Chương 367: Chapter 358 - The Next Steps

Swords flashed around the white chamber as the air was carved open again and again—sliced, pierced, shredded—each strike landing with a rhythm that no longer belonged to technique alone, but to the evolving heartbeat of something deeper. Alonso's form blurred through the vast room, his steps gliding, stomping, pivoting, snapping from angle to angle as if the chamber had become a battlefield only he could see. Droplets of sweat slid down his brow and flung into the air with every sharp turn.

His breathing hitched, steadied, then hitched again as he measured every strike with intent—rationality and instinct woven so tightly they were indistinguishable. The sequence he had crafted unfolded again and again. A cut. A thrust. A shift. A spiral. His body moved as if reacting to opponents in all directions, imagined yet frighteningly real in the way he parried their phantom blows. Minutes became hours. Hours became more hours. His muscles trembled, then steadied through grit and sheer refusal.

EM currents flared at his fingertips, surging and collapsing as he pushed his control to the edge. His lungs burned. His legs felt like stone. His arms shook every time he raised the blade—but he kept going. The pulse of the chamber's natural light dimmed and brightened through several cycles. He barely noticed. Day one bled into day two. He slept only when he was about to collapse, woke as soon as his mind clawed its way back to awareness, and continued. Movements sharpened. Paths flowed smoother.

The sequence deepened into something almost alive. Another strike. Another pivot. Another clash with an enemy who wasn't there—yet demanded to be beaten. At some point a new element entered his form. A subtle shift. A weight behind each motion. A pressure that sank into the floor with every step. His Will flared. Then— SLASH A final cut ripped through the stillness, slicing the air with a force that didn't belong to mere muscle. He stopped. The sword froze mid-drip as sweat slid down its edge.

He stood there, chest heaving, body trembling, steam rising from his skin as if he had been forged inside a furnace. His breath left him in a long exhale—hot, heavy, burning from somewhere deep inside. He studied the progress with his skills over the last few days. No-Strike – 19. 235% ➤ 20. 149% Path of Shards – 20. 443% ➤ 20. 912% Will Manifest – 7. 384% ➤ 8. 862% He felt 21% becoming another bottleneck in his progress—similar to how 14% had been, only considerably harder.

The closer he got to it, the harder it became to push the skill any further. It seemed he would need more than just training and repetition to surpass it. A qualitative breakthrough felt necessary. Especially for Path of Shards, which was practically at its limit. No-Strike still had some room to grow, and Will Manifest continued its steady progress each day, as he grew more accustomed to merging his Will with his intent. Still, he had an idea of what needed to come next.

His Path of Shards relied heavily on his internal microcapacitor lattice, which itself depended on his Fusion State. And that one required more than just Stage Progress. In his case—on his path—it demanded that he break into the next realm. He had been discussing the matter with Darius over the last few days. They had divided these so-called realms—names coined by the two of them, not by The Tower—into perception realms and sword realms.

In perception, he had reached the second: Understanding of Self, which followed Enemy as Self. As for the sword realm, only one had been acknowledged so far: Sword Intent, or simply Intent. But his past experience had taught him something important—his path grew better the simpler and more unified it was. After some thought, he had decided to stop separating sword and perception. Instead, he would fold them together under a single progression. A unified system, one he will call: Combat Realms.

That meant each of his Combat Realms would be tied directly to a corresponding Fusion State. And naturally, whatever realm came next would serve as the path toward the next evolution—the Fourth State. However, from his talks with Chiara and Ayu, he knew reaching that Fourth State at their current Stage Progress was a tall order.

Chiara had explained it was theoretically possible, but even under ideal conditions, it would take no less than three months—and up to a year in a more realistic scenario, using her own standards. So he set that aside for now. He focused instead on what could boost his combat prowess the most in the shortest time while laying a foundation for what came next. For him, that meant improving his technique, sharpening his awareness, and above all—deepening his command of Will.

Even if the percentages hadn't climbed much, he understood the truth: he was far stronger than before. With his new titles, his SP gain, and the refinement of his skills, he was certain that his current self had a good chance of defeating the seven-tails alone, even without Lukas' link. He let the thought settle, before turning to more immediate needs. He stripped off his clothes as he walked toward the shower, eager to wash away the sweat and heat.

It still amused him how the controls responded to EM input—pressure, temperature, even the angle of the spray shifting with the slightest adjustment of intent. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. It was clear each waiting room was more advanced than the last. He wondered what came after this one. There were containers of liquid soap, shampoo, even conditioner. A bit much, maybe—but he wasn't going to complain.

Cold water hit his scalp, and he exhaled as the shock cut through the lingering haze of training. His hair had grown longer than he realised as it brushed the top of his ears. Time for a cut. He ran his fingers through it, pushing it back, and let his mind settle as the exhaustion bled out of him under the steady, rhythmic fall of water. He wondered then what to do with Overdrive. It felt like one of those nagging things still tugging at his head, something he couldn't quite fit into his current style well.

As his Stage Progress increased, it felt like it was slowly falling behind, with even Dual Overdrive only giving him a rough 15-20% boost to his reactions at his current level. Not bad, but nowhere near what it used to be. The fact The Tower never recognised it as a skill said more than a bit. At the end of the day, it was a trick—one that had done wonders before all the States came into play—but right now it fell short of matching the rest of his progress. Ayu's solution to it had been really good.

