Ethan drove his dagger through a water monitor’s under-jaw, wrenched it back with a spray of blood that splattered against the narrow blue-lit tunnel wall, then proceeded to fill the monster’s face with an intense, bright ray of flames while he grit his teeth as a column of water threatened to blow him back into the tunnel. Ethan resisted, skidding along the muddy ground, chest on fire from exertion and from mana exhaustion, and when he got the death notification, he fell to his knees for a second before he stumbled forward and collected his fragments.

There were no other drops. No spellcores or primagems so far, but he already had enough fragments to get the third form and had begun channeling the newly acquired fragments into the Lesser Wand of the Fire Elemental.

I’m gonna be able to afford a bunch of upgrades after this. But I might need to run.

He panted and watched another reptile make its way into the tunnel through the messy swarm of predators, then pushed its way through the small wall of dead monitors.

He’d already gotten four levels from this battle, but the lizards were still coming, and Ethan’s mana exhaustion was becoming too much to bear. Every time he cast a spell, it felt like he was channeling broken glass out of his chest and into his hands.

He hated leaving such a bounty of fragments and levels, but it was time to rest.

And it’s not as if these things are going anywhere. They’ll still be here when I get back.

With his horns still glowing atop his head, Ethan extended his hand and aimed above the oncoming lizard. It was a safe distance away from, he hoped, but he still needed to brace. Both from using his mana and from the explosion that he was about to set off in a thin and narrow space.

Ethan shot his [Small Fireball] and continued backing away.

The fireball hit the ceiling and detonated in a painful flash of light and fire that made Ethan’s ear ring. The lizard died instantly and was quickly buried as the stone tunnel caved in on top of it, raining stone and dust enough to fully condemn the tunnel.

Ethan continued watching for movement while his ears rang, and when nothing moved after nearly a full minute, he let himself fall on his behind. He exhaled, ignoring the scent of burnt flesh and acrid dust, and dismissed the wands before he closed his eyes for a few moments.

Calm. At last.

Ethan opened his eyes and glanced behind him toward the ascending tunnel. Now that he was not being pursued by a swarm of water monitors, he realized something he hadn’t considered just yet; this tunnel would take him into a new area he hadn’t been to before. It was still up on the first strata, but what if he found himself in front of someone like Amanda? What if some of the powerful lizards managed to get up there from another tunnel?

I should take a small break. Just in case I have to fight anything off.

Ethan dragged himself and leaned against the wall, and decided to check on his wands. It was time to get the third—and maybe final—form of the Prime wand.

[Third Form - 500 Fragments]

Prime wand - [Third Form] upgrade confirmed.

Ethan waited as the reinvigorating magic filled his body. It felt great, but he didn’t let that distract him too much. He still kept an eye on his surroundings. Just in case something or someone new sneaked up on him.

I’m going to need something for better perception or detection.

Now that he knew someone could be standing a few yards away from him without him noticing, Ethan found it harder to relax.

At least I’ll be able to get some rest when there’s someone on watch. Now, let’s see about the new form.

Spellcaster form: Wand of the Juggernaut

Summon a classic wand to cast spells. Spells cast can be empowered to suppress magic and spells in their path.

As soon as the text appeared, there was a shudder in the surrounding air. Motes of lights began drifting in and out of existence, and the air slowly began feeling… heavier. It reminded him of the very first interaction he had with this interface and its system. Seconds later, new text began popping in front of him.

Prime wand awakening...

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Path of the Juggernaut activating...

Examining affinities…

Examining achievements…

Examining traits…

Path specialization possible…

Warning: Controlled cultivation method detected.

Contacting Administrator…

As soon as the last line appeared in his vision, Ethan’s lung seized. He breathed shallowly, but panic filled his chest at the alien sensation that took over. He felt gripped, as if a phantasmal hand had slipped into his chest and wrapped its clawed fingers around his heart.

What the fuck is happening?

