Darkness was slowly receding. It wasn’t a sudden return to consciousness, but rather a gradual emergence from the deep abyss. I felt a throbbing pain in my head, dull and spreading in waves. My body felt heavy, as if each limb weighed twice as much as usual. Breathing required effort, and my mouth was dry. It was more than just ordinary fatigue—it was the result of complete mana exhaustion.

I blinked a few times, trying to focus my vision. Or rather... to focus my energy vision. The Eye of Chaos flickered unstably, as if it were seeing more than it should. The lines of energy, which were usually clear, now seemed to blur and shift chaotically. I needed a few minutes for everything to return to normal.

“So these are the consequences of total mana exhaustion...” I thought, slowly rising to a sitting position. The headache was subsiding, but the weakness remained.

I shouldn’t let myself reach such a state. Now I knew that, in addition to the natural regeneration of mana, my body also suffered physical consequences. I had to avoid such overloads in the future.

“Status.”

Name: Unknown

Level: 1

Talent: Legendary – Eye of Chaos

Experience: 60/100 (To next level: 40 EXP)

Stats:

* Strength: 5

* Agility: 6

* Endurance: 4

* Intelligence: 8

* Magic Energy: 10

* HP: 100/100

* Mana: 50/50

I squinted my eyes. EXP had increased. Recently I had 15, now I had 60. I took a moment to analyze what could have caused this. After a while, the answer became clear.

Basic Energy Manipulation granted 10 EXP per use.

Basic Energy Analysis granted 5 EXP per use.

“So it’s like this...”

Leveling up wasn’t solely dependent on killing monsters, as one might expect in a standard system. As I suspected, using skills also granted experience. You could grow stronger through practice, which meant that if I wanted to level up faster, I should use my skills to their fullest every day.

There was no point in wasting potential. Since I could gain levels easily, why not take advantage of it? With only 40 EXP left to reach the next level, it meant that four uses of my skills would be enough to achieve level two.

Before going to sleep, I would perform a few additional energy manipulations to fill the missing experience points.

There was no point in wasting potential.

I couldn’t just wait idly until evening. After a short rest, I decided to use the time for something practical.

I was already at the stream where I had previously used my skill to create bowls. After exhausting my mana and losing consciousness, I woke up around noon. I now had four bowls, each filled with water. I needed to transport them to my shelter.

Carefully, I lifted each one individually and carried them to a safe place, trying not to spill a drop. The process was painstaking but necessary—I now had a solid water supply to help me survive the coming days. Although it wasn’t a long-term solution, it should suffice for now.

After forming the new containers, I began organizing my supplies. In the Resource Depot, I arranged the roots I had gathered earlier, making sure my stock wouldn’t go to waste. My Ogars had already returned, leaving behind a pile of scattered plants once again. However, this time, besides the bulbous roots I was familiar with, I noticed a few other types of food.

The system immediately displayed a notification:

“New resources detected.”

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Object: Bitter Berries

Condition: Edible (Low nutritional value)

Effect: Restores a minimal amount of energy but causes slight dehydration.

Object: Hard Mushroom

Condition: Edible (Medium nutritional value)

Effect: Slow digestion, increases stamina regeneration, but may cause stomach discomfort.

Object: Dried Bark

Condition: Potentially edible (Very low nutritional value)

Effect: Can be processed into a strengthening broth, but in its raw form, it’s almost worthless.

I examined the newly acquired supplies with greater interest. This meant that my Ogars could find not only basic food but also other useful resources. I needed to analyze more carefully which ones were worth consuming and which ones I should save for later.

I carefully sorted them in the Resource Depot, placing the berries in one area, the mushrooms in another, and the dried bark separately to prevent it from coming into contact with the other food supplies. This way, I could better manage my stock and plan their usage.

After completing this task, I decided to return to the water source once more. This time, not to collect water, but to gather additional stones. I found four solid pieces of Basalt Boulder that were suitable for further processing using my skill. With the stones in hand, I headed back to the shelter, where a faint darkness had already settled.

I sat down on the ground and arranged the four collected stones before me. I focused the energy in my hands and began the manipulation. The first stone succumbed to my will relatively easily, the second even quicker. With the third, I felt a slight fatigue, but it was nothing I couldn’t handle. With the fourth, I sensed some resistance in the energy flow, but I still managed to complete the process.

As I finished the fourth use of my skill, the system immediately displayed a message: “Level Up! You have reached Level 2.”

For a moment, I stared at the system screen before reflexively opening my status to check what had changed.

Name: Unknown

Level: 2

Talent: Legendary – Eye of Chaos

Experience: 0/200 (To next level: 200 EXP)

Stats:

* Strength: 6 (+1)

* Agility: 8 (+2)

* Endurance: 6 (+1)

* Intelligence: 11 (+3)

* Magic Energy: 14 (+4)

* HP: 110/110

* Mana: 15/55

Unassigned Stat Points: 5

I looked at the new values and analyzed the changes. The increase in stats was noticeable—I felt a slight improvement in my body, as if moving and thinking became a bit easier. My intelligence and magic energy saw the most significant rises, meaning I could use my skills more effectively.

“So that’s how it works... If I regularly level up, my capabilities will increase rapidly. The question is, how should I best allocate these points to maximize my chances of survival?”

In the end, I decided to leave it for later. My body was starting to feel tired after the long day, and after complete mana exhaustion, regeneration required rest. I lay down in the shelter on the hard ground, trying to find the most comfortable position possible. It wasn’t easy, but fatigue quickly took over.

When I woke up at dawn, I immediately felt the difference. My body was no longer so heavy, and my mana had fully regenerated. I wiped my face with my hand, brushing aside the long hair that had been slightly obstructing my movements.

I approached the Summoning Tower, feeling the familiar pulsation of energy. This time, I expected to see a familiar silhouette, but I still felt a surge of excitement. I extended my hand and activated the summoning.

A purple light flashed on the surface of the tower, and the familiar trembling of the air signaled the arrival of another unit. Another Hungry Ogar emerged from the portal, identical to the previous one. There was no randomness to it—the system had summoned the same creature again.

The other two Ogars, who had already been on my territory earlier, lifted their heads and watched the new companion in silence for a moment. One of them approached and began sniffing it, then emitted a soft growl, as if approving its presence.

I didn’t waste any time. I looked at all three and gave a simple command: “Go and find food. Bring everything back to the shelter.”

Without hesitation, all three creatures set off in different directions, disappearing among the rocks. I watched their silhouettes quickly blend into the landscape, then glanced toward the looming tower in the distance. In the past few days, I had avoided it, focusing on survival, but now, with a moment to think, I knew I couldn’t postpone it any longer.

The mysterious tower had been drawing me in from the very beginning. As soon as I looked in its direction, I felt strange fluctuations of energy—chaotic, yet somehow familiar. My Eye of Chaos reacted as if it were sensing something I didn’t understand.

I clenched my fists and moved forward. It was time to discover what lay inside.