NOVEL NEXT Chapter 220: Breaking Through To The Intermediate Stage
[Inventory: 591* Tier-1 mana core, 207* Tier-2 mana core, 552* Tier-3 mana core, 156* Tier-4 mana core, 4* Tier-5 mana core...]
Kyle grinned after seeing the contents of his inventory. He had managed to accumulate a decent haul thanks to his forest adventures, and that wasn't even his greatest achievement.
"There's no problem if I use all the cores apart the Tier-5's," Kyle muttered before realizing that he might need them later. He inwardly calculated how to go about eating cores before deciding.
With a single mental command, the room was filled with different mana cores, of different sizes and glows.
"Nice..." Kyle smiled as he picked up a core and popped into his mouth, chewing it and letting the mana dissolve within him.
[EXP +30]
It only took 3 more cores afterwards before he heard the notification that made his smile grow wider.
[EXP: 40,500/40,500]
[Congratulations! Your Lightning mana core have broken through to the Intermediate Stage!]
[Intermediate Lightning Mage: Lv 1]
[All stats: ×2]
Kyle felt his body rush with energy at that moment and from within him, he could sense that his formerly compressed mana core had increased in size!
The process continued for many seconds, before the core stabilized. More mana filled his body after that, and he could feel it nourishing his whole body and leaving him stronger. Discover hidden tales at empire
"Yes! I broke through."
Kyle said to the empty room, finding it hard to come to terms that he was now an Intermediate Mage and that meant he could learn another spell too.
He didn't stop there and continued absorbing more mana cores, but this time, there was a different to the notifications he was getting.
[EXP +15] [EXP +30]
One displayed the mana he was obtaining in his Lightning core, while the other was for the Chaos.
'It reduced in half... I guess that makes sense,' Kyle reasoned, while peeking at the first line of his status.
[Intermediate Lightning Mage: Lv 1*]
[EXP: 0/1000]
Thankfully, the required EXP didn't double, the only bane was that the EXP gain was halfed.
'I'll see how far I can go,' Kyle reasoned before continuing with his gobbling, this time with a more determined mindset.
...
On taking the 71st mana core, almost coincidentally, Kyle got two pleasing notifications at the same time.
[EXP: 27,000/27,000]
[Congratulations! You have Leveled Up!]
[Beginner Chaos Mage: Lv 8 >> Lv 9]
[All stats: +100]
[EXP: 1,000/1,000]
[Congratulations! You have Leveled Up!]
[Intermediate Lightning Mage: Lv 1 >> Lv 2]
[All stats: +10]
"Yes! I can push for another breakthrough."
Kyle continued gobbling after the notification with more ferocity. But it was only after he had taken 510 Tier-1 mana cores, 197 Tier-2 mana cores and 112 Tier-3 mana cores did he finally breakthrough to the Intermediate stage for his Chaos core.
[EXP: 40,500/40,500]
[Congratulations! Your Chaos mana core have broken through to the Intermediate Stage!]
[Intermediate Chaos Mage: Lv 1]
[All stats: +100]
Like before, Kyle felt energy course through his body, and the Chaos core that he had painstakingly worked hard to compress increased in its size, albeit smaller.
The same process that happened when he broke through for his Lightning core repeated, and he was left stronger at the end of it all.
———————
Intermediate Lightning Mage: Lv 5
EXP: 5,250/12,000*
Intermediate Chaos Mage: Lv 1*
EXP: 5/1000
...
Kyle summoned his status once more to view his progress and he was left stunned.
"Level 5??" he asked himself in surprise. "I'm growing too fast."
He couldn't help but imagine how fearsome his progress was morphing into. 'I could reach the Advanced stage soon...'
He didn't reject it though, and was even happier. It was all for the best if he got stronger.
"Less thinking, more gobbling," Kyle said slowly before picking up another core.
***
[EXP +120]
"That's the last one... Sadly," Kyle said after he was done with the cores he had summoned out.
He felt stronger... Way stronger than before, and he was excited to check how much he had improved.
"Status!"
———————
Intermediate Lightning Mage: Lv 7
EXP: 10,650/27,000*
Intermediate Chaos Mage: Lv 6*
EXP: 8,406/18,000
HP: 1100*
Energy: 1108*
MP: -*
Agility: 772*
Strength: 702*
Vitality: 550*
Stamina: 554*
Intelligence: 501*
SP: 0
[Elements]
[Skills]
[Lightning Bolt(Lv 5)]*
[Lightning Dash(Lv 5)]*
[[Chaotic Pulse(Lv 3)]*
[Chaotic Whirlpool(Lv 2)]*
Skill Points: 106
———————
Kyle was left speechless at his stats. With this much improvement, he was more than ready for the Trial.
