We had just escorted two dozen men to the sight of my Fief’s seat. There they were going to build an outpost there about two hours from the dungeon. If there was an outbreak that should leave it close enough to deal with, but far enough to not be immediately overrun. Stan and Amber Creme were especially excited to have an inn again. They weren’t even that upset that I was going to take half their earnings the first three years to pay off the building cost, and it was costing me. This outpost was costing half the coin I got from the ruins of Libor. The other half went to Tully Smith for repairing the gear and buying three buildings in town for a tavern, a town office on the green, and a house for our eight new full time guards. The pay for the guards came out of the town coffers thankfully.

We had trained up our skills as best we could, both those we developed on our own and those we got from scrolls. Each of us got one skill scroll to start. I took a skill called [Enraging Shout] which was a taunt type skill. Zaya took [Healing Touch] but within a day her path let her upgrade it to [Nature’s Hand of Healing] which was a few grades higher. Amala got a [Fire Blast] spell to get her over the hurdle of learning fire magic on her own. Gavel learned a skill called [Uncanny Evasion] that made him appear to be a half step to one side to our enemies, at higher levels he will appear to be standing in a completely different place. Kelder got a spell called [Invigorate] that let him remove another person's exhaustion. When asked why he said his path knowledge showed him how to grow that skill into one that could drain his opponents to keep himself and his allies fresh in a fight. He hasn’t managed it yet, but he says he is close.

Kelder also has a new spear and mail. It took the remains of the worst byrnie to refit one of the others to fit him. Gavel was in armor as well with his bow and the dagger from Libor, he was also wearing a hood meant for a rogue that doubled the effect of his stealth skill. It turned out the druids were forbidden from using iron weapons so we managed to give Zaya a staff and a knife made of bronze. The only item we found to help her in the gear was a leaf shaped pendant that acted as a focus and reduced the cost of her spells. Amala got a belt that offered magical protection and a wand that let her channel her fire burst into a stream of flames for an increased cost, it would do the same for any other basic elemental missile spell as well but that was all she had. I still don’t remember how I ended up promising her a vest made of the wolf pelts from my first dive, but apparently it happened.

We were as ready as we would ever be so I led the party down the track to where I entered the forest. We proceeded down the path in an orderly manner until we got to a split. There was a bit of an argument when I went to scout ahead but I put a stop to it. I checked the first path to the right and soon found a crude snare. It would have trouble catching so much as a rabbit, but if we were in a fight or running though here it could trip us up. I stepped over it and moved on down the trail. I came to another intersection and checked the fork, seeing it slope back to meet up with the other paths. I was debating if I should see if they connect or head back when I heard a scream.

I charged back to my party, sword out and ready for action. I even infused Ki into my legs activating my dash skill. That was just before I caught my leg in that bloody snare and fell on my face. Glad no one seemed to be around to see, or worse eat, me. I untangled myself and kept going at a less reckless pace. I made it back to see my friends facing off against a large pack of wolves who were gathering to charge in the middle of the now flaming clearing. Deciding to take some of the pressure off, I used my taunt followed by my Aegis, it was super effective.

I noticed something odd, even as my friends charged into the wolves rear some of them faded away into Essence without suffering any wounds I could see. After they were dead I had everyone cultivate while I gathered the loot. We then made our way as a group down the path to the center. The next fight was much easier, we were able to use the narrow trail to our advantage. Once again some of the wolves seemed to fade into Essence without receiving wounds.

When we encountered a third pack, I brought up my Aegis and studied them. One of the wolves was noticeably bigger than the others. I pointed it out to Gavel and he killed it with one shot. Sure enough the remaining wolves collapsed into hides and Essence a moment later.

We soon came to a wide glade. We were on our guard in this open space after being surrounded in that first clearing. We walked all the paths but the attack came from an unexpected direction, up. The owls came down on Gavel viciously, thanks to Kelder’s reactions and the archers evasion skill there was no permanent injury. We were delayed while Zaya healed him. I took the small amount of Essence from these kills and was pleased to find that the birds dropped coins.

We entered a cave to find the scattered remains of a long ago firepit. With my dark vision I could see through the concealed passage in the back. When I pointed it out the skill finally took for Gavel and he passed the ring to Amala. I almost fell into a pit trap in the second room and we decided to let Kel test the ground from there on in.

