Chapter 712: Apprehension
The higher your Race Grade was in relation to your strength Grade, the more rules within said Grade that you could "break". Though technically, this wouldn't constitute breaking rules at all.
For Sylas, who had a Dual Class Constitution, he would be able to "break" even more than the usual individual.
For some Races above D-Grade, it was even possible for them to use Mature Aether even before leveling up a single time.
This was the disparity between Races.
Now, Sylas just had to know... what was the method to use the Genesis Forge?
The last time he went in there, he felt like his life was truly on the line. This was why he hadn't even attempted to go again.
But was there a method that he was missing here?
[Why did the Genesis Forge harm me?]
[The Genesis Forge did not harm you. Breaking through the restriction of a Race by unconventional means is particularly difficult and cannot be done without persistent refinement and pain. The Genesis Forge is named as such because beneath its pressure, your body is treated no differently from any other metal. You are tempered and forged.]
Sylas took a breath when he read this, only to remember that he was deep within this pool of lava still.
It was no wonder his injuries were so odd before. He had felt like his body hurt, but he had also gone into the battle with the Glass Monkey shortly afterward. There also weren't any lingering effects.
'In that case...'
[How many sessions will this take?]
[The number is variable and also depends on comprehension. However, if taking your progress on the first as a measuring stick, it will take exactly 1 272 710 sessions with about a three-day waiting period in between to allow your body to recover and adapt.]
Sylas' lip twitched.
That was ten thousand years. He was sure that his lifespan would be extended the stronger he became, but he couldn't even fathom living that long... nor would he even if couldn't become an E-Grade Race first at the very least.
'Comprehension... is it referring to the Runes on the forge? But I couldn't even observe them for long before I was nearly crushed to death...'
[How do I improve the benefits of my sessions?]
[You will need stronger Will. But it is also inadvised to use the Genesis Forge with the current state of the Worldshard Jade. Without sufficient Aether, you are bound to receive diminishing returns.]
'Aether...'
Sylas suddenly understood. Maybe the Worldshard Jade wasn't just an extra add-on after all. In fact, maybe whoever retrieved the Genesis Forge to begin with realized that it couldn't be used as is without the support of the Worldshard Jade. Otherwise, no one would be able to successfully upgrade their Race Grade, at least not before they died.
But considering the complexity and value of the Worldshard Jade, if it was just as simple as placing it in a location with a great amount of Aether, then it would have already been filled up long ago.
[How do I saturate the Worldshard Jade with Aether?]
Sylas was a bit worried that this would cost a pretty penny. After all, information about the Worldshard Jade had stalled him for so long. But luckily the Madness Key didn't price gouge him.
[A Worldshard Jade's Aether concentration can only be improved much the same way a world's can: with appropriate Aether Treasures. Otherwise, any Aether placed within it will dissipate into the void.]
Sylas shook his head.
He had had the perfect Aether Treasure for this, but unfortunately, it was now fused into his Will. There was no getting Mancer's Blossom back now.
He would need to find another Aether Treasure. But he had simply never seen an Aether Treasure that he could buy from a Nexus. In fact, even Mancer's Blossom had to be upgraded from a Treasure to an Aether Treasure to begin with, and that took clearing an extremely difficult Dungeon and also giving up the chance to improve to Level 50.
It was an enormous price, all things considered. There wasn't a single Level 50 on Earth after over a year, but that reward would have gotten him there in a single bound from Level 0.
That said... there were two very good pieces of news.
First, Sylas had an opportunity waiting for him. He still had the Ticket he had received from the Quicktime Event in the Evergreen Territory. That off-world market just might be able to allow him to exchange for what he needed.
And second...
He had reached the bottom of the volcano.
Sylas' feet touched down and he could immediately feel that the rock down here was far from ordinary. Scanning it with his visualization, it also matched up with the descriptions that he had gotten of Metarock in the past.
There was such a large deposit here that it was mind numbing. This store of Metarock... it was probably more than the hidden families had in their own coffers, right?
'Something is wrong here...'
Sylas' eyes narrowed as he thought through some things.
He couldn't possibly be the only one who had thought to check the depths of the volcano. While he was in a state of confusion, his mind wasn't working quite right, so he just made the assumption that there were very few that had the Defenses necessary.
But just because you didn't have the natural Constitution, didn't mean you couldn't rely on Treasures. After all, wasn't it because of a Treasure that Sylas himself had been able to make
it down here so easily?
So why was this deposit just sitting here untouched? He also couldn't seem to sense anyone else in the vicinity either.
Sylas' pupils constricted as he looked up. He focused on the Basilisk King's mind and felt that
it was actually agitated by something. It was fighting against an urge to turn tail and run.
He had been so distracted by the questions he was asking that he wasn't paying attention to
his Beast contract. And the Basilisk King was trying to regain its original pride and didn't want
to embarrass itself in front of Sylas.
As such, they both were locked away in their own heads.
What Sylas found when he did focus on the Basilisk King was quite a shock, though.
'There's a Dungeon down here... but it actually repels beasts instead of attracting them?'