William knew well enough that before he could go out and start hunting more Corrupted Dead, he had to test his new abilities. Stretch new limbs he had never used before. It made no sense to go out there without understanding what he was dealing with and what the strengths and weaknesses were of the skills he had just gained. Otherwise, it was pointless to carry something that might end up harming him more than helping for another death.
There was no chance he wanted to risk going through the same process he had escaped with Zefor.
Just the thought of resetting back to the terror he felt when the ancient red monster discovered his looping ability was enough to drive him to stay alive for as long as possible.
He activated [Chained Lightning Domain]and felt an ethereal arcana leave his body, just enough to activate the skill. An orb of static energy and flashing electricity came to life around his person. It snapped and crackled back and forth around him, cover much of the room. William came to the realization that fourteen feet diameter was pretty large. The fear of it not being enough did cross his mind as he powered it on.
William doubted that he would end up fighting in an open field any time soon, even large spaces seemed like a distant battleground that he would not look to deal with for some time. At least until he could defeat the Death Knight. For now, all he had to deal with were the hallways and the semi-large stairwell ledge that he for his rune farming. [Chained Lightning Domain], as limited as it was, would serve him well enough.
He closed his eyes and made an attempt to tap the arcana that filled his body. He could feel the domain tap into whatever was being manipulated by it and his Arcane attribute. He wasn't sure how much he contained within his system, or body or wherever it was held. It was strange to actually see it function for the first time as though there was a power roaming within him beyond the skin, tendons, and bones.
One that he could not tap into and only use indirectly.
There wasn’t anyway to even touch the arcana that he could figure out.
William turned his attention to [Chained Lightning Domain] finding that keeping it at just maintenance would keep the skill running for much longer than he expected. It used very little of his arcane energy that was topped up by the recovery mechanism for his attribute. He couldn’t give an exact time and amount though, that remained unknown to him.
He let a few sparks of electricity zap back and forth between his fingers, playing with them for a few moments. Moving it like a coin even though it did not react like one. William mentally pushed it to zap at the table, a dozen responded to his desire, snapping and crackling to take apart the table before him. None of them left even a mark on the supposedly rickety table, hitting without much power, but accurate.
I need to test it against something moving.
William pulled out the dagger Zefor gave him. He threw it up in the air, spinning violently.
William targeted it as it was falling, he watched as small bolts of stronger electricity zapped the dagger three or four times before it finally clanged on the stone flooring. They followed its trajectory without much difficulty. It was a simple path after all, but that was good enough. He only had to mental target the dagger rather than pinpoint where exactly he needed the electricity to hit.
That was important to know.
He picked up the blade and sent it back into his inventory.
Skill Upgrade -
Chained Lightning Domain [1/99] -> [2/99]
William smiled at the notification. That meant he was on the right path.
Next, he activated his [YaKinov Venom Manipulation] skill with the express idea to summon an orb on his palm. A dull, faded purple venom secreted from in between his fingers and sat in his hand. It slowly morphed into an orb in the shape that he had commanded it. He could feel a distant connection to it. A new limb that he had never had access to that he could barely move.
William struggled to mentally prompt the ball of venom to spin in his hand. He failed the first three times, before it finally listened. Only when he gained a level in it did it become slightly easier.
Skill Upgrade -
YaKinov Venom Manipulation [1/99] -> [2/99]
He continued to force it to spin faster and faster, forcing it to follow his command. It fought to return back to a still state of blob existence rather than the perfect orb that rotated, but he forced it to keep that form. William moved it up to the tip of his finger and spun it more violently as though it was a basketball. Up and down his palm without once having to worry about it affecting him with the [Venom Immunity] skill he gained after receiving his class and first level unlock.
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Skill Upgrade -
YaKinov Venom Manipulation [2/99] -> [3/99]
YaKinov Venom Manipulation [3/99] -> [4/99]
Just from its movements he could tell it was viscous and more like molasses than any liquid. A thick slime that was supposedly very corrosive. His original idea of using it to make his enemies slip was a decent one until he figured out how acidic and dangerous it actually was against the Corrupted Dead he was facing. Though that required he go back into his testing phase for further understanding.
William sighed.
