[Started Ascension: A Path to Power (D rank Evolution) — Reach three digits in an attribute or Level 50. You have taken your first step in the evolutionary ladder, and are at the cusp of qualitative change. A last push to explode your potential is all it takes. The stronger the better.
◇ Level 50 or Three digits in an attribute. (Completed)
◇ Consume the blood of a D rank being.
◇ Consume the flesh of a D rank being.
◇ Kill a D rank being of at least 10 levels above you or Kill an E rank being of at least 20 levels above you.
◇ Possess a D rank Prophecy (Completed)]
I stared at the notification briefly. It’s like a quest? On one hand, it seemed relatively doable, if not easy to achieve— well in my opinion — on the other hand, it was a bit disappointing that it was a quest rather than something that would be happening right now. Moreover, it did not explain what would happen once all the requirements were fulfilled. Though at least, it was nice to know that I was close to D rank now. At the same time it made me question just how far away C rank was, and well what level did A rank start at?
It was a bit complicated all things considered. At the same time it seemed to me that it was better to simply just try to evolve as soon as possible in comparison to waiting it out. Well, at the same time it also made me question if D rank really was that strong. I kind of thought I would need more levels to even have an idea of when D rank started, but maybe that was due to the Knell Boar rather than something else.
And well, where was C rank at? 100? That might be a bit too early, no? And Elasia was just D rank? That kind of made sense given— well ignoring the way she spoke, at least based on the fact that she was supposed to be a secretary rather than something else, was understandable.
I shook my head, perhaps it wasn’t time to worry about what came after D rank if I wasn’t even D rank just yet. Though I was well, close. I pondered for a second before finishing distributing points. I decided that I was going to make my Vigor and Wisdom 100 before focusing on other stats. I ended up placing the other 6 attribute points in Vigor, making it 97.
VIG: 97 | END: 42 |
STR: 40 | AGI: 51 |
PER: 43 | WIS: 100 |
I smiled. Though, I suddenly felt a small wave of concern over something. The higher the Rank the slower the levels came. Wouldn’t it be better for me to delay D rank until I can no longer do so?
Glim lightly coughed. [I am required to inform you that waiting isn’t beneficial since the free attribute points gained per level increase at D rank. I am also required to inform you that you would get this information upon finishing all the requirements for the ascension quest.]
Uh huh. I nodded. That made sense. So it was best for me to hurry up, then. At the same time, it really seemed that an even distribution was basically impossible across attributes, even the Prophecy itself encouraged it. Though, it was a bit weird to realize that in fact, my attributes were simply inflated by my armor and Feats.
Couldn’t I technically just trigger the C rank Ascension quest by receiving enough external attribute boosts? Glim said nothing, but I was now a bit skeptical. I spent a few minutes in silence as Sun spoke.
“I take it you are done with things. You should rest a bit. We will head up to the next strata, the one of the Lower Moons, where we can hopefully find a few Upper Moons.”
“Oh,” I regained my wits. “I actually need to kill a few D rank monsters, since I can become D rank soon, apparently?”
Sun paused. “That is quite a surprise. Once you ascend to D rank we should be able to kill the Guardian of Moon,” he said in a pleased voice. “And to do that, we must head up a strata.”
“Strata?” I asked, remembering the term had been used before. I knew what it meant, just not in the context of the nest.
“Well, we need to find you stronger foes. But I am assuming that isn’t your question. I’ll draw you a map.”
He stood up, and using his claw with careful precision, he made an oval in the cave wall. Then he drew a bridge crossing the oval diagonally, followed by two different plateaus attached to said bridge, then a circle underneath and to end it, he wrote in an unknown language. Which was translated to me. He even marked where we were, which was underneath the bridge.
“We are here, where it says, safe zone.” He pointed at the lake. “And the higher level is in front of us. But elevated. This is the forest of the Lower Moon. a place with richer moonlight, but not the best. The other one,” he pointed to a distant forest with a thing called clearing. “Has a gap in the mountain to transform sunlight into moonlight and is the residence of the Upper Moons.”
I nodded, it was a bit simplistic all things considered. At least in comparison to the worm and ant colony Super-Nest anyway.
“Though…” I drew my words somewhat doubtfully. “Are there any Upper Moons that are level 50?”
Sun pondered. “There should be, why?”
