After being dismissed from Peter's office, Saka made his way to the base canteen. A plate piled high with cream-filled donuts was waiting for him. Without hesitation, he began devouring them, shoving the entire plate's worth into his mouth in under a minute.
Now sitting alone at his table, Saka leaned back in his seat, his mind drifting to the events of the day.
'Why did I lie?' he thought, a deep frown crossing his face.
'It was strange enough that I was doing exactly what he told me to do, but I never imagined the influence would make me lie to the faction. And now that I've lied, the system isn't punishing me or even flagging the action.'
The image of the faint glow in Alex's eyes replayed in Saka's mind, over and over again.
"That boy…" Saka muttered under his breath. "He's not normal. I think he's dangerous."
His thoughts continued to swirl as he recalled Elder Rooney, one of the faction's higher-ups. Elder Rooney had managed to resist influence magic a few times in the past.
'If I want to learn more about Alex,' Saka thought, 'then maybe I can find a way to counter this influence as well.'
At that moment, Saka made up his mind. He would keep an eye on Alex, no matter what.
Reaching for his tablet, Saka accessed the system's network. After a quick search, a smirk crept across his face.
'Looks like someone forgot to turn off his location,' Saka thought, closing the system interface with a satisfied expression.
---
Meanwhile, Alex had just stepped out of the shower. His skin felt refreshed, and the blood from earlier had finally been washed away. He changed into a new set of clothes, his mind readying itself for whatever was coming next.
As usual, Alex chose something simple—a black sports outfit he found in his closet. After putting it on, he left the room to explore.
He already had a specific place in mind, but before heading there, he needed to check a few things.
The first task was to find out where his grandfather and the rest of the household were.
Eventually, he spotted them in an area of the mansion near a small mountain. The mountain had a cascading waterfall, its water glistening under the light.
Alex observed them from a distance. They were all seated, their postures calm and composed, meditating like monks.
'Cultivating?' Alex thought, narrowing his eyes.
Closing his own eyes, Alex took a deep breath. Almost instantly, he felt it—a strong flow of pure Qi surrounding the mountain. The energy in the air was thick and vibrant, unlike anything he'd felt before.
'Is this why they built the family house here? Because this place is rich in Qi?' Alex wondered.
As a child, Alex had always questioned why the Wyndham family, with all their wealth and influence, had chosen such a remote location in the woods to settle. To his younger self, it made no sense.
But now that he was a Paragon, it all clicked into place. The abundance of Qi in the area was likely the key reason.
Despite his newfound understanding, Alex had no desire to linger. Watching them cultivate left him uneasy, so he quickly left his viewing spot and returned to the mansion without drawing attention to himself.
Meanwhile, just seconds after Alex left, Lucius, who had been cultivating with the others, slowly opened his eyes. He glanced at the spot where Alex had been watching them. After a brief moment, he closed his eyes again and resumed his meditation.
---
By this time, Alex had already arrived at his destination.
It was an open training space filled with various types of equipment—gym equipment, to be precise. The area had everything from a sparring ring to racks of weights and heavy machinery meant for exercise.
Despite the impressive range of equipment, Alex couldn't help but feel disappointed.
"For a family of Paragons, how is there no equipment designed specifically for them in their training space?" Alex muttered to himself, his voice tinged with annoyance.
When it came to training, Alex knew Paragons couldn't use the same equipment as average humans. The difference in strength was too vast.
Take, for example, the heaviest dumbbell designed for a normal person. Even the weakest Paragon could lift it with ease, barely breaking a sweat. Because of this, all Paragon training equipment had to be specially designed, with durability and weight far beyond what a normal human could handle.
Yet as Alex looked around the family gym, all he saw were standard weights and machines. None of them would challenge him in the slightest.
His disappointment deepened as he walked through the space, his gaze sweeping over the ordinary equipment. It was clear this area wasn't built with Paragons in mind, leaving Alex wondering why a family as powerful as the Wyndhams didn't have better resources for their training.
As Alex continued searching the gym for anything that might suit him, an idea suddenly popped into his mind.
"Why didn't I think of this earlier?" Alex said aloud, almost amused at himself.
He walked back to the entrance of the gym and activated something within him.
Immediately, the atmosphere around him started to shift. It wasn't an entirely new location—he was still inside the same large gym hall—but the equipment inside began to change.
One by one, every piece of gym equipment was replaced. The standard weights and machines vanished, and in their place appeared gear specifically designed for Paragons. Just by looking at them, Alex could tell these new pieces were far more advanced and tailored to meet the strength and durability needs of someone like him.
But there was another change Alex hadn't expected.
From somewhere inside the gym, he heard a noise—a loud, rhythmic thudding. It was a clear sign that someone, or something, was already in the gym.
Curious, Alex moved deeper into the hall, peeking around to find the source of the sound.
What he saw made him freeze.
A large, abnormally tall figure stood at the far end of the gym. Its body was covered in dark fur, and two massive tusks protruded from its face, giving it the appearance of a wild pig. It had a humanoid form and wore only a pair of shorts to cover its lower body.
The creature moved with startling force, its muscular arms striking one of the heavy machines in the gym.
As Alex watched, memories rushed into his mind.
"This... I've seen this before," Alex muttered under his breath.
It was unmistakable—the creature was a humanoid wild pig. Its brutish form and raw strength were impossible to forget.
The wild pig-man seemed entirely focused on its task, attacking the machinery with an intensity that made the gym echo with its movements.
The humanoid wild pig stepped back, gathering momentum before charging headfirst at a pillar with a number displayed at the top. It struck the pillar with its head, then swung its powerful arms at it repeatedly. With each strike, the number displayed on the pillar increased.
[5508]
[5520]
Alex watched intently as the numbers climbed higher and higher. He was so focused on the display that he didn't notice when the creature suddenly stopped. It wasn't until the numbers froze that Alex realized something was off.
"You…" the wild pig growled in a deep, guttural voice.
"Who are you? You shouldn't be here," it snarled, turning its sharp eyes toward Alex.
Instantly, Alex felt the creature's bloodlust washing over him like a suffocating wave.
"Alright… easy now… calm down," Alex said, stepping back cautiously.
"I might not be popular to you," he continued, "but trust me, I'm partly part of this family, and I'm not someone you want to mess with."
The beast let out a loud, mocking laugh. "Part of this family? Not someone to mess with? You're an impostor!"
Its laughter stopped abruptly, replaced by a roar. "Die!!!" it bellowed, charging straight at Alex.
Alex's eyes narrowed as the beast lunged toward him with ferocious speed.
Power blind, Alex thought, recalling something Stan had once told him. When you're so consumed by your strength, you forget to assess who or what you're facing.
Just then, a system notification appeared before Alex:
[Stage 2]
[Stage 5 Shape-Shifting Ring]
[Level of Beast: 3]
[Total Stages: 5]
"A Stage Five creature?" Alex muttered, sweat dripping down his forehead. The realization sent a chill through him. He knew he had to act quickly.
In an instant, his Death Axe materialized in his hand.
[0.000001% Bloodline Power has been shared to Death.]
[A few changes have been made…]
Alex barely had time to glance at the system message before the beast was upon him. He raised the axe, positioning it in front of him just as the creature's head smashed into it.
Alex closed his eyes, fully expecting to be sent flying from the sheer force of the collision. But to his surprise, he felt no impact at all—no push, no pressure.
Opening his eyes cautiously, Alex saw the beast still in front of him, its expression one of confusion. It stared at the axe, which now glowed with a strange, radiant energy in Alex's hands.
"What just happened?" Alex muttered, his voice barely audible as he stared at the glowing weapon.