Chương 81: Back to Work

Joe appeared in the familiar oval chamber, the same one where he'd received the quest from the GoldRu Forsect Donrathy and first met the elites of the Multiverse. He fell backwards the instant he landed, his body giving out as pain surged through him. He lay there, convulsing, barely conscious, wishing he could sleep for a year straight and not be disturbed. Somewhere nearby, voices rose in a heated exchange.

"Where are the rest? What the hell is going on here, Dust Vale?" a voice boomed, fury in their tone.

"It seems the quest has been completed as required." Dust Vale replied coolly.

"What do you mean? There are only three here. Where are the rest?" Footsteps echoed, sharp and approaching. Joe didn't bother opening his eyes. He was too damn tired, wracked in pain.

"There was… an incident," Dust Vale said, voice even as ever.

"It seems the other Askari were all killed during the quest." A heavy silence filled the room like a shroud. Moments later, someone grabbed Joe and pulled him upright. Pain shot through him as his half-melted body protested. Before he could moan, something was shoved into his mouth… a pill. Mana bloomed through his veins, and he gasped as the healing began. Bones realigned. Flesh knit back together. Wounds closed one after the other. His blurry vision settled on a familiar, unwelcome face.

"Great. Why is the first face I see when I get back yours?" Joe complained, glaring at the God of Wine. After everything he'd endured, he didn't have the patience for this deity's smug grin or cryptic comments. But this time, the God of wine simply gave him a somber look and turned away. Joe followed his gaze to the other side of the room, where Tar'Hou, number one elite of the Askari Quest, approached Dust Vale.

"I can explain what happened," Tar'Hou said, his voice carrying clearly across the silent room.

"At some point during the quest, the protections against elite-on-elite combat dropped. Several elites attacked me. I assume their goal was to steal the artefacts in my possession." He gestured, and several artefacts dropped from his hand, clinking loudly on the floor.

"They failed. I killed those who attacked me." He turned toward the only other elite who had returned: Rorschach Cold.

"Rorschach killed the rest. He can confirm my story." Rorschach stared defiantly at Tar'Hou, who stood calmly with his arms crossed, returning the glare without flinching. The Gods turned their attention toward Rorschach, and Joe noticed the elite flinch under their scrutiny before visibly steadying himself. He began to speak, explaining something in a composed tone. Joe's mind, however, drifted. He didn't know anyone here, God or elite. He didn't care why everyone died.

As far as he was concerned, the quest was over, and he was free. The rest had nothing to do with him. When Rorschach finished his explanation, most of the Gods silently vanished. Tar'Hou disappeared as well, flickering out in a crackle of electricity. Joe turned to one of the familiar faces left.

"So… is that it? What happens…" The God of Wine vanished. System Message You will be returned to the integration in 5 minutes Joe let out a tired sigh. This whole nightmare was finally over. But one question still tugged at him. Where was Veda? Was she waiting for him back on his world? Did his world even have a name anymore? Calling it Earth seemed not right, and he usually thought of it by its ranking. But even that felt… wrong. As his thoughts strayed, Dust Vale approached and stopped before him.

"Askari," Dust Vale said with a small bow. Joe, though still sore, got to his feet and returned the bow as respectfully as he could manage. Dust Vale tossed something his way. Joe caught it in his right hand. It was an orb. He also faintly heard a beep as an item in his storage ring vanished. Item Acquired: Legendary Skill Orb Joe just blinked, turning the orb in his hand. That counted as completing the hidden quest? He had no idea how or why, but he wasn't going to complain.

For everything he'd just endured, at least it had paid off. Though the reward felt tainted by the blood spilt along the way. He slipped the orb into his storage ring, trying not to think about the cost. When he glanced over at Catalina, he found her watching him with a pained look in her eyes. Joe had a momentary pang of regret as he remembered Sharn and Lara. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, ornate badge he had managed to salvage from… a part of Lara's remains.

