One of the nearby ascenders quickly healed Shenlong’s wounds. In that moment of respite, Shenlong took the chance to inspect the state of the battle. What he saw filled him with grief.
The bulk of the hundred-odd demons were tier four. Three to four ascenders could match them by working together, but the few tier five demons wreaked havoc across the battlefield. If not for Amara, Carly, Dubaku, Ebba, Roy, and Jason holding back most of them, the losses would’ve multiplied. Although they were holding them back, they were all on the defensive.
Thankfully, Shenlong didn’t see another tier six demon. He wasn’t sure how long his weapon would last, so he made his way over to help out.
The battle quickly turned one-sided. After killing the tier five demons, Amara and the others swept across the battlefield, freeing up more ascenders. It was over shortly after that.
Although brief, the battle was catastrophic.
The demons annihilated over eighty percent of Ebba’s horde. Worse, of the three hundred ascenders in the raid, seventy-two died. This was the worst loss the alliance had ever experienced.
Chapter 42
The battlefield was so silent you could hear a pin drop. The seventy-two fallen ascenders were friends to many, so nobody was in the mood to talk. They couldn’t even gather the corpses of their comrades because the demons had absorbed them. Only countless items remained, and picking them up made the survivors feel dirty, as if they were stealing them.
Jason watched people mourn as if he was a spectator. He once felt like they did. That awful feeling of looting the items his companions had invested countless hours obtaining. The second time felt even worse, but then there was the third, the fourth, the fifth. Eventually, your heart grew numb, and you took on a utilitarian point of view. You looted the fallen to survive.
Shenlong approached Jason, and it was clear he was forcing himself to remain calm. His voice was hoarse as he asked. “What do I do?”
Jason locked eyes with Shenlong. “Press on. That’s all you can do.”
Shenlong nodded as if he understood, but he remained motionless. Seeing this, Jason continued. “What did we come here for?”
“The blueprints,” Shenlong responded absentmindedly, his mind lost in dark thoughts.
Jason shook his head and sat down to recover from his wounds when Shenlong didn’t move. He’d used several skills to force most of the tier five demons to attack him, so he was physically exhausted. The only reason he survived was because of his first and only rune.
Unity - Tier 1 Rune
Passively takes the average defense of your equipment then applies it to each equipped item and your body.
Remark 1: The effect of this rune replaces the defense of your currently equipped items.
Remark 2: This rune applies to your hair, eyes, organs, and everything else considered a part of your body.
Passively reduces damage taken by 1%.
Unity was a rune he’d had in the past, and it served him well. Although his shield and chest, the largest defensive items he wore, had reduced defense because of the rune, his other items received a boost. Not only that, his skin, bones, organs, and vulnerable parts of his body, like his eyes, gained the defensive boost as well. Even his hair was stronger than steel now.
Unlike Shenlong and the others, Roy was able to reject his emotions and focus entirely on what needed to be done. He felt forced into a leading role upon seeing nobody take command, so he shouted, “Sam, where are you?”
Sam rested against an undead beast, caring not for the smell. Upon hearing his name, he groaned and stood up. “Over here.”
Roy turned to face the scout. “Lead a team into the stronghold. Search for the blueprints; they should be a round see-through gem.”
“Got it.” Sam gathered what remained of his squad before leaving in the direction of the town.
Carly and the other healers were already tending to the wounded. Perhaps because of their occupation, they didn’t fall listless like the others. It was their duty to heal and mend. Roy nodded in relief upon seeing this. Now there was only one thing left. Taking a deep breath, he shouted, “Everyone, we can’t stay here. Demons will investigate the fallen stronghold, remember? We need to get these blueprints back to the haven to prevent further losses during tomorrow's blood moon. Don’t let our brothers’ and sisters’ sacrifices be in vain.”
“Shit.” A bearded young man wiped his tears and stood. The others followed his lead and collected themselves.
Thankfully, Sam’s party didn’t take long. The stronghold was the size of a neighborhood, so it wasn’t hard to find what they needed. Exiting the town, Sam approached Shenlong by habit, only to turn to Roy after seeing the elder’s condition. “Dude, we hit the jackpot. Besides five blueprints, for some reason, the demons had a stockpile of essence.”
“How much we talkin’?” Roy had high hopes after seeing Sam’s excitement, and indeed, after hearing the report, it was right to say jackpot. Roy decided to announce the news to raise morale. “Guys, Sam’s team here found a stockpile of essence in the stronghold. It’s hard to believe, but it’s even better than our loot from the blood moon last week. Although the tier one to tier three essence is almost nonexistent, we have 30,000 tier four essence, 12,000 tier five essence, 3,000 tier six essence, and 200 tier seven essence.”
(Tier 4) Essence
Worth 100,000 essence.
Infuse with a concept to create a rune.
(Tier 5) Essence
Worth 1,000,000 essence.
Infuse with a concept to create a rune.
