by Pegaz
He tried mixing other elements, but they all cancelled each other out regardless of the amount. All he could create were steam and lava right now, which wasn’t all that stunning.
This unique Creation’s Combine skill is useless right now. I need to control more elements for it to come into play. Maybe when I become a Rank 6 and the system updates, it could give me more elements to control.
As he finished thinking, he had a sudden thought.
What if I use 3 elements? Or 4? Or all 5 at once? But to do that, I need to learn how to control the elements better.
John lifted his right hand and examined his fingers. He made his index finger generate a single flame, and the middle finger became covered in earth element. Gritting his teeth, he pushed the water element to his ring finger. Struggling to maintain the balance, he then pushed all three fingers together.
BANG.
The three elements exploded like the steam explosion earlier. As the air cleared, John looked down at his right hand again. His index and ring fingers were intact, but his middle finger was bent backwards and broken. Scowling, John grabbed his middle finger with his left hand and snapped it back in place. His skill Placement took over to fix it almost instantly.
This is getting dangerous—and painful. I’m used to so much pain that I don’t scream out at a broken finger anymore, which is mildly concerning. What if I’d blown my finger off? I could’ve lost that dumb thing and never realised!
Plus, none of my skills could even help me reattach a missing limb or finger. I’m going to have to put these tests on hold for the time being. The skill might become useful later on, but right now it’s useless and too dangerous.
John went back down to the cultivation caves and kissed Sarah goodbye. He teleported back to the Nobody Sect, placed the stone teleport rune inside his Storage Space, and went to find Luke.
He instructed Luke to call the other heads of the department. He planned to leave the sect and return to the planet untouched by immortals, and he had to leave someone in charge. The sect seemed to be functioning just fine without his direct action, so it wasn’t necessary for him to stay here and run things.
John had other plans.
Chapter 32
New Library
John realised there was one more chore he needed to do before he could leave.
He walked back into Luke’s house and got right to the point. John was going to create one billion knowledge spheres containing all the different techniques for cultivation and fighting methods that he could recall from the books he read. It was Luke’s job to store them away as John created them.
John could make hundreds of spheres every second. Luke was storing them all in his Storage Space; he could just about keep up with the amount John was making. While this went on, Patrick and the others received word to build a bigger library. They would need much more space to store the number of spheres John was creating.
Even at their incredible speed, it took over three months to make all the spheres. To compensate the sect for all the time and resources gone into making all of this knowledge accessible, members of the sect were to be charged per use of the information spheres. The price they settled on was 10 spheres in exchange for a single Grade 1 Life Stone. They also offered unlimited access for one Grade 5 Life Stone. All the money the library generated would go towards the cost of hiring the investigators and the information gatherers.
As far as the placement of their information gatherers, John, Luke, and the other four department heads agreed that they needed at least one person stationed within the largest capital on each planet. The planets closest to the Nobody Sect would each have one member in every large city. The sect needed information about everything on these closer planets; if not to sell, then for safety measures.
Should the Nobody Sect catch word too late that their location had been leaked out to an enemy, it would be nothing but a disaster. For this reason, they stationed their extra members by the public transportation system. They each carried communication devices to alert the sect as quickly as possible should anything come to their attention.
On their home planet, there was an information gatherer posted in each capital of the four kingdoms. While they knew the mortals couldn’t do anything to harm them, it was better to be safe than sorry.
After the library was completed, John went to see it. They made the building out of bricks and cement; John thought Luke must have given them the formula to make the same bricks and cement like those back on earth. The library was three stories high, and thousands of feet in width and length. At the entrance were four white pillars that supported an extended roof. They made the library doors out of metal which was somehow coloured white, too. Each of the doors was 15 feet high and wide.
Inside the library, there were no bookcases, chairs, or tables. There were only the stairs and the storage units they built for the spheres. The floor and stairs were made from solid wood, treated and polished. Meanwhile, the walls inside were white marble.
They designed it so up to 10 spheres were together in a display case. The cases themselves were only 9 inches in width and length, and 4 feet high. They had four small wooden legs that went to the ground. They stacked the display cases on top of each other with just enough room for the lid to open at the top. Across the front of each display case was a sign to describe the spheres according to how they were sorted.
The other two floors were the same. Two rows of display cases, back to back against each other to form impressive aisles. There was a small walkway between the rows of the display cases, but there wasn’t much room. It almost gave off claustrophobic vibes.
“This is beyond my expectations.” John stood next to Luke inside the library and smiled. After all, the library had been constructed off of Luke’s designs. “I was expecting something a bit simpler. This exceeds far any design I’ve seen on any other planet. The most advanced technology I’ve seen so far is on the Adventurers Guild’s public planet. They had steam engines and could build taller buildings.”
“Is that so?” Luke smiled, clearly seeing it as a challenge. “I can build steam engines, too, if you want.”
“No point.” John shook his head, trying to re-establish a less playful tone. “If you want to help with technology, then create things that can help our sect members. You know, quality of life, information gathering… that sort of thing!”
