LimitlessPath

A New Star Chapter 33

I continued further into the complex as I pondered, examining the surroundings closely, taking my time as I walked down the halls. All of which, by the way, were perfectly clean and well-kempt now that I was deeper into the complex, despite the place's apparent age and state of disuse. It wasn't something I was too concerned about, given that with any sufficiently advanced level of technology keeping such a place clean for millennia would be trivial. That did put the thought in mind whether t...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Seventy-Two

As they came up in the queue, the place had started to fill up, and Beth made her way to field one at the far end of the floor. She looked around as she walked down to the field, seeing the stands were filling a little more rapidly. Now, obviously, they wouldn't fill fully, as the place could easily seat over fifty thousand people and there weren't nearly that many people there to participate in or view the matches. People had also slowly started to gather around field one, and when Beth took...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Seventy-One

Bai was back on her feet in a moment and waving the healer off, though not unkindly, and she walked over to Beth, both clearing the field at the ref's insistence. Beth walked with the other girl back over to the girl's team, who had been at the edge of the field behind Bai, watching their match with interest. They moved to the side, clearing the area around the dueling field, Beth noting that a lot of people were looking at them after their match, though more so her in particular. 

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Seventy

Beth still had hours of refereeing left, but she did have enough free attention that she could keep on eye on her surroundings. She had a feeling a lot of the refs did the same, considering many of them were getting close to rebirth ten or were at it. Watching matches of people who were at their first rebirth just wasn't that difficult, giving even the weaker refs plenty of attention span to scan what was going on in the rest of the arena. There was also the downtime, including time...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Sixty-Nine

"Maybe that's enough excitement for one day?" Sera asked with a slightly quirked brow. 

"We've got a lot of sites to investigate," Beth replied with a small frown. 

"That's true, but we don't have a time limit," Sera replied. 

"Other than the limit that most of these places haven't been checked and are about to overrun," Beth retorted. "We either keep pushing or we deal with high-level beast tides, and soon." 

"Point taken," Sera said with a quick n...

A New Star Chapter 32

After resting another day, I was back in the training yard early in the morning, noticing the guards generally didn't react, other than one or two giving me a quick, slightly frightened look. I think that was more to do with my demonstration against the count still making the rounds, the guards sometimes whispering things about me where they thought no one else would overhear. I didn't mind, as the guards' opinions didn't really bother me, and it was only one or two of them in the first place...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Sixty-Eight

There were beasts around, so they still did have to pay some attention to where they set the ship down and keep their heads on a swivel once they debarked, but it wasn't anything like around the golem dungeon. After she had packed up the ship, the three of them started moving around, Blood the clear favorite here in scouting and detection. It took them a while, even though there weren't that many beasts to fight through, but Blood eventually found something. Not something so nice as a cave op...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Sixty-Seven

Clearing out all the beasts took them quite some time, mainly from the size of the cavern and the strength of the beasts. Beth was pretty sure everything in the surrounding tunnels had been attracted by the sounds of battle, clearing out most of the lower level of the caverns of any beasts. They spent some time harvesting the beasts after the fight was over, all three of them avoiding the center of the room. It wasn't because the center was toxic or anything, but because that's wh...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Sixty-Six

All of that to say that whatever it was that was down there, it was something rather important and/or powerful, at the very least. Holy mana

All of that to say that whatever it was that was down there, it was something rather important and/or powerful, at the very least. Holy mana didn't mean that the object or thing was objectively good, either, just that there were certain mana types being produced in large volumes. Holy and sacred mana would have a restraining effect on corrupt creat...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Sixty-Five

Beth didn't have to wait long, as the Hall Master was able to clear out a little bit of time to meet with them. She came down in person to e

Beth didn't have to wait long, as the Hall Master was able to clear out a little bit of time to meet with them. She came down in person to escort them up to her suite on the top floor, one which had an office attached. Baelvyr had a suite similar to that at Beth's home Hall, but she knew he hardly ever used it for anything, whether that was work or...

