Chapter 1591 (2/2)

But although he thought that way, Randidly was in a very good mood. The nap hadn’t been all the rest he needed, but it was enough to restore most of his faculties. The mental acuity he now possessed was nothing compared to the streamline clarity of using the Visage of Obsession, but it still filled him with confidence that he wouldn’t forget something important.

Chewing his lip, Randidly produced his Visage of Obsession and examined it without unrolling the painting. He was curious whether it was possible to re-use the Fatepiece. Luckily, a notification quickly popped up.

Although the Visage of Obsession has been sated for the moment, it is possible to once more to descend through the depths of your psyche to pursue a new obsession. Simply open the Visage of Obsession while holding the craving in your heart to begin the process.

Warning, once the process is started, it can only be delayed, never halted. Warning, the sacrifices required to pursue your obsession may be different from prior uses of the Visage of Obsession.

Randidly shook his head helplessly. He had somewhat anticipated it, but it was still a shame that the sacrifices would be different the second time through. Basically, the experiences he had gained might not be much use. But he supposed that the gradual adjustments were the entire reason the Fatepiece was so effective.

He put the Fatepiece away without having to spend too much time thinking about the decision; now wasn’t the time for another attempt.

Influence +4!

Randidly scratched his chin, feeling somewhat embarrassed that his Influence continued to rapidly rise. But he rationalized part of the growth was due to the fact that it wasn’t possible to grow the same way before his Nether Core existed. So his return to the Fifth Cohort Rally Station and activation of the stagnant Nether flows had jumpstarted the spread of his influence.

Having a Nether Core serve as the intermediary sped up the process. His exchange of meaning and significance was more smooth than ever before.

With his mind at ease, Randidly frowned upward at the sky. Enormous banks of glittering orange dust drifted overhead. Then he left the borders of his area and headed toward his personal training sphere. He was still tired, but he wanted to spend a little time studying the effect of Weight before anything else.

And after a full night’s sleep, he could finally begin seriously pushing for the required PP to receive his Tithe from the Alpha Cosmos.

Randidly clambered into his training sphere and immediately activated the Engravings. Growling in something close to pleasure, he felt the tight physical restrictions settle around his body. Due to his increased insight into Engravings, the new training sphere was even more effective than the previous iteration he had made for the two five-year recruits. The humming Engraving squeezed Randidly to the point that he had difficulty breathing normally.

But that just made him release a hoarse laugh. His images and Skills stirred to action as Randidly spread his arms. Is this the limit…? It’s not enough to even make me break a sweat.

The Grim Chimera smiled and his image physicalizations came into being. Randidly began to stretch easily, practically ignoring the suppression of the sphere. After loosening himself up, Randidly adjusted the Engraving and doubled the pressure he was under. The waves of force around him intensified. His cackle was choked back by the pressure, but his smile was still in place; finally, he could test the limits of his Weight.

As he slowly shifted his position, his joints popped and settled into place. Blood began to flood through his veins and into his muscles.

Congratulations! Your Skill Grit of the Ascendant Bane (T) has grown to Level 394!

Randidly cracked his knuckles pleasantly as he lowered his stance. He dropped his right hand down to his hip. With a light brush of Willpower, his Nether Core began to swirl. A mysterious humming spread outward as ethereal flames surrounded Randidly’s body. Randidly threw a punch forward, feeling the explosion of force. The movement started in his toes, shot up through his legs, traveled through his waist, and finally arrived as shoulder and arms. His strange ghost flames spiralled outward in a whirlwind from his wrist in an explosive torrent.

The reinforced Engravings of the training pod flickered briefly as the physical force of Randidly’s punch had enough oomph to distort their energy. With a twist, Randidly spun and generated a humming tension through the muscles and tendons in his legs. Then his leg snapped upward in a crushing heel kick.

Congratulations! Your Skill Cosmic Necessity (M) has grown to Level 302!

This time when the ethereal flames of his Weight rushed forward in a searing cut, the Engravings sizzled slightly. The runes had to flare with power in order to escape being forcibly extinguished.

Randidly grinned as he allowed the training sphere to cool and disengage. While it was true that the benefits he received from the Weight only amounted to a 30% boost, it was a 30% increase in base performance across the board, not an increase in effect. So while each muscle might only be 30% superior to his prior self, the final result of every attack probably was closer to a doubling of his effective power.

Randidly very much looked forward to seeing how the boost of Weight would affect him when he mixed three images and Skills together at once.

Influence +2!

In his best mood since he was forced to listen to Commandant Wick earlier in the day, Randidly returned to his penthouse apartment. After setting up some basic Engravings to resist the destructive aura of his own body, he once more laid down to sleep.

When he woke up, he would begin his final preparations for the war against Nether. He hadn’t forgotten the way that strange being of Nether had chased the shade to Expira. If Randidly was going to expose himself, he needed power enough to stand up for himself.

As he closed his eyes and his breathing became even, Nether continued to cycle through his many Connections. His images continued to shift. The energy field produced by functioning apparati of both Aether and Nether in close proximity grew more overwhelming. The Engravings made to resist his aura gradually brightened as he slept, forced to endure more and more power.

Through it all, the last of Randidly’s tension leaked out of his body.