Red and blue light limned his hammer as he fell, and energies mingled within the E Rank artifact. As it filled, he brought it down, just as he approached the ground. The elemental manifestation raked its claws through the sky, but Sam broke through its attack with ease. A bellow of exultation erupted from his mouth, and he brought his hammer down.
The world around him ruptured, a wave of pure Dao energy and corrosive mana rippling through it. The grass vanished and the stone packed earth below melted, before turning to vapor. Sam stood at the epicenter of the blast, untouched by the energy. Now as an E Ranker, he was immune to his own Dao, as it was a true part of him. As for his mana, he simply shaped it away from himself.
His vision whited out from the explosion but when the dust cleared, he almost rubbed his eyes in shock. Where the lions had stood, there was now a crater, more than a dozen miles across. He stood on a pillar of rock, overlooking a hole that extended downwards for hundreds of feet. Melted rock pooled at its bottom, and bubbled faintly.
“So this is the power of an E Ranker,” Sam said faintly.
You have completed the Fulmination Fields: Layer 1!
You have gained a new title!
First Floor Vanquisher: Legendary
You have completed the very first floor of the Tower of Transcendence. What becomes of you over the next ninety nine is up to you.
Bonuses: +1% to all stats
The scene around him faded, and he was transported to the next floor. It was similar to the first, but even more exaggerated. It seemed that the floor segments would be based on the previous ones. If Sam had to guess, every floor would grow larger as he went, and within a segment of ten floors, each one would be a superior version of the first.
You have entered the Fulmination Fields: Layer 2.
Your objective is to kill a total of 1000 E Ranked Lightning Lions and 10 E Ranked Lightning Lion Alphas.
Completion: 0/1000, 0/10
Rewards: Title Upgrade
Sam closed the message and cracked his knuckles. If the last floor was anything to go by, this would be a walkover.
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Some time later, with about half of the normal lions dead, Sam found the first Alpha. Rather than simply being wreathed in lightning, they were made partly out of lightning. Their legs were made out of fulminating electricity, and every time they struck the ground, it melted.
The creature was about double the size of the other lions, and felt significantly more powerful. If Sam had to guess, it was about 25 levels above the normal lions, and had greater bonuses to boot. The creature instantly took notice of him, and it charged, its legs propelling it at far higher speeds that it could have reached with limbs of flesh and blood. Every step seemed to crack against the air, and it rapidly reached a blur.
Sam grinned and started to imbue his body with his Dao. Simply killing this monster was not enough. He wanted to utterly dominate it. He set his feet, anchoring himself with his Dao to the ground. As the monster approached, he opened his arms wide and dropped his hammer.
The lion let out a roar, and opened its jaws wide, seeking to envelop Sam in its lightning coated teeth. Instead, he grabbed the beast as it approached, and stopped its momentum with his strength and Dao mastery. The creature let out a confused whimper, before Sam brought his fist down, limned in the energy of his Dao Seed.
The power of his E Rank body, combined with his Dao energy and strength was enough to kill the creature in a single blow, overwhelming its E Ranked defenses with ease. Sam was starting to build a picture of how E Ranked bodies worked. Their health values were spread equally across their entire body, rendering them harder to kill in a single blow. However, it was still possible if you dealt enough damage.
As the lion fell, its corpse turned into a shower of sparks, searing the earth. Essence entered Sam, significantly more than the normal lions had given. However, he was still only a fraction of the way to leveling up.
As he crossed the storm shrouded savannah, he killed more of the alphas. They seemed to be drawn to him at a greater rate than the normal lions, despite there being far less of them. Perhaps they were looking for a challenge. Unfortunately for them, that challenge was a fatal one.
The floor finished with a whimper as Sam caved in the heads of a dozen lions with a single blow of his hammer.
You have completed the Fulmination Fields: Layer 2!
You have upgraded a title!
First Floor Vanquisher: Legendary-> Second Floor Vanquisher: Legendary
You have completed the second floor of the Tower of Transcendence. What becomes of you over the next ninety eight is up to you.
Bonuses: +2% to all stats
It was a very basic upgrade for a very basic title, and Sam banished it as he ascended to the next floor.
You have entered the Fulmination Fields: Layer 3
Your objective is to kill a total of 250 Elite Lightning Lions and 25 Elite Lightning Lion Alphas.
Completion: 0/250, 0/25
Rewards: Title Upgrade
Sam wasn’t sure what an Elite Lightning Lion was, but going by the math, it was somewhere in between a normal Lightning Lion, and an Alpha. He closed the notification, and got to work. Hopefully, the floors would grow more interesting before long.