Defiance of the Fall: A LitRPG Adventure

by TheFirstDefier

  The small demoness was the loser, who could only grit her teeth and take the other chair next to Zac after having been physically bodied away from a more distant chair by one of the fat men. Zac tried to improve the relations by nodding at her, but she stared straight ahead without moving, like a zombie.

  After everyone sat down, Ogras summoned glasses and a few jugs of what smelled like liquor and poured himself a drink. The others poured themselves some as well, but were clearly not as comfortable as their leader. Zac declined the offer and instead took out one of his canteens of normal water.

  “So, now that everyone is settled, we can discuss the construction of… uh… what name have you chosen for the town?” Ogras asked as he turned toward Zac.

  Zac was completely stumped, as he’d never bothered about such a detail while struggling for the last month. Now that the incursion was gone, his temporary outpost was turning into a town. He called this place “demon island” in his mind, but he couldn’t name his town that. Maybe something with his name? In case his town got famous and his family heard of it, they might come here. Zachary Town? No. Atwood sounded better for a town. Atwoodtown? Atwoodville? Camp Atwood?

  “Port Atwood,” he finally said after some hesitation. It had his name, and “Port” was a pretty normal addition to coastal cities, so he felt it sounded pretty neat.

  “Hm… Okay. The construction of Port Atwood. You have seen the general area already. Remember, it needs to be defensible within forty days,” Ogras said as he rolled out a parchment. It was a surprisingly detailed map of the general area. It had his camp and the harbor marked, and even the large warehouse was drawn out. After scanning it for a few seconds, he knew that it was completely accurate when comparing it to his memories of the area. Of course, the only error was that the details of the harbor were quite indistinct, and nothing was mentioned except the line “shipyard.”

  Zac wondered how he could have produced such an accurate map in such short order, but he didn’t want to make a fool of himself in front of so many people, and could only ask later. The conversation was a bit stilted at the beginning, where Ogras had to drag the words out of the craftsmen’s mouths. Zac himself was content to just listen for now, as he realized he had no idea how to build a city.

  He had thought that it would be like a strategy game since he possessed the Town Shop. He just bought the buildings, and they produced or did whatever they were designed to do. But as the group started discussing everything from plumbing, to district allocation, to traffic flows and congestion points, he started to zone out.

  Between the hard liquor and the fact that Zac kept mostly quiet, the demons started to get more and more animated as they discussed and debated various points, each individual clearly convinced that their specific field was the most important for a burgeoning town’s success. Soon an early blueprint for Port Atwood was starting to take shape, with Ogras pushing things forward.

  The general idea for the beginning was to create four zones. The inner zone was to be a walled-off area belonging to Zac alone. It would also encircle the shipyard, with walls going down to the water a few hundred meters to both sides of it. Another wall would be erected between Zac’s camp and the shipyard. Ogras explained it was to protect the Lord’s manor against naval attacks, but Zac knew it mainly was to keep the Creators separated.

  Outside the core area, three zones would be established. The first was on the southwest side of the core, expanding alongside the wall all the way down to the water. It would be the trade zone where merchants and craftsmen had their headquarters.

  On the other side of the core zone would be the military encampment. Zac was confused, as he didn’t have an army, but let them go ahead with the plans anyway. Having an army would be convenient, as that meant he wouldn’t have to spend as much on defensive arrays. And if he became a real Lord, there actually might be a time when he had a proper army.

  The central area would be residential, with some businesses such as bars and bathhouses peppered in, and it would be connected with the mercantile zone with a large square. Most space around the square was earmarked for various key institutions, such as an auction house and a bank, which Zac didn’t qualify to own yet.

  They even allocated a large space for an academy. After asking, he realized it wasn’t like a school on the old Earth, but rather to help the students to get a class they wished for and guide them with their cultivation. This was something very interesting to Zac, who had just fumbled around when he got his class choices.

  He was already getting bored with the discussion about the town construction and set his eye on the demon who appeared to represent the field of education.

