Chapter 76: Awakening

Vell’s body felt wrong. His bones were like jelly, and his skin was pulled too tight over his frame. He tried to move, but a sharp, stabbing pain erupted from his chest, forcing a gasp of air from his lungs.

’What the hell happened?’

He slowly looked down. The gaping hole in his chest was gone, replaced by a patch of smooth, new skin. That was not the only change. He looked at his arms; they seemed to have grown slightly longer, and when he tried to clench his fists, they felt too big, too heavy. He sat up, his head spinning as he tried to adjust to the dim, strange light of the temple. His gaze swept across the room. Yenna and the kids were lying nearby, all of them still and unmoving, but he could sense a faint aura coming from each of them.

’They are all okay, good. But what is going on with me?’

He tentatively touched his chest. His fingers sank slightly into the new flesh; it felt wrong, unnatural. The surface was smooth, but the moment he applied more pressure, the skin beneath hardened, feeling like solid steel. He pushed down harder, and his vision blurred, a wave of dizziness washing over him from the sheer force of his own power.

’What the hell is this all about?’

He shifted, and his eyes caught sight of a thin, black liquid dripping from his skin. It flowed out of him, landing on the temple floor and dissolving through the stone like a potent acid. It was as if he was made of that same corrosive darkness, but it was not coming from an external source; it was inside him. As the black substance drained away, his skin was left covered in a network of red veins. They were not normal veins; they pulsed with a visible power, like a second, external heart beating in rhythm with his own.

[Master, do not panic. I believe we have finally crossed into a new stage of your evolution.] The system’s voice was calm, a stark contrast to the chaotic changes happening to his body.

’A new stage? What the hell do you mean, a new stage? Look at me! I look like some kind of monster!’

[That is a side effect of your body’s adaptation. The more you use the power you were resisting, the more you will come to resemble your true form.]

’True form? Is that the body I had in the past?’ He touched his chest again. This time, he focused his mana on the spot, and he was right. The skin began to harden, new muscle fibers formed beneath the surface, and he felt his strength returning, tenfold. ’Dammit, I feel amazing. Is this what real power feels like?’ He stretched, and the heavy, sluggish feeling in his limbs was gone. He moved again, and his body felt even lighter than before, almost effortless.

’I understand now.’ He did a quick backflip and landed perfectly, as if this had been his body all along.

“This is amazing! I feel amazing!” he said, his laughter echoing through the silent temple. The system was right. This was a new stage, and he needed to get used to it.

[Master, calm down and let me show you what has happened.] A screen appeared before him, displaying a new section in his status.

[System Update: New Forms Unlocked]

[Human Form: Base state, all powers and skills accessible.]

[Awakened Form: A partial transformation that greatly enhances all physical stats and grants increased access to your sealed power.]

[Corrupted Form: A dangerous, full transformation that pushes all your abilities to their absolute limit at the cost of your soul. This form is very difficult to maintain. (Currently Sealed)]

“Huh, not bad. So I am finally unlocking the potential of those three cores, or is it four now?” He looked down at his chest, then back at the system. “And what is this new sealed form? You said something about losing my soul, that does not sound good.” He could feel all of that raw mana flowing through him, and unlike before, his body now accepted it completely.

[To unlock that form, you would need to lose all control. It is a manifestation of the raw power that was sealed within you, so it can only be accessed when you have nothing left holding you back.]

“And you know I will not do that, right? That power was too chaotic. If that state is the only way to access that power, then I will just have to make a new one. I will become better than my old self.” He knew he was getting a little too cocky. ’I need to relax. It will take time to figure out how to use this new power without going into that state. For now, let’s focus on the new stats.’

He looked at the screen again, a huge smile on his face. He was having too much fun right now. He did another backflip just because he could and landed gracefully.

[Here are your current stats:]

Name: Vell

Rank: Low Adept

Title: Beast Tamer

Mana: 10,000/10,000

Stamina: 5,000/5,000

Strength: 4,400/4,400

Dexterity: 3,000

Endurance: 5,000

Intelligence: [Hidden]

Charisma: 200

Forge Slots: 5/20

Magic: None

AVAILABLE STAT POINTS: 1,000

AVAILABLE SKILL POINTS: 500

’Holy shit, this is too much!’ He was amazed. All his stats had increased drastically, and he had finally moved up to the next rank. ’What the hell is this? This is such a huge jump from before.’

He looked at his new unique trait. “Dual Mana Physiology, huh? That is the name of my new body. I guess I will take it.” He was impressed. His new stats were crazy, but he knew his core was still incomplete; it could be even better. ’I am so pumped!’

He let out another laugh and began to wander through the temple. “Let’s explore this dump. I can feel so much power lingering in here. I cannot wait to see what else is here.”

He slowly approached the others. His hands twitched, his body eager to explore, but he calmed himself. They were still his friends, he could not be reckless. He gently touched Yenna’s cheek. Her eyes opened instantly, and she sat up, seeing him standing before her.

’Huh? Hold on, what is going on here? Weren’t we just awake a few seconds ago? Am I hallucinating?’ She looked at him. “Hey, weren’t we just awake? How did we end up on the floor? I am so confused.”

For a moment, Vell felt like his own mind was playing tricks on him. ’Now that I think about it, something is definitely off here.’

[Master, I believe this is the temple’s doing. The residual mana in this place has destabilized. The battle, combined with your recent transformation, has likely triggered some kind of reaction.]

’A reaction?’

[Yes. The corrupted mana that saturates this temple is not inert—it is alive, in a way. When your power surged, it began to resonate with the ambient energy. This temple was not built as just a structure; it is a device, a kind of trap. And your recent awakening may have triggered one of its failsafe mechanisms.]

’Are they safe? Any side effects?’

[No, do not worry about it too much.]

’Okay.’

’Well, that was a lie,’ the system thought to itself, a process Vell was not privy to. ’Master does not know that his body was leaking a dangerous type of mana that almost killed his companions. It is sealed for now, but if it ever comes back, they might actually die.’

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