C16: Upgrades People, Upgrades
pub: 11/30/2025
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Using the lamp, I return to the Hunter's dream. For the sake of spending wisely, I go over to the hunter workshop but since I haven't gotten any blood stone shards yet, I couldn't upgrade to level 3 yet, so i simply set up the blood stone workshop tool and take a look at the 'grand' gem I got from the Cleric Beast during the visceral.
[Grand Beast blood Gem[1]-Droplet type. Attack Up x 15.9, Damage x Beasts x 11.3. Grand Gems cannot be inlaid until a weapon has reached level 10]
Impressed whistle, "not bad, not bad at all. Just sucks I cant get it until practically the end of this ga…night" I am impressed by the stats as it is comparable to cursed gems but most gems are exceptionally rare with only the chalice dungeons consistently giving them out with …relative ease.
I step away from the workshop and go to the messengers, the insight messengers are selling Gascoignes set but ….I don't want to buy it, I just slayed the man, Im not wearing his clothes and ill be damned if I have to resell it for some chump change of echoes. Bypassing them by simply hopping down one layer and then a second, I arrive at the default bath messenger merchants. There I spot a bunch of new items, primarily those unlocked by the [saw hunters badge] I got near the pig in the 'sewers'.
I know that to progress further, I require the emblem but the messengers don't sell it, so I can only use my system and purchase it for 15k BE, a 150% increase over it's base price of 10k from the messengers. There is only one caveat,
I cant beat the cleric beast yet.
Which means I likely won't have it unlocked for some time and with the exception of old Yharnam, I would be stuck. That is not to say I won't still be able to make tons of progress and get stronger through the chalice dungeons…if they are available now that this is my reality.
For now though, I'm stumped. I still have 169k echoes left after buying the emblem to progress but im not sure what I should spend it on. I could get dozens of levels, many valuable resources and so much more. Though I could also buy most regular resources with my insight and im quite happy molotovs never increased in price but i think it's because it's only up hill from here against all bosses that I try to use them on. As such im stuck thinking about the proper course of action that could help me overall.
My Axe.
My beautiful +10, 6 slotted axe.
I know, i know, it's fucking cursed and it's bullshit. My axe is innocent, I'm the murderer here, not it. It's a tool afterall. I'm sure that even though I could buy it here, there must be some gimmick to it that prevents me from using it Just like there was with my clothes.
I longingly gaze at my axe held in the messenger's hands that they seem confused or possibly scared as I effectively go cross eyed (double vision) looking at it all.
I blink to reset my vision as I shake my head.
"Not worth it yet, Besides, there is so much else I could get" I shake my head and simply buy the two 3k cost tokens from the system store which resets the price for the blood coin and blood amulet. These were the items that increased echo gain and discovery rate. By buying them like this, their prices reset back to 1k each which i could buy with free insight if I ever ran low on these. But as I currently had 3 of each still and no suitable place for my to grind echoes or items yet, there was not much of a reason to buy more at the moment.
Looking through the rest of the list, I find that not much else is here so I return to the system store and buy up a few more skills.
[host has learned: Lesser dexterity, Lesser Muscles, Lesser blood Flow, and lesser mind]
I first bought the lesser variant skills for my basic stats as I had all the others. These four new ones are related to skill, strength, bloodtinge and arcana. They are only level one by default and as such only give a single point to each stat but even that is able to make me go through quite a visceral reaction as my body twitches all over from the sensation of power. It truly is comfortable and while it cost me 23k for all four of them, the results speak for themselves.
[The system has detected that numerous skills share a certain affinity with each other. Would you like to fuse: Tough Body, Lesser Endurance, Lesser Stamina, Lesser Dexterity, Lesser Strength, Lesser Blood Flow and Lesser Mind. Note: A select few of the skills are sightly higher level. The xp gathered in these skills shall be reprovided for the new skill created as the vast majority are still level 1.]
"Hmm, thats interesting, free skill fusion. Im guessing then this would also be possible for the intermediate as well as advanced versions of these skills but what about the evolution aspects of these individual skills. Wouldnt it be a single buff as compared to the 7 buffs I could get from evolving each individual skill?" i question the system and it nicely provides a response.
[To make up for this shortcoming, the fused skill (should it reach an evolved state) would gain up to three special aspects related to you while the overall stat boost of the skill will be higher than the individual parts. ]
'Three isn't much compared to 7 but if those three are overall stronger then it's certainly worth it. Hmmmmmmmmm' I wobble in place as I am very indecisive about this decision but from all media I have ever consumed, there are few times where skill fusion actually screws it's user over. Granted only in something like Re: Monster does the mc have the ability of giving themself self applied debuff skills like vulnerability to light.
