Chapter 258 Substantial Increase in Heritage
Ken's expectant look made John feel uneasy.
Previously, John hadn't fully grasped Eric's abilities. He only had a feeling that Eric might reach that level. But now, seeing it firsthand, John was nothing but astonished.
He couldn't imagine that a young man in his early twenties had already reached such a profound understanding of martial arts.
If it were just a deep understanding of martial arts, John could categorize Eric as a genius. But Eric's seamless execution of moves, as if they were alive and full of spirit, wasn't something that could be achieved through understanding alone. It required extensive practical experience and countless life-and-death trials.
Even John himself had only recently reached this level, and he was already forty-five years old. Since debuting at sixteen, he had fought in hundreds of battles, including on the battlefield, and only after numerous trials had he reached his current level.
John found it hard to believe that Eric had so much practical experience. Even if Eric had been fighting life-and-death battles since birth, it would be impossible to reach this level in his early twenties.
"Because he's no longer confined to techniques, it's hard for me to judge. But to have such abilities at such a young age, I doubt there's another like him in all of Evergreen City," John said with a smile, feeling emotional.
"No way, Mr. Carrillo, isn't your evaluation a bit too high?" Ken was taken aback.
"No, my evaluation is not high at all. Although Eric's physique is a bit lacking, in terms of skill, he has no problem competing for the top ten in the State-level Martial Arts Tournament," John shook his head.
John's words left Otto and Ken slightly shocked.
If the top martial arts champion in all of Evergreen City was considered a top expert, then in the State, it wouldn't mean much. After all, the State had dozens of cities, and it was extremely difficult for Evergreen City's top martial arts champion to even make it into the top thirty in the State, let alone the top ten.
But for John, a martial arts master, to say this with certainty, it made everyone take it seriously.
John had once placed in the top three in the State, so he was very familiar with State-level martial arts competitions. If John said so, it meant Eric indeed had the ability to make it into the top ten in the State.
A State had hundreds of millions of people, with tens of thousands of martial arts competitors. To rank in the top ten among tens of thousands of competitors was far more prestigious than being the top in Evergreen City.
Someone like Lucas, a martial arts prodigy, was only favored by Ken and Otto. They saw Lucas as a junior, but Eric's abilities made them take him seriously, or even see him as an equal.
"Eric is truly remarkable. To have such abilities and yet remain so low-key, no wonder Katherine values him so much," Ken thought as he looked at Eric again. His previous anger and disdain were replaced by admiration. He glanced at Bob beside him, feeling a surge of anger, "Bob really dared to use me as a pawn. It seems I need to teach him a lesson."
Ken had previously favored Bob and was aware of Bob's pursuit of Katherine. He hadn't stopped it because Bob was indeed excellent and had the right to pursue Katherine. But now, Ken found Bob very annoying.
Even if Ken were foolish, he could see that Bob had been using him. Bob had said all sorts of negative things about Eric, claiming he was from a poor family, was clingy towards Katherine, was often bullied, and was extremely mediocre. This made Ken think Eric was unsuitable and prompted him to intervene. But now, it was clear that wasn't the case at all.
Bob couldn't compare to Eric, so he tried to slander Eric in front of Ken.
Ranking ninth in the school was impressive at Evergreen University, but in the Evergreen City martial arts competition, he was just a rookie. There were hundreds of such rookies every year. In the State, he wouldn't even be noticeable.
In other words, Bob and Eric were worlds apart.
"It seems my judgment is really off. As Otto said, let the young people handle their own affairs," Ken decided not to interfere with Eric and Katherine anymore. He would let things take their natural course and see who Katherine ultimately chose.
As the match ended, Eric became the absolute star of the event. Many students from various schools gathered around him, wanting to build a relationship. In contrast, Lucas, who had fainted, was ignored by everyone, including his partner, Jack.
Although Eric had long known Jack's true nature, witnessing this scene still left him feeling a bit melancholic.
Such is the warmth and coldness of human nature.
However, Eric wouldn't sympathize with Lucas, because Lucas was the same kind of person. In his previous life, ShadowForge Studios had recruited many promising newcomers and was on the verge of a major breakthrough. But then, out of nowhere, Lucas turned against them. He broke ties with Jack, took away several top talents, and joined the Supremacy Alliance, severely crippling ShadowForge Studios. If not for that, ShadowForge Studios wouldn't have remained a third-rate guild. It was only after Eric took over that it gradually developed into a top-tier second-rate guild.
But this life was completely different. Eric had initially planned to spend a lot of resources competing with ShadowForge Guild for talent, but now it seemed unnecessary.
With Lucas's defeat, ShadowForge Guild's status plummeted in everyone's eyes, while Eric's Guild of Aether Wing became the sole target of admiration. Jack was furious but helpless.
Had Jack known Eric was this formidable, he would never have agreed to let Lucas fight Eric. This way, he could have still recruited many promising newcomers or top talents. But now, ShadowForge Guild had no competitive edge and could only pick from the leftovers after the Guild of Aether Wing had made their selections.
"Eric, do you think I could join the Guild of Aether Wing, even just as a regular member?"
"Hello, I'm Evan Hotcher, president of Evergreen City's top studio, VerdantLeaf Studios. I'd like to merge our entire studio into the Guild of Aether Wing. We don't ask for much, just ten official member slots and fifty peripheral member slots."
As Eric began recruiting, elite students from various schools gathered around him, along with many studios and martial arts competitors. The most surprising to Eric was VerdantLeaf Studios' willingness to join. In his previous life, VerdantLeaf Studios had completely ignored ShadowForge Studios' recruitment efforts. Instead, they established their own guild, secured sponsorship and support from several corporations, and developed into a third-rate guild in Divine Realms: Legends.
If it hadn't been for limited funds and the increasing number of guilds in Evergreen City, spreading investments thin, VerdantLeaf Studios' guild might have been ShadowForge Studios' biggest competitor.
Additionally, Eric finally found the Five Demon Generals of ShadowForge Studios.
By the end of the event, Eric couldn't believe it. The number of slots he had initially set was far from enough; he ended up with over a hundred more people. Among them were over fifty foreseeable top talents and nine top-tier experts, five of whom were the Five Demon Generals, and the other four were core members of VerdantLeaf Studios.
With these recruits, Aether Wing Studios instantly became a giant in Evergreen City's virtual gaming scene, with a foundation much stronger than many third-rate guilds. The total number of members reached over five hundred. Once these five hundred people became the backbone of Guild of Aether Wing, Eric wouldn't fear going to war with a second-rate guild.
Eric spent an entire day finalizing contracts for these new members.
As for the management of Aether Wing Studios, Tonny had already made arrangements. Many of the new recruits were already part of studios, so they quickly adapted and even brought significant management expertise. However, Tonny was still shocked to see Eric bring in so many people at once.
The influx of over four hundred new members instantly filled Aether Wing's workspace, making the entire studio bustling and orderly, no longer empty and mismatched with its size.
It wasn't until nightfall that Eric returned home, had a quick dinner, drank a bottle of nutritional supplement, and began a new day in Divine Realms: Legends.
And this new day was destined to be anything but ordinary.
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