Chapter 297: A familiar energy

The natural-made mineral-rich, cavern walls led Aiden further underground. The moss-covered walls glowed in a feeble light green hue providing the grotto an obscure, eerie ambiance. 

Thanks to his very first ability he gained during his relatively short lifetime, the [Dark Sense] Aiden had no issues with the dim lighting as he ventured alone. As he passed through a weak pillar of what the luminous, glossy moss-covered, a slight smirk could be seen stretching from the corner of his lips. 

He had an incredibly hard time convincing his team of servants and Drake to actually allow him to continue alone. Roas and the trio of Primal Goblins were adamant in following him, as 'Their purpose in life was to protect the Young Master. They couldn't just leave him!'

Even after he tried explaining that the journey from this point on would be safe for him, and that he would much rather leave them to guard the perimeter, they were a pretty hard-headed bunch to convince.

In the end, after much effort, they relented, albeit begrudgingly, and agreed to stay and guard the door. Luckily Drake agreed relatively quickly, but only after he made Aiden promise to come back. Still his quick acquiesce was something that Aiden was puzzled about for a bit, before pushing the thought to the back of his head.

The path continued to slither downwards, seemingly without end, the route merging with the darkness in the distance. Even with using his [Dark Sense] skill at its maximum efficiency, Aiden couldn't sense an end nor a single soul at all. 

This strange fact greatly worried Aiden, shaking his head he increased the range of his senses to cover the moss-covered cavern walls, the rocky ground, and ceiling as well.

Still, even with that, he couldn't find any fault, any inconsistency, or trace of magic as he was continuously led further and further down to the depths. What really puzzled him that there were no chambers, forking pathways, anything. He was seemingly led in what seemed to be a natural wonder, an ornate staircase to who-knows-where.

'Just what is this place?!' He grumbled inwardly. After trekking for minutes, he didn't feel that he was any closer to whatever was lying in wait for him than when he first stepped through the doorway.

'[Don't worry Aiden. You are making progress. There are no tricks or traps here. Trust me.]' Feeling his trepidation, Enya's reassuring words came almost instantly. 

Maybe she said the magic words, just as she finished speaking in his mind, a slight increase in pressure could be felt in the air. Feeling the change, Aiden stopped in his tracks and took a step back.

As if crossing through a barrier, the light pressure vanished as he pulled his body back to his hind left leg. 

"Hmm… This is strange… I can't see anything, but there's definitely something here…" He mumbled focusing his piercing gaze in the air ahead of him. 

Keeping his senses at their maximum, he once again, took the same step forward. He raised his right leg, pushing it through in the air slowly, carefully. Feeling no change, he leaned forward, following his adventurous leg.

Although there was absolutely no feeling attached to it, when he crossed the imaginary border he made, he could immediately feel the light pressure, the transcending power around him in the air once again.

Puzzled and confused by this mysterious sensation, he once again turned to his trusty companion for answers. 

'Enya, do you know what is happening? What is this pressure? What is this feeling?' 

Enya, his System's spiritual guide didn't hesitate with her answer. Her mature voice rang like a gentle bell in his mind.

'[The answers you seek are further below Aiden. Doesn't it feel different from anything you have felt so far? Focus on the energy, doesn't it feel familiar? Continue following it.]'

'Argh…' Aiden could only grumble at her response. She kept not giving any sort of answer about what this place actually was and kept urging him to just continue crossing this endless path. 

'Fine… Not like I have anything better to do.' He grumbled, taking a quick glance at the timer on the main quest in his system.

[Main Quest: The Secrets of the Demon Grotto 

Difficulty: A-S

Remaining Time: 39 days 18 hours 55 minutes 58 seconds

Objective:  Find and Explore the Demon Grotto (1 / 2 - Explore the Grotto and Reach the end.)

Uncover its Secret 

Earn the owner's acceptance

Optional: -Merge with the Guardian (Warning: The feat will require the simultaneous activation and use of the Primal Absorb racial skill empowered with the Blessing of Ioris effect. Caution: The strain on the host's core will be immense!)