This legitimately got the gears in Luke’s head turning.
“Anyway, this library should help pay for the workers we’ve hired.” John started heading for the exit. “For now, I suggest that you learn every kingdom, every royal family, and even their dog’s name. It’s a big universe out there. Plenty of information for you to grind on. You can use that to find out what might be relevant to our cause here. If you can prove how valuable a piece of information can be, its value will skyrocket.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Luke’s grin grew in exuberance. “I’ve got my communication device in case of an emergency. Any other last minute three-month-long tasks to do before you can head out?”
“Haha, funny.” John rolled his eyes, not quite appreciating Luke’s childish humour. “I’m afraid that’s all on my to-do list today. It’s time for me to head out. I’m leaving the sect to you, Patrick, and the others. Take care of it.”
“Don’t worry!” Luke’s toothy smile flashed in the light. “I know exactly what I’m doing.”
It took almost five months for John to get back to the planet where he met Isake.
He took a more direct route this time with no need to avoid the Rogue Sect. When John reached the planet, he opened the system to check his current Toxin Pool and the time needed to finish the current level.
Welcome to the Idle system 5.9.
Name: John
Title: Demon
Age: 41
Idlers: 0/616
Skill Points: 0
Life Pool: 1
Toxin Pool: 169.9B
Sin: 9,465,681
&nbs
p; Immortality List:
Neuron Storage - Idlers 616/616, Compress - 5/9, Time - 2y 23d
Oh, it’s been about 10 months since I took over the sect. I’ve already collected over 9 million sin points from 15 million assassins. A few of those months were me making the members take the new blood oath, so I can assume I’m getting about 1.2 to 1.5 million sin points per month. Whether this is low, average, or high is the question now. If it’s low, then it might increase to reach two million a month, but if it’s high then it could drop below a million a month.
But at a 100:1 ratio, 10 million sins is less than 28 hours worth of time in the system. I need more sins per month to make it worthwhile, and hopefully, this plan will work.
John flew high into the air and made the same journey towards the Cretora continent. When he landed on the continent, he headed north towards the capital. He saw hundreds of villages on the way towards the capital, making him believe the population on this planet was more than he originally thought.
John landed a few miles away from his target. His Scan picked up a rudimentary stone wall built around the city, but the stones were loose and did not fit together well.
Luke mentioned this type of construction before; it’s called dry stacking. On Earth, it is the earliest form of building stone houses that we know of. It’s the weight of the stones and the positioning that keeps it in place, but if a force is strong enough, the wall will easily crumble.
As John walked closer to the capital, his Scan picked up the houses here. The people used the same dry stacking technique to build the houses. They had chiselled all the stones used to rectangular or square shapes. Most of the houses were only one story high, but as John got closer to the centre of the capital, they built houses with two stories. Impressive.
In the centre of the capital was a castle. A moat surrounded it and it had a wooden drawbridge. The castle was four stories high and made using the same dry stacking building technique.
John’s Scan picked up the inside; there were many rooms, paintings, and decorations. At the centre of the castle was the throne room with two thrones for the king and queen. However, John found only one of these seats occupied.
John smiled.
He’s the current king of Gaening Dynasty. He’s the person I need to help me with a few tests.
Chapter 33
Tests
The man sitting on the throne looked bored. With his Scan, John could see the alleged ruler was half asleep and resting his head on his hand.
He was a younger man in his late twenties or early thirties. His straight blue hair was tied in a ponytail, and his slightly slanted eyebrows complimented his fiery red eyes. He completed the colour theme by wearing a blue robe similar to his hair. John wondered if it was natural for this land; he’d yet to come across anyone else with this particular colour scheme in all his journeys.
Throughout the castle, John’s Scan could make out a few hundred guards, staff members, and what John assumed to be officials all coming and going through the castle. There were quite a few bedrooms inside the castle, but only one bedroom was huge and fit for a king. The bed inside was even bigger than the beds inside the hotel John stayed at inside the Adventurers Guild’s hotel.
Target decided on, John teleported inside the bedroom and took a closer look around. He found a big comfy chair behind a gilded desk at one side of the room, so he took a seat. Hidden away in the comforts of the king’s chambers, he closed his eyes to rest.
A few hours later, the man with blue hair strolled into the bedroom, a slight skip in his step. Humming a little, he shut the door behind him and latched the lock. It took him a moment to finally turn around and see John, sitting at his desk.
Eyes suddenly bulging out of his head, the king opened his mouth to cry for help, but John stopped him. John’s threads wrapped around the king’s mouth, forming a gag. The man clawed at his face in utter panic, futilely trying to get the rope out of his mouth. John did not have to so much as stand from his comfortable seat.
“Relax,” John chided, remembering the language spoken on this planet. He was a little rusty, but the more he spoke, the more he fell back into the rhythm. “I will not hurt you. I’m here to offer you a deal. I will release you now, but if you scream, then you will die. Do you understand?”