"Yes, Fuse"
[granted]
[Congrats Host, Seven skills: Tough Body, Lesser Endurance, Lesser Stamina, Lesser Dexterity, Lesser Strength, Lesser Blood Flow and Lesser Mind. have been fused into one new skill.]
[Host has gained Lesser Hunters Physique level 1. Calculating saved xp from all previous skills. Lesser Hunters Physique has reached level 2.]
I suddenly collapse to my knees as compared to the heavenly sensation I experienced before when becoming stronger bit by it, it's the opposite now.
PAIN
So much PAIN.
[pain resistance level 2 has reached the necessary requirements. Pain resistance has reach level 3]
The pain weakens but it still feels insurmountable until it finally stops as my body is no longer shifting and twitching about in strange ways. You would think my back would have some sort of demon face formed out of muscles with how much my body changed. Yet the changes are actually a bit more lackluster than I thought as I look at my status.
stats:
Insight- 10
Echoes: 2343-- 146,078
LVL 18:
Vit - 15 (+1 drained) +3
End- 12 +3
Str- 13 + 3
Skill-14 +3
Bloodtinge - 3 + 3
Arcane-9 + 3
'Aw fuck, that hurt like hyuck'. I think as while it might be considered a minor change from +1s all around to +3 but that is effectively 12 stat points added overall. Im most definitely much higher than my actual level but still nowhere near strong enough for what lies ahead.
I slowly stumble my away from the messengers as I choose to sit down criss cross apple sauce and ponder the changes i've gone through.
[Lesser Hunters Physique level 2: a comprehensive representation of how strong a hunter is. This skill provides a larger variety of boosts than individual skills as many have overlapping properties. As such, each level provides 1.5 (rounded down) to each stat per level but stamina receiving a greater boost due to the synergized aspects of your body reaching a synced state.]
'Well, that's nice to know, every two levels is 3 points to all my stats. Though I am curious, why was lesser agility not fused as well?' I ask to my system.
[Lesser agility pertains to how much less stamina is used whilst dodging or running. That can be considered a technique the host knows to do things more efficiently rather than a proper boost to your body and physique]
" the math is indeed mathing, thank you" I accept the explanation but soon enough receive another surprise.
[As a result of the user achieving their first skill fusion. They have obtained the Skill Fuser Achievement]
[Skill Fuser: One who has the unique ability to merge certain techniques together into new shape and makes progress into new heights. Reward: 1 skill shard obtained]
"Alrighty, I guess that makes 4 of them now, let's look at what these actually are.
[Skill shards x 4: When crushed, the user can redirect the echoes of blood within to nurture a skill of your choosing. Grants a specified amount of experience for said skill]
"Lovely" I immediately crush one shard to actually test it out.
[Select 1 skill to receive experience. Said skill with undergo pseudo simulation to pass on the sensation of growth. This simulation will follow the hosts thought process to make it more relevant to the host]
'Naruhado naruhado. I don't get it but im sure it's related to the evolution aspect or…something. I guess ill go for the physique I just obtained.'
[Processing] As the system said that, the bits of the broken shard continue to break apart until they become fine grains of sand that then spread out and cover my whole body, seeping into my pores as I can feel a soothing sensation before a pleasurable sense fills me.
Crack click crack. "AH" I enter a state of pseudo rigor mortis as my joints and bones are loosened before I give a big stretch that then returns everyone to how it was. It's a profound satisfying sensation, like waking up from a pleasant night's sleep.
[Lesser Hunters Physique has leveled up once. 2->3. All bonuses increase by 1.5 points]
"That's that good shit right there right there hng" I continue stretching in place as I keep my eye on my stats to find that it does say +4 to all stats now but shadowy parentheses show .5 after the four. An indicator that it is indeed rounded down.
Satisfied with the skill shard, I use another, this time for another vital skill but not the same one as before.
'Upgrade Pain Resistance level 3'
[Accepted. Initializing] The same scene appears as the dust fragments of the shattered shard flow into my body. Previously it scattered throughout my body, to the point that it felt as if it infiltrated all my cells to boost them intrinsically, yet this time, they goes through my pores and then locks onto the nerves themselves.
Skin, organs, muscles, bones, They all have nerve endings. It's how the brain transmits information to any one part of the body to create movement and much more. But now, those same nerves, specifically those related to Nociceptors (nerve pathways related to pain) are coated in a translucent color that is already stacking onto the blood red coloration born from cursed blood and the system. The translucent color lowers the brightness of the red while appearing akin to gauze on a wound.
[Pain Resistance level 3 (weakened) has received appropriate experience. Level 3 has reached level 4. Pain resistance now covers 40% of all painful sensations.]
