With a training base that large sitting right there in town, Caelum still wandered openly through Walnut Town as if nothing were wrong.
The townspeople had never seen a wanted criminal this brazen.
On the notice board, his wanted poster had been placed in the most visible spot. Caelum walked past it without even glancing over, while the townspeople hurried away as though afraid to stand too close.
A head worth 5 million gold coins.
The most vicious criminal the Empire had seen in decades.
He carried the title of World’s Strongest Sword Master, and because he had repeatedly opposed the Empire, ordinary people could not help feeling some goodwill and admiration toward him.
But when Caelum actually appeared in front of them, fear still came first.
The point was not whether Caelum would cut them down.
The point was that he absolutely could.
And once he did, ordinary people would die without the slightest chance to resist.
After all, rumor said he could even split an island apart.
Caelum stopped in front of an apple stall.
"Boss, how much for one apple?"
The owner trembled.
"One... 1 Sobi is enough."
A copper coin rang lightly as Caelum tossed it over.
"Will a copper coin do?"
"Yes, yes, of course!"
The owner nodded at once.
At the street corner, a young officer brushed past Caelum and froze.
The moment he realized who he had just passed, he was about to make a move, only for a middle aged officer beside him to press a hand onto his shoulder.
The older officer shook his head, telling him not to act rashly.
The young officer spoke through anger.
"Sir, he is a wanted criminal. Are we just going to let him swagger through Walnut Town like this without the slightest restraint? He is not putting us in his eyes at all."
"A sense of justice is a good thing, but you still need to know your limits."
The middle aged officer kept his voice low.
"The Empire’s upper ranks have no way to handle him. Do you think we can?"
He patted the young officer on the shoulder.
"Come on. Peace is the best outcome here. Do not provoke him if you can avoid it. You do not want Walnut Town to become the next Bathing Town, do you?"
The young officer said nothing.
At last, he loosened his clenched fist.
All he could do was watch Caelum stroll leisurely down the street before turning away in frustration.
After deciding to stay in Walnut Town for a while, Caelum bought a house near the edge of town.
Beyond it lay the wilderness.
It was far from the town center and very quiet.
His days were simple. He swung his blade and sat in meditation.
When he had spare time, he went into town for a walk.
As time passed, the townspeople gradually discovered that the World’s Strongest Sword Master was not actually hard to get along with. Bit by bit, they became familiar with him, and the fear and stiffness from the beginning faded.
During this period, the Empire’s upper ranks did not come looking for trouble again.
The training base in Walnut Town also showed good sense and pretended not to see Caelum’s presence. No one dared provoke him.
Plenty of bounty hunters did arrive after hearing the news, adding many unfamiliar faces to the town.
In the end, the bounty hunters who came here all died inexplicably, one after another.
After a while, the number of strangers in town clearly dropped.
One day, Caelum flipped through some old newspapers and discovered that the Empire’s first Calamity Meeting had already ended several months ago.
The final Calamities had been chosen.
Six people had obtained the title.
Four of them had once been wanted criminals pursued by the Empire. After becoming Calamities, their wanted posters were withdrawn.
The other two were dark horses who had risen suddenly. In terms of strength, they were not weaker than the other four. They might even be stronger.
Mavren was one of them.
Without question, all six were absolute top level fighters.
From now on, they would become one of the forces the Empire used to shift civilian conflict elsewhere.
Even though the Six Calamities did not need to directly obey the Empire’s upper ranks and enjoyed great freedom, their very existence suppressed the strength of the common people.
Powerful individuals would challenge them, trying to take their place, only to be killed by them.
In this way, the Empire could continuously weaken civilian power.
That was the meaning behind the Calamity System.
Inside the training base, the instructor slapped Caelum’s wanted poster onto the wall.
His face was grave as he repeatedly warned the boys and girls before him.
"Recently, an extremely vicious criminal has come to town. I want all of you to be careful."
The youths immediately grew excited.
"Instructor, are you telling us to capture him?"
The instructor’s face went black.
"I am telling you to stay as far away from him as possible. Absolutely, absolutely do not overestimate yourselves and get ideas about him. He is not someone you can provoke."
"What?"
"But we are strong too!"
The youths were unconvinced.
One of them moved closer to the poster, then immediately jumped at the long string of zeroes on the bounty.
Then he recognized the person on it.
"A bounty of 5 million?"
"It is Owl!"
"The one called the World’s Strongest Sword Master?"
"He came to Walnut Town?"
The group erupted into chatter, excitement spreading through them at once.
Young people were often rebellious. The more you told them not to do something, the more they wanted to try.
Besides, these kids had not seen the world. They thought that learning the combat techniques of the Six Forms meant they could deal with any expert.
They had no idea how unreasonable a truly powerful person could be.
"I am warning you!"
The instructor’s shout was stern.
"Do not provoke him. If you do, the consequences will be unimaginable. If you do not want to lose your lives, behave yourselves."
"Yes, Instructor!"
The youths answered loudly, their eyes bright.
But beneath that brightness was a restless eagerness.
After all, most youths did not know the height of heaven or the depth of earth.
Not long after, the kids from the training base secretly found out where Caelum lived.
On a certain night, more than a dozen of them slipped out of the base under cover of darkness.
The night was deep and quiet.
They ran to the edge of town.
Under the moonlight, one of them pointed at the house ahead and whispered, "That is Owl’s house."
"Good. Move."
"Wait."
Someone sounded afraid.
"Maybe we should listen to the instructor. This feels way too dangerous. That is Owl. Are we really his match?"
"That is why we are attacking at night."
"Besides, we are all human. How strong can he be? We are strong too, all right?"
"Exactly. Do you not want to show the instructor what we can do? If we successfully capture Owl, the instructor will definitely recognize our strength."
"Then... fine."
Soon, the dozen or so kids crept toward the house.
Just as they were about to force their way in, a shadow fell over them from the roof.
The youths froze and looked up on instinct.
Beneath the full moon, Caelum stood above them, looking down from the rooftop.
A dangerous presence spread through the air.
In an instant, the mood grew heavy.
"Disturbing someone’s sleep in the middle of the night. Looks like all of you need a lesson."
The youths were startled.
Then someone shouted.
"Attack!"
Several figures flashed.
Like teleportation, they appeared beside Caelum and attacked together.