'As I assumed, this is the limit.' Inala thought as he stared at the stitched Biome Bomb before him. As he was currently at the Silver Grade, he could stitch four Biome Bombs together. Upon making it a singular whole, he performed the same process on four other Biome Bombs, turning it too into a single object, recognised as one Spirit Weapon by his psychokinesis.
Tertiary Nature—Prana Stitch!
Inala grabbed the two stitched Biome Bombs and used Prana Stitch, intending to stitch the two together. However, the moment he activated Prana Stitch, his Secondary Nature of Perfect Biome Domination got activated, spiking his focus that allowed him to observe faint lines.
The lines were threads he had used to stitch four Biome Bombs together. They were now highlighted in his vision. However, this highlight was Zinger exclusive. Similar to how only a Zinger could tell a Prana Bomb apart from a Life Bomb, only Quip Clansmen with the Tertiary Nature of Prana Stitch—upon gaining enough experience—could see the stitches.
To the naked eye, no stitches exist. After all, Inala had used them on the Biome Bombs he had created. All were products made through his Prana, so there was no difference between the strings in the stitch and the Biome Bombs.
Whether in terms of Prana, Presence, structure, etc. they were all the same. However, he was still able to make out where the stitches were.
And now, Inala observed that when he tried to stitch together two stitched Biome Bombs, seams appeared on the once seamless Biome Bombs. Though the stitches had the property to merge onto any object they were stitched to, they still existed, holding the pieces together, similar to stitches for a fabric.
Inala couldn't simply spam them and stitch together an infinite number of things. Stress and strain existed across all material objects. That's why, even when glued together along their cross-section, two iron beams would bend towards their open ends.
This is due to gravity pulling them downwards, so the principle of a beam will take effect here. If a third beam was attached, the bend would increase. By the fourth addition, the adhesive strength of the glue would prove insufficient, causing the iron beams to fall off from the joint.
Prana Stitch had similar limitations. The stress they faced when trying to combine two stitched Biome Bombs strained them beyond their fracture point. That was why Inala immediately could see the seams become more and more pronounced.
If he were to continue the process, the seams would burst soon. 'I see, so the increased number of stitches per Grade is only due to the increased strength of the strings as I increase my grade.'
Inala began to experiment further, understanding the tensile limits of the strings per grade. Prana Stitch's possibilities were endless, but so were its limitations. He would have to experiment to the extreme and tread through a path of possibilities while avoiding the limitations as best as he could.
His current gains were already tremendous. At the Mystic Grade, he could stitch sixteen Biome Bombs into one, which allowed him to create a Biome Bomb with a radius of approximately 454 metres.
This was a massive leap in size from his original 180 metres. Whenever he wants, he can dominate his surroundings in a radius of 454 metres similar to an Empyrean Snapper. This was in terms of radial domination.
For a string of Prana that he could use to absorb Prana and Lifeforce from a target, the total distance attained was a whopping 2.88 kilometres. This was absurd as is, for it was his maximum range at the Body Stage.
If he were to get to the 10-Life Stage, his range would be 28.8 kilometres, the longest possible on Sumatra.
Of the original three options, he chose the second path, which granted him range. And through Prana Stitch, his range surpassed Brimgan Royals at the 10-Life Stage who boasted a Spirit Weapon range of 18 kilometres.
As Prana Stitch had multiple facets to its power other than simply boosting Spirit Weapon range, it was slightly inferior to Kinesis Deity. At the Gold Grade, Inala had a range of 1.44 kilometres at the Body Stage, which equated to 14.4 kilometres.
Of the three options, he focused on the second option—range!
However, that didn't mean that he abandoned the other two options. Mystic Royal Art allowed him to cultivate through the Life Stage. Hence, he intended to create a Minor Treasure next that could stabilise his stack of bodies while he changed his grades.
This was for the first option—Life Stage!
The process of its creation would be the same as the one used to make the Minor Treasure of Prana Stitch. Built out of his body, it would have properties capable of supporting the functions of his growth, which was derived from his Primary Nature of Mystic Royalty.
