Attribute Farming System

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

Knox banged his head against solidified air, making the act convincing as hell.

He pulled no punches!

World Serpent: "...."

While everyone else shuddered and shivered, struggling to do as little as gaze upon his true form, there was one person—a human—who neither cowered nor fled like two of the Beast Emperors had done.

An interesting human.

Speaking in a tone that sounded as if it came from ancient times, the World Serpent asked, "You want to become my Disciple?"

*Bang! Bang!*

"More than anything else in the world, oh mighty Big Master!" Knox replied, his forehead bloodied. "I'll do anything! You want your enemies gutted and slain? I'm your man! You want your buddy snake's wife? Don't worry, I'll snatch her up without hesitation! Do you desire the tender flesh of this fair maiden over here?? Just watch as I obtain it for you—"

"That's enough."

Stopping right away, Knox hit his head against the air several more times. "Of course, Master Big Snake!"

Silence…

'Come on! Bite the bait!' Knox thought, readying himself to activate an Escape Talisman the moment things went south. 'You can see it, can't you!? My potential!? My Saint-ranked Foundation!?? These other losers can't, but I know you can!'

Exhaling deeply, the World Serpent's archaic voice sounded once more:

"I'll accept you as a Disciple—my first Disciple—but before that… you must prove yourself."

Knox inwardly smirked, though outwardly, he beamed. "Whatever you wish of me, Master! Just name it and it shall be done!"

The World Serpent's enormous forked tongue briefly left its mouth. On the very end of it was a torn-up, charred black book—one that flew off the retracting tongue and landed in Knox's hands. He curiously opened it up, only to have his eyes widen in euphoric surprise.

"This is the first of two parts to the Half-Saint Technique that my God left behind for me prior to his disappearance," said the World Serpent. "If you can comprehend even 0.1% of it before the second Trial begins, then you'll officially become my First Disciple. However, if you can't comprehend the percentage I ask of you, then… you shall become my next meal."

"!!!" "!!!" "!!!"

Although the Beast Emperors weren't the ones most affected by the World Serpent's words, they still felt their Primordial Souls shiver. A couple of them even felt like their Martial Wills had been damaged.

Knox, on the other hand, never faltered. Even as his whole existence was shaken to its core—and even as blood leaked from all orifices—his gaze never left the two massive, slitted eyes looking down at him.

"Interesting…" was all the World Serpent said before restraining himself. "Go ahead and begin comprehending. The first Trial ends in approximately 18 hours, so you have until then to prove that you're a Disciple worth having. If not, in my stomach is where you'll take your final breath."

"Understood, Master!" Knox shouted through bloodied teeth, his smile as dazzling as the sun. "This lowly Disciple won't disappoint!"

*Hssssss…*

"We'll see about that."

— A Few Minutes Later —

Finally calming their nerves enough to think rationally, the Beast Emperors who were initially too stunned to escape when they had the chance now felt like fools. The World Serpent's sinuous gaze was now locked onto them as well, watching their every move—seemingly waiting for one of them to try fleeing.

A decent appetizer was all they'd become.

It was this realization that made many of them seriously regret ever listening to the Cobra Empress. She spoke of the rampant human possessing secrets that would surely entice them, but little did they know that greedily pursuing those secrets was what led to them facing the fine line between life and death.

All eyes fell on the Cobra Empress.

Begrudged, she whispered, "Don't think that this is solely my fault. Remember, each and every one of you agreed to my proposal without giving it a second thought. Just like me, you all want to become strong enough to defy the tyranny of the three Supreme Beast Emperors. And this young human… He might just be the key to making that far-fetched dream a reality."

The brows of many furrowed.

"You can't honestly believe that we still have a chance of benefiting from this, can you, Cobra?" the Torrential Empress asked with a touchy tone. "The World Serpent has already awakened. And whether the human performs a miracle and successfully does what the World Serpent wants him to or not, we'll still likely be devoured! You, more so than anyone, should know precisely what happens to those who disrupt the World Serpent's slumber: after all, your greedy mother did that exact thing some years ago. And you're aware of what her fate wound up being."

A hush consumed the tense atmosphere surrounding the Beast Emperors as Cobra Empress controlled herself as best she could.

Holding her tongue, she said with a shadowy face, "There's a third outcome that you aren't considering."

"And what would that be?" asked a Middle Soul Formation Realm Rhino Emperor.

"If the weasel human is lucky enough to fulfill the World Serpent's request, we can then… and then we can do…"

Cobra Empress elaborated on her plan while keeping her voice low. And because of Knox's deep state of comprehension, he was unable to tune into what they were saying.

However, even if he could hear them, it was unlikely that he'd do anything more than scoff and dash away their aspirations with just a single slap.

But regardless of what ifs, Cobra Empress finished explaining the plan before she and the others stood back and patiently waited to see the result of Knox's comprehension session.

And to make things more confusing—contrary to what one would naturally assume, they were not hoping for the outcome that made the most sense as Ops of Knox.

Rather, they were praying to all the Gods above that he'd succeed.

— 17 Hours Later —

Unfortunately for their already fragile hearts, after the passing of seventeen hours, Knox's defeated expression and the words that left his mouth had their hearts palpitating:

"I'm sorry, Master, but I couldn't do it… I'm too useless…"

*Hssssss…*

"Just tell me how much of the Technique you comprehended," the World Serpent demanded with a calm rasp. "I'll decide what to do with you from there."

Knox hung his head low, ashamed.

"I'm absolutely mortified, Master, but I couldn't master the Supreme Devourer Technique in the allotted time… O-Only 2% of it was comprehended… P…Please punish this incompetent Disciple!"

Silence…