On a more serious note, Gordanus had told Sam to be ready for true power, of which he had only had the tiniest taste. As the ranks increased, the power that they gave was monumental. Even more so for the Tiers, especially with sapients. A talented G Ranker would be able to defeat a low to mid humanoid F Ranker some of the time, but it was a far different story for an F Ranker trying the same with an E Ranker. Apparently the gulf was so incredible that Gordanus had never met anyone who could truthfully boast of such a feat. An F Ranker went from being able to raze a small village at the peak to destroying an entire city by the middle of E Rank.
Gordanus was infuriatingly light on the details however. In any case, that was one of Sam’s new goals. He wanted to be strong enough by the end of F Rank that he could pull off a battle against an E Ranker. Hell, his goal was to do so even before then. Of course, he knew that what he was trying to do was impossible, at least if he approached it like a normal battle. Even the Titans, which were far weaker than normal E Rankers would have been, because of their natural benefits like size and durability, but they were still an insurmountable threat. The armies massed on the planet around him could have thrown themselves at the Titans, and would not have come out victorious.
Gordanus had given him a few valuable metrics to measure power by. The measurement of a peak member of any rank was the ability to fight against a certain number of enemies from the previous rank, and win. For example, Peak F Rank was about a hundred hundred thousand G Rankers, and it only went up from there. Gordanus said that the few people at the top of E Rank that he knew could go head to head with tens of millions of F Rankers, and still eke out a victory. At that point, it was more about resources than anything else, as even an elephant could be brought down by billions of mosquitoes. It would be a death paid for in oceans of blood, but it would still happen at some point. With all of these thoughts percolating through his brain, Sam stumbled out of the cave on the final day of his consolidation period, to be greeted by a smiling Gordanus.
“I can sense a new power in you. One that was not there before. This training method that I am using has been adapted from that of the Imperial Scions of the B Rank factions, changed of course in order to be even more efficient. It is startling how many people will ignore power that is literally around the corner if it means that they will avoid excruciating pain,” Gordanus said.
“Well, I have learned that pain is the currency of power, and I am a wealthy man. The capacity for growth is of such importance that pain pales before it. Obviously, I would not kill myself for a few paltry levels, but it is always worth it as long as my life is not on the line,” Sam replied, somewhat surprised at the words coming out of his mouth.
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He realized that he truly meant what he was saying. Before the coming of the System, pain had been a useless, debilitating hallmark of cruel and uncaring evolution, but now that its presence actually served some sort of purpose, he could deal with it far more easily. Of course, the pain itself did not bring power, but as it was a byproduct of it, it was far easier to deal with.
“I am glad that you have come to that realization of your own accord,” Gordanus said. “I believe that it is time for you to continue your training however. As a reward for your exemplary performance, you may rejoin your new ally, and gain some levels by fighting alongside him.”
Gordanus snapped his fingers, and Sam appeared in the silvery interior of Manarox’s capital ship, suddenly standing by a large table. Manarox sat at the head, barking orders to a group of powerful looking Grakoth, and he paused when he saw Sam appear. The officers sitting at the table rose, drawing weapons, but Manarox snapped his fingers, causing them to stop.
“Halt! This is one of my allies,” Manarox barked. If he was happy to see Sam though, his face did not show it. “What are you doing here now? Why did you disappear a few days ago?”
“Like I mentioned before, I came to this planet for training. My master is a bit eccentric, and he thought that it would be funny to teleport me away while I was in the middle of finalizing our alliance.”
“So you did not purposefully snub me?” Manarox asked, his face starting to lighten.
“I would never do such a thing. I hold you in the highest regard,” Sam replied, laying it on a bit thick for the sake of the alliance. His faction was in dire need of some serious manpower, and Manarox’s faction was exactly what he needed.
“That… is comforting to hear. Would you all leave so that I can converse with Sam?” Manarox asked the other Grakoth in the room.
Despite his light tones, the aliens snapped to attention, and vacated the area in a few seconds. As soon as they were gone, Manarox let out a deep sigh.
“It has been hard without you here. Our enemies have brought out more powerful fighters, strange, genetically modified monsters that rip through our ranks. There are no fighters on our side that are of the caliber of you or me, and I can only fight so many at once. If this goes on for much longer I will have to call for backup.” The look of mild annoyance on Manarox’s face told Sam that the man did not want to have to beg for help.
“Well, what are you waiting for? Let’s get into the fray! There’s essence to be earned, and levels to be gained,” Sam declared, ready to get back to fighting. He was eager to test his newfound prowess.