Kade sat in the chair with his eyes closed. Celine had given him a checkup and concluded he had no discernable injuries. It would be faster to recover by resting instead of depending on healers. Especially when the healers would be better use on Eliza.
Sleeping was surprisingly difficult, but it wasn’t necessary. It didn’t help that he could hear soft panting filling the hotel room. 2025-06-09 18:01:52 +0000 UTC View Post
Distinct boundaries separated the shops, and each looked to be in different worlds, which probably was the case.
Kade stared at the shop on his right. It looked like a rusted factory, with nearly broken automated arms endlessly dismantling old armor and rebuilding them into worn but functional sets. Sparks flew with every movement and steam vents hissed upon a set’s completion.
He...
2025-06-09 18:00:59 +0000 UTC View PostThe iconic silhouette of the Willis Tower loomed over the changed downtown Chicago, bordering a mini forest that once used to be the Chicago River.
However, it was no longer just a skyscraper. A spiraling crown of blue-gold energy pulsed around its spire, visible from miles away. The building’s steel frame shimmered faintly, likely the remnant of the mana it had absorbed.
Willis T...
2025-06-09 18:00:11 +0000 UTC View PostKade didn’t need to wait long for Finn to arrive. Less than a minute later, he rushed into the office with a flushed and sweaty face.
“Finn, you’ve been busy, but in all the wrong ways.” Finn was as threatening as an ant, with little change from the last time they met.
Finn looked alarmed. “Are you angry that we used your name? Matt said you might not like it, but it reall...
2025-06-09 17:59:25 +0000 UTC View PostKade wasn’t even able to take in the comforting blue sky before the interface appeared with the summary.
Rift Zone Summary:
Lifeforms Killed: 3
Monsters Killed: 2,381
Direct Kills – 1,924 (19,240 points)
Indirect Kills – 457 (1,371 points)
Bonus: Be the catalyst...
2025-05-20 14:55:28 +0000 UTC View PostKade flinched when the needle dug deeper into his flesh. The unchanging speed of the blood extraction caused him to suspect the deeper stab was only to cause him discomfort.
“It won’t be for much longer.”
It almost sounded like the voice said that to comfort him. Telling him this would end soon and he wouldn’t be in pain for long.
Kade hated it.
...
2025-05-20 14:54:17 +0000 UTC View PostCurious about the wall’s material, Kade poked it with his [Soulrend]. He had been walking for several minutes with no changes in his surroundings, and was already antsy.
The metallic clink when the [Soulrend]’s tip met the wall was confusing. Though the wall looked and felt like stone, the [Soulrend]’s contact with it produced a metal-like sound.
Kade wasn’t sure what the po...
2025-05-20 14:53:33 +0000 UTC View PostYou have destroyed 3 Chasmfiends (Arcana Level 53)
You have destroyed 1 Terrorhulk (Arcana Level 53)
You have destroyed 11 Voidborns (Arcana Level 52)
You have destroyed 1 Blood Revenant (Arcana Level 52)
You have destroyed 23 Warpstalkers (Arcana Level 51)
You have destroyed 2 Dreadmaws (Arcana Level 51)
…
Kade blinked before skimm...
2025-05-20 14:52:34 +0000 UTC View PostThere was chaos in the horde as they tried to adjust to the onslaught, but it wasn’t from what Kade expected.
[Inferno Burst] had disappeared seconds before, and while Kade was a killing machine, his efficiency was irrelevant against an enemy force numbering in the hundreds or thousands. Hellion was barely a factor since the small bird conserved his [MP] and chose when to pick-off the m...
2025-05-20 14:51:47 +0000 UTC View Post“Has it really been a day?” Eliza asked the question that was also on Kade’s mind.
He didn’t think so, but he had a suspect for what caused the day to end. “It must be that damned pillar.”
Eliza frowned as she took in his severe expression. “You’re worried enough that it’s all you can focus on. Should we really worry about it, though? Even though it’s rebuilt, th...
