CHAPTER 78: MOVING SHELTER

At night, after completing his usual routine, Nash arrived in the Virtual World.

"Boss Noir, you’re here!" William greeted excitedly.

Not being able to hunt and eat with Nash earlier in the day, he nearly teared up at the sight of him.

"Calm down. I just had something to take care of earlier," Nash said, sighing tiredly.

Today had been truly eventful—from the arrival of Camilla’s package, meeting Kai Range, the Assembly, and the appearance of the Arlean Tribunal. It felt as though several weeks had passed in a single day.

"Let’s start."

"Um... can we eat first?"

He didn’t know why, but the food Nash’s cook made was addictive.

Although not as delicious as his family chef’s meals, it was full of variety and freshness.

"No. It’s a waste of time. If you want food, just buy some later." Nash shook his head.

He could tolerate eating in the Dark Plane since it increased his void saturation rate, but in the Virtual World, he wouldn’t waste time eating illusory food.

"Tsk, boring~"

Unable to persuade Nash, they began another relentless three hours of training.

Having defeated Nash’s simulations of the white rabbit, white deer, White boar, and silver wolf, only one last enemy remained for William: the Silver Wolf King.

The leader of the Silver Forest, the strongest dark beast near the Lantern Shelter—if William could defeat its simulation, he would finally be able to leave this beginner zone.

Lying down tiredly, still unable to defeat Nash’s simulation of the Silver Wolf King, he turned to ask what time they’d meet tomorrow.

"Same time tomorrow, boss?"

One could enter the Dark Plane after eight hours of rest. Thus, regardless of time differences, individuals from different planets could still team up.

"Tomorrow? Unfortunately... I won’t be able to join you," Nash said quietly.

"What happened? You still haven’t finished your agenda?"

"No... It’s because I’m moving to another shelter..."

Initially, he had planned to move shelters once he optimized the [Sensor Module System]. But with the perfect-grade armor he received from Camilla, he was confident enough to move up to a five-star danger zone.

"Change shelters?" Hearing this, William couldn’t help but frown.

He still hadn’t completed his father’s task of conquering the Silver Forest. He couldn’t leave and join Nash just yet.

Feeling at a loss, he hesitated, wondering whether to ask Nash to wait a little longer.

In just a few more days or a week at most, he was sure he could defeat the Silver Wolf King’s simulation.

By then, conquering the Silver Forest with his bare hands wouldn’t be too difficult. But not wanting to hold Nash back, William swallowed his words.

"The hunting grounds near the Lantern Shelter aren’t enough for my training anymore. You too—hurry up and finish the Silver Forest so you can join me," Nash encouraged.

"I... I can still join you, boss?" William’s eyes lit up as he looked at him.

What he feared most was that once Nash moved shelters, he would soon forget him.

Though Nash would still teach him regularly in the Virtual World, it would simply be work.

"Of course. I’ll need a tank if I’m going to fight stronger dark beasts," Nash joked.

William’s strength and defense were simply too perfect for a shield.

Once he learned how to use them properly, Nash was confident they could hunt tier 2 Void Commander-level dark beasts.

"Don’t worry, boss! I’ll use my body to protect you!"

Feeling his vigor renewed, William began bombarding Nash with questions about his plans.

"What shelter are you going to?"

"I plan to go to the Black Willow Shelter."

Since he had already planned to change shelters, Nash had researched all the battlegrounds around the Nova Dark Battlefield.

Among them, the area around Black Willow Shelter was perfect for his needs.

"A four to five-star danger zone? Black Willow Shelter? Are you seeking death, Boss Noir?!" William muttered, a hint of fear in his voice.

How could he not know the dangers surrounding Black Willow Shelter?

Although it was labeled as a four to five-star danger zone, the dark beasts around it were enough to bring down even a Void Commander.

It wasn’t that the dark beast was more powerful, but their sheer numbers and unpredictability could kill anyone unprepared.

Without sharp senses and lightning-fast reflexes, a single snake dropping from above could kill one in an instant.

"Don’t worry. I can take care of myself."

For Nash, it was the perfect battleground. The dense population of dark beasts others feared was exactly what excited him.

Instead of wasting time searching for prey, the dark beasts would come to him.

In such an environment, as long as he studied the biodiversity of the dark beasts, he would become a harvesting machine, clearing everything in his path.

"You’re too reckless," William sighed, hearing the confidence in Nash’s tone.

Although he knew Nash fought like a machine, precise, unshakable, and adaptable, he still couldn’t help but feel worried.

Without reaching at least 300% saturation rate, even William wasn’t sure he could survive that place.

"Haha, instead of worrying about me, you should worry about yourself."

After a few more words, Nash ended their three-hour training session, planning to rest for the day.

"Let’s continue tomorrow."

"Then... I’ll see you tomorrow."

---

Exiting the Virtual Dark Pod, Nash stretched his tired body.

"Too much work,"

Finally done for the day, Nash felt the fatigue he’d been holding back explode through him.

Jumping onto the bed, he closed his eyes and drifted into dreamland.

---

Waking up to a bright new day, Nash started his daily routine.

First on the list: six hours of physical training.

After a morning run across the field, he went to the training hall to check on the others.

"Good morning, Chancellor Nash! You’re as early as always."

"Good morning, Chancellor Nash!"

Michael and the elite trainees greeted him with smiles.

"I just came by to see how the assembly of the training equipment is going."

"It’s going well. We should finish assembling everything in a month~"

"A month’s too long. Do you need help?" Nash asked.

There were less than nine months left before the Cosmic Competition, they couldn’t afford to waste time on avoidable delays.

"If we had more hands, we could set up the training ground in a week," Michael thought and requested.

Although assembling the equipment required professional knowledge, a lot of the work involved heavy lifting, which slowed the progress.

"Then I’ll call someone later to hire extra help," Nash nodded, then continued his physical training.