New high upgrade available for [Aether Manipulation - Rare].
[High Aether Manipulation - Epic] - In your hands, aether changes shape and state. Rune weaver, core forger, and probe hunter, you break your chains, refusing diocrity.
High upgrade potential. Potential Cost: 160
Priam hesitated, his smile vanishing. Despite the phoenix's warnings, he was reluctant to accept anything less than an ideal upgrade for such a fundantal skill.
"Show ," the phoenix demanded, seeing the young man frozen.
"Huh? Oh."
Priam opened his mouth, and a white orb the size of an eye erged. He caught it in his hand and cleared his throat, feeling as if he’d just coughed up a chicken egg.
"Looks like a core," he noted, rereading the upgrade description. Core forger...
During the first Reunion, most of the monsters he’d killed had this kind of aether orb inside their bodies. Since returning to Elysium, Priam had seen them less frequently.
"I would be kind enough to call it a core prototype," corrected the phoenix. "A core is made of solidified aether, but it’s much more than that. Firstly, all the ‘particles’ of aether that make up a core are organized in specific patterns. Here, you used brute force to make an abomination." Priam smiled, recalling his classes on crystallographic structures. The bird grasped the crystal. "And most importantly, a core contains runes."
"Like the skill runes on my soul or Esmée’s rune that produces light?"
The bird smiled. "Exactly. The System creates these runes in our souls, but it’s an advanced technique; it’s only natural for a few species, such as the dragons or the unique race native to this universe. The rest had to figure out another way..."
Seeing his ntor leave the explanation hanging, Priam tried to fill in the gaps with his knowledge.
"... The monsters and races populating this universe aren’t native. Before this, they didn’t have the System and had to store their skills differently. I assu they used cores?"
The phoenix nodded. "Let use the phoenixes as an example. Our ancestors created solid aether cores and engraved essential skill and Talent runes on them. As a hatchling grew, their core would give them a huge advantage over other races: in addition to having runes refined over generations, they could cast their skills instantly. That’s one reason we ended up dominating our universe."
"Impressive." Betting on future generations, the phoenixes had beco powerful enough to dominate an entire universe. It confird that he should steer clear of this warlike race. "If I understand correctly, the System’s advantage is that the user’s runes remain available even if they lose their core or body. The core’s advantage is the ability to transfer skills to others?"
"The System encodes the soul with terrifying precision, allowing it to fix an impressive number of skills. This makes the technique superior," the phoenix acknowledged. "Cores rarely contain more than a few powerful skills or Talents. For example, the core my mother passed on to contained only one ritual."
Priam nodded. The system was superior for finely encoding tiny runes. It was the difference between nanoter-sized transistors made by machines and the first-ever transistor, which asured a centiter.
"It must’ve been a powerful ritual."
The flas that made up the phoenix’s feathers flared toward the ceiling as the bird laughed. "If you reach the ninety-fifth wave of the Colosseum, you’ll see it..."
Priam’s hearts raced. "I can’t wait."
For a few monts, the past and present geniuses stared at each other before the phoenix offered a warning.
"Be careful, the two techniques aren’t exclusive. Nowadays, cores are used to amplify a skill already inscribed in the soul. An epic skill is powerful, but when it resonates with its enlarged rune written in an attuned core... The result can surpass even a Legendary skill."
Which explained why so continued to use cores. It made sense, but Priam’s pride pushed him to ask one more question.
"How do monsters create a core? I struggled and think I have quite a few advantages..."
The phoenix lifted one of its wings, counting on its feathers. "Several thods are used: awakening of a bloodline, consuming rare resources, using a System reward, or simply using [Aether Manipulation - Epic]."
"During the first Reunion, I encountered boars with this kind of core, and they didn’t have access to that sort of thing."
"The System gave humanity a fully equipped Moon and a Tutorial. Why wouldn’t monsters be partially tempered to balance the scales?"
Hearing the phoenix's words, Priam's eyes widened. "Tempered?!"
"Oh, you didn’t get it? Tempering a body ans transforming it so it can host a fulcrum. Most of these are cores."
Priam stood still for a mont before letting out an amused sigh. "I hadn’t made the connection," he admitted. The next mont, a smile lit up his face. If the phoenix was right, Heavenly Dragon was about to create a mythical fulcrum of draconic nature while also strengthening his body. Let’s beat those Tribulations!
Status:
PHYSICAL:
Strength 707
Constitution 1 105
Agility 614
Vitality 1 040
Perception 760
NTAL:
Vivacity (D) 552
Dexterity 622
mory 781
Willpower 1 134
Charisma 661
TA:
ta-affinity 728 ( 4)
ta-focus 394 ( 3)
ta-endurance 594 ( 4)
ta-perception 319
ta-chance 274
ta-authority 183
Potential: 13 451 (-157)
Tier 0
Sun points: 681 475 ( 549)
[He Who Eludes Death] charge: PRID
[Tribulation]: Five Tribulations pending.
Future Tribulations delayed until:
Ti: 157 days 16 hours 56 minutes 4 seconds.
Next thresholds: 12 attributes > 600 / 6 attributes > 900 / 1 attribute > 1 200
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