After settling the matter of him joining the UDA, Alex starts preparing for his return trip to the Realm of Defenders. He starts buying rations and pack some clothes in his backpack. After his preparation is done, he sits in front of his computer at home and opens up the UDA Member's Knowledge Base.
There really are a lot of information that wasn't divulged to the public. There are detailed explanation on almost every skill in the Realm of Defenders, their strength, weakness, the best way to use them, skill combinations. There isn't one about {Energy Manipulation} though, as expected. There are also detailed information about almost every item in the F-rank store. The section Alex is most interested in though is the Creatures section. There are information about the strength and weakness on every F-rank creatures. There are also tips on how to fight them.
After reading everything he needs, Alex shuts down his computer and starts sleeping. On the next day, June 24th, Alex reenters the Realm of Defenders.
....
Alex Volff appears in the bright room again. This is his personal space.
"Welcome back, Alex," Fay greets him.
"Hello, Fay," Alex replies.
"Do you want to start exploring immediately?" Fay asks Alex.
"No. I want to sort out some things first," Alex answers Fay's question.
Fay nods and let Alex does his thing. Alex then walks to his [Storage Box] to retrieve the items he left there before. He takes out the vial filled with blue liquid. He then walks up to the [Evolution Capsule] and inserts the {Evolution Potion} into the slot on the side of the capsule. Before walking into the capsule, Alex checks his basic stats one more time.
>-----<
Name: Alex Volff
Age: 15
Race: Human
Rank: F**
Credits: 90
>-----<
Basic Stats:
- Strength: 28
- Speed: 26
- Agility: 27
- Endurance: 30
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- Spirit: 43
- Mana: 45/45
>-----<
Skills:
- Energy Manipulation (F)
>-----<
Kill Count: [55 F*]
Achievements: 0
Records: 0
>-----<
To his surprise, his Spirit has grown by one. He has never stopped training the {Energy Manipulation} skill, maybe that's why his Spirit grew. Alex then enters the capsule and starts absorbing the {Evolution Potion} to evolve his body for the second time. After staying in the capsule for 2 hours, Alex steps out feeling more powerful than before. He checks his stats once again using the [Observe] function of the [Magic Chip].
>-----<
Name: Alex Volff
Age: 15
Race: Human
Rank: F**
Credits: 90
>-----<
Basic Stats:
- Strength: 39
- Speed: 36
- Agility: 38
- Endurance: 42
- Spirit: 60
- Mana: 60/60
>-----<
Skills:
- Energy Manipulation (F)
>-----<
Kill Count: [55 F*]
Achievements: 0
Records: 0
>-----<
Even though his basic stats saw a bigger increase than the previous evolution, he can see that in terms of percentage it wasn't as big as the first one. This increase is only because his stat is already high. It seems like the effectiveness of the F-ranked {Evolution Potion} will truly keep decreasing as he uses it more.
There is also one thing that bothers him, his spirit. He seems to have a natural talent when it comes to his Spirit stat. If ranking up criteria is only based on his spirit, he already possess the requirement to rank up to F-rank 5-star. The problem is that his high Spirit stat has no direct use in combat other than to use it for the {Energy Manipulation} skill. Alex thinks of it as a waste of his high Spirit stat.
"Hey Fay, can you tell me about this Spirit stat?" Alex decides to try and asks Fay.
"The Spirit stat is related to the strength of your soul," Fay explains.
"My soul?" Alex shows a confused expression as things like soul is an abstract concept to him.
"Yes, your soul. Every intelligent creature is composed of physical body, soul, and energy. Energy is the soldier, soul is the general, and physical body is the vessel," Fay continues explaining with a cryptic statement.
"I think I get a bit of what you're saying, but it doesn't help me. Can you tell me more?" Alex asks Fay again.
"I'm sorry, that's all I can tell you. You rank is still too low for now, so I can't tell you more," Fay replies to Alex.
Alex is a little disappointed, but a little clue is still a clue after all. Alex tries to ponder on Fay's statement. While pondering, Alex keeps training using the {Energy Manipulation} skill, trying to increase his proficiency in it.
After using the skill for a few times, Alex can now feel it's easier for him to control his Mana. Alex can understand a bit of Fay's cryptic message. As his Spirit grows stronger, it gets easier to control his Mana. The Spirit is the general, and the Mana is the soldier. As the general gets stronger, the soldier gets more obedient.