A New Star Chapter 31

I slept again, dozing in the chair for a few hours before waking. I felt…fine, if I could say that. My body was essentially fully recovered,

I slept again, dozing in the chair for a few hours before waking. I felt…fine, if I could say that. My body was essentially fully recovered, if still just a bit shaky, but the Tribulation had done more than just injure my body. I made sure I was properly dressed before heading out, finding it to be in the afternoon. Well, I would resume my trai...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Sixty-Four

The whole time, Blood was using very thin, fine, and precise blades of energy to slice into the rock. It was slow going, as all the rock in the area had already absorbed a massive amount of mana over the last few years, becoming absurdly dense and tough, the mana even working to block out the mana of the skills that Blood was continuously throwing at it. She had made progress as Beth had killed most of the wraiths on her side and then helped Sera out by controlling her fire, widening the gap ...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Sixty-Three

Flying up to the first site that evening, they slowed just as they got within a few miles, Blood very competently piloting them to within less than a mile of the target. Blood put the ship down and Beth folded it and returned it to her necklace, not wanting to leave it hovering more out of concern of others than for the ship itself. They were in a section of field that might once have been marsh or a swamp, but the whole thing had been dried out years ago and was used to grow soybeans at one ...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Sixty-Two

The week seemed to crawl by, and Beth mentioned that to Sera on Friday, after they were done with their ref duties. "I can't believe how slow that went. I feel like I know what most people with a nine-to-five go through now. It sucks." 

"Hmm, I can't say I really know the feeling, at least not before this," Sera replied. "I haven't ever had any kind of normal schedule." 

"Not even at the Rose?" Beth asked with a smirk. 

"Especially not at the Rose," Sera retur...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Sixty-One

Blood slowed them quite a bit when they got close to that area, a section of the center of the continent that was hundreds of miles wide and over two thousand miles long. The area of the greatest mana density was around the main section of the Mississippi, but there was a whole massive swathe of land that was of an ultra-high mana density. Blood could technically, and rather easily, handle both of the tasks, but she focused on flying while Sera manned the tactical station and took control of ...

A New Star Chapter 30

It was many, many long hours later that I first awoke, feeling as if a starship had been parked on me for a year. Desperate to hold myself together, I shakily grabbed one potion after another, noting my right arm had been partially restored, though there was still much work to be done. After chugging and eating almost everything laid out by the bath, I slipped back into blissful unconscious, oblivious to the world and everything around me. I would have had some worry about beasts and such, bu...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Sixty

"So, how'd that first day go?" John ask the three of them once they were off-duty. The rotations were such that they had to work about ten h

"So, how'd that first day go?" John ask the three of them once they were off-duty. The rotations were such that they had to work about ten hours a day, and do that between five and six days a week, so they would be on the floor quite a bit for the next year.  

"It was…boring," Beth said with a sigh as they were logging out. 

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Fifty-Nine

"He could stop gravity?" her father asked incredulously. 

"He had total control. Even with everything I've seen over the last handful of years, it was really crazy. He could just turn gravity off, if he wanted to. Turn it off, just like that," Beth said, snapping her fingers. 

"Fighting him was certainly an interesting experience," Sera said. "We did quite a bit of training with him over the course of a few weeks, and we never even touched him. Didn't eve...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Fifty-Eight

The guards didn't seem to know what to do about that, and Beth didn't wait around for them to figure it out, walking back to check the small town hall building first. If her parents weren't there, they could just stop by her childhood home and very likely find them on the back patio, considering the weather was rather warm. Unlike even the last time she was here, most people just gave them a nod, people like Blood and Sera not nearly as unusual in their experiences anymore. She thought about ...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Fifty-Seven

It was a glorious time, even for the normally highly active Beth; several weeks spent with nothing better to do than, well, each other. There was plenty of time relaxing in the suite, shopping in the concourse, going to the massage parlors, eating fine foods at the establishments that were extremely expensive but still within their budget, and yes, there was even some time spent on training and fighting. Sera insisted that they do as little of the last as possible, and Beth, for once, didn't ...