No point in delaying this. Might as well grind it out for a bit longer–
Skill Upgrade -
Chained Lightning Domain [2/99] -> [3/99]
William liked his lightning class far more than the latter. He just put the domain on and never needed to worry about it after that, letting it run in the background. It helped that there were no other people or intelligent life around him other than a monster that was over twelve thousand levels above him. He just hoped that his venom class would be worth all the extra effort and time he could be using to fight and gain runes.
He moved on to transforming it the orb into different things; a bird, a cat, and even a sword. While the limited amount of venom did transform into the items that he commanded it to, it only held those forms for a few seconds before returning back into an orb. Seemed like that was the limit to his skill level, even if it was rising faster than he could keep track.
Skill Upgrade -
YaKinov Venom Manipulation [4/99] -> [5/99]
YaKinov Venom Manipulation [5/99] -> [6/99]
He let the energy of the venom orb slowly dissipate into nothingness, keeping only a few drops in his palm. William tilted his hand and let the slide off and directly over the table to test its corrosiveness. The drops splashed onto the wood and began to hiss loudly, thin wisps of smoke rose from each droplet as they attempted to eat at the tables organic materials.
The table seemed to hold its own against the sizzling sounds the venom made.
William wasn't sure if the table was that strong or whether the venom was that weak. It couldn’t eat through the basic wood, which seemed like the basics for him. The droplets continued to hiss until they finally evaporated and left only black marks on the table.
Might as well test if I can cut the table. Figure out if this corrosive venom is actually any good or if it sucks.
William stood up from his seat, only to launch himself into the ceiling. He cursed as he smacked hard on the stone that made the top and fell back down. He slammed into the table shoulder first. Power unlike anything he had ever felt, coarse to his muscles, bones, and tendons that he had yet to learn to control. He dropped from the table to the floor. Once again, finding himself sprawled on the ground due to the system, directly or indirectly.
At least he didn't need to test the table anymore. His share weight and the distance he fell should have smashed even a strong desk, much less something as rickety as this. His shoulder would probably shatter before the table did. He waved his hand and sent one of the chairs straight into his inventory. If they were that strong and resilient, he would need it eventually. A bludgeoning weapon that would not break or a shield that can’t be affected even by corrosive substances.
He groaned as he picked himself back up, disappointment filling him that a notification did not appear to analyse the chair when he took it.
It may have contained an attribute boost, though he doubted it. Not unless Zefor was the one to make it.
William struggled to keep his balance, throwing himself around in the cell and crashing into the walls. It took him a few moments, just to get his two feet under him with proper stability. It was like a numb leg that he had been siting on for too long, blood and feeling slowly returning and giving him functionality rather than a new bodypart or skill. He was readjusting far quicker than he expected, coming natural to him.
Only a matter of time.
So, he did exactly that and practiced until he was confident in his control over his body.
Skill Upgrade -
Chained Lightning Domain [3/99] -> [4/99]
William took his time to get right, only once he was sure did he finally resolve himself to the next step in the process. He pulled out the dagger and strap it to his side, testing whether it would give him the stats even though it was not being directly in use. More of a sidearm than a primary weapon.
“Status,” he said.
Status User William (1oPg72j9) -
[Class] - [Ruined Lightning Inquisitor (C+)]
Level - 6 [6/99]
Runes Held - 554
Runes Needed for Level Up - 1102
Strength - 30 (+29) -> 59
Dexterity - 20 (+25) -> 45
Endurance - 30
Vitality - 25 (+33) ->58
Intelligence - 20
Wisdom - 20
Arcane - 27 (+10) -> 37
William marveled at the massive boost he gained from the dagger. Nothing but a basic item, yet because it was made by Zefor, it was stronger than anything he had ever seen so far. He wondered what the Death Knight’s lance sword would end up giving him, it made him salivate at the idea of finally being able to loot it. Or maybe he could finally convince the old man to give him something special.
He peeked out of his cell toward where Zefor’s, but could not find him.
Maybe another time. He seems busy.
William hopped in place and then began to flex like a bodybuilder posing in a competition. The boost to his attributes did not have the same reaction to his body and control as the normal unallocated attribute boost he gets every level up. He wasn’t sure why it had not occurred like last time, or what made it different, nor did her really care at the moment. He was just grateful for that reaction.
The thought of having to go over this entire process every time he equipped or sent his dagger into his inventory would have been a headache to deal with. Worse if he ended up in a battle and lost his dagger and immediately deflated like a ballon, only to run face first into a Corrupted Guardsman’s sword. That was not an experience he wanted to deal with.
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