The feeling was strangely nostalgic, like stepping out into the sunlight after being cooped up in my room playing video games for an entire week. Alas, who knew when I’d be able to partake in such degeneracy again.
As I surveyed the surroundings, I detected several sets of faint tracks along with some unfamiliar scents. They appeared to only be a couple days old, and moving in the same direction as Khaelen’s group. Perhaps these were from the pursuers that Khaelen had mentioned?
Seems like being in a group came with its own set of disadvantages. Every extra person came packaged with a potential Nemesis to be hunted down by. Case in point, Khaelen’s group was already on the move after just barely escaping the clutches of the Agarian Nemesis.
Speaking of which, how was my own Nemesis, the mysterious Celendis, doing? I hadn’t been able to check their position in quite some time.
As I checked the Nemesis marker on the Map, my hearts sunk in my chest.
During the time I’d been unconscious, Celendis’ marker had moved uncomfortably close to mine. It seemed that I had gotten complacent; after all, they had spent the entirety of my time in the Canopy thousands of kilometers away from me. Now, it seemed that I’d be able to reach them in only a few days of travel; presumably even less for Celendis.
I hesitated.
Should I abandon joining Khaelen and just start running?
Melchior had mentioned that the higher tier races would have their abilities heavily restricted in the beginning to make things fairer, but I wasn’t delusional. I wouldn’t stand a snowball’s chance in hell against someone from a Tier 0 race, no matter how weakened they were.
After weighing the matter over carefully, I gritted my teeth and began moving once more to Khaelen’s marker.
Even if I started running in the opposite direction now, it was far too late. Celendis would be able to easily catch up to me and hunt me down as they desired.
My main motivator was also that, for whatever reason, Celendis appeared to express no explicit interest in me and was moving perpendicular to my position.
Of course, it had always been like this; I could only hope that they would continue to ignore a small fry like me.
But one question remained... if they weren’t interested in me, why then, had they appeared here out of the blue?
It was a quandary that perhaps I’d never have the answer to.
Regardless, a mere Tier 6 mortal like me shouldn’t attempt to discern the thoughts of gods.
Might as well just keep going as usual.
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The next two days of travel proceeded quite uneventfully, providing a welcome change of pace. The only thing of note was that the foreign scents and tracks gradually became fresher; it seemed that I’d be coming across their owners soon.
During one of my breaks, I took some time to purchase new equipment. As I browsed through the Shop, my 60,000 points now seemed woefully inadequate compared to my needs.
I spent 15,000 points restocking my supply of potions, which had been mostly used up during my last encounter. As for my remaining points.... I decided to invest them into some defensive items.
I already had a fair bit of firepower after my most recent upgrades, so I thought it better to have a more balanced loadout. It was a difficult prospect however, as any armor items that exceeded the innate durability of my Onisha body were extremely expensive. After some careful consideration, I made my selections.
There was a decent synergy between the two items, since the reactivation of the Rebounding Boots would charge the shield as well. I also finally had another movement option besides that of the Leapfroggers. The only downside was that the boots would require mana to utilize, as they wouldn’t be supported by the System when equipped on my second set of legs.
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
I purchased two additional accessories, one ring that simply raised my mana stat, and a duplicate Mossdew ring to further enhance my regenerative capabilities.
Last, I equipped a necklace that I’d looted off the corpse of one of the Agarians.
Seems like the Agarian had acquired this to reduce the power consumption of their cybernetic parts. It was even better suited towards me however, since Storm Caller could utilize the passive as well.
With a wistful sigh, I stared at the numerous equipment slots I had remaining. Whenever I resolved an issue, another seemed to always pop up instantly.
Ah well, I probably didn’t even have enough mana to support all of them anyways. Still, my main bottleneck had now become my points supply.
Khaelen, you better pay me back soon!
After I finished emptying my bank account, I chatted with Melchior as I continued to rest.
“Hey Melchior, I noticed that after I killed those two Agarians, it took a few minutes for me to receive a notification that their world had been eliminated. Why’s that?”
