(Rodova Military Academy – Genetic Awakening Chamber)

Major Hen led Leo and Su Yang down the sterile, highly secure corridor with his usual casual swagger, as the hall full of guards let the pass with silent nods.

*HISSS—*

The chamber door opened after accepting Hen's biometrics, as the trio stepped into the awakening chamber that was eerily silent except for the soft humming noise of the neural-pods running in the corner.

By now, this routine had become familiar to them, and hence neither Leo nor Su Yang asked any questions as they arrived, their expressions calm and unreadable, as they each moved toward their designated pods without needing any instruction, while Hen remained just outside, arms folded and gaze sharp, watching over them like a hawk.

The neural ports embedded in the sleek interior of the injection pods responded automatically to their presence, as delicate metallic tendrils extended from the inner walls and attached themselves to the back of their necks with practiced precision, syncing with their nervous systems in preparation for the shot.

Within moments, the chamber doors slid open, as with a hiss, as two military-grade medics stepped in—stoic and efficient—each carrying a gleaming black case that housed the fourth Genetic Awakening Shot.

Hen offered them both a nod, his tone clipped but firm.

"Make sure the dosage is exact. If you mess this one up, even your great-great ancestors won't be able to save your licenses."

Hen warned, however, the doctors did not flinch.

This was not their first rodeo, and they were very experienced in their fields, which made tasks like administering a simple shot not even a slight challenge.

*SIGH–*

Leo let out a long, steady breath as the injector arm locked into place, and the pod interior flooded with the familiar pale-blue stasis gas that would protect his body during the adaptation process.

He had gone through this three times already, and while the burning sensation that followed the shot was never pleasant—it was something he had come to accept.

*SHOT—*

As the serum plunged into his system, he closed his eyes.

And waited.

And as always, the pain came first—crawling across his chest and burrowing into his limbs like fire eating away at flesh, as his blood boiled and his muscles twitched. But he didn't move. He couldn't. The pod held him in place, as nutrient injections and internal oxygen flow maintained his vitals at peak condition, while the neural interface ensured that his body entered an optimal metabolic state for the serum to take effect.

At this moment, Leo thought about how the third awakening yielded almost nothing of note—just a minor enhancement to his muscular responsiveness, which made him slightly more agile in close-range fights.

Meanwhile, Su Yang had unlocked a powerful new technique that he hadn't stopped bragging about for weeks.

So naturally, this time, Leo's expectations were high.

And this time, it came.

A surge—violent and absolute—as his head jerked slightly back and his breath got caught in his throat, as his mind was suddenly flooded by a tsunami of information.

He didn't understand it at first. Not all of it.

But the name of the technique floated up almost immediately, and that alone made him feel slightly confused?

[Ball Buster]

For a split second, he thought it was a joke. A glitch in the bloodline. Some kind of absurd prank left by one of his ancestors who renamed a terrifying dagger skill as [Ball Buster].

But no.

As the data poured in—more vivid and horrifying by the second—Leo realized this was no joke.

This was real.

It was an actual ball-bursting technique crafted by one of his ancestors, sealed within his bloodline and now forced into his hands

At first, he felt something close to curiosity.

Then horror.

And then…

Extreme embarrassment.

As despite [Monarch's Indifference] working overtime to keep his mind composed, Leo felt his cheeks flush red as the details of the technique began to slot into place within his head.

'What the hell kind of sick bastard came up with this move?' he thought, as a sharp pang of secondhand shame hit him like a truck.

Because the technique—despite its crude name—was disturbingly efficient.

Initially developed as a torture technique in ancient blood wars, [Ball Buster] was a skill that targeted the most sensitive regions of the human body with surgical cruelty.

For men, it focused on the testicles—specifically, the fine network of nerves, blood vessels, and mana channels in the scrotum.

The technique involved placing one's palm over the target area and releasing a finely tuned burst of mana, laced with vibrational shockwaves that shattered capillaries, ruptured nerves, and collapsed the inner tissue structure—effectively turning the organ into an unusable lump of pain and trauma.

And the worst part was that it wasn't just physically agonizing—No

Because, it actually rendered healing spells almost useless, as the damage spread in a radial pattern designed to evade common regeneration techniques.

As even with high-level medical intervention, there was always some form of permanent damage left behind.

Which made Leo shudder just thinking about it.

And while it was cruel on men, it was no less cruel for women, as the technique targeted the chest of the women—specifically, the fatty and glandular tissues that formed the breasts.

As with just a five-second-long contact infused with mana compression, [Ball Buster] deflated them entirely—reducing their volume to flat muscle and leaving behind a painful, tender scar that echoed for weeks.

'…What kind of ancestor creates this and thinks, "Yes, this is my legacy"?' Leo groaned internally, burying his face in his hands—at least, metaphorically, as the pod held his arms firmly in place.

And worst of all?

It worked.

It was effective.

Horrifyingly so.

It bypassed armor. Ignored mana barriers. The technique was so invasive and brutal that even if it didn't kill the target, it almost always rendered them completely incapable of continuing the fight.

But even with all that power… Leo couldn't bring himself to accept it.

'Absolutely not. I will never use this.' He resolved internally—

Not because he wanted to keep it a secret weapon.

Not because he wanted to save it for a desperate moment.

But simply because he was far too ashamed to ever be seen using it.

'I don't want to be known in the universe as Leo Skyshard, the weirdo who attacks the genitals!

Also, such weird fetishes never end well–

What goes around, comes around, so if I do end up busting someone's balls, I'm sure they will become obsessed with me and come to chop my dick off at some point of my life!' Leo thought, as he rejected the idea of ever using this move in his life.

"Pervert. The ancestor was definitely a pervert," he muttered to himself.

As for the first time ever, Leo found himself praying, that no one would ever ask him what skill he unlocked during this awakening as he would simply feel too embarrassed to even talk about it.

'What do I even say?'

'Do I admit I learned a move that turns men into eunuchs and women into flat-chested amazons?' Leo wondered, as he re-swore to keep this one buried deep within his own memories.