The boy and the snake stood facing each other, one carrying a sword and another baring its fangs. Off to the side, a cat sat spectating.
Harry's mind was going through a turmoil of emotions.
First of all, his side hurt. There was going to be a massive bruise on it later.
Second, the snake was still talking. It was cursing him, hissing about eating him for dinner. Harry had no idea how to deal with this – the Exalted Cat didn't seem to act as if this was strange. Perhaps this was a special variety of Magic Beast?
But most of all, he was thinking about how to defeat it. As he had found out, the snake's scales were extremely hard, and he had no way of cutting them. If he attacked, the snake would be unharmed, and then would have an opening to launch its own attack.
But he could defend against the snake with his sword, so at the moment he was in a defensive stance, carefully considering his options.
Harry risked a glance at the Exalted Cat, who was scowling, no doubt at how he had gotten hurt so quickly. Right, no help from there. Maybe he could run. As it stood, he couldn't injure the snake, while the snake could injure him. This battle was one-sided.
'No!' Harry thought. 'I'm not going to run. I need its Beast Core. And I need to temper myself with real battles in order to become strong.'
Steeling his determination, he focused back on the battle. The snake was still there, a few meters away, watching Harry for an opening while spewing out some taunts.
'I wonder if it can understand me,' Harry wondered. And at that moment, the beginnings of a crazy plan formed in his mind.
Without warning, the snake struck, whipping its tail through the air again. Harry immediately parried with his sword. There was a loud CLANG, then both combatants leapt back to their original positions. This snake was no pushover. Just the two exchanges had left Harry's arms numb.
A moment later, the snake struck again, launching a barrage of attacks. The snake would whip Harry with its tail, or strike with its fangs. Harry would parry each time, but just barely, slowly being forced back step by step. Each clash nearly sent the sword out of his hands.
A dozen exchanges passed by, but the snake steadily gained the upper hand.
Finally, desperate, Harry put his crazy plan into action.
'Exalted Cat, if this doesn't work you better save me!' he screamed in his mind.
The snake lunged at Harry, mouth open to reveal its two sharp fangs. Harry once again blocked the attack, but allowed the strike to push himself backwards. Stumbling, he landed on the ground.
The snake saw its chance and immediately lunged forward, fangs bared to deliver a fatal strike. And with a desperate prayer, Harry hissed.
"Can you understand me?"
The snake obviously did, because its eyes widened and abruptly slowed down in the middle of its strike. And at that moment, Harry's sword flew up. It was a simple thrust forward, using his entire strength, with all his power at the tip of the blade. With a soft sound, the blade entered the snake's mouth and out the back of its head.
Blood spewed out of the wound. The snake twitched a few times, then lay still on his sword.
Ever since the battle with the Violet Metallic Snake, Harry had changed. He felt braver, more decisive, more confident in his own strength. For the first time in his life, he had fought and won against a stronger opponent. It was a spiritual rebirth.
The Exalted Cat was correct. Risking his life through fighting had hardened his will and improved his strength. If he ran from the snake, he would instead have suffered a mental setback, and lost confidence.
The cat had even given him some praise, but only for a moment, before scolding him.
"Boy, are you a fool? How can you stand still in the middle of a battle? If your attack doesn't work, then try something else! Never, ever, just stand there like a chicken waiting for slaughter!"
"It's not that," Harry tried to protest. "It was because the snake talked to me!"
"Do you expect me to believe that?"
"It really talked!"
"Boy, this Exalted Cat has heard many lies in my life, but never one as stupid as yours."
"It talked! And I was able to talk back!"
Back and forth they went, until they grew tired of arguing and began carving up the snake. The cat had to do this part. Seeing the cat's claws easily rip the snake open, Harry felt astounded. It seemed that at the very least, his life would be in no danger as long as the cat was around.
Two weeks had passed since that day, and Harry spent the entire time in the deeper area of the forest. Every day Harry ran into three or four Magic Beasts, all of which the Exalted Cat could identify.
"That is an Iron Tusk Warthog. It is slow, but its tusks are very sharp. You are on your own."
"That is a Blue Tailed Salamander. If you can't even kill that, then you're a lost cause."
"That is a Dark Devourer Monkey. Unless you want to climb trees, I advise you forget about it."
