At first, there was an overwhelming sense of urgency: "Sir, how are things on your end?" "Did something happen?" "Hey, hey, don't scare me!"

Later on, it became: "Hm, I've contacted Mr. Falk, and Miss Barbara has reached out to me as well." "It's good that you're okay, sir." "Take your time to heal, and don't worry about the territory here. Everyone and I will be fine."

The most recent message was: "Hurry and wake up, sir!"

Seeing these messages, Andrew couldn't help but smile.

While feeling warmth in his heart, he also realized a few things:

First, he had slept for three days. The dates on these messages, with the earliest being "Sir, how are things on your end?" were sent three days ago.

Second, Grandpa Falk, although stabbed by that female assassin, seemed to be fine and had even woken up a day earlier than him.

Third, it seemed the female assassin had targeted only him, as the Wildfire Territory remained safe without any unexpected attacks.

After thinking for a moment, Andrew replied to An Ya through the "Seagull": "Awake now, alive and kicking, no need to worry." Unable to resist, he sent another message: "An Ya sis, you're truly amazing! Thank you, it's thanks to you that I was saved."

After sending these two messages, Andrew waited for a moment before receiving An Ya's reply: "Awake? Great! I was so worried! Hm, I'm currently in Mr. Falk's class, talk later!"

Andrew smiled and put away the "Seagull".

After confirming that Ivan was okay and that An Ya and the Wildfire Territory were also fine, Andrew finally felt relieved and began to assess his current condition.

"First, the injuries... hmm, they've basically healed!"

Andrew carefully sensed his body.

All the small internal injuries had completely healed.

What remained was the skeletal injury in his fingers from clashing with the female assassin's axe spear, which would take some more time to fully recover.

"It seems this Water Soul Constitution's 'Dormant Healing Mechanism' focuses more on eliminating potential hidden injury risks rather than prioritizing rapid healing for visible injuries that can be systematically mended over time?"

Andrew contemplated thoughtfully.

Since the "Water Soul Constitution" had dealt with the hidden injuries, now that he had awoken, he should personally handle the skeletal injuries in his fingers.

So, he retrieved a magic pill from the "Gate of Enlightenment," previously made for wounded and physically weak residents of the Flame Realm, took half a pill into his mouth, crushed it, and swallowed it.

Then, activating the "Water Priestess Series," numerous invisible magic circles spontaneously appeared around him; each circle contained one or several Tier One to Tier Three healing spells, which then autonomously wrapped around his injured finger, steadily accelerating the healing process.

While self-healing, Andrew was also experiencing the current flow of his magic power and the way he wielded his magic.

"Why do I feel... noticeably smoother than before?"

Andrew quickly sensed the changes within him.

Perhaps due to the duel with the female assassin, he became more confident, having gained another life-and-death combat experience. Or perhaps the female assassin's strength, like a blacksmith's hammer, had forcefully 'struck' him a couple of times—

In any case, whether in the fluidity of magic power operation or the confidence and stability in casting spells, there was an evident improvement!

Especially in magic power!

Previously, when Andrew converted his magic power to "Double State," the limit of magic power amplification was ten times that of a normal Tier Three mage. No matter what, it couldn't advance any further.

Now, Andrew discovered that the limit of "Double State" magic power amplification amazingly exceeded the tenfold threshold and increased slightly!

"So, the limit of the Double State magic power amplification can actually be further broken through and enhanced through actual combat?" Andrew was surprised and delighted, "It seems from now on, I shouldn't just focus on managing the territory and business cooperation; I should also find opportunities to enhance my combat skills!"

In fact, even if the upper limit of magic power amplification hadn't expanded, Andrew planned to practice his combat skills more in the future.

Because, as facts have proven: Even while on the Warm Fire Commerce Association's territory, there's no guarantee of absolute safety.

To ensure his personal safety as much as possible, he must prioritize: his combat skills!

"Improving combat skills involves not only gaining practical experience but, of course, constantly acquiring Fire Extinguishing Values, unlocking more magic, and finding ways to continue ascending tiers!"

Thinking of this, Andrew couldn't help but grin.

Because the biggest gain from this self-assessment wasn't the increased smoothness of spellcasting or the expansion of magic power amplification limits.

But rather that immense amount of Fire Extinguishing Values converging in the Water God Mark, which Andrew nearly jumped in shock upon seeing!

"Battling against and surviving an opponent much stronger than oneself, and then healing the injuries—it really can earn Fire Extinguishing Values!" Andrew couldn't help but marvel, "That female assassin was indeed very strong, exceeding the scope of my current understanding of power!

Otherwise, there's no other explanation for accumulating so many Fire Extinguishing Values!!"

One of the main reasons for leaving the Wildfire Territory was that its flame extinguishing services could no longer provide him the immense Fire Extinguishing Values needed for post-Tier Three advancement.

