Chapter 291

Chapter 291

The sun has already hit its high point in the sky and is beginning to fall down toward the horizon. While the sand is still scorching hot, the dry air is starting to cool off as the light rays aren't directly pointing at the top of my head anymore.

While walking back through the rolling dunes of the desert to the abandoned village the sensation I felt earlier keeps relying in the back of my mind. The pressure in my chest and the core overflowing with energy are all I can think about.

The more I ponder it, the more similarities it has to the way the wolves were leaking black fog containing trace amounts of refined energy.

Demonic Wolves seem to have raw energy swirling around inside them, ready to be used as a power source at any moment. My method of use is fairly different. I'm able to keep energy in my core in a state of limbo. It's resting between raw and refined. However, once released it can't be absorbed back inside.

I've lived most of my life without a drop of Demonic Energy in me, so I'm sure it's not vital to my survival like the wolves... I am curious If I'd be able to use it in a similar fashion to increase my physical attributes if I mastered my output better.

While silently daydreaming about the possibilities of my new discovery, the abandoned village finally comes back into my field of vision.

Along with it, the white dome-shaped building up on the hill does too. I do a quick scan of my surroundings and confirm yet again there isn't a single human or monster in sight.

Other than the beasts lurking deep within the black void to my right side, there is no life for kilometers in this abandoned wasteland.

The sun is getting closer to the desert horizon, so I turn to walk back to Solara. We all agreed to meet back at Chester's before sunset, so it's best I break my habit of always being fashionably late. Sometimes I have a good reason for it, today it would just be unnecessary.

I make my trek back through the rolling hills of golden sand.

It doesn't take long before the wooden porch of the old man's house comes into view. I make it just in time to see Abby and Maria walking up the steps as the setting orange sun starts to disappear from the sky.

A blue light bursts out from the door as I approach.

Fisher's voice yells in a happy tone to those listening inside.

"Pretty awesome right? I can control its level of protection on demand now! It's like an extra layer of mana shielding made from water magic without using up nearly as much energy."

I step through the door to see where exactly this blue light is coming from.

The swordsman is standing in the middle of the living room emanating a light blue glow. A thin veil of shielding covers his whole body, and it's visible to the naked eye.

Using my All-Seeing Eye for a closer look, I confirm his words with a smirk and a nod as we make eye contact before speaking up.

"Not bad... That's your ranked-up perk? The water defense you mentioned earlier."

My eyes scan it up and down before continuing.

"I had no idea it could be manipulated to different intensities, interesting."Ñ00v€l--ß1n hosted the premiere release of this chapter.

He smiles and turns to Arie.

"We found out all kinds of things about our ranked-up buffs. There isn't much known about them from my standard education, all I know is this is a high-tier perk. Sometimes people don't even get a buff at all! Often a hunter's skills just get upgraded. I think the fact that we're already maxed out at legendary grade means we got something extra. Show him yours!"

Arie nods and stands to his feet.

"Sure, I got some practice in too. Take a look"

The archer begins to shine bright white.

Meanwhile, I think about what the water mage said. I know for certain legendary is not the maximum skill rank. Upgrading further would just require a lot more Proficiency Points(PP). If a hunter's skills can't be upgraded manually, a buff is rewarded.

I shrug with a grin.

"Great, get them sold tomorrow. Anything over 0 is profit, but try to get the best price you can."

Chester turns around to pull out the blue and gold potions along with a smooth curved glossy black dagger as dark as night.

"These items, on the other hand, I think are far too unique to sell. There are no merchants or hunters in town capable of giving me a reasonable price for them. It may be worth keeping them for the future battles."

I look down at the gear and activate appraisal.

[Extreme Strength Potion] x10

[MP Invigoration Potion] x10

The potions show interesting readings in the familiar blue text boxes, but the dagger shows nothing at all. It's clearly a monster drop, but there isn't a hint of magic in it.

I use my All-Seeing Eye to get more information.

_____________

Extreme Strength Potion

Info: This Extreme Strength Potion will boost the user's base strength stats by 120% for 5 minutes. If initially consumed while on full HP, It increases the speed and agility stats by an additional 25%. The user will have a 50% debuff of all base stats for 30 minutes following potion use.

Class: C+

Type: Consumable

Durability: 1/1

_____________

_____________

MP Invigoration Potion

Info: This MP Invigoration Potion will boost the user's base mana control capabilities by 50% for 5 minutes. If initially consumed while on full MP, It increases the user's environmental mana absorption rate by 200% for the full 5 minutes of activation. The user will have a 75% debuff on all base stats and a 99% debuff on mana absorption for 30 minutes following potion use.

Class: B+

Type: Consumable

Durability: 1/1

_____________

"I've never seen anything like this..."

The potions look interesting, but what stands out most to me is the endless black void within the glossy curved dagger.

It gives off the same lifeless undetectable readings I get from staring into the Abyss.