Link leaned back in his chair and rested for a while.
After the pain in his body had lessened, he pulled a notebook from his backpack and began documenting everything he had experienced.
First and foremost, there was a traitor among the upper echelons of humanity—and not just any traitor, but a super-tier powerhouse who specialized in spiritual powers manipulation.
Secondly, the man's voice didn't sound hoarse at all. In fact, it seemed rather youthful. But since voice disguises were easy to come by, that detail could only be used as a tentative clue.
This person's talent was spiritual powers manipulation, and it appeared to be a very stealthy ability—one that was hard to detect.
Then there was the matter of the Moon Worship Sect. Its leader was named Dark Moon, and he seemed to know the traitor. However, their relationship didn't seem particularly harmonious. Of course, it was entirely possible that they were simply putting on an act.
Link sorted through all the information in his head but realized there wasn't much more to note.
He closed the notebook and put it back into his backpack. Then, for the first time since the chaos, he turned his attention to his newly acquired talent.
[SSS-Rank Talent: Spiritual Powers Manipulation]
Spiritual Powers Manipulation: You possess an unimaginably powerful talent in controlling spiritual powers. You can shape spiritual powers into any form you desire. When using skills, the power will be amplified a hundredfold!
Shape spiritual powers into any form I desire...?
Link felt a bit dazed. That wording… why did it sound a little strange?
Still, he quickly focused on the most important part—the final sentence.
A hundredfold power increase?
That's insane!
No exaggeration—this talent would rank among the very top, even when compared with all the other SSS-rank talents!
Suppressing the surge of emotion in his chest, Link furrowed his brow once more and began thinking ahead.
The Goldrolyn Auction House was still crucial. In these early stages, he needed it to generate a steady stream of income.
If he could use it wisely, he wouldn't need to worry about his training expenses for a while.
So, yes—he'd still have to interact with the auction house. He just needed to pick the right time.
With that thought in mind, Link asked Lib to help him search for some less conspicuous potion recipes.
Choosing auxiliary-type potions would make him less likely to attract unwanted attention.
Eventually, he settled on a potion called Focused Meditation.
This potion had a very simple formula, requiring no rare ingredients. Naturally, its effects were just so-so. Among potions that boosted meditation efficiency, it was only slightly above average.
But even so, due to its low cost of production, it would likely have no trouble selling well.
All Link had to do was pick the right moment to sell this formula to the Goldrolyn Auction House.
As for the Wealthborn Clan Flesh Forging Potion, he hadn't completely destroyed it. Instead, he used the remainder of his funds to repurchase the necessary spiritual powers ingredients.
With Lib's assistance, he barely managed to concoct the potion again.
Although the result was probably not even half as effective as a professionally made one, it was still immensely powerful for someone like Link—who had just stepped into the realm of espers.
And so, instead of going to the auction house that morning, Link stayed quietly at home.
With the Flesh Forging Potion and his practice of the DragonFlesh Forging Art, he could clearly feel his Power Values skyrocketing...
Within just one morning—
His Power Values had grown significantly once again!
[Name: Link]
[Power Values: 26]
[Flesh Forging Art: DragonFlesh Forging Art Chapter One]
[Meditation Technique: FrostMeditation Technique]
[Skills: None]
[Talents: UR-Rank: Death Replication; SSS-Rank: Death Rewind, Supreme Library, Veil of the Impostor, Spiritual Powers Manipulation]
Powering up really is the best feeling.
Link muttered to himself. After taking a cold shower, he headed to school.
As always, he took the school bus to the Grave of Heroes. After a rousing speech from the instructor, Link switched places with Max.
Dark Watcher Melina reappeared, dodging the ambush from the Moon Worship Sect followers.
But unlike last time, although the Moon Worship Sect disciples once again surrounded the Grave of Heroes, the scale of the assault was noticeably smaller.
The masked acolyte who wore the Dark Moon mask didn't show up either. The battle between the Dark Watcher and the sect members did occur, but it didn't spill over and affect the students.
Seeing this, Link silently breathed a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness… no repeat of the last bloodbath!
In the end, neither the burly warrior nor the Honor Guard made an appearance. It was Blinken, the squad captain of the Dark Watchers, who arrived and brought the farce to a close.
Even so, the attack still sparked fury within Velmoria's higher-ups. The City Lord himself issued an emergency order to lock down the entire city, vowing to hunt down every last Moon Worship Sect member within its walls.
Meanwhile, unnoticed by anyone, Link quietly visited the Goldrolyn Auction House and sold the Focused Meditation Potion recipe.
Compared to the formula he'd provided last time, this one seemed quite ordinary.
The elderly appraiser at the auction house gave it a glance and casually quoted a price of two million.
Link wasn't dissatisfied. Since it was a profit-sharing model, it was essentially slow but steady income.
And more importantly—for the early stages of his training—two million was more than enough.
He also picked up some basic spiritual powers ingredients from the auction house and then headed home.
Over the following month,
Link devoted almost all his time to cultivation.
Finally, after using up all the spiritual powers materials he had bought earlier, he achieved a breakthrough into a brand-new realm.
[Name: Link]
[Power Values: 105 (Level 1 Esper)]
[Flesh Forging Art: DragonFlesh Forging Art Chapter One]
[Meditation Technique: FrostMeditation Technique]
[Skills: None]
[Talents: UR-Rank: Death Replication; SSS-Rank: Death Rewind, Supreme Library, Veil of the Impostor, Spiritual Powers Manipulation]
Finally... I'm no longer stuck at the entry-level stage of an esper!
A relieved smile appeared on Link's face.
All his hard work this past month had finally paid off.
Thanks to the Wealthborn Clan Flesh Forging Potion, he had finally crossed the threshold into the Level 1 Esper realm.
Esper ranks were generally divided into levels based on powers of ten. After Level 10, one would ascend to Tier 1 (T1) Esper.
Between T1 and T2, there were also ten subdivisions—each representing an increase of 1000 Power Values.
In other words, someone with Power Values of 100 and someone with 999 could both be considered Level 1 Espers—but the difference in their strength was vast.
Link, right now, was still pretty weak.
But considering he'd only been training for a month, his progress wasn't bad at all.
After all, early cultivation was all about laying down a solid foundation. Speed wasn't the main concern.
Once his Flesh Forging Art reached a higher level and his body had stored enough spiritual powers, his training speed would skyrocket from there.