'Next on my list isn't it, however.' He shook his head, knowing that creating a stabilising Minor Treasure was a bottomless well, since he needed one for each body. Meaning, he would have to make ten such Minor Treasures.
Just the Sumatra Gold necessary for it would take him two decades, not to mention the Bolts of Transcendence and Nectar associated with the production costs.
Going through the Life Stage was something he would do eventually, but not now. His priority was to raise his individual strength to such a level that even if he was alone, and with a single body, he would still prove tough enough against Brangara.
This was where he had been preparing for the third option—Revival!
As long as Quip Clansman with Cripple Disease has a sufficient amount of Royal Zinger genes, there was a non-zero chance they could birth the Royal Zinger. As long as the Quip Clan stands tall, he'd eventually return to Sumatra, no matter how far into the future it might be.
However, there was always a risk of the Quip Clan getting annihilated. Hence, Inala used the Comb to his advantage, sending a body of his to it regularly, allowing as many Ravaged Tribesmen as possible to consume his body.
This way, they'll be carrying a portion of the Royal Zinger genes in their body. Due to its characteristics, it'll gradually accumulate in their bodies until eventually, the Royal Zinger becomes born in the Ravaged Federation.
Inala ensured that powerful Ravaged Tribesmen were only able to consume his body once. This was to guard against any abilities that Yarsha Zahara might create in the future that could detect the Royal Zinger's genes.
Inala had no idea if she could even create something that powerful, but it was best to be prepared. The concentration of the Royal Zinger gene would be limited within the Ravaged Tribesmen, and as it is mixed amidst hundreds of genes, it'll be impossible to detect them.
And by the time enough genes accumulate to birth the Royal Zinger naturally, Yarsha Zahara and Brangara would have long since run out of their natural lifespan.
It was better to have as many revival mechanisms as possible, since his ultimate goal was to one day roam and witness everything Sumatra has to offer. Considering its sheer scale, he'd need multiple lifetimes to go through all the places. This revival method was perfect for his needs.
But currently, he had to face the Celestial Boar. Towards that, he needed countermeasures. Inala already had an idea from what he witnessed at the Attributed Region during the Second Major Disaster.
'I need to begin preparations for it immediately.' He thought and stared at his remaining piece of Sumatra Gold, 'I need a lot more Prana!'
He exited the hourglass and used Prana Stitch to stitch the two Biome Bombs forming it into a singular whole. The Minor Treasure of Prana Stitch was held within, preventing any external entities from sensing its presence.
The hourglass shrunk to palm-sized as Inala carried it and approached the Biome Lattice, staring at an entity hovering in the high-pressured waters like it was nothing, remaining in contact with a Gold Biome Bomb to absorb the Prana from its reserves.
The entity seemed ethereal at first glance, having a body made out of water. It was humanoid, barely a metre tall. Thin, glowing electric lines made vein patterns within its body, resembling the human nervous system.
The largest concentration of these glowing electric lines was in two places, depicting the shapes of a brain and heart respectively. The brain was a complete cluster of these electric lines, shimmering and sparking nonstop.
The heart, on the other hand, seemed to be a node from where all these electric lines were coming out from. At the centre of this node existed an orb, forming the of the entity's body. Externally, it seemed like an Attributed Creature, but the glowing lines weren't available in Attributed Creatures.
At Inala's arrival, the entity turned its head to stare at him, directing its grey eyes at him, ones sporting small electric dots at the centre. It opened its mouth and unleashed a soundwave, producing a voice once it touched Inala's body, "You seem burdened by a sense of urgency."
"Obviously," Inala sighed, "I have no idea when our enemies might show up on our doorsteps. If they do, we'll lose all this advantage. Without the Biome Lattice, the Quip Clan's development will become hundreds of times slower."
