Book 2: Chapter 5: Adept-Tier

  When the rest of the squad eventually went to bed, all of them sprawled about in a jumble, Tom-Tom talking in his sleep about “vengeance mushrooms,” Alex finally let himself exhale. They were coming along nicely. His friends had grown quite a bit in his absence already and now his we helping them along even faster. So he had more to do himself to ensure he didn’t fall behind. He slipped away into the tunnels, returning to the surface of the village.

  Alone at the edge of the kobold training circle, he watched the fading shimmer of the large fire at the center of the kobold’s tents. Then he turned, took a deep breath, and said the words that always meant trouble.

  “All right, Obby. It’s just us now.”

  “Oh goody!” The sentient rock’s voice blared in Alex’s mind. He was almost worried someone would hear it given the silence of the settlement, even if that was impossible. “Are we going to get your wisdom up? You kept complaining about all those unspent experience points in the dungeon. Now’s your time meat-boy.”

  “Yes, but there are a few other things to look at first.” Alex went into his storage bracelet and began peeling off his clothes. Thanks to the dungeon, his armor and clothing were pretty much trash at this point anyway, but he knew what the refinement process would bring so he took them off in preparation. Keeping clothes on during a refinement was not ideal.

  “Okay, let’s see.” Alex mentally pulled up his quest log.

  Alex swiped away the screen with a scowl. The so called Heavenly System was still being a dick in its messages, that was clear. But he couldn’t complain about the rewards, those were still rather fair. The experience point reward had now brought him up to an impressive 12,823 points. He would have a lot of options in his build from that windfall.

  He held out his hand to accept the quest reward, getting a rush of energy and a small dark coin in return. He looked at the item, finding it to be a simple looking coin an inch in diameter engraved with what looked like a gear-cog being hit by a blacksmith hammer.

  “Obby?”

  “I’d save that for later. Skill Progress Tokens will boost a chosen skill by 10%, giving you a rush of knowledge and understanding. That’s a minor grade one though, so it will only work on Beginner or Novice tiered skills. So you can use it now, but progressing in a skill is like any other path in cultivation. The higher you go, the harder it becomes to make progress.” Obby explained the item in his usual snark. But Alex was thankful for the explanation.

  “Save it until [Glpyphcraft] or [Alchemy] have reach 90%, got it.” He tucked the coin away into his storage bracelet. From there he knew he had to spend his experience. There was no more stalling. “Okay, Obby, you ready?”

  “Oh yessss.”

  Alex quickly calculated his options and decided on his choices. He needed to keep his stats within a balance due to his unique condition, but he also knew that efficiency in the cultivation world was key, making thing precarious.

  “Wisdom first, as promised Obby. From there, well, we got a lot of experience to spend.”

  ***

  The first refinements Alex experienced certainly were the worst ones. After four or five though, it wasn’t as bad. He was oddly getting used to having his body squeezed like a slime toy and having black ichor expelled from every orifice, regardless of how horrifying that realization was.

  He could have used the Hollow Seraph Dust he bought from the dungeon shop, but Alex knew that the tribulations changed eventually, and he would need that for some time later. For now, he simply endured the process the natural way. That being, with gritted teeth and force of will. He pushed through each subsequent refinement as he spent his experience points. He wasn’t stupid enough to do them all at once, not again anyway. So one refinement at a time, the sludge was pressed and pulled from his tissues.

  “I always hate that taste,” Alex spat on the ground, his saliva dark from the impurities still clinging to the roof of his mouth.

  On the other hand, Obby’s glow brightened. “Wisdom upgrade registered. I now have limited access to biological and item metadata. I can teach you deeper enchantment principles, though before we start enchanting your body again, you’ll want improve your [Glyphcraft] first.”

  Alex leaned back. “One thing at a time.”

  “I see you went for improving your Willpower, are you hoping that will boost your aether gathering and that body attunement of yours?”

  He brought up his stats on the system screen in response to Obby’s question.

  There was a lot of improvement.

