The atmosphere in Astralis Requiem was the complete opposite of the oppressive atmosphere at the Hogue Guild headquarters.
While the atmosphere there was dark and musty, with a cheap, dilapidated house hidden in the city’s slums, the Astralis tree, though dead, was beginning to look alive thanks to Elle’s fresh coat of paint, surrounded by actual living plants, with beautiful, dazzling flowers blooming and decorating the area, and filled with the energy of excited, happy people moving about.
When Lohan called Pip to the Main Hall, he asked.
"Pip, you told me you wanted to get stronger. I’ve been practicing using this power with Lisa, and I think I’m now able to make you even stronger in a safer and less painful way compared to Queen Beetle. Do you still want that?" He asked the little fairy.
If Pip said she didn’t want it anymore, Lohan wouldn’t mind; it’s not as if there were a shortage of such beings in the world. Even the guild members would be eager to receive this enhancement eventually, but Lohan wasn’t ready to provide it to them yet.
While Pip and Elle’s hearts proved to be much purer and more sincere, they still didn’t know Alice’s soldiers well enough or trust them enough.
Sure, Alice would definitely receive this enhancement considering how much Lisa trusted her, especially since she only had a Rare Base, so her growth would be somewhat limited without outside help.
But speaking of the other humans in the group, Lohan knew it wasn’t the right time yet; they’d only known each other for a few days and hadn’t done anything to prove their sincerity toward the Guild so far.
’My own strengthening is limited, after all; I’m forgoing my own growth to transfer this biomass to these people. In the future, this will simply be a reward for those who do something extraordinary for the Guild, thereby creating a system of bonuses for effort that will not only make people dedicate themselves even more, but will reward only those who deserve it.’ He thought about the plan he had devised.
Although this might make him seem petty, Lohan didn’t imagine the Players would see it that way.
If he offered this boost as a guaranteed benefit and then took it away from them at some point, people would think he was mean and greedy.
But if he never offered it as a guaranteed benefit and only granted it to those who deserved it, they would see him as merciful and kind for helping those with low strength, wanting to please him all the time and hoping to be chosen for this bonus.
And that was the kind of environment Lohan wanted.
Sure, not people fawning over him, but them giving their best every day to improve the guild and ultimately earning the reward for a job well done.
This method of development would be much more sustainable.
Pip, who stood like a diligent little soldier, puffed out his chest. His wings, which resembled sharp glass blades, tinkled with a metallic sound as they fluttered rapidly with excitement.
"Pip wants to be strong! Pip wants to protect Elle, Savior Halon, and Savior Lisa!" the little fairy replied, pounding his tiny fist against his chest in a gesture of absolute loyalty.
"It’s okay, Pip. Relax and don’t fight the sensation," Lohan instructed.
Lohan activated the [Weaver Mother]. Thin neon-blue filaments shot out from her body and gently wrapped around Pip’s arms and wings. Unlike Brynnear’s dark, invasive threads, which Pip had described as "sweet and terrible liquid metal", Lohan’s threads exuded the freshness of nature and the warmth of his [Sacred Light Core].
Lohan began with extreme caution, injecting only 0.001 Bio/s.
Pip closed his eyes. "Pip feels... a tickling. It’s as if tiny ants of light were running inside Pip."
Lohan gradually increased the rate.
He monitored every pulse of the little fairy’s core through the [Collective Synaptic Synchrony] and raised it to 0.01 Bio/s.
At that point, the change became noticeable to Pip.
The bluish glow running through his metallic wings grew more intense, and the "sharp glass" aura he exuded began to stabilize, integrating better with his physical body.
"Pip feels... heat! Pip feels he can fly all the way to the moon!" the fairy exclaimed, feeling the refined Biomass fill his small body and wings.
Determined to test the healthy limit of such a tiny creature, Lohan continued to increase the flow.
When the rate reached 0.1 Bio/s, Pip’s body began to shake violently. Small cracks of light appeared on his skin, and his wings began to vibrate at a dissonant frequency, emitting a high-pitched sound that jarred Lohan’s senses.
Lohan instantly realized through his data processing that Pip’s "hardware," however much it had been strengthened by the Queen, was still that of a small creature. His system couldn’t process 0.1 of his Evolved Biomass per second without risking spiritual overload.
Without hesitation, Lohan reduced the flow to 0.03 Bio/s and kept the injection constant at that rate.
Pip’s trembling stopped immediately, replaced by a sigh of deep satisfaction. Lohan maintained this flow for a full minute, observing how the Biomass was slowly assimilated.
He noticed small but permanent changes: Pip’s muscle density increased slightly, and the strength of his glass wings now seemed superior to that of ordinary steel, as if he had undergone an evolution similar to Lohan’s own [Membrane Reinforcement]!
"Pip feels... strong," the fairy remarked after Lohan retracted the threads. He punched the air, and Lohan could hear the crack of pressure being displaced. Pip was already strong before, but with this current improvement, that power had increased by a significant percentage!
Unlike Lisa, who already possessed the strength of a Legendary Creature, Pip was coming from an Uncommon, or at most Rare, base, so the difference in his strength gain was much more noticeable.
Just as 100 ml of water in a glass makes a much bigger difference than 100 ml of water in a swimming pool.
"Thank you, Savior Halon! Pip is now the strongest Sentinel in Mythlorien!"
Pip flew in rapid circles around the hall, his speed visibly greater than before. He landed next to Elle, who was painting a nearby tree root, and proudly showed off his new muscles, making the little fairy laugh and clap her hands.
"Pip is the strongest!" Elle joined in the fun.
Lohan beamed with satisfaction, feeling a little lighter, but with his biomass reservoir still at comfortable levels thanks to his [Abyssal Storage]. He realized this was the way. He didn’t need an army of slaves; he needed companions who would grow alongside him.
’To be honest, this reward system is going to work better than I expected,’ Lohan thought, as he watched the flowers revitalized by Elle glow in response to Pip’s joy. ’When the others see what a little dedication can bring, Astralis Requiem will become an unstoppable force of its own accord, especially considering that this power can also be brought into the real world.’
Lisa also watched this with an excited smile, when suddenly, a notification sound of a message popped up on her friends list.