!!!!! Pr Credits To Draconis & Rota who not only both pred it but improved this ch's quality greatly please rep them. Also Full Credits to Askard who maintains the Information Doc where a majority of spectral regalia information is written please Rep him to ^^!!!
so i decided to give a 2 day early release because i felt you guys deserved it for dealing with these constant hassles :(
thankfully i managed to snag a good PR called rota so i would appreciate if you guys could give him and draconis a bit of rep for helping out with an early release ^^
also i will be taking the time to rename the chapters with volume titles for example this is (V4 Chapter 85 A Time To Improve) v4 stands for volume 4 just to make it easier for you all to understand the progression. if i remember correctly i also need to go back a ch and re edit a section regarding the rope to add in tensil strength courtesy of a reader who told me about it ! thank you mystery reader im sorry i have forgotten your name :(
this chapter i feel is make or break but il let you be the judge of how the progression is going. i hope you all enjoy it i really do.
Please Rate/Follow/Favourite/Share/Enjoy ch 85 :)
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“I… don't understand, Master?... Could that be a potion of strength?... I had heard from Sir Henreth that such things are quite rare and increase one's power by 2 fold for a duration of time, but I don't see how this can help me in the long run...”
Avrin wanted to laugh at Kael’s ignorance but had urged Kael to come over with a finger motion. Kael, without hesitation, followed and stood only a meter from Avrin. The liquid inside the vial was now a glowing blue but began to revert slowly back to the color it had originally been.
Avrin glanced at it and frowned “-Could it not be enough?... Let’s try something else then-” Raising his finger over the vial, he formed a small Void Blade at the tip of his thumb. Delicately slicing it under his index finger until several drops of blue blood he had willed to form began to drop into the liquid.
At the sight. Kael’s face turned grim, watching the droplets of Avrin’s blood enter it, which caused the liquid inside the vial to screech and move around to try and hungrily devour it. Soon, the liquid turned a transparent light blue. The liquid then settled down, as if sleeping after eating a meal.
“Quickly. Drink this before it awakens again…” Avrin spoke while offering it to Kael, who looked reluctant. “Master… This… Isn't there-” Avrin frowned under his mask. “Drink it!..” He ordered, to which Kael took it from fear and drank it. The taste was like drinking cold liquid metal that had electricity running through it, which brought some pain to him, but without leaving a single drop behind he finished it all.
Lowering the vial, Kael took a deep breath and remained silent. Avrin also didn't utter a word, and this had gone on for a minute. “disappointing… Did I over do it?... Such a waste” Avrin felt like that inwardly, as this Enigma potion could be considered a real treasure to those who knew its value.
Kael was even more stunned, as he expected something to happen after Avrin had seemed to put importance on it. “Master...did something go wrong?... Did I do it wro-” Falling to his knees, Kael began to cough violently as his body grew cold. His skin began to shift from purple to blue, then to a shining metallic black as he huddled up on the ground.
“Ahh!..” Avrin immediately got up and made his way beside him as he focused his Divine Sense around Kael’s body. “There it is…. Incredible. Simply incredible. It's mimicking the process I use to create Spectrals!?... No, this is deeper… It's converting everything into dark matter at a quicker pace.. Huh?... The Skymetal is devouring it?!!”
Avrin’s face grew pale as he watched the Skymetal seemingly want to devour the dark matter. “You greedy little…” With no choice, Avrin could only do one thing to save Kael. Emitting Nebula Mist through the tip of his finger, he stabbed it into Kael’s chest, where the Skymetal was near and began to siphon dark matter into Kael’s body from his own.
Kael himself was already screaming in agony, as his entire body was on fire while also being chilled. It felt like he was being stretched and eaten from the inside. “H..Help….m..Master!!!” Avrin’s expression flickered. He understood he would truly feel miserable and guilty if Kael died because of his mistakes. “You won't die… Relax!” He called out, before surrounding the small, one inch in diameter Skymetal core near Kael’s heart with his own dark matter.
