After saying everything he needed to, the principal left the classroom.
At this moment, one of the boys raised his hand. He had brown skin and short black hair.
"Miss Taylor, I want to challenge Alex. With my ability, I think I can take him down."
Hearing his words, the class suddenly became excited while Taylor narrowed her eyes and turned toward Alex.
Maybe this was a good time to give Alex some lessons. After all, Alex had skipped every single practice session.
"Alex, what do you think?"
She asked.
Alex didn't want to face him, but he realized something. Unlike him, these people hadn't been much involved in awakening before these months.
It had been less than two months since their awakening. Sending them to the war front was no different than sending them to death.
At least, Ravi's intention was no different than courting death.
"Alright!"
He replied and stood up.
"Let's go to the practice ground!"
Taylor took the lead and said.
Soon, they left their class and went straight to the practice ground. It was an outdoor area behind the second building.
Because this area was quite dry and wide, it was perfect for practice.
"Now, make a circle of at least fifty meters radius!"
Taylor signaled them as she walked to a certain distance and stopped. Others also followed her instructions and created a circle of a fifty-meter radius.
Soon, only Ravi and Alex were left in the middle.
Ravi raised his fists and said.
"Alex, you might have a head start, but my ability is strong."
"No need for trash talk! Fight!"
Taylor frowned and shouted.
Hearing that, Ravi panicked and immediately activated his ability. Inside his mind, there was a large tree, and on the bottom branch, there was a small icon.
This icon had turned grey as he activated this ability.
[Red Lion Transformation]
His body began changing. His clothes started stretching until red fur and muscles appeared underneath him.
His face turned into the face of a lion, with red skin and fearsome teeth.
He growled at Alex and dashed forward. He seemingly moved like a nimble cheetah, crossing tens of meters in a second.
When he appeared in front of Alex, he clenched his fingers into a fist and moved his hand straight toward Alex's face.
"What is going on? Why isn't Alex doing anything?"
"Miss, is Alex just going to stand there?"
"Wow! Ravi is so fast. Is this his first ability?"
The students seemed excited. Some even asked Taylor with confusion.
Because they had been baptized by natural energy, even if they hadn't reached First Rank, they could still see Ravi's speed.
Before Taylor could reply, Alex suddenly raised his hand and caught Ravi's fist.
Ravi stopped. His full strength was causally stopped by Alex.
Ravi tried struggling. He tried to push Alex down. He grunted and roared, but Alex didn't even move his hand.
He clenched his right fist and went straight for his gut.
Bang!
The punch sent Ravi flying in the air, but Alex was still holding him, so he didn't fly away.
Instead, he got knocked out of his transformation.
His body returned to normal with a slight blood trail coming from the corner of his mouth.
"How?"
He barely opened his mouth and asked.
He couldn't understand. His transformation was supposed to give him a five-time boost.
According to his knowledge, Alex's Soul Tree was a sapling. It couldn't even give him a proper ability.
In four years, Alex had only reached third rank, while it had only taken him a month to reach the first rank.
So, he didn't understand why Alex was so strong.
Was there such a big difference in ranks?
Taylor shook her head. She was so desperate to make Alex serious that she almost forgot Alex was two ranks higher than Ravi.
Although the ability was important, it wasn't enough to determine one's true strength.
"You do not understand, do you? Ravi Hart! You are the son of Tony Hart. Your father is rich enough to afford Energy Gel, right?"
When he said that, Ravi's eyes widened.
"How did you?"
"Because there are five people in the class who are ready to break into First Rank at any moment but are held back to gain more experience and build a stronger foundation."
"These five had steady progress, but one day, you suddenly surpassed them and reached First Rank. Do you think I wouldn't notice such an obvious thing?"
Alex sneered.
He let go of his hand and felt disdainful towards this guy. Compared to him, the other five were true geniuses.
Because they were ready to enter First Rank at any moment, but they were constantly holding back, refining their bodies.
"Every rank is like a chasm. Each rank requires us to strengthen our body with natural energy for as long as we can hold."
"Five times boost? What kind of shit is that? The First Rank has the strength of five hundred kilograms."
"The second rank has the strength of fifteen hundred kilograms. The third rank has the strength of four thousand kilograms."
"Fourth rank has the strength of ten thousand kilograms. The fifth rank has the strength of fifteen thousand kilograms. The sixth rank has the strength of twenty thousand kilograms."
"The seventh rank has the strength of thirty thousand kilograms. The eighth rank has the strength of forty thousand kilograms."
"The ninth rank has the strength of fifty thousand kilograms."
"If you were even second rank, then it would be different. Next time, think before you try to challenge others."
Saying so, he placed his hands behind his head and walked away.
He didn't return to the class immediately; instead went under the shade of a building and stayed there.
Seeing this, Taylor shook her head and said.
"Students, Alex is right. Boost given by ability can be quite powerful. For example, Ravi's five-time boost is certainly amazing."
"But even he doesn't know one thing. That boost will decrease to four times when he reaches the fourth rank."
"And that will decrease to three times at the seventh rank. So, if you try to rely too much on ability, you won't survive."
One of the students raised her hand and asked.
"Miss, what is the rank of Ravi's ability?"
Taylor thought for a moment and said.
"Based on its abilities and future decrement, I would put it at C-Rank. It's not bad, but it's not the best in the world."
"But considering your current ability could be tied with a B-Rank, I believe you have a chance of awakening a B-Rank ability in your arsenal."
"Remember, ability can be pretty important, but they are not your only strength. You were only taught for less than two months."
"Your fighting capability is not good enough. So, I suggest you try to reach First Rank as soon as possible."
Hearing that, one of the students raised her hand and said.
"But, Miss, my improvement is slow. I am only getting 1NE per two days."
Taylor nodded her head and said.
"That's not slow. That's normal. Let me show you something!"
She took out a small marker that was around five inches tall and said.
"The volume of this marker is the same as 1 portion of Natural Energy that you absorb. You need hundreds of these to reach First Rank."
"Normally, it would take you two hundred days to reach First Rank. But on the war ground, your absorption rate will go from 1NE per two days to 2NE per day."
"Not to mention, you can increase this absorption rate five times by using Energy Gel. There is no harm in using it since almost everyone uses it after First Rank."
"Otherwise, it will take you over a year to just cross a single rank. And, you will only be obligated to stay on the war ground for one year."
"After that, you can return home or decide to stay there."
Hearing her words, one of the students raised her hand with a sad expression and said.
"Miss, our family can't afford Energy Gel."
Taylor walked up to the boy and patted him on the head.
"There are many families who can't afford such a thing. But since you are going way earlier than expected, I will do my best to convince the school to provide you with Energy Gel."
Her words made every student tear up, especially the girls who were hugging her and crying.
Looking at this, a corner of Alex's lips rose.
'She is not a bad teacher.'
But then he remembered his fate, and the smile disappeared from his face. Although he tried to hide it, someone saw this.
One of the girls was watching him most of the time, and when she saw him smile, her eyes widened.
'I never thought Alex could smile. And, he looks so handsome while smiling.'
She felt a massive regret in her heart for not having a camera with her.