And now, this newly acquired large sum of Fire Extinguishing Value seemed to be about half of the total Fire Extinguishing Value needed to advance from Tier Three to Tier Four!

Considering the immense amount needed, even just half is more than all the Fire Extinguishing Value I had accumulated since I crossed into this Flame Realm until I broke through to Tier Three!

"Phew...!" Andrew tried to calm his excited heart.

Only now did the shadow in his heart left by that female assassin begin to dissipate a little.

Nobody likes the feeling of their life being threatened by others and out of their own control.

Although "surviving is winning," if possible, Andrew would certainly prefer to have the ability to directly blow that female assassin away, making her think "escaping is winning," rather than him thinking "surviving is winning."

"I don't know who you are, but there will always be a chance to meet again in the future, right?" Andrew thought, "This time you didn't kill me, and after this, I won't give you a second chance. The next time we face each other, I swear, I will definitely take you down!"

Thinking of this, Andrew reopened his eyes and sat up.

Having harvested such a massive amount of Fire Extinguishing Value, he certainly had to consider where to use it.

Andrew's current thought is: Unlocking new Water Magic is one aspect, and on the other hand, he really needs to unlock some powerful High Tier artifacts in "Magic Artifact" to ensure his own growth safety and also to secure Wildfire Territory.

Before, Andrew didn't like to touch the Magic Artifact section much, because the artifacts inside were really expensive, consuming a lot of Fire Extinguishing Value.

Andrew originally thought that once his tier was higher, he wouldn't need those artifacts, as he could just cast higher-tier magic directly.

But now he understood the painstaking intentions of the being who left the Water God Mark on him: This Flame Realm is very dangerous! To grow smoothly, he must appropriately unlock some powerful magic artifacts for survival! Otherwise, it's really too tough!

"Right."

At this moment Andrew stood up and asked Ivan, "Did that female assassin not finish me off after I fainted? What exactly happened after that?"

He planned to gather more information about that female assassin to unlock magic artifacts more strategically.

"That bastard was originally going to finish you off—I really thought you were done for,"

replied Ivan, "but she was stopped by Miss Barbara. It seems they said something; Miss Barbara refused to budge at the cost of her life, and then the female assassin... left. When she left, she even clashed once with the power projection of the chairman of the Warm Fire Commerce Association and coughed up two mouthfuls of blood. That's about it."

Andrew listened intently, utterly shocked, and hurriedly asked, "Barbara protected me with her life? Is she okay? Where is she now?"

Originally, he just wanted to ensure Ivan, An Ya, and Wildfire Territory were okay, then calmly inspect his physical condition.

Because Andrew instinctively thought that since the female assassin was targeting him and not Barbara, Barbara should be in no danger.

He never expected that after he passed out, Barbara would risk her life to protect him!

Ivan replied through the "Soul Whisper Channel": "Where's Barbara? Can't you... see for yourself! As far as I know, Miss Barbara has been in your room waiting for you to wake up for the past few days! Really, comparing people really drives one mad... Is she not there now?"

Ivan seemed genuinely a bit upset, mumbling.

But Andrew couldn't quite hear what he said afterward, and when Ivan mentioned "Is she not there now," Andrew directly cut off the "Soul Whisper Channel" between them, leaving Ivan on the other side stunned and then speechless: "Is this what they call abandoning friends for love? Bastard!"

Andrew, on his side, said nothing, sitting on the bed and staring blankly ahead.

Only then did he notice: Barbara was lying beside him.

The girl was sitting in a chair by the bed, her upper body leaning on the bed, sleeping soundly out of exhaustion.

You could see her hair was a bit messy, and her clothes were obviously wrinkled, probably not having much time to wash or groom herself over the past three days?

He recalled the first time he met Barbara, the first impression she gave him was one of an overwhelming "sense of refinement"!

Refined like a doll.

So refined that... it occasionally gave people a sense of unreality, even a feeling of impersonal detachment.

Of course, Andrew later found out that Barbara had a really good personality, just a bit cold on the outside but warm on the inside. Exactly opposite to An Ya, who was externally full of enthusiasm but internally very rational.

In short, Barbara had always been the epitome of "refinement" in Andrew's heart.

This was why, looking at her now, and recalling Ivan's words that "Miss Barbara stood up and shielded you from that female assassin with her life," Andrew's eyes involuntarily became a little moist after a moment of daze.

How could there be such a wonderful girl!

For a moment, Andrew was filled with gratitude, feeling, "What did I do to deserve such a fantastic girlfriend?"

He remembered reading a novel about time travel before crossing over, saying that once someone traveled into another world, after staying there long enough, even if they had the chance to return to the modern world, they wouldn't go back, at most hoping to return and reassure their parents.

It's because in the new world, there are also people they care about and people who care about them!

Now Andrew personally experienced what kind of feeling this was and understood what "even if there is a chance, you can't go back" means.

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