A New Star Chapter 29

The other great discovery I had made was something I made very sure to keep secret from everyone, as I simply didn't have enough trust of any of them, whether it was the count or even my parents. That was more because I intended to use it, which I knew there would be strong protest against, versus any other fear. I had the intention of making use of it quite soon, as well, so I was already well along in my preparation as my eighth birthday came and went, the affair given little fanfare. It wa...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Fifty-Six

If Beth only had one thing she could say about the Royal Rose, than that thing would definitely be luxury. Luxury in a manner that wasn't ta

If Beth only had one thing she could say about the Royal Rose, than that thing would definitely be luxury. Luxury in a manner that wasn't tacky or overblown; none of what was in the buildings, in the halls or the rooms or the facilities, was in any way gaudy or lacking in a certain sophistication. Everywhere had just hints of gilt, small items of h...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Fifty-Five

After having been dropped off at their room, they took the opportunity to rest and relax for half a day, still a bit weary from the intense

After having been dropped off at their room, they took the opportunity to rest and relax for half a day, still a bit weary from the intense training. Battling someone so much more skilled than them for hours on end was rather different than handling a beast tide for a couple days, and they were much more mentally taxed than they otherwise would have...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Fifty-Four

They set up for more, with Zane still keeping his hands in his pockets, which was certainly infuriating, but Beth did her best to ignore it, as she was sure the other two were. The man didn't really coach them, not anything like what Baelvyr or others would do, but his fighting style was complex and clever enough that it let them learn while engaging with him without being overwhelmed. Besides, they were all in Expert with their weapons and simply needed to put in some time and effort to work...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Fifty-Three

"What's with the look?" she asked as she levered herself to her feet. 

"Even considering you have a Mana Physique, and your impressive Presence control, you are quite strong for somebody on only rebirth six," he explained calmly. "Your perseverance, as well, is absolutely nothing to sneeze at. I know people quite a few rebirths higher, though not necessarily all of them stronger, who wouldn't have held up as well as you did." 

"Can I ask something?" Beth asked. 

A New Star Chapter 28

A few months had passed under the count's tutelage, and I had gone down into town to drop off some pills and goods for Pietr, the man practically falling to the ground in relief when I made the delivery. His buyers were clamoring at his door for product and, as he had pointed out before, there wasn't anybody else in the town who could provide the kinds of goods I could. There was an old herbwoman on a street dedicated to medicine and a few shops, there being a doctors' clinic with several phy...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Fifty-Two

Blood really did need the whole day to rest, though it wasn't because of being stressed or anything, she just needed that whole time to adjust to her new power. While Sera was just at the point of starting to develop runes on her body in her human form, thanks in part to Blood, Blood had progressed even further. That not only meant more stats per level, it meant a greater power at all times, as humanization was the sapient beast version of Presences. Being in human form gave Blood and Sera a ...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Fifty-One

She took his little piece of advice this time, making the point and the symbols a bit larger. It was just a bit, too, as if she increased it too much, she would have quite a large bomb hovering over her hand and not just a little party trick. She was once again rather glad for her Mana Physique, as well, as she could do little tricks like this, which were rather wasteful of mana, without having to worry about running dry in just an hour or two. Instead of each attempt taking a couple spoonsfu...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Fifty

"So, uh, what is this?" Beth asked with a slight frown as she looked at the portal. 

"I made it make a spatial rift that can only move inanimate objects. Why?" he said. 

"I guess for training?" Beth replied, still frowning. 

"No, you dolt; why can it only move inanimate objects?" Zane replied in exasperation. 

"Oh, well, why didn't you just ask that?" Beth said with a another sigh.  

"This is why I stay in my space station," Zane said, ru...

Limitless Path Chapter Four Hundred Forty-Nine

"So, when you spoke of other runes…" Beth hinted. 

"Exactly. What is contained in this room represents some of the greatest work of legendary crafters from across the universe. The rune-work present in these pieces is on a level that even Divines could not dream of achieving," he explained solemnly.  

" 'Some of'?" Beth asked. 

"Well, of course," he replied with a chuckle. "I'm powerful, young lady, but I'm not all-powerful. Perhaps if I were an Eternal or a...