Chapter 435: Breeder Clone (1/2)
”We weren't successful in inscribing the life-aspected formation,” the undead inscriptionist said as she took out a couple of pitch-black array disks. ”You will likely need a life-attuned Array Master for that half. I do maintain some contact with a master who might be able to do it, but it will probably require a few months.”
Zac stared at the inscriptions with bemusement for a second before he looked down at the densely inscribed array disks. Was there really a need to leave him on a cliff like that just now?
”This is great, no need to disturb your friend,” Zac assured after he composed himself. ”How many did you manage to inscribe?”
”We made six, but I assure you we use high-quality materials,” Ildera said with some confusion. ”They will not break even after repeated usage, so having six of them is overkill.”
The first thing Zac had done after arriving at the outpost was to commission the construction of array disks for his Soul Strengthening Manual. The forces he encountered in the Tower were all at least E-Graded by now, and many had skilled inscriptionists who could help save some time. He still had over 40 days left in the tower, and he wanted to use the days to the fullest.
It would also save his sister a lot of effort if he could simply get his hands on array disks rather than having her spend weeks on creating two cultivation caves. The reason he commissioned multiple copies was even simpler. He needed to improve the odds of the arrays making it out of the Tower.
“What do you know about redrawing skill fractals?” Zac suddenly asked, taking the opportunity to learn from an E-Grade cultivator. “Seeing as you’re an expert on inscriptions I hope you would have some insights to share.”
Ildera surprisingly didn’t answer though, but rather looked at Zac with a troubled expression.
“I am not qualified to discuss such matters with the young master. I am sure that your elders will show you the way when you reach the point of creating, adjusting, and fusing skills,” she said. “I am afraid that me intervening at this point would deviate your path of cultivation.”
It appeared that using his imaginary master and elders as a shield from any questions and courtships had its drawbacks. He tried to cajole some answers for a while but she was like a brick wall, citing that it wasn’t her place to disrupt ‘his master’s plan’.
She eventually relented a bit by gifting him a handful of sheets that were actually made from the skin of E-Grade cultivators. Zac’s hair stood on end when he realized what he was holding, but it was apparently a material made for practicing inscribing skill fractals and pathways. It was the closest one could get without starting to experiment with your own body.
The Array Master once again tried to turn the short visit into a romantic outing after the main matter was dealt with, but she was soon enough led out from the courtyard by Uro.
”My master contacted me earlier. He ordered me to take down the Breeder within the day as a trial. I will be leaving in a few hours,” Zac said when the steward returned.
Uro, the ever stoic servant, simply inquired whether Zac needed assistance or any specific equipment for his task. Zac asked for some more [Warrior Pills] after some deliberation, along with another batch of Miasma Crystals. The steward bowed and left the courtyard once again.
Ildera not being willing to help out with redrawing the fractals was a bit of a let-down, but she still had provided a lot of help. Her words had indicated that modifying skills was possible, and not some cockeyed idea he had come up with. Even more surprising, she had actually mentioned that Fusing skills was possible as well.
Creating skills was nothing strange. It seemed to be somewhat expected after reaching E-Grade, at least if you had a higher rarity class. Those with uncommon classes would probably get by with just buying skills, but he had a hard time believing someone with an Epic class would be able to reach D-Grade without having created at least one skill tailored to their cultivation path.
Modifying skills to better suit you felt pretty straightforward as well, though it was probably a lot more complicated than it sounded. Skill fractals were delicately designed networks of thin pathways that allowed Cosmic Energy to transform into all kinds of magical effects.
The skill fractals were something like an imbuement of Dao as far as Zac could tell. Pushing the energy through the network infused the un-attuned energy with higher truths, which is how Cosmic Energy turned into anything from fireballs to Zac’s fractal edges formed from [Chop]. That was also why one could ponder on the Dao through studying skill fractals.
Even small modifications of a fractal would destroy the delicate pattern the fractal created, and you really needed to know what you were doing to not completely mess everything up.
Fusing two skills was another beast altogether. Zac had no idea where to even begin with such a daunting task. He could only assume that the System assisted somehow since skill fusions sounded way too complicated to understand for someone who hadn’t spent eons studying fractals.
Zac looked up at the dour sky with some wistfulness. It almost felt as though he was back on the island again during those two solitary months. An ignoramus fumbling in the dark, trying to make sense of what was going on.
He had stepped over a mountain of corpses to get where he was right now, but he was still just someone on the threshold of cultivation. In the beginning he was like a caveman, crudely pushing Cosmic Energy into various body parts to increase his strength. But was he all that much better now, impaling himself with daggers to create shortcuts in his skill fractals?
The steward returned soon enough and he wordlessly handed over a Cosmos Sack. Zac didn’t think much of it, but his eyes widened in shock when he scanned the contents of the pouch.
“What’s all this?” Zac asked with shock.
“It’s from the Royal Family. Killing the breeder is just a stepping stone on Lord Piker’s path, but it is the difference between life and death for the Kingdom of Zarvadar. This is a token of our appreciation,” Uro said, some life appearing on his face for the first time since he was assigned to Zac.
The reason Zac was so shocked was that there were roughly a hundred D-Grade Nexus Crystals inside the pouch, along with all kinds of pills and herbs. It might not be much compared to the vast amount of wealth he found inside the Spatial Ring belonging to Rasuliel, but it was still the biggest haul of any single level unless you counted special encounters such as the Pool of Tranquility.