Chris
After getting the skill, I realized what time it was. While I was forging it felt like only a few minutes had passed but the sun betrayed that sentiment. It was in a markedly different position than it once was.
At least a few hours had passed from what I could tell.
Oh shit, I was going to be late. Not only did I completely miss the procedure Mitchell was going through, but the start of the lecture that we had scheduled. It was another information package that some people got together to pay for.
I didn't have time to clean up so hopefully showing up covered in grime and sweat wouldn't be too big of an issue.
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Cypteris (Alien teacher from Before)
Life had been going well for Cypteris so far. Usually, as a researcher, there were times when work got tremendously boring but, luckily, this wasn't one of those times. A once-in-a-lifetime event was taking place and Cypteris actually got to participate.
Well, participate was a strong word. There wasn't much that a person outside of the newly integrated universe could do but he was one of the few who got to do anything.
Becoming a pseudo-teacher wasn't the most well-paid job but it was fascinating. He got to see the newly integrated before anyone else and witness what was left of their culture.
Usually, by the time scientists arrived on newly integrated worlds, everything was too far gone. The written word didn't last through the terraforming and mana ravaged any record of civilization. There were records of grand civilizations that crumbed to ruins when they couldn't handle the change. Entire cultures wiped out due to their failure to adapt.
This was one of the few chances to get a primary source of information. Humans were common enough in the multiverse that it wasn't a huge deal, but Dwarves certainly weren't. Dwarves were rarely seen outside of their mountain homes and they were a race Cypteris had little interaction with. The closest Dwarven planet was in an entirely different sector from his home planet.
It wasn't surprising to have hundreds of species involved in an integration and Cypteris was lucky to have two different ones for his classes. The Great System usually limited a scholar to only one. Having only humans would have been a bit of a bummer when more esoteric races were in the newest integration.
He had been warned that his services would be needed soon and he had blocked out his whole day for the occasion. He thought up fantastical reasons as to what new thing could be the reason. Maybe it was the Dwarves? They were advancing smoothy the last he saw.
The teleportation was instant and smooth. Cypteris knew it wasn't his real body being moved but it sure as hell felt like it. The Great System worked wonders.
It took a moment for him to recognize where he had been teleported and once he did, he couldn't help but feel shock.
It was the same human settlement that he had been sent to before, except this time, they were a lot more advanced. The last time he was here it was a dinky cabin he found himself in that was barely adequate to be called that, now it was a suitable keep.
That meant that their pylon was at least at the town level, maybe small city level. It was decorated a touch on the barbaric side for his tastes with trophies of past kills hanging on the walls and pelts used as rugs.
It wasn't something normally found in civilized culture but he wouldn't fault them for it, tutorials were trying times.
After taking in the room, he moved on to the people around him. Being much higher level than the humans, Cypteris had time to take everything in before their perception caught up.
The first thing he noticed was how far they had advanced. The last time he had come there were only a couple people past the first class evolution and now almost all of them were past the second.
They were now proper F-rankers.
Some even had budding laws he could feel and one thrummed with a similar power of his own, the Law of Poison. It wasn't unheard of to get a Law this early and in some places, even this speed was considered slow, but with the lack of information they were given it was impressive. The fact they reached it without guidance made their futures brighter.
The experience of finding out everything without a helping hand made the accomplishment so much more. The Law was stronger, the experience greater for when the system considered feats, and the soul expanded more than if they were hand held through the process. It was the main reason that The Great System restricted information. It was also the best indicator of how well a planet would do after being returned.
If they couldn't advance well inside of a tutorial, they wouldn't reach very far without significant guidance. The Great System was conducting a pseudo litmus test.
The personal feat of gaining a Law 20 levels away from when it was required was to be celebrated. It meant they would have The Great System's assistance through another Tier and that was a grand achievement. Not everyone got to keep its assistance.
The first laws weren't the biggest bottleneck on the path of power but an unfortunate few still couldn't make the first step.
He even felt that someone was close to forming their spiritual anchor. None of the people here were practiced in controlling their aura so it was easy for Cypteris to evaluate them and pry into their secrets.
The man soon to form his anchor felt like a stalwart shield of earth that would sooner break than bend. He had a rigidness to him that most Earth affinity users carried with them and a fierce feeling of protection radiated out in his aura.
Cypteris couldn't tell how close he was but it was surprising nonetheless. To form an anchor this early was rare. Especially without help. It was another point in their favor. Maybe it was too soon to write them off compared to the Dwarves.