“Well.” I scratched my cheek. “To evolve I must kill a D rank being that is at least ten levels higher than me.”
He thought some more. “I suppose that can be arranged, though…” He shifted somewhat uncomfortably. “Well, if we want to find a level 50 Upper Moon they might only be found inside the highest strata.”
“Right.”
“The problem with that is that they work in packs over there. My mission back then was to Guard the Upper Moons from any kind of threat. Not like there was any. But I do understand how they socialize. Main thing being, I might risk my life and your life as well for such a chance. What are the other requirements for your evolution?” He asked quizzingly.
I looked at the notification once more.
“I must consume the blood and flesh of a D grade being…” Saying it outloud made me a bit uncomfortable.
“That can be arranged easily.” He stood up and came to my side, showing me his leg. “Just bite into it.”
“What? I won’t bite into it!”
“But then, you’d need to consume the flesh and blood of the level 50 we kill?”
I snorted. “It doesn’t have an order, I can just do it at a later time. When things fizzle over.”
“I suppose so,” he mused. “Then we can look for the level 50, have you kill it, and then we run. I’m going to act as bait, and you must instantly attack it and do your best to kill it.”
I frowned. “So I must kill it alone and quickly?”
“Pretty much,” he agreed.
“And, will you be okay?” I felt a bit weird, normally I would have agreed and not cared about things, but I had changed.
Sun nodded.
“Then let’s do it, but first.” I took a breath. “I want to test out my new skill first.”
“Go ahead.”
“Outside.”
Sun pondered once more. “Should be fine.”
Having the confirmation that it was safe, I grabbed my bow and left the cave. Soon, I found myself staring at the starry ceiling once more. The quiet sounds of wind, and the occasional howl, though this time around they were quieter and more sparse. Even though the nest was expansive, I did feel like the Moonfang population wasn’t numerous. Sometimes it would take minutes of walking to find a single Moonfang after all, granted they probably lived in designated areas, all in all, it was just relatively empty.
I took a deep breath, grabbed some seeds and subsequently planted a Heart of the Deep Dark tree, or well, just Deep Dark tree. I felt a bit silly to name it after my home after truly realizing that I was in fact brainwashed into liking it, but it was too late to change things now. I shook my head as the tree sprouted, evidently a bit faster than whatever I was used to. And my mana, well, it felt a bit infinite at this point. I could easily shoot over a dozen Explosive Shots before I started throwing up blood.
I closed my eyes. I have come so far. I commanded the tree to make arrows, and even if the drain was there it wasn’t particularly strenuous, or well not like I remembered it to be. I had used about one-fifth of my mana after that. It didn’t take long before the branches were woven into brand new arrows for testing.
Taking a deep breath, I nocked an arrow and thought about things. The Skill. Every skill had something that compelled me to use it, but. I frowned and grabbed my spear instead, and in an instant I felt as if I could make my mana become some sort of corrosive acid, but it was nothing more than a vague weird feeling as if I could imagine myself flying.
I tilted my head and touched my bow again, but there was nothing. Maybe it’s because the enhancement on the bow is active? I prodded it with my mana towards the crystal which was fully charged now, and before I even touched it. The sense of what I could do with my mana shifted. I felt that if I so desired I could imbue my mana with the power to — it was a weird power — the power to skip time and make things immediate? It was weird to think about, but I followed my feelings and focused on changing my mana— I felt a pang in my mana, and soon after a notification came.
[Mimicry Enhancement: Immediate Fate.]
My mana had been drained a bit from just emulating it, but now I felt different. And— I pulled the string back of my bow and with an arrow in hand I aimed towards a tree on the other side of the lake. Based on rough calculations it was an arrow that shouldn’t even reach the other side even while empowered, but I was curious on how the instant travel thing worked, so I aimed anyway.
My mana felt normal, but as soon as I threaded it into the string, it changed into a purple color, and within the arrow it changed as well, imbued with the power to Explode. Both were unstable and illusory, and I could feel it stretching to seemingly infinity, the lines were there once more. I lined it up with a distant tree at the other side of the lake, and with a small smile I let go of the string— it crunched with a weird sound as the string snapped back in place as if the bow was never fired— the arrow itself disappeared as an explosion bellowed in the background.
The tree across the lake exploded and fell down shortly thereafter.
