A little over two and a half months had passed since Logan first absorbed the painting. The System claimed there was a three-month recovery time before it could be used again, but that was likely under normal conditions. Something strange was obviously going on. Whether it be the crystal monsters or mushroom parasites, it was no surprise that some things didn’t work as intended.

Fortunately, that chaos had benefited them this time.

Instead of sparring with Amelia, Logan brought the painting back to the group. He ignored the uncomfortable atmosphere and called everyone over. It took a moment for James, Deon, and Ron to finish their conversation, the three locked in a deep discussion. Logan felt like he was being rude, but the Long Night could be crucial to their ongoing survival.

“Everyone, the Long Night has regenerated two weeks earlier than expected,” Logan said, the group standing around him in a semi-circle. “To make things fair, I would like you all to try and study it at the same time.”

“Sounds like fun,” James said, finishing off his beer. “Let’s see it, shall we? Whoever comprehends it first is the most deserving.”

Logan set the painting down against the wall of a tent before walking off to have a medicinal bath. Since he had recently advanced to the fifth stage, his body had become much more receptive to medicinal baths. That included both aspects. He was growing much stronger now, and his flesh released more impurities, making Logan wonder where they were all coming from.

The human body possessed a variety of flaws. Whether they were hereditary or gained through the course of a long life, both were likely to be removed due to cultivation. Microplastics, heavy metals, waste products generated through the body’s natural processes, and even genetic flaws were all possible sources of impurities. Without looking at an impurity through a microscope, it would be hard to say what exactly was being expelled.

That would be an interesting research topic, though. Logan filed it away for later before he hopped out of the bath. Everyone would use medicinal baths or elixirs to cleanse their flesh at some point. Researching a cheaper or more effective method would earn him a lot of money in the future, but that was something to think about in the future.

After putting his clothes back on and heading back to the fire, Logan found people sitting around and relaxing instead of studying.

“Come on, guys. Are you seriously that lazy? It only took me a few hours to absorb the painting, and that was without any kind of guidance. Now that I’ve told you to focus on the Goddess, you can’t even keep focused for an hour?”

No one replied, merely glancing at him before they glared at Amelia.

“What’s going on?” Logan asked, walking over to the abandoned picture frame. It was blank. “Holy- You absorbed it in under an hour? What are you, some kind of genius?”

“It was just luck.”

Of course, her smug expression said the opposite.

“Whatever,” Tom grunted. “She cheated, and everyone knows you helped her do it.”

“What are you talking about?” Logan said, raising an eyebrow.

“The painting regenerated while you two were out sparring. You obviously let Amelia get a head start, dude.”

Logan didn’t even have to defend himself because Stephanie had come out of her stupor with a scathing remark.

“Can you give it a rest?” She said, looking at him like he was dirt. “We all saw those colourful lights come down. At most, she got a ten-second head start. How long did Logan take to absorb the visualisation technique? Three hours? Four? Amelia would’ve won even if we had a three-hour head start.”

Tom went red in the face, but before he could say anything, Logan stepped in and asked what they wanted for dinner. The question caught Tom so off guard that he merely said that he wanted pizza before Logan asked a bunch of clarifying questions, such as which restaurant and what type.

He quickly bought everyone else their requested food and drinks, but the drama wasn’t over yet. Stephanie and Tom were glaring at each other from across the fire. As Logan shared various dishes from a famous Chinese restaurant with James and Amelia, he realised there would be no shortage of drama over the coming days.

***

As the next few days came and went, Stephanie and Tom didn’t fight or argue about anything. They were more than happy to ignore each other’s existence. Logan was very happy with this outcome, but Amelia wanted them to make up or get over it. She said this because Stephanie kept coming to her tent after dinner and complaining until deep into the night.

This ate into Amelia’s spare time and interfered with her training, both with the spear and her new visualisation technique. She was so annoyed that she even began to vent to Logan whenever she got the chance. There was no irony to her complaining either, which only pissed her off when Logan pointed out that she was doing the exact same thing to him.

He received a solid glare for that remark.

***

Six days after Amelia absorbed the Long Night, Logan pushed through a patch of forest when a snake leapt out of the brush. Obsidian End appeared in his hand, and in the next instant, it flashed through the air and lodged itself into the snake’s skull. It didn’t immediately die, so Logan stabbed it into a nearby tree to keep it from lashing out at him or escaping.

