"Interesting," Ethan murmured, his voice a low rumble. "So this is what I've been missing... "
He waved a hand in front of his face, as his eyes glowing with a deep, vibrant purple. Combined with his wild, white mane, the effect was incredibly sinister.
This was the Elemental Eyes rune. Of the three books found in the skeleton's ring, the first was the obsessive water ascendant's journal, the second was this very spell, and the third was an incomplete water spell structure.
He learned that the Elemental Eyes were a Body Rune, not an actual spell. Body Runes were developed as a support path, offering fixed power without the flexibility of true spell patterns for ascendants who had a hard time researching functional spells.
Ethan had spent a significant portion of his points to gather the ingredients for the Rank 1 Elemental Eyes rune ink. Then hiring a Creation-affinity ascendant to perform the inscription had been its own lesson; he had to admit, after meeting one, that their reputation for being pompous bastards from Sansa was well-earned, but it was just a product of their extreme rarity.
"Hmnnnn... There's no other energy in this space, sadly," he mused, observing his empty room. "I wish I could jump into a fight right now to test these, like that stupid Alan, but..."
He cut off the energy flow to his eyes, the purple glow vanishing. "Wow, the energy drain is intense... The risk for the Forge Core already looks like it's paying off."
Forge cores were significantly larger than regular cores and the energy channels constructed alongside them are sturdy and larger than regular energy channels. Increasing his energy reserve and the amount of time it took to channel energy from his core.
After taking his first shower in days, he pulled open a wardrobe filled with identical black outfits. Dressing in simple pants and a shirt, he left his room without delay, headed to the Order Hall.
The hall was packed, a frenzy of activity sparked by the posting of several Rank 2 missions to explore a newly discovered Nether Rift. Ethan had researched Nether Rifts during his seclusion; after learning how deadly a single, common Rank 1 Demonspawn could be, he had lost all interest in the far more dangerous Rank 2 rift mission.
Weaving through the crowd, he approached the secretary at the main desk. "Hi there. On my way here, I put in a request for a Rank 2 accommodation. Do you have any with a private, concealed lab?"
She got these requests occasionally from the research-inclined ascendants. She pulled up the available listings. "I have two available with a concealed lab, and another five where the labs... well, aren't as private. Which will you be going for?"
Ethan knew what he wanted, but needed to confirm one thing. "Are any of those first two in the First five Districts?"
She scanned the list and shook her head. "No. The closest I have to the Fifth District is in the Seventh."
Ethan nodded, a little tiredly. "The Seventh will be fine."
"Very well," the receptionist said. "I'll need proof that you're already Rank 2. You can't use a Rank 2 accommodation without being in the Soul Born rank."
Ethan simply channeled a wisp of illusion energy. His eyes flashed a brilliant, undeniable purple for a single second before fading.
His expression was neutral, but his mind had always been rolling after discovering that Rank 1 accommodations for initiates didn't have the luxury of privacy runes in their security system. His Creation affinity was an important secret that he would love to keep a secret as long as he could.
The awakening array had never detected it, and he wasn't about to reveal it now. And then there was the other thing... the so-called "Godly Essence," a stagnant pool of purple liquid sleeping in his soul. Leo's warning echoed in his memory: For now, it was unresponsive, but he never forgot it was there.
Once the transaction was complete and his new access card was in his hand, Ethan didn't head to his fancy new accommodation. He had more pressing business.
He moved through the Order's streets with a confident stride; his destination was clear. He soon arrived at a teleportation platform, where a single ascendant sat cross-legged on guard duty.
A smirk touched Ethan's lips.
"If it isn't the mighty Battle God," Ethan called out, his voice laced with playful mockery. "Reduced to babysitting the teleportation platform?"
The guard sighed, not even opening his eyes. He got this all the time—newly promoted hotshots looking to make a name for themselves by challenging "Alan the Lightning Blade."
"Whatever. Make your challenge or get lost," the guard grumbled, golden energy already flickering in his eyes as he finally cracked an eye open. His annoyed expression instantly morphed into one of irritation.
