Scorching Ascension - [Progression Litrpg Apocalypse]

Ethan loaded up the options and took a minute to go through them.

Select one of the following upgrades for Small Fireball (Tier-2):

Option #1: Costs 1 primagem of Explosion, 1 primagem of Fire

Greater Fireball (Tier-3): Shoot a greatly empowered version of the fireball spell.

Option #2: Costs 2 primagem of Explosion, 1 primagem of Fire

Fireball Cluster (Tier-3) - Shoot a large fireball toward a target. When it explodes, it creates a cluster of smaller fireballs that spread out in a short radius.

Option #3: Costs 2 primagem of Explosion, 1 primagem of Fire, 1 primagem of Draining

Overloading Fireball (Tier-3): A more resilient version of the fireball spell. The more you charge the spell, the stronger the effect would be.

"These are good… all three of them are really good," Ethan mumbled as leaned forward, arms crossed. If he was forced to choose right this second, he wouldn't know what to go with, so he was glad to see that neither the lord nor the monitors were keen on approaching him this second, with the former most likely still unaware of his presence.

Ethan went from one option the next, reading and picturing the potential effect of each, but after nearly a minute of analysis-paralysis of trying to pick the absolute best option, he decided to pivot and cut out the options he could afford to lose, and the first of those was [Fireball Cluster].

It's great against swarms and whatnot, but I can see it not punching hard enough if I'm fighting against something too resilient. It's still amazing and it would have easily been a top-pick any other time, but I think the other two are a bit better.

Turning his attention to the remaining two options, Ethan hummed.

[Greater Fireball] is better when combined with Prime Echo, I think. But as a single spell, the [Overloading Fireball] has probably the potential of hitting harder. The issue is, it will consume the Draining primagem I had planned on using on the claws. Also would I always have time to charge it? I doubt that, and what's the standard strength of the charging option? Is it as strong as [Greater Fireball] and grows stronger as I put more mana into it, or does it start at something like… half of the potency of the first option and then I gotta boost it?

If it was the latter, then [Greater Fireball] wins, especially since he'd be able to double his output with the Prime Echo ability. Still, he was just making guesses, and that wouldn't do for such an important decision.Thankfully, there was someone that might know a thing or two about these fire-themed spells, considering she–and her clan–were literal fire specialists.

Turning to the Ignisra, Ethan whispered. "Ember."

No response. The cat continued to lay on her side, breathing slowly, but Ethan saw the twitch of an ear, so he leaned over and poked her on the back. "I know you heard me. I have a question."

"[... What?]"

Ethan quickly relayed the three options he had and his thought process and as he explained it, he felt more convinced of his reasoning. Still, it all hinged on a couple of theories he had no proofs on but thankfully, the cat knew enough about the spells to come to his rescue.

"[You're wrong.]"

That took him a bit by surprise. He waited for the cat to explain, but she seemed intent on going back to sleep, which earned her another poke. "Explain. Please."

The cat took a deep breath, then exhaled and without turning back, she answered. "[All three are better variants than the classic tier-3 fireball, and true, [Greater Fireball] is an amazing spell that would immediately make its caster one of our strongest warriors back home, but you're underestimating the flexibility of [Overloading Fireball]. Sure, it starts a bit weaker than [Greater Fireball], and you're right, even it's baseline is still stronger than [Small Fireball], but if your mana reserves are deep enough, you can–within seconds–match the output of a tier-4 spell. It's also easier to boost with Essence, and if you gain more affinities, you might even infuse some of that in the spell. I saw… someone use [Overloading Fireball] and fill it with enough mana and electricity to create one of the most destructive explosions I've ever seen. It killed a tier-4 drake in one single hit. Vaporized it so that not even the bones remained. It took him a few days to recover from the backlash but if I was making the choice, I'd go with that. Also, [Fireball Cluster] is a nasty spell for fighting numerous enemies or anything that's sensitive to fire. True, it's not as good as the other two, but it's not bad at all, either. There. Happy? Can I sleep now?]"

That was interesting. Ethan thanked her but still poked her one more time to annoy her some more before he turned his attention back to the selection.

The explanation changed things quite dramatically, and now he was much more interested in [Overloading Fireball].

Screw it. I'm sure I'll encounter some more draining primagems sooner or later. I don't want to miss out on a good spell just because I'm hoarding resources for another, and I like the idea of flexibility. I'll just have to up my mana regeneration one way or another.

Small Fireball (Tier-2) upgraded to Overloading Fireball (Tier-3)

The strain on his Prime Arcanum rared its ugly head, but Ethan had been ready for it thise time—though he still should have removed the spell before starting the upgrade, but he'd forgotten. He slotted the spell in the Lesser Arcanum and raised a clawed hand toward the sea, but he paused, and reluctantly, he lowered his arm.

He had to finish up everything else first before he provoked the lord.