This time around, I do not feel a profound transformation in my body, I simply get the system response and I realize it's over. Pretty lackluster overall but I'm sure if I actually got hit, I would be very happy from not howling in pain at the moment of impact.
Now for the two piece grand finale.
With the lesser skills merged into a new skill, that leaves me space to buy the intermediate versions and I do just that but only a select few. Specifically [Steel Body], an upgrade to Tough Body as well as the intermediate versions of strength as well as the harvest skill.
With steel body and Intermediate Strength, I drop another 34k but the effect is obvious as I overall gain more hp while my passive defense and poise rises too. The Intermediate Strength also provides a 5% bonus to all my physical attacks which is blood gem worthy buy.
As for the harvest skill, it's a weird one that recently popped up, all special like, similar to the two blood tokens in the item side of the system store, having a New tag on it. As for the effect itself, it's quite simple really.
[Harvest level 1: User has seen the hidden side of his foes, allowing a simple action such as murder to reveal the darkness further within. Boosts all blood echo gain from slain foes. Current effect: 1%] [1]
It boosts all blood echoes gained from my prey….While the wording is a bit weird, the effect and price are all concrete. For a steep 50k Blood echoes, I gained a 1% increase to essentially all my gained echoes. If this stacks with the curse effect in a positive way then I can easily get a few hundred echoes in every one of my hunts.
Conversely, these two effects should simply cancel out or only take a small handful of echoes at the very most, though it is depending on which one activates last. But as the skill levels up, the bonus should increase and thus overshadow the curse debuff even if I somehow never get rid of it.
'Im tempted to use the remaining two shards on it now but i am unsure if there is higher level shards or even how to level up the skill. Does it just go up as I kill or do i need to do anything specific?'
With only 62k echoes in the bank. I trudge over to the Doll who greets me as usual.
"Good evening, Good Hunter, how may I serve you?"
"Ah yes, good evening, id like you to channel my blood echoes once again"
"Very well" Her towering visage kneels as she extends her hand to me, which I touch as the connection is created once again.
"Ah" She gasps as if she is mystified by the transformation I have undergone in such a short time. But do not question it, it is not her place. She is afterall, a Doll. meant to tend to the hunters that rest here.
I myself see the system interface which allows me to increase my stats, though as I read through it, choosing where to actually upgrade. I spotted something weird. My cursor is able to hover over the added bonus stats.
I gain a shocked expression too as I realize I could increase the bonus to the skill related stats. Unluckily I cant cancel the cursed stats but this might make it possible to upgrade the effect of my skills through blood echoes and not just XP.
"Doll, please boost the secondary stats up to 6 each. Can you do that for me" I question the Doll with a tentative look as I was truly unsure of how this worked.
Yet to my surprise she simply nods and I am once again shocked as it cost 3k to increase just one of my half stats to 5 and then another 7k to increase that same stat to +6.
I have her stop and undo it as I realize that I could not afford to have all the bonus stats be at +6, who knows how that would break my skill. It's also cheaper right now to just level up.
Using up 58,143 echoes, I gain a total of 14 levels.
I choose to put 6 levels into Vitality and then split the rest between strength and Skill. I now needed around 6k echoes to level up once but as I only have 3,365 echoes left and even my 2k on the bridge wouldnt be enough to get me another level im quite saddened.
I feel a familiar sensation of growth and power flowing through me yet it is soon muffled by a sprouting dark aura that counters this growth. I grow nervous and even nearly lash out at everything around me as nearly half my newly gained levels have been lost.
2 from vitality lost, 3 from strength, and 2 from skill. For a total of 7 levels that have been lost to the unknown void that is my curse. Im nearly crying blood here as the Doll gets back up with what looks like an ashamed expression.
"I apologize Good Hunter, I have failed in turning your echoes in strength. I shall enter meditation to hopefully figure out a way to get around this harmful blood that flows through you." She curtsy's before walking off, sitting beside the grave near the top of the hill. Her head resting against the tombstone itself with her eyes closed. Different than her regular confused expression that she typically has when staring at this grave stone.
As for me, Im stuck in place. My rage replaced by a passive expression while my eyes remain hazy. I had barely even heard her say this before I fell into my memories.
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Word count: 3051
Just some simple stuff like leveling up, buying new skills and tons of other shopping before we return to the hunt, poor once more. Though there is a small interlude for the next chapter. Enjoy
Also let me know if you want to change the word count phrasing to just be numbers instead?
Whether you like the chapter or not, drop a comment. I can't be letting myself get complacent in my writing. I still have plenty of growth in all forms.
discord channel still has the next chapter preview like usual: https://discord.gg/rE6gtg28XH
Patreon.com/Xanok to find me.