Chapter 193
Calls From Beyond (III)
[--congratulations on completing the Quest, The Eternal Lament]
[Due to the nature of completion, additional rewards have been triggered]
[...]
[Reward 1: Body Purification => 100%. Please find a safe space to meditate; fully purifying and expelling toxins will take approximately 6 hours. Any disturbance during that time might lead to unforeseen circumstances]
[Reward 2: You have unlocked a new subsystem, Alchemy; you may use Creation Points to either unlock or create new Alchemy Recipes, but you must teach a talented Disciple to concoct them]
[Reward 3: You have learned the 'Touch of Enlightenment' Special Art]
[Reward 4: Your cultivation has increased; you have reached the peak of the Spirit Manifestation Realm. Undergoing the final step of Body Purification will allow you to break through into the next realm, the Revolving Core Realm]
[Reward 5: Imaging Talisman (Mythical)]
[Reward 6: Endless Shadow Steps has evolved into Imminent Shadow Steps (peak-Jade)]
[...]
[Touch of Enlightenment (mid-Myth) -- inspire one of your Disciples to temporarily enter a state of enlightenment. The duration depends on external circumstances as well as your Disciple's state of mind. Can be used once every three months]
[Imaging Talisman (Mythical) — you may imprint any art that you bear witness to upon the Talisman and create its Tome to be studied and learned. Works only up to Divine-grade arts. Certain restrictions still apply]
[Imminent Shadow Steps (peak-Jade) -- the shadows stir within every inch of the world, even when they are snuffed out by light; you may step through the void immediately and arrive at any of the setup points within a 1-mile radius. Qi consumption lowered greatly. Can force-leap up to 3 times even when there are no shadows anywhere in sight. Qi consumption will be greatly increased in this case. Only you, however, can learn this art; all others can only earn its lesser variant, Endless Shadow Steps]
[...]
[The defying of Ordinances has been punished, and the Order has been restored]
[--Emergency Quest Activated]
[...]
[Due to the ritual's backlash, a reverse array has been triggered, and a Demon has descended into the vessel's body. Due to the nature of the descent, the Demon is in a greatly weakened state and will naturally perish within 30 minutes. In that case, so will the original body. Subdue the demon and ensure that the vessel survives]
[Reward 1: a secondary system for the creation of Shamanic Arts will be unlocked; note, however, that ONLY trained Shamans will be able to use the arts you create. Additionally, the breadth of options will be far more limiting, and, even in its perfected state, you will only be able to create arts equivalent to the Heaven level. Secondary note: Shamanic Arts are extremely different]
The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
[Reward 2: Pill of Eternity (Legendary)]
[Reward 3: Annihilating Gauntlets (Legendary)]
[...]
... huh?
Wait, what?!
No, no, no, what do you mean a freakin' Demon descended?!
[--congratulations, Host; one of your Disciples has managed to banish the Demon from this plane of existence]
Right.
Of course he did.
Jesus Christ, will this guy ever stop surprising me?!
[In the process, Disciple Long Tao has broken through into the Spirit Manifestation Realm and reached the late stages]
Yeah.
If it wasn't so on the nose, I'd pat myself on the back for being a prophet.
[Rewards]
[Reward 1: a secondary system for creation of Shamanic Arts...]
[Reward 2: Pill of Eternity (Legendary)]
[Reward 3: Annihilating Gauntlets (Legendary)]
[..]
[Pill of Eternity (Legendary): extends a mortal's lifespan by an additional 25 years. Only one can be consumed in a lifetime. Has no effect on a cultivator]
[Annihilating Gauntlets (Legendary) -- inscribed ever-so-faintly by the traces of the Law of Annihilation, the gauntlets empower the wearer in the most primal way: feeding them pure Qi results in ejection of explosive force with every punch. Additionally, every strike has a small chance of triggering a consecutive chain reaction of Annihilating Qi Arrays, which will tear through all lesser arts. Due to the item's nature, they are best suited for special constitutions and physiques that have extremely vast quantities of Qi. Note, however, that the gauntlets have no defensive powers; trying to block anything more than an ordinary attack with them will be impossible]
Huh.
Just when I was grappling with what to give to Dai Xiu--
--oh my God, why are there even more windows yet?!!
[Congratulations, Host, on helping one of your Disciples break through into the Spirit Manifestation Realm. A unique reward has been generated]
[Reward]
[Ascending Chariot (???)]
[Ascending Chariot (???) -- a purpose-made, ancient traversing artifact capable of crossing continent-spanning distances in a matter of days. Though its interior is somewhat limited and crude, many stabilizing arrays offer a surprisingly smooth journey. Extremely difficult to maneuver through tight spaces, which is why it is best used in the open sky for crossing great distances. Consumes exorbitant amounts of Qi Stones (10,000 mid-grade Spirit Stones per 50 miles of distance). Cost grows exponentially if the area is submerged in dense quantities of Qi. Chariot folds into a wooden toy when not in use and is bound to Host for life; nobody else can operate it or use it as anything other than a toy or crude housing]
[Note: the Chariot is an existing item from the Primordial Era that has been lost to the vestiges of time; there are certain entities that might have the capacity to recognize it. Operate it with caution]
Huh.
Holy shit.
Holy-goddamn-paid-piper-shit.
This is insane.
Honestly, I'm about two seconds from hyperventilating myself into an early grave. The only reason I'm not is because I'd regret never having ridden this damn thing. I seriously want to launch myself at Long Tao and kiss him, but not only would that be creepy in ways that defy description, I don't want to give him vindication of even the tiniest kind.
In a way, all of this was because of him--because he 'suggested' we come here, and because he 'suggested' we be the ones to take care of this.
And the bastard did.
Not only did he help me break through into the next realm (or, well, will help me do it soon), but he also helped me purify my body, unlock two subsystems, get me a perfect gift for Dai Xiu, and now... now help me get an artifact that will finally solve our biggest hurdle: travel.
... well, not entirely.
I did pause for a moment as my eyes bulged at the damn cost of the thing--while the windfall's been plentiful, my pockets are running dry. There's no way in hell I can afford to actually fly this thing in any meaningful capacity simply because 50 miles is, without exaggeration, almost nothing in this world.
In fairness, 10,000 mid-grade stones is probably nothing to quite a few people, too, but to me it's right about 20% of my remaining wealth.
So, yeah.
It's good to have, but we're gonna have to actually start robbing some tombs for real if I'm ever going to use the damn thing.
