The relay node was complex, but in the end was rather straightforward. It had a store of power that slowly recharged. It could be used to interface with people’s system interfaces to make people management easier. Ander didn’t really care about that, especially since his ‘domain’ only consisted of a single other person. There were two other functions. Dungeon building, as well as stronghold building.

The dungeon building portion would allow Ander to build out the dungeon environment, and then empower monsters to go inside. It was not, however, a quick process. Ander had to establish a breeding population of any monster he wanted to show up regularly. Basically, monsters didn’t just spawn out of nowhere. Moreover, the dungeon level would be capped by the level of the highest monster. That level would go up over time, but only as long as the relay node was able to invest power into the creatures. It could harvest power from foreign creatures, but that did not account for everything.

What Ander was interested in was the ability to change the dungeon environment. In other words, to build himself a stronghold. Not really, but the thought was cool. For now, he wanted more room inside the treasure vault. It was a large enough space for two people, but there were a lot of books, and Karsish could do with a bed, and Ander didn’t really want to sacrifice a single bit of space. And so, a hole appeared behind a bookcase in the main room. It was quite mana intensive, and Ander had to surreptitiously provide light stones for the relay node’s spell.

In all, Ander made four new rooms. He made a kitchen, a training room, a proper library, as well as a conjoined bedroom/study for Karsish. Each of the furnishings were taken directly from Ander’s inventory and placed where they belonged all while he sat on the couch. Since he could, he gave the walls intricate patterns and carvings, and made every roof vaulted. That was just about the extent of his abilities, as he lacked things like metal and glass, but in his mind’s eye he thought it looked good.

Karsish was confused when Ander stood and hobbled toward the bookshelves and started to place them in his inventory. But when he saw the well lit hallway behind the centermost shelf, he fell quiet. He was quite impressed as Ander showed him each room one by one, and was quite grateful for his own room right across from the library. Ander took the opportunity to sit in the kitchen and work on the rest of the place. He quite liked the carvings, and extended them through the entire complex. He then turned the trash room into a proper bathroom. Apparently Karsish had been sneaking outside to do his business. Ander still had the Accelerated Growth buff, and didn’t need to do any of that. He then created a dining area in the main room.

Satisfied, Ander slipped the Relay node into a hidden alcove in the back of the base. It could not be removed, or the whole place would slowly revert to what it had been.

Now, with that out of the way, Ander chose another thing on the list. He figured it would be for the best to get some mental resistance out of the way. Sir Argvald was really pissed, and it was likely that he would report to High Lord Torden. While Ander wasn’t worried that High Lord Torden was out to get him, his mind magic was quite terrifying. He wanted, despite his better judgement, to get a legendary skill that offered mental protection. He figured that if he got all the legendary skills he could now, he could solidify his kit for later. And so he went off to his study, which he had hardly used, to use his Minds of the Void skill. He floated in the blackness and sent out his will, and thread after thread came up to him. There were dozens of legendary skills with mind magic potential he could find, but surprisingly few of them were defensive in nature. The few he could find were weak in their defences, and wouldn’t stand up against even High Lord Torden’s passive mental pressure. There was some hope however. If Ander found a purely defensive mental skill that was epic or lower, he could then upgrade it to one of the legendary versions, and it would keep the better defensive values.

Wrong. Even though Ander was right about the upgrade, he searched and searched and could not find a mental skill with stronger defences. The best he could do was find a lesser skill that protected against different kinds of attacks. All of this was very disappointing. Legendary skills were supposed to be the best of the best. Is it really beaten out by natural magic? Wait, is there such a thing as divine skills? But it seemed not.

Ander sat and deliberated for a moment, and finally took his most anticlimactic legendary skill ever. Warden’s Whisper gave some defences, but it seemed that most mind magic skills were meant as attack and illusion spells. Of course after Ander received the skill, it changed.

Congratulations! Skill: Warden’s whisper has transformed.

Skill: Warden’s Whisper has become Skill: Aquilo’s Whisper.