He tossed it to the god and bowed his head. A wisp of air moved around Catalina, scooping up the item and placing it into her hand. She stared at it for a long moment before she also disappeared from the room. The pill he'd taken had healed all of his injuries by now, but the soreness and fatigue from overexertion and enriched mana backlash still lingered like fire in his muscles. He knew it would take days to recover, maybe longer.

Five minutes later, the chamber around him dissolved into light, and Joe disappeared with it. Joe reappeared in the forest, the same one where he'd first encountered the Gate that had triggered nearly two months of madness. He glanced around at the trees and thick foliage. There were no signs of fighting, no evidence of the chaos he'd been through. Just silence. He remembered the Dingoes he'd fought here. That felt like a lifetime ago now.

For the first time, he found himself wishing he had a watch or some kind of system calendar to track the passing of time. Veda! he suddenly thought, spinning on the spot, scanning the forest for any sign of her. Nothing. He opened his party menu… empty. No Corel. No Veda. He was alone. Trying to distract himself, he pulled out his Integration Pillar. The screen lit up, and he noticed a change: his world was now ranked 19th. He scrolled to the Competitions tab and tapped on the flashing [Tides of Movement] event.

To his surprise, he'd been awarded first place, and with it, 500, 000 Integration Points. That brought his total to 750, 000. He had completely forgotten about the points and the competition… things had gotten a little chaotic. Next, he opened the leaderboard.

Integration Leaderboard World Ranked 1: 22, 500, 800 World Ranked 2: 10, 550, 000 World Ranked 3: 7, 320, 500 World Ranked 4: 7, 110, 600 World Ranked 5: 5, 655, 850 World Ranked 6: 5, 520, 500 World Ranked 7: 5, 450, 600 World Ranked 8: 5, 430, 890 World Ranked 9: 5, 210, 500 World Ranked 10: 5, 110, 760 (World Ranked 19: 780, 420) It was a big jump for his world. They now had just over 780, 000 points. But the road to the top ten was still long. A rustle of wind caught his attention. He spun around.

"Veda!" he called out. No answer. He sighed. He knew it was nothing. His mini-map was blank, its area slowly extending outward, confirming what he feared: she wasn't nearby. He sank down, head in his hands. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Focus on what you can control. She will be back soon," he mumbled to himself over and over, forcing his darker thoughts to the back of his mind. He finally had time… time to breathe, time to think, and time to go over the changes he'd ignored during the chaos of the quest. He'd reached the Hidden Grade. There were new details to check, and only now did he have the time to go over them.

Status Name: Joseph Theodore Caldwell Age: 28 (29 in Multiversal years) Race: High Human (Grade E+ - Rank 0) Alignment: High Human (World Ranked 19) Heritage: Path of Light (Golden Heritage) Class: Absolute Farmer(Unique Class 0) Level 101, Absolute Space Farmer(PseudoUnique Class 0) Level 101 Professions: Nature's Halo(Legendary Class 0) Level 102 Bloodline: Light of the Eternal Spark(Purity 10/10) (Grade E+, Hidden Grade - Full Bloodline unlocked at next Evolution) Titles (100% Max)(1%): World (43) Progenitor; Integration Forerunner His status screen was more detailed than before.

His middle name had appeared, and he was now listed as a year older by Multiversal reckoning.

"Class 0," he muttered, eyes narrowing as he stared at the designation beside each of his classes. Another thing he didn't understand. He wondered if it was tied to his race rank, which was also listed as 0. He tried mentally clicking on "Class 0," but nothing popped up. He moved on to his bloodline next. A new detail caught his eye: the purity rating, 10 out of 10. He was certain that he hadn't been there when he first reached the hidden grade. Maybe it only showed now because of the quest from Dust Vale?

Beneath that, another note: full bloodline unlocked at the next evolution. He remembered something Rose and Veda had both mentioned, that the next evolution would occur at level 199, tied to something called the Tower of Past Lives. He had the entry token in his storage, safely tucked away. He knew it was important, essential even. But that was still a long way off. He had just begun his Hidden Grade journey. Thinking ahead to the next grade now would be premature, counting his chickens before they hatched.