...]

Aiden was surprised to see that there were some updates on the quest's text. For the first time, the System gave some additional details, going as far as giving a warning about the optional objective.

'Huh… What happened, since when did the System act like this?' He muttered to himself. 

'[Well, it's your fault, you haven't read any of the notifications you have received. They contain some very important information you know…]' Enya's reprimanded.

'I can't, there's too many, it would take too much time…' Aiden retorted. An idea coming to his mind, a mischievous smirk revealed on his face outwardly, as he continued with a lamenting tone. 'Unless… someone could summarize the important parts for me…'

'[What? Summarize?! Just take the time to read it. It's not like you have anything else to do!]' She exclaimed, activating the notifications Aiden kept on the sideline ever since defeating Murus and pushed it to the forefront of his vision.

Luckily, even though she didn't say so, she still managed to somehow slightly alter the display, groping and summarizing the long list of changes into a much more digestible format.

[System Notification: The following Quest(s) have been updated.

Critical Quest: Absorb to survive! - Completed! 

Rewards: New Skill Created and automatically activated: [Primal Restoration - (LVL 1 - 0 / 100): Usable in conjunction with [Primal Absorb] only! By altering the flow of the life essences of the absorbed lifeform, the Primal can heal from most types of damage and mutilations. Warning: By using the life essences to revitalize and rejuvenate the body, the Primal will not be able to strengthen himself.]; 2000 XP

Optional Quest: Thwart the Invasion - Part 2! Updated

- Learn more about the history of the land (1/1) - Completed!

- Report back to the Mistress of Higrove about what you learned! (0/1)

***

System Milestone Reached: System Upgrade unlocked! 

Estimated Upgrade Time: 48 Hours 00 Minutes 00 Seconds

Note: The System will be unavailable during the upgrade process!

***

…]

Below that he also had the same reminder that he could initiate the upgrade process for his Dark Sense ability that popped up after he processed the Dark Essence Source he found. Still, the deactivation of the ability would have rendered him practically blind for an entire hour, which was not an option in his current situation.

Still, the most interesting note beside the fact that after the mission he would need two whole days to allow the system to upgrade was the new Primal ability that he automatically used to restore his torn right arm. Sadly, this skill also explained why he couldn't see or feel any increase in his attributes. This also meant that whatever race Murus was, Aiden couldn't gain, as the life essences that would be required, were used up for a different purpose. 

Still, not all was lost, Aiden still had his memories, waiting to be processed. Just like before, by merging the memories and with that the life of this strange person, Aiden could find some answers to some still unanswered questions and gain some further knowledge in some of his skills.

Unfortunately, with the missing form, he would be unable to fully unlock the memories, and most likely he wouldn't get any further details about the shadowy figure that showed such great interest in him.

Finished with the shortened list, Aiden closed the notifications, freeing up his vision. As he was focused on the text floating in the air in front of him, he didn't notice the gradually increasing but still relatively light pressure of the force that surrounded him.

Coming back to his senses, he was swiftly reminded by this fiasco.

'[I'm glad that you finally took the time to read your own updates Aiden, but you should also be aware of your surroundings. Haven't you noticed something?]'

'The air… Is much thicker… What is-' Coming back to his senses, Aiden quickly realized the gradual change in the air, and was about to ask, when suddenly he turned silent with a realization. 

The energy lingering in the air was an aura. That, he was already certain of. However, so far, he hadn't focused on the energy itself, he merely felt its ever-present pressure, its increasing thickness in the air.

Now, that he was reminded of it, a realization suddenly flashed through his mind. He turned wide-eyed, halted his steps, and looked incredulously ahead of himself. 

The energy, the aura he felt, wasn't mana, or any sort of essence the others used. It wasn't intent honed by powerful and experienced warriors either. 

No, it was the very same type he was most familiar with! The air around him was filled to the brim with [Soul Power]!