Alright, I still have fragments for the other upgrades, but I'm kinda itching to finish dealing with this rift. Dealing with them might net me some useful primagems for better evolutions, too…

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Ethan knew that last one was a little bit of bullshit. But he really wanted to get moving and frankly, just with the stat upgrades and the two tier-3 spells he had at his disposal, he was pretty sure he could win the fight.

And if it's more of a challenge, it might net more some more Essence.

Ethan peered at the sea ahead of him. He knew it was a little impulsive and it might be better to try and upgrade everything else first, but what if equipped his spells first and decided then? After all, his Prime Arcanum could only handle tier-2 spells right now.

Prime Arcanum of the Juggernaut

Spells: [Gout of Flames], [Arc of Force]

Spellforms: [Mana Heart], [Extending][Draconic Claws]

Prime forms: [Lance of the Juggernaut, Horns of the Juggernaut, Wand of the Juggernaut]

Echo: [Overloading Fireball]

Arcanum of the Fire Elemental

Spells: [Acid Orb], [Homing][Overloading Fireball],[Crystal Dart]

Spellforms: [Scorching][Sapping Scales], [Draconic Wings][Draconic Skeleton]

Ethan was happy with this lineup. He'd lose the bonus from [Breath Gland], but he'd get to keep his fire manipulation.

This should do. I'm glad the Echo spells don't count against capacity. And it doesn't seem like the tier difference is causing an issue…

He was going to have to test that part later. He assumed it might be just like when he'd used a tier-2 spellform on a tier-1 Prime Arcanum. Which meant he'd have to be careful with the backlash.

With that done, Ethan threw a glance toward the main quest.

Main Quest: Gain access to the tutorial's exit within 2 days, 21 hours, and 12 minutes.

Gritting his teeth, he got up to his feet, then paused, knees bent as he glared toward where the lord was hiding before he sat back down.

Cursing under his breath, Ethan pulled up his interface and stared at his spells.

I have to give it a shot, he thought as he eyed those that might be possible to upgrade. He was eager to finish here, but what if these upgrades allowed him to finish faster? What if he put himself in unnecessary danger because he had to take unnecessary risks?

Ethan closed his eyes and forced his brows to relax, and seconds, then minutes ticked by as he tried to entreat [Scorching Enhancement] and [Sapping Scales] to upgrade, but maybe it was his overeagerness, or maybe it was his that they weren't ready, but nothing showed up. And he didn't try with [Draconic Claws] because he didn't want to have to move things around again.

A new Arcanum will solve all of this, he said to himself as he finally pulled his stats, and remembering the stat points he had unassigned, he gave them to Toughness.

Might: 69 (32)

Toughness: 125 (46)

Spirit: 63 (32)

Mana: 59 (32)

"Holy… shit," Ethan mumbled as he watched the numbers. Between Vanguard increasing the efficiency of the spellform bonuses, couple with multiple spellform affecting it, Toughness was nearly triple its base value.

It filled him with confidence, and it wasn't just a number's thing. He could feel its effect in his body. It's what had allowed him to drop out of the sky and not be reduced to a puddle of broken bones and limbs.

He could do this, and after that, they'd all go back home and figure out what was going on there and in case things went south against the last lord, he had the wings. He could always retreat, spend however much time he needed to upgrade everything he could, then try again.

Though he didn't think he would need that. Especially with both Prime Manifestation and Scorching Ascendency at his disposal.

Ethan pushed himself off the ground and stretched his back, eyes on the lagoon and at the heads still peeking at him.

"[Are you going?]" Ember asked, lifting her head as she looked back at him.

"Yup. Gonna start with some polite knocking though," he said with a grin as a black and red rod fell in his open palm.

Ethan walked toward the shore, breathing slowly as his heart began to beat faster. The monitors swam further back, and their throats began to glow threateningly, but he had no eyes for them. Already, mana was being funnelled to his wand. Ethan raised the Prime wand and pointed at a clump of watching monitors, and a small, orange orb began to swell. Mana gushed out of his chest as the fireball quickly gained in width and color, until even the clear light of the day was pushed back by the fire-orange glare of the basketball-sized fireball, and when he felt his spirit begin to strain, Ethan let the spell go.

The orb lobbed forward, its movement ponderous which might have made the creatures underestimate its effect, and Ethan watched as it hit the water and detonated in a violent, loud flash of light and fire.

You have defeated [Water Monitor (I) - Level 53]

You have defeated [Water Monitor (I) - Level 58]

Ethan, eyebrows raised, stared down at the wand and at the cloud of dispersing steam while chunks of monitors plopped back in the water.

Damn. Now, let's see the version not being limited by tier-2 Arcanum. And I need to test how slow it's speed between a quick one and a charged one.

Dismissing the wand, Ethan pointed at the water with his scaly palm and began channeling. Within three or four seconds, the fireball was matching the size of the one he just shot, and he was nowhere close to feeling any strain. So he kept pumping mana into it.

Let's find where the limit is.