Chapter 30: A Timely Rescue and a Friendly Spar

Pursing her lips, Gern decided to assume her dragon-girl form for the rescue, ensuring she wouldn’t startle Sina.

A flash of white light enveloped her, and the young woman’s figure rapidly shrank into that of a petite, undeveloped girl.

From a pendant, the Silver Dragon Girl drew a longsword, and with her every movement, a shimmering layer of frost already began to cling to its blade.

Sina, locked in fierce combat with the giant bear, had her entire focus riveted on the beast, daring not to allow even a flicker of distraction.

A massive bear claw lunged towards Sina, but she merely scoffed. This was precisely the proactive attack she had been waiting for.

Clang—

A sound like metal striking metal echoed, and the immense force rattled Sina, sending her staggering back several steps.

This bear was no ordinary foe; its entire body was covered in a faint, metallic sheen.

Its strength had already reached the level of a Third-tier Knight, making it an exceptionally troublesome opponent.

Such beasts, capable of wielding magic and possessing formidable power, were all known as magic beasts.

Magic beasts’ strength grew naturally, without the need for cultivation. However, their potential was quite limited; even a pure-blooded magic beast, upon reaching adulthood, would at most possess Sixth-tier strength.

After that, the magic beast’s power would slowly decline as its body aged.

Even so, the flesh and bones of magic beasts were extremely valuable materials for low-tier knights and mages alike.

Seeing the bear charge at her once more, Sina gritted her teeth, and the power within her body instantly erupted.

The longsword clashed with the bear’s paw, but no blood seeped out.

Realizing she couldn’t gain an advantage, Sina could only slowly retreat.

The bear, however, had no intention of showing mercy or tenderness; for every step Sina retreated, it advanced.

The woman and the bear were locked in a furious battle, utterly oblivious to the commotion nearby.

****

Just as Sina was about to be struck by the bear, a flash of icy blue blade light streaked past.

An aura of extreme cold began to permeate the air. The bear let out a pained roar, no longer caring about the prey before it, and hastily spun around, swatting with a massive paw.

Clang—

Gern easily parried the bear’s attack. She retreated a few steps, flicking the blood from her longsword.

At this moment, the Silver Dragon Girl held her longsword in one hand, her silver hair dancing in the wind, exuding an unexpectedly heroic and spirited aura.

Gern’s eyes narrowed slightly. She had succeeded so easily just now because it was a sneak attack; the bear had been completely unprepared, allowing her to strike with ease.

From now on, she would have to be more careful. Even with her past life’s experience, she couldn’t afford the slightest laxity against this magic beast.

Otherwise, even she would be unable to retreat unscathed.

Sina, witnessing this scene from nearby, immediately recoiled several steps, her eyes widened. She rubbed her eyes, barely daring to believe what was unfolding before her.

But when she saw the giant bear already attacking Gern, she knew this was no time for pleasantries.

Without time for lengthy explanations, Sina directly shifted her offensive and attacked the giant bear from behind.

The giant bear was focused intently on its opponent, having no intention of guarding against Sina, and its body was directly pierced through.

This exacerbated its already dire physical condition.

“Roar!”

The giant bear let out a furious roar and turned its head to attack Sina.

“You cur, your opponent is me, you know.”

Gern, with a single-handed thrust of her sword, pierced a hole in the other side of the giant bear. Now, both sides were symmetrically punctured.

Yet, the giant bear’s vitality was incredibly tenacious; even after being battered into such a state, it still refused to fall.

One of its attacks had already landed, and Sina had solidly taken the blow. The woman and the bear were once again locked in a stalemate.

“Luoya!”

“Coming!”

No sooner had Sina’s call echoed than Gern, as if in perfect telepathy with her, thrust her sword towards the giant bear’s head.

With a squelch, white pulpy matter, mingled with crimson blood, gushed out, and this time, the giant bear truly fell silent.

