By the end, Jonathan had taken a serious hit to his left arm, and it was almost useless as of now, bent the wrong way. Searing pain shot up and down the limb every time that he jostled it, but he had to deal with it as there was no other option. It would heal itself eventually at any rate. More importantly, the small tree stood in front of them, beckoning to them with tendrils of fiery light that caressed their bodies as they neared.
Two fruits were on the tree, hanging down like droplets of fiery light. They were both ripe and juicy looking with a sheen on their skin that promised incredible flavor if one bit into them. Jonathan reached down and analyzed the fruit, but nothing happened. He gave Edgar a look, and the man shrugged.
“I have never seen anything like this before in my life. Are you sure this is not some elaborate trap?” Edgar said, looking at the fruit in Jonathan’s hands.
“I doubt the System would be so circumspect in trying to kill us. How about I try a bit of the fruit first, as I have a lot of Resilience, and then if it is safe, you do it too?” Jonathan suggested in response.
Upon seeing Edgar nod, Jonathan plucked the fruit effortlessly, and then brought it to his lips. Upon taking a bite, he almost let out a groan, the flavor and texture something otherworldly. However, a sudden heat began to blossom in his core, and he felt it intensify until it was blinding. There was no pain, but it was still a disconcerting feeling. A moment later he was falling, falling into an infinite abyss.
He awoke a moment later, in a place not where he had been a second ago. He was standing in the middle of a massive foundry, where a stocky dwarf stood in the center, hammering away at a piece of white hot metal. Every strike stirred up the ambient mana and elemental energy, causing Jonathan to gaze at the man, enraptured. His skin glowed with fiery light, and his eyes were like two portals to the surface of the sun, so bright were they.
A moment later, the dwarf grunted, and picked up the piece of metal with his bare hands as it began to cool. He thrust out one hand, and heat suddenly blossomed into the world, like the birth of a star. There was no light, simply power, and the metal blazed a brilliant white once more. Jonathan could sense great forces at play here, and he could tell that whoever this dwarf was, he was far more powerful than he was. That man could blast him out of existence with a blink of an eye.
As the man started to hammer once more, Jonathan realized that he was in a loop, as the motions were exactly the same. A few moments later, the dwarf picked up the piece of metal once more, and blasted it with pure heat, sending threats of insight into Jonathan’s mind. He had no idea what was going on here, but he could sense the beginnings of a skill forming within his mind.
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Jonathan sunk into a trance, and after watching the vision for the twentieth time, he began to mimic the dwarf’s movements, seeking to understand the skill that he was using. By the hundredth time, he had memorized the motion that the man used, and the only thing left was to find out how to expel the concept of his element out into the air. He could sense that this vision, whatever it was, was meant to give the user a Fire elemental aspected skill , but because of his True Affinity, he was unable to use such a skill. However, he could always adapt it.
With a grunt, unconsciously mimicking the dwarf, he got to work, beginning to draw upon his elemental energy. He used his Touch of Decay skill as a template, also drawing upon the abilities that his newest rune exhibited. Hundreds of cycles later, Jonathan managed to draw out a tiny amount of pure consumption, causing the air in front of him to implode with a dull thump as his element sucked out the air from the world. The vision whited out with his success, and he was thrust back into the real world. Jonathan slowly rose, noticing that Edgar was lying next to him, in his own vision. A notification awaited him, and he opened it.
You have upgraded one of your skills
Touch of Decay:Legendary->Hungering Decay:Mythical
You can now not only use your Void elemental energy to unbind spells, but can also use it to devour the very fabric of reality, eating anything that comes into contact with it. At this level, your control over this high tiered ability is low, but it will grow with time.
Apparently that fruit had been some sort of condensed insight into the nature of a skill, that could be adapted into anything that the user desired. As if not, it was not very useful, but Jonathan still tried it out.
Closing his eyes, he drew upon the infinite void within him and projected its very nature out into the world, placing his hand against the rock of the island. There was a cracking noise, and a few inches of the rock vanished from existence, pulled into the abyss by his skill. As he grew better with using his elemental energy, the power of the skill could increase. It was already showing great promise, and Jonathan could see where such a skill might lead. He had an image of devouring an entire city with the power of the void, causing it to vanish from existence. However, he was a long way away from that.
Edgar awoke with a sputtering gasp beside him, and rose to his feet, gathering the power of the air in his hands. A moment later, he summoned the conceptual energy of his element to his hands, causing the air around them to lose all weight, spreading outwards. It seemed that Edgar had gained his own skill insight as well.
“What happened in there? Did you see that dwarf at the forge?” Jonathan asked.
“Yes. I can assume that we both experienced the same thing then?”
“Most likely. I gained a skill related to my conceptual energy use, and so did you it seems. Are you up to test them out?”
Edgar nodded eagerly, and the two men headed towards the side of the lava lake, Jonathan jumping in first. Edgar landed on his shoulders a moment later, and the two men swam out into the lava at high speeds.