Chương 8: Looting and Upgrades

Joe opened his eyes to find Kai leaning over him.

"Are you alive?" Kai asked.

"Unfortunately, yeah." Joe groaned as he sat up, wincing.

"Everything hurts like hell, though." Neither of them spoke for a while. Joe glanced at Kai, noticing the tremor in his hands. He felt utterly drained, both physically and mentally, and a creeping sense of shock threatened to overwhelm him. The last few minutes replayed in his mind. He'd almost died. The thought made him want to scream, but there hadn't been time to process it; his body simply reacted to the situation, running on autopilot.

"I'm gonna get Hakeem. He's over there," Kai said, gesturing before jogging off and disappearing around a corner. I hope there are no other Beasts around. Joe thought grimly. With a pained grunt, he pressed a hand to the wound on his side. Blood still seeping out, though not as quickly as before. He felt lightheaded, but he didn't feel like he was about to die. That was a feeling he had grown used to during his months of torture. His gaze shifted to the corpse of the Lion nearby, and an idea struck him.

"If this system is kind of like a game, I wonder how much like one it is," he murmured aloud. Leaning forward, he reached out and could barely touch one of the Beast's paws. Loot Savage Alpha Lion? Y/N"Sweet." He mentally clicked Y. Slowly, the Beast's body dissolved into smoke, leaving a handful of items deposited in his storage ring. He leaned back and slumped with another pained grunt. Before checking his loot, he knew he had to address his bleeding. But how? he had no healing items.

Where was a healing potion when he needed one? Though, to be fair, he hadn't planned on being thrown into battle the moment they exited the Gate. Why was there a colossal Lion roaming around London? Why was everything destroyed, and where were all the people? These thoughts went through his mind as he pulled up his status screen. Maybe he had a skill or something that could help him right now. Skills Basic Farming(Common). Basic Cooking(Common). Diabolical Quarterstaffmanship(Magic). Advanced Identify(Uncommon).

Mana-Coating(Rare), Skill Nature's Touch(Magic). Skill Nature's Steps(Magic). Skill Nature's Keeper(Magic). Skill Eternal Moment(Bloodline). Skill Light of Uriel(Bloodline). Skill Light Affinity(Bloodline). Skill Space Affinity(Bloodline). Skill Light's Guidance(Bloodline). He paused at the Skill Nature's Touch and activated it. He was greeted with a new system message. Nature's Touch(Magic) has activated and become Nature's Touch Passive(Magic)"What? It turned into a passive?"

Joe muttered, more confused than ever. Before he could dwell on it, his body began to glow softly, and a soothing warmth spread through him. His wound pulsed gently, and for the first time, the bleeding stopped. Moments later, he felt the wound's edges slowly begin to knit themselves back together.

"That feels so much better," he mumbled with a sigh of relief. The skill was healing him, but strangely, it wasn't draining any of the meagre mana he had left. He glanced around and noticed grass starting to sprout from the ground around him.

"Okay, now this is really weird," he remarked, his tone both curious and unsettled. Deciding to investigate further, he pulled up the description of the new passive skill while his body continued its slow recovery. Nature's Touch Passive(Magic) - This skill allows you to harness the power of nature and restore balance to everything you touch, including yourself. Tapping into the Nature of the world you inhabit, you can draw on this unlimited power source and use it to heal.

The amount healed depends on your level and the level of your target for healing. Every step you take from this moment forward will grow the world around you. Joe blinked at the description. That was a lot, he thought. Does this mean that grass will grow everywhere I step? What the hell kind of skill was that? The healing part was terrific, though. He glanced down at the rapidly expanding grass beneath him and sighed. Well damn.

Joe decided to check his other Nature skills, just in case there was something equally game-changing or potentially useful that he'd overlooked. A healing passive would have been invaluable during the fight he had just endured. He activated Nature's Keeper. Nature's Keeper(Magic) has activated and become Nature's Keeper Passive(Magic)"You have got to be shitting me," Joe shook his head in disbelief. He felt like an idiot. I really should have checked these back in the Gate.

Nature's Keeper Passive(Magic) - This skill allows you to keep track of your steps as you promote growth in your world. You gain access to a mini-map of the area around you. Any being within range standing on Nature falls under your sight and can be tracked at your whim. No one can escape your pursuit in Nature, for you, and you alone are Nature's Keeper.

"A freaking mini-map," Joe said, a huge grin spreading across his face. He glanced to the top-right corner of his vision, and there it was: a mini-map displaying the area around him. It showed only what he could see and the parts where the grass had spread. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it. Speaking of which, the grass was growing fast, already covering a ten-metre radius around him. Joe felt the wound on his side.

It had closed completely, though he could still sense some internal healing. Remarkably, the pain was entirely gone. This skill was fantastic, even if it made me a walking lawnmaker. His thoughts were interrupted as Kai came into view, supporting an injured Hakeem on his shoulder. Joe had been so caught up in exploring his new abilities that he'd completely forgotten about Hakeem's condition. Guilt hit him hard.

"Where did all this grass come from?" Kai asked as he carefully lowered Hakeem to the ground.

"Never mind that. Hakeem is hurt pretty badly. What can we do?"

"I have a healing skill," Joe replied, hauling himself to his feet and limping over to them. He knelt beside Hakeem, placing a hand on his chest. As soon as he touched Hakeem, a pulse of energy flowed into him and down through his hand into Hakeem, and he could immediately sense the extent of Hakeem's injuries. He winced. One of his lungs had collapsed, and his kidney and stomach were both ruptured.