Just when he was considering what to do next, he heard a booming announcement resound in the room:
"5 Minutes Left. Begin your Ascension."
Kyle nodded his head at the announcement, "There's a timer... Makes sense. But wouldn't it have been better if I could see the timer."
'Inventory.'
[Inventory: 10* Tier-1 mana core, 10* Tier-2 mana core, 10* Tier-3 mana core, 56* Tier-4 mana core, 4* Tier-5 mana core...]
'I'll leave those leftover mana cores untouched... just in case I need them for whatever reason.'
He took a deep breath and looked at the pristine white room on last time, before walking to the door.
Just before he walked through it, he summoned the now Lv. 2 [Veil of Silence] and slid it through his face.
[Veil of Silence]
[Grade: Divine (Lv1)]
[Enchantments: Unknown, Soul Reaper, Invisibility]
[Flaw: Silenced]
[Unknown: A name erased from memory. No eyes can track, no minds can know. A whisper lost in eternity.]
[Soul Reaper: Your power grows with every soul you claim.] — affects equipment's level.
[Vanquished Foes: 159/2000]
[Silenced: The master must remain silent while donning this mask]
[Invisibility: For as long as your emotions remain silenced; you can stay invisible]
The new enchantment had excited Kyle and he couldn't help but wonder what it holds as it grew stronger. But upon testing it out, Kyle had required it was quite a tricky one to activate, as it always deactivated whenever he showed an emotion.
He had been trying to perfect it by experimenting different scenarios, but he was still far from being a master.
Another truth Kyle had gleaned from the mask was that opponents on the same level as him didn't count on the [Vanquished Foes] panel, and that applied to beasts as well.
So he could only get mana cores from Tier-4 beasts and above since its upgrade.
Kyle had enough of his analysis. He was ready. He had the [Aurora Fang], he had the [Veil of Silence], he was an intermediate mage now... there was nothing stopping him from climbing the Tower anymore.
With determined steps, he walked through the door.
A bright white light enveloped Kyle after he walked through and when he opened his eyes, he found himself in vast, dimly lit chamber with its walls constructed from a strange, dark stone that shimmered faintly under the ambient light.
[First trial: Defeat the creature]
A deep, disembodied voice announced, echoing through the chamber.
Just immediately, a guttural snarl echoed through the chamber, and from the shadows emerged a small, hunched figure.
It had mottled green skin, a twisted sneer, and a rusty dagger clutched in its clawed hand. Its red eyes glowed faintly as it locked onto Kyle with a predatory gaze.
[Goblin Scout]
[Tier: 2]
[HP: 250/250]
'A goblin?' Kyle thought, as he hadn't seen such creature before. He had only heard it it from fantasy books back at Yurigur.
"HEOUK! EIKK!"
If Kyle didn't have the [Veil if Silence] on, he would have asked "I'm sorry, what?", because he couldn't understand anything the goblin was saying, and from its look it seemed to be trying to convey something.
'It's sentient...' Kyle concluded, but his thoughts were interrupted soon as the goblin had already lunged at him with its dagger.
Kyle didn't move until the last second, and with a fluid motion, he sidestepped the attack, before using his katana to slice the goblin cleanly on the neck.
Its body collapsed to the ground and the next second, it dissappeared into a puff of smoke, surprising Kyle.
He didn't get any notification, and guessed that there was nothing to harvest from the goblin.
[Trial complete. Floor 1 cleared.]
Kyle heard the voice of that demon announce in his head. 'That was easy.'
Kyle barely had time to process the simplicity of the trial before a radiant orb of light materialized in the center of the chamber, accompanied by the same voice.
[Rewards Acquired: Ascension Orb, 10* Tier-2 Mana Core, 1* Tier-3 Mana Core, 500 Gold Coins]
Kyle picked up the pouch that contained the golden coins. On opening it, he realized that it was different from the one they used in Frulia.
It had a tower engraved on its surface, and it seemed to glow with a bright golden color, unlike the usual coins he saw.
'That's strange,' he thought before placing the pouch in his inventory without much hesitation, along with the rext of the items, save for the Ascension orb.
[Ascension Orb]
[Description: Used to access the second floor in the Tower]
Kyle gleaned the use of the orb through [Inspect], not like he hadn't guessed such before.
'Now, how do I use this?' Kyle asked himself, before carrying out the first plan on his mind.
He channeled his mana through it and its pale blue color glowed to a bright blue and he got another announcement afterwards.
[Ascension initiated. Prepare for the second trial.]
The ground beneath him rumbled, and the chamber faded into a blinding white light. As the glow subsided, Kyle found himself standing in the middle of a what seemed like a dark forest.
Like before, a deep voice echoed to him:
[Second Trial: Survive the Ambush]
From the shadows, multiple green figures emerged; five goblins, each armed with crude weapons.