I appear on the 6th floor with my arms still missing and a few other unhealed wounds. Though they’re slowly being taken care of with the help of my passive.
I find myself in the exact place I left from, leaving me separated from the other members of group 4 including our silly healer. It will probably take a few days to get back to them.
Too tired to deal with anything at the moment, I send my domain as deep under the surface as possible, and find the hidey hole we made for our items. Inside is some arcane alloy, assorted materials, a few interesting mana stones, water, clothes, food, and more. Mostly my things, as the rest of the group took theirs.
I place an anchor and teleport there and light my way with a single orb, which I make to last for a day or two.
Before going to sleep, I check my stats for the first time in a long while. And they are beautiful.
Name: Nathaniel Gwyn
Title: Champion Candidate
Difficulty: Hell
Floor: 6 - Astral Prison
Time left until forced return: 3y 343d 23h 06m 11s
Traits (2/3): Mana Circuit 2/3, Mana Wavelength Iris 0/3
Lvl 250
Strength: 121
Dexterity: 115
Constitution: 272
Mana (Stage 1/3 - Vast Mana): 1054 + 1054
Primary Class: Focused Channeler (Epic)
Sub-class: [Adept of Pride]
Active skills:
Focus - Lvl 50
Perception - Lvl 50
Redistribution - Lvl 50
Resonance - Lvl 50
Mana Domain (Pride) - Lvl 43
Tether - Lvl 37
Infusion - Lvl 33
Mana Crown - Lvl 31
Mana Manipulation - Lvl 51
Constructs:
Reinforcement (Construct)
Thermokinetic Mana Heart (Construct)
Mana Regulator (Construct)
Mana Sovereignty Mantle (Construct)
Vortex Core (Construct)
Passive skills:
Mana Reservoir (upper epic)
Arcane Resilience (mid epic)
Phoenix Embrace (mid epic)
Mana Overload Absorption (low epic)
Cognitive Fortress (mid epic)
Tokens:
Beyond difficulty entrance token
Passive skill combination token (upper epic)
Trait strengthening token (2nd stage)
Shards: 156,638
I can now use my passive skill combination token. I can now check the stuff Lissandra left with me. I can now do Beyond's 3rd trial. But first, I need to sleep.
Using my [Tether], I let fresh air into the hidey hole. I wouldn't want to suffocate in here.
I set up defenses and traps, I strengthen the walls with mana and give it enough to hold out against all but the strongest of attacks. I also make orbs designed to burst and injure intruders in case someone tries to get in.
That should be enough to wake me up and trip up anyone who tries to disturb my sleep. Then I create another thermal orb which I position over my chest, allowing the heat to power my passive.
I fall asleep even before I fully close my eyes.
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When I wake up, I open my eyes very slowly and let out a long yawn. Then I close my eyes again, grabbing one of the blankets nearby with a hastily constructed mana tentacle and pulling it over myself.
It feels almost too nice and cozy.
Well, until a scary thought enters my mind.
Did I have so much trouble and have to go so far to get my skills to level 50 because I didn't have the proper body upgrade? Did my body and mind fight the process because of the pressure the skills would put on me?
There is no way, right? But it's the cockroach we're talking about; she’s more than capable of setting such messed-up rules just to push me that much further.
And another thing.
Lissandra didn't explain what black mana is. Did she "forget" on purpose because I called her a cockroach or something? She wouldn't be that petty, right? She was an Absolute; there must be some dignity in her, right?
Knowing her, she probably wouldn't have told me much anyway. I also decided not to use black mana for a while, maybe until I get my skills to level 60. It’s already been proven that I need to work on my basics and grow without sacrificing everything in pursuit of black mana. It could be said that, at least for now, my black mana has been sealed away. Perhaps I should wrap some bandages around my left arm and seal it there.
Anyway, it all ended up fine. Training arc Nathaniel did pretty well, the scary jerk.
Checking the timer again, I find that nearly 24 hours have passed. Once again I yawn again and stretch, finally opening my eyes.
