Chapter Six Hundred And Thirty Eight – 638
With a blink of his eyes, Felix stood amid rolling, forested hills beneath a bright blue sky. Trees stretched in all directions, festooned with emerald leaves of all shapes and sizes, while distant, lone mountains thrust up from the temperate terrain. At first glance, all appeared the same as usual despite the recent evolution of the Skill. Looking a touch closer, Felix was awed by the changes.
The forest, while leafy and green, was replaced by trunks and branches made from a luminescent opal. Each was chased with color, ranging through a rainbow of hues as light from a distant sun flashed slantwise through the canopy. Even the upthrust mountains glimmered with a similar construction, their distance-faded shapes halfway translucent and ethereal.
Holy crap, he muttered.
The sun, which was always a vague ball of fire in the air, now felt somehow more viscerally real. The heat prickled his exposed skin, a pleasant burn that promised worse if he remained exposed. More than the sun, however, was the incandescent flare on the horizon. A second sun, hotter and morewild. Its rays werent a warm cascade but a chaotic pulsing that set subtle shadows to shifting with every beat. Beyond that sun was his friend, Pit, curled up in whatever remained of his own core space as he slowly Evolved.
The Mote of Frenzy.
Felix still had no idea what the Mote really was; he supposed it might be connected to Essence Motes, which hed once used to Temper himself. Or even the ruby-red motes that had eventually formed into his [Cardinal Beast Core]. It was clearly beyond that in terms of potency, as it had cured Pits curse as well as begun his next Evolutioneven now, waves of its wild power rolled through Felixs forest, illuminating the opal trunks as it rushed toward him, before crashing against walls of faceted crystal.
He looked down, marveling at the battlements he stood upon. They too were made of an opalescent crystal, dark where the forests were radiant, even as they sparked with a curious internal light. Blue-white and red-gold predominated, but traceries of other colors showed up within the many facets. Deep blues, icy purples, dusty brown, swirling white, golden-green, fiery orange, and a deep crimson, among many others. It was Mana as he saw it with his Manasight, all of it incorporated into the new structure of his Bastion of Will.
No. It evolved. Its called Void Sanctuary, now.
Void Sanctuary (Divine), Level 100
Evolved from Bastion of Will through the direct refutation of Divine Will and by infusing a portion of your own ascendant power. More than mere defense, the Void Sanctuary is a haven of the Mind, and a first defense against those that would attempt to violate your Aspects or core space. It will grow as it Tempers, incorporating new Features into its construction while drawing on the echoes of your own significance. Rise, Ascendant, and know that the Void rises with you.
My first Divine rarity Skill. Felix scratched his head. He hadnt taken the time to inspect the evolved Skill before nowit was a bad habit, letting things get away from himself. He needed to fix it, and soon. He
Whoa.
Following the curve of the crystalline walls, Felix beheld the full expanse of the dark opal Void Sanctuary. No longer just a hexagonal tower surrounded by a wall and turrets, now it had expanded into a veritable city, filled with crystalline buildings, green gardens, and flowering trees sprawled across a series of rolling hills. The grasses of his inner bailey were now replaced by strange and varied plants that crowded empty pathways and the edges of squat structures. There was even a river running through the center, though it wasnt water.
Felix hopped down from the wall, landing without a sound between two large ferns, and crouched at the edge of the gentle stream. He dipped his hand into the rushing liquid, and a deep blue flecked with golden-green splashed around his fingers.
Pure Mana. Life and water. Some shadow too. The liquid was thick, like gel more than water, or ratherlike his own Mana when he cast it from his channels. He stood up, flicking his fingers. Weird.
As youve told me, the Skill evolved to a greater rarity. An increase in potency is expected as the specificity of its power sharpens. What Feature did you Temper it with?
Anchor. The System called it the Weight of Obdurance.
Hm. Yes, I see. Youve turned the mental fortress and imbued it with a powerful force of refutation.
Yeah, I mean, thats clear. The walls, the towers around itits definitely safer. It held back the Pathless as it was being channeled throughImara. Felix put his hands on his hips and shook his head. What I dont understand is the addition of a city. The changing of the forest and even the mountains in the distance. I havent seen the acid sea that used to be nearby, but thats probably been transformed too. Whats the point?
Youve heard before that advancing will grow more difficult as you go, yes?
Too many times to count, yeah.
It will also grow esoteric. While Adept Tier is an introduction to power, Master Tier is the beginning of true strangeness. The Features you choose will have a greater impact than ever before, and that will continue to compound as you hit Grandmaster and beyond. Your significance will refine itself by these Temperings, fueling the Tapestry that you weave even now.
Felix stared at his hand. Black scales and clawed fingers flexed, and in his mind he recalled the towering shape of a phantom fist, brimming with cataclysmic power. Core Manifestation.
It is one of the building blocks for it, yes. As are your Pillars, which are perhaps one of the major influences on this Skill. Karys tapped his foot to a curious rhythm. The new Skill said it drew on the echoes of your significance. Does this crystal look familiar?
It does. It looked like the crystalline formations around the base of his Pillarsand of course like the changes hed made to his Divine Tree. So whats the purpose of all the buildings, then?
Karys clapped his hands. I havent the foggiest.
Felix snorted. The towers, the buildingsmaybe it's all tied to the Skill Array.
That is quite likely. Skill Arrays amplify the power of their patterns, and this is a potent primary. Karys rubbed his chin. Could be that the buildings are justroom to grow.
Was that a pun?
Karys chuckled, clearly proud of himself. How close are you to fully Tempering into Master Tier?
Felix pulled up his Status and tossed it to Karys. Take a look.