We came to the third room and it was massive. At least thirty to forty feet across. There was no way this could fit in the pile of boulders we saw outside. Those of us with dark vision pivoted our heads to look for contrasts that could let us know where to go from here. With Kelder still testing the floor, we made our way to the middle of the room. That was when the beast struck. It knocked Kelder to the ground and savaged Amala’s hand. I drove it off only for it to use the wall as a springboard to charge at Gavel. I know Gavel shot it but it sounded like his shots were hitting armor. He did manage to kick it away at the last.

I raised my Aegis between the wolf and my party to give them time to recover. I entered my battle trance and the warrior took over. I met the wolf when it tried to circle around. I drew my fighting knife with my off hand in a downward grip, increasing my threat while helping me block the low strikes of the wolf. We danced back and forth several times, him dodging my blade while I tried to turn a block into a telling cut. The barrier that was warding part of my sword side flickered as it died. In that moment of distraction I infused my sword and brought it up in an underhand cut aimed at the wolf’s throat. He dodged but the slash took off one of his ears.

He flinched back, then rather than face me again he lunged for the newly recovered party. Amala waved them all clear and raised her wand. A torrent of fire engulfed the wolf but seemed to slide off of his fur. Then the wolf howled in pain and spun, snapping at the air. I saw the truth that the beast’s eyes and tongue had been consumed by the flames. We avoided it while it tired itself out and then Kelder tackled it. He held the poor beast down while I finished it.

When it died it dropped a [Graymane’s Pelt], an amethyst, and another small knife. I knew that it dropping multiple items meant it was what the adventurers called a boss. That was good because the Essence of a boss was special. It was denser and more coherent than the Essence left by normal dungeon monsters or even awakened beasts, only the essence of awakened people was denser. We needed that density to have it stay in the vessel we used to awaken my party members. When everyone started to get into position to cultivate I called them off and pulled out the decanter. I wanted to make sure Ganzaya and Sarnia had every advantage I could give them to start. There was some grumbling but I stood firm.

We were too spent to continue for today. Even after we found the stairs I had us leave to get back to the outpost. We fought a few more packs of wolves on the way out, but on the whole I thought our first dive went pretty well.

=====

It had been two weeks and the first few buildings of the outpost were mostly done. The “keep”, as the small stone and log cabin at the top of the rise was being called, was the first finished and where we spent a lot of our time when not helping build or diving the dungeon. Every few days we also escorted the worker back to the village to take a break and get more supplies. We had a surprising number of volunteers come work a shift building the outpost, most just wanting to be able to say they saw the dungeon.

The dungeon itself threw us for a loop the first week. It seemed as we were learning it, it was learning in return. It changed the wolf packs first until we couldn’t reliably kill the lead wolf. Then it added other animals. I was actually really happy to see the Highland Elk, their pelts were worth a bit. They had a silver and gold pattern when tanned that looked like the stripes of a tabby cat. The regular deer started dropping small bundles of arrows, which made Gavel happy. Even better, the boar dropped meat. We had enough hams curing to keep the inn happy for a few months at least even if it was at capacity for every meal. The birds were a bit of a nuisance, they were a good source of Essence but the silver earrings the crows dropped kept getting lost in the brush.

The dungeon seemed to settle about a week ago. There were many more monsters than the first time we came through but with our increased level we were able to keep up. It actually ended up being a blessing as it helped us level faster. I insisted that everyone wait to tier up until they hit level ten. I only explained about the need for multiple cores in detail to Kel and Gavel. They had retainer classes and were both locals. To the girls I explained the options of what to do with the Essence and let them decide. Amala just made her one dantian as big as possible. Zaya actually made seven dantians from her crown to her seat just like described in the red book. I asked her why and she said that she thought about it while meditating on her path and it just felt right.

We were on our tenth dive and most of us had just hit level ten. It was just Zaya and I lagging behind. It was time to try something new. We headed to the second floor. The stairs were uneven and too long to be used comfortably. If I had to guess, they were sized for wolves. I saw light ahead as we approached the bottom of the stairs. I signaled to the others and we formed up. We took the last steps and entered a wonderland.

The sky was overhead and I could feel the breeze on my face. Ahead of us there was a forest of thin straight aspen and birch trees spread along gently rolling ground. The breeze teased the leaves in the trees like children chasing each other through the uncut hay. It made the light play tricks on the ground.