A few more thermal orbs float into the place and light it up while I eat some of the food reserves and start actively using thermal energy to heal my body.
Two evil orbs pop into existence over my shoulders, and I finally decide to use the token I wanted for a long time. I’ve just been waiting for the title of Champion candidate which even now shows in my status. I was hoping that the title, the sheer “achievement” of it, would improve the final offerings.
Passive Skill Combination Token (Upper Epic) - Allows you to combine two passive skills up to upper epic rarity. The resulting combination will be a unique skill that cannot be obtained otherwise. Passive Skill Combination Tokens cannot be bought or sold in the system shop.
“I want to sell Mana Overload Absorption.”
Do you really want to sell the following item for 4220 shards?
Mana Overload Absorption (low epic)
Yes/No
I confirm, then I spend 32,465 to buy an upper epic passive skill I've been eyeing for a while and I think it will be nice to use in a skill combination.
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Passive Skill: Adaptive Defense (Upper Epic) - The user’s defensive capabilities automatically adjust to counter the nature of incoming attacks, providing optimal resistance whether the threat is physical, magical, or elemental.
“I want to combine Adaptive Defense and Mana Reservoir,” I say.
A feeling of a request for confirmation hits me, and when I do so, they disappear from my list of passives.
You have used your Passive skill combination token (Upper Epic) to combine Adaptive Defense (Upper Epic) and Mana Reservoir (Upper Epic).
Analyzing passive skills used in the combination.
Analyzing user performance up until now.
Several options have been devised.
Adjusting for Champion candidate status.
Creating a passive skill for the user.
Congratulations, you have obtained a Unique Epic passive skill!
Mana-Kinetic Conversion Reservoir (Unique Epic)
The user's body passively channels mana from the reservoir into their kinetic responses, creating a feedback loop that adapts to physical impacts and nearby bursts of kinetic energy. When the user is struck or near a powerful energy source, their body can absorb the kinetic energy and store it as mana.
Okay, let's breathe it out. And stop trying to use [Focus] for your emotions. You haven't done it for over two weeks and you’ve already decided to use it very sparingly. Things seem to be working better that way.
Calmed down? Good, now read the description at least five times.
I do just that after checking my ex-Mana Reservoir, but the original effect doesn't seem to have been changed. It still can store three times my body’s capacity for mana, but there is also something else like it’s changed a bit.
There is one sentence in the new description that I really, really like. When the user is struck or near a powerful energy source, their body can absorb the kinetic energy and store it as mana.
There is, of course, something I don't like. I can absorb kinetic energy on my own and store it as kinetic energy. I can use it for defenses, I can even counterattack. I’ve even started actively training with it, and I'm getting a lot better. Just having some passive takeover for me, potentially with less efficiency, is just annoying, and I really don't like the implications.
However, there is that one thing that makes my frustrations disappear.
The ability to turn kinetic energy into mana.
I mean, the heck? Should I have that? Isn't it illegal? Isn't it too good?
Of course, I need to get hit for the passive to activate, and the efficiency might be poor. I could find myself wasting a lot of mana to turn kinetic energy into mana to the point where it may not be worth it.
I still wouldn't care though.
For the first time, I’ve found a way to turn one of my primordial energies into mana.
So far, I’ve only been able to take my own mana, run it through my Thermokinetic Mana Heart, and convert it into one of my primordial energies with a little help from [Redistribution].
This is huge. I mean, really, really huge. Wasn't Laten the Champion supposed to have been so strong because he could convert thermal energy into the mana they used to run the ignition station?
Of course, I have no expectation that my thing is anywhere near as good, but I know for sure that if I’m getting it now, there is a huge chance that it’s going to influence my future class options, traits, and passives. I may even get something better In the future. I'm only level 250 anyway, so it's obvious it wouldn't be Champion-level.