  Every stat except his vitality had just gone through a refinement. Alex’s body felt completely new, filled to the brim with power and potential. His willpower especially, as Alex felt his connection to the ambient energy around him deepen. His willpower definitely strengthened his sixth sense, or his aether sight, he didn’t know which, maybe both.

  “Willpower was my best choice,” Alex reached into his pack and pulled out the essence fragment he had looted from his own dungeon run. It was a jagged shard that still pulsed faintly with wild energy. “We have only so many months until this System decides our fate. I can’t afford to loose time. Every hour counts. Luckily, with my body running on aether energy, I don’t really need the sleep that my friends do.”

  It was time to cultivate.

  He focused and centered his breathing. Aether didn’t just flow into him, it came in a torrent. His new refined willpower showed it worth as he took in everything. Alex’s stat choice aligned well with the gathering technique Sylvaris had helped him craft. The [Three-Fold Condensing Spiral] wasn’t elegant, it was primal and raw, and it worked perfectly for his… condition.

  Ambient energy flowed toward him in thin, snaking streams like dust-light trails drawn to a single point. The air shivered with it as the strands condensed and spun. The moss underfoot began to curl slightly at the edges as aether poured toward his neck, folding into spiral rotations that wrapped around his torso like invisible bands.

  Each breath fed a spiral, twisting them together until they were woven into three thick braids of energy. The three braids then fed into each other, forming a single braid before pouring into his body where he squeezed the energy into his tissues. Each breath, every heartbeat, pressed the energy deeper.

  One fold condensed into two. Two twisted into three. The coil turned tighter and tighter.

  His skin began to prickle. It wasn’t painful, just a constant unmistakable pressure enveloping him, like being submerged in water far too deep. His muscles itched with power and his fingertips crackled faintly with static aether. Yet, his tissues ate the energy happily, filling themselves with it.

  That was as far as he could push it before the spiral of his technique began to strain. He knew the signs now: the flicker in his vision, the grit in his teeth, the slight tearing sensation in his spine. He focused and just pushed harder instead of giving up. His new stats helped here, his intelligence stat giving him far better control of the aether inside his body, letting him compress and push the energy further into his cells.

  Then he felt it; like a sudden click of a lock undone on a door holding back a raging pack of zombies. Something in his body changed, and it suddenly became hungry. Far, far too hungry. The aether in his body was devoured within moments, and he couldn’t replenish it fast enough. His body screamed for more; more energy, eating away at any bit and scrap he could pull in through his gathering technique. But it just wasn’t enough.

  Alex felt the essence fragment in his hand dissolve, somehow he had used up the entire thing, which was crazy, Alex knew it had a vast pool of aether in it. Had he really absorbed it all?

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  He went into his storage bracelet and pulled out the Three-Cycle Condensing Pill. There was no hesitation as he tossed the large pill into his mouth and swallowed it down. The pill settled into his stomach for a moment, then it started to quickly unravel. Streams of spiraling aether shot from the pill and into his torso, his limbs, his head. The spirals were similar to Alex’s gathering technique, so he grabbed hold of them and began moving the energy where he felt his body wanted it most.

  But his body tore a part and ate that energy too. It was as if he’d inhabited the spirit of gluttony itself. Within thirty minutes, the Three-Cycle pill was gone. The flood of aether it contained was sucked deep into his muscles, bones and organs, and chewed on by his body. Then it opened up again, asking for more like a hungry baby chick.

  Holy fuck, how much do you want?

  He let the energy settle, then reached for the Coiling Dragon Pill. He pulled out a smooth stone case. Inside was a golden-etched red pill, pale and chalky. Just touching it made his pulse skip. There was no doubt, his body wanted it. Alex held it between two fingers and studied it a long moment, resisting the growing urge to just swallow the thing right then and there.

  Obby was silent in his mind, watching and waiting. Even the wind seemed to pause.

  Then he swallowed the pill.

  The scream didn’t come from his mouth, instead it started in his veins, his blood.

