Chapter 21: A Rare Case 2

In the end, no matter how disturbing the information he received, Allen Stryka had to move forward.

He expressed his gratitude for the answer he received. He also thanked Gurim for the hard work this day. He then walked away together with the guard who was assigned to be his guide.

He soon reached the lodging unit with the help his guide. The young man bowed to express his gratitude once more. The city guard wearing a military uniform nodded back. He then went on back to his station.

Allen on the other hand entered the room that he rented. He sat on the bed which was the sole furniture inside. He took a deep breath. He then tried to sort out what he had learned this day. After a few moments of silence, he decided to move on with his agenda.

The fourth item he had listed down was to try out the cultivation technique inside the city.

Thus far, Allen had only practiced the technique he learned from Boss Mo and the others outdoors. The open field, the grasslands, and even the forest had proved to be sufficient sources for gathering of elemental energies. And so far it had been a huge boon on the young man's progress of increasing his strength.

The cultivation technique had helped the young man to solidify his manipulation of the fire element. It had helped him stabilize the soul energy pool which was located at the core of his body. He also reckoned that it was as one of the crucial factors on how he developed a second skill despite being at Tier 1.

But what if it only works when one was close to nature?

That was why he was insistent on finding a place to stay inside Nosales. He wanted to test if the technique was still effective even when surrounded by man-made and artificial constructs. The result would heavily affect his path onwards.

If the technique still works, then he could still follow through his plan of traveling from one settlement to another.

If it does not work, then he had to consider the possibility of going through the mutated beast territory. He would also have to avoid any human settlement from that point. In fact, he would have to reevaluate his goal of reaching the Capital.

"Time to know the answer."

Allen steeled himself. He fixed his posture and steadied his breathing. He began to gather the elemental energies within his surroundings.

And then,

"It works!"

The young man exclaimed. He then laughed out loud due to the success of his test. But the person on the other room slammed at their side of the wall. This was probably because he was being loud and the other side was trying to get their sleep.

Allen quieted down. He suppressed his urge to jump up and down his rented bed. That would only cause further ruckus anyway.

Nonetheless he felt relieved with the result. Happy even. This meant that he could pursue his current plans. It also meant that there was no need to avoid human settlements at all.

This was a concern he had due to the peculiar behavior of the mutated rats he met. Boss Eni, Boss Mayni and Boss Mo had always tried to avoid the roads and places where human stayed during their travels. This had made the young man think that the reason was somewhat connected to their cultivation technique. Perhaps they did not want to contact any impurities when gathering elemental energies.

But now that he thought about it, that might have been a little silly notion he had. Why would they teach him, a human, the technique in the first place anyway? Or rather why would they let him imitate them.

Perhaps they were just not fond of humans after all. Unfortunately, there was no way to figure out the answer anymore.

Allen felt melancholic. He still grieved whenever he remembered what had happened to the mutated rats. He gave a solemn bow to honor their memories. He then shook his head. He clenched his fist and tried to cheer himself up. He said,

"What matters now is that I can actually cultivate inside a city."

He had to focus on what was in front of him anyway. There would be a time to mourn for those who had fallen. But that would be after he had accomplished his ultimate goal. For now, he had to use the technique as an aid to fulfill his dreams.

If that was the case though, why not just stay inside the city for good? That way he could cultivate in peace without being wary of his surroundings.

The answer here is no.

The amount of elemental energies he could gather in a particular area would decrease the longer he stayed in that place. The decrease would not reduce the value to zero but it would be lower compared to moving out to a new location.

This was similar to doing the same activity in a single place over and over again. It would become tedious and less efficient as time went by. The solution for such problems was to introduce variety in the current situation. Add a few changes to keep things exciting.

That was why the mutated rats traveled constantly. They wanted to try out various locations and compare the differences in the elemental energies that they could gather. And the young man could confirm this when he tried the cultivation technique himself. Although he was yet to develop the keen sense of appreciating such differences for now.

"Balance is they way to go after all."