Melchior cheerfully replied, “That is because the guide in charge of their world was confirming their deaths before relaying their status. Some abilities or items exist that allow revival upon death, often at a heavy price. As they were merely a Tier 4 race, the probability of them possessing such things is virtually zero, so their guide likely immediately reported their deaths. Still, it takes time for an Erethar to travel there and devour the world, which causes a slight delay.”
As Melchior spoke, I began to slice open my buttocks and grope about for the Agarian brain.
“So if I die... you’re going to be the one calling it in?”
“That is correct, Master Adun. Rest assured however, I am well aware of your more unique capabilities. That is why I gave you a grace period when you first severed your own head.”
“I see. Thanks for that, then.”
“It is my pleasure, Master Adun. It is also in my best interest to see you succeed. May I ask however, what you are currently doing?”
With a grin, I replied, “Just doing a little experiment. I want to see if I can make an independent copy of myself with the Agarian body.”
Unlike the last time, I made sure the brain remained connected to my body’s neural network as I gingerly removed it. With a bundle of nerves trailing behind, the brain was held to the Agarian corpse’s empty skull.
Ding!
"As ever, you remain full of strange ideas, Master Adun."
"Haha, I'll take that as a compliment from you Melchior."
As I gently poured a potion over the brain, it began to connect to the Agarian once more. Gradually, I felt another set of limbs and organs coming under my control.
With a jumbled cluster of nerves hanging between us, I deftly manipulated and controlled the extra body like a gruesome puppeteer.
With the power of three minds, doing so was incredibly easy.
A backflip, a thrust of the plasma sword, a quick flight through the air. Oops, one of the nerves ripped off.
I spent an inordinate amount of time with my new toy before eventually growing bored.
Now... it was time for the real test.
With a quick swipe, I severed the connection between us, leaving one of my minds completely alone in the Agarian corpse.
Immediately, the body toppled forward, with its strings literally cut, and became unmoving.
Checking the body, I confirmed that it was once again completely dead.
Damn. I’d been hoping that the brain would continue to function on its own, but it seemed that it was not meant to be. Was it because it had to always be connected to my original brain?
If that was so, most likely it meant that the usage of
But, if I could find a way to maintain a neural connection even after separating a brain from the main body...
This dream may not be so impossible.
I slowly drifted to sleep as I giggled, imagining the sheer number of ways I could torment Khaelen and Misha with an army of clones.
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The Kraknar growled, as its curved claws tightly clenched.
“Are you sure?”
Its subordinate stammered as it replied, saying, “Y-yes. I wasn’t sure until now, but there is definitely one close by.”
The Kraknar leader frowned as its brows furrowed deeply in concern. Its subordinate had an ability that, while low-grade, had been the backbone of their survival so far.
It allowed it to vaguely detect the strengths of all entities within a certain range. By utilizing this, the group of Kraknar had managed to avoid many confrontations and choose fights in which they had the overwhelming advantage.
“Why did it take so long to sense it? They’ve never gotten this close before.”
The Kraknar hesitated as it spoke, saying, “I... I’m not sure. This one is very strange. When I first detected it, it felt incredibly weak. But when it got closer, I could feel that only part of it was.... it seems to be varying in power constantly. But there is a consistent aura I can feel that is at least Tier 4 grade.”
“And its heading in our direction?”
“Yes, at its current rate it will be here very soon.”
The leader bit its lips. Its Nemesis target was so close, just barely out of reach. It had already been chasing them for many days, and to now abandon this venture?
“We will continue pursuing our target. Proceed as planned.”
“But sir, we cannot-”
“Enough. We will make a small detour in a different direction, then resume our course. It is most likely just passing through the area. It may also have an ability or item that makes it appear stronger than it actually is, which is why it's confusing you. Besides-”
The Kraknar leader paused as he confidently smiled.
“With over forty of us here, even a legitimate Tier 4 otherworlder would have to run.”