(Tier 6) Essence
Worth 10,000,000 essence.
Infuse with a concept to create a rune.
(Tier 7) Essence
Worth 100,000,000 essence.
Infuse with a concept to create a rune.
To compare, a single tier seven essence was equivalent to a million tier one essence. Altogether the haul was worth celebrating. Indeed, the news lifted everyone’s mood, making the atmosphere a bit better.
And last, the five transparent blue gems the size of a large egg. This operation, and all their losses, were for these blueprints. Roy read their information before sharing the details with everyone interested.
(Blueprint) Structure Upgrade
Increases most structures by one tier.
Remark 1: Single-use consumable.
Remark 2: Can only upgrade a structure to tier 10.
Remark 3: Higher tier structures require more to upgrade.
Two blueprints were of this type. Honestly, it wasn’t exactly what they were looking for. There was only one structure they owned: the mana barrier. Just remembering it falling in seconds under the demon’s assault left disappointment. Thankfully, the next three blueprints were what they needed.
(Blueprint) Mana Barrier Modification - Shield Type
Changes the mode of the mana barrier to encompass each defender's body within 1,000 feet of the structure.
Remark 1: Can be turned on or off at will by an administrator.
Remark 2: This mode can be used along with any other mode.
Remark 3: Distance increases with mana barrier tier.
With this, instead of a giant dome that was impossible to defend, the surface area of the barrier would decrease drastically. It was like having a mage’s mana shield on every ascender. Better yet, if ascenders actively blocked or dodged attacks, they’d use the limited mana more efficiently.
(Blueprint) Mana Barrier Modification - Energy Type
Gives the mana barrier the ability to recharge the mana of defenders within 1,000 feet of the structure.
Remark 1: Can be turned on or off at will by an administrator.
Anybody who used mana as a resource would benefit from this mode. Healers could heal more, and mages could cast more. Nothing else needed to be said.
(Blueprint) Tier 1 Mana Cannon Tower
Mana cost per shot: 1,000
Recharge time per shot: 10 seconds
Range:
2,500 feet
Blast radius: 20 feet
Mana stored: 500,000
Mana regenerated a second: 50
Remark 1: Generally, a single blast kills any tier 4 demon or below. Can wound a tier 5. Unable to harm a tier 6 or above.
Remark 2: Automatically fires at targets designated as enemies by an administrator.
Remark 3: An administrator can set which tier to target over others, among other settings.
Remark 4: Can be turned on or off at will by an administrator.
Remark 5: Can be reverted to blueprint form at any time.
An intelligent autonomous weapon. Just imagine an entire row of these babies; the ascenders wouldn’t have to lift a finger. They could eat popcorn and watch from the safety of the walls as the cannons obliterated the monster horde.
With the loot gathered, Roy turned to Ebba. “The honor is all yours.”
“I’ve been waiting.” Ebba immediately commanded the undead horde to destroy the stronghold. After flattening it to the ground, the raid returned to the haven with good and bad news.
Chapter 43
Peter decided to give everyone a day off even though the blood moon was tomorrow night. While every second counted, he knew creating runes required planning and thought. It was also to give everyone some time to readjust their mental state.
The Alliance only had a thousand or so top-grade ascenders. Of them, seven hundred had one rune, with the three hundred participating in the raid having two. There wasn’t much difference in power between the two groups; only the lack of essence prevented more from having a second rune.
After the raid, there was now more than enough essence for everyone to create their second rune. Some could even form a third. The cost to build a rune doubled for each additional one. Not only that, but the upgrade cost also took into account the creation cost. It was a grim thought to consider how many lives would be needed to reach ten runes.
During the downtime, Peter installed the mana barrier modifications before running some tests to understand their functions. As expected, the shield mode greatly enhanced everyone’s survivability, much to their delight. The mana barrier generated a semi-transparent shield that followed the contours of the body. Along with the energy mode, Peter could turn them on or off at will if he was in the haven.
Peter also placed the mana cannon halfway between the center of the haven and the east wall. Standing fifteen feet wide and ten stories high, the tower appeared sleek and smooth. You could even see your reflection in its shiny metallic exterior. The top of the tower took on a U shape, with a ball of condensed mana levitating in the center. A single test shot fully demonstrated its might. Indeed, if they had twenty or thirty of these, the next few blood moons would be a cinch.
Now there was only one thing left. Which of the two structures should Peter upgrade? The tower or the mana barrier? Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to see the changes beforehand and only decided a few hours before the blood moon.
He would upgrade the mana barrier first. The reasoning was simple: it was better to rely on their strength than gamble on whether a tier two mana cannon could clinch victory.
“Please be worth it, please be worth it.” Peter felt lightheaded as he stood in front of the mana barrier. He prayed the upgrade would justify the sacrifice of the seventy-two ascenders. Their deaths weighed heavily on his mind. After all, it was he who sent them to their deaths—his command.
