Chapter 21 Part 2 of 6 (Patreon)

“And one of us should be awake, sorry brother,” Erik said.

“No worries man, the revival pills and concoctions will save lives. I’ll take sentry duty for you to keep going.”

They had made it to the teleportation pad and light enveloped them.

“You been training much?” Erik asked as they reached the Wood floor.

“Everyday if I can,” Rugrat struck a pharoh pose.

“You’re going to blind the kids,” Erik  munched on his burrito and tilted his head to Niemm and Special team Four who were protecting them.

Rugrat flexed his back, completetly ineffectual through his body armor.

“Got the team on my back! The beach is over there, take a right”Erik rolled his eyes smirking at Rugrat’s elaborate poses.

They were walking towards the beast training stables as Erik and Rugrat sensed something above.

“Geo-! Rugrat disappeared as a missile of blue flames and pink tongue dragged him backwards, his two feet leaving grooves in the ground. “-rge!”

“Gilly!” Erik yelled with wide eyes, stuffing the last of the burrito in his mouth as a shadow covered Erik

Gilly let out a happy squeak closing her wings. She dropped the last several meters to the ground. The buildings shook, people ran for their homes.

It’s grodzirla!

Erik dropped to his back as the special team literally jumped through walls.

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Quest Completed: Beast Cultivation 2

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One’s power is great, but the power of two united in a single cause is greater than the sum of its parts.

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Requirements:

Increase your beast companions cultivation

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Rewards:

Your Beast Companion has reached body like Iron.

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Gilly took the impact easily, not giving Erik time to read the notification fully, with her powerful legs that were as large as a man. Her wings lay along her back while she flicked her tail, closing the wings that lay along it.

She reached down with her neck, licking Erik’s face.

Hi! Hihihihi Himaster!

“Gilly?” Erik held her her head with both hands, pushing her away as he looked into her big eyes.

Hi!

Her thoughts were not only filled with emotions but she could communicate! Somewhat.

Erik let out a deep laugh and rubbed between her eyes.

“Hey you!”

Ohh scratches, yuss.

Gilly’s leg bicycled in the air, shaking the ground, half closing her eyes, her tongue falling out.

“Stop slobbering all over me!” Erik got back up, Gilly’s body was as large as an SUV, her neck as long as he was tall, her tail was twice as long. Her head was the size of a chair.

She had a base color of deep earth brown, yellow and blue strips ran from her neck to her back and down her tail. Her markings were brighter, her wings were developed to fly with. She was a true dragon now, proud and powerful.

“Who’s a good boy,” Rugrat wandered over with George who was as large as an armored personnel carrier. The marking’s around his face had turned white and blue, extending into his coat, he looked regal and proud. If not for the tongue hanging out of his mouth and as he pushed against Rugrat, making Rugrat have to watch his steps to not trip or fall over.

“Hey, sorry they got a little excited!” Rex, the beast trainer who had been working with them said as he jogged over. Looking at the people recovering in the small Wood floor village “Shall we get out of here?”

“Whoops,” Gilly get small.

She jumped up, turning smaller and landing on his shoulders;

Erik waved his hand smoothing the ground. Rugrat fixed the walls that had been broken. The Special team watched the area, patting off the dust that came from jumping through buildings.

Erik looked at Gilly, his finger turned into a hand as he scratched, her. He couldn’t punish such an innocent looking face.

Erik and Rugrat nodded their heads wincing to the people of the Wood floor and escaped -the village to the training areas beyond.

Gilly and George returned to their full sizes as Erik and Rugrat petted them.

“So, a few things changed since they started training with me. First thing was that I got them food to eat that was aligned with their natural element. Then we ran tests, saw what increased their stregnth more, attribute dense mana beat out mana every time. Their bodies just absorbed it rapidly. Also training and working with other beasts in the lower realms they learned. It only accelerated as they went into the dungeons and fought against beasts of the same attribute. Their attacks are stronger and they have more of them. Through what I’ve learned their attacks are closer to the body cultivation side of things than magic and spells. The attributes have purified their bloodline and altered their bodies, a bit different from how we cultivate but faster even.”

