The rest of the time during that week was the morning training sessions and the evening magic and Engraving sessions In addition during what spare time he had Randidly would watch Divvit dispatch more challengers or give Randidly’s two spear attendants pointers
It really seemed that many people had problems with them but as Randidly watched more and more he realized that he really wasn’t the target the entire Spear Phantom Style was It seemed that Shal’s father had done something to piss off quite a lot of people because more and more challenges were coming Luckily these were still just probes and no one at even the Artisan level had arrived But to Randidly it seemed like only a matter of time
His Engraving continued to improve but it was only Dragonfly that could get above 60% The other two remained stubbornly at 59% even as Dragonfly increased to 68% All in all Randidly had created 8 bracers with above 68% and this earned him a bit of extra cash that he had Helen use to go and buy him some clockwork instruments There were clocks and wind up toys and music boxes and all sorts of interesting little carefully delicate mechanisms
Randidly listened to them while sitting under his Weeping Cloud memorizing their sound Then he would take them apart and put them back together He even got the skill Clockwork Mastery and leveled it to 7 It wasn’t something he wanted to dedicate a lot of time to but if he wanted to have a powerful image Randidly thought it would be worth it to immerse himself as a true hobby unlike Engraving which had become such a lucrative pursuit
Shal’s brutal training the grinding of the Engraving the stress of being exposed to the diary of the Spear Phantom such was the strain that Randidly was under that in spite of his high vitality he started sleeping for an hour or two every day just to reset his body
As the week went on Shal’s training times extended spreading to encompass strategy in battle ruthlessness and the proper use of the different techniques that Randidly inherited Over and over Shal emphasized cutthroat actions There were no perfect answers just quick ones that arrived at the perfect time
Perhaps later Randidly could focus more on learning how to take advantage of certain actions on his enemies part but for now it was better to slowly just build up instinct for moving At the level that Randidly was moving Shal disdained it was far better to move first
Randidly only had limited interaction with his spear attendants but the more he watched them the more he realized that they were decidedly peculiar people Helen although she was one of the attractive women that Randidly had talked to for an extended amount of time was clearly suppressing herself somehow The other one who Randidly still didn’t know the name of was actually surprisingly skilled with a spear He just spent a lot of time practicing at the side of the boat looking at his own reflection in the water
By the end of the week Randidly had gained 2 Levels of Spear Mastery 4 in The Inevitable Phantom Arrives 6 in Spear Phantom’s Footwork 4 in Iron Skin and Dodge 2 in Fighting Proficiency and Block 1 in Empower Calculated Blow and Roundhouse Kick 5 in Battle Intent 2 in Root Control and Summon Pestilence 6 in Incinerating Bolt 2 in Plantomancy and 9 in Weeping Cloud
He also gained 1 in Potion Making and Refine 4 in Mana Engraving 1 in Physical Fitness Running and Meditation 2 in Pain Resistance 3 in First Aid 3 in Grace and Bacterial Regeneration 1 in Mental Fortitude 6 in Second Wind 4 in Weather Affinity and of course the 7 in Clockwork Mastery
Once more in the predawn light Randidly found himself with a sizable amount of PP after the week At Shal’s request he had waited to train in the strange turtle movement until they arrived at their destination which he was very closed mouthed about
For now Randidly decided to just continue as normal and move through the Path of Carnage paths
He used 5 PP and finished off the first path
Chapter 148
Flickeringly the completion notification appeared before him
Congratulations You have completed the Path of Carnage I You have started down a bloody road but sometimes it is a necessary path You walk forward and you are haunted by your choices You have encountered an Extending Path Continue or receive your current rewards
Randidly figured he would continued on this for a while anyway so he clicked on the continuing path options However it was slightly annoying to see that he received no completion bonus other than the additional point he got in Strength
In addition his previous Path of Carnage I 25/25 shifted to become Path of Carnage II 25/50 Gritting his teeth Randidly put another 25 points into it For this he received a point in Perception at 30 40 and 50 Then a notification popped up in front of him
Congratulations You have completed the Path of Carnage II As you continue forward the bones begin to form piles The path ahead of you is desolate and the future seems bleak To your left you see a small altar of skulls Shall you depart from this path here You have encountered an Extending Path Continue or recieve your current reward
Randidly’s eyelid twitched It did not seem like this would be a very efficient use of PP But he was the stubborn type and now that he had gone down this path he wasn’t going to stop now After all pushing all the way through on the Pathless Path had led him to his Soul Skill which continued to pay dividends Better to just bear the cost So Randidly selected to continue
You have passed the Chieftain’s Alter The rewards for choosing the Chieftain’s Alter +5 Str +3 End and Agi +2 Vit and Per +1 React
How generous of them to remind you what you gave up on Randidly thought with a bit of acid in the back of his throat Instead he opened the path menu back up What he saw caused his eyes to bulge He now had Path of Carnage III but it was at 50/100 So the cost increased too
Unhappy Randidly poured most of his remaining 62 into completing the path He received something at 75 and 100 but it was 2 distributable points at both so he was a little mollified All 4 of these Randidly put into Perception in an effort to raise his ability to contend with the spear users he would encounter soon
Congratulations You have completed the Path of Carnage III The bones flow like seas around you silent and still swamps of blood dotting the landscape This is a path you walk alone you realize You wonder if it is truly necessary or if you enjoy the road you walk That answer is very important To your right you see a wooden cup filled with blood Shall you depart from this path here You have encountered an Extending Path Continue or recieve your current reward
Resisting the admittedly large temptation of the very unappetizing sounding cup of blood Randidly elected to continue
You have passed the Bloodseeker’s Cup The rewards for choosing the Bloodseeker’s Cup +8 Str +7 End and Agi +1 Vit and React Bloodseeker Strike (Un) Lvl 1
Randidly shut his eyes to the rewards and looked at his path page He almost wished he hadn’t Path of Carnage IV was at 100/200 It would require 100 more PP before he was able to accept the reward again Would it be worth it to take the next one if it seemed interesting
But Randidly shook his head refusing to give in his stubborn streak still strong So he put his final 12 PP into this next path and struggled to control his breathing
After all soon Shal would come and it would be time for them to leave Qtal for a time He needed to handle a few small tasks first For the moment Randidly stood It had been a week since he had personally met the merchant Claptrap and he supposed it was polite to tell him what was going on
Claptrap’s eyes widened when he once again in a strange sense of deja vu opened up his door late at night to find the Ghosthound waiting on his doorstep He quickly ushered him in and offered him some rather nice tea The Ghosthound politely declined and spoke explaining how he would soon go away for a time training in preparation for the Regional Tournament