"Why are you getting flustered? That's uncharacteristic of you." The entity spoke, its eyes darting across his body before focusing on his expression, "If they come, so be it. We'll face them with however much preparations we have. And in the unfortunate case, we'll have to flee with crippling losses."
"You've grown strong, Inala. However, as your strength grows, your original nature of planning for various possibilities is turning into an obsession."
"I can't help it, even if I wanted to." Inala shook his head, "I can build everything from scratch once again, but I don't think we have enough time for that. There are around thirty years left for the Third Major Disaster to start, and this calculation might be wrong. If it begins even earlier, we won't have enough strength to kill Brangara."
"Three decades is honestly…too short of a time, even by a generous estimate." Wittral sighed and stared at the Biome Lattice, "It is indeed possible to accelerate our growth and reach maturity faster. The two of us gained a small portion of that characteristic from Brangara at the Dralh Sea when we swapped our Spirit Containers."
"However, we don't have Voracious Nature. So, our growth speed pales in comparison to Brangara." The entity said, "No matter how fast we accumulate resources, Brangara only needs to target the Cooter Clan once again…and…that fucking bastard will blaze through the Life Stage!"
Expert Gold Grade Pranic Beast—Zinger Representative!
The entity was none other than Zhya, having learnt about the fate of her previous home at the Dralh Sea. Though she abandoned her previous identity, it would be a lie to say she wasn't angered to the extreme upon hearing the news.
It was why she was focused on building her Zinger Representative body using her Primary Nature of Biome Nature. Initially, she could only rely upon condensing terrain using the Prana she had absorbed.
Only after she builds a miniature version of her body can she take advantage of her Sandy-Grey Void stomach to consume large amounts of water and earth, turn them into grey sand, and eventually convert them into the Attributed Region to grow her body.
Upon reaching that point, her growth will become faster, saving lots of time and resources, especially in terms of Prana. However, to finish a miniature body required a voracious amount of Prana.
It was why she was camping at the Biome Lattice to actively grow in strength. Upon expressing rage initially, Zhya calmed down in a matter of seconds, regaining her cool and focus as she stared at Inala to ask, "Focus on what you need to do. I can manage the Quip Clan's development even from here."
"I came here to give this to you," Inala said and pushed the hourglass towards Zhya.
The moment she stared at the hourglass, Zhya expressed her shock, "You completed it? Which one from the list is this?"
"Minor Treasure of Prana Stitch." Inala said upon seeing Zhya grab the hourglass and seep Prana inside, "Fuse with it and then distribute it to other Clansmen in order."
"Let's head to the settlement then." Zhya said and began to swim in the respective direction alongside Inala, "I need to assume human form to fuse with it without issues."
Her Zinger Representative form was made from the Attributed Region, Bolt of Transcendence, and Sandy-Grey Void, all three of which were able to harm a Minor Treasure. Hence, she couldn't fuse with it immediately, as her fragile human form was a liability outside, with millions of Phells roaming around.
The dup entered the Quip Clan Settlement as Zhya reverted to human form, groaning once as her body ached. She casually wore a pair of clothes and grabbed the hourglass, fishing out the Minor Treasure from within as she made contact with it.
"Argh!" She grunted and collapsed to the floor, twitching erratically as the Minor Treasure of Prana Stitch fused with her being, rapidly influencing her. A minute later, she woke up, observing the changes in her and noticed the Minor Treasure hovering beside her, already ejected out of her body, "This is amazing!"
"Arm all our Clansmen at the Silver and Gold Grades." Inala stated in seriousness, "Tell them to focus on training Prana Stitch the maximum. And once they're ready, tell them to do all this."
He took out a piece of rock and carved out a Piezo Slip on it, detailing everything the Quip Clan needed to get ready. Staring at the long list, Zhya commented, "This will require more resources than what we have currently."
"Use the Mystic Humans to trade using Prana Bombs. They're bound to arrive in a month or two." Inala said in solemnness, "Slow down the Quip Clan's growth a bit and pour all our energy on this matter."
"We're not resting until we capture the Influenced Region of Hidden Eye!"