Amara nodded. “Well, at least you know that much.”
She gave Roy another glance before storming off. Roy and Olivia gave each other a look and shook their heads.
The tournament continued. Fewer and fewer ascenders remained, until finally, it was over. After an entire day of matches, the rankings were out.
Jason placed a hundred and fifty-fourth, gaining four hundred points.
Roy placed five thousand four hundred and ten, gaining a hundred and fifty points.
Olivia placed three thousand and two, gaining two hundred points.
Cheslov placed one thousand nine hundred and sixty fourth, gaining three hundred points.
In the end, Jason thought he performed quite well. He’d achieved first place twice out of ten million ascenders. After only being in the tower for a little over six months, such results would leave one speechless.
As for points, he gained a clean three thousand. If there was a ranking for points, he would definitely place within the top ten.
When the duels ended, Jason was teleported back to the white space. A large menu appeared in front of him with the word ‘rewards shop’ at the top. Jason grinned. Reward time, huh. Let’s see what you got for me.
Thousands of items filled the shop. The rarer it was, the higher the cost. Countless items that could only be encountered through luck were listed. Jason couldn’t help but shake his head in disbelief. This is crazy.
Strength Elixir - 500
Permanently increase strength by 50.
Agility Elixir - 500
Permanently increase agility by 50.
Willpower Elixir - 500
Permanently increase willpower by 50.
Experience Elixir - 1,000
Permanently increase XP gain by 5%.
An elixir for every stat was sold at the shop. Even all of the rare stats that Jason had yet to acquire were there. And this was only the tip of the iceberg. There were even rarer items.
Blood Oath (Weapon Type) - 2,000
Blood Oath (Armor Type) - 2,000
Blood Oath (Companion Type) - 2,000
No wonder. Jason gained a new understanding of blood oath items. Apparently they were split into three types, and he’d acquired the companion type blood oath. Shenlong’s spear obviously came from a weapon type blood oath.
There were even all sorts of rare skills that could drastically improve his strength, but what really drew his eye was a small crystal.
Evolution Crystal - 3,000
Evolve a skill.
Evolving a skill could make a mediocre skill into a broken skill. One could just imagine what would happen if used on a rare and powerful skill. It might just transform an ascender’s strength completely. Jason had only encountered this crystal a single time in his life. The skill he had used it on was troll regeneration. Instead of regenerating his health by a flat amount, it changed to a percentage. At his peak, he had been able to regenerate five percent of his health a second from that skill alone. With the evolved skill, he was able to tank a field boss for hours. This was one of the reasons why his title had been cockroach.
Jason continued to browse through the shop, oohing and aahing. In the end, he decided to go with the evolution crystal to upgrade troll regeneration. The only drawback of an evolution crystal was that it reset the skill level of the skill. The sooner he upgraded it, the better. That’s why he opted to ignore the blood oath items.
Just as he was about to purchase it, Aros’s voice rang in his mind. “Stop!”
Jason’s finger froze. “Senior?”
“You blithering idiot. Get the soul awakening tea.” Aros demanded.
Jason scrolled up to the tea and frowned. “Are you sure? That’s almost all the points I have.”
Soul Awakening Tea - 2,500
Forcibly awakens the soul. Results vary.
To be honest, Jason didn’t really know what awakening a soul entailed, which was why he’d ignored it. However, Aros’ next words caused his mind to clap with thunder.
“Of course I’m sure, you ignorant buffoon!” Aros was on the verge of yelling. “Haven’t you always been wanting to reach that thing you call the fourth realm, the heavenly instinct or whatever? That’s soul awakening! ”
“What?!” Jason couldn’t believe what he just heard. The fourth realm, the realm he had long since wanted to attain could be reached just by drinking some tea? If Aros wasn’t the one saying so, he wouldn’t have believed it.
He purchased the soul awakening tea without hesitation. Screw blood oath items. Screw the evolution crystal. Screw the XP elixir. In the face of the fourth realm, everything else was meaningless!