Allen nodded as he contemplated. Staying too much at peaceful places would only dull his instincts. While staying too much in the wilderness would affect his mental resilience. Changing the environment every now and then would probably be for the best.

The young man then looked at his closed fist. He soon remembered to check onto something. He opened his hand and stared at it.

There was no direct source of lighting on the rented unit. It was located on the cheapest district of the city anyway. Which meant that the facilities were not that good. Nonetheless the window near the bedside provided a slight illumination coming from the evening sky.

It was not enough to allow the young man to check on his hand visually though. Hence, he used his left hand to feel out the fingers on his right.

"The incisions had almost healed."

Allen commented. He did not feel any pain on the wounds anymore. He estimated that it would completely heal by tomorrow afternoon.

The natural healing of ability-users was now faster compared to before the apocalypse. Even the so-called Tier 0s had an enhanced recovery rate. It could be attributed to being exposed with the radiation from the mutated sun.

However even the enhanced healing mentioned would not be enough to cause a complete recovery from such injuries in a matter of hours.

The main reason here was probably the technique he learned from his mom. Using the fire element to cauterize the wounds. This would cleanse the damaged part and activate the natural healing of the body. With the help of his cultivation technique, he had become more adept on using the former to heal his injuries.

"I think it's about to become my third skill in the near future."

Allen smiled wryly. A skill was basically an established technique that was coupled with elemental energy manipulation. Once these factors properly combined, an ability will be developed. And apparently the cultivation technique had massively assisted in this process.

That was why the young man felt helpless. He was just troubled by the thought of people figuring out that he had developed a second skill despite being a Tier 1. And yet he was going to have a third!

Nonetheless he chose to accept such possibility. Each skill he currently had was essential for his survival. Having an additional one whose potential effect was directly connected in that aspect was definitely welcomed. This was the fifth item on his agenda after all.

He would just face those people head on when such time comes.

Thus he fixed his posture and steadied his breathing. He closed his eyes to improve his concentration. He started gathering elemental energy once again. He was now focused in stabilizing the new concept he had in mind.

Hours passed quickly. And soon daybreak arrived. The time was probably around five in the morning.

Allen opened his eyes. He began assessing the results of his cultivation. He smiled,

"Looks like it will take more time to fully develop."

He failed to complete the formation of his third skill. But he was happy nonetheless. It was because he just confirmed that such thing was feasible. All he simply needed was more time.

He was actually troubled that he would require more to succeed. His second skill developed during a disconcerting event after all. But apparently that was only because [Life Detection] was not yet ready to develop back then. The emotional stress he received had forced the skill to bloom prematurely.

Of course there would still be an amount of force or push needed to complete the third skill. However, as long as he cultivated it properly and took his time, the amount of force he would need to push the skill forward would be lower.

"And that is good for now."

Allen concluded his thoughts. He then rose from his bed as he began his muscle training. Since the rented room was a little cramped, he devised some exercises that could be performed in confined spaces.

The time was around seven-thirty in the morning. Allen had tidied up as he took a bath in the common facility of the lodging unit. He was given a spare change of clothes by Gurim yesterday. It was nothing impressive though. Just plain shirt and long pants. He was also wearing sandals now since his snickers had long been worn-out.

He walked out of his rented room to meet-up the green-haired person. Gurim was sitting by the window of the corridor once more. The young man greeted,

"Good morning."

"Good day."

The green-haired person replied. He jumped down the window and landed on the corridor floor. He then reached out his clenched hand. He said,

"Your share from yesterday."

Allen had also reached out his hands to receive the payment. But when Gurim opened his hand, it was empty. There was nothing in there. The latter grinned,

"You really expected something? The lodging, the clothes, the processing fee, and the answers to your questions all cost something you know?"

Allen smiled wryly. He was expecting that when he agreed on the terms they settled yesterday anyway. So that was why Gurim still answered despite looking annoyed. Nonetheless the young man could not help but raise his hopes up. He then commented,

"There is nothing free in this city after all."