Caleb Li appeared inside his small room in the ancient realm with a look of wonder on his face.
He had wondered many times how it was possible for people to travel from one world to another with just a thought.
Thinking for a couple of seconds, he shook his head and dismissed the thought from his mind. He was too weak to decipher the secret of the word.
Before coming to the Ancient World, he already had plans. Now that he had sufficient money, he didn't have to worry about his lifespan. Without dilly-dallying, he went to look for the old man.
Inside the Mercenary lobby, the old man was busy attending to the mercenaries. Today, the lobby was somewhat fuller than any other days.
He stood by the side and watched how the mercenaries handed over their mission and received their reward.
Even though the old man was the only person attending to the mercenaries, it was only to accept and receive their mission.
As for the reward, they needed to enter another room where another person would attend to them.
After waiting for an hour, the old man was finally free and turned to look at him.
"You're back," he said.
"Yes, what's going on? Why are there many people today?" Caleb Li questioned as he walked toward him.
"Hmm. The village chief posted a mission, and all the mercenaries are trying to make money from it."
"What mission?"
"Look for yourself." He pointed at the mission board to the side.
Caleb Li walked toward the mission and read the available missions.
The Dark Beasts are increasing, and the Village Chief wants the mercenaries to kill as many as possible to reduce the Dark Mist from spreading toward the village.
If the village did not act swiftly and the Dark Mist spread toward their village, there was only one option left: Run!
The Dark Mist was horrifying, turning everything into a dark forest in a matter of seconds after contact.
No one knew why the Dark Mist continued to spread, but each spread brought destruction.
After many years of battling the Dark Mist, the inhabitants of the Ancient realm found a way to counter the Dark Mist and fight off the Dark Beasts: the Whitening Pill.
The Whitening Pill would stop the Dark Mist from invading people's bodies for a couple of hours, allowing them to eradicate the Dark Beast.
With this, the people could finally have a semblance of a little chance of stopping the widespread Dark Mist.
Back to Caleb Li, he looked at the wide array of missions and creased his brow lightly.
"Does Dark Beasts have grades?" He asked since there was a rank in the mission.
"Yes, there are three grades around our village: Ordinary Grade, Grade-1, and Grade-2 Dark Beast. There are higher grades, but you can't find them around here."
"Can I kill the Ordinary Grade with my level?" He asked.
"No, you must be at least a Rank-3 Mortal Warrior."
Caleb Li did not respond any longer and went back to the old man.
"Please, I need a more powerful vitality pill. The Vitality pills are no longer effective on me."
The old man did not respond immediately but looked at him for a couple of seconds. Caleb Li looked at the old man's face and couldn't detect what was going on in his mind.
Finally, the old man spoke. "You need to buy it outside. A Grade-1 Vitality Pill should work for you."
"Thank you."
The old man waved his hand, dismissing it as if it was nothing. "That is common knowledge that everyone knows. Take." He gave him back his pouch containing his one hundred silver coins.
"The only Alchemist store is nearby. You should find it easily." With that, he sent him off.
The old man looked at his departing back for a moment before he went back to his work.
After spending days in the mercenary quarters, this was the first time he came out.
He looked at the street filled with people, both old and young. The dirt road was not wide enough, and people needed to move close to each other.
The villager was already used to it and knew how to find their ways. Caleb Li found it difficult to move among the throng of people, but after 20 minutes, he found the alchemist store.
After a couple of minutes, he came out of the Alchemist store with a bright smile on his face.
He bought two Grade-1 Vitality Pills and couldn't wait to use them.
As he prepared to return, he found a weapon store on the opposite street and grinned.
He rushed into the weapon store and went on a shopping spree.
He bought a Common Grade Bow with fifty arrows.
Apart from that, he bought two twin swords. He carried the bow and arrow at his back, while the twin swords hung on both of his waist.
Looking at himself, he grinned and walked back to the mercenary building.
Anyone who met him on the way gave him a weird look, but he didn't care.
Inside the mercenary building, all the mercenaries looked at him with a strange gaze when he entered.
As a soldier, he had thick skin and marched forward with a calm expression.
As for the old man, he was speechless. He sighed and shook. 'I guess he's still a kid after all.'
Inside his room, Caleb Li sat on the cold hard ground and took out the first Grade-1 Vitality pill.
He looked at the small blue pill for a few seconds and smelled the strong scent from it. From the scent alone, he was invigorated.
Taking a deep breath, he swallowed the pill. Instantly, the pill melted in his mouth like it was water.
He was slightly surprised but continued to run his cultivation technique. Lost in his cultivation, he heard a sound in his ear.
Pop!
He slowly opened his eyes and noticed he could no longer feel the effect of the Grade-1 Vitality pill.
Without thinking too much about it, he called the system in his heart.
[Ding!]
[Lifespan: 15 days (+1 year)]
[Ding!]
[You've broken through to Rank-3 Mortal Warrior]