  Aether roared through his body like molten fire, not just hot, but seemingly angry and vengeful. Rage bloomed in his chest like a second heartbeat, a feeling of a thudding pressure building behind his sternum. He doubled over as his hands clawed at the dirt, his arms and legs trembling under the weight the pill imparted on his body. His back arched in agony. A low, animal-like growl tore from his throat as the energy ripped through bone and marrow.

  The pill wasn’t just a simple cultivation material, Alex was learning the hard way that it was trial by fire. It was wrath mixed with a flowing pride, all wrapped up in, and tied with, a ribbon of pain.

  The spirit of a dragon wasn’t subtle. It didn’t ask for permission. It demanded surrender or it killed without mercy. This pill was no different. It would consume, destroy and remake him to its whim, if it could.

  But Alex fought.

  His body was still hungry, and it ate at the pill’s energy, taking bites from the ocean of pain and rage that churned in him. He fell into the core of the [Demon Asura Style], taking deep breaths through gritted teeth, rooted stances in place of panic, turning agony into motivation and power. He didn’t let the rage consume him. He wrestled with it one heartbeat at a time.

  Slowly, the pain changed. It became fuel instead of fire. The violent ocean current began to shape itself around his bones, his lungs, the threads of his mind. Something moved inside his limbs, like scales wrapping tightly around sinew, curling into the shape of power. It felt like it took hours, his body feeding, the Dragon Pill attacking. All the while, Alex kept the mantras of the [Demon Asura Style] running through his head.

  When it was done, he collapsed flat on his back, chest heaving. He didn’t move, he couldn’t move. But he could feel his body and he knew.

  His body was different now.

  He could feel the way aether flowed through him, quicker, heavier. Like it had been given weight. His sixth sense told him the energy in his body was not like the normal ambient energy anymore. Where ambient aether was like soft wind, like a breeze that danced and flowed through one’s lungs, this felt like dew. The thick haze of early morning clinging to everything like a wet blanket. His body’s aether was air, it was a fog. And he felt the same pressure and aura he got from the Adept Warriors of the Kobolds.

  He was Adept Tier now, he knew it.

  Alex reached up and brushed the sweat from his brow. “Still breathing,” he muttered.

  And that’s when the pebble in his pocket stirred. It rose. The air around him bent slightly as the stone floated free, hovering in the space between them. Then, light. Not blinding, but steady, like a campfire against the approaching dusk. The glow took shape, vaguely humanoid. Runes wrapped faintly around the arms and legs like birthmarks made of light. It’s head was over-sized for its body, its limbs lanky and long, ending in stretched fingers and toes. It only had one big eye in the center of its head, and no ears. The construct stood straight, slender, not quite male, not quite female, and very nearly grinning.

  “Congratulations,” it spoke with Obby’s voice.

  “What the fuck, Obby?” Alex starred at the little figure floating in front of him. It was only about three inches tall, despite the weird proportions. The aether that made up its body flickered randomly, like it was an illusion or projection similar to what the rock showed Alex during his fights, or his [Glyphcraft] lessons.

  “Correct,” The figure said. Its mouth moved awkwardly, like he wasn’t exactly sure what speech was supposed to look like. “Oh this feels nice. I can tap into that wonderful aether of yours now and make myself a pretend body. It’s not boring weak flesh stuff like yours though.”

  Alex reached out a hand and swiped through Obby’s ‘body’. It felt like what Alex imagined swiping at a rain-cloud might feel. It had presence, but it didn’t.

  “Can other people see and hear you like this?”

  “Yes, I can talk to others now. Isn’t that great? Now everyone can hear my top notch advice on every topic.” The human-like aether-thing grinned. Alex felt a shiver run down his spine.

  “Yeah, hard no there.” Alex grabbed the stone Obby’s consciousness resided in, and tucked it away into his bracelet. “No showing our creepy aether body, or talking to anyone unless I say so. Giving away the secret of your existence is just begging for trouble. So no, stay hidden.”

  “You get to show everyone your creepy aether body.”

  Alex looked down, discovering he still had not redressed himself from the stat refinements earlier. He was so focused on the task of progressing and cultivating, he had forgotten. Fucking dammit.