"Boy, that Wooden Pronged Reindeer has strength at the high-level of the Body Tempering Realm. If you're eager to die, go ahead and fight it."
"Boy, come quick! There is a family of Blue Pincer Crabs in the water."
That day had been his best harvest, by far. Though the crabs were large, each the size of his head, it was child's play for Harry to stab through their shells. He had gotten a dozen Beast Cores that day, and for dinner they had delicious crab meat.
Harry could tell that he had changed greatly in the last two weeks. If it had been him from before, he would long have become a meal for the Magic Beasts. But instead, it was the other way around. Gaining experience and risking his life had given him more confidence and maturity. When facing Magic Beasts, he could remain calm and think of ways to deal with their attacks and weaknesses.
Slowly, the number of Beast Cores in his bag grew. He now had 30 middle-level Beast Cores and 16 low-level ones - at this rate, he'd finish the task in another two weeks.
At night, besides practicing his swordplay, Harry also tried to comprehend the cultivation technique the rock had imparted him. Its name wasn't in his memory, and he felt like only a portion of it was available to him. The majority of the technique was sealed.
For now, Harry decided to call it the Nameless Technique. Perhaps after he mastered this part, the next would be unlocked and he'd know its name. Yet even the available portion was incredibly profound and complex. Harry could tell it was leagues above the Nine Meridians Qi Circulation Technique.
"Exalted Cat, do you know of a cultivation technique that can flatten a mountain?" Harry asked. That was one of the first phrases the rock had said to him.
'One palm to flatten mountains, one strike to carve a river.'
Those words had been imprinted in his mind, and he couldn't stop thinking about them. If he had that strength, who in the world could be his enemy?
"Boy, is your brain filled with water? How could anyone possess that power?"
Harry closed his mouth, not daring to ask about a technique that could extinguish the stars in the sky. Obviously, that was impossible.
Harry went back to studying the Nameless Technique, but he had a feeling that mastering it would take a long time. The part in his memory was meant for the Body Tempering Realm, yet it made numerous references to "refining the sources of the Five Elements", and Harry had no idea what that referred to.
Further, the Nameless Technique's description of the Body Tempering Realm seemed to be vastly different from the description he was familiar with. Everyone knew the goal of this realm was to open the nine meridians in the body. Every Ordinary Grade technique revolved around the meridians.
Yet the Nameless Technique didn't mention meridians at all. Instead, it listed the Five Minor Accomplishments – Strengthening Flesh, Burning Blood, Rebirthing Muscle, Forging Bone, and Washing Marrow. Harry had never heard of them.
Strengthening Flesh – cultivate an impenetrable defense.
Burning Blood – burn blood to gain explosive power.
Rebirthing Muscle – achieve unparalleled physical strength.
Forging Bone – obtain an indestructible body
Washing Marrow – ability to heal wounds on the physical body.
Cultivate the Five Minor Accomplishments and become peerless in the same realm.
The words used in the technique seemed too good to be true, so good that Harry had trouble believing them. Each of the accomplishments seemed like a superpower on its own.
On deeper thought, they also seemed contradictory. If his body was impenetrable and indestructible, why would he need to heal wounds?
"Exalted Cat, what are the Five Elements?"
"Where did you hear that term?" the cat asked back, clearly surprised.
"It's written in the technique, but I don't know what that means."
"Your technique must be the real deal then," the cat remarked, before launching into an explanation.
"Everything in this world has an attribute – an element, if you will. There are a countless number of elements, yet all come from the fundamental five, known as the Five Elements. They are Fire, Metal, Wood, Earth, and Water. From these five, the rest of the world was created."
"For example, those wolves from the night we met are known as Scarlet Flame Wolves. They have a Fire Attribute. Their cores, if you ever get one, will contain some Fire Qi. Or those crabs, for example, were Water Attribute beasts. So are most fish-type Magic Beasts. There are also attributes like Light, Darkness, Lightning, just to name a few more elemental ones. But all are born from the Five Elements."
"And what does it mean to 'refine the Five Elements'?"
"It means that you must refine five types of items, one for each of the Five Elements. As for what these items are, they could be Beast Cores, or medicinal herbs, or precious items that have an attribute."
