Preparation (1)
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[Ding~]
[Updating {Status}...]
[Overall Combat Prowess will now be recorded with skills (Excluding buff types), abilities, and equipment in mind.]
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{Status}
[Name: Matthew
[Condition: Healthy
[Realm: Energy Strengthening (Tempering Realm)
[Level: 1st Stage Peak
[Strength: Half Step Body Refinement
[Agility: Energy Strengthening 9th Stage (Peak)
[Vitality: Half Step Body Refinement
[Endurance: Energy Strengthening 9th Stage (Peak)
[Wisdom: Energy Strengthening 9th Stage (Peak)
[Spirit: Half Step Body Refinement
[Overall Combat Prowess: Half Step Energy Refinement
[Remark: Honestly, not too bad considering the lack of resources... keep it up!
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{Abilities} (3/5)
[Ancient One]
Sub-Abilities: Nature's Body | Adaptive Body
[Weak One]
Sub-Abilities: Aura Control | Efficient Control
[One With Energy]
Sub-Abilities: Energy Burst | Energy Absorption
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{Skills}
[Passive Skills:
{Clear Mind+} | {Efficient Retention+}
[Active Skills:
{Adrenaline Rush+}
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The new stats had a dramatic increase from before! Even though each stage meant a larger difference in strength, it seems like Matthew truly was different from others considering he was only in the Energy Strengthening Realm with the ability to fight with people a whole realm above himself!
There was definitely something suspicious with his stats, as the increase shouldn't have been too much higher than his actual realm, so it must've been something about the cores he formed. There just wasn't anything else he could pin it on.
He didn't learn any cultivation technique and the fact that it felt like he grew too fast wasn't helping the case for the core.
'So since I've fully absorbed and integrated with this body, which strengthened the connection of the titled skills to be something more... inherit.'
Matthew took a deep breath, clearing himself of any excitement that he still had.
'Even if it looks like I'm a genius, there are definitely others with even better stats than mine when they were at the same stage. And, they most likely didn't have a system either, I shouldn't get complacent.'
He raised his two hands, slamming them onto his own cheeks. His face wasn't swollen, but it was quite comical how red his cheeks were...
"Ahhhh! I feel awake now. Ugh..."
Without even looking at the skills and new sub-abilities he just received, the names were simple enough for him to understand the basics, so he swiped to the other panel to the side.
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[Idle]
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[Used Spots: 1]
[Available Spots: 9]
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[Mystical Bamboo Forest]
[Rewards: Please wait, your reward will come in 7 days]
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Matthew glared at the panel, trying to see if there was any change on the cooldown for his rewards.
One surprising thing was that the time was going up, not down!
Matthew adjusted his clothes, "I'm guessing there's some sort of being that I need to defeat, tame, or kill to leave here, correct?"
[Correct, master! The longer you take, the longer the interval for each reward, so get going!]
"So I have to fight an unknown creature which I have no knowledge about, nor do I have any experience being in a battle... great..."
'You could give me a weapon or some sort of technique to learn at least. I thought the "master's" beginner pack would be much better... Stingy system.' Matthew scowled.
[Hey! I can hear you... that hurts my feelings... You can always just fuse together a weapon here...]
Matthew ignored the system, focusing on his external energy, making pulses around him to find anything around the area.
During the conversation, there was a subtle-no, quite drastic change in the system. It seemed like it was more of a person behind all of this instead of an intelligent a.i.
It made him feel... happy? Maybe it was because he had someone more human-like to talk to now. At least he won't be lonely anytime soon.
Matthew chuckled at this new change, "Well you're stuck with me, and you'll be hearing a lot of complaints from me, so just deal with it."
It was a weird feeling. It was one of the few times in both lives where he could act so unreserved and carefree. It was... nice...
He knew that he doesn't usually act like this, but no matter how he tries to tell himself that he's over the fact that he's in another world, he was slightly scared, stressed, and nervous. For him, this small banter had already made him trust his system just a bit more.
His body relaxed, knowing that he most likely won't be able to return to his world for some time. And even if he did, what would he do there? Even if his life was threatened here constantly, he would rather be able to have the power to do something than wait for his death.
"Well, no use for such thoughts right now. I need to start fusing items now..."
Matthew spent no time 'deforesting' his area, cutting down any tree and bamboo around him. Considering this was a space made by the system, cutting down a few things shouldn't do much, if at all, anything to the system.
Actually, considering how tall and thick the trees and bamboo were, he only needed to cut down two of each, storing one of each in his {Inventory}.
He used his arm to cut the trees and bamboo he had already cut down, making them into smaller parts for {Fusion}.
If anyone saw how casually he cut down these trees, they would've been shocked, as only people in the {Energy Refinement Realm} would be able to actually cut the trees and bamboo, albeit with tons of effort put into it. However, they'd be angrier with how casual he was, treating these materials as if they were just regular items, even if there was a forest of them.
Picking up a piece of bamboo, and two thick branches, Matthew sighed to himself.
"Alright, fine. How do I use the {Fusion} feature?"
[Looks like master finally decided to use me... hehehe...]
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{Fusion}
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[Would you like to fuse x2 {Mystic Wood} and x1 {Mystic Bamboo}?
[Y/N]
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Without any hesitation, Matthew pressed [Yes].
[Beginning Fusion...]
[It is recommended to use your thoughts to shape the type of tool you wish the fused object to be... Otherwise, the system will do it for you... Teehee...]
With the number of materials in front of him, Matthew has quite a few chances to experiment with which weapon would suit him.
"My thoughts? That's a bit different than what I was expecting... Might as well give it a try."
The first weapon he'll fuse... will be a short sword.
The only problem... he didn't know which material would actually be the blade. Even if they have the [Mystic] status, it's still a mystery if they'll even be effective towards a creature that has lived here for most likely their entire life.
The two pieces of wood and piece of bamboo in his hand shone in blinding light, slowly connecting into one sword-like structure as they levitated in the air.
"Too bright! Too bright!" Matthew shouted, covering his eyes. He regretted not stepping away when he could.
After a few seconds of agonizing blindness, the light faded, and a small wooden sword in a bamboo sheath appeared, falling into his hands.
[Mystical Bokken: Peak Tempering Tier - Low Martial Tier]
[A wooden bokken made from extremely precious wood and bamboo. Because of the material used to make this weapon, one can use their energy and use this weapon as a conductor for energy attacks! Can repel any attack below {??? Realm}.]
Matthew glanced at the {Mystical Bokken} with glittering eyes. The fact that it could repel up to a realm where there were question marks should means that this weapon will definitely last him for a while!
'Well, it could also be a katana from the shape... let's just refer to it as a bokken than one or the other...'
Matthew rubbed his chin in thought, "Since I can get the same product if I think about it... wouldn't I be able to get a few copies of {Mystical Bokken} and fuse them again once I reach a higher rank?"
[That is correct, Master. The only requirement is that you'll have to be in a realm relevant to the weapon, or else you won't be able to wield it.]
Getting the system's confirmation, Matthew smirked.
"Well, I might not have an affinity with the sword, so let's fuse a few more weapons... Hehehehe..."
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