Under the full moon, with the cold wind brushing against his skin, Kanoru refined his body.
He could feel that in around two years, his body would be strong enough to withstand the energy release from the fifth gate.
"Then, I'll be able to control it within six months."
At this training speed, he calculated that by the time he was 27 years old, he would be able to control the energy release from the seventh gate. That would leave him with three years to become a Divine Samurai.
He let out a sigh and fell back, lying on the wooden floor, gazing at the starry sky.
"It's too short… How do others become Divine Samurai before thirty?"
To reach Divine Warrior before thirty, he estimated he would need at least five years.
He began thinking of ways to buy himself more time.
The best option was to fully comprehend two natures of an element. That would allow him to merge with the element spirit and extend his lifespan by fifteen years.
But he had no idea how to comprehend another nature of the power of wind.
As he pondered, the sound of wood splintering echoed through the night, followed by a violent jolt that shook the boat.
He stood up, walked to the balcony, and looked down. On the riverbank, he saw men on horseback, while small boats surrounded their vessel.
From behind him, he heard Asuna's voice,
"What happened?"
Kanoru, still observing below, let out a thoughtful grunt before saying,
"Looks like Sand Thieves."
He heard Asuna's footsteps approaching.
"Sand Thieves?" she repeated.
Kanoru glanced over his shoulder,
"Yes, Sand Thieves."
Asuna stepped beside him, peering over the railing. They watched as several thieves began climbing aboard.
Asuna asked,
"Do we need to do anything?"
Kanoru turned around, leaned against the balcony railing, and said casually,
"Nah. The crew will handle it."
He then looked at her, noticing her nod in agreement, and asked,
"How's your practice going?"
Asuna smiled,
"In about two weeks, I'll become a middle-ranked samurai like you."
Kanoru quickly calculated in his mind.
At this rate, by the time she was 30 years old, she would be able to control the energy release from her seventh gate. That would give her a few extra months to reach Divine Samurai.
He said,
"At this pace, you'll be able to control the seventh gate's energy release by 30."
Asuna fell silent for a moment, absorbing the information, before asking,
"And you?"
Kanoru replied,
"27 years old."
Asuna's eyes narrowed with determination.
"Then we need to find resources to refine our bodies faster."
Kanoru nodded.
"When we return, we can ask Bai Yue's mother about body-refining resources."
Asuna agreed with a nod.
Just then, they heard a knock on their door.
Kanoru called out,
"What?"
A voice from the other side replied,
"The captain is calling everyone to gather on the deck."
Kanoru responded,
"Got it."
He turned to Asuna, who said,
"It must be because of the Sand Thieves. What should we do?"
Kanoru shrugged.
"Nothing. We'll stay in the room."
Asuna frowned.
"If we stay here, we'll just annoy the Sand Thieves."
Kanoru smirked.
"Even if they're annoyed, what can they do to us?"
Asuna's eyes narrowed slightly.
"We should go to the deck and see what they're planning. If they kill the crew and passengers, we can protect them."
Kanoru studied her for a moment, then said,
"Alright. Let's go."
He turned around and started walking toward the door.
--------
On the deck, the captain, his crew, and the passengers stood together, staring at the Sand Thieves surrounding them—but their eyes were mostly fixed on the man standing on the railing.
He was a bald, burly man with a diagonal scar running from his eye down to his cheek and a massive blade sheathed on his back. He was a rare physical warlock and a middle-ranked warlock at that. His name was Ji An, the leader of the Scorpion Gang.
Ji An's sharp gaze scanned the crowd, inspecting each face, noting the fear in their eyes. Yet, he still didn't see who he was looking for.
After a few minutes, two new people strolled out onto the deck—a man and a woman, both strikingly attractive.
The woman was exceptionally beautiful, and neither of them showed even a trace of fear as they met Ji An's gaze or glanced at his men. This puzzled him, as he couldn't sense any spiritual energy from them.
One of his men approached and whispered,
"Leader, the woman isn't with them."
Ji An frowned and said,
"Show them the picture. See if any of them have seen her."
The man nodded, walked toward the crowd, unfurled a scroll with a portrait, and barked,
"Anyone seen her?"
The passengers stared at the picture, their faces tense with fear.
All except for the man and woman, who merely glanced at it and began murmuring to each other, completely unconcerned.
The crowd either shook their heads or muttered,
"No."
But the man and woman remained silent, offering no response.
Ji An's eyes narrowed.
He shouted,
"What about you two?!"
The man turned with a blank expression and asked,
"What?"
Ji An strode toward them, holding the scroll in front of their faces.
"Have you two seen her or not?"
Without even glancing at the picture, the man said coldly,
"No. Now get lost."
Ji An's face contorted in rage. He grabbed the woman's arm, snarling,
"If we don't find her, we're taking your wife!"
The man simply smirked, unfazed.
Before Ji An could react, he suddenly found himself on his knees, staring at the wooden deck.
His hand, still gripping the woman's arm, was now being twisted backward by the woman herself.
Pain shot through his body, making it impossible to focus or activate his imprinted talisman spells.
Seeing their leader humiliated, the other Sand Thieves shouted in fury. They drew their weapons, and some conjured fireballs in their hands.
Ji An, furious and humiliated, barked,
"Tell your wife to let my man go, or you two will feel the wrath of the Scorpion Gang!"
The man yawned dismissively,
"Then tell your men to control their mouths. They can't say whatever they want."
He then turned to the woman and said,
"Break his hand as a lesson."
Without hesitation, the woman snapped the thief's wrist with a swift, fluid motion. She then kicked him hard in the back, sending him sprawling toward the other thieves.
Ji An's face burned with humiliation.
It had been years since anyone had dared humiliate him like this. Not since he became the Scorpion Gang's leader.
His eyes narrowed with vengeful rage.
"Looks like you two will feel the full wrath of my gang," he snarled, then roared,
"Attack!"
The Scorpion Gang swarmed toward the man and woman.
Nearby, the passengers and crew screamed and rushed to a corner, scrambling for safety.
Ji An watched as the man effortlessly killed one of his men, snatching the fallen thief's blade mid-motion.
The woman, just as quick, disarmed another thief, seizing his sword.
In seconds, they cut down the ordinary thieves attacking them.
The warlocks among the thieves hurled fireballs at the pair, but the man and woman sliced through the flames with their swords, splitting the blazing orbs in half without suffering so much as a scratch.
Ji An's brow furrowed.
If this continued, all his men would die.
Most of them were ordinary fighters, with only a handful being low-ranked warlocks.
He realized he had to act—he was a middle-ranked warlock after all.
A golden light enveloped his body as he activated his warlock technique.
He charged toward the man and threw a punch, but the man calmly sidestepped, causing Ji An's fist to punch through the wooden wall behind him.