Bloodlines were, in a sense, the final defense mechanism of the body. It awakened the latent potential inside to protect itself from danger. This was why Protector Avin had to torture Freon. It was not a sadistic tendency, but an attempt at excavating the legendary Arcellius Family Bloodline! As the poor boy's harrowing screams filled the chamber, his uncle regarded everything calmly. Freon was currently bound to a chair with his hands and feet tied up. A gag was shoved in his mouth to prevent him from biting his tongue to pieces. His blood vessels pulsed creepily across his skin like a thousand snakes. The strain was impossible to imagine! This was the process of attaining a Bloodline!
Protector Avin focused his extremely vast and powerful Magic Perception on Freon's body. He even used a hint of Martial Perception to constantly monitor the situation. Although he had yet to reach the Perception Realm, he could still utilize both into the all-encompassing and supreme True Perception! This was a necessary step, despite the incredible damage on Avin. He had to retain precise control over his Magic Energy inside Freon, pushing him to the absolute limit. If he pushed too far, then he would kill Freon! Guessing Freon's limits was too hard, so he had to use True Perception. That was how serious this man was taking things. He could not let a single mistake occur here. The fate of the Arcellius Family hung on the balance!
Meanwhile, Freon was doing his hardest to stop his mind from collapsing. The damage to the body was one thing, but the mind was far more important! And he had to withstand the titanic waves crashing into his psyche, threatening to swallow him whole. Every time his uncle manipulated the Magic Energy, it felt like he was plunged in an inferno, frozen in the tundra, sliced apart by wind blades, crushed by a mountain, or even electrocuted in a storm… All methods were constantly being heartlessly rotated, and Freon was pathetically trying to survive. The only thing that allowed him to persevere so long was his unfathomably strong willpower! Even Protector Avin was amazed by his tenacity!
And it was not without rewards. The latent blood hidden deep within his body was being roused awake. A Bloodline was an extremely subtle thing, one that affected an individual at the deepest levels. It was hard to notice. He did not grow additional arms, longer hair, or webbed feet. There was nothing physical about it! Rather, Freon could sense the flow of Magic Energy inside his Channels becoming increasingly smoother. It was the difference between a clogged narrow alleyway and a wide paved street! Although it would not allow him to use more powerful spells, the smoother the flow, the easier it would be to use magic. His spellcasting capabilities took a qualitative leap forward!
That was not the only thing. His Magic Perception was growing stronger. At the Gaseous Fog Core Level, a Magic Perception was limited purely to the body. It could not sense the outside world. There was a reason why both the Gaseous Fog and Fundamental Realm were regarded as foundational stages! Only when an Arcanist broke through to the Condensed Drop level would their Magic Perception finally extend outward. At this point, the strength of one's perception was graded based on their range. For example, Ten Dawns could roughly spread their perception across several city blocks. At his maximum power, Protector Avin could sense the entire capital of Firecast. The range corresponded to their perception strength and hence their Core Level!
However, that did not mean all Gaseous Fog Arcanist's Magic Perceptions were equivalent just because they were restricted. There were differences even then! For example, Elizabeth's Magic Perception could now examine her entire Channel network. From the large main Channels down to the smallest distributaries, she needed thorough understanding to practice her tempering technique. Conversely, Freon could only see a mere glimpse of his Channels. He saw the biggest networks, but not the tiny branches everywhere. Now, he was beginning to see everything, which symbolized his growing Core Level!
"How do you feel?" Protector Avin asked, stopping his torture.
Instead, he casted a different spell to rapidly heal Freon's injuries. The various bruises, bleeding, and red skin patches receded. In no time at all, Freon was restored back to full health though the mental trauma remained. As his restraints were undone, Freon drank a few jugs of water before he could calm down. His hands were still shaking, and all his muscles felt sore. He would not move for some time. His uncle did not rush him because Avin had to use his True Perception as well. Neither were in a good condition to do anything. After a short rest, Freon recovered enough strength to respond.
"I'm… fine, I guess," he coughed. He looked anything but fine though with his deathly pale complexion. Moreover, it could not fool his uncle's perception.
"Right now, you're approaching the High Gaseous Fog Core Level. Within a few weeks, you should be able to fully step into it."
"So fast?" Freon's eyes nearly popped out.
He could not believe it himself. Although he could assess his own Core Level, he refrained from making hasty judgements. After all, Core Levels were notoriously difficult to climb in! Take the Magic Academies and Universities for example. The First Celestial Magic Academy was five-year program through which an Arcanist would have progressed to Medium Gaseous Fog upon graduation. The university was basically the same except for High Gaseous Fog. The top-ranking students had Peak level, but they were the descendants of Engelsheft Families with their Bloodlines awakened. This showed how time-consuming it was to climb any level! Back then, Freon was one of the lowest ranking students. He was a pitiful Rank 977 because he fell to the bottom of Low Gaseous Fog. He tried for years to break into the Medium level but failed miserably.
Therefore, he refused the idea. But when the words came from a Blue Depth Arcanist, Freon had to believe it! He achieved what others might take a decade in a little more than a month! High Gaseous Fog! It was enough to redeem the struggles he endured in the university, in every fight, in this torturous training, and in life in general! This showed the monstrous power of the Arcellius Family Bloodline. The true benefit of the bloodline was strengthening the Magic Potential of the body, allowing to double their effort with half the time! Furthermore, it adjusted Freon's Channels and Core to better accommodate the Bloodline Ability. Although he could not use Thousand Core Resonance freely yet, he could still use it to some degree like Shirley's Mock Perception. His battle strength surged unimaginably higher!
"Try it out for yourself," Avin said with a smile, creating an extremely durable mud wall.
Freon nodded and calmed down. Calling upon the blood hidden within, he activated Thousand Core Resonance! His Channels and Core automatically rearranged according to the spell he chose, Fire Needles. The painful process was straight up ignored by him. It could not compare to what he endured with awakening the bloodline. In a matter of seconds, the acclimation was complete. He raised his wand and the magic circle appeared nearly instantly. Twenty fire needles formed and heeding his command, attacked the mud wall. They left red streaks in the air as they penetrated through with ease. Again! He used the same spell and it formed blindingly fast. The third, fourth, and fifth times followed suit. In the end, the entire process took less than thirty seconds, and a hundred projectiles were launched! If every one could kill a person, could he kill a hundred people like that? The thought terrified him!
"Now you understand the power of the Arcellius Family's Bloodline Ability," his uncle chuckled. "However, you haven't fully mastered it yet. Don't let your guard down."
As if on clockwork, the backlash for using it descended on Freon. Using it required a Core Level of Low Condensed Drop at the minimum. Forcefully activating it meant a corresponding price. As expected, he nearly lost control over his body as his Channels and Core went haywire. He was surprised, but quickly suppressed the growing chaos. But when he tried to eliminate it outright, he found that he could not. Freon noticed that there was an ambient 'noise' surrounding his Channels that prevented him from controlling his Magic Energy. This was the most severe part of the Thousand Core Resonance Bloodline Ability: It prevented the usage of magic for a period afterwards!
"This 'backlash' is considered a light one since you chose a simple spell. You'll have to work a lot harder to fully activate the Bloodline and master the ability!"
"I understand, master," Freon said solemnly.