[You have slain a Common Mortal at the Third Step, Acid Viper.]

Acid Viper? Logan pulled the spear out and yelped, a spurt of acid erupting from the hole in its head. It splashed his arm with a few drops of the sticky green fluid. He barely managed to keep any from landing on his face, but he didn’t have time to celebrate. Everywhere the acid landed, his skin began to melt. Plumes of putrid smoke assaulted his sense of smell, and the pain was so bad that he had to grit his teeth.

Thankfully, he had wasted no time on calling the egg. The muscle and skin regenerated faster than the acid could dissolve his flesh, which saved his arm from melting off his shoulder. That was excellent news as the tree roots and grass beneath the corpse melted into a puddle of noxious black goop. It vaguely reminded him of impurities, but the puddle was less viscous and grainy.

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

“Damn, that’s one freaky creature,” James muttered.

They had encountered a few common monsters throughout their journey, all of them more deadly than a Giant Ore Rat. Common monsters like the Acid Viper were smaller and faster than the rats. That was a demerit in frontal combat, but none of those creatures were stupid enough to jump out of their hiding spots for no reason.

That was simply the nature of adapting to an environment. Living in well-lit tunnels, the rats could only attack in waves. They couldn’t hide in trees and ambush their prey, which seemed an excellent way to hunt in a jungle. Every predator they had encountered used the same method, and if they failed, some of their bloodline abilities would help them escape unscathed.

Of course, not every monster used ambush tactics. The Mountain Gorilla had no need for such a thing, simply bulldozing through all opposition. The one they had encountered was also the only Uncommon monster so far. That beast was naturally huge, removing the need to ambush prey when they could smash it to death with their powerful bodies.

Logan checked the price of the Acid Viper and sighed.

“So cheap?” Amelia asked, checking herself.

“It makes sense,” Logan added, selling the creature for less than 6000 credits. “I accidentally ruptured its acid sack. With it intact, the monster would be worth spending the time to butcher.”

They hadn’t known how good things were until they ran out of rats to kill. An unranked Ore Rat was valued in the tens of thousands depending on how damaged its body was. On the other hand, a Common Giant Ore Rat was worth over a hundred thousand. That was a solid amount of money, but after leaving the cavern and entering the biodome, Logan began to understand just how valuable soul-related items were.

If the Acid Viper was in the same price range as a Giant Ore Rat, it would’ve been 600,000 credits, not six thousand. At least they had slaughtered all of the crystal rats before leaving. The dinosaurs and Armoured Savages were still around, but no one wanted to return. They had already earned their fortune. Now, they would just have to settle for a hundred times less profit.

Logan continued leading the group until the light shining through the ceiling began to dim. That put them on a timer that more or less forced them to set up camp in a mediocre location. It was against a rock wall, but there was no natural barrier to deter an animal from walking past. The formations would just have to do the bulk of the work, leaving them to set up the tents and chairs.

Once that was done, they all ate together and relaxed. It was a slow evening, so Logan eventually broke off to draw a medicinal bath. When he finished and got changed in his tent, he could hear someone walking around outside. Logan poked his head out and found Amelia running over.

The first thought in his mind was about Stephanie. She had been going to Amelia’s tent to let out her frustrations the last four days, so why would Amelia be here now? Judging by the big grin on her face, something terrible hadn’t happened.

Instead, it was good news.

“I comprehended the Goddess!” Amelia said, coming to a stop in front of him.

That was odd. If Amelia was practising her visualisation technique, where had Stephanie gone? The formation hadn’t detected her leaving. She was definitely safe, making Logan push that thought to the back of his mind as he focused on more important things.

“You comprehended it in six days?”

Logan stepped out of the tent, his mouth hanging open in shock. That was an unreasonably fast speed. Back in the cells, he had studied the painting nearly every waking moment. It took him seven days to reach a bottleneck, taking him over ten hours of study each day. For Amelia, she could spend all morning training with her spear, the afternoon travelling through the wilderness, and half of the night listening to her friend vent about a dumb boy, yet she could still progress several times faster than him.

Even with his guidance, Amelia had spent a fraction of his time for the same results.

“How long have you been practising every day?”

“Hmm, I think I’ve been averaging four hours of study before bed? Give or take an hour depending on the day.”