“-You little bastard… You're irritating me..- “ He spoke threateningly the somewhat sentient Skymetal that quivered with fear, knowing Avrin was indeed more powerful than it. Avrin began to will the core towards the center of Kael’s heart while also slowly converting it to that of a Spectral’s in hopes of it somehow stabilizing the Skymetal.
Slowly raising his finger from the wound in Kael’s chest, a small bit of blood seeped out, as if it were held in by the dark matter stream that Avrin had continued to channel into the wound from his finger.
This had gone on for an hour before Avrin could sense that Kael’s body was more or less converted to a Spectral’s. His heart, although not like Avrin’s, still was strong enough. With Avrin’s help, he could gain control over the Skymetal. Surrounding it with purple veins and coursing the dark matter around it.
Avrin’s biggest fascination was that Kael’s body had gained some unexpected additions. He had curled draconic horns from the sides of his head, his skin had reformed into black scales that seemed to somewhat reflect light while emitting faint traces of dark matter.
Kael’s face itself remained as humanoid and childish as it was before, but with a more mysterious, stronger look. But Avrin’s biggest interest was the appendages on Kael's back that had torn through his shirt.
“Horns… Scales…. Wings?...” Avrin had understood and seen much of what he had looked like. He clenched his teeth, not wanting to believe it. “This can't be… Draconian…. A Draconian Spectral?... But his human… The potion couldn't have… Wait...that ingredient..”
Avrin remembered what the man had said. A nugget of Skymetal, a transparent herb, and also a vial of black blood. “That blood… Could it have come from a Dragon?!!....” Avrin’s face twisted a little. In truth, he had created a little monster.
Not only did Kael now have pure blood from Avrin, but also a Skymetal core as well as being converted into a unique sort of Spectral. It could be said that he will always be unique.
Avrin stood up and glanced at Kael, who showed no signs of waking up. “How can I bring him back when he looks like that?… He will be chased out…” Reaching up, Avrin removed his mask and rubbed his forehead. “If I can control dark matter, the building blocks of the universe, then changing and controlling one's form should be simple. For Kael’s sake, as well as the promise I made, I have to fix this.”
Several hours had passed and the sun had all but set. The sounds of more powerful creatures coming out to hunt and show off their might could be heard. Loud roars, screeches and even the occasional scent of blood from a wounded creature blowing in the wind.
Within the tunnel Avrin had formed, Kael was laid down with a cover over him, as well as a campfire roaring to life not too far away. Seconds later, his eyes fluttered and he leaned up slowly, confused.
Placing his, currently human, hand over his forehead, he felt dazed. It was only when a voice brought him back to reality, that he turned to look. “You're awake? Good. I was worried for a little bit.”
Glancing over, Kael spotted Avrin leaning against the wall, gazing at him with his eyes giving off a deep purple glow even within the campfire light. “Master?... What happened?... I remember drinking what you gave me and then feeling as if being eaten alive…”
Avrin looked carefully at Kael before glancing out of the tunnel. He was able to see the night sky, as well as the stars and the moon, around Seleria. He had no reason to lie to Kael. The Enigma potion’s effects exceeded his expectations, to the point where he had to step in and quickly convert Kael to a Spectral.
Of course, the only positive thing Avrin knew was that as Kael rested, his mysterious Draconic appearance had slowly subsided and he reverted back to a human’s appearance. With some changes of course.
Kael’s eyes had a faint purplish glow that was similar to Asura’s, but both his pupils had a similar pattern to Avrin’s and only one line across the middle of the line. Kael had also grown somewhat and seemed to have a more athletic build.
Avrin noticed this change when he saw Kael’s arms had grown thicker. As if he had been training for many years. Of course, Avrin knew this effect was because of him being converted. Then again, he also felt a bit was attached to the fact that he also had a Dragon’s blood within him.
“The potion I made you drink converted your body…” Kael looked at Avrin, trying to comprehend. But hearing his body was converted, he glanced down. Not with horror, but with surprise. He felt stronger. This was backed up by the fact that he could see that he was also somewhat more masculine. Quickly standing up, Kael tried to examine himself. He felt himself flooding with energy as if he could take on anything.
