Only I Am A Reader

\'So, it already started…\'

Leo was alerted by the large number of people moving around as he picked up another Elixir that he took Sword Breaker out of its sheath, but he realized that he wasn\'t the target after hearing the moving group\'s voices.

Undoubtedly, this commotion was created by those who were chasing after Ray. It felt like everything started earlier than Leo expected, but no specific time was mentioned in the novel. Either way, Ray\'s chase for life had started.

\'Oh?\'

Knowing how this event would evolve in the end, Leo wanted to leave before he got entangled with it, but a piercing glare had already landed at him as he took off!

\'That was a close call…\'

He wasn\'t sure, but Leo was familiar with the sensation he felt at the start of the trial. It seemed like Ray\'s cheat senses still worked while being chased.

Without even trying to catch his breath, Leo moved out in the opposite direction. Regardless of the consequences of meeting with Ray, moving around this area would be nothing but a waste of time.

Under the frenzy of the chase, Ray had no choice but to collect every single Elixir he came upon to obtain the capability of handling his chasers, with his high-quality harvesting action, every place he passed by would practically have no use.

\'Thanks \'brother\' of mine.\'

On the bright side, with a large part of the trial takers having the hidden agenda of taking down Ray, Leo had even fewer obstacles as he went around to pick up \'loot\'. Furthermore, there were more Elixirs to pick up since no one had the time to practically inspect them!

\'This is doable.\'

Leo\'s efficiency was boosted by his \'Elixir Detector\', but he still needed time. Unfortunately, the Sword Garden Trial only lasted for three days, and he had something important to do in the last one. As such, Leo had to achieve the legendary feat of \'ascending\' to the high grades in less than two days.

Thankfully, everything seemed to be going well so far. On average, Leo was able to nap at least two Elixirs within an hour. So, if nothing wrong happened, Leo was confident enough in his plans. It was just that…

\'The last day would be the hard part.\'

`~~~`~~~`~~~`

[ Hidden Event occurrence has been detected. Hidden Piece, Sword Rose, Discovered. ]

[ You have received 8 Reading Points. ]

As the sun of the Sword Garden Trial\'s second day was setting, Leo picked up a thorny rose from the middle of a natural rosebed after confirming its status as an Elixir before running away.

Unlike what he usually did, Leo didn\'t directly consume the rose\'s pistil this time. He wasn\'t afraid of it being stolen, nor was he being chased, but Leo couldn\'t afford to consume it in the open this time…

________________________

Personal Statistics:

----------------

True Sword Breath: 546/600

Physique: 2.28

Mind: 1.45 (+2)

Sword Breath: 698.9

________________________

\'This should do it.\'

After almost two days of getting used to his \'cheat\', Leo was more or less capable of guessing the amount of Sword Breath that an Elixir could supply by using the rewarded \'Reading Points\' as an indicator. As such, even though the Elixirs became less effective as he consumed more of them, Leo knew that the rose in his hand was enough to take the last step he required!

Naturally, considering the pain he would likely go through after his \'ascension\', Leo couldn\'t risk being ambushed, which was why he had to find a place to hide for the few minutes he would be \'offline\' in.

While rushing through the Sword Garden, Leo finally found a small spot surrounded by trees far away from the ongoing chase before finally setting down.

\'This is a new experience in more than one way.\'

Not only was this Leo\'s first \'ascension\' towards the high-grades, but it was also Leo\'s first time to \'ascend\' while seated. This was the experience brought by the use of \'Elixirs\', something that could only be experienced once due to their limited capability.

\'One more step!\'

After opening the bag full of reserved beef jerkies and putting it in front of him, Leo crossed his legs as he threw the rose\'s petals into his mouth, chewing as he focused on the start of his Sword Breath\'s last transition!

With the use of various Hidden Pieces, Leo\'s Sword Breath had long all turned into \'liquid\', but during the last two days, the continuous Elixir consumption had already compressed a third of that liquid even further, turning into micro-crystals that truly occupied space within his body.

However, with the addition of the last bit of Sword Breath contained within the rose, the new Sword Breath that still retained its mere \'gaseous\' form was experiencing sublimation! It was directly turning into \'solids\' that built up upon the newly compressed crystals!

Despite the complication of the \'Solidification\' process, it still didn\'t consume more time in comparison to previous \'ascensions\'. In a matter of minutes, a complete third Sword Breath in Leo\'s body had turned into insoluble solids that freely swam within the liquid that filled the rest of the \'space\'.

Without delay, the following process sprang into action all the same. Leo\'s muscles felt like they were being melted as he barely held on to his consciousness. Other than feeling that the effect was largely intensified, Leo could really tell that the re-construction also took much longer than usual this time!

Undeniably, as one of the last three gates to the peak, the abnormality brought by crossing one wasn\'t anything ordinary. At this point, Leo wasn\'t sure he would be able to hold on during the next two \'ascensions\' without passing out…

\'It\'s not the time to worry about that yet.\'

Leo\'s experience was more than enough to dread what followed, but that fear would only be explainable if he obtained the means to reach that far.. Using his mental exhaustion as a buffer, Leo let part of consciousness go while staying alert. If he wanted to achieve his goal for the next day, he needed all the rest he could get!