Chapter 487: The passage of time here is different

Kyle gazed at the excited old man who asked him about the rank of his spiritual energy stat with an eager expression. He opened his mouth with a serious look.

"It's just showing (F)-rank."

Hubert nodded.

"It's to be expected. Of all the energies in this universe, spiritual energy is the most powerful, and understanding it is the most challenging. Just like the mana stat, spiritual energy is also categorized into various ranks. To attain a higher stat in this, one must put in a great deal of effort!"

Kyle thought for a moment, and his curiosity got the best of him.

"Master, what is the rank of your spiritual energy stat?"

Hubert raised his brow and waved his hand in a dismissive manner.

"Nothing to boast about, but I have just reached the divine-rank in that stat."

Kyle let out an 'Oh' and gazed at the dark, starless sky. He already knew the old man was strong because in the time they had spent together, he had seen Hubert battle countless manaless beasts effortlessly.

Nonetheless, Kyle had reached the divine-rank physique, but achieving the transcendent-rank physique wasn't easy.

Including the divine and transcendent rank physique, Hubert had already shared all the necessary knowledge with Kyle regarding the divine and transcendent rank.

Just like in the pseudo-divine rank, where accumulating sufficient divine energy and progressing through the four stages - zero, low, average, and elite - is essential to move to the divine rank, the divine rank follows a similar principle. The moment someone breaks through to the divine rank, their divine-energy stat, which is at the Final stage - elite, resets to zero.

After reaching the true divine rank, they gather more divine energy in their bodies, this time twice the amount they previously did in the pseudo-divine rank to progress through the same four stages again - zero, low, average, and elite.

However, breaking through to the transcendent rank is tricky because the universe needs to accept their divine existence and shower them with its power to make their bodies eternal. This means that even if they lost their bodies, they could reconstruct them.

Moreover, one had to go through a significant trial to enter the transcendent rank after passing the divine rank. The details of the trial were unknown because each person had a different experience, and not many shared their trials.

Regardless, the ranks don't affect the physique, and building a strong physique was quite different. To achieve it, a person simply needs to undergo extreme pressure that would strengthen their skin and bones. This way, if someone is just reaching the transcendent rank in their physique, they don't have to undergo the universe's trial.

Only when someone breaks through the confinement of the divine rank and enters the transcendent rank do they have to face the trial. Similarly, even if one breaks through to the transcendent rank, they won't be able to achieve a transcendent rank physique if their bodies don't undergo extreme pressure.

Kyle stretched his neck and picked up the leather shirt he had thrown on the ground a while ago. He put on the shirt and grabbed the sword to practice a bit more. It was only then that Hubert remembered why he had come to find Kyle! The old man snatched the sword from him and narrowed his eyes.

"Didn't I tell you to rest? Your body needs time to adjust to the imbalance since you just reached divine-rank physique."

Kyle blinked and nodded, although he desired to practice a bit longer. They ascended the mountain together. Along the way, Kyle hesitantly spoke up and asked what was on his mind.

"How much longer will it take me to achieve the transcendent physique? It's already been a year, and I have only reached the divine rank physique. Time is passing too quickly, and I wonder if anyone will still be waiting for me when I leave this land?"

"I believe they would have forgotten all about me... and moved on with their life."

Hubert stopped in his actions after he heard Kyle's words. The old man thought the human was feeling down, believing that his progress was slow.

But if Hubert had to give his opinion, he would say that Kyle's progress had been ten times faster than all the people he had trained up to that point.

"What are you saying? They would be daft to forget someone in just a month or two! Considering the time difference here and in the outside world, they would have barely spent a little over a month without you."

Kyle froze in his spot after processing the words that echoed in his ears, and his eyes widened slightly as he stared at the old man across from him.

From his expression, Hubert quickly remembered that when he was explaining the time difference between the No Mana Land and the outside world to the old couple, they left his side even before he completed his words.

"Those darn oldies... Ugh, I'm old as well."

He scratched his head and noticed Kyle's focused gaze on him. He let out a sigh, realizing he couldn't blame anyone else as he himself had forgotten about it later.

"I think I forgot to mention it. The passage of time here is different from the outside world. Ten years here equals a year outside."

Kyle sat down on the ground and let out a heavy breath. He really had no idea.

"You could have told me a little sooner..."

Hubert raised his brow.

"Why, would you not have worked hard then?"

Kyle grabbed his knees and stood up straight before he resumed climbing the mountain.

"No, I would have worked just as hard as I am doing right now. But at least I would have known and been relieved that even if I forget them, they won't forget me."

Hubert walked beside him. It usually takes countless years for someone to achieve the transcendent-rank physique, but he thought if it's Kyle, maybe the young man will reach it earlier than expected.