Signs of panic slowly fading away, the king nodded and tried to regain some of his regal composure. John acknowledged this and offered the man a seat. While the threads dissolved and the king moved towards a nearby chair, John used the Memory Manipulation skill on him. After the man sat down, John looked at him with Immortal Eye.
???
Rank: 0
Level: 0
Sin: 492
Status: Memory Manipulated
If Luke or Sarah were here, I’m sure they would say I look like the godfather right now. Should I say “I’ll make you an offer you can’t refuse”?
Trying to hide his burgeoning smile at his own joke, John looked the man in the eye.
“What’s your name?”
“I am King Humban-Untash Anastasia,” the man spoke with a voice far more commanding than the situation called for. John could tell he was a firm, good leader despite the twinge of fear in his eyes. John’s grin widened.
Humban-Untash Anastasia
Rank: 0
Level: 0
Sin: 492
Status: Memory Manipulated
“You will help me test a few things. In return, I’ll help your dynasty rule this continent.” John’s gaze hardened. “Do you accept this deal or not?”
Humban’s fear slowly edged away as he sat in silent contemplation. A few minutes passed, and still no answer. John was getting impatient.
“Unsure?” He leaned back in his chair, examining a fingernail. “Maybe I should go offer the same deal to the king of Ucopis Dynasty? Surely, he’s not so stupid as to turn it down.”
Humban’s eyes bulged at the mention of Ucopis Dynasty.
“NO! Do not do that!” His eyebrows furrowed, almost as much of a display of anger as it was of his urgency. “I accept your offer on behalf of my kingdom!”
“That’s more like it,” John replied, still smiling. “Get me a soldier that’s loyal to you, and a few prisoners or people you want to kill.”
Face flushing a little, Humban nodded firmly and then left the room.
If these tests are successful, the next step is to do the same test while using Memory Manipulation’s Voice skill. His thought process should be similar to mine now that I’ve used the technique on him, but that doesn’t mean he’ll do what I say. I need the Voice skill for that.
Twenty minutes later, Humban returned and reported to John that he’d done as he said. Humban ordered his most loyal soldier and five prisoners to assemble in the back garden where it was quiet and secluded. The king waved for John to follow him and John was guided down a series of halls. No one gave him a second glance. Being in the presence of a king was a free pass to do whatever he wanted.
Soon, the two were standing on a balcony about 40 feet away from the garden. John could see six people standing below them. One was the soldier that Humban trusted the most, donned in silver armour with a golden shield in his left hand and an iron sword strapped to his hip. He stood at the ready over the other five people who John could tell were prisoners. They each knelt on the floor, legs and arms in shackles, tattered clothing, and long messy hair.
Looking at the soldier, John used his Immortal Eye.
???
Rank: 0
Level: 0
Sin: 0
“Have the soldier kill one prisoner then go back to standing where he was.”
Humban nodded then barked orders at the soldier. One of the prisoners tensed up for the last time, a blade cutting cleanly across his throat. As the prisoner bled out on the floor, John looked at the soldier’s sin count with Immortal Eye again.
Sin: 25
John checked Humban and himself afterwards but saw they had gained no sin
from the soldier’s actions. The first test was a failure.
“Very good,” John addressed. “Now, have the soldier kill the next prisoner. This time, bribe him with rewards beyond his wildest dreams.”
Eyes sparkling with curiosity, Humban barked another order at the soldier. He promised to fulfil a single wish should the soldier perform well enough. Fuelled by his desire, the soldier did as Humban asked.
Sin: 50
John checked Humban and himself afterwards again. Still no sin, dammit. The second test is a failure, too. Onto the third test, then.
“Humban-Untash Anastasia.” John looked at the King with a somewhat menacing light dancing in his eyes. “How would you like to be immortal?”
Humban paled, eyebrows furled as a look of utmost desire and reverence spilled onto the King’s face.
Good.
“Have the soldier kill a third prisoner.” John cracked a cool smile at the man. “And I’ll consider granting you immortality.”
Humban did as he asked. The soldier took another life, his blade now coated in a dense layer of blood.
Sin: 75
After seeing the soldier’s statistics, John checked Humban with Immortal Eye to see the sin count.
Humban-Untash Anastasia
Rank: 0
Level: 0
Sin: 517
Status: Memory Manipulated
He then checked his own sin count, which had also gained 25 sin points.
John erupted in laughter, causing Humban to jump in fright.
So as long as the person giving the orders is taking my orders with one of the seven sins as the motive, all three people will earn sin points. This is perfect! My plan can proceed to the next step.
John cast a smug look at Humban.
“Next test.”
He used the Memory Manipulation’s Voice skill.
“I will promise you power to destroy all your enemies if you make the soldier kill the next prisoner.”
Humban’s eyes glossed over as he looked at the soldier and commanded him. John watched the events below unfold as another prisoner lost their life. The soldier, Humban, and himself gained 25 sin points.