Chapter 41
Jason hopped and skipped out of the colosseum, grinning ear to ear as he teleported back to his home on the community floor. He swaggered over to the lakeside and sat down. Based on what Roy from the alternate timeline had said, he entered the fourth realm when he felt peaceful and relaxed. Jason’s current surroundings made it easy for those feelings to arise. He sat atop a massive pillar overlooking the world. Clang. The noise from Su Long’s work rang out behind him. The waterfalls from the other pillars created beautiful rainbows. Artists would without a doubt flock here in the future. Clang. Clang. Clang. Jason’s eyebrow twitched as he closed his eyes and felt the wind brush against his skin. The ground trembled, and he felt a wave of heat encompass him. A piece of wood hit the back of his head.
Jason shot to his feet and spun around, only to see a miniature mushroom cloud on Su Long’s side of the pillar. He facepalmed. This place won’t work.
Thankfully there were still a few unoccupied pillars. The community floors had vastly increased in population during the past month, so there was barely any free land left. Many of the top-tier guilds purchased them in bulk to sell to companies and corporations outside the tower.
After spending a short while flying, he found a peaceful spot atop a pillar. He spent nearly half an hour adjusting his mood. It was absolutely paramount that he succeeded. The soul awakening tea did not guarantee he would reach the fourth realm, but he was confident. It had been many decades since he had reached the peak of the third realm. He just lacked knowledge on how to proceed. Unfortunately, Roy himself didn’t even know how it happened. If he did, perhaps hundreds of others would have reached the fourth realm as well.
But all that was in the past. Focusing on the present took precedence. Only after another half an hour did Jason feel that he was ready. Slowly opening his eyes, he took out the soul awakening tea. The cup was nothing special, but the fragrance alone caused his mind to become unprecedentedly clear. If the smell itself had such an effect, what would drinking it do?
Jason’s hand quivered as he lifted the cup to his lips, swallowing it all in one mouthful. All of his taste buds screamed in joy. The tea was without a doubt the tastiest thing he’d ever had. It simply had no competition. Only the words ‘the nectar of heaven’, would suffice. But this was only a side effect.
As soon as it went down his throat, a warm tingling sensation spread throughout his body. Not even a moment later, his soul underwent a qualitative change. It opened up. The world spoke to him. Not with words. No, it was something much more vague. The feeling reminded him of his connection with Tank, except it was more fundamental.
A bird flew past him. He focused on it and could immediately know what it was thinking. It’s going to dive for a worm in the grass. In the next moment, the bird did exactly that. Jason sucked in a breath, stunned. It was like he and the bird were one at the moment he focused on it.
He focused on a few more things, trying to familiarize himself with his newfound sense. Jason soon found a bewildering discovery. Anything that existed had a soul. Dirt, rocks, wind. It didn’t matter, they all had a will. The entire world spoke to him. Everything.
In mere moments Jason was overwhelmed, the will of the entire world flooding his
soul. His thoughts grew incoherent as he was assaulted by thousands of wills. His own will was on the verge of collapsing. The threat of death consumed him, briefly awakening him from his stupor.
Jason hastily pulled out a small bottle from his inventory and immediately consumed its contents.
Willpower Elixir has been consumed.
Willpower +50.
The size of his soul increased drastically, allowing him to tolerate the army of wills. Just as he was about to continue familiarizing himself with his new sense, he found to his frustration that the effect of the soul awakening tea was weakening. Before long, he would return to normal. His chest clenched anxiously. I have to hurry! There isn’t much time left.
He focused on individual wills, then tried to tune them out. It was like he had gained a new muscle and was learning how to move it. It couldn’t happen instantly. Eventually, the effects of the soul awakening tea disappeared.