"Ugh. You." It was Alan. He let the golden energy in his eyes fade out and slumped back down. "Of all people, it had to be you. I was hoping for a real fight to stretch my bones. I've been here all day."
Ethan's grin widened. "What? Aren't you happy to see me? It's been five months!"
"Tsk. You only ever show up when you need something," Alan shot back, though there was no real heat in his words.
"Spit it out. Shouldn't you be locked in your room doing... whatever crazy thing you do? Still delaying your breakthrough, I see." Alan shook his head in frustration. He knew, with absolute certainty, that Ethan's talent dwarfed his own. The fact that his friend was still an Initiate was a choice in his eyes, and it confused him.
Ethan just shrugged, unbothered. "Who said I was delaying?"
He let a pulse of energy light up the runes in his eyes for a second; only a Soul Born Rank could channel any form of energy.
Alan's head snapped up, seeing this, his eyes wide. "You... you broke through? When?!"
"Excuse me, please," Ethan said, his smile turning sharp. "I'm not here for you. You just happen to be guarding my ride."
He nodded towards the teleportation platform behind Alan.
"You're going to the Battle Realm, aren't you?" Alan said, a competitive grin finally spreading across his own face. "It's about time."
Ethan just waved a dismissive hand. "Who said anything about the Battle Realm? I just need to use the portal to the Mist Mountain."
But Alan wasn't going to let him. He lunged forward, wrapping his arms around Ethan's leg in a dramatic tackle. "Come on! You can't leave me like this! That snake, Bors! He hid his breakthrough and challenged me when I was off guard! He cleaned me out! All my points... gone!"
"Let go, you brute!" Ethan tried to shake him off, but Alan held on like his life depended on it. "I told you to be careful in there! This is what you get for being reckless!"
"How am I even supposed to beat him?" Ethan complained. "You broke through first! You have two lightning runes and that insane body of yours! I just got to Rank 2. I don't have any combat runes! I'm basically still a weak Initiate!"
Whap!
Alan reached up and yanked Ethan's ear. "Don't you lie to me! You beat me every time we spar, even when I was a full rank ahead! You made me buy that stupid 'attributeless' sword technique you use, and I still lost to you! If you won't teach me your secrets, you can at least help me get my points back!"
Ethan felt a headache coming on. He only sparred with Alan to gain real combat experience, and now it was backfiring spectacularly. Of course if Ethan used any of his runes the spars would end in a second.
"Fine, fine!" Ethan relented, prying Alan's fingers off his ear. "Here's the deal. I'll send you some points. Use them to challenge someone you can actually beat. I have urgent business in the Mist Mountains."
Seeing Alan's sullen silence as acceptance, Ethan quickly tapped his soulband. A moment later, Alan's band vibrated.
"Happy? Can I go now?" Ethan asked.
Alan's despair vanished instantly. He jumped up, shamelessly brushing imaginary dust from Ethan's shoulders. "Hehe! Of course, Go, go! Anyone who tries to stop you will have to go through me!"
Shaking his head at Alan's antics, Ethan activated the portal with his token and stepped into the shimmering portal without a backward glance.
The moment it closed, Alan pulled up his interface, a grin on his face. He was about to pay the fee to ditch his guard duty when he checked his balance.
His jaw dropped.
"W-What the...?"
He blinked, closed the interface, and opened it again; his heart sank.
All the air left his lungs in a stunned wheeze. He slowly sank back to the ground, more depressed than he had been before Ethan came around.
Meanwhile, the cause of his shock was already miles away.
Ethan stood on a high tree branch in the Mist Mountains, his fingers tracing a faint, almost invisible scratch on the bark. A wicked grin spread across his face.
"Heh. Thought you could use the same trick on me twice, you little brute?"
He channeled energy into his eyes. The world exploded into colors—the greens of life, the browns of earth, the white, almost transparent, ambient energy.
He ignored it all, his gaze laser-focused on a single, fading trail of purple light. His own illusion energy. That purple color was the trace of an Illusion affinity creature he'd been planning to capture for months.
Got you.