"Ok, and what does this phrase mean? Wood feeds Fire, Fire produces Earth, Earth bears Metal, Metal collects Water, Water nourishes Wood," he recited from his memory. Now that the cat confirmed those were the Five Elements, many things had become clearer.
"That is the order in which you refine the Five Elements. You always start with Wood, then Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. The cultivation technique you got from the rock is unexpectedly very precious. Even when considering the entire empire, few techniques are elemental. However, it's too early for you to practice this technique."
"Why?"
"The techniques that make use of the Five Elements are all above Earth Grade."
"But this technique says it's for the Body Tempering Realm."
"Are you sure? Read the technique out for me."
Harry did so.
"Strengthening Flesh, Burning Blood, Rebirthing Muscle, Forging Bone, and Washing Marrow," the cat muttered.
"Have you heard of them?"
The cat just shook its head.
"We'll try this when we get back to Slughorn," it finally said. "Since we're in the forest, there's plenty of Wood Qi around, and we'll find some Magic Plants tomorrow. However, I don't think your technique's method is viable. Refining Wood Qi directly is impossible – that's why we have Alchemists. Remember how difficult it was for you to refine Qi Crystals? It's the same idea."
"I see. But there's another part of this technique that I don't understand. It says to refine the Five Elements using the 'seed' in my body. What is this 'seed'?"
"I don't know either," the cat shrugged. "Perhaps it refers to the meridians. Do you feel like there's a seed in your body?"
Harry examined his body.
"No?" he said uncertainly.
"Then we'll ask Slughorn about this when we get back."
"Alright," Harry shrugged, before getting up to practice his swordplay.
The next day, the Exalted Cat led Harry deeper into the forest, where there grew a group of Mulberry Trees. They were short, not much taller than Harry, but each was thick and sturdy.
"These are a rich source of the Wood Attribute," the cat proclaimed. "Among the Ordinary Grade Magic Plants, they are near the top. When you are done with the Beast Cores, we will come back and bring one of these with us."
"Bring the whole tree?"
"I want to hear Slughorn's opinion on the technique first. On these matters, he knows even more than this Exalted Cat. What, you want to make Slughorn walk all the way out here?"
"No, no," Harry said quickly. "I'll bring one back to Slughorn."
"Good, seems like you still know your manners. Now, get ready for battle."
There was a rustling noise behind him, and Harry spun around, drawing his sword out in a single smooth motion.
Out of the bushes stepped a fox. It was only slightly larger than the Exalted Cat, with brown and dark orange fur. What stood out the most was its tail, which was bright orange, like the color of the blazing sun.
"That is an Orange Tailed Fox. They are quite fast. You are on your own."
Harry no longer hesitated. Whenever the cat said that he was on his own, it was an indication that the cat believed he could win.
Running forward, he swung his sword. Due to spending so much time practicing, his blade sliced through the air, leaving a clean whistling sound as it did. The Orange Tailed Fox, however, was much faster than Harry anticipated.
It crouched down, narrowly dodging the blade, and then sprang up, claws and fangs bared. Not batting an eye, Harry flicked his wrist and sent the blade upwards, smashing it into the fox and sending it away.
He had practiced this move many times, but this was the first time he executed it in battle. Its main purpose was to allow him to recover from missing a strike – but the disadvantage was that due to the odd angle, the sharp edge of the blade couldn't penetrate the enemy.
The fox immediately recovered, and leapt at Harry again. Harry raised his sword above his head, and smashed down. But once again, Harry underestimated its speed. The fox twisted in midair, dodging the attack, and the sword slammed into the ground, carving a small ditch into the dirt. The impact left his arms shaking, while the fox was unharmed.
'This thing is fast,' Harry exclaimed. 'How do I trap this thing?'
'Offense is the best defense,' the Exalted Cat had drilled into his mind over the past week.
Harry charged forward, slashing with his sword. Yet the fox nimbly evaded every attack, while Harry managed to keep an offense strong enough to prevent counterattacks. A few minutes later, the result of his efforts was that Harry was panting, while the fox stood unscratched. Maybe it was Harry's imagination, but it even seemed to be taunting him.
'Damn you,' Harry swore at the fox. 'If only I could stop it from –'
At that moment, yet another crazy plan formed in his mind.