With a thunderous crash, its massive body toppled to one side, splattering blood and mud.

Sina, witnessing this scene from nearby, immediately recoiled several steps, a hint of disgust in her eyes.

Gern, however, was unfazed by such things. After seeing the bear fall, she delivered two more confirming thrusts to ensure the creature would never rise again, only then withdrawing her hand.

With the bear dispatched, Gern finally let out a soft breath and turned her attention to Sina.

“Miss Sina, why are you out adventuring all by yourself?”

Sina flicked her longsword and likewise exhaled a cloud of stale air, speaking softly.

“Recently, my cultivation has hit a bottleneck. I feel like I’m just a step away from becoming a Third-tier Knight, but I just can’t find the opportunity to break through.”

“Hmm… I see.”

Gern nodded. She herself had only recently broken through to Third-tier Knight status, and her mastery over her own power was not yet perfect.

Perhaps she could use this opportunity to solidify her own realm and incidentally offer some guidance to Sina.

With that thought, Gern spoke.

“Sina, how about we spar a bit?”

Upon hearing this, Sina’s eyes lit up. She had also sensed that Gern’s realm had advanced, and she could no longer perceive Gern’s exact cultivation level.

This indicated that Gern had now reached Third-tier Knight status, making her the perfect person to guide Sina.

“Alright, how shall we spar?”

“Hmm…”

Gern paused for a moment, then spoke.

“There are no strict rules. We’ll just have a friendly exchange, that’s all.”

“Understood.”

Sina nodded and stepped forward, positioning herself before Gern.

At this moment, the pink-haired girl held her sword in both hands, her aura exceedingly sharp. Her eyes were fixed intently on her opponent, observing every single movement.

****

Gern’s eyes sharpened, and a layer of frost condensed on the surface of her longsword.

“Miss Sina, it’s starting now.”

“Come on.”

Sina nodded, already adopting a defensive stance.

The next moment, Gern thrust her sword forward, accompanied by an intensely biting aura of icy sword energy.

As Gern had only recently broken through, this battle qi could not yet extend too far from her body, only ever manifesting within three inches of her sword’s tip.

Even so, Sina was already on edge. After all, her opponent had broken through to the Third-tier; she couldn’t be underestimated.

The pink-haired girl thrust her sword, her movements like a gracefully dancing butterfly. Pink specks rippled from her feet, accompanied by a faint fragrance, as she attacked Gern.

She did not meet Gern’s strike head-on, but rather skillfully dodged with agile footwork, closing in on Gern.

Sina’s unique scent wafted into Gern’s nostrils, causing her to waver for a moment. By the time she reacted, Sina’s longsword was already alarmingly close.

Just as it was about to pierce Gern’s throat, Gern suddenly revealed a row of sparkling white teeth, her two small canine teeth particularly prominent.

“Miss Sina, you fell for it, you know.”

The Silver Dragon Girl giggled, twisting the blade of her longsword to directly deflect Sina’s attack. Then, she leaned in, her elbow striking Sina’s chest.

The blow was truly forceful. Sina stumbled back several steps, taking several gasps of air before finally recovering.

“Again… again!”

Sina looked at the Silver Dragon Girl, who seemed to fight with such ease, her heart growing increasingly astonished, and her desire to battle surging even higher.

Faced with such eagerness, Gern shrugged helplessly and continued to spar with her.

Two incense sticks’ time later, Sina was sprawled beside a large tree.

It was a complete and utter碾压, a crushing defeat. In front of Gern, she was utterly powerless to retaliate.

Gern’s combat experience and awareness were far beyond Sina’s.

It was hard to imagine that such a small girl could possess such formidable strength.

At this point, she was thoroughly convinced, defeated both in body and spirit.

At the same time, she also felt that she had found a glimmer of opportunity for a breakthrough, but now was not the optimal time for it.

She needed to further solidify her foundation in the Second-tier, so that she could enter the ranks of Third-tier Knights in the best possible state.