Chương 115: B2 Chapter 34

Hakon stopped the experiments with [Spirit Forging] once the vision faded. Memories of the vision splintered and seemed to disperse as well when he reached out with his will to push them back together. He retained as much of the vision as possible, etched into his mind, even if it was only to ask Ava about the settlement. No matter how insignificant the vision may have been, it was important to him. Why, he didn't quite understand either, but it was important.

Once the decision was made and most of the memories retained, Hakon knew it was time to rest. Recover his mind and spirit to return to his training and to hunt. With the Blood Moon blooming, it would be a gross waste of opportunity to leave the frenzy monsters to fight among themselves. Still, as he collapsed on his bed, Hakon first checked on his spirit form. A wide variety of familiar weaves unfolded before his translucent spirit form. Everything had returned to how it was supposed to look, except for one thing.

The weaves were devoid of spirit energy. As if. He growled inwardly, swallowing the frustration trying to come to the surface. Hakon expected something like that to happen when [Spirit Forging] sucked spirit energy out of the weaves, but he also hoped that it would recover like his Core's mana reserves. That did not seem to be the case, leaving him wondering how he was supposed to level his Sk–... Forget about that. His brows furrowed furiously as he caught some movement within the spirit form.

A trace of spirit energy, minuscule and so insignificant it almost slipped through his perception, returned to one of his weaves. The largest of his weaves, to be precise. [Arcane Manifestation]'s spirit energy returned. The process was just a lot slower than anticipated. It would probably take a night or two to fill [Arcane Manifestation] back up. As for his other weaves, Hakon could only hope that they'd recover in a timely manner as well.

Still, the spirit energy returned to where it rightfully belonged, and that was all Hakon had been hoping for. So [Spirit Forging] uses excess spirit energy to create visions? Or was that a mistake? It certainly felt like something had gone wrong when he used [Spirit Forging]. Enhanced Comprehension tried to push him in a certain direction, but Hakon had gone another way. If the 'Spirit' in [Spirit Forging] is about spirit energy, then 'Forging' is probably about hammering something like a smith. My spirit maybe?

To strengthen it somehow? Is that why the Skill is so obsessed with the Behemoth Blood? Because the Behemoth Blood is the other ingredient needed to forge my spirit? It didn't feel like his mind was going in the wrong direction, yet it also wasn't like he could tell if his thoughts pushed him down the right path either. The situation was frustrating, and so very interesting at the same time. One way or another, it was good to know that his spirit energy recovered.

It would be even better if he could find a way to store spirit energy to use with [Spirit Forging] rather than slowing down his progression with his other Skills. After all, Hakon needed spirit energy to alter the weaves manually. Or, when his Skills improved, the weaves would also produce spirit energy to use and strengthen said Skill. That was part of the Ancestors' gifts. Pushing his thoughts about [Spirit Forging] and the details revolving around it away, he turned to the weaves.

There was one familiar cluster of Skills and another cluster that had caught his attention. It was something Hakon had wanted to combine into something greater, a single Skill that encompassed everything he'd been forced to do with several Skills up until now, for a few nights now, but the timing was not right. Still, at least one more Skill Fusion related to his Magic Skills was waiting for him.

"Not now." Hakon groaned, cursing his own ambition. No matter how much he wanted to fuse more Skills, he couldn't skip the progression of the respective Skills. I want another Epic Skill. Something that rivals [Arcane Manifestation]. His own achievements had only barely been enough to create a Rare Skill out of the culmination of six powerful Skills.

Rare sounded, well, rare, and rare ought to be powerful, but it was the Epic Skill that granted him the power to defend against Ulfar and to push his Ancient Power over the edge. Lying on his bed, Hakon left the spirit form. He wanted to sleep but failed to do so. Not even the extreme exhaustion of his mind and spirit guided him into sleep's embrace. The Ancestors. That was yet another thing that had been forced upon him. Doubts about the Ancestors.

Accepting Ulfar into their halls, inviting his spirit to feast with them, showed Hakon that his belief had not been wrong, but there were certain things that did not align with what he was taught. Either the old Barbarians were wrong or the Ancestors were lying to them all. Alas, it was far more likely that the former was the case, which left Hakon wondering just how much of the older generation's teachings were wrong.

The Ancient Scripture had been bestowed upon their kind, but if that was truly the case, why did humans have access to the Scriptures as well? Their Scriptures did not look the same, but there were many similarities. At the same time, there were some steep differences. First and foremost, humans had Classes or whatever. That was the most important difference, though it did not end with that.

Several things did not align, but that did not change one fact; there were enough similarities for a human to teach a Barbarian and the other way around. If not for the similarities, Ava would have never been able to teach Hakon about [Meditation], or what he transformed the Skill into. [Aether Spiral]. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Taking a deep breath, Hakon wished for nothing more than to discard the thoughts plaguing his exhausted mind.

Instead, his mind was invigorated as Enhanced Comprehension activated, helping him comb through the mishmash of doubts and questions. The similarities between the 'Class System,' as Ava called it, and the Ancient Scripture were one thing, but it was also a fact that humans were weaker and more restricted. Not all humans could wield either magic or a Will, and even those that could were unable to wield both together. That was if Hakon's memory served him right.