The next person to catch his eye wasn't even in the room. There were no wards or enchantments to prevent Cypteris from scanning the building he was in and what he saw shocked him further.
Without any research or know-how, these people took the first step on the body refining path. An unconscious man was lying in what appeared to be a hospital that had gone through the process.
Cypteris could feel the poison still in the man's system and he couldn't tell if it was accidental or not. During integrations, it wasn't unheard of to meet a monster that had venom or poison strong enough to do it.
Based on the setting and the man with the almost-poison Law, Cypteris figured it wasn't an accident. The fact they were already performing the procedure was another shock.
He knew exactly how long they had been here and how quickly they must have rushed through testing to already attempt it on a person. Cypteris didn't know whether to lament it as reckless or applaud their confidence.
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The only thing he didn't see was mana cultivation. As a group, they had taken steps down all of the paths of power except mana cultivation. He reasoned that it was fair that they hadn't. Coming from a planet without mana, it would be asinine to expect them to understand how to cultivate it.
The one Cypteris noted down as the leader the last time he was here was nowhere to be found and he was instead met by someone else.
"Hello again, alien," A man wearing medium leather armor said. For a human he looked average. Blonde hair, average height, the shade of his skin wasn't even special.
It was an improper greeting to someone of his station but they didn't know better and Cypteris didn't care much anyway. He referred to them the same way in his mind. At least they weren't pointing weapons at him this time.
The man who addressed him seemed to be the strongest in the room. His aura flared out of him without restraint and broadcasted quite a lot. An evolved warrior that carried with him the power of the sun.
Solar affinities were rare on Cypteris' planet and it was his good fortune to see one. The man's affinity was strong and he had at least an uncommon class, probably rare from what he could tell.
It wasn't uncommon for a person to stand above his peers and lead, and better classes usually came with that. What surprised Cypteris was that there was no leader's presence in the aura.
There was no ruler's might nor any form of a leadership quality. It was surprising that he didn't have one, he was the most powerful in the room.
Cypteris could tell that the man's profession wasn't crafting related but it was hard to narrow down. It wasn't a large portion of his power and didn't show up much in his aura. It almost seemed purposely fleeting, if what he was seeing made sense.
Well, Cypteris had a class to get to and his curiosity was sated.
"Hello again, humans." Cypteris began, "Today we will go–"
Before he could begin, another rushed into the room. It was unexpected as Cypteris hadn't felt him earlier. He must have been outside of the nearby area when Cypteris arrived.
He could easily scan the building he was in but he was hampered outside of that. The Great System wouldn't allow him to gain any more information about their tutorial. Cypteris didn't even know which God was the sponsor.
The man who came in was covered in soot and sweat without regard for his appearance. The interruption broke Cypteris' train of thought and he took a second to inspect the newcomer.
His aura flared out much the same as everyone else and it felt just as strong, if not stronger, than the man who greeted him.
It took Cypteris off guard.
He had assumed the man with the solar affinity was the leader and the strongest. He was wrong.
The man didn't feel like the stalwart earth, nor the smoldering sun, he felt like the inevitable cold after death. The biting chill that came over you when you were about to die. The threat of eternal winter.
It was one of the strongest ice affinities Cypteris had ever seen backed by a Law pushing the second tier. The newcomer's aura carried the leadership tint that he scanned the previous man for.
This man was the leader, not the other one.
He was obviously a blacksmith of some kind and his aura showed that it wasn't a small amount of his power. His profession was past the first evolution.
Another surprise was the sheer weight that the man had. The amount of stat points he had shouldn't have been possible at his level.
Cypteris was a bit rude and used his identifying skill and he knew what level he was in both Class and Profession. Even with a legendary class, he shouldn't have this many stat points.
That meant only one thing. He chose the passives. Cypteris would have advised against that but it was too late now. It slowed down growth too much for it to be effective for the average person.
There was only so long a person could climb the ladder of power and things that slowed you down added up. Typically, the type of skills the man had were picked up rarely, and if they were, only once.
It seemed like the man had filled both of the available slots for them.
They were rarely offered and were only available in the G and F ranks from a class that wasn't common. It was too late to gain one after evolving past the F rank. It would put too much strain on the body to gain that many stat points at once. It would defeat the purpose of removing them from the planet for fear of mana poisoning just to turn around and let it happen anyway.
They were powerful skills, if you could advance fast enough to make it worth it. It wouldn't be an issue now, only a slight drag on his normal leveling speed, but if he reached the higher ranks it would slow to a crawl. The 20 or so stat points per level now were nothing compared to the hundreds people got in the higher tiers.