“Is this what the lowlands look like?” Kelder asked.

“Some of them,” Amala replied. “Though this is prettier than most places I’ve seen.”

“Be on your guard,” I said, “I think the dungeon is trying to lull us.”

I led the party into the sun dappled wood. Despite our wariness I could see Zaya relax like something was suddenly right that she hadn’t known was wrong. We wandered roughly east for about a mile, staying close to the wall, until we hit our first bit of trouble. We had just stepped down into a shallow depression when wolves lept from the leaves strewn ground where they had buried themselves.

They were already among us and we were separated. I saw Gavel go up a tree as was his want so he could shoot over our heads, though I would put money he wasn’t in the tree I could see him in. Amala and Zaya stood back to back, Zaya firing her thornes at anything approaching while Amala lashed about with a whip made of fire. Kelder was surrounded by four himself with two of those between us. I had another behind me coming in for a bite. I pivoted and brought the rim of my shield down on its nose. There was a sickening crack followed by a wine that ended when I brought the blade down after the shield, severing the wolves head.

I looked back to Kelder to see he had dispatched one only to have another latch onto his right grieve, twisting about in an effort to bring him down. He kicked out just as an arrow found the offending beast. Another moved to capitalize on his distraction but I rushed it, driving my sword into its lung before I pulled it roughly back out. An arrow whizzed by my face only to go down the open maw of a wolf leaping for my face. I turned as I pushed the dying beast away with my shield and saw Amala’s whip fade to smoke. They were still surrounded by almost a dozen wolves and I could see more in the woods waiting their turn. It looked like we either had two packs or they were bigger on the second floor.

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I backed to the edge of the depression, away from my comrades, and called out, “Amala, wand on three.”

I then used my enraging shout as loud as I could. All the wolves charged at me without restraint. Right before they got to me I activated my Aegis. The wolves stopped for an instant to reorient. That is when Amala unleashed her fire in an arching gout that was much stronger than when she used it on Graymane the first time. Most of the wolves didn’t even have time to cry out as they died.

The last wolf collapsed into what looked to be a silver locket. It should have been quiet with our enemies dead but I heard a loud rustling sound. I looked up and saw a look of horror on the face of the two girls. I turned and looked behind me and saw a hoard of enraged squirrels headed straight for me.

I braced, but as the hundreds of rodents hit me it was like being rolled over by a landslide. I covered my face with my shield and tried to trust in my armor. It wasn’t working, the squirrels were gnawing on every piece of exposed flesh. I imbued my sword with an air blade, the only elemental attack I had learned, and swung it over my body as fast as I could. I killed them by the dozens but it didn’t matter, as soon as the dead dissolved to Essence another would rush in. I was getting desperate as it was becoming harder and harder to swing my sword. I couldn’t end like this, this was too ridiculous a way for the King of Borinal to die.

If I couldn’t use my sword I would have to do something else. I focussed on the way I used my air blade. I focussed on the conversion of Mana to Air Mana, and then the way it flowed through the Essence in the sword to become a mirror of it. Over the years I had infused my body with a fair bit of Essence, mostly from poor early attempts at cultivation. Now I relied on those trace amounts to aid me in this desperate gamble. I converted the Air Mana and then I pushed it out of my whole body. It pushed out but not hard enough to move the rodents. It needed something to give it shape. I pushed it out again, this time pushing it through my hairs like I had done with my blade. I felt it then, some of the critters closest to me died, then it clicked.

-You have learned the skill: Air Needle Barrier, surround yourself with needles of air that deal minor damage to those around you.-

I focused on the new skill and pushed all of my Mana through it. Squirrels died in droves, their tiny bodies pressed into my barrier by the weight of their fellows. Just as I was starting to run out of mana I could see through the end of them. I heaved myself up and started stomping the remaining beasts. I looked about wildly and saw the rest of my party helping me smash the remaining squirrels to Essence.

Zaya rushed over to heal me and I calmed down. The hoard was dead and I was alive. That was what mattered.

“Thank the ancestors you’re alive,” Zaya said, mirroring my own relief. “We tried to get to you but we couldn't get past your barrier. Then we had to stop the deer from getting to you, and then there was a flock of crows. It was like the entire forest for half a mile went mad with rage and wanted to kill you.”

