As the centuries passed, Kyle's powers improved. By now, he had become much better at using the new abilities of his Law of Hammer. The level of his Imposing Law had also increased, allowing him to use 20% of his Energy. Sadly, that was still a long way off from the upper limit of his Imposing Law.
Some of the fights had been difficult, but they hadn't been truly dangerous. At least, Kyle didn't feel like they had been difficult.
Kyle had also made some progress in the Major Law of Body. He had comprehended some of its Fragments, but on their own, they were not very useful. They increased his power somewhat, but not a lot.
From time to time, he moved past Fort V-2550, and whenever he did so, he used far less of his power. After all, he didn't want to seem too powerful in front of Commander Nezeth. Kyle didn't think that she was a traitor, but if he showed too much power, she might start becoming suspicious of some things. It was better not to draw too much attention.
Meanwhile, Commander Nezeth's opinion of Kyle had changed drastically. Initially, she had believed that Humanity was punishing Kyle, but maybe that was not the case. It always seemed like he was about to die, but he never truly died. Somehow, it seemed like everything was under his control.
As more centuries passed, Kyle started to become more careful and nervous.
"800 years of my shift have passed. Most likely, the Demons already know about me and are trying to search for me. It's possible that one of their attacks will arrive soon, but it's also possible that they don't know where I am. I mean, they know about me, but they also need to know where I am, and how are they supposed to find my location without getting even more intel?"
Kyle felt like an irresistible force was looking at him from a distance, but he had felt like that for several years already. He knew that this was just his instincts telling him that it wasn't a good idea to stay in the same location for too long.
"Most likely, they are waiting until I start my next shift. They should know about my level, which means they will also roughly know about the duration of my shifts. When I undergo the Fifth Refinement, they will most likely try to find and kill me."
"I should use the remainder of my shift to primarily focus on the Major Law of Body. There are some Fragments that basically need the presence of an enemy, and I should finish those. At the same time, I should keep working on my Law of Hammer, but that should be secondary."
Kyle's battles became more dangerous as he allowed more attacks to get closer to him, but he still believed that he was in control. Yet, he also knew that he had to be extremely careful now.
As Kyle's shift neared its end, he realized that he hadn't comprehended one of the most important Fragments yet, the Major Fragment of Physical Defense.
Of course, since the Major Law of Body was far more complex than the Minor one, it also had more Fragments added on top of it. This was one of these Fragments, and it was very difficult to comprehend this one without any enemies.
However, Kyle also knew that he was about 90% there. He just needed one last push.
So, he did something risky.
He let an attack hit his body that would just barely end his life.
As expected, Kyle's body exploded, but this stunt had also allowed him to finish comprehending the Fragment, allowing him to barely survive.
This had been insanely risky, but risks like this had become so common to Kyle that they weren't even worth mentioning. This was just one of the many instances in which he had risked his life, and this was also the primary reason why Kyle's Battle-Strength was so high.
He had been certain that he could comprehend the Fragment in time, but if he had made some kind of misjudgment, he would be dead. His knowledge about his own capabilities and the power of enemy attacks had to be perfect. Additionally, he also had to nail the execution.
In sports, there were plenty of occasions in which athletes couldn't perform very well during the actual event, even though they had easily accomplished greater feats during training.
Kyle had to be able to perform at his maximum capability when the pressure was at its greatest. If he choked, the consequences would be devastating.
Up to now, he had managed to perform whenever the pressure had reached its peak, but that was also the only reason why he was still alive.
There were many reasons why some Seekers had amazing Battle-Strength, while others didn't. Dedication, talent, risk-taking, fighting, resources, background...
Yet, these Seekers could only become truly talented if they could also handle the pressure. When things looked like they were about to die and there was nothing they could do, they had to grow instead of breaking. They had to surpass their limits instead of losing control.
Kyle could have played it safe. He could have focused on comprehending that Fragment during his next shift. It was not like the Fragment would run away. It would still be there when he came back.
However, by risking his life several times, he had essentially saved one or two centuries of time.
With a total longevity of 50,000 years in the Wisdom Fire Realm, one or two centuries didn't even count for a single percent. Yet, these little time savings added up, eventually leading to a gap of over ten or twenty thousand years.
Eventually, Kyle's shift ended, and he went back to Fort V-2550.
"Nothing unusual has happened during this shift, but that doesn't mean a lot. I am pretty sure that my next shift will be extremely dangerous, and it might not be the kind of danger that will make me stronger. There's not a lot I can do against a Spirit Demon."
"Surviving will be less about my power and more about my ability to avoid dangerous locations. I need to plan accordingly."
Kyle closed his eyes and pushed the last bit of Energy into his mind.
BANG!
The barrier to the next level broke, and once again, Kyle felt like the mysteries of the world became a little easier to understand.
Kyle had officially become an Advanced Sage, and if he wanted to, he could become a Spirit Lord now.
Yet, instead of feeling glad, Kyle felt frustrated and nervous. After all, he knew that the easy Refinements were over.
While the Fourth Refinement acted as a major hurdle to an average Sage, they were considered child's play for truly talented Sages.
"I've completed the tutorial. Now, I have to complete the actual game," Kyle thought.
"I've had 1,400 years of mild pain in total, but I still have a total of 18,500 years of brutal pain left."
Kyle sighed.
"Sure enough, the Wisdom Fire Realm is the worst Realm. It's just pure misery."
"Anyway, I should officially finish my shift and return to Major Sovignor. This time, I actually have some use for my Military Merits!"
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