Jason released a breath as a carefree smile spread across his face. Even though the effects had long since vanished, he could still vaguely sense the will of the world. Although it was a far cry from the overwhelming feeling earlier, it was still a success. From this moment on, Jason was in the fourth realm. His soul had awakened!
It was only then that he noticed a bunch of notifications in front of him.
The skill, 'meditation', has been unlocked through a special action.
That makes sense. Before Jason returned to the past, some ascenders acquired skills through miraculous means. Apparently, the soul awakening tea was one of them. Unfortunately, the meditation skill was incredibly common. Thinking nothing of it, he read the next notification.
Meditation - Level 1 - Hero
Relax your mind. Soul will recover 1,000% faster while meditating.
Huh? Jason blinked, unsure of what he was seeing. He rubbed his eyes and then looked again. He stared at one word. Hero...? Hero? Hero!! He shot to his feet, exploding with joy. The Hero rank was the highest known grade for skills. It was equivalent to the Divine grade for equipment. In the final fight against Baal, Jason only had four skills at the Hero rank out of his over a hundred skills. It took decades to reach the Hero rank, and yet just by simply drinking some tea, he’d reached it.
Without a doubt, connecting to the will of the world took a heavy toll on one’s soul. Just over a month ago, Cheslov had nearly fainted from a few short moments of connection. Now that Jason had a Hero rank meditation skill, he could recover the fatigue from his soul much faster than anybody else.
Jason called up Roy, Olivia, and Cheslov. What better way to celebrate than to eat some delicious food? Before that, though, there was something he needed to do first.
Chapter 42
15th Challenge Completion
All stats +5%
All damage +5%
All damage taken reduced by 5%
XP gain from all sources +5%
Even though the doppelganger had every skill and combat technique that Jason had, it was futile if he knew what it was going to do. The title received a large boost as well. It now decreased damage taken five percent.
Roy had been the first and only person to complete all the arena challenges in the previous timeline. Now, in this one, Jason was the first. If humanity was to survive, even more needed to succeed. Before there was no clue on how to reach the fourth realm, but now Jason might have found a method.
He was deep in thought while in the middle of getting a haircut from his favorite barber.
Why did he gain the meditation skill when reaching the fourth realm? Why did it increase to such a high level? It was clear that awakening one’s soul was related to the skill. He might be able to make a small profit by selling this information, but he wasn’t planning on doing so.
He contacted Shenlong through the communication necklace. Thankfully, Shenlong accepted his contact request after their fight. If Shenlong could reach the fourth realm, humanity would gain another powerful fighter.
“Yes ?” Shenlong answered.
“I’ll make it quick. Have you heard of the fourth realm?” Jason asked calmly.
Shenlong replied with pride. “Of course. China has known about it for thousands of years, though the number of people who entered it can be counted on one hand. Unfortunately, there is no known method to reach it. It all depends on enlightenment.”
Jason rolled his eyes. “Did you see the soul awakening tea in the rewards shop?”
“Yes. What about- Wait. Why are you bringing that- No way. Are you saying?” Shenlong started muttering. “Soul awakening. Of course, of course! Damn it. I spent all my points on a skill.”
Shenlong suddenly gasped in realization, his voice rising in pitch. “Did you reach it? Did you reach the fourth realm?!”
Jason paused for effect. “Yes.”
Shenlong released the longest sigh in his life before asking. “How is it?”
“As the stories say, it’s powerful.”
“And? You’re calling me to make me mourn with regret?” Shenlong clicked his tongue in irritation. He could have reached the fourth realm if he’d known about the soul awakening tea. How much regret must he be feeling at this moment?
“No. I’m calling to give you some information. ” Jason understood Shenlong’s feelings. “After reaching the fourth realm I gained the meditation skill. Not only that, it reached the hero rank in one go. Now this might just be a side effect of the soul awakening tea, but I have a feeling that the meditation skill can help someone reach the fourth realm. It’s worth a shot.”