With that, he turned to the next section of his main status screen: his stats. Stats Strength: 2054 (200) Agility: 3168 (620) Vitality: 3526 (520) Endurance: 3394 (200) Wisdom: 3632 (60) Intelligence: 4718 (80) Luck: 208 Hidden Stat: Dao Knowledge - 1938 Hidden Stat: Aura Power - 100 Free Points: 60 System Credits: 500, 943, 210 His stat growth was massive.

Part of it came from reaching the maximum title boost of 100%, but a large portion was thanks to his unique title, which had granted him a staggering one thousand stat points. Body reformation. He glanced at his bandaged arm and then at his regular one. He could feel the difference. He was stronger now, so much stronger than before. But even with all these gains, he was still far behind the people he had just encountered. The elites were on another level.

They were all faster and more powerful than him, but what had truly shaken him were the two spiders. He'd been completely outclassed. It had been an eye-opening experience, one that had instilled genuine fear. He was grateful to have survived at all. He gave his stats one last glance. He would keep growing. He had to. He never wanted to feel that helpless again. His eyes drifted to his credits next, and they widened slightly. Five hundred million. It was a ridiculous number.

Lastly, he opened his skills page, and noticed something new. Some of his skills now had a stat beside them: proficiency. Skills General Skills; Mana Focus(Passive)[100%]. Aura Shout[100%]. Multiversal Translator. Basic Cooking[100%]. Party. Natural Identify[100%]. Mana-Sight[100%]. Mana-Manipulation[100%]. Mana Blast[100%]. Aura Control[100%]. Fated Wings Basic Form(Magic)[30%]. Flying Falcon Basic Form(Rare)[10%]. Class Skills; Diabolical Quarterstaffmanship[100%]. Basic Farming[100%].

Seed Flick[100%], Seeds Will Grow[100%]. Mana-Coating[100%]. Rapid Strike[100%]. Mana Wave[100%]. Mana Seed Sewing[50%]. Mana Ploughing. Space Jump[100%]. Mana Crop Management[100%]. Farmer's Constitution(Passive)[100%]. Farmer's House[0%]. Farming Perdition[0%]. Beast Communication[0%]. Profession Skills; Nature's Barding[100%]. Nature's Guidance[30%]. Nature's Paradise[100%]. Nature's Keeper(Passive)[100%]. Nature's Touch(Passive)[100%]. Nature's Step[20%]. Nature's Alchemy[100%]. Nature's Flourish[100%].

Nature's Grace Basic Form[100%]. Nature's Harmony[100%]. Nature's Botany[20%]. Nature's Embrace(Legendary)[1%]. Nature's Whisper[1%]. Mana Quelling[5%]. Nature's Rage[5%]. Bloodline Skills; Eternal Moment. Light of Uriel. Light Affinity. Space Affinity. Light's Guidance. Dao Sight. He first noticed that not all of his skills had a proficiency stat. Skills like Light of Uriel, Party, and Multiversal Translator didn't have one. He assumed that meant they couldn't be improved.

Maybe they were set skills, fixed in function, with no need or room for growth. A decent number of his other skills were already at 100%, naturally, the ones he used most often. Still, a twinge of regret tugged at him for checking the skills page. Normally, this was when he would ask Veda about the importance of proficiency. As he was about to spiral into frustration, a soft pop echoed above his head. He looked up just as a red serpent landed squarely on his face. Joe hugged Veda for an uncomfortably long time.

Eventually, she grew annoyed and swatted him away with her tail.

"Are you done, child? I know you missed me, but this is a little much. A girl needs her space," Veda said. Joe laughed, relief clear in his voice.

"What happened anyway? Where were you?" She didn't answer right away. When he looked at her, she shrugged.

"I was just stuck in that sandy bubble for a while. I assume the system forgot about me until just now," Veda lied smoothly. Joe didn't question her. He didn't care. She was back now, and all was right with the world.

"Well, I'm glad you're back. I have a question," he began. Veda groaned.

