novelraw Chapter 1577 - 1576 - First True Test
Chapter 1577 - 1576 - First True Test
Lind took a considerable time to recover. Despite the regenerative abilities of his body, foreign energy was riddled inside him! He had to work very hard to move it but he found an unexpected source of aid.
His elemental Nodes seemed to naturally push the foreign energy out by simply cycling it through his meridians and body.
It seemed the combined might of the 3 elemental sets was not to be trifled with. His creation exceeded the power of even the Journeyman Tier power traces. Still, it was not quick.
He spent the next few centuries on that beach as he could not even move from it! Eventually, he opened his eyes to find he could barely move. The soreness in his body would linger still but he could check on the red stone.
He had to climb the mountain and it actually took him 4 days to reach the cavern. The stone was safe and he actually felt some power flow into him that made him feel much better.
"Thank you, but take care of yourself." He was still not 100% sure but he operated as if he was right.
He cultivated for another 200 years before he was back to 80% of his potential. The foreign energy was finally purged but the damage was still taking time to fully heal. He had a new appreciation for his current life.
He left the mountain and floated down to the beach once more as he had noticed a change as he recovered. The sensation he had was of something massive just below the surface of the waves.
He could sense the beasts farther out but they were always in motion, the new feeling was not.
He looked out as the ocean of stars moved like it always had but now he bowed low with his cupped hands.
[Senior, I am here.] He waited until the sounds changed. He looked up to see several white tentacles emerge but they were not as fast as before. In fact, they were damaged!
[You–did–well.] The voice was so quiet compared to before. Lind frowned but he had little he could do. He knew nothing about krakens or leviathans. On top of that, from what Haro had revealed to him, he could not just summon an elixir and expect it to work.
Tailored work was fare more important beyond grade 8.
[I am a Triple Maester. While I do not have materials to help, may I examine you?] He felt trepidation but eventually one of the tentacles came near him.
[Master, be warned. Even if they allow it, a Master Tier can destroy you out of reflex.] Lind took that warning seriously. He centered himself before emerald light lined his hands.
He touched the tentacle and found it was surprisingly tough. It almost felt like billions of tiny scales rather than the pliant flesh he had expected.
Still, he focused on trying to sense anything.
He felt massive resistance yet he did not rush. He allowed the limb to accept he was not a threat and the resistance slowly faded.
Eventually, he was able to begin to assess his patient but he was shocked at how massive they were! He had a general sense of mass before but it seemed his senses were far more dull than he had been aware of!
The kraken was huge! It was easily the size of a small country! Yet, the majority of its size stemmed from the myriad tentacles. He also realized the number was changing! It could merge and separate its limbs at will!
There were no bones but a set of muscles that connected to a kind of tendon type link that the beast could merge or separate as desired!
The flexibility of its form made it formidable! If the kraken needed a discrete number of large tentacles to attack a target, it was easy to do or if it faced an army, it could deal with sheer numbers on the same playing field!
Its main body was relatively small compared to that but that part alone was as big as Cimmeria or other massive city he had encountered.
He also found a lot of damage. Dead sections were healing but unlike him, the kraken did not seem to be suffering from invading energy but some kind of action it took had a backlash.
He found its dantian but it was a void to his senses. He dared not even touch it but he saw the meridians nearby were fried. It was very bad.
He slowly retracted his senses as he considered what he knew. He had no direct comparison but it seemed for all their size and strength, krakens were not able to heal as easily as some other beasts.
Dragons and phoenixes were probably the only races that had a built in healing factor of some kind. Phoenixes had rebirth while dragons were just insanely full of vitality.
[I think you know you are very hurt, senior. I do not have access to anything to even attempt to make an elixir or some kind of artifact to aid you, but I do have one thing I can demonstrate.]
The damage from the battles had not healed on the island. Lind approached the area near the beach where he knew the kraken could still observe him.
His body lit up as the Art of Defiance was conjured. He made a wave with it and the trees, brush, and even other flora were slowly restored. It took effort as more of the Journeyman Tier energy resisted him.
Still, his Art was far more efficient at purging the energy.
Lind stopped after the new growth took hold and let the forest take over from there.
He looked back to see 5 tentacles hovering above his head. He then waited until all but one retracted.
[Attempt.] It was all he got but Lind conjured something else at that moment. His Art alone had zero chance of working but he had long wondered if he could use his Dao Weapon to enhance it.
Myriad artifacts had been made to enhance Arts, techniques, and physiques.
The staff shimmered with power as Lind carefully pictured what he wanted to do. He felt his Life Layer respond as the Art flowed into the Dao Weapon.
A far more profound glow came from it as he touched the tentacle with one end of the staff. Power flowed into it like a sponge!
He felt his body quickly weaken but he pulled on the world outside himself. He was learning what he could do and at that moment he was able to test yet another theory.
Once condensed, his Mysteries could resonate and absorb similar energies in the world around him.
He made damn sure to not steal from other life, but that was not what he was doing anyway. All he was doing was invigorating the kraken's own healing abilities. Restoration was his goal, not direct healing.
He would exhaust himself if he tried that!
He was only an Apprentice Tier and no matter the quality of his Mysteries, he had zero chance of direct healing a Master Tier!
Instead, he focused on restoration. The regeneration increased exponentially while the kraken actually caused the Void Ocean to churn. The dead flesh was shed or expunged over time until Lind nearly collapsed from exhaustion.
His Dao Weapon dispersed and he sat down covered in sweat. The once languishing tentacle seemed to shine with new life. It fell back into the tide as the sensation of the beast fell away.
[Thank you.] Lind smiled but could not move as he just lay back in the sand. The crunching sound was rather loud as he just fell back without restraint.
[Master, if I am not wrong, you are the first ever Apprentice Tier to help a Master Tier recover.] Lind smiled wider but did not let it go to his head. He had to spend a lot of time letting the beast recognize him as not a threat before he could even begin to attempt it.
Even then, he suspected it consciously held back its instincts as best it could to not harm him.
It was an invaluable experience as he now had a far better grasp not only of his Art but also his Mysteries in the Life Layer!
"Haro, I have to find a safe place to grow and be able to experiment. Any ideas?" A long silence followed but it was not Haro that answered.
[There is a place. There is a price but you may return to the walker's place once paid.] He waved as he could not even sit up and it seemed to satisfy the kraken.
Haro actually seemed very excited but Lind put off anything until his tenure as guardian was at an end.
After half a day, he was able to stand up and return to the mountain.
The cavern was the best place to cultivate and he wanted to explore his Life and Death Layers more with his new experiences. He felt it was very important before attempting the Samsara Layer.
The fact no one had come told him he was likely safe for the moment.
He knew all 6 of the Journeyman Tiers survived that last time as he had not been even able to put a scratch on them.
He wanted to explore that facet of his Art too but he would need something safe to test it on. Lind began to cultivate and explore the possibilities in his mind.