2025-05-20 14:51:03 +0000 UTC View PostKade stared toward the city.
His fingers twitched in restlessness as he held onto his [Soulrend] tightly. He didn’t get chased by the remaining karnathi as he expected, but that didn’t mean he could try for another ambush.
He asked for a snapshot from Hellion.
A bony karnathi using blood to draw symbols on the pillar. A moat from hell surrounding the pillar. Undead, ro...
2025-03-10 16:06:47 +0000 UTC View PostYou have destroyed 285 Karnathis (Arcana Level 39)!
Elbow Smash (Level 6)—>Elbow Smash (Level 10)
Kade wasn’t surprised that the weak karnathis he killed hadn’t given him a level up. He still took satisfaction that [Elbow Smash] was at level ten. He had to choose his ability, but first, he had something more important to do.
“There ...
2025-03-10 16:06:03 +0000 UTC View PostKade’s fingers tapped the shaft of his [Soulrend] as he looked off into the distance.
“Hellion only left a few minutes ago. He wouldn’t even be halfway to that city yet,” Eliza commented from beside him.
Kade hummed in agreement, but still didn’t look away. Nearly all of his focus on the bond, and at the surprising change it now had. The act of transferring his [MP] throug...
2025-03-10 16:05:18 +0000 UTC View PostThe area effect removal left Kade tense for several hours. It was impossible not to be since there was nothing to do other than stay alert for any ambushes.
He would have preferred to be in an actual battle than wait around for the unknown.
“Maybe the second day is a rest day?” Eliza commented. They had been discussing what they would have to deal with, and she had finally said ...
2025-03-10 16:04:38 +0000 UTC View PostI'll continue to make the membership free until I can get back to writing consistently. I'll be honest and say it might take a while, maybe 1-2 months more. This unfortunately cant be fixed by just writing more since my health has been in the gutter since December.
2025-03-10 16:03:32 +0000 UTC View PostCal cast [Rainfall] to pass time as he waited for people to return. Strangely, he had cast the spell several times already, and Tavia still wasn’t back. He wasn’t sure what could delay her for hours.
Even more surprisingly, Nibbles and her group weren’t back either, and they had been gone since yesterday. Of course, Cal wasn’t concerned about them at all. He doubted if there was a...
2025-02-22 22:59:59 +0000 UTC View Post“Why does Human Cal dislike his own creation?”
Nibbles looked down from her perch on the golem’s shoulders, sneering at the old wolf having to use his legs. “Mind your own business, oldie. How would you know what the god is thinking, anyway?”
She patted the golem’s thick neck in comfort, sure there was a reason behind the god’s actions.
“A...
2025-02-22 22:59:17 +0000 UTC View PostCal woke to rapid knocks on his door. He blearily opened his eyes and instinctively reached out with a mana tendril to see who decided it was a good idea to disturb him this early.
Tavia?
He got up quickly and opened the door, concerned that something had happened. Her excited expression told him he could be right, but not in the way he assumed.
“Cal! Did you get th...
2025-02-19 19:42:47 +0000 UTC View Post“You weren’t gone for long. I’m guessing it was more of a casual chat?” Tavia commented as he entered the house.
“I’m not so sure about casual.” Cal hesitated about expanding, fighting his urge to keep everything to himself. Tavia asked him to share more with her. “Do you know if there are any rumors about the Elder Council feuding with the guildmaster? I feel like they ca...
2025-02-19 19:42:00 +0000 UTC View Post“—one of the best places in the Central Sanctum! I’ll can be your guide if you want to visit.”
Cal nodded, just like he did to everything Redd said about the wonders of the Central Sanctum. Other than the surge of anger he felt when Redd stared at Tavia a little too long, which could be almost be called irrational, the man wasn’t too bad.
Still, Redd was trying too hard to...