Skill: Aquilo’s Whisper

Level 1

Legendary

The winds of the north cast fright into the hearts of every man, woman and child. You have gained a passive resistance to offensive mind magic. You have gained a passive fear effect. You may choose to turn this fear effect on and off at will, or to exclude certain individuals from it. Active effect, cast an illusion into your enemies mind to confuse and befuddle them. Strength of the illusion grows with skill level. Strength of mental resistance grows with skill level. Fear effect grows with skill level.

Ander smiled at the new skill. The old skill was for interrogators, and didn’t really fit. This however, was grand. Ander started to get excited. Illusions to put the enemies off. Water for long range damage. Wind for movement and fighting, and healing for, well, healing. His four legendary skills seemed to be perfect together. Way of the Wind, Aeolian Vitality, Soul of the Deep, and Aquilo’s whisper.

Which meant, it was time to train. Ander pulled out the spider yet again, but found that it had died. He simply shrugged and pulled out one of the others and let it bite him.

Congratulations! Skill: Aeolian Vitality has levelled up!

Skill: Aeolian Vitality is Level 6.

Ander then proceeded to hobble to the new training room. Ander stayed inside until Karsish came to complain about food hours later, and since Ander was still their cook, he had to stop. However, he made a lot of progress during that time. His first worry was that his fireball spell would be ruined after gaining a water based legendary skill. However, while it did change, it ended up feeling like a normal hydrogen combustion. Powerful, with a huge concussive force, and most certainly not ruined. Karsish had come in to complain about that as well.

When testing Soul of the Deep, Ander found that he could produce water bullets, water spears, and water jets all with relative ease. Not as much as if he had separate skills for each, but with practice, they would be far more flexible. Add that to Ander’s wind control, and he could establish a gale of cutting wind and water that would make a whole area around him deadly to anyone not powerful enough. Ander guessed that this domain effect was the end game. If he could establish it and fight at the same time, it would be nigh unstoppable. But even better, he found that Soul of the Deep had illusory effects as well. The flying droplets of water could become prisms to reflect distracting light. With Aquilo’s whisper, those could become full blown illusions.

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After eating, Ander went back to his training. But he set aside the more magical effects of his abilities to work on his fighting. When he had faced the horde of Mutated Mariners back in the chasm, he had used a dozen different stances. He used them all with ease like he had been doing it all his life. While all these new powers were great, those were what had gotten him out of his most hairy situation to date. Ander started to practise the strikes he had used that day, and slowly, they started to come back to him.

As he practised, he fell into stance after stance, until he checked his notifications.

Congratulations! Skill: Way of the Wind has gained subskills!

Stance of the Reaper:

This fighting stance focuses on scythes, utilising wide sweeping attacks that mimic the fluid motions of a scythe in the hands of an experienced reaper. Each strike harnesses the power of the wind, generating forceful arcs that slice through the air with deadly precision.

Zephyr's Dance:

This fighting stance is tailored for the elegant and versatile longsword, emphasising fluid, graceful movements akin to a gentle breeze. The user seamlessly weaves intricate footwork and swift strikes, allowing the longsword to glide through the air with remarkable speed and finesse.

Gale's Vanguard:

This fighting stance capitalises on the swift and lethal spear, channelling the power of a tempest into precise thrusts and sweeping attacks. The user becomes a whirlwind of ferocity, adept at maintaining distance while striking with accuracy and speed.

It was odd to Ander that while practising with his sword, he used stances for scythes and spears. Apparently there was some overlap between them. That did tell Ander what weapon he needed to get made. A scythe would be cool as hell. He could imagine himself in an enveloping cloak coming out of the driving rain to cut people down. It really tickled his inner edgelord. He worked longer until he felt he had gotten all that he could. He even pulled out a bow to get the final stance.

Gale's Embrace:

This stance revolves around wielding dual-wielded daggers with incredible speed and finesse. The user's movements are swift and unpredictable, mimicking the swirling winds as they unleash a flurry of rapid strikes.

Zephyr's Grace:

Focusing on the elegant rapier, this stance emphasises quick footwork and precise thrusts. The user moves with grace and agility, exploiting their opponent's vulnerabilities with lightning-fast strikes.