“Master, that potion you gave me is incredible! It did all this?! How long will it last? It converted my body to skip a majority of my training, right?” Avrin looked carefully at Kael and softly laughed, knowing if he held the truth back now it would affect him later on. “Kael, pay attention. The potion I gave you converted your body, yes, but not in the way you think!”
Kael, who was splitting the air with every punch, making a lot of noise, only caught Avrin’s last words before turning to glance at him. “Master, what do you mean?”
Avrin frowned. “You're no longer human… The look you have now is only because of your own body.“ Kael looked at Avrin and smiled before chuckling.
“Master, please don't try to scare me! I know you're just saying that to make me think to not go over my head with this new power...but believe me, Master, I won't! I'm grateful! With this power, I'm sure I can prove to my father and the others that I can bring something to our family!”
Kael clenched his fists tightly and his arms bulged a bit, dark matter emitting quietly across his body, which made him jump in fright as he looked at it before it dispersed. “This…?”
Avrin stood up and formed Nebula Mist in front of Kael, and it formed a mirror. “Take a good look… You are like me now... so I won't be lying anymore… Going back to live a normal life… Remove this idea from your head.“ Avrin began to walk outside while continuing to speak.
“You wanted the power to prove your family wrong, and you have that. But don't think it isn't without cost. In this case, you won't be looked at the same and you won't be able to fit in anymore. If they know what you have become, they will surely experiment on you until they figure it out. Familiarize yourself with your new body until you understand that the only shred of humanity you have left is your mind, Kael. “
Avrin could not be bothered to explain things to Kael. He thought it would be better if he experienced it himself. Of course, at first, he felt bad for Kael because of his appearance, but as Avrin thought about the current circumstances, he realised he couldn't leave Kael alone with people that wouldn't understand what he is, as well as who seem so intent on power.
In truth, Avrin had already kept his side of the deal with Gregson. Now, ironing out the details was all that's left. Avrin had decided to go test out his new strength and had left to find something to fight.
During the time he had waited for Kael to awaken, Avrin had already taken care of a few of his own problems. He wasn't capable of manipulating his body yet, which ruled out him modifying his blood with a particle, or give it instructions to disperse when his blue blood had been spilled, but he had done the next best thing.
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Having developed two Type 3 C.Particles, Avrin had realized that these stronger versions were much more efficient than Type 2 ones. With one C.Particle to govern the progress of creating Type 3 Particles, the other was set to link with the part of the brain where the only physical part of his Divine Sense emitted. This was the cerebral cortex.
After experimenting a bit by wounding himself inside the tunnel and placing the particle there with the simple instruction of using his Divine Sense to order the dark matter within his blood to disperse, he felt that he wouldn't need to worry.
This process had also given him a significant leap in tampering with his body. Just like how the C.Particle connects with other particles, this tiny particle within his cortex sent strings of thin energy to connect the electrical signals of his mind to act as a sort of small conduit of information.
Avrin had thought this sort of thing would be hailed as a marvel of technology within his old universe, but the more he thought about how easy he had managed to do it within an hour, he had figured that it couldn't be counted as anything incredible and was most likely not even convenient compared to what he may be able to do later on.
Not too far from the cave-like tunnel he had left Kael at, Avrin had begun to walk across a withered section of trees. The area itself smelled of danger, with the roars and screeches of creatures all around. Avrin had remembered the Twisting Lands were considered a danger zone, and it couldn't be stressed enough. Of course, he felt it was also perfect to fight and train.
Suddenly, the ground began to shake as the large trees, with a width of 2 meters as well as a height of nearly 20 meters, began to shake violently. The area had gone silent as if the creatures had also felt this and figured something was off.
Avrin also stopped and looked in front of him. He detected a mass of mana nearly as tall as the trees it shook, but the outline was clear. He waited until the figure drew closer and the ground shook even more.
Soon, the large trees in front of Avrin were seemingly torn from the roots and thrown to the side as a large bear-like creature with spiked fur emitting electricity and eyes glowing a deep red with bloodlust gazed at Avrin with hunger.
It's mouth parted and it let out an earth-shaking roar that seemed to cause everything to suddenly hide in terror. Avrin tilted his head, and a wide grin appeared under his mask. “You're perfect... to develop a new technique on.”
