Arlosse immediately set out to test if he could use Reform to heal himself. He had several questions about its mechanics that he needed to confirm, but he figured a practical test would answer most of them in one go. As he thought, it did.
Upon choosing to use Reform with a mere trigger from his will, Arlosse instinctively placed his hand on his chest where the damage in his body was most severe. To his surprise, a faint globe of solid orange light appeared around his hand and highlighted his tattered tunic as well as the skin on his chest which rose and fell as he breathed.
The way the Far Ji expressed itself was just like how its power manifested from the candle beside Alabas’ throne. It was astonishing, mesmerising even.
However, a minute passed, then ten. Nothing happened.
Arlosse quickly convinced himself that this wasn’t too surprising. The Limit on Reform was that each successful usage of it would cost him half an hour’s worth of time.
Indeed, it was quite frustrating, but a Unique Quality’s Limit was beyond compromise. It was fixed. Not even a Definition could change it. Thus, Arlosse waited.
When thirty minutes were finally elapsed, Reform did its job, but the result was by no means what the Demonling had expected.
His tunic, which had been battered, bloodied and busted, was immediately restored. It no longer had any signs of age and despite still looking rather unimpressive, it appeared as though it had been freshly sown!
Arlosse gaped in shock.
“What? Wh-what about my chest – my ribs?!” he growled and then slapped his face.
All that time wasted… just to fix his rag of a tunic?
Arlosse was overcome with rage but he quickly reined in his sanity.
“I didn’t miss anything here, did I? I meant to heal my broken ribs. I think that much was clear even when the light this Far Ji creates was around my hand,” he said and started to dissect again the mechanics of Reform. “Can it not cure flesh yet? But the description says it should be able to. Or… wait. Maybe it can, but it can’t just yet.”
This seemed to be the most reasonable conclusion.
Arlosse had to rewire his mind according to the information available. Unlike the Hermetic Vault, Reform was a tier below in terms of rarity and power. It held the lowest ranking when it came to Far Ji. Also, unlike the Vault, Reform gave Arlosse more to work with on how he could expand its capabilities.
The Hermetic Vault seemed so perfect with its current abilities that the Demonling hadn’t been able to see how to improve it at first, but Reform didn’t come with much initially.
It could do a lot, but to do all that, he needed to Define it.
Arlosse frowned.
“I should watch out for this. Rare Far Ji, I imagine, can be described as being capable of doing certain things, but not immediately after acquisition. Hmm,” he said. “In that case, I just need to add a Definition. My first Definition.”
The Hollow Demonling didn’t look as annoyed anymore. In fact, he seemed glad that he had learned something – a crucial detail about how differences in the grades of supernatural powers like Far Ji distinguished their tier other than the number of Definitions and Limits they had.
“Now…”
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
Rare Far Ji cost 5 Incarnation Points to acquire. Their first Definition required half that amount, or rather less than half.
Arlosse looked at the Host Guide and willed it to show his Incarnation Points, which were always stored separately from all his other displayed information, it seemed.
===
IP: 5
===
“Alright. I’ll use 2 Incarnation Points to add a Definition,” the Demonling said.
[How would you like to expand the utility of the Rare Far Ji ‘Reform’?]
Arlosse didn’t know what to say at first, but then he gave what could have been considered a command.
“I want Reform to be able to restore the physical properties of living beings.”
As soon as Arlosse spoke, the Host Guide responded.
[A Definition has been added to the Rare Far Ji ‘Reform’]
===
…
1.Restores the physical properties of living beings.
2.[Unassigned]
…
===
Under Reform, Arlosse immediately saw the first [Unassigned] tag be replaced with how he had worded the new Definition.
A smile broke onto his face.
“Good,” he said and he looked at the number 2 slot. He didn’t know if he had anything else in mind, but he didn’t have enough Incarnation Points for another Definition anyway. “Hmm. I should do well to remember that this Far Ji isn’t really for healing alone. I got a little carried away there. I imagine I should also check how this restoring of flesh works. Does it work on the whole body at once, or over limited sections? My tunic was restored at once, but… that could be how Reform works for objects.”
Remembering that he was only allowed here for an hour, Arlosse immediately activated Reform and touched his chest.
Each successful use of the Far Ji lasted half an hour. Hopefully, he would heal before being transported to the Second Floor.
While waiting, Arlosse checked his Hermetic Vault on the Host Guide. He had noticed before, but every item he had in the vault was listed under the Hermetic Vault and not the Equipment section.
===
[Hermetic Vault | Grade Legendary]
Allows the user to store and retrieve anything – any entity and the forces applied on them – within a two-meter radius – in a special, sealed chamber.
-
[Stored Items]
(1) Fickle Viper; (1) Bash Brain; (1) Valiant Subject’s Ward; (2) Blue Slimes; (4) Red Slimes; (4) Pink Slimes; (3) Immaterial Slashes
…
===
Arlosse couldn’t have been more pleased by this feature of the Hermetic Vault. Anything that had been stowed within it before could be expelled and returned into the vault without affecting the daily Limit of objects he could add to it; he was only allowed to add five new things per add, after all.
‘I’ll have to be mindful of that Limit and not just add random junk,’ he thought, reminding himself; his hand remained plastered onto his chest.
As time passed, the Incarnate reviewed his new Acquired Skill, Soaring Severance, and entertained a great many thoughts about several other subjects. He had wondered about whether to use his remaining Incarnation Points or not, but ended up deciding on the latter.
He didn’t think he needed to worry about his physical prowess for the time being, even though he had yet to test out how much stronger 13 points in Strength and Agility could make him.
On the subject of attributes, the Incarnate was puzzled about why his Spirit Essence hadn’t been given an additional 10 points as well. Apparently, it didn’t count as a physical attribute – he gathered as much – but that didn’t clear up the many questions he still had about this power and where exactly it stood.
Was the way in which he received his Spirit Essence normal?
Was the amount he had right now considered high or low according to the standards of the mysterious worlds in ‘Prospect For Reincarnation’?
Why was Alabas’ Spirit Essence ebony and not a soft silvery blue like his or Tenyen’s or Kadyas’?
All these questions had no answers, and said answers didn’t appear to the Incarnate in the twenty-seven minutes he spent looking for them.
The Host Guide soon announced that his time for relaxation had ended and it was time to move on, much to his annoyance. He hadn’t quite gotten enough time to use Reform properly.
“Great,” Arlosse said sombrely.
[Your allotted time in the ‘Isolated Foyer of New Beginnings’ has ended]
[You are being transported to the SECOND FLOOR]
Arlosse rose and wore a stern look. His skin, keen and aware, tingled and he quickly summoned the Valiant Subject’s Ward into his free hand while keeping the other on his chest, hoping that the last few minutes required to heal his ribs would be covered without him needing to compromise.
The Incarnate was suddenly swallowed by a world of silent darkness and once again, he felt as though he was falling from an unimaginable height.
His instincts and senses remained keen.
Unlike the First Floor, it was possible that the Second could start off heavy and tense, and thus he didn’t relax his guard.
After what felt like a full minute, the Incarnate suddenly felt his feet stand firm of hard ground.
The hot sun blasted his skin, then terrible, disgusting noises, then a stench that felt all too familiar. The stench of death.
The Incarnate gaped.
He was right in the middle of a battlefield.