"Just focus on using all your skills. You need them all at 100% by the time you hit level 199." Joe nodded.

"Should be easy enough." Veda slithered into her usual spot, wrapped around his shoulders. He gently stroked her chin.

"Well, I don't know when Corel will finish her quest. So, I guess it's time to focus on integration points and levelling. You ready for an adventure?"

"Just no more sand," Veda replied.

"Amen to that," Joe agreed.

"Oh, by the way. Guess who got a new skyboat?" With a grin stretching across his face, he pulled it out and let it float beside him. Veda gave it a glance, then closed her eyes.

"Very nice. Now I need a nap. Wake me up if something interesting happens." Joe slumped. How could she not appreciate his new skyboat?

"Guess you're also not interested in the dragon and giant spiders I fought. Oh, and that elite named Tar'Hou who killed everyone…" As he jumped abroad, setting a course for somewhere new, he failed to notice the small tear that ran down Veda's cheek. __ Click' Clink' Click' Clink' Veetee knelt in prayer before the statue of Ork Moc Do Shul. His forehead pressed against the cold floor as he whispered words of reverence. Abruptly, his body began to shake. His eyes darkened, and a vision seized him.

The First Martyr was dead. The Oman of Li had begun. Cooler Von Gas, the first nexus point, had perished. His fate line had twisted, distorted, then erupted into chaos. Something had altered fate. A subtle, but significant change. And now, the Multiverse would pay the price. The first seal on the array binding Kabal snapped. Veetee gasped, staggering to his feet as the vision faded. Nine seals remained. Only nine… until… __ Catalina shimmered into existence within her bedroom.

She walked to a cabinet and retrieved a small chest adorned with golden birds and drifting clouds. Her fingers traced the lid, and it clicked open in her hand. Inside lay a small, shining golden orb. Next to it, an empty slot. She raised two fingers, and a key materialized between them. Pitch-black, it seemed to drain the very light from the air, radiating raw power. Carefully, she placed it into the empty spot before closing the chest and returning it to the cabinet.

The key was a reward from Dust Vale, granted for allowing the Askari quest to proceed. An extraordinarily rare gift, one even a God would struggle to obtain. It was a gift so tempting that it had lured the God of Wine from his domain, bringing along an Askari of his own. But the price she had paid for it was higher than she liked. A tinge of regret flowed through her at Eludia's loss. Her thoughts fluttered and turned to the other unexpected occurrence. Why him? Catalina felt the first edges of a headache forming.

Or she would have, if Gods could get headaches. Instead, she just felt… deeply irritated. She floated toward her seat, extending her sense across the palace as she settled in. For a brief while, she watched Rose sparring with the Volduran female. They were preparing to enter the family gate tomorrow, a place Rose had not entered since reaching D grade. Catalina smiled fondly as her daughter tore through her opponent, swiftly disarming her.

A new small orb floated into her room, and with a flick of her hand, she acknowledged it. Alkaios had returned and was on his way to see her. She smiled again. She loved her children more than anything and would do everything in her power to protect them. __ Two weeks after Joe returned to World Ranked 19, the first human entrants began competing in the integration competitions. Leading the charge was the Divine Sword and his newly formed team, True Eden.

They represented humanity, earning 10, 000 integration points. Not to be outdone, Heliopolis entered the next competition, with Hakeem's new team, 'Alighted Darkness', making their debut. They secured 11, 000 integration points. At the same time, the Volduran abductions of humans abruptly ceased. Initially, humanity's leaders assumed this was Pathfinder regrouping, perhaps preparing a counter strike against humanity's rising influence or planning to attack one of the remaining pillars not under his control.

It wasn't until three more weeks had passed that a message arrived at the terminals of Heliopolis, New Eden, Kunlun and Rarohenga. From the Relashran Pillar. They were under siege. Pathfinder had launched a full assault on the city, attempting to reclaim the remaining Volduran faction that had slipped from his control. The timing of the message, fortunately, coincided with Joe's reappearance. He had not been seen in over a month. But now he was back. And he was ready for action.