A fire crackled.
As wisps of smoke curled through the air, the bright flas battled against the gentle darkness, casting flickering shadows across the room. Unfazed by this dance, a man perford push-ups with closed eyes. Almost touching the floor, he breathed deeply as he pushed back up.
His bulging muscles and prominent veins proved that the effort was not simulated. Despite his imnse attributes, the hypergravity made the exercise challenging. Repetition didn't bother the man. [Focus] banished all unnecessary thoughts while Micro coerced his brain to release endorphins. Despite the daunting difficulty, he sported a grin.
He was free to ascend towards the Zenith.
Like a passionate athlete, Priam compelled his body to move, pushing his body through a series of exercises, targeting every muscle group. The regin planned by his System took into account attributes nearing the sixth threshold of Tribulation. His strength and agility were far from maximized.
His absolute sensory mory reminded him of the exact movents learned from Kazuki, and his dexterity, along with Micro, assisted in their execution. Push-ups, sit-ups, squats, burpees, pull-ups, dips, handstands, hyperextensions, planks—Priam rotated through exercises, constantly challenging different muscles. When the strain beca too much, he lowered the gravity to give his muscles ti to develop. His remarkable vitality, boosted by the sap of Log-a-rhythm and Blueberry's protein-rich als, helped him rapidly develop new muscle fibers.
Only four hours into his training, the extre intensity coupled with Priam's high attributes yielded results:
Lvl Up: [Revelation Resilience] lvl 27
M 3
TA (Affinity) 3
TA (Authority) 3
Lvl Up: [Gymnastics] lvl 16, 17, 18
AGI 3
Lvl Up : [Gravity Resistance] lvl 16
CONST 3
Lvl Up: [Fitness] lvl 20
STR 1
[Fitness] has reached level 20, its maximum level as a common skill. Depending on your background, three upgrades are available:
[Calisthenics - Rare] - You have endured nurous high-intensity fitness workouts without equipnt. Future upgrades possible. Potential Cost: 10
[FitCross - Rare] - You have endured nurous high-intensity fitness workouts with equipnt. Unregistered trademark. Future upgrades possible. Potential Cost: 10
[Inhuman Workout - Rare] - You have endured nurous high-intensity fitness workouts under gravity exceeding 50G. Impressive. High upgrade potential. Potential Cost: 20
As Priam read the notifications, a smile crept onto his lips. An ordinary human would struggle to unlock high upgrades, but his attributes, Titles, and abilities enabled him to collect them effortlessly.
You have selected the skill [Inhuman Workout - Rare].
POT-20
[Inhuman Workout] - Trained by a legendary hoplite instructor, you master exercises impossible for a human. You seek the pressure of high gravity to sculpt a perfect Saiyan physique.
This skill allows you to feel when your physical exercises are executed properly. It optimizes synapse creation during high-gravity exercises, enhancing muscle mory developnt.
A great power cos with great sacrifices. Soon you will be as bald as Saitama.
STR 3
With a smile, Priam increased the gravity and resud his push-up routine. Sensing slight discomfort, he subtly adjusted his hand position and opened his lungs further. The sensation vanished, indicating flawless execution. His muscles worked more efficiently, reducing the risk of injury.
Of course, there could be no guarantees when the gravity was so intense. A deeper crack than that of the logs echoed through the room, and Priam furrowed his brow. His left clavicle had just given way.
Managing to finish his push-up, Priam sat cross-legged. His bones, ligants, and tendons endured strain while his muscles tore slowly. Testing his injury, he felt pain. The hypergravity bore heavily on his left shoulder, exacerbating the injury and causing internal bleeding.
[Thick Blood] began to stem the blood loss, but Priam couldn't risk aggravating the injury by allowing the broken bone to sever other arteries. This would lead to further hemorrhaging, slowing his training. He invoked [Three-Headed Hydra]'s daily heal. The multiple fractures and cracks that crippled his body began to heal as the legendary hydra's vitality temporarily flooded him.
With a sigh of relief, Priam refocused on Micro. The Supremacy allowed him to monitor his vital signs and understand his body better. He sensed [Sun Steel Body] was on the verge of leveling up. He hadn't yet decided on all the eight resistances he would choose as anchors for Heavenly Dragon, but this one was a sure thing.
It wasn't a coincidence his add-on suggested training under high gravity. Of course, it was one of Sphinx's powers, and his friend would appreciate the poetic aspect of the situation. However, besides this homage and his nostalgia for DragonBall, his Assistant deed gravity ideal for simultaneously strengthening his body's resistance to compression, tension, and bending.
Only Deep Pressure Trap was as comprehensive, but Priam needed to breathe too frequently to consider it. Thus, he had purchased Gravity Trap IV for ninety thousand Sun Points and had no regrets.