My mana seemed to be doing alright, based on things, I could shoot about ten Explosive Shots that were enhanced before I would inevitably run out of mana.
I didn’t exactly understand how the enhancement impacted the arrow, since I didn’t want to believe it gave it something as silly as infinite range, but at least, it greatly enhanced its strength based on what I had seen.
Glim bobbed. [Well, mana cannot really warp time so some work-arounds must occur.]
“Like?” I couldn’t help but ask.
[Can’t say,] it denied.
I shook my head, but simply being able to copy the enhancement on the bow made the skill worth it. At the same time, there was something that concerned me. With that in mind, I reached for my spear and—
[Can only copy one enhancement per use of Mimicry.]
I felt a bit cheated, but admittedly perhaps it would’ve been a bit too strong to be able to make any arrow either corrode my targets or— instantly hit them? Well… There was a reason why Immediate Fate had a 24 hour cooldown to begin with… And now…
I smiled. I can basically use it without end.
I returned to the cave feeling happy with my skill, and soon, the five minutes passed.
[Mimicry Enhancement has entered a 1 hour cooldown.]
Sun regarded me with some surprise. “That is a great skill.”
“I know right?” I answered with a grin as I inspected my bow. “Only problem is that I can only use it once an hour.”
[Verex Replica (Rare) — A replica of the legendary Verex bow. Manufactured by an unknown but talented smith it has managed to replicate one of the many abilities of Verex. Once a day you can fire an arrow imbued with the power of Immediate Fate. Immediate Fate: Anything affected by it will reach its final original fate, any object affected by outside forces will remain to be affected till its end.]
It didn’t even go on cooldown! My smile became wider.
“Blair,” Sun called. Meeting my gaze. “You should rest. Soon, the forests of the Moon will become nothing but a bloodied battlefield.”
I nodded a bit gravely. “So we are doing it soon?”
“As soon as you are recovered.” He gave me a small grin showing me his fangs. “Seeing that skill puts me at ease.”
I nodded, feeling slightly happy.
D Rank… Here I come.
Azrie
You can read up to chapter 130+ on patreon!
Blair now has a discord server, join here
[Started Ascension: A Path to Power (D rank Evolution) — Reach three digits in an attribute or Level 50. You have taken your first step in the evolutionary ladder, and are at the cusp of qualitative change. A last push to explode your potential is all it takes. The stronger the better.
◇ Level 50 or Three digits in an attribute. (Completed)
◇ Consume the blood of a D rank being.
◇ Consume the flesh of a D rank being.
◇ Kill a D rank being of at least 10 levels above you or Kill an E rank being of at least 20 levels above you.
◇ Possess a D rank Prophecy (Completed)]
I stared at the notification briefly. It’s like a quest? On one hand, it seemed relatively doable, if not easy to achieve— well in my opinion — on the other hand, it was a bit disappointing that it was a quest rather than something that would be happening right now. Moreover, it did not explain what would happen once all the requirements were fulfilled. Though at least, it was nice to know that I was close to D rank now. At the same time it made me question just how far away C rank was, and well what level did A rank start at?
It was a bit complicated all things considered. At the same time it seemed to me that it was better to simply just try to evolve as soon as possible in comparison to waiting it out. Well, at the same time it also made me question if D rank really was that strong. I kind of thought I would need more levels to even have an idea of when D rank started, but maybe that was due to the Knell Boar rather than something else.
And well, where was C rank at? 100? That might be a bit too early, no? And Elasia was just D rank? That kind of made sense given— well ignoring the way she spoke, at least based on the fact that she was supposed to be a secretary rather than something else, was understandable.
I shook my head, perhaps it wasn’t time to worry about what came after D rank if I wasn’t even D rank just yet. Though I was well, close. I pondered for a second before finishing distributing points. I decided that I was going to make my Vigor and Wisdom 100 before focusing on other stats. I ended up placing the other 6 attribute points in Vigor, making it 97.
VIG: 97 | END: 42 |
STR: 40 | AGI: 51 |
PER: 43 | WIS: 100 |
I smiled. Though, I suddenly felt a small wave of concern over something. The higher the Rank the slower the levels came. Wouldn’t it be better for me to delay D rank until I can no longer do so?
