“We’re set for the day, I’ll call everyone to deliver the second batch when it’s time tomorrow, we can all concentrate on becoming tier 2 now,” Utopia finished his piece and immediately sat on his spot in the camp.
Now that their first day of work was done, only training remained, but they couldn’t properly train in the Endless as long as they didn’t become tier 2.
‘Here we go, last tutorial mission.’
Rune also found a spot under a tree where they established their camp, near the road to the northern outpost.
It wasn’t possible to use passive training to reach tier 2 in fundamental masteries, it had to be deliberate.
The board had a lot of advice on how to reach tier 2, even tier 3 and 4, but it was procedural, you had to only focus on one mastery and make it reach tier 2 before switching to another.
As for the method, it was what everyone, be it in the new energy institute or the psychic union tried but then assumed wasn’t the right method.
Their dimension being defective was the reason it didn’t work, but now they could naturally train and with the previous accumulation, those masteries would become tier 2 with no problem.
‘Push! Push! Push!’ It was Rune’s perception control training, something only someone with his specialty could do.
It was the most effective and brutal training he could come up with at his level, and due to all the previous passive training he did, his spirit was strong enough to sustain a long period of time bending his perception sphere.
The normal perception control mastery was all about controlling your own sphere and making it transform into different shapes, but for Rune, it was hard, if he had a normal sphere by that point, he would be like a bodybuilder lifting a 5-kilogram weight, he could launch it if he wanted.
After 4 hours of this, the long-awaited level-up took place.
*Ding* Spiritual Fundamental: Perception Control reached Tier 2 Level 0
And now he only had 5 masteries to tier up remaining.
…
“Look, a flock of birds!”
Rune heard something as he was training his energy compression, so he looked up above and saw something he unconsciously forgot.
‘That’s right, there are animals now, but why would a flock of birds pass through a tier 1 zone?’
It was basic information, tier 1 zones in the Endless were empty, not even the weakest beasts would go there because they offered no chance for them to become stronger, the resources were barren in comparison to a next tier zone.
The flock of birds passing through wasn’t a sign for the end of the world, it was probably more because they were following an ether current.
The Endless was a dimension that was perpetually changing, maybe 10 years ago their landing zone was a tier 2 or tier 3 zone, maybe it had changed to become a barren tier 1 just a year ago…
Seeing life was a sign that maybe a tier 2 zone had already been discovered, and maybe, already disturbed.
This dimension had millions of people who had entered by now, it’d already been 4 days since the IGS announcement after all.
It was Rune’s first time seeing native life forms of the Endless, it was unfortunate they were going pretty fast, and having eyes that could see ether didn’t mean they could see 500 meters away clearly.
In sum, he only saw that it was a flock of black and white birds, they didn’t emanate energy so they looked like cannon fodders but he couldn’t be sure, he read so many amazing things on the board that he wouldn’t judge a book by its cover under any circumstances.
Another fact that he could confirm by now was that in this part of the Endless, there was only one sun and no moon because, like biodiversity, it was something that could change following the region.
Of course, until he saw with his own two eyes a region with 9 suns and 9 moons he wouldn’t believe it, it was like the existence of Arcadia regions. He really wanted them to exist, really.
Looking at his notifications, he knew that soon he would be ready to go on an adventure.
*Ding* Spiritual Fundamental: Awareness division reached Tier 2 Level 0
*Ding* Spiritual Fundamental: Momentum Manipulation reached Tier 2 Level 0
…
‘No loss, a perfect flux, more haste, less speed.’
Concentrating on manipulating 500 energy without sustaining any loss in the air, Rune was going to finish his tier 2 advancement.
Reaching tier 2 meant that you had reached pseudo perfection, every single point of energy could be used to its highest potential. For the basics.
Beyond tier 2 was the beginning of becoming a powerhouse, your masteries would transform to allow reality-breaking effects, and only then could you surpass the 100% efficiency that peak tier 1 allowed.
*Ding* Energy Fundamental: Grand Manipulation reached Tier 2 Level 0
‘I’m done.’
And now, the door to the indecision hell opened to him, large and wide.
*Ding* Reached Tier 2, proceed to advancement?
Opening his system, his first step as a true independent entity showed up.
‘Yes.’
