The following day, having explored additional crucial facets of soul cores comparable in significance to those we previously discussed during the revolver discovery, we find ourselves back in the field, poised to craft these mysterious 'soul cores' once again.
My repaired soul has been established and the figure asserted that making a soul core would be a piece of cake.
And what did he say?
-Just form a compressed essence like a tiny ball. Don't be mistaken that your soul core would be small since it is just 'tiny'. Like our lesson yesterday, the soul core storage is like five times your current soul's storage. Once refined, that will double.
-Of course, one's soul core varies on its user. You might be lucky to create a soul core that had greater storage with power amplification or other perks. As long as you did better with your compression with essence, your result would be great as well.
Of course, it's easier said than done.
Essence compression!? How the fuck do I have to do it? I couldn't even find a leeway or a path that I could use as I did on forming subconsciousness.
No matter how I read or scrutinize the given texts, it all comes down to making the core by using your soul essence from your soul.
Well, of course, maybe I could've found it if I spent much on looking through more texts and books, but I spent here for far too long.
At most, I was thinking that acquiring and learning from the figure regarding battle tactics and prowess would take at least a month, but to my surprise, he was willing to teach me everything.
For that same reason, my stay here will continue to increase.
But no, I wouldn't want to stay here for far too long. A half a year wouldn't cut it. At most, two months will suffice.
And all because of my thirst for revenge.
This feeling continued to daunt my insides, deteriorating my sense of reality. No matter how much I keep myself occupied, how much I distract myself using these excuses to get stronger and sleep to forget the pain I felt that day, it keeps eating inside me.
This lingering sensation persisted, haunting the depths of my being and eroding my grasp on reality. No matter how much I keep myself occupied, how much I distract myself using these excuses to get stronger and sleep to forget the pain I felt that day, it keeps eating inside me.
My thirst for revenge continued to increase as my mind kept discerning what was right and wrong.
It was making me a different person already.
'It's bad.'
No, my condition is way worse than this.
Pak—!
"You're not focusing!"
Feeling someone smacking the back of my head, I shifted my attention and looked at the figure attentively.
"The key to making soul core is concentration just like when you are repairing your undeveloped soul! Your thoughts must be up on the task; even the slightest distraction can lead to potential side-backs like this now! Not on the soul core of course, but to your soul which is way worse!"
'Right…'
Fueled by my tumultuous emotions, I found myself unable to restrain them any longer, leading to a state of mental disarray that occasionally impinged upon my overall performance.
But concentration is as important too.
"Yes sir."
The figure, appearing as though he was on the brink of resuming his dialogue, abruptly sealed his lips and nodded decisively. With that, he descended to the ground in my vicinity, keenly observing to gauge how proficiently I would handle the task at hand.
"I'll start."
"Hmm…"
Closing my eyes, I began to focus on wielding the soul core while remembering the words of the figure as to how to make it.
Building a soul core is hard but not the same as refining it. It had half of the difficulty of soul refinement. The only reason it takes higher and tougher to make one is how it will be made.
Soul essence that came from the very soul.
Given that it holds the purest essence of the soul, in order to initiate the refinement of these soul cores, one must harness the essence it exudes and meticulously compress it until a cohesive core takes shape.
In science terms, it's like clustering molecules together until they form a solid object. However, comparing something scientifically and magic is never agreed upon since, well, science is based on experiments while magic is based on forming something out of nowhere like a miracle.
And soon, the results came
The first try of making soul core… is harder than I thought.
I failed.
…
Despite its compact size, the resulting core is, undeniably, a sphere. In the event that I was to create this core, where exactly would it be placed within a person or a Horror's body?
Well, one can check their core as one will reside in one's subconsciousness. Even so, there are some interesting about soul cores.
There are mindless Horrors that were able to develop their soul cores even though they didn't have subconsciousness or soul.
Why?
Because even if they don't have a soul, just being able to use essence like humans, who have undeveloped souls, they can learn to harness the essence which is why some Horrors can be brought out elements like fire, water, air, or earth.
Those were merely the fundamental elements. Occasionally, more perilous entities devoid of consciousness possessed the capability to unleash unimaginable powers, though such occurrences were rare.
By harnessing essence, certain Mindless Horrors have the potential to attain consciousness, culminating in the development of a complete soul. This hierarchy places humans and Horrors with undeveloped souls at the bottom of the food chain.
In conclusion, mindless Horrors tended to create soul cores subconsciously.
So why…?
Why is it so fucking hard to make a soul core when it comes to humans!?
"Ugh, fuck this shit!"
I've devoted my whole week; my time, my patience, and my mind to making a soul core yet no matter what, it was all fruitless.
Even with meticulous scrutiny of the textbooks, a viable solution remained elusive. The figure earnestly attempted to uncover avenues to assist me, but by day's end, we both found ourselves at a loss, unable to identify a method tailored to my unique situation.
'I'm not even on the stage of refinement yet it was already this hard to make a single core!? Just one! How the fuck that I was still unable to do it!? Just, how, fucking, how!?'
My head was boiling in rage.
I have been very patient yet that ticked off just now.
"If I can't make a soul core, then that's it! Instead of wasting another week here, I should just pursue completing the formless arts. I'm already preoccupied with my subconsciousness and all the soul enlightenment, now's not the time to move on to the next one!"
Voicing out my concern even though it left a bitter taste in my mouth, a sense of regret washed over me.
'Soul core!'
So that's why, even King of Lupire, whom I deemed to be the second strongest being I've met, had only two cores,
Because it's just so fucking hard to even do one?! Especially when a human, who barely knew soul a month earlier, is trying it out.
If the figure pursued this, I might've continued doing this but it will be just a waste of my time.
If nothing still happens a month later, forget even leaving this place, I might become senile and die in here!
"I think you are right."
With my eyes wide, I looked at the figure with an undiscernible expression.
"You are not doing anything wrong. No, maybe I'm the wrong one. I just can't see it at all even though I tried to think everything I had my knowledge as a Horror."
Well, that's not entirely wrong but still… it seems he also couldn't get his thinking straight with this.
'This just sucks.'
The frustration of possessing all the necessary knowledge but being unable to apply it is truly one of the most disheartening experiences one can endure.
'There should be something along those texts which didn't suit why I'm unable to form a core right?'
There should be something yet… the figure already gave the data he could give from various Horrors, applying it the same as me just like what he did every time.
Ultimately, I had to abandon the training regimen for core development. Instead, I redirected my efforts towards three primary focuses: refining my formless arts with the three weapons, delving deeper into soul enlightenment, and absorbing the information willingly shared by the figure.
Despite the cryptic nature of his actions, each move made by the figure seemed purposeful, hinting at a necessity for my personal growth.
However, the figure lay in my lack of understanding regarding what exactly was required for my development and the methods by which he intended to orchestrate it.
As if all this stuff is pointing toward one thing.
When another week hit off, my improvement had drastically increased and a result showed.
My formless art for daggers was done. There was a clear distinction between the time I started learning the special arts and now that I have finished it.
'I've grown stronger.'
Maybe if I had a soul core, would I attain another great height?
Then as if the time had come to test the current skills I had, the figure finally made its move. By making me relax in my seat, he inquired straight away.
"Gin, you will clear the fourth area all by yourself. Will you be able to do it?"
There's no need to delay this any longer. I have to see how much I've grown.
"Yes."
"Good," The figure nodded, "But before all that, you have to learn about what a Horror is."