He didn’t dare move or make a peep. Cold sweat beaded down his neck and as suddenly as it started, the sensation stopped.

Ethan felt himself fall back into his own body, somehow, and he could breathe easier. Then the text continued.

Approval granted…

Path of the Burning Juggernaut activating...

A whoosh of fire suddenly flashed into existence around him, as if the air had been full of combustible gas and someone had ignited a match. It danced around him, sending its warmth into his tired body and Ethan felt a smile draw itself on his face, and slowly, it faded and left him with one last message.

It also set his pants on fire.

Ethan cursed and tamped the fire out, wincing from the sting of little flames that stuck to his pants. Then he looked at the new text in his interface.

Path of the Burning Juggernaut:

A path for the unstoppable warrior. A path of fire and destruction that makes kindlings out of every obstacle.

Ethan read the text and blinked.

What does this mean? Do I need to set the monitors on fire? Will that give me Essence?

He loaded the Prime wand page and found it had changed.

Huh. I guess it really was still asleep.

Prime Wand of the Juggernaut:

Tier: 1

Form: [ Lance of the Juggernaut, Horns of the Juggernaut, Wand of the Juggernaut]

Essence: 1

Cast Setting: Sequential

Capacity: 1

Cast refresh: 5s

Mana regeneration: 1 (6%)

Stat Bonus: +5

Fragments: 112

Available wand upgrades:

[Tier: 1 to 2 - 500 fragments, 100 Essence]

[Mana regeneration: Increase by 1 - 100 fragments, 10 Essence]

[Cast refresh: Decrease by 0.25s - 50 fragments, 5 Essence]

[Capacity: Increase by 1 - 100 fragments, 10 Essence]

Oh. Oooh. This… interesting.

Ethan was very excited, but he still grimaced as he went through the updated menu. He didn’t like that the wand’s upgrade would cost Essence, considering the special abilities of the its forms used Essence.

It means I’ll have to be careful and selective about my Essence use. Unless it’s easier to collect than I’m thinking.

Ethan sighed and closed his eyes for a second. Hopefully, Ember would give him more details this time.

A grin stretched across his lips.

He couldn’t help but feel a bit proud. He had set out to only head back to camp once he finished unlocking the Prime wand’s arm, and he did. He even got quite a few levels along with it.

Speaking of…

You have reached Level 35. 1 stat point awarded.

You have reached Level 36. 1 stat point awarded.

You have reached Level 37. 1 stat point awarded.

You have reached Level 38. 1 stat point awarded.

I’m catching up to Ember.

Ethan quickly looked through his stats.

Push mana to 20… then one point each for everything else.

He nodded. That sounded fair. Ethan assigned and confirmed his choice and then, he pulled his first wand and tried to take a mental note for later to test [Breath Gland]. He’d mostly forgotten about it, but he wondered if it would work with his Prime wand. Maybe not right now, as it was still at tier-1, but later.

Lots of testing to do. So much testing.

For now, Ethan decided to finally deal with the potential hidden quest of learning a tier-1 spell.

[Learn: Gout of Flames (Tier-1) - 50 fragments]

He accepted the cost, and after a quick light show of magic, the spell was added to his catalog.

Congratulations. Hidden quest: completed.

1 tier-1 spell token awarded.

I would have been legitimately pissed if I hadn’t gotten the hidden quest for this. I’m glad it did. And once I’m back to camp, it might be time to crack both tier-1 and tier-2 spell token open. See if I get something for faster healing, but honestly, more defense, mobility, or a way to detect skulkers would be welcome as well. Oh…wait a second.

Ethan quickly scrolled back through his notification and chuckled when he found one of the side quests. Of course, he’s not at level 40 just yet, so the first wasn’t done. But the one about the Prime wand was.

Congratulations. Side quest completed.

1 tier-2 spell

Three spell tokens to crack, then. Nice. And I still have a bit over 200 fragments in the Elemental wand.

Ethan leaned against the wall and smiled.