——————————————————————Progression Quest "System Upgrade III" Complete!
Reward: 1000xp
System Upgrade
-Shop Upgraded
-Specialized Quests
Access to quest "System Upgrade IV"
*Optional Rewards based on performance*
Awakened 50% and more of the dragon blood.
-Skill Tome (Uncommon)
Awakened 60% and more of the dragon blood
-Skill Tome (Uncommon) x2
Awakened 70% and more of the dragon blood
-Skill Tome (Epic) x2
Awakened 80% and more of the dragon blood
-Skill Tome (Epic)
-Skill Tome (Legendary)
Awakened 90% and more of the dragon blood
-Skill Tome (Legendary)
-Soul Iron
——————————————————————
Zeke was overwhelmed with the rewards he got from his quest. He felt excited about the feeling of getting a bunch of new skills again. However, when he saw the last reward, he couldn"t help but get confused.
"System, what"s that last item? Soul Iron?"
Zeke looked into his inventory only to find a large violet-colored ingot. It looked like a colored metal but it exuded a heavy and mysterious feeling.
*That"s a kind of iron rarely seen even in the ancient times. It"s a type of metal that most blacksmiths use when they were forging magic weapons.*
"Magic Weapons?"
*Yes, Zeke. These weapons are a notch higher than common weapons as they possess a suitable body for mana application. This means that when the user injects or coats the Magic Weapon with mana, it would be able to exert much more than common weapons. Soul Iron is a kind of metal used to make weapons that are meant for Magicians. It can absorb and hold magic like no other metal could do. In your current day and age, I a.s.sume this kind of metal is extinct. After all, only n.o.bles in the ancient times could have a piece of it.*
Zeke was shocked about the value of the violet-colord ingot. However, he knew he couldn"t do much about it right now so he brushed past it. He turned his attention towards the pile of books scattered in his inventory.
"System, open all the uncommon spells for me."
*Yes, Zeke. Consuming Skill Tome (Uncommon) x3.*
After a while, information popped up in Zeke"s mind.
The spells he got were named Frost Orb, Air Blaze, and Fiery Arrow. Frost Orb forms...o...b.. conjured with Ice to launch towards the enemy. Air Blaze is an upgrade to Wind Blade wherein the gust of wind would have a shred of fire-attributed mana, making it sharper and more destructive. Fiery Arrow is as the name implies, arrows formed from fire which can be launched at will.
These three spells were all suitable for Tier 2 Magicians, so Zeke planned on studying all of it since he felt like his other spells were lacking now. He realized that only magic of the same tier could fully unleash the power of the magician.
"System, the epic one?"
*Yes, Zeke. Consuming Skill Tome (Epic) x3.*
The skill Zeke got from the Epic one was called Shroud. It was a spell which procures a smokescreen around the user. It can also vary in element depending on the user"s choices. Zeke knew this was good for distractions and for fleeing.
The second Epic Skill he got pleased Zeke. Its name was Hymn of Light, and unsurprisingly, it was a light-based spell. What pleased Zeke was that it was a spell meant for group support. It conjures a barrier of light to people to deflect attacks coming from all directions.
The third Epic Skill was called Divine Sense. It was an auxiliary skill that utilizes a person"s soul to scour the surrounding areas. The range and effectiveness of the skill are based on the strength of the caster"s soul. With Zeke"s powerful soul, it was natural for him to be pleased by this spell.
"Alright. System, open the Legendaries!"
*Yes, Zeke. Consuming Skill Tome (Legendary) x2.*
Very soon, another wave of information thrice as big as the previous ones appeared in Zeke"s mind.
The first Legendary Skill he got was called Puppet Queen Marionette"s Fantoccini. This was an extremely peculiar and downright unethical spell that controls people just like how a marionettist controls a marionette. When cast on a willing subject, Zeke could control their movements as if he"s the one possessing the body.
Based from what he had previously read, techniques like these were often a.s.sociated to the Demon races. However, in the pa.s.sage of time, these became rarer and rarer as experts die and their predecessors fail in living up the techniques" full glory. This resulted in less and less variant spells and techniques, slowly making the previously diverse world a linear place.
When Zeke read the information included within the spell, he couldn"t help but knit his brows. This spell, for him, could also be called slavery, to put it simply. The [Puppet Queen Marionette"s Fantoccini]"s specialty lay on its soul bounding technique. Once Zeke cast it on a person whose mind is unguarded, he could basically make the target his/her slave. If the targets became soul bound to him, they could not disobey Zeke"s will. However, this is not the spell"s only trick. The main effect of the spell is that the puppeteer can actually control his "puppets" specific moves once cast. It would be like the puppeteer is actually the puppet himself, and even Zeke would share vision with his puppet. That was what made the [Puppet Queen Marionette"s Fantoccini] worth its legendary rating from the system.
