'I barely started, yet I can feel the results already.' Michael mused, feeling his soul soar with power.

This was the first time he was cultivating near the corpses of Elites in this life, and the change was quickly made apparent.

[You are in an area with an extremely high concentration of spiritual energy. +500% cultivation speed applied.]

[Spirit Flow takes effect. +300% cultivation speed applied.]

[You have consumed spiritual energy: +15 Spirit]

[You have consumed spiritual energy: +15 Spirit]

[You have consumed spiritual energy: +15 Spirit]

Using the technique in the spiritually energy-dense area gave him results most Adepts could only dream of.

As before, due to the use of the technique, it slowly started to level up.

[Spirit Flow has leveled up!]

[Spirit Flow has leveled up!]

[Spirit Flow has leveled up!]

Even the members of his squad began to feel the change in the atmosphere, prompting them to open their eyes.

They were shocked to see Michael not only suddenly entering into the cultivating mindset despite fighting just a few moments ago, but on top of that, he was absorbing the energy in the area with speed that didn't befit someone of his realm.

'This is Michael all right.' Ava thought proudly before closing her eyes. If the man she had chosen to follow was able to cultivate so effortlessly, she was going to do so as well!

Michael's spirit slowly rose from 15,000 to 20,000, just enough for another breakthrough.

[You have achieved a breakthrough!]

[Middle Adept → Late Adept]

'With this, my attributes should have risen by a lot. If things continue like this, I will reach the Expert realm before long.' He analyzed.

Usually, most people won't stop their cultivation after a breakthrough just to see how much they have progressed. However, Michael was built differently. Since he could enter a cultivation mindset essentially at will, there would be no negative consequence for taking a peek at his stats.

'Not to mention that the system simplifies things a lot for me. Rather than going to a terminal, I can just take a glance and begin meditating once again.' Michael reasoned.

Opening his eyes, he was about to take in his new stats. But to his surprise, there was a woman sitting in front of him, studying him almost like a lab rat.

"..."

He gave the woman a few seconds to explain why she was staring at him while he was cultivating. Seeing that she was still silent, he proceeded to speak.

"Is something the matter?"

The woman's eyes enlarged at his words, breaking her out of her daze.

"N—No, I just got lost in your cultivation speed, apologies."

After a quick bow, a large smile appeared all over her face as she took out a microphone.

"Would you mind if I asked you a few questions?"

Michael's eyebrow twitched. 'I remember now, there were reporters that appeared a few days back. It seems that they are more persistent than expected.'

"Didn't I tell you to speak with General Victoria, since I am too busy?" He sighed.

Skylar pouted in response. "I did speak to her, but with everything going on she hasn't been able to give me more than a few minutes of her time, and that is not nearly enough!"

She pointed to Luis before continuing. "Not to mention that my partner broke our drone, which cost a fortune! If we don't get an exclusive interview, I fear we might not be able to recover the costs."

Luis' face reddened. "What do you mean I broke it?! I only did what you wanted, not to mention that you agreed to pay for it yourself!"

"Do we have to argue before the hero right now?" Skylar retorted.

Michael watched the exchange with a puzzled expression. 'A hero? When did I become such a thing?'

Before dealing with the reporters, he took in his attributes.

Soul Realm: Late Adept

Cybernetics: Indomitable System, Berserker, Dash, Perfect Vision, Spirit Flow, Blink

• Strength: 440

• Agility: 400

• Stamina: 335

• Spirit: 20,000

• Mind: 6,000

Skill Points: 0

'So the breakthrough has given me 120 points in my basic stats? Pretty good. Now combining Berserker and Dash would net me 9,800 agility.'

Of course, if someone were to learn that a mere Late Adept was able to reach 9,800 agility, even if it was with the help of several techniques, they would be shocked to the very core.

Once he was done checking his gains, Michael shifted his focus to the reporters once again.

"I admire your bravery, to be honest. We are still in the middle of a dire battle. To have the guts to conduct interviews in such a setting is commendable."

Skylar's face seemed to brighten from his words of acknowledgment.

"Then does that mean you agree to the interview?"

He nodded. "Yes, but only after the alien threat is exterminated completely. Until then, I will be too busy."

"I see, thank you very much." The two bowed.

"If I could ask, how will we find you later?"

"Search for the Indomitable Alliance, it's a new faction that I recently created."

Since these two reporters seemed to hold him in high regard for some reason, Michael decided to use their help to boost the popularity of his faction.

After the reporters went to a safer area, Michael observed the battle from afar. So far, humans were winning, and the alien spaceship was in flames. Their leader, meanwhile, seemed on the verge of death fighting the two Grandmasters.

'These two will most likely search for me after this is all over. They will want explanations as to how an Adept could have a stronger soul than both of them.' He sighed.

Wanting to be prepared as best as possible for the future, Michael closed his eyes again, completely ignoring the sounds of battle and the smell of blood and gunpowder that had risen in the air.

Several hours later, he achieved his goal.

[You have achieved a breakthrough!]

[Late Adept → Peak Adept]

From now on, he was going to work his way up to becoming an Expert!

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