8 8. Prodigy III

That night, Hal went into cultivation, thinking if Elder Tian is some sort of villain, he should be worried over.

'From the atmosphere alone, it could be said they don't have that bad of a relationship, but they did fight before so…ugh, it's pretty complicated.'

In the end, Hal threw the idea on the back of his head.

He sighed and sat on his bassinet with a straightened back and looked at the two gifts he got from Darya and Alri.

The Muspell Crown and the Sky Deity Protection Array were in front of him as if they were common toys. However, these two are treasures, and he had to fight with Arya and Daryun to make sure it didn't get taken away by them.

Daryun and Arya were already asleep, or so he wishes them to be.

He can't see them right now because a thick curtain separating his portion of the room and he could hear nothing, so he left it at that.

'What's this exactly?' Hal picked up the Muspell Crown from the ground and looked at it with great interest.

"That's an artifact that spews out flames hot enough to rank in the «Sun Flames»."

'You know what this is, Phoenix? And what's the «Sun Flames» anyway?'

Hal was surprised to hear the Phoenix comment on anything unrelated to a story, but it's helpful, so he's not complaining.

"It's the ancient ranking of Heavenly Flames in this world. There are nine Tiers of «Sun Flames» with the First Sun being the weakest and the Ninth Sun as the strongest. But from my last coming, that ranking is no longer present, and the flames are only known as Low, Mid, and High Tier."

'But isn't that kind of inefficient and unspecific? What a useless kind of ranking system.'

"I know, but they changed it so we can't do anything about it. What? Do you want to learn it?"

'If possible then yes.'

"Well…I have nothing to lose."

The Phoenix did what it said and had Hal learn the ancient ranking system of flames.

However, it was not the usual way of learning as the Phoenix directly injected the information into Hal's mind making it more efficient. The entire process wasn't new to him, and it was not exactly that many, so he managed to process it quicker than usual.

Hal shook his head as he reviewed the information.

"Let's see; this Muspell Crown is rather strong, right? Hmm, it goes up all the way to the Fourth Sun? That's pretty intense."

To compare, Hal learned that the First Sun could easily melt Mystic Iron, and the Fourth Sun can burn for days before losing its heat. And as a Fourth Sun if not careful, the user of the flame will have his veins, body, heavenly essence, and blood destroyed if used without the ability to control it.

'While we're on the topic, your flames, how strong is it even?'

"I think it can reach up to the Seventh Sun. I can burn an entire continent if I want to."

Hal was pretty surprised; he did not expect for the Phoenix's flames to be so subdued.

"But hey, that's my flames when I am still a spirit, I previously peaked at the Eighth Sun and almost destroyed the world of my previous wielder. You should know how strong that is."

The Eighth Sun is strong enough and is already considered untouchable, but the Ninth Sun is entirely different. The Ninth Sun is in a different realm from First to Eighth Sun.

Going through the information he received, Hal found something in the mix. It was the method on how to make a so-called contract with an artifact.

Hal tried contacting the Phoenix, but it didn't answer; the Phoenix didn't want to speak any more.

Hal was left with the instructions and considering how the Muspell Crown is currently ownerless, if he just refrains from using it whilst he is still weak, the Muspell Crown would prove to be a formidable weapon in the near future.

Hal drew out power from his Soul Seed. The Soul Seed hummed as it released heavenly essence. The heavenly essence then began to flow into his blood and reached the tips of his fingers.

His heavenly essence infused blood then flowed out as Hal used one of the Muspell Crown's pointed tips.

The crown released a scarlet glow and turned into a flash of light as it flew out and into Hal's chest.

No impact was felt, only a warm feeling welling up in his chest. The Muspell Crown traveled through his body and settled down in his «Inner World», atop his Spirit Tree.

The Muspell Crown provided a scarlet light the Phoenix used to relax.

'Will I be able to use this kind artifact any time soon?' Hal wondered.

"No, you merely branded it as your own, this thing has a «Natal Soul». Because you're stupid I'll explain it further, Natal Soul is the souls of all artifacts. Every strong artifact will have one and the stronger the artifact, the stronger the Natal Soul. To where it currently stands, the Natal Soul of the crown will not even lend you its strength much less you wielding it in a fight. At the moment, it's a glorified night light."

The more Hal listened, the more he learned, but in the end, he shook it off and just mediated before sleeping for a few hours.

Just like that, time moved forward.

As a one-year-old prodigy, Hal's unchildlike action was already the norm. He did not hide his capabilities neither did he hide his incompetence. Hal was adored for his relentless pursuit of knowledge and strength garnering the praises of his parents, siblings and others.

The prodigy was blossoming, and he held no contempt towards those who have talent any less than his. He merely walked forward without looking down on anyone, trying to find a semblance of what he can do to live a life that will lead to longevity.

His name soon spread all over the province and then across the state, in the end, it reached the ears of more people outside their territory; soon, the name Hal Estize became known as a model for other geniuses and the source of envy of others.

During the day, just before the sun rises, Hal would run around and execute basic exercises to improve the vessel, which is his body.

He doesn't cultivate to improve his level just yet, and only does the basic body strengthening regimen he learned from different lives.

His training would start at five and end at around 8.

At first, he found it difficult to continue an extraneous set of exercise such as this, but he didn't give up, and soon enough he managed to complete 100 Pushups, 100 Sit-Ups, and a 10km Run.

Hal is becoming stronger. He moved on and improved his training set, he now does finger pushups and is keen on improving his agility and dexterity. Flexibility is also key to sharp movements, so he made sure not to neglect such a vital point.

To accommodate his training, he also increased his training time.

Exercise not only makes him stronger, but it also builds a foundation for a longer lifespan. In the end, he only wishes for longer life, nothing more, nothing less. But he is also increasing his fighting capabilities in order to make sure he will be able to protect his life.

And with all the exercises, he still has a total of 30 minutes to finish one more set.

"1356, 1357, 1358, 1359, 1360��"

Hal pushed his body up and down with his sweat trickling down his forehead and ending up in his nose as he supported his entire weight with his arms alone. He was upside down, and the burning sensation all over his body began to spread.

"That's 5 hours, young master."

"Okay." Hal pushed his body up with one big push and somersaulted before landing on both feet.

As he stood up with his perfectly toned body, the changes in his body could be seen.

Hal was no longer the puny child that he previously was.

He was now three years old with a body that resembles that of a four-year-old. He was no taller than 1.03 meters, and his body was lean without any excess fat.

His scarlet hair seemed like it was dancing under direct contact with sunlight. Hal sighed as he stretched his body and wiped the sweat off his body.