There were ways to remove the skill but they were... unpleasant to say the least.
"Sorry, where was I? Oh, right, hello again humans, and welcome to your second class," Cypteris tried to hide his shock.
"What we will go over today will be more in-depth than last time and will cover more ground. Last time we discussed the basics of essence and leveling along with the three paths to power. I see some of you have already started on them." Cypteris nodded to the few with Laws.
Addressing the rest who didn't have Laws, "They have an advantage over you. You have probably seen it already but they wield more power than normal and are stronger than you." Cypteris paused to receive a few nods.
"That is to be expected. Laws are powerful things and what most people start with. I mentioned requirements to keep The Great System's assistance last time and the first one is coming up for all of you.
"To reach the E-Rank with assistance, the first step on a path of power must be taken. The lowest tier of Law, the First step of Body Refining, or the first step in empowering the Spirit."
Cypteris was miffed that he couldn't just tell them the other way, like Mana Cultivation or be more specific and say Anchor formation instead of empowering the Spirit, but he couldn't. Any attempt to give them information they didn't already have would get him censored and he would rather not have that happen... again.
"For those who haven't taken that step, you will be barred from reaching the E-Rank. There are ways around it and you can evolve manually, but that information isn't what I am meant to cover.
"Just know that if you do not have a Law or a Body of Wood, you will stop leveling at the threshold to E-Rank. Level 50 will be where your journey stops."
After Cypteris paused, looks of panic started blooming on the human's faces. Cypteris quickly went on to stall the coming questions.
"Do not panic, the block isn't permanent. It only holds until the conditions are met. You have until the end of your lifespan to overcome it, which for most of you is quite a while."
Cypteris couldn't tell the exact age of everyone here but most would go on to live for another hundred years, at least.
With that added information, the panic subsided and Cypteris could move on. He rehashed some of the information that he covered last time, going a little more in-depth, and new information that was boring to get through. Cypteris wanted to get to the good part.
Before he could move on to the main point of this class, a human raised their hand to ask a question.
"Yes," Cypteris motioned at the raised hand.
"You said earlier that we had quite a while of lifespan left, how long do humans live?" The female taking notes in a notebook asked.
She was the most studious of the group and Cypteris was glad that at least someone asked a question.
"Human lifespans are extensively documented, being a common race. There are variations, but on average humans live for 125 years in the F-Rank. Before that, it's hard to tell. We don't have enough concrete information to tell before G-rank. Few, if at all, are born in the H-rank."
This was Cypteris' subtle dig for more information. Pre-Integration information was hard to come across and zealously guarded. Information about mana-less worlds devoid of essence even more so. His dig paid off and he heard their whispers to each other. His perception let him hear them easily.
It seemed that these humans lived for about 80 years without any essence. With the start of the curve, Cypteris could extrapolate out the first tiers. H-Rank wouldn't increase it that much and was mostly to get the body ready for mana.
G-Rank would increase it to 100 years and F-Rank to 125. Further out was tricky but going off of multiverse standard for humans left 150 years in E-Rank and 250 years in D-Rank. It was a looser range after that and depended on how much they invested in vitality and other things that increased it.
Cypteris shook away that thought. He couldn't get distracted right now. He answered the question and moved on.
"The upcoming evolution is different than the others. The E rank is the start of the middle rank. H through F are the low ranks, E through C are the mid ranks, and B through S are the high ranks.
"The start of the middle ranks bring racial traits into play. Every race has a trait that makes them stand out and the evolution to E-Rank brings it out. Snake-kin start producing a natural poison. Bear-kin's bodies strengthen greatly. Elves get an increased perception and agility. Dwarves, strength and fortitude.
"It would take too long to go over all of the races so I'll only cover humans. Human's racial trait is their adaptability. They are the most adaptable race in the multiverse and their racial trait reflects that."
Cypteris heard a groan at that and was a bit puzzled.
"Why are you upset?" Cypteris questioned the man who groaned.
"Dragons spit fire, elves get supervision, and humans get what, adaptability. It's a bit of a miff, isn't it?" A man, more boy, answered.
"I would not call being able to gain the traits of almost any race a miff," Cypteris responded.
That got the boy's attention.
"Being adaptable, humans are able to fundamentally change their body each evolution. Now, it isn't a total change and each evolution is a small change, but it can add up. This is how humans are able to assimilate bloodlines when others cannot." Cypteris added.
This was one of the reasons Cypteris loved studying humans. They were such an interesting race. Most stuck with common paths to power that were well trod and boring, but some struck out and walked new paths. Paths that were fascinating to study.