  74

  Classes, Cultivation, and Old Hegemons

  It turned out that actions truly influenced the available Class choices. After some hesitation, a slender demoness in charge of education started explaining the mechanics behind classes, quickly finding her confidence after entering lecturing mode.

  “The Ruthless Heavens allow you to start progressing on the path of cultivation starting at the age of sixteen for both humans and demons, but it varies between species. Many forces are able to bring up the levels of their young to 25 in a day with various pills and Nexus Crystals, so preparation before they officially enter the path of cultivation is necessary. An academy prepares the young generation and helps them attain the Class they wish for, or at least have the most aptitude for,” the schoolmistress started to explain.

  “If they want to become a Sword Master, they will have to arduously train with their sword, and physically train their natural attributes to the peak. If they wish to become a magic user, it’s a bit more complicated, but essentially they have to study the elements and learn all they can about Cosmic Energy. Craftsmen classes are best gained by apprenticing themselves to someone,” she said.

  It was as Zac had assumed. His classes were largely based on his actions, and it was possible to influence the options the System gave. But it seemed unlikely that too good a class could be attained from just swinging a sword around within the safety of the school.

  “What rarity of the classes do the students get this way?”

  “It depends on the grade of the school. Normally, only Common classes can be attained at an academy, with one or two lucky students out of a thousand getting an Uncommon one. Out in the Multiverse, there are far greater academies that have curriculums that can guarantee Uncommon classes, and even give a decent chance for a Rare one,” she said as her eyes glistened, obviously yearning to visit such a place.

  “Besides, if the youth accomplishes great things after becoming sixteen years old, instead of rushing to level 25, they can improve their chances to get a better class.”

  “Still, being stuck with a Common class doesn’t seem too great, no? Won’t it negatively influence their future?”

  “Getting Common classes is by far the most common starting choice in C-graded to E-graded worlds. Classes like Warrior or Swordman have a multitude of well-documented advancements paths. For example, it is well known that a Warrior can advance to an E-graded Uncommon Champion. They can also advance to E-graded Uncommon Captain, then D-graded Uncommon General” she explained, getting more and more animated as she started looking at Zac less as an axe-wielding lunatic and more like a student.

  “They won’t get as many attribute points or as good skills as someone who gets a Rare or even Epic class in the start. But the requirements for each advancement is well-documented, giving cultivators a clear and unimpeded path of progression. The Multiverse has an endless amount of classes, and only a small part of them is public knowledge. Many promising youths have had their path of progression cut short since they got an unknown Rare class and weren’t able to progress it.”

  Zac found all of this very illuminating and decided to have this teacher accompany him into the mines to keep his education going while he tried to get his pathways repaired.

  “If the Multiverse contains endless classes, why
did so many of your kind seem to have the same class?” Zac probed, his memories slightly clashing with the teacher’s explanation of the class system. For example, there had generally been three types of mages: earth, lightning, and fire. But no demon mage seemed to use wind, ice, gravity or any other types.

  The demoness slightly hesitated and looked at Ogras for instructions. He shrugged and continued the explanation himself.

  “It’s called Heritage,” he said. “The progression paths are public knowledge, but the details are fiercely guarded secrets. Those classes that Alyn mentioned are public knowledge, but the exact method to advance past E-grade is not. Clan Azh’Rezak has bought guides that explain the progression to E-grade Uncommon for over a dozen classes, but only had two clear paths to reach D-rank.”

  “Buying a full progression path from F to D with all required attributes, Dao requirements, and hidden requirements is costly enough to set back a D-ranked force quite a bit. So most only have one or two, and they are the foundation of the clan. Clan Azh’Rezak has the progression path of Lightning Warrior, which evolves into Tempest Warrior, and finally, Stormblade. It’s a mix of lightning magic and bladed weapons. Rydel followed this path, for example, and only the main branch of our clan is allowed to progress on this class path,” the demon continued, and Zac immediately remembered the three demons he had killed whose skills contained the dreadful black lightning.

