Year 14: Time is dragging on so slowly. I've reached the peak of 5th stage. If I continue refining, I could become a 6th stage Warlock-Warrior.

Year 15: Time feels endless. It's moving too slowly. Luckily, I've only reached the peak of 5th stage, not a 6th stage Warlock-Warrior.

Bruno slowly opened his eyes, feeling a bit helpless. Before, there hadn't been enough time; now, there was just too much.

But there was nothing he could do about it. If he became a 6th stage Warlock-Warrior, he wouldn't be able to continue his bet with Jake Herdman.

150 grams of Celestial Beast meat was enough for at least two uses of the Book of All Things.

For Bruno, others would dream of increasing their strength because their opportunities were limited.

The power of the Book of All Things lay in the fact that it allowed Bruno to have more time, more possibilities.

Bruno got up and stretched his body, a series of popping sounds filling the air. His body now contained 206 bones, with only the bones around his skull left to refine.

Warlock-Warrior, 12th stage: Skin 3rd stage, Bone 3rd stage, Blood 3rd stage, Spirit 3rd stage.

Once he completed the bone refinement, he would begin refining his blood.

He wasn't sure if it would be the same as bone refinement—difficult and slow in the beginning, but faster as he progressed.

"There's still time. Let's also extract Gregory's combat experience and High Rank Dragon Step."

Book of All Things, activate!

Instantly, Gregory's combat experience flooded into Bruno's mind. He felt as though he were Gregory, fighting for his life on the underground black-market fight ring.

As one enemy after another fell, Bruno's presence grew stronger.

"Observe weaknesses, pay attention to details, provoke, anger, learn the most effective way to target vital points, and how to conserve energy..."

Bruno fully absorbed Gregory's battle experience.

Along with that came High Rank Dragon Step. In the underground fight ring, defeating enemies was the easy part; the real challenge was how to avoid injury and ensure you were in peak condition for the next fight.

A narrow victory, as Gregory saw it, meant increasing the risk of failure in the next battle.

Bruno thought of the lifeless body lying by the side of the road, like trash, and sighed quietly.

In a way, Gregory could be considered a natural-born fighter.

Yet, this person, who had so much potential, had ended up with such a tragic fate. Truly, fate is unpredictable.

Bruno gently shook his head, loosening the muscles in his legs and waist.

In the next moment, Bruno's ankle shifted slightly, and with a twist of his waist, his whole body moved like a dragon—slipping and turning with ease in the confined space of the secret room.

High Rank Dragon Step allowed him to swiftly dodge enemy attacks in close combat or quickly reposition himself to strike at an opponent's weak points.

Bruno was very pleased. He now possessed the perfected Tiger-Wolf Combat Technique, High Rank Dragon Step, the perfected Thunderclap Breathing Method, and the boundary-breaking The Ten Thousand Hells.

Dealing with a simple Blood Wolf would be no problem at all.

150 grams of Celestial Beast meat and 100 grams of Celestial Beast blood were calling to him.

"I still have nearly 1,700 gold coins. I can easily give them to Elise and have her bet on my victory."

Bruno needed money—more specifically, he needed money to facilitate transactions or to buy Celestial Beast meat and blood.

Though right now, Celestial Beast meat and blood in Sunset City were in such high demand that even money wasn't enough to buy them, having money was still a good thing.

What he didn't know was how the odds would look tonight.

Bruno activated Bone of the Dead, dampening his aura to maintain the level of a 4th stage Warlock-Warrior.

Then, he left the secret room and walked into the tavern's main hall.

There were more staff now, preparing for business.

Clap, clap, clap!

Scarlett, dressed in black leather, clapped her hands, and all the workers immediately stopped what they were doing.

"Let me introduce you," she said. "This is the new manager of the bar, Lord Bruno."

Everyone turned to Bruno, respectfully calling out, "Lord Bruno."

Bruno waved his hand, signaling them to continue working. He then walked over to Scarlett's side.

Scarlett took the opportunity to mention that she had already spread the word to hype up the black-market fight for the night, and many people were particularly interested in Bruno, the new Warlock-Warrior who had recently joined the dojo.

"Lord Bruno, to encourage the guests to bet on the Blood Wolf's victory, I've exaggerated some details," Scarlett said.

Bruno immediately became curious.

