Chapter 84: Domain

Chapter 84: Domain

[Brainless] is evolving into [Enduring Spirit]...

Synergy detected with your talent [Humanity adapts] and [He Who Eludes Death].

Recalculating

Title upgraded! [Tenacious Spirit - Silver] Congratulations!

[Tenacious Spirit - Silver] - You had a mission, and your unfailing willpower enabled you to accomplish it. Even in the face of death, you continue to fight. You wont let your body be a burden any longer.

Never forget: more than your body, your will makes you who you are.

You can begin to manipulate and train your mind. Your mind becomes more resistant to environmental erosion.

WILL +20%

As he finished reading his notification, Priam reflected that his pain had disappeared. Or rather, that it had lessened. His memories had returned - at least partially. My name is... Priam. Yeah, that's my name now.

Priam activated [Aether Perception] to check his condition. Instantly, a wave of relief washed over him. In order to improve his mind, the System had regenerated part of his spirit. At least enough to give him a chance to create his Domain. Priam watched his spirit body for a second, calculating its fading speed. About two minutes. Maybe more once I've deactivated [Aether Perception].

Which he did before consulting his Trees of Merits. He intended to take every advantage he could.

Trees of Merit

Each new Title opens a new Tree of Merit and allows you to upgrade a Tree of Merit once.

Upgrading a Tree of Merit to Tier 9 uses 10 Titles and thus condemns 9 other Trees. Be careful which trees you upgrade...

[Tenacious Spirit - Silver] - Tier 3: Your spirit begins to break free from your bodily limitations. It can now travel for a few moments outside your body.

ACQUIRED.

[Tenacious Spirit - Silver] - Tier 4: Locked. Requires a Gold Title.

6 Unused Merit Points.

Satisfied, Priam felt his mind stabilize further. If he understood the Merit correctly, his Title now allowed him to leave his body. The possibilities were numerous: he could spy on his surroundings, detach himself from his body to increase his concentration or rename himself Casper. From now on, Priam would no longer need to find a wyvern to vaporize his body before setting off on a spiritual journey. Baby steps...

Without wasting any time, Priam tried again to perceive his mist. It seemed even closer to him than before. The increase in willpower enabled him to better manipulate [Moon Mist].

After a few moments, Priam stopped his experiments. Sighing mentally, he faced reality: his mental state was still agitated. He had just come close to death, and the ordeal had been shocking. [He Who Eludes Death] had not yet been triggered to heal his mind.

The best cure for this kind of emotion was time. A resource Priam didn't have. I'll meditate on my feelings later. For now, I might as well postpone the problem. Priam knew not listening to himself could be dangerous, but the situation left him no choice.

[Emotional Discipline]. Priam took ten seconds to observe his emotions calmly. He felt his fear, anger, rage, and then his relief. He had won - at least temporarily. Slowly, his harmful emotions began to dissipate, giving way to his excitement. He couldn't wait to test his new limits. His willpower crushed all negative emotions, and Priam's mind threw itself back into work.

All around him, the cloud of Damocles had closed in. Priam deployed [Moon Mist] again, using his Title and Merits to reconnect fully with his mist. Hesitating for a moment, he also activated his Potential. It wasn't the time to cut corners.

The mist welcomed him back. A feeling of fulfillment emerged in Priam. His different assets were synergizing, strengthening the connection between him and the mist. Despite Damocles' hostility, the cloud seemed almost a friend. It confided in Priam, revealing its secrets and those of the steam.

A notification arrived, but Priam ignored it. The only impulse left in him was to merge with the mist. Create a Domain and ascend. Since the Tutorial, most of his evolutions had been quantitative. Now, at this very moment, a qualitative change was within his grasp. A transformation.

A metamorphosis.

[Focus]. [Meditation]. Both skills, boosted by the treasures he had previously swallowed, increased his concentration to an all-time high.

With each passing moment, the world took on new colors, hitherto invisible to his eyes. The mist became more familiar. His new sensitivity even allowed Priam to see beyond the dome's barrier. Until now, it had always been denied him. To communicate, he'd needed a way through the mist. That was no longer the case - something had changed.

The wyvern attacked again. Indeed enraged, it delivered a second blast to the city below. Priam's emotions remained unaffected by the destruction caused. Right now, all that mattered was the mist. A mist that whispered even in the heart of the attack, where the blast had pushed back the air.

A mist that existed even when there was nothing left. A mist that occupied the void.

Priam's mind trembled as a realization crystallized: the Mist was everywhere. More than just water in different states, the Mist was a concept.

A final barrier gave way in the face of this understanding. A special, intimate bond opened up between Priam and the mist concept. From this bond, an epiphany emerged. Priam began formulating thoughts, ideas that the mist was breathing into him.

Mist is an expression of aether at a given moment. If a higher being saw the world as it really was - an ocean of aether, the fundamental particle at the origin of everything - then this ocean could take on an infinite number of forms. A cloud, a tower, a single living being, a universe and... a mist.

Everyone's way of seeing the world was different. Perceptions, shortcomings, and brain wiring altered how the world looked. To each their colors and tastes. The color red was not perceived in the same way by two different humans - without even mentioning color blindness. Similarly, an ant couldn't distinguish a lake from an ocean. The worldview was a matter of perspective.

Sometimes, the truth was absolute: early men thought the earth was flat and were wrong.

Sometimes the truth was multiple and in everyone's heart.

"I'm afraid not," replied Esme, shaking her head. "The First has just obtained a new Silver Achievement."

The King sighed. "It's not the first one for nothing. Any further information?"

"No, his divination resistance is too high." Esme felt her heart speed up before she calmed down. Knowing someone was ruining her plans was painful. The First developed resistance extremely quickly. Esme was therefore careful to use her divination as rarely as possible. Unfortunately, Priam had to have asked his henchmen to help him increase his resistance. A man willing to do anything to progress. I should learn from him, she thought.

"The fact that your skills are unable to break through his defenses remains a failure on your part, my dear sister."

Esme turned to Aydan, a smile on her lips. Initially fourth in the order of succession, the new Crown Prince - thanks to her - was somewhat pathetic with his attacks.

"I believe you'll have a chance to show the First your skills very soon, dear brother."

"Indeed," said the King, gesturing to one of the servants. "Our best agents have finally succeeded in the series of quests required to obtain the artifact we've been coveting.

The servant brought a box before Esme.

Esme, using this artifact, you will open a passage between Elysium and this dome once the Reunion is over. Aydan, you will use your rewards to stay another day in this Reunion. With your guards, you will cross the passage created by Esme and set up an outpost in Elyse. The rarest resources in this new Universe are there, and we want them. Do not disappoint us, my son."

"Yes, Father."

Esme remained silent, respecting her role and not making herself more noticeable than necessary. It was easy, considering that women were not usually allowed to speak. Only her position as a princess and her results in the Tutorial permitted her to be more highly regarded than an animal.

That will change, vowed Esme.

Status: (Average value for a Homo sapiens male before integration: PHY 10 / MEN 10 / META 0)

PHYSICAL:

Strength 173

Constitution 301

Agility 210

Vitality 319

Perception 380

MENTAL:

Vivacity 183

Dexterity 236

Memory 50

Willpower 363 (+28)

Charisma 176

META:

Meta-affinity 188

Meta-focus 111

Meta-endurance 101

Meta-perception 51

Meta-chance 114

Potential: 4359 (+988)

Tier 0

[He Who Eludes Death] charge: PRIMED.