Chapter 26: Perfect Body
Half a month had passed since the Harvest Festival, and Moldavia once again welcomed winter.
Due to the decrease in adventurers, the shops in the city had entered their off-season. Except for the taverns, which were always bustling with noise, the other stores that remained open all seemed somewhat desolate.
And Black really hadn't gone out for a long time.
Ever since everyone returned from the Holy Mountain, the black dragon girl had been staying together with Firefly, taking care of Brandon's two daughters. They often went outside the city to wander around and enjoy the scenery—given Black and Firefly's strength, there were few people in the entire Northern Lands who could put them in danger, so Joshua let them do as they pleased.
But because of the continuous snowstorms, the two little girls were unwilling to go out anymore, and Black thus lost her chance to go outside and breathe fresh air.
For a black dragon, the Lord's Manor was still too cramped. Life within the city was certainly interesting, but it also suppressed her nature. However, since she had already taken human form, Joshua couldn't let her return to the lake by Nissier Snow Mountain. So he had to take matters into his own hands and occasionally go out for a stroll with Black.
After greeting Number Three and Firefly at home, Joshua led the black dragon girl out of the main city. In the snow-covered outskirts beyond the city walls, accompanied by a violent fluctuation of arcane power, Black transformed back into her dragon form and excitedly stomped on the ground, sending snow dust flying and producing rumbling booms.
The high temperature radiating from the black dragon's body completely melted all the ice and snow within a radius of nearly a hundred meters. But Joshua didn't mind. He flew up onto Black's head. His tone paused as he recalled, within the Ultimate Essence, that figure holding a pure white staff, facing the endless darkness and chaos.
The warrior looked up at the sky. Thick, gloomy clouds churned. In his eyes, it seemed as if fire was burning: "You... just how strong are you..."
At that moment, the blazing flames around the warrior suddenly swelled and then contracted, completely retracting into his body. The next instant, a steely color spread across Joshua's entire form, making it clear at a glance that he was indestructible.
Steel Armor Breathing Art, peak achievement.
An immense amount of battle qi had thoroughly purified every part of the warrior's body, perfectly harmonizing his battle qi and flesh. The Steel Armor Breathing Art, which was about to be cultivated to its highest realm, had also revived within this new body and reached a state of completion, greatly enhancing Joshua's survivability.
At this point, the warrior's body had completely become something akin to a legendary suit of armor. Ordinary weapons, battle qi, and magic were utterly unable to breach his defense, merely dissipating helplessly upon contact.
Furthermore, the recently mastered Inferno Aura had also been strengthened. A vast amount of heat, no less than that of the black dragon beneath him, radiated from the warrior's body, spreading with the fluctuation of deep red battle qi. As time passed, the heat emanating from Joshua grew increasingly immense.
But the warrior seemed to have discovered something. While using battle qi to thoroughly purify all foreign elements within his body, he suddenly sensed a barrier. This barrier was not an obstruction, but rather a kind of omen.
As long as this body was purified and strengthened to a certain degree, he could shed some innate deficiency and reach a new, perfect realm. Unlike the 'breakthrough of limits' achieved by Force's Ultimate Essence, this was a kind of power signifying 'completeness'.
"Perfect Body?"
Joshua knew exactly what this barrier was, which was why he was surprised. Perfect Body had always been the exclusive privilege of legendary experts, and specifically those of the combat class. Every one who possessed this talent and specialization was undoubtedly the strongest warrior or knight. The prerequisite was Force's Ultimate Essence. Not even Israel had reached this realm, nor had he in his previous life.
What did 'perfect' mean? No poison or disease could invade the holder's body. They would never feel fatigue, their physical state always remaining at its peak. An extremely powerful regenerative ability allowed them to survive and regenerate even after losing ninety-nine percent of their internal organs. And these were just the basics.
"Even..."
Muttering softly to himself, Joshua raised his right hand. He stared at this palm, which faintly shimmered with a cold steely light, and then used his left hand to condense battle qi into a blade and cut it.
Even Joshua's own battle qi encountered immense resistance when touching the warrior's body. He had to increase his force repeatedly before barely managing to cut a small opening, allowing dark red blood to flow out.
The dark red blood seemed to possess intelligence. After leaving the wound, it didn't drip down but instead, like a living thing, retracted back into the wound. Joshua narrowed his eyes, concentrated his will, and forced the blood to drip. Only then did it slowly flow out from the wound.
The moment this blood touched the elements in the atmosphere, it displayed an extremely powerful devouring ability. In just a few breaths, the surrounding elements were plundered clean. If Black hadn't been constantly moving forward at high speed, it might have created a small elemental vacuum zone.
After absorbing a large amount of elements, this single drop of blood changed from its original dark red to a pitch-black color. The energy within it also began to become chaotic, as if it were about to explode.
"As expected, it's not possible yet."
His will swept over it, suppressing the energy within that drop of blood, which then returned to the warrior's body. Joshua watched it retract back into the wound, which quickly closed up, leaving no trace of a scar. He shook his head thoughtfully: "I don't have a Perfect Body yet. I haven't reached that realm."
Legend said that the power of legendary experts was so immense that their bodies were indestructible, their will never fading. Even in death, their souls could drift through the world for millions of years.
And the ancient dragons, who had survived from antiquity to the present day, possessed even more miraculous power. They were nearly immortal and could not be killed. Every drop of blood shed by an ancient dragon could give birth to a new race in the world. As long as every part and every drop of blood wasn't completely annihilated, the powerful life force and soul would allow the ancient dragon to be reborn from its own blood and bodily fragments.
This was the power of Perfect Body at its limit.
Joshua's current body had initially reached the realm of 'completeness'. Although his blood couldn't achieve miraculous effects like rebirth from a single drop, it had already displayed its own abnormality.
"Interesting." Clenching his right fist, producing a sound like grinding steel, Joshua looked ahead at the ice field growing closer. No one knew what he was thinking.
But it was clear that he was very pleased.
At the same time, on the Extreme North Icefield, Ivan and the others were also very pleased.
Because they had already seen the colossal mountain wreckage in the distance—the ruins of the Dragon's Nest.