novelraw Book 3: Chapter 60: Gains Gains Gains
Book 3: Chapter 60: Gains Gains Gains
Chapter 60: Gains Gains Gains
Alex set the siphon plate on the ground beside him and exhaled, trying to soothe his shakey hands. He knew this wasn’t the kind of thing you rushed, not unless you wanted to cripple yourself permanently.
He pulled out a vial of black-red potion, the surface alive with little ripples as though something swam within. He uncorked it and set it close by, the acrid smell of iron and herbs burning his nostrils.
With a confident hand, he pulled a stick of powdered aether chalk from his kit and reached back awkwardly to draw along his spine. The strokes came carefully, precise downward spirals, hooked lines, and with three intersecting rings etched directly over the nexus of his second meridian on his spine. Each glyph prickled faintly as he carved it into his flesh with energy, leaving the skin glowing faintly blue-white.
Behind the heart and right over the channel cluster. No mistakes, absolutely no mistakes.
When the pattern was complete, Alex wiped the sweat from his forehead and picked up the siphon plate. Its etched runes flashed faintly at his touch. He positioned it with care, aligning with the glow on his back like a lock waiting for a particular key.
“Here goes nothing.”
He kept the plate steady with one hand while he scooped up a handful of the alchemical slurry in the dish sitting next to him with the other. It was the same mixture from his last artificial gate implant, a concoction to help fuse the item into his body.
He slathered it across the metal before finally taking a breath and pressing the item down against his skin.
The moment the cold metal met his body, his skin flushed hot, sweat instantly breaking out along his shoulders and horehead as the glyph-lines on his back burned brighter. His hand trembled as he pressed the plate to the marked spot. The two patterns,two halves of a [Lattice Spiral], snapped together. The siphon plate sank into him as if the flesh itself liquefied, embedding beneath the fleshy layers until only faint etchings remained visible on the surface. And then the pain hit.
“—Ghhhk!” Alex bit down hard, every muscle locking up. It felt like a spear of molten iron had been shoved straight into his spine. He felt as his meridian bucked violently, aether whipping about like a stormcloud contained in too-small a vessel. For a heartbeat, he thought the backlash would tear him apart from the inside.
But then he forced his mind to still. He seized onto the wild energy, drawing on every ounce of focus he could muster. He willed his aether to wrap around the plate, gripping it tightly, binding and weaving the storm into order. Slowly—agonizingly—the siphon plate settled against the metaphysical channel, its runes locking into resonance with his meridian.
Light flashed across his inner vision.
Enchantment Upgrade Complete!
Enchantment:
Artificial Bodygate; An enchantment that mimics the creation of the Heavens, forming an artificial bodygate on the body of the user. The gate’s effectiveness is determined by the user’s crafting skills, and their willpower stat.
+5,500 Willpower Experience
Alex sagged forward, panting, his back slick with sweat and a faint glowing light still pulsing beneath his skin. But it was in, he’d done it.
Now, its time for another choice.
He already knew the basic options, so Alex mentally filtered out on the most viable choices for his next meridian imprint.
Imprint Unlocked!
Congratulations, you’ve unlocked your third Meridian Point: You’ve made it farther than 90% of Adepts. But this is Asian family style, I have high standards for my children. Do better, why haven’t you opened all 6 meridians already? Why are you not doctor yet?
Options Available due to previous Imprints:
[Aether Bastion]: Fortifies aether channels so you can handle more environmental bullshit! Cause you will face lots of bullshit! (voids, energy-dead zones, other).
[Aether Stabilization]: Further protects your internal energy stuff, from the external energy stuff of other mages. Corruption, curses, mind manipulation (that last one is a real bitch).
[Purity of Aether Essence] – Aether cleaning service. Overtime, cleans corruption from your body from offending aether. Also adds minor resistance to the gunk.
[Aether Backlash Devourer] – Over did yourself, put on a little too much sauce? Convert that pain into energy!
[Immutable Core] – Grants a shield-like layer around the blah blah—lets be real you’re not getting this one.
This time, he spent a little bit of effort on figuring out which option to choose. Of two new viable choices, each stood out in different ways. The first allowed his meridian to slowly cleanse his body of aether corruption, which sounded like it might even work on his [Demon Asura Style] aura, and even gave a small resistance passive.
