Aaron bashed his insurmountable willpower against his own Skill. Because he had an idea, and whilst it was anything but conventional, he was determined to make it work.
What would happen if he poured stamina into the maze designed to handle only mana?
Of course, you couldn’t simply pour stamina into something external. Stamina was an internal energy. But what if he harnessed a Skill like [ Spectral Fist ]?
The fist of power was supposed to be used like a missile to attack his enemies. But it was also a vessel for his stamina. Why couldn’t he use that vessel for something other than attacking?
This System didn’t seem to like this way of thinking, as he felt resistance every which way he pushed his power. Unlike raw energy, his Skill didn’t seem to like being tampered with, as if something greater than he was trying to prevent him from doing exactly what he was attempting to do.
But Aaron wouldn’t have any of that. If he could mold his raw energy and use it to create new attacks, then why couldn’t he do the same with his Skills? They were his Skills, after all, weren’t they?
His very body seemed opposed to the cheat he was attempting. Blood ran down his face, trickling from his eyes, and pain stung at him from all around.
But Aaron cared little about pain. He had experienced it all. He had no special skill, which rendered it null. Pain was part of him, and he was just a stubborn bastard who refused to yield to something as trivial as pain.
His body trembled, and he could feel it starting to disintegrate under the pressure he was exerting, but he clung to life. He was so close, and there was no way he would let something as ridiculous as death get in his way of a breakthrough.
Inching closer, he could feel himself breaking free of the chains placed down by the System, and closer to unravelling more hidden truths.
A [ Spectral Fist ] shot out, but instead of continuing and blasting against the maze beneath him, he stopped it.
Hoving before his glowing eyes, Aaron twitched his hand and found that with supreme concentration. The fist actually followed his commands, like some kind of drone.
Although this abomination that he turned his Skill into was not something fit for combat, as the concentration alone made it far too hard to use, and the moment his concentration slipped, the Skill would go back to being what it was—a mindless missile.
Gradually and with great care, he pushed the spectral fist down and into the maze. The construct shook angrily as he carefully pushed the ghostly missile into it, taking advantage of its ghostly nature and focusing his concentration to keep it from exploding.
The maze didn’t want to accept it, but the fist was formed of mana, after all. How could it refuse? This was baked into the conditions of its construction, and whilst the magic that went into it noticed the perversion of Aaron’s Skill, it could not refuse something that filled its conditions.
But the moment his stamina-filled fist entered the maze, lights lit up all across it, and steam angrily funneled out.
It did not like what he had done. Stamina was not supposed to be used as an energy force, and yet he had found a way to force it into the maze.
Suddenly, the steam and flashing lights reached a crescendo, and the entire thing exploded with a violent shockwave of condensed mana energy that almost killed Aaron instantly. His body was torn and ruined, his limbs dangling loosely, but somehow, he managed to cling to life through sheer, stubborn willpower.
The shockwave itself was interesting. It had stored and condensed the mana he had poured into it tremendously. Further highlighting the power granted to it by the conditions made by its crafter.
With the maze destroyed, what life had been pumped into the golem by Aaron’s mana quickly faded. But like usual, there was more than one way to complete a trial. And although he hadn’t followed the rules, he had, in a way, beaten it.
As long as he could cling to life, his body would recover, slowly. He looked like a mutated ghoul, but luckily, nobody was watching, and soon, his ghoulish body put itself back together.
Stage two of [ Trial of Magic ] COMPLETED!
You have tested yourself against a complex mana puzzle and managed to solve the problem.
Quest Rewards: Formation Extender Rod [ Rare ], Meditation Room upgrade to stage 2!
Experience rewarded for completing a quest stage!
He had done it; he had completed the trial. But that wasn’t the reason he was grinning.
The maze was simple enough. The creator had placed a delicate but simple mechanism to stop any energy besides mana from being used. Because, at this level, few others could employ other energy sources outside of their intended uses, so it didn’t need to be complex.
By imposing these limitations on the maze, the creator had been able to multiply the power of mana that was channeled into it. It wasn’t complex, and he was certain that wasn’t all there was to the maze, but it was something.
Aaron wasn’t building anything like this anytime soon. It was an impressive feat of engineering. But he had learned what he needed to from it.
Aaron also considered the possibility that these conditions were even intentional. Designed to provide an alternative method to complete the trial.
Not that any of that was important.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
He already had an idea forming. He had been thinking about it for a long time now, and it was back at the forefront of his mind after the explosion he had just miraculously survived.
His soul was special, that much was obvious. And he was quickly learning how to cling to life and avoid death.
But what if he could elevate this and secure this ability in a way that was more reliable? What if he could set a condition or form a trait for it? He was used to the Shadow Trials and how they let him come back after he died, but that would be gone once he got to Earth. He had been sort of preparing for that recently by attempting to clear the trials without dying, but with his recent discoveries, could he find a way to stave off death, even without the help of the Trials?
The thought lingered with him. It was something he needed to work on and expand. And luckily, he had just upgraded his meditation room.
He wanted to try it with his cooking as well, but that could wait.
Walking down the hallway, he didn’t see or hear Mo’han or any others, so he assumed the big guy was in a trial.