His ether soul started to fluctuate, the tier 2 energy core was now expanding everywhere, converting all his awareness, then going beyond, affecting his body and everything he was.
In only an instant he became a true tier 2, and his own system now asked him for guidance.
*Ding* Class added to status, please select your own class ratio
Class Ratio (1 stat point = 100 000 EP)
Health: 1,0
Health Regeneration: 1,0
Strength: 1,0
Cohesion: 1,0
Energy: 1,0
Energy Regeneration: 1,0
Purity: 1,0
Affinity: 1,0
Momentum: 1,0
Perception: 1,0
Class Path: Your class hasn’t matured enough to birth a class path.
Confirm? Class cannot be changed after confirmation
He already knew what his choice was, if he kept a perfect balance it wouldn’t give him any advantage, and he had 15 000 stat points to buy.
It meant 1 500 000 000 EP to gather, if he only had the Deep Void’s monster cores to use it would take him 150 000 to max his tier 2 stats.
And that was only tier 2, he didn't have to worry about his class path yet, he only just finished the tutorial.
Rune adjusted his stat ratios to what he planned.
Class Ratio (1 stat point = 100 000 EP)
Health: 1,0
Health Regeneration: 0,5
Strength: 0,5
Cohesion: 0,5
Energy: 0,5
Energy Regeneration: 0,5
Purity: 2,0
Affinity: 2,0
Momentum: 2,0
Perception: 0,5
Class Path: Your class hasn’t matured enough to birth a class path.
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Confirm? Class cannot be changed after confirmation
‘Confirm.’
In fact, he knew that he should have hesitated, but he had made up his mind long ago, and class ratio truly weren't that important, they didn't give boost to stats, they didn't lock you out of anything, they only influenced the cost of acquiring a stat point, so indecision couldn’t take place.
But for what came next, Rune wasn’t confident even when he thought of the universal truth, there was no bad or good choice, only the most suitable choice.
*Ding* You changed your class to “Frontline Pathfinder”
*Ding* Maximum EP storage capability has been increased to 1 000 000 000 EP
*Ding* Soul Specialty is being upgraded to tier 2, choose its path
*Ding* You opened up an additional 3 empty mastery slots
‘Let’s start with my specialty.’
Soul Specialty Tier 2 advancement paths
Shelled Dimensional Perception
Soul specialty (Tier 2)
Your perception sphere becomes even harder and resistant to dimensional effect, its intrinsic resistance to external and internal change renders them practically nullified or reduced so much they become irrelevant. If something is trying to affect your perception, your sphere will oppose resistance to it.
Your sphere resistance to external and internal changes is increased by 200%. The effect of dimensional ether restriction on perception is reduced by 90% for Tier 2 and beneath Dimensions; 60% for Tier 3 Dimensions and 20% for Tier 4 Dimensions. Your resistance to abnormal perception changes is increased by 50%.
Confirm?
Tier 2, the start of reality-altering power, numbers affecting the real world like it was normal, that was what tier 2 equal to, and Rune knew it.
The board never stopped discussing it and they were passionate about it like it was how the world worked and nothing was wrong with it.
‘As expected.’
This first path was the depth upgrade, take what you already have and reinforce it even more.
Rune knew that such a choice would be present, so he just read through it and nothing shocked him, if nothing important came up, then it would be the path he chose.
Pure Dimensional Perception
Soul specialty (Tier 2)
Your perception allows you to see things that are normally hidden by the world, dimensional links to other dimensions appear much more existential to you, but to allow it your sphere will lose a lot of its hardness and resistance to external and internal forces. In return, seeing the unseeable will become what you excel at.
Your sphere’s resistance to external and internal changes is increased by 50%. Your sensitivity to events around you is increased by 200%. Your sensitivity to dimension’s link or abnormal dimension-related event is increased by an additional 100%.
Confirm?
‘Hello indecision my old friend,’ he hummed in his mind.
This one was a divergent path, it was what he dreaded, how could he make such an important decision just like that?
Choosing this path, he would become a dimensional sensor, able to naturally, without boosting his inherent sensitivity, see how the leaves of a tree were swaying in the wind, in addition to telling how the wind was blowing.
