Ian stood rooted to the spot, panting heavily.

His gray robe was torn in several places. A wound on his left shoulder, where a tentacle had grazed him, showed flesh peeled back and oozing black blood—the result of corrosive mucus.

The bone in his right calf ached dully; it must have sustained a fracture when he blocked an attack.

His Spiritual Power was less than thirty percent of its total, and his fully Vaporized Sea of Spirit felt somewhat empty.

"Gaa..."

Gaga flew back and landed on his shoulder, rubbing its small head against his cheek. Its voice was filled with exhaustion and worry.

"I’m fine." Ian patted it, took out a Secondary Healing Potion and drank it, then gave one to Gaga as well.

The Potion’s cool medicinal power spread through him, and his injuries began to heal slowly.

But an alarm bell was ringing in his mind.

’My physical body... is too weak.’

He looked at the wound on his left shoulder, then felt the dull ache in his leg bone.

If his body had been twice as strong, the tentacle wouldn’t have even grazed him, and his leg bone wouldn’t have fractured.

If his reaction speed had been just a bit faster, he might have completely avoided the Blood Leech’s counterattacks.

His skill in Witchcraft, thanks to multiple instances of Limit-Breaking and his fully Vaporized Spiritual Power, was already touching the threshold of a Level One Wizard.

But his physical body... was still at the level of a High Level Apprentice. In fact, due to his long-term focus on cultivating Spiritual Power, it was even weaker than that of other apprentices of the same tier who specialized in physical enhancement.

’The Rock Bear Potion... I have to achieve Limit-Breaking with it as soon as possible, then use it with a Dream Potion to perform a deep Body Tempering.’

Ian’s eyes were resolute.

The Demon Hunting War was imminent. The subterranean environment was harsh, and the Demons were savage. He wouldn’t get far with Witchcraft alone if he didn’t have a tough body.

He walked over to where the Blood Leech’s corpse had sunk, extending his Spiritual Power into the mud. He quickly found several items.

A gray Dimension Bag with ten cubic meters of space.

A Metal Token engraved with a complex Vampire Leech pattern, and a few crystals that emanated a dense, bloody aura.

With no time to examine them closely, Ian collected everything. He then used his Ice and Fire Beam, alternating between the two, to clean up any traces of the battle before quickly leaving with Gaga.

The sun sank completely below the horizon, and the swamp returned to a deathly silence.

Only the lingering smell of burning, frost, and blood in the air served as evidence that a life-and-death struggle that transcended tiers had taken place here.

Leaving the battlefield behind, Ian traveled swiftly through the night with Gaga, heading toward Misty Creek.

The wound on his shoulder was still oozing blood and his leg bone ached faintly, but his deep gray eyes shone with astonishing brightness in the darkness.

’An Official Wizard! I killed an Official Wizard!’

Even though it hadn’t been at its full strength, the excitement and exhilaration in his heart wouldn’t calm down for a long time.

He had always remembered what Old Pipe from the Furnace camp had said.

"A peerless genius who can pose a threat to an Official Wizard while still an Apprentice... a ’Demon’!"

「One day later」

Ian and Gaga rushed back to his tent by Misty Creek.

As soon as he set up the isolation Barrier, he took out the Tier One Blood Essence of the Flowing Wind Shadow Crow from his Dimensional Ring.

Inside the crystal-clear Blood Essence, the complete silhouette of a Shadow Crow swam slowly, emitting a dense Life Energy and Extraordinary Fluctuation.

"GAA!"

Gaga, who had been listlessly curled up in his pocket, instantly poked its head out. Its tiny, bean-sized eyes were wide and round, staring intently at the Blood Essence.

All the feathers on its body fluffed up slightly, an instinctive craving from the depths of its bloodline.

"Ian, what is this good stuff? Give it to me, quick! Gaa!"

Gaga’s voice echoed urgently inside the tent, and it even flapped its injured wings, trying to fly out.

Ian held it down with his hand. "Calm down. You’re not healed yet."

"What’s a little injury like this? I’ll definitely be fine after eating this! Gaa!"

Gaga stared eagerly at the Blood Essence, almost drooling.