Glim lightly coughed. [I am required to inform you that waiting isn’t beneficial since the free attribute points gained per level increase at D rank. I am also required to inform you that you would get this information upon finishing all the requirements for the ascension quest.]
Uh huh. I nodded. That made sense. So it was best for me to hurry up, then. At the same time, it really seemed that an even distribution was basically impossible across attributes, even the Prophecy itself encouraged it. Though, it was a bit weird to realize that in fact, my attributes were simply inflated by my armor and Feats.
Couldn’t I technically just trigger the C rank Ascension quest by receiving enough external attribute boosts? Glim said nothing, but I was now a bit skeptical. I spent a few minutes in silence as Sun spoke.
“I take it you are done with things. You should rest a bit. We will head up to the next strata, the one of the Lower Moons, where we can hopefully find a few Upper Moons.”
“Oh,” I regained my wits. “I actually need to kill a few D rank monsters, since I can become D rank soon, apparently?”
Sun paused. “That is quite a surprise. Once you ascend to D rank we should be able to kill the Guardian of Moon,” he said in a pleased voice. “And to do that, we must head up a strata.”
“Strata?” I asked, remembering the term had been used before. I knew what it meant, just not in the context of the nest.
“Well, we need to find you stronger foes. But I am assuming that isn’t your question. I’ll draw you a map.”
He stood up, and using his claw with careful precision, he made an oval in the cave wall. Then he drew a bridge crossing the oval diagonally, followed by two different plateaus attached to said bridge, then a circle underneath and to end it, he wrote in an unknown language. Which was translated to me. He even marked where we were, which was underneath the bridge.
“We are here, where it says, safe zone.” He pointed at the lake. “And the higher level is in front of us. But elevated. This is the forest of the Lower Moon. a place with richer moonlight, but not the best. The other one,” he pointed to a distant forest with a thing called clearing. “Has a gap in the mountain to transform sunlight into moonlight and is the residence of the Upper Moons.”
I nodded, it was a bit simplistic all things considered. At least in comparison to the worm and ant colony Super-Nest anyway.
“Though…” I drew my words somewhat doubtfully. “Are there any Upper Moons that are level 50?”
Sun pondered. “There should be, why?”
“Well.” I scratched my cheek. “To evolve I must kill a D rank being that is at least ten levels higher than me.”
He thought some more. “I suppose that can be arranged, though…” He shifted somewhat uncomfortably. “Well, if we want to find a level 50 Upper Moon they might only be found inside the highest strata.”
“Right.”
“The problem with that is that they work in packs over there. My mission back then was to Guard the Upper Moons from any kind of threat. Not like there was any. But I do understand how they socialize. Main thing being, I might risk my life and your life as well for such a chance. What are the other requirements for your evolution?” He asked quizzingly.
I looked at the notification once more.
“I must consume the blood and flesh of a D grade being…” Saying it outloud made me a bit uncomfortable.
“That can be arranged easily.” He stood up and came to my side, showing me his leg. “Just bite into it.”
“What? I won’t bite into it!”
“But then, you’d need to consume the flesh and blood of the level 50 we kill?”
I snorted. “It doesn’t have an order, I can just do it at a later time. When things fizzle over.”
“I suppose so,” he mused. “Then we can look for the level 50, have you kill it, and then we run. I’m going to act as bait, and you must instantly attack it and do your best to kill it.”
I frowned. “So I must kill it alone and quickly?”
“Pretty much,” he agreed.
“And, will you be okay?” I felt a bit weird, normally I would have agreed and not cared about things, but I had changed.
Sun nodded.
“Then let’s do it, but first.” I took a breath. “I want to test out my new skill first.”
“Go ahead.”
“Outside.”
Sun pondered once more. “Should be fine.”
Having the confirmation that it was safe, I grabbed my bow and left the cave. Soon, I found myself staring at the starry ceiling once more. The quiet sounds of wind, and the occasional howl, though this time around they were quieter and more sparse. Even though the nest was expansive, I did feel like the Moonfang population wasn’t numerous. Sometimes it would take minutes of walking to find a single Moonfang after all, granted they probably lived in designated areas, all in all, it was just relatively empty.