Scarlett smiled and said, "I had people secretly spread the word that you were just the son of an ordinary farm owner not long ago, and apart from your looks, you were completely useless."

Bruno didn't mind at all. This was exactly the effect he wanted. It was important that the gamblers thought he had no chance of winning.

After briefly inquiring about the betting rules, Scarlett explained that according to the tavern's rules, those participating in the fight were not allowed to bet themselves.

The word "personally" was emphasized.

Bruno nodded. There were many rules, and most could be bent or avoided with a bit of clever thinking. However, that came with one condition: you needed enough backing or strength to get away with it.

Right now, he needed gold coins. Besides, all he had to do this month was ensure the tavern's profits were about the same as last month.

Just as Bruno was about to notify Elise to help place the bets, Blake, looking exhausted, walked over.

"My lord, the odds for tonight have been set at 1:1.35. This is the best I could calculate. If we lose, we won't go bankrupt," Blake said, his tone professional.

But Bruno wasn't satisfied with the odds. He shook his head and said, "Try to raise them a little more."

Blake took a deep breath, clearly frustrated. He thought it was almost unreasonable. Blood Wolf, the top Martial Power User under Herdman, was extremely strong and had won many consecutive victories.

Even if Bruno had truly reached 5th stage Warlock-Warrior, facing Blood Wolf still held a high risk of defeat.

He'd spent half a day calculating the odds using his experience, and now Bruno wanted to increase them further.

"With all due respect, my lord, you don't fully understand the situation here. Sometimes, you should listen to our advice," Blake said. "If the odds go any higher…"

Bruno glanced at Blake and suddenly asked, "Before I arrived, how did you plan to deal with Blood Wolf?"

Blake froze for a moment, surprised by the question. He looked at Bruno, then answered, "I've already spoken to Blood Wolf's woman, asked her to put a special substance in his food when necessary."

"But this method is risky, goes against the rules, and can't be used unless it's absolutely crucial."

"My lord, why are you asking about this?"

Bruno smiled. No wonder Blake had a distinct perfume scent when they first met, along with lipstick marks.

Blake's anger and worry weren't feigned. Bruno's sharp mental abilities had picked up on the smallest details.

It seemed Blake hadn't sided with Herdman Viscount. If he had, he would've immediately agreed to raise the odds without hesitation.

Now, the remaining options were Jessica and Evan.

Bruno didn't explain further. Instead, he said, "Do as I've instructed. Raise the odds as much as you can. Tonight, we can make up for all the previous losses."

Blake didn't argue this time. The way Bruno had questioned him earlier made him feel like he'd been seen through.

Now, Blake was starting to think that this young man who had just taken over the tavern might not be as foolish as he initially thought.

"Alright, as you wish." Blake hurriedly left.

At that moment, two figures slowly walked through the tavern door.

Bruno spotted them immediately—Elena and the bean-sprout-like Britney.

Wasn't Elena supposed to be handling things for Tursos? How did she have time to show up here?

Elena, with an inquisitive Britney in tow, walked over to Bruno.

She asked directly, "Do you feel confident?"

"Blood Wolf is one of the top fighters at the 5th stage level in the Count's arena," Elena continued. "Bruno, you need to be careful. If necessary, I'll step in."

Bruno's heart warmed. Was Elena concerned that he might not be able to handle Blood Wolf?

Considering Blood Wolf's previous fighting style, it was indeed reckless—his opponents were either left crippled or dead on the arena floor.

Bruno chuckled and said with confidence, "It's just a small-time Blood Wolf. If you intervene, wouldn't that be breaking the rules?"

Elena shook her head. "It's just a black-market fight. Master Nell has already said, the main thing is to sharpen you."

Of course, sharpening aside, Bruno's safety was the most important. Otherwise, she wouldn't have dropped everything to come here.

Britney, who was only about 1.2 meters tall, struggled to climb onto the bar counter. She looked at the bartender and excitedly said, "Give me the strongest drink you've got!"

The bartender immediately nodded, but Elena calmly intervened. "Don't mind her."

Britney pouted and complained, "I'm nineteen now. I can drink."

"You had one sip last time and nearly blew up your room. Don't you remember?" Elena refused, as expected.

Bruno nearly laughed out loud. Little bean-sprout Britney had such a funny past.

But soon, Bruno's smile faded as Jake Herdman, with his bloody hand, and Philip walked into the tavern.

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