Completely ignoring his body which was completely soaked by the rain, Emery once again checked the symbol on his hand.

[Emery Ambrose]

[Battle Power : 60 (45)]

[Spirit Force : 291 (216)]

[Plant Spirit High-Foundation]

[Water Spirit High-Foundation]

[Earth Spirit High-Foundation]

[Spirit Core of Darkness Stage 4]

[Fey Bloodline Rank 3]

[Acolyte Rank: 8]

A total of 41 point increase in spirit force, 9 point increase in battle power; these were the culmination of growth Emery attained after 3 months of training and breaking through to Rank 8.

The most obvious improvement, that he could vividly feel, was definitely his battle power. He received a total of 4 points from Fey bloodline purification and the 5 he received came gradually from the spirit force improvements and the breakthroughs to the rank 8 acolytes.

At the moment, Emery was confident he could bulldoze through any of the knights in Briton without using any skill or spell buff. His 45 battle power, despite being restricted, would enable him to do so.

Emery couldn't help but feel satisfied, as he looked at the number. If he could maintain this rate of improvement, he believed he could reach Rank 9 within two years, just in time for the next recall.

Rank 9 was the other big stepping stone for all acolytes. Other than the obvious increase in power, reaching Rank 9 would grant an acolyte the ability to cast Rank 5 spells. The time when an acolyte could finally make a difference in a battle.

This target of Rank 9 was also a task given by his master, Magus Xion, to him. The esteemed magus even specifically told him to reach such rank before he came to the third year at the Magic Academy. It seemed this threshold was a minimal requirement for acolytes to survive in the third year especially with the escalated condition with the elves.

At the moment, Emery was still in his cultivation training, which was supported by [Nature Grasp].

He had been doing this method of cultivation for months and nothing substantial happened. But for the last two weeks, things were certainly different.

Since the improvement in his blood essence, Emery had a much easier time channeling his [Nature Grasp] spell toward his surroundings. It was as if nature itself helped him do the task and thus the reason he was surprised by the phenomenon.

The occurrence that happened during the rain further supported Emery's reasoning. Every drop of water that fell on the Earth seemed able to make rhythms in his spiritual core and, following that, was a gush of spirit force.

There was nothing new in the way he cultivated or cast the spell. The only thing different was the fact he had improved his Fey blood genes.

Therefore, Emery had started to believe there was a correlation between his bloodline and his capability in cultivating the natural elements around him.

Emery gradually had an easier time cultivating. Something in his bloodline was helping him comprehend the natural elements.

Thanks to the [Nature Grasp] spell, Emery's mind and spirit was wholly concentrated on Gaia's spirit, that existed all around him. With each passing second, he went deeper and deeper into Gaia, connecting to the source of spirit energy.

A notification appeared in Emery's mind, but he was unfazed by it, as he was still submerged in cultivation.

[Your spirit force increased]

This time, it wasn't only his spirit force that was enhanced.

Emery could tell and feel his whole body was brimming with strength. A kind of miraculous energy was circulating throughout his entire body and coursing through uncontrollably.

His body also seemed to empower this energy and all the excess of power swiftly receded back to his dark core, before being circulated to his three other elements - Earth, Water and Plant.

The deluge of energy that just pervaded his body and spirit core, caused Emery to become so excited that no amount of rain would remove him from his concentration.

Slowly but surely, bit by bit, Emery could tell his green-colored spirit element was being drawn of energy and his understanding regarding the said element was improving at a breakneck pace.

Then, a notification abruptly popped into his mind.

[Congratulations! You have reached a breakthrough in the Plant Element]

[Plant Spirit Peak-Foundation]

'Wow' exclaimed Emery in his heart.

This was a progress he never thought he would be able to achieve. After all, it had only been months since he reached the high foundation stage in Plant element. Never in his wildest dreams did Emery imagine he would be able to reach the peak foundation stage this fast.

His [Nature Grasp] spell and the purification of his Fey blood were the only things that could explain this extraordinary achievement.

However, before Emery could further bask in it, he suddenly perceived the green-colored spirit in him starting to move abnormally. It tried to push through and into his dark core, affecting the flow of spirit in his dark core.

As a result, the circulation of spirit energy in Emery's body was interrupted, causing him excruciating pain.

He can feel the green color spirit which were supposed to circulating outside of the dark core has started to engulf its center

The result was more pain that reverted to his whole body. Emery couldn't stop himself from spitting out blood.

"What the hell is happening?!" said Emery in a hoarse voice, while clutching his chest as the pain swiftly grew. He quickly stopped the [Nature Grasp], and thankfully, the pain also gradually subsided following the inactivation.

While Emery was wondering what had just happened, a notification that instantly spelled the confusion away came into his mind.

[Your Dark Core became erratic]

Emery instantly stood up from his cross-legged position due to the shock. He still felt the pain in his chest when Stabilizing his wobbly body.

He felt something bothered him so he immediately tried to cast a few spells in his repertoire.

Then to his complete horror, none of them manifested.