But I also have to wonder if attaining the title of Champion candidate really helps all that much? Did having 5 skills at level 50 allow the system to improve what I got? Maybe my subclass affected it. Maybe the cockroach knew that and... well, whatever. Good stuff.
If the efficiency is any good I can probably overload my heart a bit, in much the same fashion that almost killed me on the third floor. That way maybe I could force my passive to work constantly and gain another source of mana.
Wouldn't that be perfect? There would be no damage, I could go more wild with that construct and would still get the bonus.
For that, I will need to do some testing with efficiency. But first, I check the rest of the notifications from my declaration of Championship.
Congratulations, you have been declared Champion candidate by a person judged by the system to be capable of such a declaration!
You may now challenge beings with a similar rank to yours, beings such as Candidates, Disciples, Vessels, and more.
The both sides can set wagers.
The terms of any challenge shall be agreed upon by both parties, and there will be heavy penalties for breaking them.
All wagers shall be overseen by the system itself.
So I can engage in duels with other Candidates?
I wonder if I can bet my stats and passives? It’s an interesting thought in any case.
But I can also see it being abused. Let's say some dying Champion wants to pass on some skill or other to a son or daughter who was a Candidate. Would, in such a case, the Champion be able to throw a challenge after wagering his status to pass it along?
It's a very interesting thought and something I should consider more.
Noname (Hell, group 4) - I’m back on the sixth floor.
Knight (Hell, group 4) - wow, so you didn't die in the end.
Noname (Hell, group 4) - weren’t you trying to become my minion? Be nicer.
Knight (Hell, group 4) - I gave up.
FoodFood (Hell, group 4) - food!
Noname (Hell, group 4) - hello bud! I hope you’re eating well.
FoodFood (Hell, group 4) - food! Food!
Noname (Hell, group 4) - I’ll speak with them when we regroup.
Grumpy (Hell, group 4) - Hey! I bet you need healing.
I check my partially missing hands and some of the slower healing wounds. It doesn’t seem all that bad, my passive is helping a lot now that it’s actually working. Though I still remember Lissandra stabbing me with that dagger made of Saint's arm and the champion’s eye.
Being the cockroach that she is, she didn't heal me much, though she said it saved my life, something I strongly disagree with. Such wounds are barely worth mentioning.
Noname (Hell, group 4) - no healing needed. Sset, are you here?
Sset (Hell, group 4) - yes. Are you at the spot we were when you left?
Noname (Hell, group 4) - yes, exact same spot.
Sset (Hell, group 4) - that's perfect. Can you destroy a small fort for me? The highest level there should be close to 300.
Noname (Hell, group 4) - Tell me where to go.
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After finishing my conversation with Tess and others, I check the timer. I have two days to reach the place.
The plan is simple. Tess and the others will attack the Black Tower where Dennis and Aaron are still being held. They will deal with the leader there. A combination of Tess, Lily, and Sophie should be able to do so quite easily. Their next step will be to deal with everyone else trying to get in their way.
I know it's not that simple, and Tess, Maya, and Sophie probably prepared some cool, complicated plan to pull it off.
Meanwhile, my job will be to take out a place called the Bone Fortress. It’s exactly what it sounds like, a fortress built around the rib cage of some giant, long-dead monster.
The Bone Fortress and Black Tower tend to cooperate a lot, so Tess is worried they might send help through a portal or something. That's where I come in, to mess these guys up before they do.
I will fly there as it's in the opposite direction of the Black Tower. While flying, I will practice a bit and get used to some of my new skills. And I will open up some of the “gifts” Lissandra gave me. Then, when I reach it, I will attack when Tess gives the signal. During my attack, I will test the new passive, the difference in handling my mana, and how much I’ve grown. I certainly hope they have a strong guy or two.
When it's all done and the twins are free and group 4 is safe, I will go and do Beyond's 3rd trial. I can sacrifice a day or two before going. That should also be enough time for my body to finish healing.
My crown is already active and being filled with mana. It should be able to collect a decent amount before I reach the Bone Fortress.