"When is the challenge happening?" Inala asked, intending to change his plans accordingly.
"In a month," Shuwrak Zahara said with exasperation. A month was too long a time to prepare, for both sides. Basically, Narkahamy's challenge was a direct show of confidence.
"I'll give you enough time to be at your strongest. Collect as many Natures as you want and then face me. I'll still defeat you."
This was pretty much the intent behind the month's duration left for the challenge. The one who wins will tip the scales of the war to their side, stirring up the entire region.
Until now, after becoming the Varahan Emperor, Narkahamy had never taken action personally, unlike the Boar King who was active on the battlefield. It caused many Wean Clansmen to constantly taunt the other side and call the Varahan Emperor a coward.
'One month!' Inala thought momentarily and nodded, 'That aligns with my plan. There are only a few days of difference from my original pace anyway. So, I should be able to reach my goal by then.'
"Irrespective of the outcome of this fight, you'll no longer have a place in the Wean Clan after a month." Inala said and watched a worried Shuwrak Zahara nod in response, "Well, that's plenty of time."
"I'll gather all the Millanir you need by then. In the meantime, help me gather as much resources as you can with your remaining authority." He asked.
"What exactly do you need?" Shuwrak Zahara asked.
"The Celestial Boar's Vara." Inala stated in all seriousness, "There should be some remaining with the Wean Clan. Gather me enough to make a Spirit Weapon."
"Literally any Gold Grade Free Human's Human Avatar will have the same mineral." Shuwrak Zahara expressed his confusion, "Why exactly do you need the Celestial Boar's Vara?"
"Because this is a Pranic Beast's Vara while the rest that's available in the Market is either a Wean Clansman's or a Free Human's." Inala chuckled, 'The Celestial Boar's Vara can be subjected to the effects of Mystic Sumatra Art with the greatest potency.'
"Can you gather some?" Inala asked.
"It won't be easy." Shuwrak Zahara shook his head, sighing a little, "I will probably have to pay an exorbitant price to purchase it. And I'll have to make this deal with the Wean Clan's Leader. It won't be easy, even for me."
"With the Celestial Boar being dead, Brangara's Vara has symbolic value." Shuwrak Zahara explained, "Even without any usage for it, the Wean Clansmen feel they'll grow stronger just by being in its presence."
"Tell him that I'll create a training ground for the Wean Clansmen, one where they'll grow stronger and have their potential stimulated." Inala said as his eyes glinted, "I'll create the arena where the two leaders can duke it out without worrying about destroying each other's homes in the process."
"Are you...confident about it?" Shuwrak Zahara frowned, "It's not a simple matter. You'll be exposed to both sides."
"I like it that way." Inala grinned, "I'll create a place where even two pinnacle Gold Grade existences can fight while the followers of both sides can watch."
"You have nothing to gain from this." Shuwrak Zahara felt like he couldn't get a complete hang of Inala.
"Think of it like this," Inala thought for a few seconds and uttered, "This fight wouldn't end in one round. Both the Wean Clan Leader and Varahan Emperor will clash multiple times without going all out until the very end."
"Both sides will collapse without their respective leaders, so they'll avoid going in for the kill unless they're absolutely sure of being able to survive the finale." Inala gave his analysis.
"There is truth to the matter." Shuwrak Zahara nodded, "Not much is known about the Varahan Emperor's might other than the scant few times he had to take action in order to claim the Varahan Empire's throne."
"But considering how he's the one behind the creation of Blessed Influence, I feel he'll be a match for the Boar King."
"So, help me get this deal through." Inala smiled, "I'll keep my end of the deal in the meantime."
"I can only try." Shuwrak Zahara said and exited the cave. Right as he had done so, Inala began to hammer his left hand with a slightly different frequency. The structure began to morph rapidly. And in a matter of minutes, the process was completed.
His left hand now had the shape of a needle that was half a metre in length, protruding from the place where the hand was supposed to exist. Inala moved his hand up and down, watching the needle change directions.
All Spirit Weapons form from the wrist, making it extremely convenient to wield them at different angles than a rigid weapon.
Primary Nature-Refractive Inhibition!
The moment it was ready, Inala severed it until he collected a few pieces. He stored them in his ten storey Storage Lantern and then began to hammer the needle, steadily infusing his Prana into the latter while creating fluctuations.
'Yarsha's method needs one to trigger the Silver Empyrean Tentacle's characteristics in the human Avatar until it starts resisting the mineral. But if I were to crank it to the limit, the resistance would eventually destroy the Human Avatar.' Inala recollected the process and began it, 'The key is to crank it to the limit of what the Human Avatar could endure and then maintain that state stably. Eventually, the Gold Empyrean Tentacle's characteristics within the mineral will overpower this resistance.'
