.
He held onto a giant warhammer, which was 1.5 meters long and glowed with a strange luster. One side of the hammerhead was a sharp horn, while the other was flat.
The handle of the warhammer had a chain attached to his right arm, which prevented the hammer from breaking away from his body.
David tried to move his body, but he discovered that he could only detect with that body, not control it.
He could sense the weight that the warhammer was putting on his right arm, the crispness of the wind blowing across his cheeks, the hardness of the earth beneath his feet. However, it was all just perception. He was just a bystander trapped inside another's body.
While he was still observing the body, it suddenly moved, causing him to put his right hand forward. The warhammer in his hand moved through the air, it's trajectory a perfect arc.
The target of the warhammer turned out to be a Hunter Mantis that had appeared out of nowhere. David learned from the bug diagrams he had studied at school that the Hunter Mantis was the Bug's land-based scouting soldier. Its shell was weaker than those of other bugs but it was incredibly fast and its weapon was a pair of sickle-shaped limbs which resembled chainsaws.
The Hunter Mantis was a weak existence amongst the Class 1 Bugs, and of course, that was only relative to the strong armorers. Ordinary armorers probably would not even be able to capture their shadows.
"Die!" David's body hollered, feeling the power explode within him. He attacked faster with the warhammer in his hand.
However, the Hunter Mantis was speeding up at the same time. Its body grazed against the warhammer and dodged towards the side, slicing David's waist with its scythe while doing so.