The bear-like creature suddenly sparked with electricity as it shot towards Avrin with frightening speed. “Hm?!” Avrin was caught off guard, as it showed incredible speed. The moment it appeared in front of Avrin, it's gigantic claw glistening with electricity shot down towards him, as if it considered him a bug.
Avrin took a deep breath in before his left arm bulged with strength, his muscles expanding somewhat, causing his sleeve to rip a bit. Using his raw strength alone, Avrin punched upward towards the creature's claw.
The bear itself seemed amused. As if thinking Avrin was crazy to even bother fighting back and not run, especially with such a simple movement. It had experienced many threatening situations with creatures as powerful as itself, as well as much weaker creatures more powerful than, seemingly, Avrin, that ran away. But what it experienced at this moment would blow its thoughts out of the water.
Avrin’s fist collided with the bear’s claw and the air split as a sonic boom shot upwards, screeching as it pierced into the night sky before dispersing. And as seconds continued on, blood soon rained upon the nearby area. The bear’s claw had been blown apart by Avrin’s punch.
“GRAAAWR!!!” It roared out in agony as it stood up on it's hind legs and backed off in fear as well as pain. “No doubt about it.” Avrin muttered as he glanced at his own hand. “I’ve obviously reached the Grandmaster level with my base from alone. Converting that Dragon was the best idea I’ve had in a long time.”
As the bear gave a nervous look, it glanced at Avrin quietly before turning to see him look at it. It was then that it felt a sense of terror. It felt Avrin’s now visible tyrannical aura focused towards it. It was as if he weren't taking this fight seriously, but at the same time was intent on killing it.
The moment the bear turned to try and flee, it's body emitting the same electrical energy it used to appear in front of Avrin, a shadow blur appeared above it. Glancing down at it, Avrin smiled and moved his hand out towards it. Nebula Mist began to condense and outline across his perfectly shaped open palm.
Soon, the condensed matter and mist blew out in the shape of a palm that shot towards the bear. The bear was astonished, as it had nowhere to run. It was caught within the bounds of the vice-like grip of the hand. It let out a blood-curdling roar of agony before its voice vanished.
The palm-shaped attack had enveloped the bear and condensed down around it. This was an attack Avrin had developed to try and catch powerful opponents off guard and convert them into something he could, hopefully, absorb.
As the closed fist of dark matter and Nebula Mist shrank and devoured the body of the bear - which was long dead, having been crushed - it formed a small sphere the size of a thumbnail. The difference in size wasn't too far off from the sphere obtained from Wruen, but as Avrin walked over and grabbed it from the ground, he felt that the energy made from it was insignificant compared to a Dragon’s.
“This would be able to fight on par with a Master level opponent, but for me, I'll just consider it a light snack.” Avrin wasted no time in placing the small sphere in his mouth and swallowing it. Soon, a warm and relaxing feeling spread from his stomach as the sphere cracked open and the dark matter converted from the creature's body seeped out,
But Avrin couldn't enjoy the feeling for long, as his greedy Dark Space had emitted a pulse and turned into a torrent that had devoured the sphere as well as the matter it had emitted out completely. It had only given a faint pulse of dark light that spread throughout Avrin’s body that seemingly strengthened him by only a few percent.
“Being a Spectral has many benefits..” Avrin snickered to himself. While he continued to hunt, he had encountered several more creatures at the bear’s level, as well as stronger in total. He had managed to absorb the dark cores he converted from their mana and had managed to raise his strength by 5% at the very least. He also discovered that as he grew stronger, the less effect the creatures of that level would have. As if their cores quickly grew inefficient to balance things out.
Having spent a total of 5 hours out, Avrin returned back to the tunnel. His Divine Sense was only stretched for several meters, as he found it annoying to continuously stretch it out to view everything. He felt there was nothing in the area that could threaten him unless a Dragon had popped out of nowhere. Or worse, like Syrana.
As Avrin entered the cave-like tunnel, he looked around before blinking. He noticed Kael was nowhere to be seen. He quickly emitted his Divine Sense out before sidestepping to the right. At that, moment a figure dropped from the ceiling of the cave and punched towards where Avrin was standing, causing the area to shake as well as the ground to split a small bit.