He also learned Magic Skills much faster than Ava believed possible. Enhanced Comprehension was the reason why, but that too was the Ancestors' gift. So, in a way, they gave him everything. But only because he tried hard enough. If he hadn't worked so hard, or at all, after the Rite, he would have never gained so much power. For they only rewarded the hard-working. Those willing to bleed and endure excruciating pain to achieve their goal.

"They recognize effort and empower it." That was what Skills were, or was it not? No matter how pleasant the weaves looked, Hakon could do everything the skill weaves allowed him to do on his own. However, it would not be nearly as efficient, nor would his power be as great without the Skills. Because the Ancestors guided his Skills' growth and made them stronger than what a warrior would normally be able to unleash.

The higher the proficiency of a Skill, the greater the Ancestors' guidance, resulting in the Levels assigned to Skills. … Was that it? It didn't feel like the perfect answer. Hakon could learn Skills without knowing anything about weaves, and he could improve them without having to actively use them. [Mana Bolt] grew stronger when he used it without having to channel mana into the weave.

If anything, his growing understanding of the Skill, when not using the weave, pushed the spellweave much further than it would have otherwise. Even if the answer didn't feel perfect, it was good enough for the time being. His eyes were still tightly shut, but darkness finally embraced him.

The warriors were already waiting for him when Hakon stepped out of the hut. Tariq and a dozen other young warriors smashed their clenched fists into their chests, their eyes gleaming.

"Successor! We waited! Please lead the hunt!" Their voices reverberated across the tribehold, conviction and burning excitement fueling every word they said. Taking in the situation before him, Hakon noticed dozens of warriors. Most belonged to the younger generation, but there were also some older warriors. They all had one thing in common: their eyes. The Barbarians standing before him were ready to fight, to shed the blood of their foes, and to earn the Ancestors' approval, and they wanted him to lead them.

After the fight with Ulfar, Hakon had become their Successor.

"I will. That was always the plan." He said calmly while adjusting his dagger sheaths and hand axes.

"But we can't all hunt together. If too many of us hunt together, we will attract too much unwanted attention. Monsters too strong for anyone below the 4th Ascension will take note of us, or, and that is far more likely, we will find monsters too weak to pose a challenge." Monsters with high enough perception to sense them approach were likely intelligent enough to retreat if they deemed the Barbarians too strong, even under the influence of the Blood Moon.

As for those daring enough to attack, they would lay out traps and attack from dead angles, killing unsuspecting warriors. Smaller groups were easier to protect, they could skulk more quietly through the dark forest, and their presence was less likely to attract the strongest of creatures. Hakon considered more factors, but he did not know everything. Compared to those hunting in the dark forest for decades, he was a greenhorn, and that was unacceptable.

"What do you know about the monster movements?" He turned to the older warriors, attention flicking from one hunter to the next.

"The chieftain told me about the danger. More Fractures formed and the monsters' habitats are shifting, but that's not enough. I need numbers, how strong the monsters are, what kind of monsters we will face where, and more. Tell me everything." Hakon's command earned raised eyebrows from the hunters who couldn't be more than a few cycles older, but the oldest warriors at the 2nd Ascension smiled at his order.

"As you will, Successor." The oldest held his fist above his heart and started. [Split Focus] activated. Hakon listened and digested the information live. He had several questions regarding the Blood Moon, how it affected monsters and how much it affected them before following up with questions regarding pack monsters, monster rivalries, the effect of the Blood Moon on Fractures, and much more. The more questions he asked, the less useful the answers became.

More of the older generation worked together to come up with semi-satisfying responses all while the sun rose higher and higher. Several warriors showed their displeasure, and a few asked why the Successor had so many questions, but Tariq and Björn silenced them. Violence was the way of the Barbarians; however, a punch to the gut was still better than a blade in the neck. Because that was what Astrid would have done if not for Tariq and Björn responding in a timely manner.

Not to kill them, but to silence the cretins daring enough to question the Successor. It was perfect. She was perfect, and Hakon could not help himself as he smiled brightly at his mate.

"I see. I think that's enough." He raised his hand to silence the hunters and turned to the others.

"We will split into several groups. Every group will be given a target strong enough to kill you if you lower your guard. You will struggle against the foes I assign to you, enough to earn the Ancestors' attention. That is what we all want, is it not?" Dozens of warriors let out excited roars and thunderous cheers, but they were all silenced when Hakon's lips parted again.

"Try not to die, but embrace the pain of power. Use everything you have and more to defeat your target. Work together, learn more about your brothers and sisters in arms, and protect them. Earn the Ancestors' attention and acquire powerful Skills, and maybe even a Level or a special reward." He felt like repeating that they should not die, but saying it once ought to be enough. Treading the fine line between extreme danger and certain death was dangerous; however, Hakon was confident in his warriors.

Not only were the younger warriors stronger than the old generation, but they would grow even stronger in the future. That, and Hakon assigned the older hunters to join the young warriors when he created the groups. They're all only at the 2nd Ascension at most. Hakon recognized. While not necessarily a problem, even the strongest of the warriors under his command did not have a Will.

If anything, it was more likely that Astrid or Björn would acquire a Will before the older warriors at the Peak of the 2nd Ascension would do so. And that was fine. It was something Hakon had to take into account if he wanted his people to grow stronger, the older, stagnating warriors included, but it was fine nonetheless.