I took a deep breath, grabbed some seeds and subsequently planted a Heart of the Deep Dark tree, or well, just Deep Dark tree. I felt a bit silly to name it after my home after truly realizing that I was in fact brainwashed into liking it, but it was too late to change things now. I shook my head as the tree sprouted, evidently a bit faster than whatever I was used to. And my mana, well, it felt a bit infinite at this point. I could easily shoot over a dozen Explosive Shots before I started throwing up blood.
I closed my eyes. I have come so far. I commanded the tree to make arrows, and even if the drain was there it wasn’t particularly strenuous, or well not like I remembered it to be. I had used about one-fifth of my mana after that. It didn’t take long before the branches were woven into brand new arrows for testing.
Taking a deep breath, I nocked an arrow and thought about things. The Skill. Every skill had something that compelled me to use it, but. I frowned and grabbed my spear instead, and in an instant I felt as if I could make my mana become some sort of corrosive acid, but it was nothing more than a vague weird feeling as if I could imagine myself flying.
I tilted my head and touched my bow again, but there was nothing. Maybe it’s because the enhancement on the bow is active? I prodded it with my mana towards the crystal which was fully charged now, and before I even touched it. The sense of what I could do with my mana shifted. I felt that if I so desired I could imbue my mana with the power to — it was a weird power — the power to skip time and make things immediate? It was weird to think about, but I followed my feelings and focused on changing my mana— I felt a pang in my mana, and soon after a notification came.
[Mimicry Enhancement: Immediate Fate.]
My mana had been drained a bit from just emulating it, but now I felt different. And— I pulled the string back of my bow and with an arrow in hand I aimed towards a tree on the other side of the lake. Based on rough calculations it was an arrow that shouldn’t even reach the other side even while empowered, but I was curious on how the instant travel thing worked, so I aimed anyway.
My mana felt normal, but as soon as I threaded it into the string, it changed into a purple color, and within the arrow it changed as well, imbued with the power to Explode. Both were unstable and illusory, and I could feel it stretching to seemingly infinity, the lines were there once more. I lined it up with a distant tree at the other side of the lake, and with a small smile I let go of the string— it crunched with a weird sound as the string snapped back in place as if the bow was never fired— the arrow itself disappeared as an explosion bellowed in the background.
The tree across the lake exploded and fell down shortly thereafter.
My mana seemed to be doing alright, based on things, I could shoot about ten Explosive Shots that were enhanced before I would inevitably run out of mana.
I didn’t exactly understand how the enhancement impacted the arrow, since I didn’t want to believe it gave it something as silly as infinite range, but at least, it greatly enhanced its strength based on what I had seen.
Glim bobbed. [Well, mana cannot really warp time so some work-arounds must occur.]
“Like?” I couldn’t help but ask.
[Can’t say,] it denied.
I shook my head, but simply being able to copy the enhancement on the bow made the skill worth it. At the same time, there was something that concerned me. With that in mind, I reached for my spear and—
[Can only copy one enhancement per use of Mimicry.]
I felt a bit cheated, but admittedly perhaps it would’ve been a bit too strong to be able to make any arrow either corrode my targets or— instantly hit them? Well… There was a reason why Immediate Fate had a 24 hour cooldown to begin with… And now…
I smiled. I can basically use it without end.
I returned to the cave feeling happy with my skill, and soon, the five minutes passed.
[Mimicry Enhancement has entered a 1 hour cooldown.]
Sun regarded me with some surprise. “That is a great skill.”
“I know right?” I answered with a grin as I inspected my bow. “Only problem is that I can only use it once an hour.”
[Verex Replica (Rare) — A replica of the legendary Verex bow. Manufactured by an unknown but talented smith it has managed to replicate one of the many abilities of Verex. Once a day you can fire an arrow imbued with the power of Immediate Fate. Immediate Fate: Anything affected by it will reach its final original fate, any object affected by outside forces will remain to be affected till its end.]
It didn’t even go on cooldown! My smile became wider.
“Blair,” Sun called. Meeting my gaze. “You should rest. Soon, the forests of the Moon will become nothing but a bloodied battlefield.”
I nodded a bit gravely. “So we are doing it soon?”
“As soon as you are recovered.” He gave me a small grin showing me his fangs. “Seeing that skill puts me at ease.”
I nodded, feeling slightly happy.
D Rank… Here I come.
Azrie
You can read up to chapter 130+ on patreon!
Blair now has a discord server, join here