The resistance his sphere opposed him would be back to maybe what he had before he first awakened his soul, so there would be a limit to what his passive sphere training could do to increase his spirit’s strength at some point.
But losing his easy passive training was something he could easily get over, after what he read from the board, replacing it was as easy as breathing.
Obfuscating Dimensional Perception
Soul specialty (Tier 2)
Your perception of things has changed a little, you don’t only want to observe, you also want others not to be aware that you’re observing them. To allow such property to your perception’s sphere it has to become like air, dissimulating itself in front of others, as such you’ll lose a majority of your resistance to external and internal changes.
Your sphere’s resistance to external and internal changes is increased by 10%. Your sphere is 200% more difficult to block and detect. If you’re not moving, the difficulty of blocking or detecting your sphere is increased by an additional 100%.
Confirm?
‘I’ve come to talk with you again…’ He continued to hum on the same theme.
Another divergent path, if he wanted to go on the stealthy path, he had a way of starting it now, fortunately, this choice was a lot easier to disqualify.
Rune wasn’t a stealthy fighter, when he fought, he fought over a long period of time, shaving little by little at his opponent’s health.
Something that happened for the 2 divergent paths was the major effect of his primary path not applying, only the basic effect of his specialty was retained, and this effect was the resistance to internal and external changes.
Though this property lost a bit of its meaning if it was dissociated with the resistance to dimensional ether restriction on perception.
If he had to judge the shelled path and the pure path, he would qualify them as the defensive and balanced path.
The shelled variation would allow Rune to resist anything that could sneak onto him while limiting every factor that could render him unaware of possible threats by increasing his sphere resistance to changes as much as possible, be they artificial or natural.
The pure variation was something he could exploit for his fighting style, he would become able to sense what his opponent was going to do and respond preemptively, or prepare for it, maybe it would allow him to detect dangerous areas, but he couldn’t know that before he tried.
As the board said, there was never one path, from what he read about people with his specialty who became tier 2, they didn’t have the same choice, some didn’t even have the shelled path, it seemed to correspond to what the person did in their life.
And in this case, Rune could find a reason explaining the presence of those 3 paths with what he lived.
The shelled path for wanting to always assure his safety, the pure path for his battle against the scorpion-like monsters, and finally the obfuscating path for his observation of everything and wanting to be left alone.
‘I’m not even sure I’ll explore other dimensions in the future… I read that some places of the Endless also have restrictions… But in the end, I’m more of a defensive guy aren’t I?’
Rune subconsciously made his choice, but he loved to verify, again and again, trying to discredit his own planned choice.
Like the class, this choice couldn’t be changed, so after 30 minutes of deliberation, Rune chose the shelled path, the steady path, something he did since the beginning.
Shelled Dimensional Perception
Soul specialty (Tier 2)
Your perception’s sphere becomes even harder and resistant to dimensional effect, its intrinsic resistance to external and internal change renders them practically nullified or reduced so much that they become irrelevant. If something is trying to affect your perception, your sphere will oppose resistance to it.
Your sphere’s resistance to external and internal changes is increased by 200%. The effect of dimensional ether restriction on perception is reduced by 90% for Tier 2 Dimensions; 50% for Tier 3 Dimensions and 20% for Tier 4 Dimensions. Your resistance to abnormal perception changes is increased by 50%.
Confirm?
‘Confirm’, and then he felt his sphere literally snapping back from the constant pressure it was subjected to, now that he was done with his active training.
“Ouf!” A little gasp escaped him, now he could conclude that his previous sphere’s resistance to change was around 100%, what it meant, and what it felt like when it doubled.
*Ding* Your soul specialty has been upgraded from Dimensional Perception (Tier 1) to Shelled Dimensional Perception (Tier 2)
Now that it was done, he only had to accept the 9 pending rewards in his event window, invest in his stats, and then start to practice to get the slotted masteries he wanted.
Event
Void Initiation
Gather 100 resources: 10 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Gather 1 000 resources: 100 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Gather 10 000 resources: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Move more than 100 km: 10 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Move more than 1 000 km: 100 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Move more than 10 000 km: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Survey the Void for 100 h: 10 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Survey the Void for 1 000 h: 100 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Survey the Void for 10 000 h: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE) (Claim?)
