Chapter 64 64: Sublimation of Body and Mind
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"Wallenstein..." Alfia's brow twitched.
Hearing that Lucian had found Ais in the Glacier Territory, she instantly connected the dots. Zeus had descended to the Lower World a very long time ago, even participating personally in the histories recorded within the Dungeon Oratoria under a pseudonym. Because of this, the archives within the two great Familias recorded the truest, most accurate versions of the heroic epics. Among them was a single, notable fact: the Mercenary King, Albert, had a child.
"Teach?" Ais tilted her head in confusion.
"As an adventurer, you can't just rely on increasing your ability values," Lucian spoke up. "Stats are only the foundation. You need to learn combat mindset and martial techniques. Only then can you exert even greater strength."
"As long as I can become stronger..." Ais clenched her fists and looked up at Alfia.
"I understand. I will instruct her," Alfia gave a slight nod. Since she was the daughter of a hero, her natural talents were surely worth anticipating.
"You two chat. I still have some things to take care of," Lucian said, before making his way over to the altar.
To perfectly contain the Flame of Heaven and draw out its power, Hephaestus had been relentlessly working on this project recently.
"Hephaestus, help me level up, will you?" Lucian requested.
"Level up?" Hephaestus raised an eyebrow. "You can do that yourself, can't you?"
"I just wanted to give you a sense of participation," Lucian smiled teasingly, wrapping his arms around Hephaestus. "No matter how you slice it, I'm still a member of your Familia, and you're my patron deity."
"What kind of dependent acts like this?" Hephaestus complained softly.
By this time, Lucian had already lifted her eyepatch, his other hand resting just below her waistline. Hephaestus had already grown accustomed to the fact that whenever they were alone, the very first thing Lucian did was remove her eyepatch. It had even become a conditioned reflex; whenever he lifted the patch, she would close her eyes, putting on an appearance that allowed him to do as he pleased.
Naturally, Lucian had no reason to decline. He captured her lips, and the two embraced in a fiery kiss. After a long while, they finally parted. Lucian bared his back, revealing his Falna and allowing Hephaestus to get to work.
"There are Development Abilities available to choose from," Hephaestus read out loud. "Luck, Abnormal Resistance, Chain Attack, Blacksmith, Mage, Mystery, Magic Resistance, Hunter, Swordsman, Spirit Healing, Healing, Goldsmith, Mixing..."
Unbelievable. Truly unbelievable. Other people would agonize over having to choose between two or three options, yet he had triggered over ten at once. Having to pick just a single one out of so many abilities was enough to make anyone with analysis paralysis cry in a corner.
"I'll choose Luck," Lucian said plainly.
"You decided already?" Hephaestus asked.
"Luck has no upper limit," Lucian explained.
Aside from the five basic attributes, he had added a heap of other hidden stats. For instance, his HP bar was tied to Endurance, and his mental power reserves were linked to the Magic attribute, but they weren't entirely reliant on them. Thus, what Lucian had been doing was supplementing his upper limits; he had dumped the majority of his extra attribute points into Luck, yet he still hadn't managed to max it out.
Thinking about it carefully, luck was deeply intertwined with fate. Destiny was boundless, and thus, a person's luck was also infinite. Fortuitous encounters were directly tied to luck. It was exactly like those 'Children of Destiny' in the novels he used to read; they could turn danger into safety and casually stumble upon hidden treasures along the way. For the current Lucian, the most impactful benefit of the Luck attribute was the drop rate of monster materials.
Another point was that Lucian felt a higher Luck stat would make it easier to capture coordinates to other worlds. After all, there were intrinsic connections between different worlds; a person's destiny could link with the destinies of individuals in other realms, drawing them in.
Speaking of which, couldn't I use this to create a Rule-type skill? A fresh spark of inspiration flashed through Lucian's mind.
"It seems you have your own considerations." Hephaestus had only worried about this sort of thing in the very beginning. Later on—especially after the manifestation of the Divine Court—she no longer harbored any concerns regarding Lucian's future.
"Then I'll lock in Luck." Hephaestus gave a brief warning before selecting "Luck" as his Development Ability, completing the level-up process.
[Lv. 2]
Strength: I0
Endurance: I0
Dexterity: I0
Agility: I0
Magic: I0
Development Ability: Luck
Magic: [Empty]
Skills: [Empty]
Now that I've leveled up, my base state should be equivalent to a Level 3, right? Lucian thought to himself.
The reason his base combat power was so much higher than Bell's was, firstly, because Bell's stat accumulation before leveling up from Lv.1 to Lv.2 wasn't as high as his. This was partly because Bell leveled up before fully unleashing his potential, and partly because a Lv.1 Bell's personal limits simply weren't that outrageous yet. It was only later, as the effects of the Limit Off grew more prominent with each level up, that his true potential began to soar.
Originally, the level-up function of the Falna was meant to elevate a person, achieving a sublimation of body and mind. Bell's rule-breaking growth caused his advantages to constantly snowball, which was the only reason his stats could reach an astonishing SSS-rank 1501 when he hit Lv.4.
The second point was that Lucian had a perfectly balanced build, and his hidden ability parameters were significantly higher than Bell's. His subsequent stat allocations meant he had effectively reached the peak of human limits even before receiving a Falna. This indirectly raised his ceiling at Lv.1, allowing him to accomplish two Limit Breaks. Not only was he perfectly rounded, but he had also broken his limits twice. He had already reached the absolute extreme of extremes.
"Congratulations," Hephaestus finalized the update and gently wrapped her arms around Lucian from behind. "Now that this expedition is over, what did you gain from it?"
"I suppose you could say I completed a metamorphosis?" Lucian pondered for a moment before replying, "I went from an ordinary person to a warrior. I gained combat skills, as well as the courage to fight."
"Of course, the most important part was the firsthand experience itself. It broadened my horizons."
Broadening one's horizons didn't just mean looking further. If one claimed to look at the world, yet had never witnessed its true shape with their own eyes—relying purely on virtual information—it would always be somewhat lacking. Imagination was ultimately just imagination. No matter how beautiful it was, it lacked the weight of reality. Generating a sense of reality through imagination, versus describing imagination through lived experience—those were two entirely different levels of difficulty.
"You really have grown," Hephaestus whispered softly, her palm brushing against his chest. "You've become much more manly."
It also gave her a greater sense of crisis.
Feeling Hephaestus's teasing caress, the stress Lucian had been accumulating all this time instantly triggered a rush of hot blood to his head. He quietly closed his eyes, examining himself for a moment, before willingly igniting the flames within his heart.
"Teleport," Lucian commanded.
The two transformed into streaks of light and vanished. By the time they reappeared, they were already inside the bedroom.
"Since this house was built, this is the first time we've been face-to-face in here..." Lucian held Hephaestus's cheek in one hand and let out a light chuckle.
Hephaestus seemed like she wanted to say something, but Lucian didn't give her the chance, immediately taking action. At first, there were muffled whimpers, followed by heavy panting. Soon, the sounds shifted into soft moans, culminating in a fierce, trembling shudder as they finally achieved the sublimation of body and mind.
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