What is the most general troupe that you have observed in this world?
If this question was asked to me, I would answer the principle of equivalent exchange.
If one wants to get something, then you need to sacrifice. The one who can bring change is the one who can sacrifice.
And now, here I was, in the midst of a challenging situation that epitomized this very principle.
HOWL
The winds were howling, and the incredibly strong storm was obscuring my vision, but with my [All Seeing Eye], I could see the land before me.
The mountain before me loomed tall and imposing, its peak obscured by clouds. It was a daunting climb, with treacherous terrain and unpredictable weather.
Mountain Range of Divine Footprints
A place whose purpose is yet to be discovered by the people of this world. A place that normally requires one of the highest levels in the game. A place for the end game purposes.
A place where once the gods said to be stepped on.
For now, this place was known as Cursed Mountains, where no monster lived, and it was in the northern part of the world, inside the Country of Arctia. It was because the mana here was violent; almost no monsters of other types of things lived there. That was the reason why everything was quiet unless you ignored the sounds of the storm.
'Right now, nobody knows about the reason for this violent mana; neither do they know about the future events that will take place here.' I thought.
'But, this is not my concern right now.'
The place where I wanted to be was on this mountain range, but at the same time, it was not. The path would differ later on.
With coldness in my heart, I began my ascent. The path was rugged, rocky and occasionally veered into dense forests. The air grew thin as I climbed higher, and the temperature dropped considerably. Each step required careful consideration, for even a small misstep could prove disastrous.
The path was relentless, and I pressed on, my body unwavering even as the biting cold gnawed at my bones. The effects of the passive skills I have gotten and the material I consumed before my journey showed their strengths.
Hours passed as I climbed higher, the terrain grew steeper, and the wind howled with increasing intensity. The sky above seemed to darken, heavy with the promise of an impending storm. A dense fog began to roll in, thick and suffocating.
Even my [All Seeing Eye] struggled to pierce through the veil, and my surroundings became a hazy blur. The world around me seemed to shrink, and the once clear path became a labyrinth of uncertainty.
'This means I finally reached the place.' I thought. The reason why even my [All Seeing Eye] could not see what was ahead was because the thing before me was pure divinity.
Divinity was obscuring my vision, and that was for a reason. As a being who had yet to see what divinity was, there was no way a simple art could pierce through it.
For now.
In any case, that didn't mean I couldn't see what was before me. Even though the fog was thick, I could at least see small and big footprints.
'Just as it was in the game, though this place seems a lot more dead now.'
This was the point of divergence, where the road ahead split into two paths, each leading to different places. I took a deep breath and calmed myself down. My body was tattered from the immense cold, and it was tiring to constantly walk on a mountain range where no life could be seen.
'I should rest a little bit.' I thought and sat on the ground.
Right now, the point I was in was the beginning of the Divine Range.
From this point on, if one chooses to go to the first road, which is the obvious path, then they would reach an elevator where two elderly medallions are needed to get activated.
It looked like an elevator, but in reality, it was a special type of offering place where one would ascend to the Divine Range.
But, of course, both reaching the Divine Elevator and activating it is not easy. There are followers of one Ancient Species protecting it, and one of the Ancient Species itself is the one living on the Elevator.
Therefore, unless the player's level was sufficient enough to confront it, it was basically not possible to go through that path. And right now, my strength is yet to reach such a level.
But the reason I was here was not because I wanted to take the obvious path. No, it was because I wanted to take the small path hidden in the corner of the place.
Unless one looked with attention, they couldn't see the path. A narrow trail and uneven ground made each step cautious.
Just like that, I slowly made on the narrow road, with my senses fully alert.
ROAR
And as I climbed, the tranquility of the surroundings was shattered by a guttural roar.
SWOOSH
Emerging from the shadows of the trees, a hulking beast lunged at me. Its scales gleamed with an iridescent sheen, and its jaws snapped with formidable force. This was no ordinary monster—it was a creature born of this magical world's wild heart.
'It was about time you guys finally showed yourself.' I thought.
SWOOSH
As I pushed fire magic on my hands, I focused on first deflecting the monster's attack.
"SHRIEK!"
BOOM
My attack detonated, and the monster was thrown off balance, teetering dangerously close to the edge of the cliff. Swiftly, I encased my legs in earthen magic, preventing myself from sharing the same fate.
However, my assailant wasn't as fortunate as it lost its footing and plummeted down the precipice.I think you should take a look at
SWOOSH
But this was no solo encounter. The roar that had initially shattered the calm was just a prelude.
From all directions, a multitude of monstrous creatures emerged, drawn by the commotion. They encircled me, their eyes gleaming with predatory hunger, a united force against the interloper in their territory.
'Prismatic Draconian.' Was the name of the monsters before me.
Their magic was close to non-existent because they were not fully grown dragons, but their physical aspects were strong.
There was a reason these monsters could live in such conditions where both the mana around was violent and poisonous, and the weather was cold.
It was because they were not reliant on mana but rather on their physical aspects.
<Ding! Trait [Child of Mana] is active.>
<Mana obeys the host's command.>
<Violent mana around the host is ignored.>
<Host is free to use magic however he wants.>
The moment I heard the system logs before me, a smile was tucked on my lips.
'It is time to massacre these little dragons.'
With that thought, I directed my focus inward, tapping into the wellspring of magic that resided within me. Drawing power from the elements that surrounded us, I felt the familiar surge of energy as it coursed through my veins. The air around me seemed to shimmer, charged with the impending release of arcane might.
SWOOSH
As the first of the Prismatic Draconians lunged, I sidestepped with a graceful agility that belied the tight space I had to maneuver.
ραndαsnοvεl.cοm BOOM
My fingers traced intricate patterns in the air, igniting threads of fire that shot forth like streaks of molten light. The magical flames found their mark, engulfing the beast's scales in searing heat.
It was the new way of fire I had discovered to use, and it was for sure coming in handy immediately.
SHRIEK
The creature's agonized voice echoed off the valley walls as it recoiled, affording me the chance to pivot and address the next threat.
"By the words of Gaia, ob...."
With a flourish of my hands, I conjured a cascade of earth, propelling sharp spikes from the ground. These impaled the ground-shaking feet of an approaching Draconians, momentarily immobilizing them.
It was a spell of 3-star that I had recently mastered, and even though it took a little longer to chant, it was effective.
SHRIEK SHRIEK ROAR
Their anguished and angry voices could be heard as I limited their place to move.
CRACKLE
As the lightning mana was condensed around their bodies, I moved it accordingly, paralyzing the muscles they had clenched in order to not to fall from the cliff.
CIZZT CIZZT
And, with a smooth movement, I moved it accordingly, in a patter that I could see with my [All Seeing Eye], and thanks to the electric surging from their muscles, they could no longer hold their ground.
FLICK
And with a flick of my finger, I condensed the fire magic right before their ears.
BOOM
Making it explode. It was not a strong explosion that would make the narrow pathway get destroyed. It was an explosion that would simply disturb their balance and make them fall to the ground.
SWOOSH SWOOSH SWOOSH
As the monsters fell one by one into the endless cliff, I had a sigh of relief that the momentum of the explosion hadn't caused any type of avalanche. Since dealing with it would be a lot harder.
And just like that, I kept my walk, fighting with Draconians on the way, until I reached the place where I wanted to.....
----------------------A/W--------------------
I have a severe toothache right now after the implants, but I will try to post another chapter.
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You can check my discord if you want. You can see the illustrations of characters there.
The link to the discord server is in the description of the book.