Chapter 54
After the sparring session ended, Keith returned to the house he had purchased near Section B34. The last two days had been equal parts fulfilling and exhausting. He first had to defend the Blockade for several hours, then train with Frod for two hours. He spent the rest of the time taking it easy.
As soon as Keith walked in the door, he kicked off his shoes, got a chilled smoothie from the fridge, and collapsed onto the couch. While sipping from his drink, he browsed different pages on the magic tablet.
Compared to the Innate Dimension, the Grandsky Realm had 100 times more items.
Keith usually spent a portion of his day learning what other people had found to enrich his knowledge base.
For an adventurer, knowledge was king.
It might even be the difference between life and death.
At least, that’s what one of his teachers used to say.
Upon finishing his smoothie, Keith inwardly groaned and pulled out an elixir, taking small sips. One of his highest priorities was to max out the stats he could gain from elixirs. To that end, he forced himself to drink 25 of them every day. If not for the phenomenal taste, he didn’t know if he could do it.
Elixirs were the only thing Keith spent his Blockade Event’s contribution points on.
Once the military instated the five divine grade skill exchange limit, he hadn’t bought any more, waiting for a skill that caught his eye. At the same time, he was saving up for a big purchase.
He had two items in mind: a celestial grade skill or a Mana Reactor.
Besides divine grade skills, of which the monsters at the Blockade dropped a few dozen a day, they also dropped one to two celestial grade skills.
However, they were absurdly expensive – at around the same price as a Mana Reactor.
In Keith’s hands, a celestial grade skill would perform as a transcendent grade skill.
He had already tasted the might of a transcendent grade skill once.
Considering Keith’s current level, they were without a doubt a trump card.
The downside was they consumed colossal amounts of mana.
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Even with Mana Battery, Keith was limited to ten to twenty casts of a transcendent grade skill before acquiring severe Mana Sickness.
As for the Mana Reactor, Keith didn’t want it to power an array or use it for a business endeavor. No, he wanted to store it in his Collection Grimoire.
Mana Reactors were quite an enigma.
Nobody knew who created them.
The sole thing Keith could get out of Frisk was that it involved an innate gift.
It was regarded as a top military secret, and for good reason.
Mana Reactors could pull mana from the surrounding environment far more effectively than a mana gathering array ever could, and had robust durability. A mana gathering array lasted a week or two before breaking down, while a Mana Reactor lasted years.
For such a unique item, Keith had high hopes it would unlock a new function for his Collection Grimoire.
And it wasn’t just Keith who wanted a Mana Reactor.
Many people were interested in possessing one.
Unfortunately, the military had put up a limited amount in the Blockade’s Exchange shop, five in total, with three already exchanged for, leaving two left. If it wasn’t for the influx of materials acquired from the Grandsky Realm, which the military used to create more, they wouldn’t have sold any at all.
When considering Keith’s current contribution points, and how many he gained daily, he would be able to exchange for one tomorrow.
Before Keith knew it, the day was over, and he fell asleep as soon as he jumped into bed.
In the morning, he adjusted his visual arrays and strode out to Section B34 of the Blockade. Keith waited in the air, feeling anxious about how today’s battle would play out. He knew that half of the top 100 on the ranking list and the reserve troops had already left for the Elemental Nation’s territory to push back the demon’s advance.
Eventually, the monster horde arrived, and Keith confidently dealt with his area, clearing all the high level monsters without much trouble. With his job done, Keith retreated, allowing the soldiers to reap the monster’s lives for experience.
Drinking some water, Keith hovered above the Blockade and scanned the battlefield, using Entangling Roots where he could to prevent any casualties. It was thanks to him that the area he oversaw had one of the lowest mortality rates, garnering widespread gratitude amongst the soldiers.
As the battle came to a close, Keith was just about to be relieved that his fears didn’t come true when an officer flew up from the backlines and approached Keith, wearing a grim expression. “Sir Walker, the third Guardian of Section B34 was critically wounded and had to fall back. The monsters are about to breach the wall. They need assistance ASAP.”
“I understand,” Keith replied, his heart clenching. Hoping that he could make it in time, he flew toward the nearest teleportation array. A soldier there had already prepared the array’s settings, and Keith’s surroundings blurred as he teleported to another area of Section B34.
Alarmed shouts and monster roars came from close by, alarming Keith.
He looked up and saw the Blockade’s ramparts were in chaos. Monsters had climbed up the wall and engaged the long-ranged combatants in combat, inflicting heavy damage to the ranks.
Keith didn’t have time to think and rushed to the sky, unleashing a barrage of skills. With his arrival, he soon stabilized the situation, yet at the cost of acquiring severe Mana Sickness. No longer able to sustain the Flight skill, Keith landed on the ground and nearly collapsed right there and then.
A medic rushed over to support him.
“Thanks,” Keith habitually replied, his body shaking from the backlash of spending too much mana. He felt his vision darken, but before he feinted, he pulled up the Blockade’s exchange shop and purchased a Mana Reactor.
After that, he passed out.