She was working on merging Overdrive into Fury in hopes of pushing its progress past the next bottleneck. She said using both separately put too much strain on her body and mind, and she was searching for a way to ease that strain without abandoning either. He felt that was the way to go. Fury and Overdrive had more in common than it seemed. But for him, he couldn't think of any of his skills he could merge Overdrive into. Maybe Will Manifest… nah. Wouldn't do. No.

He might actually need a new skill altogether—one that wouldn't fall behind but would grow and align with his path. However… that was easier said than done. He knew too that it was best not to divide his attention on too many fronts. A single skill with high progress was better than several with low ones. Well… be it what it may. Eventually, if he hit a bottleneck in everything else, he would give it some thought. For the time being… there was still room for growth.

He stepped out of the shower and magnetised one of the clean kitchen knives to bring his towel towards him and dried his hair. It was a shame they couldn't use this as a base of operations in the stages. Maybe Lukas could build one if they found the materials? Not that it was a priority, but he wouldn't complain about having a shower, a nice meal, and clean clothes between battles with whatever horrors The Tower was preparing for them next. He was about to get dressed when—" Seven days have passed.

No further entry has been registered. Limit not met. Advancing temporal state to the next entry." He felt the signal in his head clearly. Yet it came from… the Tower itself? Limit not met… advancing time? He quickly snapped his vision toward the marker on the wall… and froze. It had changed. 6/21 ➤ 7/21 What the… Pablo's Virtual Diary (IV) Entry Record - 151 The battle with the Wardens has escalated.

Similar encounters have broken out in the Azcoyatl up north, and the Primal Priests have been dispatched to deal with them. Stephen wants to join them and asked what I intend to do. However… I declined. The power of the five-tails I saw in the visuals Leonie sent was terrifying. My current three-tail summons, even at 65% enhancement, wouldn't survive a single hit of that creature. If I go now, I'll just be another pawn—one that won't get the orb either even if it was taken down.

The Third Stage is still some distance away, but until I reach it, or Leonie calls for me, I'll stay in isolation and focus on my progress. Entry Record - 153 Stephen succeeded. He managed to take down one of the Wardens with support from the Azcoyatl. That said, the cost in Azcoyatl lives was brutal. Hundreds died, the fort was reduced to rubble, and the Xok'al invasion hasn't slowed—it's pushing deeper into their territory.

The situation is dire, and unlike the Ajnal—who have Leonie—and the Beastmen—who have Leonhard—we in the Azcoyatl lack a central figure with overwhelming individual combat power and command. Stephen is strong, but he doesn't have the force or presence those two do. After some advice, Stephen decided to withdraw and leave the matter to the Azcoyatl to resolve. Meanwhile, I managed to push Chorus of Thought past 9%, and my control over the summons has improved.

If I keep going at this pace, I might be able to split my mind into three instances instead of two. Let's see how it goes. Entry Record - 155 Leonie has done it. She's been granted the status of General in the Ajnal Empire, giving her higher command over their forces. More importantly, she now has access to the capital's sacred site. I'm curious about what she'll find there. The place supposedly holds a record of their core skill—Storm Domain. But… what else?

Entry Record - 156 The hazy visuals from the Xayen recording were certainly interesting. It seems the Xok'al were created, not naturally born. And this ancient Xayen civilization… who were they? Why has no one ever mentioned an ancestor civilisation powerful enough to transcend all current empires? Who hid the information—and for what purpose? Besides a manual for the skill and some smithing methods, Leonie also uncovered coordinates that point to several Xayen ruins scattered around the world.

One appears to be here in the Azcoyatl capital, another somewhere in beastman territory, and the rest… unclear. The coordinates are incomplete. Leonie is waiting for Leonhard to ascend to the Warlord position to gain more precision. Entry Record - 158 He didn't disappoint. Leonhard became a Warlord. And more than that, he's become a beastman himself — some of his men as well. I knew it was their intention when we last talked during the southern expedition, but still… hard to picture the tall German with a tail.

In any case, we now have more precise coordinates. Leonie is planning an attack on a ruin located near the Ajnal Empire's eastern border and has asked Leonhard for support since he's close. As for me… I'll remain on the sidelines this time. Entry Record - 159 The invasion of the Xok'al nest and the securing of the Xayen ruin was a success. A Warden appeared at the end and killed one of Leonhard's men, but between Leonie, Leonhard, Robert, Otto, and Vane, they managed to bring it down.

It was said to be a brutal fight, yet… a significant victory. For once, a Warden has been taken down by a team of Climbers without assistance from the natives. The orb was critical, and the knowledge inside is said to improve weaponry and the EM-boost Ajnal armour. This should help Leonie and the Shadows considerably. It seems the next objective lies on our side, in the Marshes. I hope I can reach the Third Stage in time and join. Entry Record - 161 I did it. The lattice holds.

The structure is stable, uniform, and responsive across all layers. I have finally achieved the Third Pillar State. And yet, the anticipated surge of satisfaction is absent. The emotional response is noticeably muted. There is a discrepancy between expected and actual affect, likely a by-product of the cognitive reconfiguration associated with the new mental structure. I will monitor it, but it does not currently interfere with performance. More importantly, the functional gains are substantial.

My baseline enhancement has increased by approximately 50%. Signal clarity is higher, parallel processing is smoother, and the mental strain during multi-instance division has decreased by an observable margin. With this new stability, I can now exert full control over two four-tails specimens. Its movement fidelity, reaction time, and neural responsiveness are all within usable operational thresholds.

This gives me, for the first time, the quantitative ability to meaningfully influence the outcome of the next operation and the war in general. I will run another series of tests before deployment. However, as I went through the visuals of the Xayen again, I noticed something unusual. There is… something hidden in it.