A hazy thin mist of mana surrounded Shin’s body as he sat with his back to the entrance, starting at the dungeon with prismatic eyes unblinking. The wounds on his arm had healed, the product of Cure Wounds and Vitalize, but they had healed slowly. Half a day it took, the unnatural bruises around them having etched into runic bands. Identify revealed nothing, unlike the mark of the reviled, the only hint given was the pain body supremacy couldn’t suppress. A torturous, agonizing pain by all respects but not a trace of that could be found on the boy’s expression, it overwhelmed by a quiet dormant intensity.
[Meditation has reached lvl. 10. 50 attribute points rewarded.]
Shin rose to his feet, all 50 points put into Spirit as an axe and macana appeared in his hands, and walked forward. His eyes scanned the narrow dirt tunnel, taking in everything. There were no signs of traps, none obvious at least. He continued unhindered towards the souls in his sight.
[Giant Ant (common) - Greater Peasant]
The nearest ant, as large as a dog, perked its head as he drew close and raced towards him. The ants behind perked up one by one as though something swept through alerting them, and they took the same action as the first. The giant ant scuttered close, its sharp mandibles clattered and an axe cleave through its head. A whirl of weapons hack, shattered, and severed the squadron of ants in no time.
Shin headed on without looking back. The ants were nothing. Their carapaces were slightly hard but the creatures were simply too weak to pose any kind of challenge he needed, common tier as they were. The tree goblin dungeon had been similar, the bulk of its mobs a tier below the dungeon’s. He’d need to delve deeper to find what he sought.
Still encountering no traps, he continued down the tunnels massacring ants as he went with nothing but a single level in Footwork to show for it. A copper red ant stood out among a group and charged with burning mandibles and was dispatched as easily as the others, a giant fire ant variant still merely common tier. The tunnels spread out in winding paths like a maze but it mattered little to Shin who could see the ants waiting along the correct path.
Finally he encountered something different. They stood five and a half feet tall with the head of an ant and the torso of a man on four back legs sticking out of a large bulbous gaster drawing likeness to a centaur, their segmented bodies coated in carapace.
[Myrmekes (uncommon) - Greater Peasant]
The two ant centaurs stood sentry to the open doorway, a crude spear in hand, seemingly fashioned out of ant parts. The antennas on their heads twitched, significantly earlier that the giant ants and without pause they bounded towards Shin, spears at the ready.
Shin swatted away a thrust, macana drawn back at his side and sawed into the myrmekes’ torso with a full swing. Halfway it gnawed, but the myrmekes thrust its spear again with a slight pause. Shin slipped it and kicked the ant away, green mucous oozing out of its wound, as the second ran around and thrust at Shin. An axe buried into its head cleanly and it collapsed, and the club sword sawed through the injured one’s neck. Both fell limp instantly.
[Myrmekes - Greater Peasant rank]
Strength - 118
Agility - 68
Constitution - 106
Vitality - 85
Dexterity - 92
Perception - 81
Force - 44
Spirit - 57
Control - 45
Willpower - 43
Shin glanced at the fallen ant guards. Their carapaces were quite a bit harder than the giant ants but the insides seemed just as soft. The one persisted through what should have been a serious injury but both died as soon as their heads were destroyed. Their thrusts had some weight behind them but too slow to be a problem. Still, they were better opponents than the common tiers.
Shin passed through the entrance into a huge empty dirt cavern, empty save for three large beige mounds covered in holes. The first two identified as giant ant mounds, which no rank given, and the largest one ahead a myrmekes mound. Soon the sound of chittering erupted and giant ants poured out of the mounds one by one, rushing towards him.
Shin swapped out his macana for a mace and attacked, hacked and crushed the ants as they came. Light work but a spear piercing the air where his head had been signalled his true interest in the room. A mace to the side knocked it off balance and an axe shattered its head.
Another myrmekes charged out of the mount but Shin first dispatched the enemies in his peripheral vision, making room for the next challenger. He danced around the thrusts of the myrmekes, let his legs do all the work as the spear caught nothing but air. He sidestepped at a second spear attacked, and positioned himself between them, dodging and deflecting their strikes as inconsequential giant ants died inbetween.
[Footwork has reached lvl. 4]
A third myrmekes appeared, yet still Shin stayed surrounded, straining his body to its limits to dance around their spears, knocking the wielders back occasionally as he dealt with the growing swarm of ants.
[Superior Martial Combat has reached lvl. 6.]
Shin saw something out of the corner of his eye and shattered the heads of the myrmekes in quick succession, earning a level in combat. He killed the latest myrmekes to appear and carved out some greater respite from the giant ants as he turned his attention to a new type.
[Giant Ant Worker (common) - Greater Peasant]
The yellow brown ant, smaller than its normal kin, paid Shin no mind and scuttled under a dead ant, carrying it on its back through a sizable hole in the wall near one of the mounds. A dozen more worker ants did the same, a few carrying away myrmekes corpses to their mounds instead. Shin left them be and returned to his self imposed training, hoping that his guess was correct.
