Hearing this, both were confused but nodded and agreed to Ash's request, as it didn't matter to them what attacked them. The important thing is that they are safe.
They quickly entered the village, but Ash had no time to linger. He needed to find a good map and give it to Morvess, who was still waiting outside the village.
Turning to Adam and Jin, he said, "I've got something important to take care of. I'll catch up with you both later." Without waiting for a response, Ash headed off to complete his task.
He didn't need to go anywhere to find the good map, as he had some maps at home. He took one from his master's place, and now he just needed to give it to Morvess.
After finding a suitable map, Ash quickly came outside, making sure no one saw him leaving the village. Morvess was quietly waiting in a hidden corner of the forest, exactly where he had told him to stay.
The moment Morvess saw him, he dropped to one knee in a gesture of submission. He sighed, already finding the habit irritating.
"Alright, enough of that. You don't need to kneel every time we meet," Ash said, waving his hand to stop him. "Just stand like a normal person; it's getting annoying."
"Take it."
"The nearest city is about seven hundred miles away from here, but with your strength, it wouldn't be difficult to reach in two days."
"Listen carefully; the nearest city is Rock Castle City. It is quite a bustling city filled with merchants and different mercenary groups that travel all over the place and complete different tasks and orders."
"This was an ideal place to establish a mercenary group and a perfect place to start your task, which is to create a strong independent mercenary."
"But be careful," he said, changing his carefree tone. " And don't mention anything about me or leave any hints that could lead back to me. Understand?" He paused briefly, then added, "Alright, that's enough said. Good luck."
With that, he motioned for Morvess to leave.
Morvess nodded, without showing any emotions, silently acknowledging every word. Without another sound, he turned and disappeared into the forest.
Watching him leave, Ash couldn't help looking forward to what he would achieve in the future. Could he surprise him? But it would take time, and he would need to continue to grow stronger.
Only his own strength can give him the confidence to survive no matter what the situation is.
Ash returned to his routine, focusing on his training, refining his archery skills, and going on occasional hunts. Immersed in his daily tasks, time seemed to slip by, and before he knew it, a month had passed since Morvess had left to establish the mercenary group.
In the deserted training ground, the whistling sound of arrows tearing through the wind can be heard as Ash is practising his archery skill.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
He fired ten arrows in just a few seconds, and every single one struck the bullseye. Each target was at a distance of three hundred meters, making the feat all the more impressive, as just a month ago he needed to concentrate and use his eye's ability to make a single shot.
But now he can aim to double the distance with ease without even needing to use his eye ability, showing his remarkable progress. He used his eye's ability to know the exact progress.
[Ash/Asterion - Level 05(1/10)]
[Evolver Level - Middle Stage Awakened ]
[Martial Arts Level - Second Rate ]
[Strength- 18.6 (+11)↑]
[Speed- 18.5 (+11)↑ ]
[Physique- 18.5 (+11)↑ ]
[Spirit- 4.7 (+1.3)↑ ]
[Talent- Eye of Myriad Manifestation (Level- 01)]
[ Spiritual Ability- Mark of Lost Soul ]
[Soul Pet/ Servant- Grim( Awakened Realm), Morvess( Peak Awakened Realm)]
[Cultivation Skills-108 Star Empyrean Technique [Level - 0 (986/5000)], Shadow Wolf Technique [ Level - 2 (35/80)]
[Martial Skills - Dragon Elephant Divine Fist [Level - 1 (1679/3000)], Star Constellation Steps [Level - 2 (14/2000)], Nine Heart Arrow [Level-2 (137/200)]].
His stats all-round improved quite a lot, especially his physical stats, which were more than twice those of his breakthrough second-rate martial artists.
He also is close to a breakthrough in his Evolver training. According to what he felt when his spirit reached five, he should be able to break through the late-stage awakener realm. As for what changes it will have brought, it can only be known after his breakthrough.
About martial arts, most improvement was naturally in the Nine Heart Arrow technique, as it reached the second level, and now he can fire five arrows consecutively to achieve a devastating attack.
His Star Constellation Steps had also advanced to the second level, as it was the second least difficult technique he trained in. However, the other techniques weren't just more challenging—they were also of a much higher level. This made their progress slower, even when he dedicated extra time to practising them.
Because of their difficulty and how much experience they needed, they didn't achieve a breakthrough, but it still improved their strength. It was due to cultivating the 108 Star Empyrean technique that his strength improved this quickly.
Although higher-ranked techniques are slower to improve, their advantage is clear as day. It is worth every drop of hard work.
"Not bad; I am quite strong now. I should be able to defeat an ordinary first-rate master without difficulty." He murmured, looking at his improvement. But he knows there should be many geniuses in the world, and he cannot be too cocky after just two months of training hoping to defeat all.
Just as Ash was savouring his moment of progress, a voice broke through his thoughts.
"Ash, you're here! We're leaving—come quickly!"
Jin came running toward him, panting heavily, clearly out of breath from searching for him for some time.
He stopped thinking about his improvements and nodded at seeing Jin, "Alright, let's go; I am ready."
"Come Grim let's go." And then they left the place and came to the gathering place of soldiers.