“The meditation skill?” Shenlong’s mood brightened. “I’m not a mage so I never thought much of it.”
“The fourth realm is a unique method of using the soul. Through meditation, it easily allows you to enter a state of mind similar to that method.” Jason explained.
“You’re certain of this?” Shenlong was still in a state of disbelief. How many years had he longed for the fourth realm? Now all of a sudden, a method to achieve it landed in his lap. How couldn’t he be excited?
“I’ve tested it and guarantee the meditation skill makes me enter a special state of mind, though I’m certain it’s only because my skill level is so high.”
“I guess I need to get the meditation skill right away.” Shenlong immediately ordered a subordinate next to him to buy the skill book.
Jason accomplished his goal, so he said goodbye. Shenlong stopped him. “Jason? Thanks for this. I owe you a big debt.”
“The mighty Shenlong owes me a debt? I’m so lucky!” Jason laughed delightedly. By not selling the information, he acquired a favor from Shenlong. It was an unexpected surprise.
“Oh, one last thing.” Shenlong asked in a low voice. “Do you plan on sharing this information with any more people?”
Jason gave a nod. “Of course. Conquering the tower and getting rid of the monster waves is my guild’s entire purpose. The stronger humanity is, the better.”
Shenlong had initially wanted to persuade Jason otherwise, but how could he after hearing Jason’s noble goal? He could only shake his head. “All right then. Goodbye for now.”
Jason ended the call just as the barber finished his haircut. The entire time he talked with Shenlong he had been watching the barber work. It was mesmerizing. The barber cut a single hair each time, but was so fast that it looked like any other barber. How high must his agility be? Not even Jason could accomplish such a feat.
Just as Jason was about to leave, the old barber spoke to him. “What a capable seedling to have awakened your soul at such a young age. It’s a shame you already have a master, otherwise I would have accepted you as my disciple.”
Jason froze and turned to look at the barber in horror. “What did you just say?”
It was only then that Jason realized to his bewilderment that the barber gave off no will at all. It was like he didn’t exist. Jason could only feel this now that he had reached the fourth realm. All things naturally released their will, bu
t the barber before him did not. That could only mean his control over his soul was vastly higher than even Jason’s.
This unexpected development left Jason feeling vulnerable. Never before had the barber made such comments. Not even to Roy from the other timeline. Why this time? Why did he say it now? Of course. Jason suddenly understood. The tower in this timeline was different. There might be more features and mechanics that were still undiscovered. The barber must be part of one.
The barber smiled wryly, but gave no response.
Jason’s eyes glittered as he asked a different question. “What qualifications must someone have to be your disciple? I know of quite a few talented people.”
“It seems I must explain some things.” The barber cleared his throat. “Now that your species has attained the tier three trail taker status, in order to maintain fairness between trial takers who have taken one of the six gods like yourself and normal trial takers, masters such as myself have been hidden throughout the tower. By finding one of us and possessing sufficient strength, you may acquire unique and powerful skills.”
The barber said everything so casually, yet Jason’s mind clapped with thunder. He immediately thought of Eboni. “Is shapeshifting into another species a skill taught by a master?”
“Oh?” The barber gave a nod. “It seems I’m falling behind.”
The shapeshifting skill was incredibly powerful. If not for Dubaku having a trump card such as the fourth realm, he would have been killed. Even Shenlong would have a tough time. If there were other masters out there who taught powerful skills equal to shapeshifting, the strength of humanity would rise drastically. This was great news to Jason, who always bore the weight of humanity’s survival on his shoulders.
Jason tried to gain as much information as possible. “Let me guess, the master who taught shapeshifting is on the bloodline floors, right?” This was an easy deduction for Jason. He lacked talent like Roy, Shenlong and the others, so he studied the tower for hundreds of hours, trying to gain as much information as possible. It was the biggest reason why he had lived until the end in the alternate timeline. The woman who introduced the bloodline floors had always been mysterious. She might be a master.
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