---
Shin danced through the field of spears. The number of myrmekes had long surpassed what he could handle surrounded, but he had long stopped caring, lost in the sea of battle. He spun around a piercing spear and slammed a mace into the ant warrior’s chest, shattering an invisible coating and leaving a slight crack in its natural armor. He spun more and crashed his mace into the same spot once, twice, and with a third shattered open its chest, viscous green blood splashing out. And as the monster fell to its knees, caved in head. Another charged from the side and Shin glanced, a transparent sheen of protection glossing over it.
[Footwork has reached lvl. 10. 10 attribute points rewarded.]
Shin didn’t think, he just felt. More. Faster. His movements sharpened and strained against their limits.
[Footwork has upgraded to uncommon tier Quickstep.]
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Shin darted left and cleaved through the head of another enemy, lashing through the ants around it. Deeper into the daze he sank, time and enemies melting away leaving only a being of instinct and desire.
[Buffer has reached lvl. 10. 25 attribute pointed rewarded.]
He flipped over a wreath of spears, glowing white energy flowing around him, strengthening, hardening, growing closer to unbreakable.
[Buffer has upgraded to rare tier Greater Buffer.]
[Achievement: Skill Upgrade I. 25 attribute points rewarded.]
‘Upgrade 10 skills.’
The white sheen surrounded a myrmekes and a sailing axe bounced off it, leaving not a scratch. A jagged club sword appeared in his hand and sawed along the creature’s leg and still the coating held. Again and again he hacked and sawed through the sharp tipped obstructions of outsiders until the coating broke and the ant followed.
[Superior Martial Combat has reached lvl 10. 50 attribute points rewarded.]
Deeper still into the trance he sank. Ants broke and fell all around him as more took their place, fuel for the flame. He forgot his thoughts, his situation, his pain. There was nothing but him and the pursuit of power. A star within flared through the dark and Shin snapped out of it. Immediately he ran for the door weaving through the ants, entering back into the tunnel. The keepers of the room stopped at the entrance, stayed by some invisible hand.
Shin didn’t look behind, he didn’t think about anything else but pouring his mana into a skill. Mystic energy swirled and a fox masked warrior dressed in white appeared before him. Inari reached out and softly held his cheek, a sad frown on her lips. A comforting melancholy found Shin, his eyes mellowing and a slight smile returned. Shin checked the stage notification for the first time in a while. A full day had passed since their encounter with the worg and less than two hours remained.
“We only have a little time. Don’t kill the little yellow ones or damage the mounds.”
Inari sped off into the cave carving the ones standing by the entrance into pieces. Her body blurred as she massacred the ants and myrmekes in droves. Shin hopped back into the center of the carnage, waiting around as she worked. The room full of ants turned to corpses in no time and she darted between each mound killing the ants as quickly as they appeared.
[Summon Mystic Kitsune Guardian has reached lvl. 10. 50 attribute points rewarded.]
[Requirements for class upgrade reached.]
‘Shaman. Spirit Tamer. Divine Summoner. Magic Monk.’
Shin scanned the descriptions and made his choice immediately.
[Class has upgraded to rare tier Shaman. 50 attribute points rewarded.]
[Acquired rare tier skill Harvest Spirit.]
Only one given skill this time, unlike the previous two tiers. But it gave him an option to selection one skill, just as it had before. Shin scoured through the rare tier options looking for a different type of skill this time, a wish that also went unanswered. With that hope failed, he moved on to his second priority.
[Acquired rare tier skill Spirit Possession.]
A skill that allowed a bonded spirit to possess his body, granting a portion of their stats. At level one, it merely bestowed 10% of the chosen spirit’s attribute values and access to their skills but not traits. Not immediately useful nor an addition to his arsenal towards his current goal, but it changed things, things that he’d need to consider later.
With that, he turned his attention to his status and the 210 unallotted points. Even that was not enough, but he had little choice but to make do. Spirit would go neglected this time in favor of his immediate goal. 101 into Agility for much needed speed, 90 into Perception, his ability to follow the movements of others sorely lacking, and the remaining 19 into Constitution. It would likely not be enough be for his body to handle the strain of its enhanced stats but hopefully it would hold up as long as he needed it to. Just as he thought as much, his golden light enveloped his body and broke into dazzling lights.
[Rank has advanced to Lesser Lord. 100 attribute points rewarded.]
[Acquired mythic tier trait Ethereal Soul.]
Shin looked at the notifications in silence and moved around his body sensing something. There was a qualitative change, something deeper than stats he couldn’t put words to but so clearly felt. He checked the new trait.
‘A soul attuned with Ether.’
