You Gotta Eat Well to Get Strong
“Cough!! Its power is at least worth acknowledging.”
Cael spat another mouthful of blood onto the floor. Pain from his internal injuries surged through him, but a satisfied smile played on his lips. His confrontation with the family head, Arjen, had gone perfectly.
He'd imprinted that plausible tale of his near-death epiphany—the boundary between life and death—into the mind of that prickly, suspicious tyrant. From now on, no matter what eccentric feats Cael pulled off or how absurd his strength seemed, Arjen would have no choice but to chalk it up to enlightenment.
But the real problem lay elsewhere. Cael roughly wiped the blood from his mouth with his sleeve and probed his dantian.
This body can't keep up.
The reason was simple. It was a pathetic shell that had never undergone molting and rebirth, coupled with insufficient inner energy reserves. No matter how perfectly he grasped martial principles, a cheap vessel couldn't contain it—it would shatter under the strain.
Cael sat cross-legged on the bed and steadied his breathing.
I tried to take it slow this time...
Life in the Heavenly Demon Cult had been brutally relentless; if you weren't even a step stronger than yesterday, you couldn't guarantee survival tomorrow. He'd thought coming to the duke's family would change that...
But this felt even more like walking on thin ice than the cult. Enemies lurked everywhere, gunning for him. If Silina wasn't enough, and external nobles got tangled up too, his current level wouldn't cut it.
In the end, there was only one solution.
I need spirit medicines. The highest-grade ones—pure, brimming with vast energy.
This fantasy world had far more ambient mana than the martial realm. Which meant its spirit medicines were likely superior too.
But where do I get them? Hit the market?
As Cael pondered with his chin in hand, a flash of insight struck him.
Wait—do I really need to go far?
This was the heart of the Restis Ducal Residence, stronghold of the duke who ruled the northern continent. A swordsmanship dynasty with centuries of history, hegemons of the north. Their hoarded treasures and spirit medicines had to be piled mountain-high somewhere in this fortress.
The family vault. I'll raid that.
They'd all be his anyway once he became family head.
Being the eldest son has its perks.
It was still the dead of night, when everyone slept. No need to delay—Cael donned a black robe and slipped soundlessly out the window into the darkness.
***
The family vault lay deep underground in the Restis Ducal Residence. The spiral staircase to its entrance was webbed with dozens of intricate detection magic arrays, and four elite guard knights stood watch at the door. Impenetrable security that could sense even a speck of dust.
But before Cael, it was worthless. Why? Because he was the Restis family's eldest son.
“You've had a hard watch.”
“All clear on duty! Young Master Cael!? What brings you here at this hour!?”
“What else? My body's weak—I came to grab some medicine. Open the door.”
The grand duke's vault had three floors. The first was open to anyone in the household.
“Go on in.”
As Cael stood at the entrance, the magic array glowed, enveloping him.
Ziiing—
Huh? Magic?
Only Restis blood could enter; it was keyed to their mana signature.
“Keep up the good work.”
“Yes, sir!”
Security's tighter than I thought. They rely on magic, huh?
Kigigik—
Thud—
Cale stepped inside as the heavy door groaned open. In the darkness, glowing treasures lit the interior—and he grinned widely.
Impressive. A duke's warehouse lives up to the name.
The vast underground chamber spanned hundreds of pyeong. Rare continental treasures were neatly sorted by category: ancient weapons infused with mana, high-purity mana stones from monster hearts, and endless glass cases of spirit medicines and herbs—the very things Cael craved.
This is just the first floor? What's on two and three?
Ignoring weapons and jewels, Cael beelined for the spirit medicine section.
Stuff comparable to millennium snow ginseng or azure clear oil from the martial world—everywhere.
He flung open the cases without hesitation, pulling out elixirs.
“This red fruit brims with yang energy—perfect for widening meridians. This blue sap's heavy on yin—great for cooling internal heat.”
Even without names, he could judge effects from their energy signatures.
Clutching the plump elixirs, Cael chewed them right there.
Crunch—
Gulp—
“Even tastes good.”
Any normal person abusing them like this would explode from mana overload—their bodies couldn't handle the vast energy. And mixing yin and yang? Suicide.
But Cael was different. As they slid down his throat, a storm of uncontrollable energy raged inside him.
Perfect.
His blood vessels swelled taut. Standing firm, he spun his chaos qi in his dantian like mad.
Whoooosh—!
Chaos qi devoured the elixirs' power, refining and shooting it through every vein. Impurities blocking meridians burned away; narrow channels widened. Organs and muscles scarred by Arjen's sword qi rebuilt tougher, denser with elixir energy.
Not quite molting and rebirth, but on par with hair and teeth turning youthful.
Riding the edge of agony and ecstasy, Cael focused solely on corralling the energy.
As the shelves emptied, the rampaging power coalesced into a massive flow, coiling deep in his dantian.
Fwaaah—!
Cael's eyes snapped open, gray irises blazing. A long, turbid breath escaped him.
“Huuu...”
Clenching and unclenching his fist unleashed tremendous power. Internal injuries vanished; his body's durability leaped closer to his past life as the Heavenly Demon.
But despite the miraculous transformation, Cael's expression wasn't purely joyful.
This can't be... still not enough?
The mana was richer than martial elixirs, yet growth fell short.
The chaos qi?
His new mystery power demanded multiples more mana to advance.
“Tch...”
Cael clicked his tongue, scanning the now-barren first floor.
“What now...”
After a moment's thought, he approached the door to the second floor.
Ziiiiiing—
The scanning array flickered briefly then died—nothing happened. From here, even family blood wasn't enough; it recognized only Arjen's personal mana signature.
“Hmph. Makes you wanna go in more.”
Cael placed a hand on the door.
Mana signature, huh? Mimicking energy forms is my specialty.
He drew chaos qi to his fingertips. The family head's sword qi from the training hall—he precisely mimicked its mana wave and infused it.
Moments later.
Ziiiiiing—!
Clank—!
The array flashed red, recognized the "master," and the heavy iron doors parted with a cheerful grind.
Easier than breaking formations.
Grinning, Cael descended to the second floor.
***
The stairs to the second floor reeked of dense mana, incomparable to the first. The sight that greeted Cael was breathtaking.
“Hoo...”
Fewer items, but each radiated top-tier energy.
Cael headed straight for the altar holding the spirit medicines. Three crystal boxes glowed nobly.
Unlike the first floor, names were inscribed:
— Hatchling Heart.
— World Tree Dew.
— Spirit Crystal.
Names alone screamed immense value—supreme elixirs, brimming with energies even Cael had never felt.
A smile curled his lips.
“You really do gotta eat well to get strong.”
After a brief hesitation, he dumped all three into his mouth.
Won't die from this, right?
Gulp—
Then, explosion.
Boom—!!
Had he underestimated this world's elixirs? Or overestimated himself? Power on another level from the first floor rampaged, shredding his meridians.
“Kuh, kuugh!?”