The second option seemed to turn some of his spell and skill backlash into aether itself. Which was an effect that he did not understand. But again, he wasn’t exactly sure how any of these imprint options really worked, some kind of System shenanigans, obviously.
So the choice came down to lessening the total backlash he received by converting some it immediately, or shortening the recovery time by allowing his body to bounce back faster, while also adding an additional resistance passive.
Again, he wished the System gave him better descriptions.
Alas, there was no helping it, and he had to make a choice based on speculation.
Meridian Point Successfully Imprinted!
Congrats! You picked [Aether Backlash Devourer], the act of turning your reckless consequences into a benefit instead.
Your aether channels are now capable of halting backlash effects and converting that intent into bonus aether energy instead.
You’ve now become an energy hedge-fund manager! No one likes you!
+ 2,500 Vitality Experience
+ 4,000 Intelligence Experience
The next plan he had involved the aether gems that he currently had set into his arm bracer. Glyphs in the bracer were set up to allow him to easily draw energy from the gems when his body was running low. The problem was their placement, Alex knew how dangerous just having things set into your gear was. Items could break, or be stolen. And now the Queen taught him a new lesson, that limbs were not permanent either.
Obby, my next idea is something I don’t know will work.
“Almost all your ideas are batshit, that’s why I like them. What do you have in mind?”
Instead of telling Obby, Alex showed him his thought process through their mental bond, giving him an image of each step of the idea and the final result he wanted to go for.
“Ooooh, that is total goblin bonkers insane. But yeah, its doable. Not with what you have now, though, of course. And I’d need to teach you some new stuff about [Glyphcraft] we haven’t covered yet. But yeah, maybe in another month or so…”
Alex didn’t like that answer; he would prefer to have it done now, when they had time and were resting, but there was no helping it. If they didn’t have the resources, then they just didn’t have them.
There was something he could work on without resources, though. Something else that had been an idea-kernel blooming in his brain and nagging at his thoughts for some weeks. And something he had already had varying success with, even all the way back with his training he did with Sylvaris.
He wanted to alter and upgrade one of his spells. Not make a new one, but upgrade an old one.
Instead of some grand new creation, he let his thoughts circle back to [Flare]. His very first spell.
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He remembered the crude version, the raw blast he’d shown Sylvaris back when he barely understood what aether even was. The stuttering bursts he’d used against the mantis mossling, blowing it back long enough to survive. The storm of wild detonations he used when he’d stood before the Grave Tyrant in the Dark Den, ripping shadows apart with sheer panic.
Then had come the Warden, when he’d nailed down the process of having his punches and kicks sync together with [Flare], timing the explosion with each strike like some martial arts master. Later, on the lake, he had the idea of compressing it into a controlled downward of force, low enough that he could sprint across water instead of sinking. Lastly the narrow shockwave he had shaped like a blade of force when he knife-handed that snake chimera in the garden Biome, cutting it apart instead of blasting it to bits.
All of it… they were crude improvisations. Instincts layered on necessity, rudimentary ways of making partial changes to the intent behind the spellcasting. But it was still proof. Proof that the spell wasn’t locked to one form.
Alex closed his eyes.
In his mind’s eye, the [Flare] spell energy pattern appeared, lines of energy weaving into a familiar sigil before unraveling again as he released its connection to his aether. He repeated that. He let it form again, then dissipate again. Then again in a rhythm, a cycle, never casting it completely, just studying it formation.
Then he shifted focus, pulling up the pattern of his [Vita-Surge Cloak], which was partially mirrored by the layout of his aether channels themselves. He traced how the channels wrapped around his body like a second skin, reinforcing and fueling motion with the injection of vital intent. He compared it to [Earth Bind]’s sinking, weighted knots of aether, or [Shield]’s layered barrier web, even [Wind Lance]’s sharpened spiral that shot forward like an arrow.
Each spell had different flows and different structures. But they all came from the same well.
He layered them in his mind’s eye, folding their patterns over [Flare]. Letting them overlap, clash, merge, and dissolve in countless varying ways. He was searching for similarities and tensions, for the seams where one pattern could slide into another.
