Path of Dragons - A LitRPG Apocalypse (BOOK TWO STUBBING AUGUST 15)

Elijah sat atop the high-rise overlooking the fallen city of Hong Kong. It was the second tallest building in the city, so it offered a fantastic view of the destruction wrought by what most people referred to as the apocalypse. Elijah disagreed with that label, regarding the touch of the World Tree as a good thing, but as he stared at the aftermath, his hold on that belief wavered.

So much had been destroyed. So many lives had been lost. And yet, humanity had survived, albeit only in pockets. Small settlements – usually no larger than a couple of blocks – dotted the city, and a much larger community had taken up residence in Hong Kong’s tallest building. Once known as the International Commerce Center, it was now Heaven’s Bastion, and it played host to a population of thousands.

Including his friend Sadie Song and her problematic family.

But at the moment, Elijah knew that if he dwelled on those issues for even a moment, he would do something rash. Every instinct screamed at him to go back and return their insults with utter destruction. And he could do it, too. He wanted to. In a lot of ways, he needed to.

There were only two factors restraining him.

First on the list was Sadie herself. If he went on a rampage and turned Heaven’s Bastion into another Easton – or whatever silly name their despotic ruler had given it there at the end – she would never forgive him. More likely, she would oppose him. Elijah had no desire to fight her, largely because even if he won, as he suspected was the most likely outcome, he’d lose a friend along the way. He didn’t have so many of those that he’d willingly sacrifice one just to assuage his pride.

The second restraint came from the surety that he would regret such an action. He wouldn’t shed any tears for people like Nico or Tianwei, but there were plenty of innocents in Heaven’s Bastion. He couldn’t put them at risk. He refused to fall into that trap, even if his instincts told him to disregard those people as inconsequential.

Perhaps that was the dragon him, screaming at him to assert his dominance. More likely, it was the simple consequence of setting himself so far above normal people. It was difficult to look at them the same way when he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was unequivocally better than them, and in almost every possible way.

That was the thing about the system and its numbers. It left little doubt as to a person’s relative place in society. Sure – levels were just guides that marked a person’s progress, but the numbers attached to his attributes were concrete measures of his power. On top of that, he had his cultivation, which was far more advanced than that of anyone else he’d met.

In short, Elijah often felt like a god amongst men, and as a result, he felt himself growing increasingly more detached from the plight of normal people. Thankfully, he was aware enough of that tendency that he could work to mitigate it.

Because he didn’t want to feel like he was better than others. He wanted to act like he was just like everyone else.

He wasn’t, though, and he needed time to wrap his mind around the idea that he couldn’t just follow his instincts and vent his frustrations. There could be global consequences for something like that. Instead, he needed to adapt to who and what he had become.

But even more importantly, he knew he needed time to cope with the death of his friend, Dat Bao, who’d sacrificed himself so Elijah and his other companions – one of which had never treated him with anything approaching respect – could live. He was a true hero, and the world was a worse place for his passing.

After almost an hour sitting atop that building and staring at nothing, Elijah finally turned his attention to another important matter. The conquering of the Primal Realm had not come without rewards. One was material – all Elijah needed to do was acknowledge the notification, and he’d receive his reward for overcoming the challenges of the Desolate Reach. But the other was more intrinsic. He’d gained two more levels in the final battle, putting him at one-forty-six.

That meant he’d gained another ability – either through the evolution of an old spell or an entirely new one. So far, Elijah had been too focused on other things to acknowledge it, but now that he had a little peace and quiet, he could do just that. So, it was without further ado that he looked at the notification and the new spell that came with it.