Discover a special resource: 10 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Discover 10 different special resources: 100 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Discover 100 different special resources: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE) (Claim?)
Use 10 000 total energy in any way: 10 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Use 100 000 total energy in any way: 100 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Use 1 000 000 total energy in any way: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Attain 100 in any individual Void stat: 100 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Attain 1 000 total stats: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Completion Bonus: 10 000 000 EP (COMPLETE) (Claim?)
Deep Void Initiation
Gather 10 000 monster core: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE) (Claim?)
Clean 10 monster nests: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE) (Claim?)
Reach the dimension’s boundary: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE) (Claim?)
Find 10 rare resources: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE) (Claim?)
Successfully interact with a peaceful ether lifeform: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE) (Claim?)
Find living ether vegetation life: 1 000 000 EP (COMPLETE)
Completion Bonus: 10 000 000 EP (COMPLETE) (Claim?)
Claiming everything, he erased his event window from his system definitely in exchange for getting 27 000 000 EP, making his storage of EP reach 127 000 000 EP in total.
A problem that he didn’t face for a long time appeared once again now that all was said and done, which stats should he invest in?
The indecision hell was fatal for every new tier 2 except for the most prepared, and 1 month only allowed him to go till there, he now had to think again, not act like he planned anything beyond his build and specialization.
‘Of course, it’s all going to the high priority stats.’
This no-brainer conclusion was easy, focus on only 4 stats, the true high priority ones, strength, perception, energy, and energy regeneration.
Those were the stats he used for his fighting style, the key to keeping him alive, and also the stats that he’s going to use to benefit his future slotted masteries.
‘Logic, I need to use basic logic and optimization, the first thing should do is to double those stats that are key, so investing 100 000 000 EP will take them all to 1 000, then I still have 27 000 000 EP.’
Rune was convinced that his beginning was optimized for what he wanted, but after that, he hesitated.
So he called for help, “Guys, should I invest my remaining 27 000 000 EP into perception, energy, energy regeneration, or strength?”
Delegating was a kingly move, now he could let them think for him.
“You don’t intend to keep them for the EP Market?” Arik raised a good question, but he had already planned to invest everything in stats, he didn’t plan to keep anything except a safe something.
“No, I’m hesitating between perception to be the official scout of our party and also helping myself, or going for the other 3 and focusing on fighting,” that was Rune's reasoning at the moment.
“Follow your heart and choose perception then, you’re just waiting for us to decide in your place?” Arik continued on his matter-of-fact counselor attitude.
“That’s what I was waiting for! You’ll be responsible for all my problems from now on brother Arik, thank you!” Freed from this weight that never existed, he decided to follow his heart.
He’d have a lot of ways to gather EP in the future, but perception was the king of his specialty stat, so he knew it had to be the first stat he had to max at 2 000.
“F*ck you!” On those words Arik continued his training, he’d soon reach tier 2 too, and Rune was going to see if he would still be so clever then.
‘Do I need to keep EP in reserve? Yeah, probably 1 million for whatever I’d need to pay once the IGS come up with a market.’
Now he didn’t need any more thinking, so he invested.
Rune Tudor (Tier 2)
Class: Frontline Pathfinder
Specialty: Shelled Dimensional Perception
EP: 1 000 000
Stats Total: 7 520
Health: 500
Health Regeneration: 500
Strength: 1 000
Cohesion: 500
Energy: 1 000
Energy Regeneration: 1 000
Purity: 500
Affinity: 500
Momentum: 500
Perception: 1 520
Only one new line was there, the class one, but at tier 2 everyone got a name that was attributed to a certain combination of class ratios, and his class ratio’s name was Frontline Pathfinder.
As he wanted to know what the system thought of his class he focused on it.
Frontline Pathfinder
Class (Tier 2)
The Frontline Pathfinder is someone relying on very pragmatic uses of his energy, he is someone who can survive on his own in the wild as much alone as in groups but his specialty isn’t to fight, his specialty is to survive.
A tier 2 class was not personal, this would only become a thing at tier 3, as for this description, it wasn’t exactly what he aimed for but at the same time, was also strangely familiar with his goals.
‘Not like I’m going to admit that I’m bad at fighting, you’re dreaming Ether, completely delusional.’
Now, there was only a single thing he had to do, open his masteries window.