Finally, he tugged Sylvaris’ scroll free of his storage bracelet. The parchment fluttered, the old elf’s notations dancing across the parchment in a tight, angular hand next to Alex’s own hastily scrawled notes. He skimmed over it quickly, jumping to the sections he’d marked in his memory; notes on pattern interference, on adjusting intent mid-spellcast, on coaxing element into shape rather than jamming the square peg into the circle hole.
I can do this.
Understanding told him he couldn’t just shift the size of a blast or shave off its edge to form a new spell. Nor could he just slap a patch on the casting pattern mid-fight and expect it to reach the quality of a Novice spell. But, he could change it. He could take the skeleton of [Flare], the core of the spell, and rebuild it into something new.
Alex inhaled slowly. Alright then, focus on a pattern shift. Small changes will add up quickly, so gotta go slow.
The [Flare] array blossomed in his mind, familiar and stable. He tweaked one line, nudged an angle tighter, reshaped a flow point. Then he let the aether move.
The pattern fizzled out before the charge could stabilize, vanishing with a frustrated hiss in his channels.
He tsk’d, reset, and tried again, this time forcing more compression into the outer areas of the pattern. The result: a sharp pop, and a searing heat flashing against his palm.
Too tight. It collapses on itself.
Again he tried. Adjusted, failed. Again. Explosion. Again. Nothing. Again. Just pain burning down his wrist.
It was like brute forcing a combination lock while blindfolded, except the tumblers were made of pure aether, and each wrong attempt might detonate inside his chest.
“Careful, fleshsack,” Obby’s voice thrummed in echo against the walls of his soulspace.
“I don’t need careful,” Alex muttered through clenched teeth. “I need results.”
The next attempt flickered wildly, threatening to spiral out of control until he managed to dismissive it before an explostion.
Obby’s rasp cut through his focus, “Stop compressing the outer channel there. Your spiral’s unbalanced. Do you want your lungs on fire, humans generally don’t like that right?”
Alex froze, halting the casting pattern, and let the pattern dissolve harmlessly. His breath came in sharply. ...You could’ve told me before I nearly combusted the organs that let me breath.”
“Learning sticks better when it hurts. But fine. Look here.”
His vision swam as illusory images snapped into place across his inner sight, Obby’s eerie tentacle “finger” pointing out flaws in the pattern. He pointed out threads that bent the wrong way. Angles that were simply too sharp. Flow points that were misaligned.
Alex adjusted each and tried again. And failed again. Adjusted again. Obby corrected him, forcing him to see what he kept missing. Slowly, the failures started to feel less random. The chaos became narrower, and more controlled.
And then—the moment came.
He felt the array click into place under Obby’s guidance. His gut told him this wasn’t another fizzle or misfire, this time, it was right.
“Don’t second-guess it,” Obby said.
He cast the pattern. A rush of azure aether pooled over his palm, forming a thin, controlled layer that clung to his hand like living light. The energy pulsed, oscillating narrowly and starkly refined instead of explosive and wild. He stared at it, his heart pounding. Then he snapped his fingers.
The spell released in a razor-thin shockwave, lancing forward in a straight line. It struck a tree ten paces away, shearing through the trunk with surgical precision. The massive pine groaned, split cleanly in two, and toppled. Alex’s eyes went wide. Then laughter burst out of him.
“Hah! Yes! Holy shit, yes!”
An azure shimmer still tingled around his fingertips, the aftershock buzzing in his veins. He’d done it. He’d made something new.
Hidden Quest Complete!
New Spell, Who Dis?:
You’ve learned the lesson every mage learns eventually; puny spells are puny. You have taken a puny spell, and upgraded into something new, a less puny spell. Its not a super complex task, you shouldn’t really be too proud of yourself. Here you go.
Reward: + 2,000 Experience
New Spell Learned!
Aether Burst – Novice
Spell: Aether Burst
Type: Transmitter
Element: None
Rank: Novice
Effect: Creates a condensed layer of stored aether over a body part. On impact, or at the casters will, the energy is released in a concentrated shockwave. The release can be shaped and controlled to moderate degree by the caster, allowing for creative use and casting.
Potency of the shockwave and level of control are determined by spell rank, as well as your intelligence and wisdom stats.
“Crumble your enemies beneath your very aether itself.”