  He was suddenly very happy this was night time and everyone was sleepi—

  Alex looked around and noticed a trio of small kobold children starring at him from a small open tent. It appeared that his screams during his breakthrough had woken up a few gawkers. Luckily no else seemed to be bothered, the kobolds were probably used to screams and shouts in the middle of the night anyway.

  He looked over at the audience he had garnered and held a finger to his lips. He then waved them away with a shoo! The three young lizards all nodded and quickly disappeared back into the tent with a few giggles.

  “Okay, let’s see what we are working with now.” Alex brought up his System notifications and was greeted by a long torrent of chimes. He whistled.

  Those were the results of Alex spending his experience points. Each refinement was a quality increase in his body. But it wasn’t the most important change, or the one that made Alex so excited about his last cultivation session.

  That confirmed it then, Alex was now in the Adept Tier. He was no longer just a ‘Mortal’ being, at least not in the eyes of the Heavenly System anyway. This break through certainly explained how energy hungry his body had been. It wasn’t the amount of energy that was the problem, it was the quality. Alex’s gathering technique just wasn’t up to the task of supplying his entire body with Adept Tier aether on such short notice. No wonder my body gulped down those pills so quickly then.

  He was unsure about how well his current [Three-Fold Condensing Spiral] would be able to keep up given his new body’s requirements. Perhaps it would be possible to upgrade the technique given his new willpower stat refinement. But that was a question for later.

  There were more System notifications to parse through, and more surprises to find.

  The next notification he saw being a prime example:

  “You sure you’re not lucky? You seem pretty lucky. That’s a damn good constitution.” Obby’s voice was still the same, despite the power he now had with the whole aether-energy-body thing. Alex was happy the rock only spoke in his head and hadn’t reconstructed the slender-man idol again.

  “What do you mean?”

  “This constitution is pretty high grade, flesh-sack. Dragon’s aren’t exactly around anymore, they’ve been assumed extinct for millennia. That pill offered by the Dungeon Shop probably only contained a tiny fragment, of a fragment, of a dragon’s essence. Gaining a constitution from it is possible, but unlikely, and even those who do get one, its a pretty basic one.” Obby explained.

  “And this Rageheart isn’t basic?”

  “No, not at all. I can’t tell you exactly how it works, its too complicated for me to parse that System data. I can just say it gives you a buff when injured. That’s all I can see. But that’s not all you can see, take a look at your soulspace.”

  Alex closed his eyes and looked inward as Obby suggested. He found himself in that same infinite realm he had wrestled with the shadow entity from the cursed dagger, and the image of his brother, Adam, during his meditation. Floating at the center of his soulspace was still the shattered shards of his mage core, as always. Alex even could make out the faint glyph runes of his bonded connection to Obby floating in the expansive sky to his right.

  Okay, what the fuck is that?

  A large, slowly pulsating mass of dark blue-purple scales and veins floated above the fragments to his mage core. The thing looked to be about the size of a watermelon, densely packed muscle tissue wrapped in serpent scales. Alex was no genius, but he understood this to be the Wyrm-blood Rageheart. Whatever this gained constitution was, it seemed to come with some baggage.

  Well, that certainly looks like its going to be an issue later.

  He watched the Wyrmheart as it slowly floated in his soulspace, the tightly bound flesh beating powerfully every few seconds. The heart seemed to be dormant for now, passive. He didn’t think he could kick this thing out like he did the shadow serpent from the cursed dagger. He doubted he wanted to even if he could, as that would probably scrub the constitution ability from his status screen.

  We leave it for now then, and deal with things as they come. He opened his eyes back in the kobold settlement. With a swipe of his hand, he looked at his new stats.

  Between his new abilities, spent experience points, and the increases from the Vital Essence Fragment and Coiling Dragon Pills, Alex was basically a new man. He felt it too. A simmering power that was sitting below his skin. He took in a deep breath, enjoying the feeling.

  Everything was still quiet after his cultivation session. And still cold. Still very, very cold for some reason.

  Fuck, I’m still naked!