Zeke felt mixed emotions regarding this skill. In one hand, it didn"t feel right to enslave someone and strip them of their will but on the other hand, Zeke felt it"d be a good spell with limitless potential and usage. In the end, Zeke thought of it as a positive thing seeing as any power is good as long as its used in the right and suitable way.
The second one excited Zeke the most. The name of the skill was Grand Sorcerer Ziva"s Mana Manipulation. Although the name itself sound common, it was actually one of the most advanced techniques that only magicians of Tier 5 and above can use. [Grand Sorcerer Ziva"s Mana Manipulation] makes it so Zeke could literally manipulate mana in an area around him at will. This wasn"t like the common practice where magicians cast a spell because this type of manipulation affects the surrounding external mana. Magicians of Tier 1 to 4 could only will and release mana out of their mana core. At most, they could influence the surrounding mana but not to the extent of directly using it at will. [Grand Sorcerer Ziva"s Mana Manipulation] however made it possible for a Tier 2 like Zeke to achieve what only Tier 5 Magicians and above could do.
Without hesitation, Zeke immediately tried using it. However, to his surprise, it was actually not that easy! When he tried to control the surrounding mana, he felt like a father trying to tell his rebellious child to do something. The surrounding mana seemed to have a will of its own and it faced Zeke"s request with refusal.
Zeke was slightly surprised by this, but he felt it was natural considering he"s just a measly Tier 2 right now. He also tried it without prior understanding of the Mana Manipulation so he realized that for this to work, he had to adapt and earnestly learn [Grand Sorcerer Ziva"s Mana Manipulation] to a high enough level to be able to bend mana to his will. Without this skill, Zeke would not have even the tiny chance of success in controlling and manipulating mana as it was just impossible without a certain amount of strength required to deter the surrounding mana"s will.
Zeke immediately cast [Wisdom King"s Grace] on [Grand Sorcerer Ziva"s Mana Manipulation], instantly leveling it up to lvl 5. With that, various comprehensions and informations surged inside Zeke as he received guidance in how to manipulate mana without reaching the "certain strength needed".
This time, Zeke maintained his calmness. He didn"t get too excited as he willed only a strand of mana to move. With a thought, a strand of mana near Zeke actually moved and followed through as it launched towards the distance. After around 20 meters, Zeke"s control dispersed as the strand of mana also stopped moving.
"It seems 20 meters is the limit, huh."
Zeke smiled bitterly. The spell not only required the soul to be strong, but the user"s comprehension towards it also needs to be on par. If one of the two falls behind, it will severely limit the spell. This was exactly what Zeke"s facing right now: although he has a strong soul, his comprehension towards the spell was pitifully weak such that he could only control it inside 30 meters. As Zeke"s comprehension towards it increases, the maximum range and territory will also naturally increase.
After pondering for some time, Zeke felt it"d be best to learn the old man"s collection of spells later. After all, the items weren"t like his skill tomes where he could immediately learn it once he "consumed" it.
*Zeke, do you remember your Mad Dragon"s trait? You could absorb the blood essence and energy of this corpse.*
Zeke looked at the corpse. He felt disgusted by the thought of "devouring" the gruesome sight he was seeing. However, before he could refuse, he heard system"s words.
*If you"re thinking about literally devouring it, fret not. There is a method included within your new memories to siphon the corpses" energies without you actually touching them.*
When Zeke heard this, he immediately scoured through his memories. After a few seconds, he found an incantation of some sort that he previously dismissed as "useless".
Zeke chanted some incomprehensible words while facing the corpse of the old man. While chanting, the old man"s corpse suddenly vibrated and started to wilt and dry up. Faint red strands that seem like blood yet not floated above it as it charged straight towards Zeke.
The process only took a few seconds, and by now, the corpse was already all dried up. It looked like a skeleton that had a layer of skin covering it. Strange enough, there was not even a drop of blood present around it. The corpse looked like it had been dead for a hundred years ago after Zeke absorbed it.
The strands of red energy went inside Zeke"s body as it evenly distributed itself and headed towards every part of Zeke"s body. Zeke felt his body go numb for a second before feeling a surge of energy as well as a tinge of pain. He felt his body surge with power as his whole body underwent a small increase in sheer strength.