Logan quickly did the maths, realising that she was around three times faster than him. Was she really that much more talented? It hurt his ego to learn he wasn’t some kind of once-in-a-lifetime genius. At the same time, she was likely jealous of his immortality.

Everyone had their own strengths and weaknesses, allowing Logan to shrug off the bad news and congratulate her. “You’re incredible, you know that? You might just overtake me by the time we get back home.”

“You think so?” Amelia said, looking surprised. “I hadn’t thought about it, but I was faster than you, huh?”

“Don’t rub it in. I’m sure there are a million people out there even faster than the both of us combined, so let’s not get arrogant.”

“That’s true.”

“Still, I wouldn’t be surprised if you were considered a genius. You should focus more on your visualisation technique. Every drop of sweat you put in now may give you a bucket’s worth of power in the future.”

Amelia excitedly ran back to her tent and continued practising her visualisation technique. Logan was about to do the same when Stephanie came around the corner, her lip trembling as she barged past him and dived into his tent.

Logan froze for a second before gently opening the flap. He found Stephanie lying on his sleeping bag as she wept into her hands, which made him pause again. With no way out of this situation, he quietly walked in and sat down on the other end of his sleeping bag.

He didn’t know what to say, so he patted her back while she cried. Perhaps she had looked for Amelia first and didn’t find her? Now that Amelia was back in her tent, maybe he could send her away… Deflecting this issue might earn him a good poking, but it would at least get her out of his tent.

He couldn’t leave at this point.

After buying some tissues from the Shop, Stephanie calmed down enough to speak. “What’s wrong with me?”

Logan stared at her for a moment, unsure of how to respond. Was this what Amelia had to deal with over the last week? No wonder she was complaining so much. He already felt exhausted, and she’d only said four words to him.

“Nothing’s wrong with you,” Logan said, trying his best to comfort her. “You’re kind, funny, caring, sweet, beautiful, and a whole bunch of other adjectives I can’t think of right now.”

Stephanie rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t hide her faint smile. “I went and spoke to Tom after dinner.”

“And…”

“And I told him everything.”

“Everything? Even your crush on him, or did you just confront him about being a dick?”

Stephanie physically recoiled. “You know about that?”

“It’s pretty obvious,” Logan said, shrugging. “You kind of follow him around like a lost puppy.”

“I must look like such an idiot,” Stephanie began to cry again, making Logan feel guilty since he had directly insulted her. “Was it so obvious that I’ve been chasing after a man who wouldn’t care if I was dead or alive?”

“No, of course not. I only noticed because I’ve been spending so much time with you all. Also, I’m new to the group. Seeing these dynamics play out is easier when you don’t know anyone. I’m sure no one else has picked up on it.”

“Really?”

Logan nodded.

“Thank you,” Stephanie whispered, her tears drying up. “That makes me feel a bit better. I just wish I wasn’t such an idiot.”

“Would you like to talk about what happened?”

“What else could’ve happened? I told Tom that he really hurt my feelings, and he said that I was being ridiculous again. I even said I loved him, and you know what he said?”

Logan could guess, but he kept his thoughts to himself. “No, I can’t imagine?”

“He told me that I’m like a sister to him. A sister! God, I feel like such a moron.”

Logan sat there awkwardly until she suddenly looked up at him. “Can you buy me a cocktail?”

“I don’t think drinking would be the smartest idea.”

“Everyone already thinks I’m an idiot, so that would be the perfect choice for me, wouldn’t it?”

“No one thinks you’re an idiot. I just know that alcohol won’t make you feel better.”

“It doesn’t matter anymore. You know how hard it is to get drunk now that we’re cultivators. Just give me a damn mojito before I start crying again, alright?”

Logan shut up and did as she asked. He wasn’t a big drinker, but she forced him to go along for the ride. They went drink for drink until they were nearly twenty cocktails in. That was enough to send an ordinary person to the hospital, but over two hours, it was barely too much for their life force to handle.

They were still tipsy, of course. They just weren’t drunk.

Logan spent those two hours chatting with Steph. She calmed down a lot, but that didn’t mean she was in a good state of mind. She spent the first hour cursing Tom for being so horrible before moving on to other topics. Eventually, she must’ve started feeling vulnerable because she asked a question that made Logan sit up straight.