I realized that was exactly what happened. In this airy and open wood my enraging shout had carried further than I thought possible, drawing every creature within earshot to attack me. In other words it did exactly what it was supposed to do and I was a fool.

I looked around and saw little white flecks on the ground. Picking one up I noticed it was a bone sewing needle, there were hundreds of them surrounding me. They had to be the drops from the squirrels. I noticed there were also several bundles of arrows, what looked like an actual frying pan, and several rabbit corpses. I looked with my other senses and realized that we were surrounded by a dense fog of Essence.

“Okay, I think the crisis is over,” I said, “Now, I want you three on guard while Zaya and I cultivate. Gavel, you're on bag duty, With any luck this travesty can be turned to fortune and the two of us will be able to match you in level right now.”

With that I sat down and started to meditate. I drew in Aether to start, recharging and centering myself. I pulled first into my lower dantian, it sat right behind my navel and pulsed with a habit of power from years of use. It was the first but had been overtaken by the second in size. My middle dantian lay just above my heart, nested in the curve of my aorta. I did not habitually draw Aether to it, yet, as I did the lower dantian, but with every beat of my heart it infused a little Aether into my body. This allowed me to use my physical attributes to the fullest.

Now, as I drew in the rich bounty of Essence around me, I focused on my third and final dantian. My upper dantian was already approaching the size of my lower dantian. I drew in the Essence with each breath, using my Aether and my will to wrap it around my upper core. It formed layers like a pearl, each slowly expanding the limit of my mortal being until suddenly a wave of ecstasy washed over me.

-You have reached Level 9-

I had to take a moment to recenter myself. I could feel how I was greater than I had been before. That I could aspire to just a bit more than I could when I woke up that morning. I was not just individually more, but I was more connected with everything around me as well. I could feel the barest inkling of the magic that let us Awakened see the world as we did. Maybe, just maybe, I also got a hint of how the world spirit saw things as well.

In that moment of clarity I saw the grave mistake I had almost made. Even as I had my realization I acted on it, before my instant of transcendent enlightenment could abandon me. I cultivated the only slightly diminished Essence around me and added it not to my upper dantian as I had intended, but to both my upper and lower at once.

When planning my advancement I had seen the four levels worth of Essence I had already invested into my lower dantian and thought it would be enough. I had allotted the entirety of the next three levels to my middle dantian, and the last three to my upper. What I had neglected was the fact that each level required more Essence than the last. If I had done as I planned my dantian would have been horribly out of balance. I soon came to a point where all of my dantian were the same size. I added my middle dantian to the mix and started feeling the strain as I split my attention too many ways. Layer by layer had to be perfectly balanced, perfectly in sink, if what my fading enlightenment was telling me was possible was to be made manifest. What’s more, through my potential paths I could feel the echoes of something profound, out of my reach beyond this one last hurdle. In a final rush, just as I was doubting the validity of my task, the last layer of Essence crystalized around all three of my dantians at once and I was done.

-You have reached Level 10-

-Would you like to ascend to the next tier?-

“I’m done, cultivate what you can.” I said before addressing the spirit of the world and saying, “Yes.”

-Assessing Assimilated Paths-

-You have five Paths available to you-

Wait, I thought, five paths? I only had four, the three imperial paths and that broken enforcer path.

-Do you wish to take the first step on the path of the [Enforcer] and become a [Brute]?-

“No”

-You may return to this path if no others are more suitable.-

-Do you wish to take the first step on the path of the [Khevtuul of the Elemental Tempest Path] and become a [Warrior of the Elemental Steppes]?-

“No”

-You may return to this path if no others are more suitable.-

-Do you wish to take the first step on the path of the [Mountain Legate of the Unconquered Legion] and become a [Legionnaire Recruit of the Mountains Resolve]?-

“No”

-You may return to this path if no others are more suitable.-

-Do you wish to take the first step on the path of the [Blade Dancer of the Unstoppable Tide Path] and become a [Junior Adept of the Ocean Blade]?-

“No” It was time to see what this fifth path is.