2025-02-18 14:56:20 +0000 UTC View PostThe guard at the entrance of the Grand Market was the same one as before, and he had a good enough memory to remember Seris and let her in without checking. It made the girl stand even straighter as she led them up the stairs.
“I’ll show you the best cakes they have, Tavia. I have eaten most of them.”
Tavia hummed in reply, still distracted by whatever she was thinking of. It ...
2025-02-18 14:55:41 +0000 UTC View PostWilliam hadn’t been successful in solving his Qi issue. That was frustrating, but it was more frustrating that nobody had bothered to check on him in the week since Mei Lingxi’s visit. Nobody responded to the deafening racket he made when he destroyed the room.
He had been under the impression that the house arrest wouldn’t last much longer. Obviously, that assumption had been wrong...
2025-02-14 18:56:28 +0000 UTC View Post“You are remembering our conversation with the Grand Elder,” Mei Lingxi commented, shaking her head. “I wish I could help, but I’m afraid it won’t work how you expect. It’s more likely to benefit me in someway rather than the best choice for you.”
William sighed. That reasoning made too much sense. He had hoped to use Mei Lingxi the same way he used Princess Jin as a compass...
2025-02-14 18:55:41 +0000 UTC View PostWilliam dragged his finger across the floor, shuffling on his knees to the side when his arms didn’t have enough reach to complete the formation. It was a position that no self-respecting cultivator would put himself in, but as he had learned on the ‘Wheel of Death’ in the Abyss, he had no pride… apparently.
He honestly didn’t care because he was too engrossed in successfully co...
2025-02-14 18:55:03 +0000 UTC View Post“You activated it,” Elder Yu said incredulously, keeping her Qi in place to prevent it from happening again. “Why did you supply the eye your QI instead of cutting it off?”
“Ah… I lost the connection, so I wanted to make it clearer.” William felt how dumb that reasoning was as he spoke. “Not the best idea in hindsight.”
“That’s an understatement,” Elder Yu re...
2025-02-14 18:54:21 +0000 UTC View PostWilliam touched his forehead, his fingers catching a few drops trickling down his skin. It looked like the thought of Lord Paddlington not being entirely on his side concerned him more than his own thoughts showed.
“Elder Yu,” he started slowly, “I will admit upfront that this isn’t the complete story, but this is as close as I can tell.”
Elder Yu’s eyes sharpened with c...
2025-02-14 18:53:43 +0000 UTC View PostWilliam reread the passage to double-check that he understood. His last attempt to create the formation failed, and even though nobody witnessed it, he felt enough embarrassment for himself to make sure he followed it up with success.
It was a simple light-emitting formation that all beginners first do, or so Mei Lingxi’s notes said. He believed them—they were far too thorough not to....
2025-02-14 18:52:47 +0000 UTC View Post“Would this really be of much help?” Tavia asked as they stared at Seris dreamily running her fingers over a bow on display.
“No, at least, not now. I noticed she had given up on her hunting entirely after she started working for me. This will give her a reason to keep her skills sharp until she has use of her mana.”
Tavia hummed in agreement, letting the silence take over f...
2025-02-12 20:15:57 +0000 UTC View PostSomehow, it had entirely passed Cal’s mind that he had never been to Miren’s office when he agreed to meet Tavia there.
It wouldn’t have been an issue worth thinking of at most times, but when Cal wandered around Lumina like a vagrant searching for the office, the embarrassment forced him to think on it. Asking for directions would have solved the issue, but he became unreasonably d...
2025-02-12 20:15:07 +0000 UTC View PostCal resisted the urge to spread out mana tendrils and test [Mana Sense] in the large city. He lost count on the number of times he stopped himself, even though it was a great idea.
There was too large of a chance to get lost in what he might discover, and if not that, time would fly by as he trained the spell. This trip wasn’t time to lose track of… well, time.
He shifted slight...
2025-02-12 20:13:36 +0000 UTC View Post