This was probably for the best. The concept was fresh in his mind, and it was best that he worked on it sooner rather than later. Especially since he would only have the safety net of the Trial for another couple of months before losing it forever. So, he made his way to the mediation room before anybody could show up and interrupt him.
As he settled down for his meditation session, Aaron considered what kinds of conditions made sense to place on his own ability to cling to life, and potentially even be resurrected.
He also considered whether it was possible to trigger a new trait via his meditation.
It wasn’t that he believed anyone could just create traits whenever they needed. But rather, he felt that a well-formed concept could be pushed and shaped in a way that it might be able to form a trait.
The meditation room had undergone an upgrade. Incense sticks were burning, and a gentle, calming water feature was trickling away.
There were also some weird, partially revealed writing across the far wall. Aaron couldn’t make any sense of it, but he had a feeling there were hidden truths there.
Maybe there’s more to this meditation room than I originally thought.
He also pulled out his focus stone for the session. However, the pull and power of it felt far weaker than it had before. Then again, the item was for young masters bridging the first steps into their ascent.
It seemed almost comparable to an alphabet sheet or a phonics learning-to-read book. Extremely helpful for small children trying to pick up the basics, but quickly outgrown once the basics have been covered.
That might have seemed out of place as a reward for top-ranking Tutorial takers. But then again, the people expected to arrive here were essentially still infants in a newly integrated universe. Just because they were strong didn’t mean they couldn’t miss things that were considered basics in more established parts of the multiverse. And the focus stone would be immensely useful for someone trying to quickly iron out their shortcomings in such a scenario. Almost like an instruction manual, but more mystical.
Still, he had the stone, so he held onto it anyway. Maybe it would provide some minor assistance.
Channeling the concepts of conditions, Aaron delved into his inner mind as he searched for ways to apply the truths to his own ability.
And he found himself circling around something dear to him. It was persistence. Persistence was who he was. What he was. And it was pain—the undying persistence to endure pain beyond what most couldn’t even comprehend.
This was something unique to Aaron, he realized. His inhumanly stubborn soul allowed him to cling to life. But that wasn’t what allowed him to shrug off the pain of death.
No, that was something else. That was the unyielding nature of his character. It wasn’t some special, magical trait or anything. No, not some gift passed down by the System.
It was him.
It had always been him. It had been what powered him to get up and walk after being in a brutal motorbike accident, and the reason the paramedics were furious with him when they found him strolling around.
Apparently, walking after a back injury wasn’t good for you, and it had made his injuries and recovery worse. But like anything, he had stubbornly pushed through and overcome it.
Because ultimately, it didn’t matter. Aaron would shrug off the pain and persevere. That was who he was.
This was a lifelong story of his. Sometimes it was a party trick, and sometimes it allowed him to push through incredibly harsh conditions.
It was also what made ordinary life boring. It was part of the reason he went in search of thrills.
And he realized it was the key to setting the conditions for his trait to take root and grow.
The condition was pain.
Aaron grinned. This was insane. But it was absolutely who he was.
What was death if not without pain? Perhaps pain wasn’t the only vehicle that brought it on, but it was an important vehicle, one that he was routinely exposed to during his countless deaths.
This was the perfect condition. Sure, if someone managed to poison him with something that could cause a painless death, then it would fail to trigger. But how likely was that?
Besides, something as powerful as this required certain conditions. This wasn’t something he could simply bypass if he wanted it to be powerful. To be rule-breaking, there needed to be weaknesses. That was the one rule of the multiverse that couldn’t be broken. He needed to sacrifice something, and this was the perfect thing.
For this power to trigger, a certain pain threshold would be required to be met, but if it were, life energy would be reversed and flood back into his lifeless form.
This was the key to unlocking what he had uncovered within the trials—the key to cheating death.
His thoughts soared across the vast void within his mind, a myriad of lights bending and binding him. The truths of the multiverse are slamming against his frail, infant mind.
But then! It happened—a sudden influx of power, and then a text prompt.
Alpha Trait Awoken: Death Cheat
Your soul has been bound by the power of the Death Cheat, allowing you the ability to cheat death.
To reach the minimal requirements for this unfathomably powerful trait, you have made conditions, and by doing so, you give your soul the power to embrace this dormant trait.
Through pain, you may live again. If the set pain threshold is not met, this trait will not trigger, and you will not cheat death.
When triggered, Death Cheat will tap into the power of the aether to draw life energy back into your body, restoring life to it.
Warning: This Trait will not anchor the user's soul to their body. If the soul breaks free, then death will be met. The life energy provided will only be enough to revive the user from the brink of death, and will not fully heal them.
Aaron’s eyes brightened. This was exactly what he had been in search of all this time.
Now, his ability to cheat death was encoded into a trait. And from the sounds of it, this was a trait few other than himself would be able to make use of.
He felt like laughing. This was perhaps the greatest gift he had unearthed from all of his hard work.
Wait until Yendal sees this.
The thought plastered a shit eating grin across his face. He could just imagine her reaction. Cheats like this were not her style, but he knew she would respect it for what it was. Powerful.
Her reaction would just be a funny side effect.
Yeah, I’m gonna have to go challenge her soon.
But with that thought, he was reminded that others would join shortly. He never knew what he would get with Yendal, so he would have to wait a while—at least the next arrivals.
Better check the viewing room first to see who’s on their way.
Find 32 advanced chapters over on my