Cyclone's Fury:

This stance is designed for the versatile quarterstaff. The user spins and twirls the staff with great dexterity, generating a whirlwind effect as they deliver powerful strikes and sweeping motions.

Tempest's Wrath:

Channelling the power of the war hammer, this stance involves heavy, thunderous blows combined with wide arcs. The user swings the war hammer with immense force, conjuring gusts of wind with each devastating strike.

Typhoon's Descent:

Utilising a heavy two-handed axe, this stance focuses on overhead chops and circular swings. The user's strikes resemble the force of a descending typhoon, generating fierce gusts of wind with each swing.

Whirlwind's Song:

This stance centres around the elegant and deadly polearm known as the halberd. The user spins and pivots, unleashing a series of fluid and sweeping attacks that mimic the mesmerising dance of a whirlwind.

Hurricane's Echo:

Designed for the flail, this stance combines rapid strikes and unpredictable movements. The user swings the flail in complex patterns, creating a chaotic flurry of attacks that echoes the destructive force of a hurricane.

Breeze's Caress:

Focusing on the lightweight and agile scimitar, this stance emphasises speed and finesse. The user's movements are fluid and graceful, delivering swift and precise cuts that mimic the gentle caress of a cool breeze.

Squall's Vanguard:

This stance is tailored for the use of a kite shield and a shortsword. The user becomes an immovable force, utilising the shield to deflect incoming attacks while countering with quick, piercing strikes that emulate the sudden gusts of a squall.

Gust's Serenade:

With a focus on the versatile longbow, this stance allows the user to harness the power of wind to enhance their archery skills. The user's shots are incredibly accurate and carry the force of a gusting wind, striking their targets with unmatched precision.

Ander looked inside his soul, and as he hoped, the little wind spirit was almost completely absorbed into the skill. It was hard to see, as his entire soul had been taken by a storm. He was worried at first, but then realised that was simply the particular combination of skills he had chosen that created this effect. Who would have thought that combining wind and sea would make storms. The spirits for the other three skills were still very much separated from their skills, but Ander would work on that. He couldn’t go anywhere until his leg healed, and it was too good an opportunity to train for him to give up and not slow it down. Ander pulled out the spider again. His leg was now halfway down his shin, which meant Ander had another day of practice before he could get back out there and do things for real.

Ander gave some thought to his other skills. The stances were the essence of the Way of the Wind. The cool wind powers were just a bonus. By learning the stances, he incorporated the skill fully, and was able to use the skill more efficiently. Which meant that there were similar things to learn about the other skills. Aeolian Vitality was a healing skill with a regeneration aspect, like Way of the Wind was a fighting skill with a wind aspect. The thing was, Ander didn’t really know anything about healing, and so didn’t know where to start. He might just have to go help in the infirmary for this skill.

Likewise, Aquilo’s whisper required other people for practice, which meant going back to town. The only one he could work with here was Soul of the Deep. Though Ander was starting to think that simply soaking in water he conjured wasn’t going to do it. Eventually, Ander set aside the integration of his legendary skills and decided to move on.

He was still looking for some utility type magic, and frankly Telekinesis was likely going to be the best for that. Along with his wind and water control, Telekinesis could fill in the gaps. Right now he had prestidigitation, and that simply wasn’t good enough. He also wanted some kind of mapping skill or spell. The tunnels below were quite complex, and he didn’t want to get lost in tunnels full of enemies at or above his level.

With his Minds of the Void skill, finding telekinesis was trivial. Ander also discovered that it was far from the all encompassing skill he had thought. The big limitation was the fact that it failed to work while within another’s aura. Which meant it couldn’t be used to undo someone’s armour mid combat. As soon as he gained the skill, it also changed. Moving from a rare skill called Telekinesis, to an epic skill named Windweaver’s hold. Part of Ander desperately wanted it to be a legendary skill, but he had not been able to find one that fit.

From there, he moved on. He needed a mapping skill, and he was not going to skimp on this one.