Novels2Search

Chapter 22

Out of the blackness, a scene emerged. A man stood on a barren plain, facing down an army of golden armored warriors. Each of them exuded a palpable aura of carnage and power, but they paled in front of the man. A billowing cloud of wrath seemed to warp the air around him and he breathed in deep, heaving gasps, as if consumed by the fires of a boundless rage.

One of the golden armored warriors called out something to him in a language that Sam did not understand. He was surprised by that, as even the aliens he had encountered had been intelligible, but he listened anyway. A loud laughing noise erupted from the army and they pointed at the man in mirth. The breathing grew even heavier as the ground around the man started to buckle.

Sam was briefly transported to another vision, this time one of the angry man standing over the corpses of a woman and two children. He screamed out to the heavens in pure anguish, and something answered. His body writhed as a pillar of energy shot down from on high, filling him with power. Even as he rose, with the ground melting around him, his body started to break apart. He looked at himself in surprise and seemed to forcibly calm himself.

Now, with the army in front of him, the pillar touched down again. The air around the man evaporated from the sheer heat coursing off him and he moved faster than Sam could see. The ground where he had stood vanished from the force of his movement, revealing a hole that extended down to the core of the planet. A tidal wave of lava poured out of the hole, covering the ground around it. Such a sight paled in comparison to what was happening with the man however.

The true scope of the army had been revealed,and Sam’s mind was almost crushed by the sight of billions of people standing side by side. A storm of projectiles shot out from their ranks, completely blotting out the sun, but the man snorted and struck the ground with one of his hands. Some of his flesh burned off as he did so, but a boil of earth and rock shot up, disfiguring the land for miles around him. The projectiles clattered off of it with pinging noises and the dome sank back into the ground. The man was revealed again and he flashed forwards yet again towards the army. His fist came down and a swathe of the golden armored soldiers were atomized. His movements sped up and the army started to fall apart before him. It was a race against time and as he moved, his body started to disintegrate. There were still so many of the soldiers left and he was unable to reach them by the time that his body was gone.

With a final flash of energy, a mote of pure light formed where the man had died. Everything went black and white as the mote shattered, releasing a titanic shockwave of force that ripped apart the planet and destroyed the thousands of spaceships that surrounded it. With that, Sam was forced back into reality.

The ground around Sam was covered in the mutilated corpses of the monsters. His body was a patchwork canvas of blood and split flesh and his mind was utterly exhausted. A System notification pulsed in his vision and he wearily selected it.

You have gained a new Dao!

Dao Mote of Anger

Anger is one of the most potent tools in a warrior’s arsenal. With it, he can ignore the pain of his wounds, bolster his own strength and convince himself to do that which would normally be unthinkable. Most eventually lose themselves to their rage, consumed by the fires of their own making. Pray that this does not happen to you.

He could feel the presence of some beast slumbering deep within him, waiting to be unleashed. It was nothing compared to the man in the vision that he had witnessed, but it was potent nonetheless. Unlike with his first Dao, there was no skill to accompany it. Blind rage was not a skill in its own right, only a means to an end. He would have to temper that rage if he wanted to master it. Jeffrey and Rax watched him with fear in their expressions and as he walked over to them, they flinched.

“Wha-what was that, Sam?” Jeffrey said in a tremulous tone.

“I got a new Dao. I guess that as I killed the monsters, the aura of the tree became more powerful and it helped me to create it. Combined with my natural aptitude, it pushed me over the edge.”

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“What Dao was it though?” Jeffrey asked.

“The Dao of Anger.”

Jeffrey made some sort of sign with his hands.

“You walk a dark path, Sam, be sure that it does not consume you.”

Sam sighed and rubbed his head with his hand. His entire body felt like an open wound and he wanted nothing more than to sleep for days on end. They ran down the hill and towards the tree.

As they neared it, Sam started to feel the power of the natural treasure in effect. It was exactly as Rax had described, an aura of connection to the rest of the universe. His Daos flared into prominence and he felt his own connection to them grow as well. With a sigh, he breathed in the rich air of the glade and walked over to the tree. The feeling reached its zenith as he stood next to it, and he saw to his surprise that there were three rainbow colored fruits hanging from the tree. He nudged one apprehensively, causing it to fall from the tree and into his hand. It felt slightly warm and he analyzed it.

G-Rank Dao Fruit

G-Rank Magical Item

The product of a Dao aligned natural treasure, this fruit will give the user access to a basic Dao, or will heighten their connection to one of their own ones. Such a fruit can only be used once per rank.

Jeffrey wandered over with an inquisitive look on his face.

“What’s that?” He asked idly as he approached.

“It’s a Dao fruit.”

Jeffrey’s eyes widened and he ran the rest of the way.

“A Dao fruit? Really?” When he analyzed it for himself, Jeffrey screamed in delight. Sam was confused.

“What? It only grants access to a basic Dao. It's still a low rank.”

Jeffrey ignored him.

“I can finally reclaim my Dao!” Jeffrey shouted. Then he looked at Sam with a shifty look on his face.

“How much do you want for it?”

Sam was confused.

“How much? I thought you didn't have any money. Besides, there’s another two fruits anyway, you can just take one of those.”

“Oh. Uh, forget what I said,” Jeffrey told Sam as he grabbed one of the fruits off of the tree. He sat down in a cross legged position and bit into the fruit. A golden juice spilled out and over his lips and a drop landed on the ground. Sam’s eyes locked onto that droplet and he had to contain himself from leaping at it. It produced an aura of refined power that he knew would take him to new heights if only he-the droplet soaked into the ground and the urge disappeared. Sam was left blinking in confusion. He stared at Jeffrey who was in the process of swallowing the last bite of the fruit. The other man opened his mouth as if to say something, but he fell silent and his pupils dilated. Sam shook his head around, but Jeffrey didn't respond. Sam sighed and picked the other fruit from the tree. He wanted to use his one right now, but it would be a waste of the fruit. On its own, it would not be enough to take him to the next stage of Dao mastery. Instead he would have to save it until he was almost there. He knew someone else who did need a Dao though. Walking over to Rax, Sam held out the fruit to the beast.

“Here, eat this.”

“What is that, some kind of fruit?” Rax responded.

“It will give you a basic Dao,” Sam explained. The herpetopede looked at the fruit for a moment and then shook his head.

“No, I can feel that this fruit is not right for me. There is a reason that the other beasts did not eat these. They knew instinctively that they would not work. Monsters develop their connection to the universe differently than sapients. We don’t have ranks of Daos like you, rather we gain access to their abilities as we evolve. So thanks for the offer, but you should keep that.”

Sam looked at the fruit in his left hand and put it away.

“Alright then, you know more than me about your own body. I’ll sell it I guess.” The herpetopede traipsed off, leaving Sam with his thoughts. Immediately, he began to wonder how to leverage this tree to his benefit. Eventually, he would have to expose himself to the world in some capacity, sooner rather than later. If he was to get ready for the tournaments against the wider universe, then he would have to be ready to fight at his fullest capacity. For the closer tournament, the one on Earth, he needed to gain his class first and foremost. It was in a few weeks, so there would be ample time for others to gain Daos as well. He would have to overcome them through levels as well.