Body Trait Poison Resistance (C) evolved into Poison Resistance (B) due to exposure to the Shadow Poison, a poison of B rarity.
Poison Resistance (B) – Raises resistance to all poisons by 49%. Can be evolved further through surviving stronger poisons.
This trait is the only thing keeping me alive somehow. He promptly cast Cure Poison on himself and sat down with a loud thud, hoping that Healing Flow would activate quickly. “I’ll be fine… Please protect me,” Maximus said tiredly as he began manually forcing spirit energy into his empty seed.
Skill Leveled Up: [Cure Poison (E) Lv. 10]
Half an hour later, the soft spirit energy that surrounded him faded, and he slowly opened his eyes.
Skill Leveled Up: [Healing Flow (C) Lv. 8]
Class Trait Leveled Up: [Nature’s Sprouting Elemental Seed (D) LV.9]
“Boss, are you alright?” Vesper asked anxiously.
“I am fine now. That was a close call, though, luckily, I seem to have a cheat against instant death,” Maximus said seriously. He had felt his Death Defiant trait activate when the centipede struck him, as if something had shifted his organs just enough to avoid a fatal blow. “What about you two?”
“I heal fast, I’m good, and the gecko is fine as well, as you can see.” Vesper pointed toward Silex, who was currently spitting chunks of shell as he eagerly devoured the pristine white flesh hidden beneath the centipede’s thick black armor.
“Silex, come here!” Maximus ordered.
Silex grumbled something under his breath but obeyed; he owed his life to his ‘smelly Max,’ as he liked to call him.
Maximus inspected his wounds and cast Rejuvenation again. “You should be fine. The poison was weakened, but it’s still there; it will take some time to cleanse fully,” Maximus explained.
“Oh, don’t worry, Max, a voice told me I got stronger,” Silex said.
Maximus stared at him, confused, and opened his status. Right there, beneath his traits, a new one had appeared, Lesser Poison Resistance. Look at that… Astrae’s work, I would think.
“Good, you should be somewhat stronger against poison now. Good job, you can go back to your feast, just leave the core for me,” Maximus said, relieved.
“Vesper, you can go eat as well,” Maximus added as he noticed his armor barely holding together. I’ll need to buy something new… I cannot go through this cursed place without proper defense.
Then his breath hitched as he noticed the area where he had been stabbed was still pitch black. The wound had closed, and his health had returned to 1000, but the blackness remained, faintly pulsing beneath his skin.
What in the nine hells is going on now?! He cursed inwardly.
“Uhm, boss… That doesn’t look good,” Vesper noticed, his voice heavy with concern.
“Don’t worry. Go… Go eat, rest,” Maximus urged, waving him off as he focused and tried to appraise the strange discoloration spreading across his flesh.
[Shadow Touched]
A curse left on those who survive a battle with the Skittering Shadow. You are now marked until you either die or exterminate all living Skittering Shadows in the area.
The centipedes will hunt you relentlessly. Any centipede within a 500-meter radius will be able to locate you effortlessly, while others will be drawn into the hunt until the marked one is found.
Quest Created: There can be only one.
Exterminate all Skittering Shadow Centipedes or die.
Rewards: 5 Talent Points, Blessing of the Centipede, Acknowledgment of The Weaver of Shrouds
Status: 1/10 Killed
Maximus stared at the notification, and his face grew serious. He reached down and touched the blackened patch of skin, which looked as if someone had poured ink over him. It was cold to the touch and felt more like a hardened shell than flesh. He tried to pour spirit energy into it, but it passed through without resistance, behaving as if everything was normal. Curses… Damn it all. He cursed inwardly before forcing himself to calm down. A leader could not show even a hint of losing control in front of those who followed him.
Vesper still stood there, carefully observing Maximus. “It’s bad, isn’t it? Nothing good ever happens in this accursed place. Boss, don’t hide it!” Vesper pressed, his tone rising with urgency.
“Very well. I’m marked by the beasts to be hunted, and by the looks of it, there are nine left that will try to come after us now. Maybe it would be for the best if you two left the Wildlands and waited for this to pass,” Maximus said, his voice controlled but heavy.
Before Vesper could reply, Silex bellowed, “I ain’t going anywhere, you bastard! This ugly bitch tried to kill me, it’s time for revenge, and don’t even get me started on this meat, this is pure bliss!” Silex roared as he tore off and swallowed a massive chunk.
Vesper suddenly burst into laughter before adding, “The gecko said everything I wanted to say… Well, except the last part. We ain’t leaving. Now then, I’ll leave the planning to you, boss. I need to taste this meat full of bliss.” Vesper chuckled as he joined in, ripping into the centipede.
Maximus shook his head, astonished at his ridiculous beasts. I'd better protect these two… They are family now. True family. A warm smile spread across his face as Sprout leapt into his arms, Embi fluttering close behind.
“Hey, you two… Glad to see you’re getting along. Don’t worry, I’m fine, and we will be fine. Come, let’s save some materials before those two eat everything,” Maximus said with a faint chuckle as he approached the centipede remains.
