One of the elders whispered something to his neighbor, and she laughed. The man who had spoken to Sam flashed them a look and they quieted.
“You must provide instruction to our scion so that he can break through. We purposefully placed this request in a newly initialized universe because of how anyone there with a Dao Fragment would be a genius of the first order. In fact, I can sense the paths of karma and fate twist around like you like light around a black hole. You are the first in your universe to gain a Dao Fragment, are you not?”
Sam considered lying, but then he nodded. The man smiled and looked at one of the women.
“My wife is a big fan of you, Arbiter. She follows your fights on the Interweb whenever they are on.”
Surprised that the man knew him, Sam realized that he had access to information from people outside of his universe.
“Wait a minute, am I famous or something?”
The man and his wife chuckled.
“In the nearby universes, most definitely so. It is a pity that your universe is in the clutches of the Butcher, but perhaps you shall be the first to end his bloody reign.”
One of the other elders hit the man on the back of the head.
“Talnor! Do not say such things where people might hear.”
The man winced and looked back at Sam.
“We can speak after, but for now we need your services. When you are ready, we can begin.”
Sam nodded and walked over to the boy sitting on the ground.
“What do you need me to do?” Sam asked.
“You must field your Dao aura in a way that it creates a crucible in which the boy can form his own. Make it so that he is suppressed, but not overwhelmed.”
Sam gave him a look.
“Why can’t you just do it? Surely you all have fragments by now.”
The man laughed.
“Oh, the follies of the newly initialized. Most people do not gain Dao Fragments for decades. Ordinary life is not exactly conducive to their creation.”
Sam cocked his head. It seemed that his privileged situation had inured him to the realities of the Multiverse, as well as only hearing about the prodigies, those who had created their Dao ahead of the curve. He nodded and began the process.
Sitting down next to the boy, he fielded his aura, making sure to do so slowly and carefully. He tried to make it as the elder had directed, suppressive, but not overwhelming. Judging that by the expressions that the boy made, he was able to find a happy balance.
He sat there for a while, starting to reach out with his Dao sense into the boy. What he saw there made him frown. The boy’s Dao was like a mess of power, technically complete, but completely unrefined.
Doing something that he had never done before, Sam reached out with his Dao and started to alter the fabric of the boy’s with its power. He sank into a deep trance, and lost all sight and track of what he was doing. He weaved the strands of power back into a cohesive whole, creating a miniature sun inside the boy’s body. It was nowhere near as perfect as his own, but it was a far cry from what had been there before.
Wiping a bead of sweat off of his head, Sam withdrew his aura somewhat and began to feel a pressure building against its constraints. He pushed back and as the two forces clashed, the orb of power within the boy started to shine brighter and brighter. With a clap of thunder, it blossomed into full force, a nascent star within his body. The process had been a bit different that Sam’s own, likely because he had fused two Daos together, rather than just upgrading one of them. The boy opened his eyes, a look of wonder on his face.
“H-how? What was that? My Dao is so much more powerful than before.”
The elders looked at Sam with an expression of shock. One of them walked over to the boy and asked him a question softly. Sam could not hear it, but he could hear the answer.
“It was like there was a beneficent god from on high, directing me through the creation process.”
The leader of the group looked at Sam with tears in his eyes, and then did something unexpected. He fell to his knees and started bowing before Sam. The rest of the group followed suit. As they rose, the leader took Sam’s hand in his and shook it.
“You have gone far beyond what we asked for. Unfortunately, we cannot raise the essence reward, but I have a better proposition for you. From now on, we shall join your faction, as soon as you create it that is. Using the new power of our scion, we can make our way to the universal portals, and from there travel to your universe. How does that sound?”
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
Sam was stunned.
“Wait a second, you said that you all were in control of a planet, right?’ They nodded. “And all of that power would then be under me?” They nodded again. Sam grinned. “Hell yeah, I’m in!”
The other man smiled and then turned to his companions.
“I think it's time for introductions. I am Talnor Manthrox, and the other members of our sect will introduce themselves to you at their discretion. Unfortunately, there is no time to do so right now, but rest assured, we will be coming within the year. I swear it upon my cultivation.”
The rest of the elders made similar oaths, and then they flickered out of sight. As they did so, Sam was filled with power as the essence filtered into him. He left the Interweb to see his new level and stats. Firstly though, there was a notification.
You have gained the Class skill, [Dao Pedagogy:Legendary] Great is the man who possesses power. Greater still is the man who uses that power to benefit his disciples. Greatest is the man who can use that power to develop the power within his students. Many would kill for this skill, whether for it to be used on them, or for it to be given to them. Be careful of those you show this to, for it has the potential to change the lives of many. You are able to fix flaws in the Daos of those who possess a lower level Dao than your own.
There was another one underneath it.
You have gained your first class skill. Class skills are kept within the Dao Annals, ready to be implanted into the class user upon either reaching a prerequisite, or upon forming it for themselves. Your class does not possess any records, so you gain assistance in forming them instead.
“Huh, I guess it really is unique after all. Jeffrey was right,” Sam said, looking at the message. It seemed that he was within uncharted territory. Before he could explore this more he could feel the subtle pressure of multiple levels waiting for him. Sam did not know how much essence corresponded to a level, but he would be able to find out easily enough.
You have leveled up!(x3)
(You have reached the essence cap for non combat or cultivation related essence gains for your rank)
Sam frowned. That had been a lot less that he had expected for how much essence he had received. He opened his stat sheet and inwardly winced.
Sam Atlas
Human
Mortal Tier
G Rank
Class:Dao Visionary
Level 35
(9 free stat points)
Strength
60
1.38x
Constitution
43
1.38x
Resilience
33
1.38x
Dexterity
31
1.38x
Intelligence
48
1.38x
Wisdom
67
1.38x
* Health 430/430
* Mana 400/400
* Stamina 900/900
* Dao
Dao Fragment of Righteous Anger(First Step)
* Skills
1x Common, 2x Rare, 4x Legendary
* Titles
1x Celestial
* Temporary Titles
1x Epic, 1x Legendary, 1x Mythical
* Dao Heritage
Dao Incarnation of Existence
* Party
Torturna Salvinii-Brescon: Level 29. Health 370/370
Rax:Level 28. Health 410/410
* Skill Branches
Muscle Density Enhancement(Level 1)
Basic Weapon Knowledge:Blunt(Level 1)
* Weapon Style
Flowing Water Style
* Weapon Mastery:Implement Stage 5
* Elemental Affinities
Earth:1% Mastery
Sam was on the cusp of his Intelligence threshold and he knew that the breakthrough would be just as painful as all the others. The only question was whether he should bite the bullet now and take the pain, or wait until his next level. Before he could change his mind, Sam added the two stat points to the stat.