“Wait, bloodline?” Erik asked.

“Yes, all beast cultivation is based on bloodline, their heritage and environment at a young age creates their bloodline. Attribute mana is just a way of unlocking that. The attributes that beasts display is the kind of attribute they need to unlock their bloodline more. Once they purify their bloodline. Well the information is a bit hazy, but I think something similar to the other beasts in the Dungeon Gilly was in, happens. They gain a human form and true sentience.”

“George already communicates a few words with me,” Rugrat said.

“Same,”

“They might know small phrases, through communicating with you all the time. Think of them as babies on the human scale. Once they get their human forms then they’re just young children though they supposedly get knowledge through their bloodline so they mature rapidly.”

“So we’ve got kids?” Rugrat asked.

“No, no they’re still your tamed beasts, its just, the way of things in the realm. Beasts retain everything from before and can change back into beasts, that is when they are strongest. Though they can now learn.”

“With my body cultivation it says that I need to purify my bloodline,” Erik pulled up the quest.

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Quest: Body Cultivation 5

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The path cultivating one’s body is not easy. To stand at the top, one must forge their own path forward.

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Requirements:

Purify your Bloodline

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Rewards:

?

+1,000,000,000 EXP

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“Purify your bloodline?”

“He also formed a monster core,” Rugrat tapped his chest.

“What?” Rex looked at Erik’s chest.

“Yeah, I tempered my body to Diamond and now it wants me to unlock my bloodline.”

“Have you tried consuming a monster core?” Rex pulled out a monster core

“What? Why?” Erik asked.

“Well if you have a monster core then maybe you can consume others? A monster core is similar to a mana core, though instead of storing mana, it stores the elements. Have you checked what elements are stored within?”

Erik turned his sight inward and looked at the small clear marble within his chest.

“Nope, nothing. Wait I’m sensing it with mana, I’ll search for the el-woah.”

The ‘clear’ marble turned into a nebula of drifting smoke that intertwined with one another.

“What are you seeing?” Rex asked.

“Its filled with elements. When I was watching my tempering I was always looking for the mana that the element was attached to, not just the elements. Its easier because all of my skills, spells and sights tend towards mana. Its like the vapor stage of the mana core. There’s red, yellow and black vapor drifting around in there.”

“Fire, Earth and Metal elements.”

With a thought, the elements slowed their movements and seperated into their own clouds.

“I can control them, but what do I do with it?”

“Beasts eat a ton of elemental ingredients and cores to overload their bodies and store it into their mana core. Can you try and cultivate the elements?” Rex shrugged.

“Give it a shot.” Erik sat down, Gilly and George watched him in interest. Erik took a deep breath, his body drew in the ambient mana and elements. Elemental energy was spread throughout his body. He drew it into his veins, then through his arteries before into his monster core. The clouds of elements increased in size and density as Erik felt a warm feeling from his chest.

He let out an easy breath, it was like the stretch after he woke up. The very fiber of his being were crying out in joy.

It grew larger for some time, before Erik started to feel a tension in his veins.

He forced onwards but the pain increased while the elements dried up. Erik released his hold on the elements, easing the tension in his body. He looked through his body. There were faint green shoots that pierced through his skin. Each of them felt like a bone burr. Driving into his soul.

The wild elements that filled his body had decreased, contained within his monster core that had grown several times. Now it was the same size as the tip of his thumb to his first knuckle.

“I’m on the Wood floor, those green shoots must be the wood element.” Erik muttered to himself.

“What was that?”

“I’ll need to go to the Earth, Fire and Metal floors to increase those elements within my body to make my monster core bigger.”

“Do you want to try the monster core?” Rex asked.