Gone were the training gloves. Each day in the Ash was harder than the one before it, bringing more dangerous and more cunning beasts. If that wasn’t enough, Vir fought barehanded. He fought with time constraints. He fought with all sorts of handicaps.
And he hadn’t grown any stronger.
Yes, his body’s prana capacity was steadily improving, allowing Vir to either boost his muscle strength or alternately charge Talents faster by maintaining a pressure differential within his body, but these were not new things. He’d been doing that ever since entering the Ash.
They had, of course, analyzed Vir’s performance in every battle, picking apart his mistakes, highlighting the tactics that worked.
To be sure, Vir had benefited from the instruction, fighting tighter, employing tactics that put him at less risk while maximizing his advantages. The giant had also corrected bad habits in his Kalari form that had crept up over time, honing his strikes until they, too, visibly improved.
Still, there had been no new Talents. No breakthroughs about the workings of prana or chakra. Nor really much in the way of instruction on Cirayus’ part on how to obtain true power. Fixing footwork and optimizing tactics was fine, but it wasn’t the sort of change that would allow Vir to crush a hundred Raptors with a single move. It didn’t make him invulnerable to the strikes of his foes, nor did it give him the Herculean strength to wield a blade larger than anyone had a right to wield.
A blade he’d yet to see Cirayus use even once, much to his chagrin. The weapon hung lazily off his back, jutting up into the air.
“There is no substitute for experience. No shortcut to power. Fight. Endure. Fight again. Grow.”
Every time Vir asked, that had always been the giant’s response.
Then again, Cirayus also made it clear that tattoos bestowed much of the power demons possess, Vir thought, glancing at his godfather gliding beside him.
Without Balancer of Scales, Giant Hide, Giant Grace, which allowed Cirayus to move as dexterously as Vir, and Spirit of the Ravager, which strengthened his already-powerful blows, Cirayus would be far less deadly than he was.
“And you’re sure we’re headed somewhere I’ll be able to unlock a new ability?” Vir asked for the dozenth time.
“There are no sure things in life, lad. Let alone here, of all places. If anyone claims otherwise, they’re a seer or a liar, and prescience has never been one of my strengths. Still, if there is one place that will forge you into something new, it is there.”
Cirayus mentioned no details. Only that it was a spot ideal for training, and that he knew generally where to find it. Because as much as the Ash prana density had grown in the past week, the giant had made it clear it was nothing next to what was to come.
Cirayus came to a halt and held the vaguely orb-like Artifact he wore like a necklace. The one that told them where to go.
Vir had expected something flashy, like the prana-infused structures at Valaka Amara, or the giant spinning prana siphon deep beneath Balindam, which the Pagan Order used to create the Voidlands.
It was a dull metal sphere, almost completely unadorned except for a single circular hole that led to its core, shining a dim blue. So dim, Vir could hardly even see it until he put his eye right up to the orb. It seemed it glowed brighter the closer they were to an Ash Gate that led to its counterpart in the Demon Realm, but thus far, it’d remained nearly unlit.
Nor did the Artifact appear any more impressive to Prana Vision. In fact, it was a void. Dead. Completely lacking in prana of any kind. Certainly, that was unlikely. The metal must have had prana-deflective properties, preventing his eyes from penetrating through.
It was, far and away, the most interesting aspect about it. Mejai armor scrambled Prana Vision, but never had he seen anything that masked its signature so perfectly.
If it could be fashioned into armor…
Well, it would be quite useless, wouldn’t it? It’d stop any Iksana with the Sight Bloodline Art from knowing about him, but that was all. And it certainly wasn’t worth dismantling an Artifact that could guide them across the Ashen Realm. There weren’t enough serics in all the realms to put a price on a treasure like this.
“Well?” Vir asked. “Any closer?”
“Nay, though ’tis to be expected. We’ve a long journey ahead of us, lad. Even if an Ash Gate leading to the Demon Realm did appear, I’d hesitate to enter with your current strength. Patience. If my eyes do not fail me, we are near our training site.”
Vir peered into the distance, his eyes failing him because he saw nothing out of the ordinary. Just jagged black cliffs jutting up from the ground several hundred paces away. In between lay ash, hordes of beasts, and yet more ash.
“What do you say, lad? You think you can take them?”
Vir blinked. “Sorry? Which one? There have to be at least a hundred out there.”
Cirayus grinned evilly. “Aye. Stay safe, lad. Meet me on the other side. And be ready to climb. You may use all weapons at your disposal.”
“Climb? What do you—”
Cirayus soared into the air, deftly jumping over the horde of deadly beasts, and landed on the other side. He’d traveled over four hundred paces in one bound.
Will I ever be able to match that? Vir thought in frustration. Owing to the downright scary pressure difference between his body and the ambient prana, Leap now took him a solid one hundred and twenty paces. An incredible distance, to be sure, and yet far short of his mentor.
Leap’s drastic power potential had caused other issues as well. The ability activated so rapidly and violently now that if Vir mistimed it even slightly, he’d rupture his leg muscles. It’d happened on more than one occasion, requiring emergency treatment from Cirayus and leaving him crying in pain.
As expected from the giant, he picked up the skill in seconds despite never having used a healing orb, relying on his centuries of experience to heal Vir to perfect health.
Even when Vir flawlessly executed a full power Leap, there was the issue of the Ash. Ash was simply not a solid platform to launch from. The ability blasted enormous plumes of the stuff in his wake, robbing power.
On a solid surface, Vir might’ve jumped double the distance… assuming his muscles held out. While the unstable ground robbed him of power, it also cushioned the impact on his body.
It was a no-win scenario. If he boosted the amount of prana in his blood, his muscle strength, the Talent became less powerful. If he kept himself dry, his muscles couldn’t weather such an explosive move.
Luckily, with the amount of prana everywhere, flooding his body with it was trivially easy, and taking no longer than an instant.
Vir cracked his neck, then crouched, placing his palms upon the Ash. Cirayus carried his rucksack, unburdening him.
Bang.
An explosion of soot blasted out behind Vir, and he roared toward his first targets—a group of two Ash Biters. Somersaulting midair, he kicked both legs out.
At the exact moment his boots touched the Biter’s oversized humanoid maw, he pulled prana, sucking it out of his enemy. Then he Leaped off.
This time, the explosion was of a different sort. Not of dust, but bone and flesh. The Ash Biter’s head blew apart into a hundred pieces, sending shrapnel flying in all directions, some of which killed nearby Raptors who’d been looking for an easy meal.