Avrin glanced, seeing a Draconic looking humanoid with fairly decently sized wings protruding from it's back, as well as a tail with glowing crystal spikes at the end that emitted Nebula Mist.
“Y...You turned me into A MONSTER!!” Kael’s voice left the lips of the Draconic figure. Of course, this figure was indeed Kael, who revealed killing intent as well as the outline of tears glistening down his scaly cheeks.
“Hmph…” Avrin didn't answer, which irritated Kael, who roared out and tried to slash Avrin with his claws. His speed had improved incredibly, and with every strike, the air split. But for Avrin, this was child’s play.
“HOW!?! HOW CAN I GO BACK LIKE THIS!!?” Kael roared out before slashing downwards towards Avrin, who had seemingly been cornered. But just as he was about to land a hit, he felt his wrist not budge an inch more as a tight grip was felt.
Avrin had easily grabbed Kael’s hand. Of course, Kael had gotten much stronger, but compared to Avrin it was still nothing. “Grow up, boy…” Avrin gave a soft punch towards Kael’s stomach, trying not to wound him, but enough to show him the difference in strength.
The punch caused a ‘boom’ sound as it hit Kael and blew him back, making him bounce off the ground until he landed on his stomach several meters away. The punch itself was meant to blow him back more so than cause him damage.
As Avrin watched Kael slowly get up, he spoke. “Were you not the one who wanted to get stronger? Do you know that what you now are has limitless growth potential!?! I guarantee that if you play your cards right, not even Sigil Wielders or Dragons could defeat you!!”
Avrin’s words made the Draconic Kael, who was sitting on his knees, look up, then glance at his own hands. His look showed fear and worry. The situation for him was that he wanted to get strong in a way that he wouldn't have to make a large sacrifice, but giving up his humanity... He didn't know what good this could bring him. Avrin had also told him something before he left to train. That he would not be able to fit in this world meant he was on his own.
“I…I didn't want this… I don't want to be stronger...than Sigil Wielders...and Dragons….if it means I'm like this..” Avrin was a little surprised. Of course, he didn't expect it to work so easily. This was the same sort of line he used on Asura, which worked wonders for the dull brained him at the time. But Kael was human at heart and more emotional.
Avrin began to think, trying to come up with a way to calm him down. He walked over to Kael and glanced down at him before kneeling. “This doesn't mean you won't be able to see your family for good. It's like this, Kael.
You are still able to show your human appearance, but you're also capable of this power. The situation is simple. You unlocked an Enigma level ability. As for the details... I'll handle them with Gregson. But until then, you need to learn to control your transformation and power. If you do this, you can still show your family how you have grown.”
Avrin was trying to salvage the situation. He knew life wouldn't be so kind to Kael, and eventually something will happen, but Avrin gambled on the fact that if he agreed, by the time it happened, he would have grown more and become understanding and accepting enough to shake it off.
Kael was quiet before glancing at Avrin. He had no reason to not believe him. Indeed, the potion had given him this mysterious power, but at the cost of his humanity. It had made him scared, but Avrin had said he could fix this if he learned to control it. Kael began to think of what the situation would be like if he got this strength under his control and could use it for his own needs.
The image of his brother, sister and father came to his mind before he clenched his teeth. “O-... OK… I'll do it, Master... I'll learn to control this... with your guidance.” Avrin smiled and nodded. “Perfect… Firstly, because you're more durable, I can properly spar with you without worry of injuring you too much.”
As Kael glanced up at Avrin. He felt a devilish aura emit from him. He felt that he must have a curled smiled under Avrin’s mask. But before he could do anything, Avrin vanished and before Kael felt anything, he was grabbed by the back of the neck by Avrin, who was beside him.
Within moments, Avrin’s arm blurred and Kael was thrown out of the tunnel like a bullet before crashing into a tree, which snapped in half. Avrin glanced and began to walk out of the tunnel. “By the time these 11 months are over, you're going to be strong enough to show everyone who doubted you just how wrong they were…”