Creating Phenomenon

Damien looked at the dragon-carved ceiling and sighed. He couldn't believe the timing was so bad. Now, everything was ruined once again.

There were two main types of skills in this world: Innate and Acquired. Acquired skills were something many people could have as they were acquired in one way or another.

On the other hand, Innate Skills were something people were born with. Innate Skills were rare in the common populace, but people with a strong bloodline could get them.

They were born with these skills, and they could use them without actually using their Essence. All of the Innate Skills used the environment's Essence directly, so they were considered superior to the Acquired Skills.

However, this produced the major difference between Acquired and Innate Skills. While most of the Acquired Skills had fixed grades, all of the Innate Skills had to evolve from Common Grade as the body couldn't handle the direct infusion of environmental Essence.

'Thank God I didn't skip the lore!'

Damien wanted to pat himself on the back for not skipping anything in the game. They were proving to be useful now and would continue to do so.

The reason he was disappointed was because he wanted to start cultivating Essence. Even if he failed, he wanted to at least try it, and using his innate skill would have allowed him to sense the flow of environmental Essence.

Now, it seemed impossible because of his parents' protective nature. He understood their worries, but it was still frustrating as he wouldn't be able to get stronger. After all, there were only two ways to get stronger in the world of miracles for NPCs.

First was simple and also widely known: cultivating Essence. It was a slow but safe method that not many used because of its limitations. One just had to sense the Essence flowing endlessly throughout the world and condense it in their body.

The second method included diving in rifts and The Forgotten Ruins, a labyrinth spreading across the whole world. They could kill the monsters in it and get rewarded with Essence which they can assimilate later on. It was fast, so most used this method, but it was also filled with risks.

Damien intended to use the first method till he could dive into the rifts. But now, it seemed impossible. Still, he didn't give up and tried to sense the Essence around, but only failure awaited him. He had no clue whatsoever on what Essence was and how it worked.

Opening his eyes, he sighed and thought, 'Let's give innate skill another try.'

That was the fastest way he could get access to Essence, so he would try his best to use it. Sadly, there wasn't a single object he could use to injure himself and bleed. Falling from a bed also didn't work as Ruby was watching him all the time. It was as if she didn't know what sleep was.

In the following days, he played with Elise while trying to find ways to get wounds, but ultimately he failed. Nothing worked, and if something would have worked, Ruby prevented it. He was getting frustrated but didn't lose his spirit.

Finding no other solution, he decided to use the raw method and tried to sense the environmental Essence. In the start, he failed as he had no way of knowing how the Essence worked. He didn't give up and continued to use the trial-and-error method.

It took almost three months for him to succeed.

As he lay in his cradle, eyes closed, breathing low and stable, he tried to imagine himself drowning in a river. He felt suffocated, pressure killing him from every side. The unfathomable water tried to destroy his body, but he persisted and tried to intake a mouthful of water.

It proved to be harder than he expected, as the pressure from all sides was restricting his movements so even opening his mouth was tough. It felt as if he was stretching an iron plate with bare hands and failing miserably. But the problems didn't end there.

Damien knew that even if he succeeded in opening his mouth, he had to be careful so that the water didn't come crashing down and drown him even further. He needed to be careful of what he took.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Damien managed to open his mouth slightly as his lips formed a slit. The endless water came crashing down on him as he had expected, trying to rush inside him from the small opening he gave.

'Like hell I will die this early.'

He knew that if he allowed the water to get inside him in a large amount, he would explode from the inside out. This was the problem with the first method and the reason he didn't want to take this route. But this was the only way to get stronger.

Resolve burned brightly inside him as he sucked a mouthful of water and closed his lips tightly, feeling the water rushing down in every part of his being. He felt rejuvenated, reminding him of the hot spring bath he used to take back on Earth. It felt good and refreshed.

The water passed through every cell, organ, and bone of his body, filling them with its essence and marking them for future uses. It was as if it was inspecting its new territory. Damien let the water do whatever it wanted while keeping a close eye on it.

He relished that feeling and tried his best to remember how the water felt, how it flowed, where it flowed, etc. It took a toll on his young mind, but he didn't let it overwhelm him. This was a moment of his future, and he wouldn't slack off just because of exhaustion.

Unfortunately, he underestimated the strain Essence put on him and slowly drifted into a deep sleep, not knowing that he had just created a phenomenon that alerted the powerhouses living in the Wayne manor.

With swift movements, Ruby appeared before the young child, looking at him with eyes wide and her jaw almost dropped to the ground. However, she soon calmed down as she realized she had other important things to do.

Weaving a few hand signs, she slammed her palm on the ground as the shadows in the corners of the room grew darker and began to rise against the walls. In a matter of movements, the room grew darker than ever, concealing everything including the essence flow in it.

As she heaved a sigh of relief, the darkness broke as a couple marched inside the room, their faces filled with worry and pure anger. Arthur's eyes quickly scanned the room for any intruders, and Jasmine just dashed towards the cradle as she picked up the sleeping Damien and Elise.

"Are you okay, honey?" Jasmine muttered, as her concerned eyes scanned Damien and Elise for any potential harm. Seeing that her babies was completely fine, she heaved a sigh of relief, but then anger broke through her heart as she asked in a low voice, "Who dared to intrude on my mansion?"

Knowing that the question was intended for her, Ruby bowed her head and said, trying to form words to explain the phenomenon she witnessed just a few moments ago, "Nobody came, Mistress. It was Young Master Damien."