Lohan felt the gem’s last resistance dissolve.
The agony of having his mind invaded by the guardian’s merciless will vanished, replaced by a deep and deeply soothing calm.
Without the agony of his mind being nearly torn apart, the peace and tranquility he felt after that conflict were incredible.
The gelatinous substance of his body relaxed so much that he ’lay down’ where he was, flattening himself to the point of looking like a blue disc atop that velvet pedestal.
Looking ahead, Lohan saw several game system notification windows and read them in order.
[Warning: Critical Level Difference detected. Risk of Magic Core Collapse: 87%]
[External Interference Detected: ??????]
[Purifying Hostile Essence from the Guardian of Light...]
[Synchronizing Frequencies.]
[Structural Stability Restored.]
[Level 13 Mana Stone Absorption Complete!]
[New Matter Digested - Holy Light]
[Consumes energy to produce Holy Light capable of healing wounds and harming Void Creatures.]
[Conflict with: Natural Energy Core]
[Natural Energy Core and Holy Light have similar characteristics, attempting fusion...]
[...]
[Fusion successful, the two Materials have fused!]
[New Evolution — Sacred Light Core]
[Sacred Light Core Lv 1] - 20,000 Bio
[Emitting constant pulses that synchronize cellular structure with the energy of nature’s Sacred Light.]
Looking at that, Lohan was completely shocked.
’20,000 biomass to raise this Evolution from Level 1 to Level 2?!’
Even though 20,000 biomass wasn’t very difficult for him to obtain, something that 4 hours of constant digestion would generate with plenty to spare, the problem was getting enough creatures to digest those 20,000 biomass!
Curious about how it would work, Lohan tried to circulate this sacred energy within himself, and then a bluish-white light burst from his core for a second before a tremendous weakness overwhelmed his body.
’Shit, I can’t even control this Sacred Light outside my body?! So I lost my Natural Energy, which helped me tremendously in combat, just to receive an energy I still can’t control?!’ Lohan wanted to cry.
But thinking about how powerful this Sacred Light seemed, he saw a silver lining in it.
It was better to acquire a powerful ability like this now that he already had plenty of combat methods to deal with level 10 monsters, than to level up in the future and never find an ability like this.
Confirming that the Slime was okay, Yrneha lowered her staff slowly.
That sense of weakness she sensed in him had suddenly come after the shocking use of Holy Light on his body!
As an Archmage, Yrneha perfectly sensed that powerful, sacred trace within the Slime, even though it lasted less than a second before vanishing.
Even with such a brief duration, the Elf still couldn’t believe that a useless, stupid little creature like a Slime had managed to control such high-level energy!
The shock on her face hadn’t completely faded yet, but she quickly regained her mask of noble coldness.
She looked at the holograms still floating there, showing that Lohan’s internal structure had reorganized itself to withstand an energy load that no being at his stage should carry.
"You are an anomaly," she said, her voice now heavy with reluctant respect and a somber caution, followed by a resigned sigh. "How... I can’t even explain how you could have accomplished such a feat."
Thinking of the Holy Light that had enveloped the Slime’s body to aid in the purification, Yrneha couldn’t understand the reason.
Aeliana rushed to the side of the pedestal, her eyes shining with wonder. "Halon! It was... radiant! It looks like you swallowed a piece of the night sky!" She reached out to touch it, pausing for a second to see if it would harden its surface, but upon feeling only a cool, invigorating texture, she hugged it tightly.
Yrneha interrupted the celebration with a sharp gesture. "Little creature, listen carefully. This new essence you carry is a beacon. To evil creatures and those with an affinity for darkness, you will be like a splash of white ink on black parchment."
She warned, approaching and touching the top of Lohan’s bluish mass with the tip of her staff. "If you do not use this Holy Light, I believe that with your concealment skills you will be safe, but if you use it in an unprotected environment, it will be as if you were calling the evil and shadowy creatures to you, like sharks smelling blood."
She closed her eyes, and through the touch of the staff, Lohan felt new knowledge being imprinted upon his core. It was an energy contraction technique.
With it, he could learn how to "pull" his aura inward, creating an internal barrier that muffled his luminosity and scent, allowing him to appear as nothing more than an ordinary Slime while using his powers.
This was a technique that powerful Mages used to avoid affecting ordinary people around them with the massive amount of Mana they possessed, or that ordinary Mages used to disguise themselves as ordinary people.
Lohan didn’t learn that directly, only the training method to practice on his own.
The better he became at using this technique, the more he would be able to hide, but at the initial levels, it would merely reduce the range over which his energy spread through the air.
"Thank you, Lady Ylasys." Lohan thanked her sincerely, knowing he had gained something very valuable with this Mana Stone.
Understanding the Light Guardian’s memory, Lohan imagined that despite its low level, the rarity of this creature likely surpassed even those of Level 21 or higher.
Yrneha just nodded, turning back to her vials. "Now get out. I have a lot to analyze. And Lia... make sure he doesn’t cause a diplomatic incident while walking through Thalendor with this new ’flavor’ of soul."
"Okay, Master, bye bye!" Aeliana laughed as she picked Lohan up and skipped out of the magic tower, like a child leaving home to play.
The other magic apprentices coming in and out of the tower maintained demure and respectful attitudes, completely opposite to how Aeliana was acting, but the girl didn’t care one bit.
"Halon, you’re not getting away from me today, I’m finally going to show you my favorite candy shops in Thalendor!" the elf said excitedly, skipping through the city.
Meanwhile, an enraged and worried fox was racing toward Thalendor at top speed.