Then Huang Shou jabbed his cane at the papers on the desk small end table that he had previously directly Huang Li to drag out onto the balcony The papers fluttered slightly from a small breeze Mrs Hamilton sent over projections Read them DonÆt think that now that the tournament is over work has ceased It is only beginning
Huang Li Kayle and even Paolo obeyed For their next project they had no chance unless they came armed with plentiful information
Over the next several days Randidly practiced with weaving Nether gave Tim some pointers on the Engraving to create floating islands and spent some time refining his other images while the Grim Chimera recovered from that immense psychological impact The process was slow at first but the Grim ChimeraÆs natural inclination toward adaption meant that it quickly accelerated Much of the raw sense of power had been beaten from the Grim Chimera in that brief contact with Elhume but it had regained its almost uncanny cunning in exchange
Not that Randidly needed the Grim Chimera to behave particularly intelligent most of the time but it was one third of the person he was gradually becoming Keeping it in touch with caution was prudent considering the dangers that waited in the Nexus When the confidence was unfounded it needed to be tempered
Once the Grim Chimera had regained enough of its details to condense into a physical form Randidly didnÆt let that freshly shaken image settle he continued to hammer it by taking it into the Dreamcatcher of the Long Night and fighting against Kaan Swacc And during those fights Randidly only used the Grim Chimera
His physical power and capability in physical condensation of images had increased but the largest gain from the fight RandidlyÆs ability to use three images at once was sealed As such the Grim Chimera quickly became involved in several long drawn out fights with Kaan Swacc Which is the worst method to combat Kaan Swacc who used those extended brawls to methodically suppressed the Grim ChimeraÆs abilities until it was beaten into submission
Time and time again Randidly persisted until his vision was blurred from the creeping headache of using the Dreamcatcher of the Long Night but he did not slow down After being defeated by Kaan and then meditating for about twenty minutes in the real world he would stand and shake himself off Then he would open up the Dreamcatcher of the Long Night and throw himself right back into the fray
After the fifth such attempt an attempt that had only lasted three minutes before Kaan Swacc had suppressed Randidly and forced him out of the memory the image of Yggdrasil pulsed slightly it pointed out that the process Randidly was currently experiencing was very similar to the training of the Xyrt Brigade Which meant that it carried with it the same risks that had made Randidly so furious when they had afflicted Vualla
Randidly considered that his chest rising and falling relatively quickly thinking was also a chance to catch his breath Truly he was exhausted And when he focused his Willpower on the current state of the Grim Chimera what he found there was lackluster The last time the image had been this blurry and feeble was when Randidly had been forced as an image to the frontlines
Otherwise it had never been this bedraggled and feeble
The body and face was wan and ethereal Once more the Grim Chimera was a featureless being the details rubbed away The only elements that were maintained with any clarity were the sharp edges of his talons and the point of the Grim ChimeraÆs bone spear The rest had faded into a bitter shadow that hung in the air like a stench Even the two tails of the Grim Chimera had vanished
Ultimately however Randidly shook his head side to side at YggdrasilÆs objection You are right this is dangerous ThatÆs the point The Grim Chimera doesnÆt respond to anything else And compared to the Skill Levels that you two possess the Grim Chimera has a much lower foundation We need to force that upward The faster the better
The Stillborn Phoenix stirred but all it felt was contempt for the weakness of others It might have even sprung over to devour the Grim Chimera if Yggdrasil hadnÆt always been careful to watch the selfish imageÆs movements For its part Yggdrasil pulsed again urging Randidly once more
Randidly waved his hand I stopped Vualla from going down this Path because of what her image was becoming It was calcifying into a horrifying monster with no senses only the capacity for destruction But the Grim Chimera will grow even in these circumstances That is the type of image that it is Trust me I made it that way
Unwillingly the part of Randidly that agreed with Yggdrasil relented And so the Grim Chimera went once more into battle against Kaan Swacc The unifying image of it was getting weaker as it continuously overexerted itself but Randidly didnÆt concern himself with that Instead his focus turned to the various Skills that made up the Descent of the Grim Chimera If the common thread was lost focus on the aspects
Its two passive abilities were the first specific images to receive RandidlyÆs attention Even if the whole of the image was weakening that would eventually come back if the parts grew healthier So in the next fight against Kaan Swacc Randidly embodied both Chimeric Avoidance and AbominationÆs Grim Vigor to the best of his abilities
These were the Skills that generally drew the least amount of their potency from his image so Randidly hadnÆt spent much time refining the images related to them They were after all entirely passive in their activation But in that first fight against Kaan Swacc with that mindset Randidly realized how much the Grim Chimera needed those two images when fighting alone
Chimeric Avoidance was the signature Skill of the Grim Chimera that allowed it to avoid just a little bit more that what should be physically possible Every one of the ChimeraÆs movements could be streamlined because of that Path of variance that only it could walk Attacks that should lay the Chimera out simply brushed against its hardened skin as it weaved closer
Because the SkillÆs effect bordered on impossibility Randidly had just vaguely influenced the direction of the image in the past His attention had been spent elsewhere But now he felt the massive contractions running through the body of the physicalized Grim Chimera as he fought His heartbeat was thunderous his blood was scalding While stepping sharply backward to avoid one of KaanÆs pyramids that shot down at his head Randidly realized that the Grim Chimera wasnÆt inherently special It had no magical Skill that gave it access to isolated space in order to dodge
The body of the Grim Chimera evolved on the fly Its joints bones and muscles could expand and contract rather freely The more Randidly examined himself the more he realized that the bones of the Grim Chimera seemed to be lined with a cartilage/muscle hybrid that allowed his skeleton to contract And as agonizing as the process was the Grim Chimera knew it was worth it
Survival first Everything else was just a bonus
Congratulations Your Skill Chimeric Avoidance has grown to Level 289
Kaan used the resonance from one of his pyramids to suppress RandidlyÆs abilities and another to boost his own Then he zipped forward filled with the fiery assurance that Randidly Ghosthound was a Nether spy
And how could the Grim Chimera withstand the strain of the constant expansion and contraction Because it had a Skill that made him more myth than flesh
Congratulations Your Skill AbominationÆs Grim Vigor has grown to Level 335
Steam radiated off of Randidly in waves as he spun sideways breaking past the System limit and barely managing to use raw Nether Brawn and the dregs of the Grim Chimera to stand up against Kaan SwaccÆs blitz He moved with a violence that shredded his muscles because he had no other choice and his body was steadily knit together again by the vigor that animated him