-You may return to this path if no others are more suitable.-

-You have achieved a perfect advancement and have unlocked a hidden path.-

-Path requirement: You are of Patrician Blood. You have the legendary skill [Aegis], You have achieved perfect balance of your Essence upon reaching the end of Tier 0, You have Assimilated at least two sympathetic paths with a compatibility of at least 90%.-

-You are offered the Path [Indestructible Pretorian of the Immortal Empire] grade 14. It is derived from the paths [Blade Dancer of the Unstoppable Tide Path] and [Mountain Legate of the Unconquered Legion]. As long as you meet the requirements for both those paths you will be able to advance. This is a revelatory path, all outside advancement restrictions lifted.-

-Do you wish to take the first step on the path of the [Indestructible Pretorian of the Immortal Empire] and become a [Imperial Centurion of the Enduring Battlefield]?-

I was shocked, nowhere in my conversation, my reading, or even in the cultivation secrets of my royal ancestor was this ever hinted at. In fact most sources implied that something like this was impossible. It was believed that the only paths you could follow were ones you had assimilated from a manual, if you didn’t you would have to be a “pathfinder” and be forced to face the perils of places like dungeons and dread beasts with no guidance from your ancestors. Perhaps it was the merger of these sympathetic paths that gave rise to the higher grade paths to begin with. Regardless, if I was understanding this right, this gave me the option to essentially follow two paths at once, and it said that all outside restrictions were gone. That meant the biggest issue with the Mountain Legate was gone. I was a mixture of ellated and nervous as I returned my attention to the words of the world spirit and said “yes.”

If I thought the rush from leveling was overwhelming, it was nothing to what it was like going up a tier. I was suddenly one with the universe and saw how I fit into it. I saw the role of leader and the role of the protector merge with the grace and discipline of a blademaster. I saw how I could push the skills I had in a new way to make them serve the needs of me and my people. I saw how my actions would reverberate out to those around me and then further to the whole world. I saw how I could use every action to better the lives of the entire continent. And then it was gone and I was a mortal man again, scrambling to use what tools I had to help those around me. I retained only the barest glimpse of the majesty of everything I was part of.

I looked around and saw everyone else was sitting in cultivation. From the moment I started to tier up until now only a few seconds had passed. With nothing better to do I started cultivating myself, gathering the stockpile of Essence I would use for my next rank up. When we were done I finally assigned the free attribute points, I brought everything up to the maximum for a normal human and then distributed the rest as best I could for my role in the party and as the “Baron”. Then I checked my status.

Status of Tarkhan Sel’Andur

Age: 18.3 Years

Height: 5’11”

Level: 10/0

Trier: 1

Class: [Imperial Centurion of the Enduring Battlefield]

Path Grade: 14

Available paths : [Indestructible Pretorian of the Immortal Empire] perfect compatibility. ( [Blade Dancer of the Unstoppable Tide Path] and [Mountain Legate of the Unconquered Legion])

Ether Capacity: 1000 Pure ether / 440 Mana / 506 Ki

Elemental Attunements: Air, Earth

Titles: Baron of Tibor (King of Borinal), Battle Born, Hand of Justice, Aegis

Strength 25

Vitality 25

Constitution 22

Agility 20+1

Dexterity 24

Intelligence 22

Wisdom 20

Willpower 23

Charisma 25

Presence 20

Free points: 0

Skills:

Noble Leadership 26, Battle Trance 12, Sword Mastery 11, *counter 7, *parry 6, *repost 4, *disengage 5, Endurance 11, Aegis 9, Hunting 8, *tracking 6, *dressing 3, *skinning 4, Shield Mastery 7, *block 5, *shield wall 3, *bash 4, Power Strike 7, *air blade 2, Battle Cry 7, *enraging shout 4, *intimidation 3, Trading 7, Battlefield Senses 6, more...

It was looking better all the time. I noticed that my combat skills, and their sub skills, were starting to take over the top ten skills displayed. Noble Leadership was still top, I leaned on it heavily to help me make the right decisions when I was in doubt. I also used my hunting skills quite a bit in the dungeon. There was something about the focus or maybe the stakes in battle that made those skills climb faster than say, construction. I would have to remember not to neglect my other skills. I didn’t want my life revolving around the dungeon. Maybe I should check out the red chest and find a profession that I could practice between my other duties.

I stood up and looked to the others. They had gone from green dabblers to serviceable combatants in a short time. The hesitance was gone and they kept a weather eye on all around. I would trust them to cover my back anytime. I smiled at the thought and said, “That’s done, now let’s get out of here and inform the Guild of the new dungeon.”