“Not bad, meatboy. I’ll admit it, you managed to cobble something together without detonating your body into pink flesh-paste.” Obby’s warped form swirled lazily in his vision. “Of course, let’s be clear—it was my genius guidance that kept you from spraying your insides across the mountain. You should probably incorperate my name into the spell.”
Alex snorted, rolling his eyes as he dispersed the residual energy from his hand. “Yeah, I’ll get right on that. Maybe I’ll call it ‘Obby’s Whining Finger Laser.’”
“You mock me, but history will vindicate my brilliance.”
“Sure, buddy.”
He stood, dusting off his palms before carefully packing away the scattered scrolls, notes, and cultivation items into his spare storage pouch. The chaos of trial and error was finally behind him. All that remained was the last task on his list, the one that made his chest feel tight with both dread and anticipation.
Spending his experience.
He already knew where it was going. And Alex have managed a fair bit of math along the way to make sure it all worked out. He mentally set aside a specific amount of experience, knowing he would be using it for one of his stats last.
With that settled, Alex focused on spending all the rest, which required him brewing some Seraph Dust Tea, because it meant pressing through some Earthly Tribulations for some of his tribulations.
***
New Ability!
Enduring Strength II, Enduring Agility II, Enduring Vitality II
→ EnduringBody II:
Enduring Wisdom II, Enduring Intelligence II, Enduring Willpower II
→ Enduring Enduring Essence II:
Enduring Vitality II → Enduring Vitality III:
You have further demonstrated your capacity to endure the tribulations of earth. Your Vitality has solidified in potency. Grants drastic bonus to endurance, physical recovery and bodily constitution. The quality of your Vital essence has increased.
As with the refinements in the Mortal Tribulations, each Enduring Threshold was a little easier to handle, probably due to the sheer simple fact of increased stats, but Alex doubted that to be the reason. It was more likely a state of mind and preparation thing.
Which was why he was already formulating in his head his next actions and psyching himself up for spending the last of his experience points, the ones he had set aside earlier for a particular stat.
His Willpower was right at the edge of another threshold, and this one was different from the rest he had just gone through, because the System dangled the type of bait that someone like Alex—crazily masochistic for power and progress—couldn’t resist, a new tribulation.
“The Air Tribulation,” Obby said. “Also known as the Heavenly Tribulation. The Heavens themselves will open. A lightning storm will form overhead with lightningbolts called down by the System to test both body and spirit. This kind of ordeal that doesn’t care if you scream, beg, cry or pray.” The one large eye on his illusory face blinked out of sync with his words, unpleasantly. “Your dusty tea can’t help you here.”
“That’s okay,” Alex said, unfastening the straps of his armor. “I won’t need it. I’ve got a plan.”
“Oh, a plan?” Obby’s grin split too widely, showing teeth that didn’t quite exist, stretching ear to ear. “Why didn’t I think of having one of those? Please, enlighten me, o’ brilliant mortal tactician.”
He sighed, peeling away the last layer of his robes and tossing them on his pack. The camp grew noticeably quieter. A few conversations faltered and eyes turned his way.
At this point for Alex, modesty was a lost cause. Half of those that were present had already seen him stripped down during cultivation rounds, bleeding in medical tents, or literally regrowing skin after near-death battles. If anyone was scandalized, that was their problem. He wasn’t about to ruin armor or enchanted cloth during a lightning storm just to keep his underwear on.
Still, he noticed it, the hesitation in some of their gazes. A few of the women stole glances they thought to be subtle. And, amusingly enough, Rynel and Cole didn’t look away either. Their eyes lingered a beat too long before pretending to be interested in something else.
Holly noticed.
A sudden gust of wind swept through camp, targeted like a slap. Each offender found their gaze forcibly redirected by an invisible hand until they were staring determinedly at the dirt, the sky, or their own boots.
Alex barked out a laugh, grinning as Holly sat a little straighter by the fire, her expression cool but her aura bristling with warning.
“Guess I should thank you for the… wind coverage,” he said, smirking at her.
“Don’t push it,” Holly muttered, though the faintest smile tugged at her lips.
He decided to take her advice and focused on his next actions instead. It was time, to touch a new stage in his path to power, once again. He funneled the last of his experience points into Willpower. The stat ticked past the threshold—
—and the world split open.