Listening by the side, Rein was deep in thought.
Clearly, what the opponent had used was witchcraft; the pale green corrosive liquid sphere was called 'acid missile,' and its power was quite remarkable.
Seeing the look of yearning on Rein's face, Hamilton immediately understood something and said,
"These wizard apprentices vary in strength."
"However, Rein, you are one of the most talented knights I've come across. Don't get distracted, stick to the path of the knight."
"Only knights are orthodox. Many of these wizard apprentices end up neither human nor ghost."
"Uh... Thank you for the reminder, sir."
Rein nodded initially, but his eyes flickered.
"Clearly, Hamilton is a resolute supporter of transcendental knights."
"Asking him more about wizard apprentices would only displease him."
"I'll look for a better opportunity next time."
The crystal lizard was loaded onto the mining cart; the elite Night Watchman pushed it out slowly.
The body of the rock beast, following the appearance of the 'Heart of the Stone Beast,' seemed to have had its essence drained, leaving behind only a carcass of ordinary granite, which was essentially worthless.
So, it was simply abandoned inside the mine.
Upon exiting the gold mine, the gathering of miners saw the body of the crystal lizard on the mining cart and couldn't help cheering warmly for Hamilton and Rein's group.
After whispering a few words to Weilun, Hamilton stepped forward and loudly said,
"Your foreman has tragically died in battle. Now, choose a temporary foreman to oversee the gold mine."
The miners looked at each other, their faces showing no hint of sadness.
Apparently, the gold mine foreman, killed by Endri, was not well-liked at all.
Suddenly, there was some movement in the crowd, and a middle-aged man with a face full of wrinkles and dark skin was pushed forward as the temporary foreman.
Once everything at the gold mine was arranged, the group quickly returned to Flashgold Town.
Since the gold mine was located southwest of Flashgold Town, and Rein's home was on the south side of the town,
Rein then broke off from the main group, stopped by his house, and soon after, he arrived at Hamilton's office, handing over three hundred imperial gold coins directly to Hamilton.
"Sir, here are three hundred gold coins. I might need some time to give you the remaining two hundred," Rein said.
Even though the rules for bounty hunters' loot distribution did not require him to give so much,
Rein knew very well that without Hamilton holding off and injuring the monster first, his chances of achieving a successful kill would have been slim.
Moreover, this mission at Elim Gold Mine was actually an internal task of the Night Watchman. Had it not been for Endri's appearance, Rein wouldn't have claimed the 'Heart of the Stone Beast' as a bounty hunter.
If it had been in the name of the Night Watchman, Rein would have had to pay far more than this.
Thus, Rein actually got quite a bargain.
"Okay!" Hamilton looked at Rein with relief, although he was a bit surprised that Rein could bring out so much money at once.
He didn't say much and simply accepted it.
After thinking it over, Hamilton said with a frown, "By the way, Rein, I have a suggestion that you might want to consider."
"Please, tell me, sir," Rein said, curious, watching Hamilton's slightly troubled expression.
"With your rate of progress, you could choose to sell the 'Heart of the Stone Beast' to the imperial army in exchange for a high-quality advancement magic potion."
"Although the advancement magic potion suitable for your breathing technique can be obtained using Merit Points, those exchanged are just of ordinary quality."
"High-quality 'Giant Bear's Paw' is rare, and even if it's available, the competition among nobles is fierce! So, the imperial army is the best choice."
Rein immediately understood Hamilton's point, nodded, and began to seriously consider it.
This investigation mission in the Elim Gold Mine was initially intended to earn more Merit Points to exchange for advancement magic potions.
Now, just by selling the 'Heart of the Stone Beast' to the imperial army, he could achieve this goal, no, exceed it.
Because, according to Hamilton, high-quality advancement magic potions might trigger two transcendent features.
During his pondering, Rein inadvertently caught a glimpse of the 'investigative report' Hamilton was drafting himself, noticing he had written up to the part about the rock beast and stopped abruptly.
Instantly, Rein understood.
"It seems Hamilton also encountered a dilemma! If the 'Heart of the Stone Beast' were to be included in the report, the news would inevitably spread among the nobility, and countless powerful entities might come looking for me."
"Hamilton was considering this, which is why he subtly made this suggestion to me."
"In the short term, I will not be able to successfully transfer jobs with the 'Heart of the Stone Beast' on hand!"
He who carries the jade is guilty, that much Rein understood.
"What's most crucial for me at present is to step into the transcendent as soon as possible. The world is so vast, and the amount of treasures isn't limited to just the 'Heart of the Stone Beast'."
"As my strength improves, the opportunities to obtain treasures will also increase."
"What's more important, however, is to smoothly get through this period of being weak!"
"Besides, I've already gotten on the bad side of the Norman family, Baron Alonso, and who knows if the Brotherhood of the Wilderness will trace anything back to me..."