Priam resud push-ups, excited for the next level-up. As gravity punished his body, [Sun Steel Body] finally leveled up:
Lvl Up : [Gravity Resistance] lvl 17
CONST 3
Lvl Up: [Sun Steel Body] lvl 3
CONST 6
TA (Endurance) 3
Constitution exceeds 1 000 points. Second milestone reached. Congratulations!
"[Sun Steel Body] just leveled up, and my constitution has surpassed the second milestone!"
"Perfect. It'll help you sense the world's influence on your body," replied the Prince from the campfire in the room's center.
On the gravity trap’s white list, the fire served as an anchor for the phoenix to observe Priam. This was possible due to a portal opening to the Concept Archipelago on the ceiling. Looking up, Priam could see the mini sun of his internal world.
"That's rather disappointing."
"I'd call you an idiot, but I had more or less the sa thought back in the day. My teacher quickly changed my mind: close your eyes and focus on Micro."
Priam complied, feeling the Supremacy overlaying his body. With a thought, he could move or overclock his muscles. He sensed the blood flow in his veins, the air entering his lungs—accompanied by a faint smoke from the campfire—and the gravity's effect on his cells. [Sun Steel Body] and [Gravity Resistance] were fighting against the fundantal interaction, fortifying the connection between his cells and adapting their architecture.
"I can feel the gravity," he murmured. Previously, he was aware that it was attacking him because he had purchased the Gravity Trap and had felt the increase in his own weight. What had been a deduction was now a certainty. "I can even feel my resistances fighting the phenonon! The milestone will help identify what's attacking ."
"It'll be tough to poison you without you noticing now," confird the phoenix. "But rember, it only works if you have a resistance covering the damage you're receiving."
If lightning struck Priam, he'd just feel pain, and his new ability would remain silent because he lacked [Electric Resistance]. Another reason to unlock more resistances.
Priam's smile faltered as he saw his constitution continuing to climb towards twelve hundred. He'd soon have to seal the attribute with his Potential.
"However, I've already gained two levels in [Gravity Resistance]. Maybe I should change my training thod..."
The resistance wasn't useless, but Priam didn't plan to incorporate it into Heavenly Dragon, and the constitution boost dangerously neared a sixth Tribulation.
"Hypergravity acts uniformly on your body. It's an excellent way to avoid future blockages."
Priam briefly opened his eyes to cast a bewildered look at the phoenix, who sighed.
"You know the System doesn't reward skill spamming. An active skill evolves in a certain direction based on the tricks and knowledge you acquire; you used [Kinetic Control] to master thermal energy, but another user could have focused on fras of reference."
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Priam pondered the possibilities of an ideal Legendary skill like [Reference Fras Control]. An object was always in motion relative to another. With Earth swiftly rotating, any stationary object could beco a kinetic weapon if immobilized while the planet continued its dance.
"Interesting... So, what you're saying is I should always push the limits of my skills to prevent them from stagnating? Even those I don't aim to get an ideal upgrade for?"
Priam had never suffered blockages in leveling up a skill. Facing enemies much stronger than him forced him to be creative.
"Indeed, and it's the sa for resistances: they modify your body, and until it's fully reshaped, don't expect to get a good upgrade."
It was easy to advance [Sun Steel Body], the evolution of [Blunt resistance], by taking hits, but it wouldn't uniformly reshape his organs. Gravity could.
Priam nodded and focused on the fundantal force, feeling its effects and enduring its torture. At rank four, the ritual added at most sixteen tis artificial gravity to the already elevated ambient gravity. With his own weight multiplied by seventeen, Priam's body was on the verge of breaking.
It was excellent for his progression.
Priam resud his exercises, ensuring not to injure himself again. Silence enveloped the room.
Status:
PHYSICAL:
Strength 662 ( 42)
Constitution 1 057 ( 66)
Agility 614 ( 6)
Vitality 932
Perception 760
NTAL:
Vivacity (D) 552
Dexterity 622
mory 733 ( 11)
Willpower 1 134
Charisma 661
TA:
ta-affinity 690 ( 7)
ta-focus 391
ta-endurance 515 ( 21)
ta-perception 319
ta-chance 274
ta-authority 156 ( 6)
Potential: 13 765 ( 38)
Tier 0
Sun points: 675 738 (-88 216)
[He Who Eludes Death] charge: PRID
[Tribulation]: Five Tribulations pending.
Future Tribulations delayed until:
Ti: 159 days 17 hours 50 minutes 40 seconds.
Next thresholds: 12 attributes > 600 / 6 attributes > 900 / 1 attribute > 1 200
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