Chapter 38: Awakening the Unseen: The Magic Pond's Dark Secret
Chapter 38: Awakening the Unseen: The Magic Pond's Dark Secret
A few minutes pass. Ash and Ram have already taken every useful material from the corpses of the monsters. The crack on the golden barrier has also started to heal, but they decide to stay for a few more minutes.
Ash wants to see the barrier fully intact before leaving this place. He thinks to himself, "No point taking even a 1% risk here. There's a chance those two lion monsters might attack the crack again with more monsters. This situation could get very dangerous if we're not here to defend it."
Five minutes later, Ash sees the crack in the golden barrier almost healed. He breathes a sigh of relief. He thinks, "This battle really showed me my place in the world of Eldros. Now I understand why altar-cities get destroyed during monster waves. Some attacks are easy to defend, but others are extremely difficult to handle. I really hope I never face this kind of precarious situation again. Ah, my body still hurts from the injuries... I need to get into the mana mist to stabilize myself first."
He tells Ram that he's going to Nexus City to stabilize his injuries. Ram agrees. Ash enters the city and heads toward the mana tree. He sits near it and begins to absorb the mana mist to stabilize his body.
Ten minutes later, he looks around the garden and sees others sitting and steadily absorbing mana mist. As he gazes up at the sky, he thinks, "The red moon looks beautiful. Maybe I'm starting to enjoy the scenery of this world... I hope I can always find moments like this." His thoughts then drift to the two intelligent lion monsters. He wonders where they went. He and Ram searched for signs of their escape but found nothing. After a moment of thought, he asks the Nexus Altar.
The Nexus Altar responds, informing him that the two lion monsters were most likely teleported back to the monster plane during the golden barrier's restoration. Ash thinks, "The monster plane will probably cherish those intelligent monsters. It's easy for them to create cannon fodder, but commanders capable of strategic victory are rare."
Thirty minutes later,
Ash's injuries have mostly stabilized. Bored, he decides to walk around Nexus City and meet up with Ram. A few minutes later, during his walk, he finds Ram resting in the house. Ram cannot use the altar or garden's mana mist due to the level gap. His absorption consumes all the level 0 mana mist, hindering others' healing. So, Ash ordered him not to use it, and Ram agreed—level 0 mana isn't very useful to him. A night of rest is enough for his injuries to recover due to his level's healing capacity.
From Ram, Ash learns that every level upgrade increases power by at least tenfold compared to the previous level. He also learns that people of the same level may still differ in strength due to their base (level 0) capabilities. Ash reflects, "Everyone is different, so their strength potential is, too."
After hearing Ram's suggestions, Ash decides to buy more healing and recovery pills for Nexus City.
He heads to the market building. Three minutes later, he enters.
A window pops up in front of his eyes:
Welcome to the market. Would you like to use text or physical features for trade?
He says, "Go with text feature."
After searching for healing and recovery pills, he finds both and checks their system status.
Name: Recovery Pill (consumable resource)
Status: Average (pill)
Ability: Restores 100% mana instantly for level 0 users; restores 60% in a minute for level 1 users
Level: 1
Description: Made by a level 1 alchemist
Price: 10 mana points
Name: Healing Pill (consumable resource)
Status: Average (pill)
Ability: Heals injuries quickly
Level: 1
Description: Made by a level 1 alchemist
Price: 30 mana points
After reviewing the pill information, Ash decides to buy two of each for the city. He plans to use mana cores collected from today's monster hunt. To use the cores possession of others, he must convince the new soldiers. They agree, understanding the necessity for the city's survival. As compensation, Ash promises to double everyone's contribution points.
He exits the market, deciding not to use more mana for now. He wants to preserve it for emergencies.
He returns to the garden to check if any soldiers need extra mana cores for healing. He thinks, "I need everyone in top condition tomorrow. I can't afford to slow the city's progress in its early days. Just a wave of level 0 monsters nearly destroyed us. Ram said thousands of monsters weren't uncommon in his old city. I need to increase the city's foundational strength as soon as possible."
A few minutes later, Ash observes the soldiers. He finds they'll be fine by morning, so he shelves the idea of giving their mana core for use. Casually, he checks the mana tree's status.
Name: Mana Tree (specialty)
Status: Occupied
Ability: Produces mana of different levels
Level: 0 (growable)
Production: 7 units of level 0 mana mist per day
He's happy to see the mana tree's production has increased. He decides to focus on his healing. A few hours later, while still sitting near the tree, sleep begins to overcome him. Looking up at the sky, he thinks, "Night's already here. Time to rest. I've got more to do—for myself and for Nexus City."
A few seconds later, he returns to the house and goes to sleep. There, he meets Ram again, who is about to sleep after finishing some healing exercises. Ash shows interest in the technique, but Ram says he can't teach it due to a mana oath.
Ash understands and simply nods. He doesn't want to complicate things between them.
Morning
The sun begins to rise, and a cool breeze flows through Nexus City. Birds chirp softly in the air. Ash hears a gentle zizz sound near his ear. A few minutes later, he opens his eyes. Ram is gone, but Robin is still sleeping. He chooses not to disturb him.
Ash exits the house and breathes in the cool air. He feels peace and relief. The stress from yesterday's battle has lifted slightly. After a short walk, he hears a system prompt.
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Binding your city with Magic Pond is complete.
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Congratulations, Altar Owner, on binding your city with the Magic Pond.
...…
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Congratulations on using a white-grade item for the first time.
....
...….
Joy flashes across Ash's face. He thinks, "Let me see how much the Magic Pond will impact Nexus City."
He walks to the Magic Pond, located near the city's garden. He sees a vast circular pond glowing with magical vitality. He thinks, "Let's check its status."
Name: Magic Pond (Item-resource)
Status: Bound to Nexus Altar
Ability:
– Doubles mana refining efficiency
– Stores mana mist for optimized use
– Converts mana cores instantly and at full efficiency
Description: Gathers and stores all city-produced mana mist for use in cultivation. Ideal for army and group training. Highly practical in large cities.
Grade: White
After reading, Ash receives a message from Nexus: to unlock the Magic Pond's full ability, he must feed it mana mist and mana cores. After considering, he decides to use all stored mana. Yesterday's attack proved he wasn't ready for city upgrades. He does even have fifty level 1 soldiers, upgrading now could trigger stronger monster attacks, which they couldn't handle.
He watches as the Magic Pond begins to fill. The water shifts to a faint pink hue. At first, he's surprised, but then he realizes it's likely the reaction to the mana infusion. He thinks, "Maybe when the pond reaches its limit, the water will fully turn pink… but that won't happen soon. The color is still very light. Only I noticed it thanks to my altar-owner perception in the nexus city."
As Ash steps back from the Magic Pond, the air around him crackles with energy. The ground beneath his feet trembles ever so slightly. He looks over his shoulder, expecting to see something. But nothing is there. His skin prickles. He senses it—a presence, unseen but undeniable. He swallows hard. 'Did I just awaken something I shouldn't have?'"