After such contemplation, Rein was suddenly enlightened!
"I was blinded by the system notification of the special promotion to 'Giant Stone Guard'!"
"Greed is indeed the original sin!"
Having figured it all out, Rein smiled slightly and bowed slightly, saying,
"Of course, that's a great suggestion, Lord Hamilton. I'll leave this matter to you then!"
"Good! Good!" the more Hamilton looked at Rein, the more he liked him, and he repeatedly said the word 'good' twice.
At the same time, the investigation report he was writing no longer had any obstacles.
Hamilton's quill flew swiftly between his fingers. With a few swift strokes, he completed the report on the Elim Mine.
Meanwhile, Rein took out the 'Stone Monster's Heart', emitting a soft yellow glow from his waist pouch, and diligently handed it to Lord Hamilton.
After returning home, Anna and Bo He were taking care of 'Cookie'. Rein greeted them and went back to his room.
After quietly thinking to himself, Rein decided to add that newly gained skill point to his Giant Bear Breathing Technique lv4.
As the Giant Bear Breathing Technique advanced to lv5.
Instantly, a surge of memories about the practice of the Giant Bear Breathing Technique came flooding into Rein's mind.
These fragmented breathing technique memories passed one by one through Rein's mind and awakened instinctively within the muscle and fascia memory of his body.
When Rein opened his eyes again, it was as if he had undergone months of rigorous training in the Giant Bear Breathing Technique.
At this moment, he distinctly felt a warmth throughout his body, his muscles somewhat swollen, and the fascia within seemed tougher, like a web of sinew, linking all his bones and muscles together.
With this, the Giant Bear Breathing Technique finally advanced to lv5, fulfilling the breathing technique requirement for the Knight (Transcendent) job advancement.
Rein thought briefly and decided to strike while the iron was hot. He quickly applied black tung oil on a few special points and began practicing the fourth stance of the Giant Bear Breathing Technique.
The movement of the fourth stance required him to do a one-handed handstand, then touch his feet to his head, forming a circle with his body.
This movement differed significantly from the previous three stances in that while the initial ones focused on upper body muscle and fascia training, the fourth stance began to aggressively train the body's flexibility, stretching the fascia.
The previously initiated changes in his bodily fascia intensified, the threads of fascia fibers thickening, and their connection to Rein's skeletal and muscle fibers growing stronger.
Suddenly, Rein's eyes snapped open!
It seemed as if he had broken through some kind of barrier.
It was like the sensation of a bow stretched to its limit before being drawn tighter and then snapping.
At that moment, three system notifications quietly arrived:
[Congratulations! Your Constitution attribute has increased!]
[Congratulations! Your Strength attribute has increased!]
[Congratulations! Your agility attribute has increased!]
Rein couldn't help but laugh loudly!
It had been a long time since he had last gained an attribute increase while practicing a breathing technique.
But what Rein had not expected was that he would receive three system notifications at once!
This went to show that the Giant Bear Breathing Technique did indeed enhance agility, but only through the practice of the later stances.
That made sense; otherwise, Knights practicing the Giant Bear Breathing Technique wouldn't be prevalent if they couldn't hit anyone despite their great strength.
It could only be said that, comparatively, the Giant Bear Breathing Technique primarily enhanced Strength and Constitution.
Feeling the great power surging through his body, Rein realized he had now satisfied the first prerequisite for advancing to Knight (Transcendent): any Knight Breathing Technique above lv5.
And the second requirement, with Strength above 12 points, agility above 12 points, and Constitution above 12 points, he had also just met.
The only things left were horseback riding, shield defense, and archery skills to train above lv3; then he would be all set.
Riding and archery were easy to talk about.
It was only shield defense that meant he still had to find Lord Hamilton or the quartermaster to exchange a related Combat Skill.
"Also, once the Giant Bear Sword Technique steps into lv5, I should be able to unlock the roaring strike lv2," Rein thought.
Thinking of the roaring strike, Rein quickly opened the Night Watchman panel.
He focused his mind on an icon located above the Giant Bear Breathing Technique and Giant Bear Sword Technique. The icon depicted a 'profile picture' of a roaring giant bear!
That was the roaring strike icon.
He looked again at the small text below it:
Roaring strike lv2 requires the following criteria: One, Giant Bear Breathing Technique lv5 or above, Giant Bear Sword Technique lv5 or above; two, Strength 12 points, Constitution 12 or above.
(Note: roaring strike is a secret technique and cannot be directly enhanced with skill points.)
Rein nodded, remembering correctly that once his Giant Bear Sword Technique reached lv5, he could unlock roaring strike lv2.
This made Rein quite anticipatory!
The power of roaring strike lv1 was already so impressive; he wondered what lv2 would be like!