"Hopefully, it works," he said, his tone serious. He sat down and let the healing go to work. They sat in silence for a while, resting and trying to process everything that had happened. Hakeem's breathing grew steadier, and Joe felt a wave of relief as Nature's Touch worked its magic.

"Did you loot the boss?" Kai asked suddenly.

"Some items just appeared in my ring, and I got one of those messages. How did you do that?"

"I just placed my hand on the body, and it asked if I wanted to loot it. Simple," Joe explained. Then, a thought struck him.

"That reminds me. I haven't checked the loot yet because I was healing up. Get anything good?"

"I did," Kai replied, his tone still sombre.

"I got some boots with twenty agility, twenty endurance, and a skill to move fast over short distances."

"Whoa," Joe said, genuinely impressed.

"That's pretty amazing." They rested for about thirty minutes before Joe felt a strange tingle from Nature's touch. It was as if it were telling him Hakeem's condition had stabilized. Joe removed his hand and carefully observed his friend. Hakeem was no longer bleeding, and his breathing was steady. Satisfied, Joe turned his attention to his own storage. Item - Cloak of the Alpha Lion. This cloak proves your ability to take down an alpha of the jungle. This beast once stood at the top of the food chain.

Until it met you. +20 Vitality, +20 Endurance, Lions Defence (Reduces all physical damage against you). Twenty points in two stats and a reduction in physical damage. The cloak was impressive, but he wasn't sure it was worth everything they'd gone through. He also noticed a few other items in his storage: Item - Lions canine(Crafting material) Rare Item - 5 chunks of Lion's meat(Cooking ingredient) Common Item - The paw of an Alpha Lion(Crafting material) Rare"I got a cloak and some crafting and cooking materials.

Not bad," Joe said.

"I got those, too," Kai replied.

"I also got two thousand credits, some titles, and five level-ups. My stats went up a lot from that one fight." Level ups. Joe thought. It was time to check his notifications and his status. Ding! Class Farmer has reached level 2 - stat points distributed; Ding! Class Farmer has reached level 6 - stat points distributed A maximum of 5 level-ups for your class were reached for one kill, while in Grade E, excess experience was lost.

Title Giant Killer Earned Title Against all Odds Earned Title First Gate Earned Title World 43 Progenitor Earned Title Bare Hands Earned A maximum of five level-ups per kill? Joe felt cheated. It seemed like a scam to him. How much experience had he lost because of that cap? Truly, this system sucks, He thought, shaking his head in frustration. With a sigh, he turned his attention to his new titles. Title - Giant Killer. You have killed a Beast at least 25 levels above your own.

Your herculean efforts have not gone unnoticed. Plus 5% to all stats. Title - Against All Odds. You have killed a Beast at least 50 levels above your own. A feat only the most foolish could ever achieve by themselves. You are an apex predator. Plus 10% to all stats. Title - First Gate. You have killed the first Gate Boss on your newly integrated World. You lead your people from the front, helping all who come after you.

Title World 43 Progenitor - As one of the first people on your World to clear a Gate, you are at the forefront of progress. Your name shall be known across the Multiverse. If you survive long enough, that is. Plus 10% to all stats. Title - Bare Hands - You have buried your entire Hand up to your elbow inside a Beast. Either you are incredibly lucky, or you have some questionable habits. Either way, be careful in the future. Some of the titles were amazing. Two of them granted a ten per cent boost to all his stats.

That last one, though? It felt like a joke. Was the system capable of jokes? He wondered.

Status Name: Joseph Caldwell Age: 27 Race: High Human (Grade E - Rank 0) Alignment: High Human (World 43) Class: Farmer (Unique) Level 6, N/A Professions: Nature's Custodian(Legendary) Level 1 Bloodline Light of the Eternal Spark (Grade E) Titles First Steps, Unique Class, Legendary Profession, Bloodline, Evolution, Race Change, Died, Revived, Grace of a God, Marked by Karma, Origin, Giant Killer, Against All Odds, First Gate, World 43 Progenitor, Bare Hands. Skills Basic Farming(Common). Basic Cooking(Common).

Diabolical Quarterstaffmanship(Magic). Advanced Identify(Uncommon). Mana-Coating(Rare), Nature's Touch Passive(Magic). Nature's Steps(Magic). Nature's Keeper Passive(Magic). Eternal Moment(Bloodline). Light of Uriel(Bloodline). Light Affinity(Bloodline). Space Affinity(Bloodline). Light's Guidance(Bloodline).

Stats Strength: 37 Agility: 42 Vitality: 39 Endurance: 39 Wisdom: 75 Intelligence: 75 Luck: 140 Hidden Stat: Dao Knowledge - 11 Free Points: 16 System Credits: 2100 Joe sat stunned in silence as he stared at the massive boost to his stats. He remembered gaining twenty stat points when he first acquired his Class. But now? He'd gained… two hundred and eighty stat points in just five levels.

Doing the quick math in his head, he decided the only explanation for the incredible number was that he had received forty stat points per level-up, double what he'd anticipated. Of course, his titles added significantly more, forty per cent, to be exact, but even so, the sheer scale of the increase was mind-boggling. Shaking himself out of his daze, he took a deep breath. He glanced around and found a half-destroyed car not far from his position. He pulled himself to his feet and strolled over to it.

He no longer limped; his outer injuries had fully healed. He bent both knees and gripped the car, pulling with all his strength; he hefted the car's body up onto his chest and quickly shifted the weight forward as he stumbled and dropped the car with a loud thud. He stared at his hands, a huge smile spreading across his face. System Message Congratulations Progenitor. You have been given a new quest! Reintegration! Kill all 100 Gate bosses to restart Integration into the Multiverse.

Quest progress - 1/100 Time limit of Quest - 2 Years Joe sighed.