Astarat's Progression

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Azridan's earlier words made Apollo ponder, thus he mumbled to himself as he continued to devour chunk after chunk of meat, "I wonder what lies in wait. The changes I feel, I wonder what else will happen."

As he thought about this, Apollo devoured another chunk of meat. Steadily, his experience meter continued to fill. Meanwhile, his empty stomach did the same. The more he entered combat, the hungrier he felt. Seldom did the food go to waste as his days were spent on the edge of combat without end.

[I'm picking up slight fluctuations deeper in the forest. If you can, try to stay away from the center of this forest. It is dense in Natural Essence, however, there also exists an unsettling presence. It seems to be attracted to something.]

"If you have to guess, what would you say its level would be?" Apollo asked while turning in his gaze toward the center of the forest. Based on Azridan's words, a large danger was located in the distance. However, deep down Apollo had to suppress to urge of curiosity. He wanted to know how strong were the strongest cultivators in this world and how the Terror's compared.

[Honestly, I would say that it is no weaker than a peak Rank 2 Spirit Beast. Based on their current standards, that would be at least a middle stage Zul Knight, something beyond your current state. Hence, I advise that you be wary of the area.]

"Since you seem to know a lot, care to delve deeper into the cultivation levels? Although it was a vague introduction, the book omitted any knowledge of these levels," Apollo said as he wiped his lip. By now, the previous copious amounts of meat had dwindled to nearly half.

[What exactly do you want to know?]

"Uh, general information. Just the names of such realms and if possible, how strong those general stages are," Apollo replied after pondering it for a moment.

[Well, not like it's important to you, anyway. Your power structure is that of us demons, so this knowledge doesn't apply to you. Nevertheless, I can do as much as giving the omitted knowledge from the books since I understand it and you have no source to acquire it.] 

[As you know, the absolute beginning of this world is the Mortal Realm. Because of evolution and other influences, beings of this world automatically ingest what is known as Natural Essence; a basic component of this world.]

[However, in the beginning, the amount one can ingest is negligible and unable to be changed until a certain age depending on potential. Typical children would have been absorbing Natural Essence in minuscule amounts, slowly preparing them for active cultivation.]

[Because of this, everyone's starting point is different. You, on the other hand, your meridians were damaged and saturated by a decrepit energy. However, truth be told, this made your current predicament possible. You had no contamination from this world's lowly energy, but I digress.]

[Outside of the Mortal Realm, there is the Zul Warrior Realm, Zul Knight Realm, Zul Commander Realm, Zul General Realm, Zul Lord Realm, Zul Emperor Realm, Zul Sovereign Realm, and finally, the Zul Ancestor Realm.]

[These make up the complete structure of Body Cultivation. However, to truly step into the journey of cultivation, a cultivation method is required. Just absorbing Natural Essence won't do much except strengthening the body. A method provides the pathways to generate abilities from that absorption.]

"Hmm, what about Soul Cultivation? Kayn mentioned that there is some other test pertaining to something called Soul Cultivation at 15. Is there any significance to this?"

[For the average cultivator, yes.]

By 15, usually, the mind is mature enough to handle the opening of what is called the Soul Temple. The prerequisite is the physical body being capable of withstanding the opening of a Dantian, preferably already becoming a Zul Warrior. Why? Because the tyrannical force birthed from the mind can ruin their internal system if one isn't sufficiently prepared.

However, Soul Cultivation is special. It has 2 uses. One, it strengthens the soul enabling you to wield it. Two, it allows your soul to connect with another world to come into contact with otherworldly creatures by using your Soul Temple as the medium.

Apollo's eyes brightened as he listened. "Otherworldly creatures? Just what are they? Will I be able to summon them as well?"

His eyes were plagued with curiosity because the sound of otherworldly creatures was truly exciting. The more he thought about it, the more the fervent expression of interest plastered across his face grew. Unfortunately, it didn't remain for long.

[No. You're on the path to becoming a demon. Therefore, you'll use the power of us demons. Once that time comes, you won't need to worry about those otherworldly creatures.]

Azridan's voice came out as a chuckle. His tone teased Apollo and triggered his thirst for the unknown.

'I have to know what this power is! I need to complete that mission as soon as possible. But first, how much longer before I complete this other one?'

「Quest Name: Initial Step to Superiority

Information: Strength means everything; so this is what you need to gain. Reach a suitable standard to travel deeper into the embrace of Azridan's succession.

Objectives-

-Kill 5,000 Mortal Beast or above monsters. (3,645/5,000)

-Comprehend the law of the jungle—survival of the fittest. (Complete!)

Time Limit: 3 years

Elapsed Time: 8 months, 4 days.

[«Bonus Task»]-

-Complete within 2 years 6 months = +100% experience reward increase.

-Complete within 2 years = +200% experience reward increase.

-Complete within 1 year = +500% experience reward increase.

Reward: 50,000 Experience, ???  」

'Hmm, a lot of my experience comes from me ingesting my meals so I am not worried about that part. As for the first objective, I currently average 19 kills a day. But it may decrease as the number of Mortal Beast willing to approach me now are low. Not to mention, battle with a Spirit Beast takes slightly longer,' Apollo thought silently.

A couple of months after receiving his quest, once his body acclimated to these surroundings, Apollo adopted his current schedule. It was in Apollo's daily agenda to slay at least 10 monsters which then increased steadily until its current 19. Using this tactic, he had nearly scoured the complete outskirts of the forest. In addition to this, Apollo's daily mission became just that as well.

"I still have 3 more beasts to kill for the day then I can call my daily training finished," Apollo muttered as he sat for a moment, recollecting his thoughts and recovering his stamina.

'Outside of my current battle, I don't lose health often. However, my stamina takes a hit as a result. I wonder if there is a way to remedy that or do I just need to keep increasing my stamina.'

"Azridan, is there a way to reduce my stamina consumption? I know using fewer movements has helped but it still drains quickly."

[Right now, that is unable to be solved due to your physique's inability to sustain you. Once you advance, the solution will present itself. For now, just focus on mastering your foundational stats. If you do so, it will reward you in the long run.]

"Okay," Apollo answered as he rose to his feet from his seated position. Azridan's information once again rejuvenated him to continue on his training.