"It increased my strength for quite a bit, huh."
*Yes, Zeke. To be precise, it added close to a hundred points of stat on your Strength and Agility, as well as twenty or so points on your Int.*
Zeke was schocked about the increase in strength. He had only absorbed the energy of one person, but it already increased his stat by a hundred. Would that mean that every ten people he absorbs, he"d get almost 70% of his current stats?
*No, Zeke. It was just that the corpse you absorbed had attained quite a level in power. He was a Tier 3 Magician but he also practiced Body Enhancement. If it weren"t for the Formless Poison, you wouldn"t even mortally injure him. His own energy almost amounted to three times the amount of yours, so a.s.suming you killed atleast ten creatures with the same strength as you, it would only add at most 50% of your current stat.*
Zeke nodded. He understood it since even he felt it was absurd to earn as much as that for every kill. He forgot the fact that he could not even injure the old man in his peak. Also, Zeke took in the fact that a person as strong as him would obviously be hard to kill, so the thought of absorbing ten Zekes-worth of energy was impossible for the time being.
Before turning around, Zeke noticed a tucked letter fall off the old man"s robe as his body wilted. It was a formal letter that had a seal of a crow as well as blood smeared all over it. Zeke picked it up and opened it, revealing a beast fur that had writings in it. It had blood smeared all over it so Zeke couldn"t understand the whole contents of the letter but Zeke vaguely read the words "part", "treasure" and "Duke" written in it. He couldn"t make heads or tails of it so he just stored it in his inventory. There was also a bra.s.s key inside the letter that Zeke also didn"t know the purpose of so he also stored it alongside the letter.
After a few more minutes of checking his current strength, Zeke decided to head down towards the next room.
When he reached the staircase, he noticed to his surprise that it was now made of stone. Previously, the walls and floor were only made from hardened soil, but now, it was replaced with smooth stone walls and stairs. Zeke became stern as he vaguely guessed that this place should be more special than the previous rooms he entered.
When Zeke reached the end of the stairs, he could see a magnificent-looking wooden door with intricate carvings of obscure faces with horn protruding in their forehead. There was also carvings of human figures as well as other animals like birds and horses on the walls beside the door. The entire scene looked grandiose as Zeke even felt slight pressure emanating from it.
The door"s form was just like any other household door except it was almost thrice as big as well as the magnificent looking carvings and designs all around it. When Zeke tried to open it, he found out that it wouldn"t budge even with his strength. Zeke tried to push it with his full power but it didn"t even move an inch. Zeke was confused. It was clearly just a wooden door, how as it this st.u.r.dy?
After a few more tries, Zeke gave up on forcing his way in. He tried to look for other methods as he gazed around the door hoping to find a secret b.u.t.ton or mechanism. After a while of fumbling and touching the perimeter of the door, there wasn"t a single b.u.t.ton or anything out of the ordinary. It was just a magnificent-looking wooden door in Zeke"s eyes.
"Hmmm.... locked..."
Zeke thought for a bit before facepalming. He was so immersed that he forgot the basic opening of door which was through the door k.n.o.b. Sure enough, there really was a keyhole in it. Zeke smiled bitterly as he thought of his weird actions earlier.
However, the new problem for Zeke was the location of the key. He guessed that this door should and could only be opened using the right key since even his full strength ram couldn"t even make the door budge. It was as if the wooden door was actually a st.u.r.dy and impenetrable wall.
After a few seconds of pondering, Zeke facepalmed again. He took out the bra.s.s key he got earlier and he inserted it to the keyhole.
To his surprise, it actually went in!
"d.a.m.n, I think too much."
Suddenly, the key disappeared as Zeke saw his entire being get ripped apart. Although it didn"t hurt, it was still a bad sight for Zeke to see his own body get torn around. Soon, Zeke vanished from his spot while the place he was in returned to its usual silent atmosphere.
Zeke couldn"t handle the bright light that flashed earlier as he closed his eyes. When he opened it again, he found out that there was no door in front of him anymore. When looking around, Zeke saw the door in his back, but its designs were now mirrored. Zeke realized that he was teleported inside the room by using the key as he immediately became stern. He looked around and surveyed the surroundings while also drawing out his sword and readying it for battle.
The room was filled by light as yellow orbs lit up the left and right walls of the room. The orbs were floating above a protruding slab as it emanated yellow light throughout the whole room. In front of Zeke was a big box that was as tall as half of Zeke"s body. It was laying there in the back part of the room with no obstructions to it and Zeke whatsoever.