"And the result would be..." As he spoke, the needle churned as Prana caused faint sparks along it, visible to the naked eye. He didn't have Yarsha's talent. And hence, all he could do was create a vortex of Prana and will it to resist the needle.
As long as he maintains this state, the Silver Empyrean Tentacle's characteristics will eventually awaken and begin the resistance.
In Sumatra Chronicles, only talented Free Humans were able to succeed. They were those with stronger Silver Empyrean Tentacle characteristics than the average. Inala was currently a Pranic Beast, so he didn't have the Silver Empyrean Tentacle's characteristics.
Thankfully, his Brully build could turn his hands into Spirit Weapons. A regular Free Human would have to meditate for a long while. But that didn't matter to Inala as his first set of internal organs could focus on that while his second set maintained his hammering.
The moment the resistance appeared, Inala used his Billakin Hammer to stabilise that state in the Spirit Weapon. This way, he could breeze through the process that would have otherwise taken anywhere from days to even months for Free Humans.
Gong!
The needle began to whirr at a high frequency, causing a humming sound as cracks started to
appear on it. But right at this point, he activated Mystic Sumatra Art and caused the Prana influenced by the needle to interact with his blood, imprinting their characteristics on each
other.
Mystic Sumatra Art-Secondary Refinement!
It was Yarsha Zahara's method that had been converted by Inala to be unleashed through Mystic Sumatra Art. Upon its activation, the Silver and Gold Empyrean Tentacle characteristics within the needle fought each other and imprinted those states onto his blood.
This blood maintained that state and healed the needle as it was getting damaged, since it was a part of the body. The delicateness a Free Human had to approach their Human Avatar with for this situation didn't exist for Inala.
He could just bulldoze through it, since the limit was his Brully build's healing capabilities. Thanks to that, the two characteristics were quickly elevated to their peak and maintained there in extremity.
The Spirit Weapon was about to shatter but was held together by Prana that constantly mended its cracks. Less than an hour later, the Silver Empyrean Tentacle's characteristics had become pronounced enough that Prana started to create faint waves over the needle, behaving like solar flares as they bombarded the needle.
Soon, a large clump of Prana, consisting of a thousand units had gathered within the resisting
part of the needle, 'That's the condition!'
The moment thousand units of Prana exhibit the property of Silver Empyrean Tentacle's resistance, it was time to let go of control, which Inala did promptly and watched the needle act as if it had come to life and gathered Prana to target this lump.
Similar to what happens when a Gold Empyrean Tentacle devours a Silver Empyrean Tentacle,
the moment the mineral's characteristics swallowed the resistance, they assimilated the latter's power into themselves.
"Blessed Race of Sumatra indeed." Inala uttered as he felt the formation of a Secondary Nature within the needle, "Most of the secrets can be figured out through the relationship between the three variants of the Empyrean Tentacle Race."
Primary Nature-Refractive Inhibition!
Secondary Nature-Tangible Millinger!
The moment the Secondary Nature appeared, the needle began to morph into a Millinger.
"Urgh!"
Inala kneeled on the ground, unable to handle the amount of Prana being fuelled into the left
hand that was transforming into a Tangible Millinger. His left hand would literally turn into a
Tangible Millinger, which was worrisome.
After all, without a Human Avatar, he cannot store it within himself, "Oh...wait!"
He chuckled and touched the Tangible Millinger with his body, watching it fuse with him,
'It's a Tangible Millinger. So, it can fuse with my body. I only need to worry if I have more than one of its kind, since that needs a Human Avatar.'
He then stared at his left arm that was now missing a hand. Technically, his left hand hadn't
been severed. Rather, it had turned into a Tangible Millinger and was intact. Therefore, the place was empty, "This is indeed awkward."
Inala brought out the forming Tangible Millinger that had only grown to the size of a human
body now. It would require a lot more Prana to form fully. "Before that could happen..."
Boom!
He slammed it with his Billakin Hammer and shattered it. A new Tangible Millinger began to
grow out of his left arm once again as Inala continued to hammer it until it was reduced to the needle form once again.
"This is better." He muttered upon sensing that it only had one Nature. From then on, he
began to sever his left-hand numerous times and formed a pile of Spirit Weapons, ready to dismantle them later to obtain Millanir.
"But first," He drank a High-Grade Elixir that could raise his Prana capacity by 800 units and began to hammer his left hand, rapidly morphing its shape.
Storage Lantern, Biome Bomb, Inhibition Needle, Inala alternated between the three, imprinting their respective characteristics on his blood through Mystic Sumatra Art. Steadily, his left hand was adapting to rapidly getting changed into different Spirit Weapons.
He ignored the figure of Shuwrak Zahara who had entered the cave and focused on this, 'Almost there!'