Even with his superhuman body, he had a heart attack upon hearing the news yesterday. When he returned to his quarters that night, he kept repeating the fallen men and women's names. He was only able to sleep after taking a potion.
A hand clasped the motionless Peter’s shoulder. It was Jason. The two men’s gazes locked as Jason said. “If you can’t lead, step down.”
His words were harsh. The old Jason would never have said such things, but he cared little for other people’s feelings right now. He was an empty husk, and if not for Tank, he might not even be here right now.
Peter turned to face Jason and spoke slowly. “Will you do it?”
Jason’s arms fell limp as he avoided Peter’s gaze. “I, I can’t.”
The two men fell silent, and only after a minute of awkward silence did Peter sigh. “To be honest, I thought less of you after seeing how you’ve been recently, but now, I think I understand.”
Truthfully, Peter did have thoughts of resigning. However, after realizing Jason was still fighting even now, how could he possibly give up? Jason’s weight was a thousand times, no, a million times heavier than Peter’s. The man was a shell of his former self, but he was still here.
At this moment, Peter’s fractured resolve reformed, stronger than before. Taking a deep breath, he turned to the mana barrier and declared. “I will see this to the end.”
Jason opened his mouth to say the same, yet no words came out. Instead, he stood silently beside Peter as Tank let out a squeak.
Peter squeezed the gem in his hand. It turned into light before penetrating the silver triangular structure before him. With a soft ding, the mana flowing throughout the contraption grew a shade thicker. At the same time, a notification popped up, informing Peter of the changes.
Tier 2 Mana Barrier
Mana stored: 10,000,000
Mana regenerated a second: 1,000
Modes installed: Shield Type, Energy Type
Prevents most demonic creatures from entering. Each point of damage blocked consumes .9 mana.
“Great!” Peter clenched his hands as relief washed over him. A single tier brought a tenfold increase in mana capacity and regeneration. Even the damage to mana ratio improved. Along with the shield mode, if they focused on dodging and blocking attacks, the mana might last them the whole night.
Not only that, the structure now generated 60,000 mana a minute, or 3,600,000 an hour. Factoring in the damage to mana ratio meant it could absorb almost four million damage an hour. Thinking this, Peter asked Jason. “How much health do you have now?”
“Dunno, haven’t checked in a while.” Jason promptly shared his information.
Name: Jason
Title: Noble Slayer
Age: 30
Race: Human
Level: 192
Stat Points: 0
Health: 221,000/221,000
Health Regeneration: 860/s
Stamina: 238,000/238,000
Stamina Regeneration: 980/s
Battle Energy: 9,500/9,500
Battle Energy Regeneration: 50/s
Strength: 1,515
Vitality: 2,087
Agility: 1,456
Endurance: 2,149
Tenacity: 889
Fortitude: 1,790
Willpower: 6,214
“Your health is pretty high. I only have about 150,000,” Peter commented as he read through the status top to bottom.
Jason rolled his eyes upon hearing that. “I’m always getting hit, so the m-serum has risen my Vitality and Fortitude every day.”
“Makes sense.” Peter rubbed his chin as he mused aloud. “I think the average person has health around mine. Mages a bit less.”
The comparisons put into perspective how much damage the mana barrier could absorb. Although it wasn’t entirely accurate, 3,600,000 mana could save twenty or so lives per hour, with each life being the health pool of a single ascender.
Just as Peter was about to turn away from Jason’s status, he did a double-take. “What the hell? Why is your Willpower so high?!”
6,214. This was by far the highest stat any ascender possessed, hands down. Jason only shrugged in response. “I don’t know. It goes up every hour.”
Peter was about to continue questioning when he thought of something. He stopped what he was initially going to say and said, “Forget it.”
Quickly changing the subject, Peter pulled out the last blueprint. “I wonder if the tier 3 mana barrier will be a tenfold increase as well?”
Tier 3 Mana Barrier
Mana stored:
50,000,000
Mana regenerated a second: 5,000
Modes installed: Shield Type, Energy Type
Prevents most demonic creatures from entering. Each point of damage blocked consumes .8 mana.
Remark 1: Requires 2 structure upgrades to reach tier 4. 0/2.
While not as much as Peter wanted, it was still a significant upgrade. Along with the mana cannon providing support, he was sure not a single ascender would be harmed during the blood moon tonight.
Chapter 44
The world long knew about the Alliance; after all, Peter held a press conference back during its creation. It was there he declared the Alliance’s mission statement: to clear the tower before the monster hordes overran the world. To the government's dismay, it was also there that Peter divulged a secret hidden from the public: the monster waves were getting stronger.
Pressured by the populace, governments worldwide had no choice but to tell the truth, bringing chaos and fear. Because Peter announced this before the presiding authorities, and because an alliance of the most powerful ascenders formed to combat this issue, the public fully believed in them. Their cause was just.
Towers of Heaven: A LitRPG Adventure (Book 3) Page 19