He carved out the hand-sized black core and carefully extracted the remaining venom sac filled with pitch-black liquid. He also stored the pincer that had pierced his stomach, along with as many intact shell fragments as he could find. That should be it.
Now then… How to handle this efficiently. He lowered himself to the ground and began to think.
***
“Embi, please light this up,” Maximus asked as he set up a simple bonfire, around which he placed skewers of centipede meat. In the meantime, he began continuously pinging the area with thin waves of spirit energy. It wasn’t anything like his old Detection Magic, but it could still catch disturbances across a wide range, mostly from larger beasts, which was exactly what he needed right now.
“Vesper, how often would you say the centipedes work together?” Maximus asked as he waited for the meat to roast.
“They don’t, that’s why there are usually not many of them within the same region. Which should work to our advantage, since we need to hunt all of them,” Vesper explained.
“We should be able to bait more of them by using me as bait, no?” Maximus asked, already planning the trap.
“I don’t know… Maybe. If hunger and the mark drive them into complete insanity, then probably.” Vesper paused. “But boss, we barely killed one… How are we supposed to kill nine more altogether?”
“From what I’ve seen, they are weak to fire, so how about we burn them all together?” Maximus smiled faintly.
“Max, as long as the meat stays this tender, I’m all for it!” Silex growled, slamming his tail happily against the ground.
“We will set up a trap; I’m not wasting time hunting them one by one or running away,” Maximus announced. “Eat now and rest, and then we begin preparations.”
He took a cautious bite out of the roasted centipede meat, bracing himself for the worst, but instead, a clean, refreshing taste burst across his tongue. He took another bite, then another, and smiled. “This is actually really good!”
“I told you!” Silex laughed, low and satisfied.
“It contains enormous amounts of spirit energy; it’s pouring into my seed in waves. No wonder they are so strong,” Maximus noted as he grabbed another skewer. As he ate, he felt his roots growing longer, merging with his channels and widening them to accommodate both root and flow. Oh… So that is how it develops. Good… Good. I don’t need to interfere. He concluded and continued eating.
Sprout watched him closely, rustling its leaves with quiet interest.
“I’m sorry, buddy, you can’t eat meat, but I’ll find you a place rich with spirit energy, I promise,” Maximus said as he gently petted the small, beast-like plant spirit.
***
Once the three of them finished their feast, Maximus sat down in a meditative position and began channeling the excess spirit energy through his body. His roots had now sunk deeper into the various channels within him, allowing him to increase the output of spirit energy, nearly doubling its flow and greatly improving his regeneration.
Class Trait Leveled Up: [Nature’s Sprouting Elemental Seed (D) Lv. 11]
Alright, it’s growing extremely well. I’ll need to finish this stage before I attempt to reforge the body. If I do it too early, there is a possibility the roots could be damaged, or worse… Destroyed entirely. He sighed, but then smiled, slightly amused.
“What are you smiling about, smelly Max?” Silex growled lazily.
“Not your business, child!” Maximus replied, amused.
“Child? Furry corpse, did he just call this mighty one a child?” Silex gasped in outrage.
Vesper burst into laughter. “He really did. Imagine the audacity!” Vesper teased.
“Hmmm, you two think you are so smart, don’t you?” Silex hissed.
“Alright, alright, calm down, you big baby. You’ve eaten enough, go to sleep, I’ve got work to do!” Maximus cut him off before the argument escalated and opened the store.
I need new armor… And something flammable, the more, the better.
[BT: 20,800]
He noted the tokens he had saved and began scrolling through the chest armor list until he reached the D-rank items, most of which ranged between fifteen and thirty thousand points, while the best E-rank items hovered around ten to fifteen thousand. He sighed and started inspecting the cheaper D-Rank pieces until something finally caught his eye.
[Evergreen Liger’s Brigandine (D)]
Chest piece crafted from the treated hide of an Evergreen Liger, a predator that mastered the way of the jungle, becoming one with it. The hide is reinforced with Sylvanite forged plates, which raise the defenses and spirit regeneration.
Spirit regeneration 3%, doubled if surrounded by flora.
In woodland areas become harder to track and find, and you gain Camouflage ability if staying still for 1 minute, making you merge with nature.
Defense increased by 25%. Vitality increased by 15%
If shapeshifted, increase damage dealt by 20%
BT: 16,620
This is worth the price, especially within the Wildlands. He exhaled lightly and purchased the armor.
A thick, sturdy brigandine appeared in his arms, dark emerald in hue, heavy with layered plates woven across its front. It had four buckles and was sleeveless, clearly designed for mobility.
Maximus stood and pulled it over his torn shirt, fastening it tightly. As he did, he felt his body grow sturdier, his defenses solidifying, while his seed’s absorption rate noticeably increased.
He nodded, satisfied, and sat back down, now left with 4,180 tokens. I’ll need to find something that burns fast and intensely.
He opened the Miscellaneous tab and scrolled until something caught his eye. Heh… Well, this is better than expected and cheap.
He spent 2,000 tokens on large canisters, buying ten in total, and rose to find a suitable place to set the trap.