The more a complicated work of art glittered around him
For a few moments time seemed to stand still Everything became energy The details of the surroundings vanished their shape fading Instead Randidly could read their energy He could even see the swirling efforts of the thin shade in front of him to disappear
Everything was laid bare And once he witnessed the whole of the environment something clicked into place in his mind
RandidlyÆs heartbeat quickened This is why images are suppressed here Not because the power of the Grand Pattern suffers no competition but the ultimate goal of this obnoxious place is understanding Of witnessing this vast interaction Images ultimately are a cheat you accomplish a goal by relying on a mental manifestation of energy that doesnÆt need to be restricted by inputs and outputs Shape and emotion are enough to make up the difference Witnessing this majesty requires too much work too much suffering compared to the alternative But once youÆve seen it
An instinctual understanding of energy flows began to bud in RandidlyÆs subconscious It didnÆt manifest a Skill but somehow he could feel the barest possibility of how the Nether King could wield such power
Of course there was a cost The mental strain became a throbbing physical headache that quickly began to congregate around RandidlyÆs left eye The warping of the Stillborn Phoenix quickly grew stronger the darkness spreading to cover a larger portion of his face
As the pain became agonizing the sensation of being frozen finally shattered The shade whipped backward its body steadily being obscured by the flows of energy it manipulated For a second Randidly stalled then he once more found his momentum His arms tore forward bearing whirlwinds of vicious force
Now that IÆve seen your pattern you canÆt just screen my gaze any longer Randidly pounced downward
His palm strikes impacted the obscuring energy flows and ripped through them revealing the guardian wearing a look of shock on his face But of course he was still a powerful warrior He righted his stance and tossed two force needles at Randidly
The headache worsened as the agony seemed to crystalize into a dagger wiggling into the back of his left eye but Randidly could even see the patterns the shade used to create the force spikes It would take a while to get his Skill Level to the requisite power but he could mimic the technique
The force in the surroundings seethed and pulsed in constant motion Randidly was so close If he could have more time to study
However he ignored that possibility for now Because he might not know the finer points but he had plenty of experience manifesting his own patterns and exerting his will Randidly reached into the surrounding space and forced the two force needles apart so they shot on either side of him Then he crossed the last bit of distance and impacted the core of focus that the shade used to control the surrounding pattern
RandidlyÆs attack slammed the guardian into the ground The other watching shades fell silent In the same instant a notification popped up and pain around his eye began to ease
Congratulations Your Skill Tide of the Void is reacting
Congratulations Your Skill Tide of the Void has evolved into Breath of the Cosmos Skill Level will be maintained
Chapter 1828
The world spread out before him gleamed with thin threads of power
Randidly controlled his breathing and allowed the churning storm around him to slow and stop of his own accord The heat of his body struggling under the physical suppression rolled off his shoulders and distorted the air He deactivated the Hierarchy of Burden and no longer channeled the forces through his body The skeletally thin shade hopped back to his feet and Randidly spared him a sharp glance But the shade raised its hands in surrender and Randidly relaxed further
Truly this is an immaculate view Randidly thought as he glanced around The brilliant threads touched everything Various types spun together all of the platform Although he wasnÆt familiar with the behavior of each having a visual real time representation of the forces he interacted with would be useful
As the mist parted and the next stairwell was revealed Randidly took the time to look at the explanation for his new Skill
Breath of the Cosmos A Skill that gives the User deep insight into the surroundings The intersection of thousands of different influences and taints can be seen by the User When the Skill is activated the UserÆs awareness grows to fill an even larger area although mental strain increases Skill can be utilized in conjunction with other forces to control the observable forces For in the wider Cosmos only by witnessing its majesty can you begin to control it Effects greatly increase with Skill Level
Influence +17 051
Steam wafted off of RandidlyÆs body even as the other shades chattered and wandered over to greet their new defeated companion The investment of significance that he made previously flowed back from the skinny shade instantly pushing RandidlyÆs total Influence to above three hundred thousand He flexed his back and earned a satisfying crack from his spine In terms of Nether Core growth Randidly had no complaints about the mountain
But for the moment Randidly remained still The darkness around his left eye seeped outward as he continued to study the energy flows around them all
The more he looked the easier it was to distinguish between the different forces The entire platform was a constant interplay of bright and dim flows Some were energy currents with others were simply small breaths of air released as the shades moved and displaced the environment Others were the influence of the Grand Pattern gradually adding structure to the chaotic interactions Viewing it all still gave Randidly a painful tightening behind his eyes but with the evolution of the Skill it became manageable Compared to the many times that RandidlyÆs Skills and Class had been broken this was relatively harmless
Congratulations Your Skill Breath of the Cosmos has grown to Level 400
Congratulations Your Skill Philosophy within the Boundless Deluge has grown to Level 573
Congratulations Your Skill Breath of the Cosmos has grown to Level 401
Interesting Randidly watched the shade move around and the particular patterns that they seemed to radiate likely subconsciously as they interacted with each other All the shades have the ability to affect the surrounding patterns with just their bodies their particular methods have become so ingrained in them that they rub off on the ambient energy currents naturally However there is a firm divide between them and this most recent guardian
Randidly focused on the skinny individual with wild hair While most of the others simply left a trail in the air that mirrored their capabilities the few meters surrounding this guardian seemed to enter into a particular arrangement Without the benefit of images such constant continuity of pattern was extremely impressive In essence the shade could only rely on the small movements of his body to keep the whole enterprise on its correct course While resisting outside influences to a degree The shade didnÆt need to rely on the rivers of natural force that Randidly used to essentially dominate the surroundings
But of course that let him tear the shade’s pattern to pieces when he came too close but he wouldnÆt hold that against him
The Master was a squat wrinkled humanoid Unlike many of the other Nexus elite who hid their age the Master considered it a mark of humility His wide cheeks sagged into his fat neck On top of the puddle it made him look quite a lot like a toad One nearing the end of its life
Master
In order Number One and then Numbers Two and Four bowed to this being All wore a similar fawning expression even blunt Number Two Finally the woman Lyra Silver bowed Great One
Hm You donÆt seem to be familiar child Come closer so I can understand your role in the Grand Pattern The MasterÆs beady eyes locked onto the woman Number One wondered if his Master would invite the girl to train privately with him then break her body and cast her to the side like he had so many times in the past