Shin sunk into a trance. He could feel his soul more clearly than before and instead of the sensation of tempered mana, it was like swimming in a sea of the mana of spirits, playful, foreboding, and unfathomable. Something nudged his shoulder once and then continuously. Shin opened his eyes to Inari standing in front, her three tails swaying enthusiastically, the ant mounts burning around them.
[Mystic Kitsune Guardian (rare) - Lesser Lord]
Strength - 250
Agility - 315
Constitution - 164
Vitality - 202
Dexterity - 277
Perception - 216
Force - 288
Spirit - 270
Control - 241
Willpower - 276
Skills:
Greater Trick Fire lvl. 5, Keen Cut lvl. 6, Greater Paralyzing Stare lvl. 4, Greater Celestial Fire lvl. 2, Superior Sword Combat lvl. 7,
Traits:
Hallowed (epic), Windwalker (epic), Lesser Soul Weapon (rare), Greater Will-o’-the-Wisp (Rare), Lesser Poison Resistance (rare), Lesser Disease Resistance (rare), Lesser Curse Resistance (rare), Lesser Charming Resistance (rare),
There was no change to her skills, but her stats increased massively, a third across the board. Something she was very happy about
“You’re incredible.”
Inari smiled and burst into an elated frenzy, exploring the extent of her new physical capability. Shin followed her with eyes for a bit. What would have previously been a slight blur was now a clear figure. His current Perception would work, which meant he had options.
Shin himself broke into a darting sprint and full speed strikes, stopping after just a few seconds. His speed was not quite what he expected. He threw a small amount of points into strength and moved again, adding strength bit by bit into it totaled 67. He came to a stop, satisfied with his current speed. It seemed Strength being a third of Agility was optimal for speed.
His already aching body posed problems but he would have to bear with that. It was not just the strain on his body, but the speed of exhaustion beyond his expectations. Shin inched up Strength to 75 and Agility to 225. He planned to put the rest into Spirit but stamina and aura was a far more pressing concern. The remaining 50 points all went into Vitality.
[Human Shaman (rare) - Lesser Lord]
Strength - 75
Agility - 225
Constitution - 50
Vitality - 84
Dexterity - 33
Perception - 150
Force - 24
Spirit - 391
Control - 83
Willpower - 36
Skills:
Cure Wounds lvl. 7, Mystic Wall lvl. 1, Summon Mystic Kitsune Guardian lvl. 10, Greater Buffer lvl. 1, Superior Martial Combat lvl. 10, Quickstrike lvl. 10, Befriend Spirit lvl. 10, Meditation lvl. 10, Vitalize lvl. 8, Quickstep lvl. 1, Harvest Spirit lvl. 1, Spirit Possession lvl. 1,
Traits:
Body Supremacy, Eyes of the Spirit King, Ethereal Soul,
With that looking promising, he turned his attention to the second unexpected boon, two ability options for reaching lesser lord, but these were rare tier. Had he not gotten the 100 extra points he would choose something immediately useful, but that was no longer necessary. Shin instead looked ahead to the future.
First, he limited his options to offensive magical skills that weren’t affected by Force. That shrunk the expansive list by a lot. There were a number that caught his eye but his interest sat with one in particular.
[You have acquired rare tier Ripple lvl. 1]
‘Emit steady waves of vibration. Potency increases with amount of mana used.’
Shin held out his hand and half spherical waves pulsed out from his palm. They faded in strength rapidly after a certain point and dispersed entirely at about a foot past his hand. He hopped over to the wall of the cave and struck. The hardened dirt wall exploded at the point of contact, an impact above what he could accomplish on his hand.
Shin thought for a moment then made the pulse parallel to his palm, like ripples on the surface of water, and struck again. The explosion at the point of impact was smaller, but surrounding the hole were several layers of rings perfectly encircling the center, the first reasonably deep but each successive ring shallower than the last.
Shin stopped his experimentation there, content. He scanned through the list disjointedly, making a note of skills that caught his interest, but had a thought about what they all seemed to have in common and searched for something more specific.
[Acquired rare tier Condense.]
‘Compress a skill smaller and denser to increase the potency.’
This was the only universal power enhancing skill among the rare choices and one that seemed quite good, though he postponed testing it for now. He was in quite a good position mana capacity wise with Inari still having an hour remaining on her duration and he didn’t want to waste it.
He sped off through the tunnel revealed by the destroyed Myrmekes mound and Inari followed. The tunnel led straight into a wide room which sat a myrmekes queen, twice as large as her kin, and four intimidating myrmekes guards. The queen emitted waves from antennas and aura enveloped the guards as they pointed their spears forward, and a white blur reaped their heads where they stood, severing the queen in parts. Shin jumped over and tapped the chest that appeared in the center, pausing for a moment at the floating uncommon tier truesteel scythe before storing it and turning to the entrance.
“We find him in the next hour.”
Inari’s disposition steeled as she followed Shin out of the portal, in concert with his eyes deepening again.