The true face of the system

[Mana: 12,099/6,010]

[Mana: 15,090/6,010]

[[Fire stream] has been activated]

[Mana: 14,761/6010]

[Magic aura net]

[Mana: 15,301/6,010]

"Who would have thought, *pant* that constantly using and replenishing mana is a daunting task. *pant*"

'It feels like liquid lava is running through my veins. My chest feels like one deep exhale away from bursting and my head is throbbing constantly.'

A large hill has formed under his feet. A few centimeters of crust kept the ravenous flesh from swallowing him whole.

Escape was possible but Aster didn't consider it. It was about time he figured out what was wrong with his system.

CRACK

A small crack behind him, letting a small tendril out.

Slithering like a snake with the speed of a bullet train, it quickly went towards the closest power core to it.

[[Fireball] has been activated]

It was burned to charcoal before it even crossed half of the distance.

"Ughh, huff. Damn this thing. It's gonna take forever."

There were several obstacles in his goal. The power cores didn't just continuously spew out mana, they did so within set intervals with limited amounts.

With enough time, he would have absorbed the necessary amount of mana without much issue. The true obstacle was the flesh.

It absorbed everything it came in contact with. The power cores just spew out mana without any clear direction so naturally it would absorb a certain percentage of it.

It would also absorb Aster's aura net if it touches it so he would have to leave a certain amount of mana to act as a buffer.

Because of these reasons, he was not exactly achieving ideal progression. 

He was absorbing anywhere between 40% to 60% of the mana every pulse.

'At this rate, I think I'm going to explode before I achieve the luminous soul.'

Having one arm didn't help either.

CRACK

At that moment; a big portion of the surface split open next to a power core, allowing hundreds of tendrils to drag it down for consumption. But there is no way Aster would allow that.

[[Gale cutter] has been activated]

He cut the tendrils to free the core.

BAM

He kicked it as far as he could into the sea.

BAM 

BAM

BAM

He sent the other three flying in the same direction as well. With an incredibly long jump, he followed suit.

[The skill [Power jump] has been acquired]

Soaring through the inky black sky was unnerving and the danger of being snatched by something below the sea that came straight from cthulhu mythos was real.

SWOOSH

The wind hissed as he plummeted into the sea.

SPLASH

Cold water shocked his nerves but he had no time for that. With his overflowing mana, he erected a giant circular stone wall, 40 meters in diameter,  with him as the center.

He was still relatively close to the shore so it wasn't deep and the chance of a random kraken popping up was low as well.

Water current was shifted and the power cores were boosted to the surface.

Another stone platform rose from the sea bed, providing a solid footing for Aster.

He looked back and saw nothing but darkness. To counter that, he created a giant fireball and sent them towards the direction of the island.

The fireballs flew then exploded after they reached a certain height. It looked like a lone star illuminating the abyss. 

It was a spectacular sight for sure, better than any fireworks out there but the sight revealed by the brief light made Aster's blood run cold.

The silhouette of an entire island shifting, moving and charging towards him.

It rose in height like a tsunami, an unscalable mountain descending upon him.

Fear rose in his heart but he quickly swallowed it down.

'There's nothing to be afraid of. This thing is weak to fire and I have fire ability. If that isn't enough then I have phantom flame.'

'The pain is freaky for sure but pain won't kill me. This thing will.'

He exhaled, his concentration fully in the mana present around him.

Aster steeled his heart for what's about to come. 

'3…2…1'

FWOOSH

Bright orange flame appeared on the edge of the stone wall. It spread around the wall and spun.

A giant flame pillar ascended to the sky like a beacon.

Any trace of moisture on his skin evaporated on the spot. He could only hope his heat resistance keeps up with it.

Cyan aura extended and created a dome with a 90 meter radius. Aster had stretched it out as far as he could.

Then the dome shrunk. It filtered out the mana from inanimate things it had caught inside.

[Mana: 31,099/6,010]

[Mana: 37,647/6,010]

[Mana: 52,222/6,010]

The colossal tsunami of flesh collided with the beacon of flame and at the same time, Aster's soul started glowing.

He observed it with [True sight].

A sphere the size of a basketball was glowing from within which was the cause of the sudden glow up. This was the soul nucleus.

Surrounding it was the soul membrane. The place where everything about a person was etched on. Information about race, memories, skills and attributes; such stuff were present there.

The thing surrounding the soul membrane was the spiritual body. It acted as a glue for the soul membrane and the astral body. It was also responsible for emanating aura and feeling emotions.

The astral body was needed to guide the energies provided by the soul nucleus and the spiritual body throughout the entire body. It was shaped like the body and also represented the conscious or the mind.

Those 4 were the main components of the soul. However, Aster observed a fifth component.

It was a transparent sphere with a hint of blue color surrounding the spiritual body. It had yellow strands entangled with itself and it resembled a complex nervous system.

Purple strands were also present but they were much fewer than the yellow ones. 

Those protruded from it and extended to the astral body. It didn't go far to the astral body, just enough to be visible. It also sank into the soul nucleus and the soul membrane. 

There was a 3rd type of strand and it was the most concerning. It was black and the strand was all dried up. It looked dead.

And it was present everywhere inside the blue transparent sphere. As of now, there weren't many but it was concerning.

However the thing most concerning was that the transparent sphere covered only about 30% of the surface area of the spiritual body. 

Upon closer inspection, he saw that there were also some strands that were cut off.

The whole thing gave off a vibe similar to a building in construction or an electronic device that was demolished and the wires were protruding.

He was fascinated and confused at the same time. He had even forgotten about the fierce pain his overloaded soul nucleus brought him.

Unfortunately for him though, a new message flashed before his eyes.

[-471 hp]

'Fuck!'