  “The stronger the Heritage of a clan, the greater its prospects. The more and better progression paths, cultivation techniques, hidden titles, access to hidden pocket-worlds, and unique cultivation resources a force has, the better the Heritage is.

  “Of course, the stronger Heritage you have, the more attractive a target you become, and wars are constantly fought across the Multiverse to snatch Heritages,” Ogras said. “The greatest forces in the Multiverse are said to have progression paths all the way to at least B-rank, making their Heritage an unimaginable treasure,” he finished, with yearning in his eyes talking about those lofty clans.

  “And how does cultivation fit into all of this?” Zac continued. This was one of the most confusing things for him so far. From Abby, it seemed that cultivation was extremely important, but so far, he had progressed just fine without being able to cultivate.

  “Cultivation has various benefits. First, it improves your advancement speed in levels. At a certain point, one can forego sleep completely and instead cultivate, making it possible to ceaselessly progress levels. At low levels, it doesn’t make a large difference, but at high levels, a single level can take a year or more, and at this point, the difference starts to show.”

  The schoolmistress Alyn picked up again. “Secondly, cultivation doesn’t only improve levels; it also improves our very foundations. It can improve our very beings over time. Essentially, it can help evolve our races, which is the biggest difference between a cultivator and a mortal,” she said.

  “Most mortals are forever stuck at F-grade Classes, since they can’t afford the means to evolve into an E-rank Race. Advancing the Race is the most basic requirement for any class advancement, and no matter the Dao enlightenment or titles, without an advanced Race, you simply will not progress. And as mortals progress, it becomes unimaginably hard to find the treasures to keep their advancement going.”

  “Finally, cultivators can increase their combat power compared to a mortal if they have a suitable cultivation method. Say the cultivator is a Pyromancer Class. If she has a fire-attributed cultivation technique, her attacks will get even fiercer. Conversely, if she use a water-based cultivation technique, she might get weaker or even hurt herself over time.”

  Zac finally understood how classes worked in the Multiverse and was a bit troubled that he seemed to have gone down a harder path. His Rare class was a boon in the form of giving good skills and extra stats, but it seemed it was far harder to progress compared to the normal classes.

  Even worse, it seemed that getting stronger truly was easier for cultivators. It would become harder and harder to keep his lead, it seemed, as time went on. At least he had caught a lucky break snatching up a Fruit of Ascension, solving the issue of his race for now. Still, he would have to find new treasures to keep advancing, whereas the cultivators could just, well, cultivate.

  “Can a mortal become a cultivator?” Zac asked, as that would solve his issues easily. Besides, Abby had said only 10% of the population of Earth was able to become cultivators, so most earthlings could benefit from turning into cultivators. Alyn seemed to hesitate a bit before answering.

  “Perhaps. It is said that mortals will automatically become able to cultivate when they reach a certain power level. But I am not sure whether it is true. Some say it is at C-rank, others at B-rank. Some say it’s just a hoax to give mortals false hope. I only know it’s not possible at D-rank or lower,” she said. “There are a few treasures able to turn a mortal into a cultivator, though, but they are so rare, they might as well be rumors as well,” Alyn then added after some thought.

  “Those treasures are real but unfathomably rare. One was put up for auction on one of the core planets of our horde fifty thousand years ago and hasn’t been seen since. When it arrived, it created a bloody storm that impacted the whole world. Besides, getting one of them can be a death trap. There are so many old monsters in the Multiverse that have a grandson or granddaughter who can’t cultivate for some reason. They are fine with slaughtering a whole country to snatch the treasure for their kin, making it extremely dangerous to own it,” Ogras added.

  “There even was an old hegemon who went to war with a ruling family of a B-ranked planet just to get a supreme treasure that would allow his beloved pet to become a sentient god-beast. Billions of lives were lost because of that stupid mutt,” the demon then said, his mouth curving slightly upward.

