The disciples all froze mid-bite after hearing what their Master had just said.
Rynar swallowed hard. "Another surprise...?"
Rynor frowned, his face twitching. "Please tell me it’s dessert and not... training."
Garion’s grin widened. "You’ll find out soon enough. Finish your plates first."
Dahlia groaned, rubbing her forehead. "Every time he smiles like that, something bad will always happen."
The disciples exchanged uneasy glances, but despite their fear, they kept eating.
The food burned their tongues, their lips felt like fire, yet somehow they couldn’t stop.
After a few minutes, the restaurant filled with the sound of clattering plates and heavy breathing.
Everyone slumped in their seats, sweat dripping down their faces.
Then, suddenly, a strange feeling washed over them.
Rynor blinked, staring at his arm. "Wait... what the hell?"
The glowing green veins from poison began to fade before his eyes.
Small cuts and bruises all over his body began to close up and fade away.
The exhaustion that weighed on their bodies was also lifted instantly.
Eliza looked down at her own hands. "My wounds... they’re gone."
Clara stood up and stretched, her eyes widening. "I feel... energised?"
Garion leaned casually against the counter, a smirk spreading across his face.
"The food burned the poison away and activated your mana cells, healing your body faster than you imagined."
Everyone turned to him in shock.
Even Dahlia blinked. "So... that’s the surprise?"
Garion nodded slightly. "Part of it."
Rynar laughed nervously, patting his chest. "Wow... Master, you really are the best."
Rynor grinned, wiping his mouth. "Yeah, I feel like I can lift a mountain right now."
Garion tilted his head slightly, his grin growing wider. "Good. You’re all full of energy, then?"
The disciples nodded in unison, smiling proudly.
"We feel so amazing!"
Garion’s grin sharpened, and a small chill ran down everyone’s spine.
"Perfect... Because now that your energy’s restored and your mana’s flowing again..."
He raised his hand dramatically and pointed toward the training hall.
"It’s time for... training!"
"Master, it’s the middle of the night!"
Garion shrugged casually. "So what?"
He pointed to the plates before shifting his finger toward them.
"Your bodies are in peak condition, your mana is stable, and that meal’s designed to keep you awake for days."
Rynor’s jaw dropped. "Wait, awake for days?!"
Garion nodded seriously. "Of course. You think recovery meals are just for healing?"
Garion chuckled softly, shaking her finger. "They are to keep you energised even if you’re not sleeping for days."
The disciples’ eyes widened as realisation hit them.
"No way..." Rynar muttered. "So that’s why you cooked for us today..."
Garion burst into laughter. "Exactly! You can’t complain about being tired if you’re always being energised."
A silence fell across the restaurant. Every disciple looked like they’d just been betrayed by fate itself.
Dahlia covered her mouth, trying not to laugh. "You heard him."
She then stood up, smirking. "Everyone to the training hall! Fifty sets of full-body workouts! No breaks!"
The disciples groaned loudly. "Fifty?! Right now?!"
Meanwhile, Garion turned to ARden, his expression calm but his tone sharp.
Arden straightened immediately. "Y-Yes, Master?"
Garion’s grin returned. "You’re my direct disciple, so you need to do better. Do at least a hundred sets."
Arden’s jaw dropped. "A hundred sets?! Master, please..."
Garion held up his hand. "No excuses. You’re my disciple, so you have to train harder than anyone else."
Arden grabbed his head in panic. "A hundred sets! I just finished fighting for my life!"
Garion chuckled, walking past him toward the hall. "Then you’re already warmed up."
The disciples groaned again as Dahlia clapped her hands. "You heard him! Move! Let’s do this!"
Rynor muttered under his breath. "I’d rather face another demonic boar..."
Rynar sighed. "Too late now."
As they all dragged themselves toward the training hall, Garion stood near the entrance, watching them proudly.
Garion was now in his room, looking at his own system as he opened the [Divine Supplement Creation] ability.
He leaned forward slightly, scanning the options.
"Demonic Creatine boosts strength and mana absorption for training... Demonic Protein speeds up muscle repair after training..."
"But those only help for muscle training. What I need now is something that actually sped up their mana cultivation."
He leaned back against his chair, exhaling slowly. "Something that’ll push their mana refinement to the next level."
The System flickered, displaying a long list of potential supplements.
Most were greyed out as he didn’t have any ingredients to make those.
He could only scroll through them one by one to see which one he could currently make.
"Mana Flow Elixir... Mana Infusion Oil... Mana Condenser Pill... All of them were good, but the ingredients are too rare."
He frowned deeper, rubbing his forehead. Then, suddenly, something on the list caught his attention.
Garion blinked. "Limit Break Serum?"
He tapped it, and another window opened. His eyes widened slightly as there wasn’t just one. There were multiple version lists below it.
His eyes quickly locked onto the second version of this serum, which wasn’t greyed out at all.
He directly clicked it, and a detailed description appeared, and as he read it, his lips slowly curved into a grin.
[Limit Break Serum – Mana Core Cell Version]
[Ingredients: Second Realm Essence, Spirit Fruit Extract, and Condensed Spirit Liquid.]
[Effect: Forcibly stimulates a portion of the user’s mana pool cells, transforming them directly into Perfect Mana Core Cells, rapidly advancing the user’s cultivation within the Mana Core Cells Realm.] Tʜe source of this ᴄontent ɪs 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩~𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖~𝙣𝙚𝙩
[Side Effect: Causes extreme internal heat, violent mana fluctuation, and short-term body paralysis during transformation. ]
[Taste: Absolutely horrendous. Sour enough to twist the tongue, hot enough to burn the throat, and bitter enough to make tears fall instantly.]
Garion chuckled under his breath. "Rapidly advancing the user’s cultivation within the Mana Core Cells Realm, huh?"
He rested his elbow on the desk, tapping his chin thoughtfully.
"The effects were good, but the side effects... internal heat, mana fluctuation, paralysis... hmm."
Garion’s grin widened. "Should be manageable. They’ll survive as long as I monitor the entire process."
And also when he saw the extra taste column, he couldn’t help but grin wider.
"And the taste... It’s perfect. ’sour enough to twist the tongue, hot enough to burn the throat.’ That’ll make it even more memorable."