"No." Ian’s tone was firm.

"Although it’s more direct for Extraordinary Creatures to consume Blood Essence than it is for humans, it can still trigger a violent conflict within the bloodline. Your condition is unstable right now; the risk of forcing it is too great."

He paused, and seeing Gaga’s disappointed little eyes, his tone softened.

"Wait seven days for Amos to deliver the Rock Bear Essence Blood. Your injuries should be healed by then. When the time comes, I’ll stand guard for you and help you fully absorb this Blood Essence."

"Seven days... Gaa..." Gaga drooped its head dejectedly but didn’t protest further.

It knew Ian was doing what was best for it.

"Although I can’t let you eat this one, I have other goodies."

Ian selected a few Blood Essences from his Dimensional Ring and held them out to Gaga.

"Gaa! How do you have so much good food?"

Gaga’s small eyes lit up. It snatched up a fava bean-sized Blood Essence, swallowed it in one gulp, and narrowed its eyes to slowly digest it.

"Ian, you’re so good to me!"

Over the next few days, Ian recovered from his injuries while sorting through the loot he had gotten from the Blood Leech.

Inside the dark red Dimension Bag, besides over two hundred High Level Magic Stones and various Bloodline Materials, there were three items that caught Ian’s attention the most.

A fragmented notebook titled *Blood Transformation Secret Record*, which documented the evil Magic Technique the Blood Leech had used to advance.

A Bronze Token engraved with the words "Eastern Seventh War Zone," and a small vial of "Heart Rot Curse" concentrate, which was extremely toxic.

’The Seventh War Zone... It seems the Blood Leech was also one of the participants in the war.’

Ian mused, ’Dying before this war starts will save me some trouble later on.’

He put away the useful items, planning to find an opportunity to dispose of the rest.

「Seven days later」

Amos arrived as scheduled.

The merchant’s smile was even wider than usual. It was clear he had made a fortune recently from trading war preparation materials.

"Ian, I had to go through a lot of trouble to gather all the Rock Armor Demon Bear Essence Blood you wanted."

Amos waved his hand, showing off four dazzling Dimensional Rings on his fingers.

"It’s almost a full Ring’s worth of fresh Essence Blood, each portion a standard one hundred milliliters. Also, here’s a new batch of Starlight Sand and Concentration Potion Materials. Take a look."

Ian swept his Spiritual Power over the items and confirmed the quality was fine. The Rock Armor Demon Bear Essence Blood was extremely well-preserved, its bloody aura vigorous.

"The price?" he asked, looking up.

Amos held up two fingers. "Same as always. One portion of Essence Blood plus the materials for thirty Magic Stones or materials of equivalent value."

Ian quickly calculated the total number of Magic Stones in his head. He was in no position to haggle over Amos’s prices right now; in fact, he was grateful that the materials had arrived so promptly.

He nodded. "Alright. I’ll pay for part of it with Blood Essence."

As he spoke, he took out a wooden box neatly packed with over 100 top-grade Blood Essences, and added 300 High Level Magic Stones.

Amos’s eyes lit up. He took the box and inspected it carefully. As his fingertips brushed over the surface of the Blood Essences, a flicker of imperceptible surprise flashed in his eyes.

"The ’Awakening’ characteristic of this batch of Blood Essence... it seems even stronger than before."

He gave Ian a deep look. "Your Refining Technique has improved again."

Ian was noncommittal. "Is it enough to cover the cost?"

"More than enough." Amos straightforwardly handed over the Rock Bear Essence Blood and the other Potion ingredients.

"Also, consider this batch of Starlight Sand a bonus from me. The Demon Hunting War is coming. Every bit of extra strength is an extra chance at survival."

He paused and lowered his voice. "Mira told you about the Demon Hunting War, right? No matter where you are, the conscription order will find you. Be prepared."

After saying his piece, Amos put away the Blood Essence, turned, and left. His gray robe soon disappeared into the forest mist.

Ian moved the materials into his tent, his heart finally settling a bit.

With this batch of Rock Bear Essence Blood, his plan for the Limit-Breaking of the Rock Bear Potion could be fully set into motion.

However, time was tight. He would have to find another way.