In the Spillway

More and more of the factories fell before Jonathan’s army, their defenders far too weak to stand in their path. His level gradually rose from the kills, and so did the levels of his followers. After about two weeks of slaughter, he had gained another five levels, a not inconsiderable sum.

There had been no increases to his Pathway skills, but that was to be expected at this point. Outside of either months of training, or a life and death struggle, he would see few increases in that field.

The Spillway was annoyingly large, even more so given that he was taking a more circuitous route around it. It was bearing fruit though, as shown by the hundreds of broken factories left in their wake, the monstrosities that powered them having destroyed them in their death throes.

Jonathan had killed tens of thousands by this point, and the deaths were beginning to take root in his psyche. There was no doubt that his enemies had deserved it, but he was afraid of the change in his personality more than anything else. Over a few short months, he had killed more in personal, melee combat than anyone on Earth ever had. He had bathed in viscera and shattered enough bones to make an entire cathedral to his dark ascension. It was an immense track record, and one that would exponentially increase the further he went.

The only positive aspect of this, other than the liberation of the Hells, was the very concrete increase on his stat sheet.

Jonathan Harlowe

Tier 3

Void Human(Exalted)

Divinity Aspect: Void Hegemon

Elemental Mastery: 13%

Elemental Juggernaut: Tier 3 Legendary

Active Blessings: The Third Eye of Exal’drin

Level 285

(561 free points)

Strength

3157

Dexterity

2573

Constitution

2192

Resilience

2540

Intelligence

2516

Wisdom

1836

Divinity

20

Health: 49320/49320

Stamina: 71033/71033

Mana: 56610/56610

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* Titles

True Unbound Spirit: Unique

First Circle Breaker: Unique

Nascent God: Transcendent

Supreme Initiate: Ancient

Prodigy of Fusion: Mythical

Lesser Xenocide: Legendary

Greater Giantslayer: Legendary

Iron Will: Epic

Leader of Men: Epic

Refined Form: Epic

Avenger: Epic

Lineage Hunter: Rare

Righteous Killer: Rare

* Skills

Maw of the Void: Ancient

Ephemeral Trifecta: Mythical

Greater Smite: Mythical

Void’s Grasp: Mythical

Void Piercer: Mythical

Void Missile: Mythical

Runic Overcharge: Mythical

Mantle of the Void: Legendary

Rune Savant: Legendary

Void Drill: Legendary

Channeled Basic Truesight: Legendary

Sense the Weave: Legendary

Fists of the Maelstrom: Legendary

Minor Enlightenment: Legendary

Void Slipstream: Epic

Warrior’s Trance: Epic

Battle Focus: Rare

Impact: Rare

Focused Scry: Rare

Runes of Power: Rare

Redirect: Uncommon

* Pathway Skills

Blunt Weapon Mastery(Advanced): Expert 3

Energy Manipulation(Advanced): Journeyman 9

Runecrafting Expertise(Advanced): Journeyman 8

* Martial Path

Flowing Maelstrom: Journeyman 9

* Weapon Domain: Expert 3(Advanced)

* Quests

The Strongest: ???

Hellbreaker: Impossible

Pathway of the Titans: Heroic

The most important thing that he had accomplished was not his progression, but rather new information that he had gleaned about Slothari. The circle lord was a far more documented figure than Granath had been, mainly because she took an active role in the governance of Mire. What Jonathan had found was quite concerning. Slothari could be anywhere at any time. In fact, she could have taken the form of any of his allies, and he would have little chance of knowing.

The main bulk of her powers revolved around mutation and change. Jonathan had already encountered the Shard of Slothari in Tartarus, but the real thing was far stronger than that. Slothari could turn into a myriad of different forms, ranging from insects to drakes and dragons. Even more concerning was the fact that her strength remained constant, no matter the form. Obviously there were limits, mainly to do with body size and mass, but she could absolutely dominate most fighters in this realm in the body of an ant or a beetle. It was highly concerning.

Jonathan had searched for weaknesses, but just like Granath, there were none. His only chance was to grow strong enough to defeat her. With his upgraded race, he had a better chance of doing so than he had against Granath. With over 500 stat points waiting to be allocated, he was in good shape for what was to come.

By the time he and his small army reached the edge of the Spillway, they were met with the dark expanse of the Rot-Trunk Copses, filled with undead and monsters. It would have been the hardest part of Mire to traverse, had the average level of the monsters there not been so low. As it was, Jonathan simply let Edgar clearcut the woods with waves of razor sharp wind, thousands of trunks falling to the ground in unison. A path was quickly cut into the forest, exposing legions of monsters. However, they fell shortly after.

By the time they were about fifty miles into the forest, Jonathan was beginning to grow a bit apprehensive. There had been no concerted resistance to their advance since the army waiting on the border of the Spillway, which only meant one thing. Forces were gathering to meet them, especially considering their closeness to the realm’s center. The Oozing Bastion was quite close at this point, at least compared to the size of the rest of the realm.

The army advanced without pause, Tier 3 bodies more effective than machines propelling them forwards at thousands of miles per hour. Eventually though, their implacable advance came to an end.

The first sign of resistance was a sudden pall of smog that drifted in over the trees, and a wave of heat that stirred up the air. Edgar ascended above the tree line on wings of wind, and returned a moment later, a frown on his face.