  “What happened?” Zac asked, intrigued.

  “The hegemon essentially destroyed the world and took the treasure. The mutt became a god-beast, and over tens of thousands of years, started to rival even its old master in power. Soon the beast could transform into humanoid form, and it had the appearance of a stunning woman. The old master actually fell in love and wanted to marry his old pet, but the god-beast didn’t reciprocate his feelings.

  “Mad with rage that he was rebuffed after all he had done for her, he immediately tried to kill her. It backfired spectacularly, and the beast was victorious after an earth-shaking battle. Now she is a hegemon herself and the leader of a grand beast world. It is one of the most famous stories about the dangers of owning too valuable treasures,” Ogras narrated with a sneer, obviously considering the old master a true idiot.

  Zac almost laughed out loud when he heard the story, and said a silent prayer for the old master. More importantly, it seemed it was possible for him to become a cultivator in the future. Of course, it seemed impossibly hard, but he had time and a huge amount of Luck. Not wanting to hold up the meeting any longer with this tangent, he changed the subject.

  “What about the defenses of the town? The monster hordes are coming soon.”

  This was what mattered the most to Zac right now. The town needed to be standing at least until he could buy a teleporter or a cosmic ship so he could finally start his search for his family. And if possible, he wanted to defend Port Atwood from the incoming animals in order to turn his island both into a sanctuary and bastion.

  75

  Gaming the System

  The demons were aware of Zac’s quest and started discussing various means of defense. They soon came to an agreement that it wouldn’t be possible to complete an outer wall in the duration that remained until the first horde arrived, and they would have to focus on the inner wall instead.

  Zac was a bit skeptical, as he knew the whole wall around their own town had been erected in just a few days’ time. Were they holding back on him? However, it was soon explained that the whole force had come together and immediately fortified their position when they arrived at the island. Now they were left with on
ly a tenth of their force, and almost all the earth mages who had been instrumental to the construction were either dead or back in their home world.

  “What is the point of the wall anyhow? I could easily scale your wall in seconds. I can just buy a defensive array instead,” Zac probed, wondering if all the work of erecting walls was even worth it.

  “Defensive arrays need power to run. If no one or just a few assailants are attacking, the ambient energy is enough. But as soon as it comes under attack, either cultivators or crystals are needed to provide energy to keep the shield active. Imagine ten thousand beasts simultaneously clawing and ramming their bodies into the shield. The energy consumption would be terrifying, and you’d become broke after a few weeks of maintaining it,” Ogras replied. “Walls are cheap and effective below E-rank. They are the first line of defense that is easily replaceable and provide a vantage where we can grind down the enemy forces before even wasting a single crystal on maintaining an array. Only if they break through the walls will we need to spend resources on maintaining the arrays.”

  “What about the merchant headquarters? According to the blueprint, the compound will be placed outside the inner wall.” While Zac was no angel, he didn’t want to summon the poor traders just to be eaten by monsters in a month. He wasn’t that cruel.

  “Many structures provided by the Ruthless Heavens have certain protections in place. It will automatically be protected like the Tree of Ascension was,” Ogras explained, which reminded Zac about the impenetrable shield that had covered the tree while the fruits were ripening.

  “Can’t we just hide inside there, then?” Zac asked. Having a safe spot where nothing could harm him would be extremely convenient while assaulted by a sea of monsters.

  “We can enter and leave, but only during business hours if we’re not members. And no, we can’t just become temporary members during the beast horde attacks.” Ogras ruthlessly crushed Zac’s hopes. “Also, that protection only applies to buildings connected to the Mercantile System, so nothing else you build will be safe. The horde’s main targets will be you and the Nexus Node, and everything impeding its path will be destroyed. Trying to exploit various loopholes such as surrounding your camp with protected merchant shops won’t work either. Everything has been tested over time, and the loopholes have been fixed by the Ruthless Heavens billions of years ago. “