“The strength of your soul… is that something that grows over time?” Vir asked, standing on his shaky legs.
“Through time, experience, and hardship. Luckily, we have an abundance of the latter. As for the first two, well, there’s no better time to begin that than the present, wouldn’t you say?”
Cirayus sat cross-legged on the ash, motioning Vir to do the same.
“Now, meditate on the concept of solidity. Think of the great mountains, unmoving.”
Vir closed his eyes and did so, imagining the tall, jagged peaks of the Ash. How long had they stood, resisting the efforts of the world to bring them down?
“You are that mountain,” Cirayus continued, placing his hand on Vir’s chest. “Do not resist. The sensation will feel strange, but open yourself to me.”
Vir felt an alien presence in his body. In his soul. Though it was not a dangerous one. He did as he was told, allowing it into him.
Suddenly, the weight of an entire mountain crashed into him, and he felt like he was being crushed. He couldn’t breathe. Every second was agony.
Then it was gone.
“Apologies,” Cirayus said. “It is too soon. You are not yet ready.”
Vir gasped for breath. “Maybe… I should start a little slower?”
“Aye. You will get there. Of this, I have no doubt. Now, let us discuss another matter,” Cirayus grinned. “I think it’s about time for your first field test.”
6FIELD TEST
“Uh, Cirayus? Mind telling me why we allowed ourselves to be surrounded by Ash Beasts?”
Not just one or two, either. Over a dozen beasts circled around the two, eyeing them, sizing them up. Among their number were Ash Biters—the same beast Vir fought in the depths of the mine near Avi—along with a pack of Raptors and some Greater Zards. Ash Wolves loped some distance away, wary of the newcomers to their domain.
Though he’d fought some of these beasts in the Human Realm, he wasn’t about to make the mistake of thinking they’d be the same. The prana densities were incomparable. And like him, Ash Beasts almost all possessed Apex Ash prana affinity. They might lack tattoos or orbs, but the realm strengthened them as much as it did him, and they were already terrifying to begin with.
“Why, you’re going to fight them, lad,” said his godfather as if it was the most natural thing in the world. “You wanted to test out your new abilities, didn’t you? How can you do any better than actual opponents?”
Vir was less convinced.
“Together, right? We’ll fight them together?”
Surely the giant didn’t expect him to go up against all these beasts alone? Especially since he was still acclimatizing.
“I seem to have suddenly grown quite tired,” Cirayus said, placing the back of his palm against his forehead before collapsing, sending a cloud of ash flying. “I’ll just lay down here for a moment. Why don’t you hand me your rucksack so I’ll have a pillow.”
Yep. He wants me to do this alone, Vir thought with a grim expression while removing his backpack. This wasn’t just a chance for him to experiment; Cirayus wanted to see what he was capable of.
“If you take them all out in ten minutes, we will proceed deeper into the Ash.”
The giant certainly knew what to say to motivate him—Vir wasn’t an ignorant chal—he knew exactly what Cirayus was doing.
“Deal,” Vir said.
It didn’t matter if Cirayus was hanging a carrot at the end of a stick. Not when the carrot was that juicy.
Vir drew his katar and glanced at his chakrams. For now, they were even less useful than they’d been in the Human Realm, barely useful as a distraction. One that cost ammunition with each use. He left them stowed on his back.
Ideally, Vir wanted Prana Vision’s aid, but as Cirayus once said, ‘Warriors rarely have the luxury of choosing their battles.’ He’d have to fight with the ability hampering rather than helping.
When Vir walked away from Cirayus, he’d expected half to follow.
No such luck. All the creatures came after him. Not only that, the ring they’d formed drew tighter and tighter.
They can sense how strong Cirayus is, can’t they? Vir thought in despair.
Seeing Vir as small fry, they came after him, hunger in their eyes. It struck him as odd that they were cooperating with each other. From everything he’d heard, the Ash had driven their sanity out of them long ago. The beings stalking him now certainly didn’t act crazed. Maybe they lost their sanity deeper in the Ash.
Despite his trepidation, Vir made the opening move, lunging at the nearest Ash Biter. He knew from experience they enjoyed snapping their jaws at their prey, so he took its back.
In the mine near Avi, he’d struggled to penetrate the thin layer of prana all Ash Beasts surrounded themselves with. Here, it was thicker. In fact, it was almost as thick as physical armor, so Vir didn’t dare pull punches.
Empowering his strike with as much prana as his body could handle, he shot out Prana Blade. Except, what emerged wasn’t a mere Prana Blade. The Ash prana coating his katar raged forth, extending well past the length of the katar.
Vir blinked.
This isn’t Prana Blade. It’s Blade Projection! The Rare Tier ability he’d worked so hard for in the Human Realm had just manifested of its own accord. All thanks to the prana here.
The force behind the attack nearly threw off his balance. It no longer felt like his own arm. It was as if Vera herself had taken control of his limb, directing it with awe-inspiring force.
I’m gonna bisect this thing! Vir thought with elation, stunned at his own power. This was the power he’d yearned for. With this…
The blade stopped dead against the Biter’s armor, sinking only an inch before coming to rest.
Instinct prompted Vir to hurl himself into a reverse somersault, narrowly avoiding the Biter’s jaw snap. Vir’s ears rang from the shockwave emitted from its bite; such was its force.
That was it? Vir thought in shock. Prana Blade had evolved far past its prior limits, even turning into Blade Projection. Was this all it was capable of? Such power… and yet, nothing. It spoke volumes about how strong the beasts in this domain truly were.
Can’t allow those attacks to even graze me. A single strike might very well mean his demise.
Vir Leaped all the way back to Cirayus, buying himself some breathing room.
“Nine minutes,” the giant casually called out.
Need more power. It was ridiculous to think that so soon after multiplying his strength, he still came up short, but that was the reality here in the Ash.
What can I do?
It wasn’t as if he was out of ideas. Just that he’d never tested them. Ten minutes—now nine—wasn’t long at all to develop a new ability. He tried regardless.
First, Vir concentrated on his arm, seeing the prana circulating inside. Prana Blade had grown significantly—in size. Its density was only slightly greater than before.
It doesn’t need to be that large, Vir thought.
Having extra reach when needed was welcome, but right now, he required deadliness above all else. He needed a blade that could rend prana itself.
That meant a denser Prana Blade.
Vir began the activation process, spinning the prana inside his arm faster and faster. Twice, then thrice what he’d mustered before. His blood vessels stretched and strained against the level of blood flow. Only then did he allow it to shoot out of his arm, traveling the length of his katar.