"Gin, what do you think soul enlightenment is? I kept telling you enlightenment this and that after you successfully repaired your soul which you did, but what do you think it is?"
The figure posed an unusual query that compelled me to respond.
"An enlightenment related to the soul, perhaps?"
"Of course, there is that. But to give you a serious answer, soul enlightenment is mostly about the usage of your essence. You can say it is a gift from nature once you got your very own subconsciousness."
I contemplated for a moment before nodding.
"I understand that. But it is slightly different for me you see. Yes, there's usage of essence but there's also this. When I received enlightenment, it started giving me basic knowledge about 'conjurations'. What are these conjurations, sir?"
Seemingly pleased by the mere fact it was going smoothly, the figure delved further into the topic of these purported 'conjurations'.
"What soul enlightenment gave you is the same. It gave you basic concepts. One of them is conjurations. These are basically spells that someone uses where their essence lies. An example is fire. By simply conjuring the essence in your body and the spell you desire, you can create small spells like fireball, fire fall, and such."
"But you know, what I'm about to teach you isn't just a simple conjuration where you have to say fireball and it will appear. My ancestor has an essence relating to change, but he didn't simply denote changed spells or what you liked to call it."
The figure pointed at his mouth as he revealed, "Incantations. These are not just simple chants. The ancestor liked to call it 'the forgotten words of the past, the lore of nature,'. There's no better way to describe this such as that."
The figure stood profoundly, "And since you are a human with nothing that restricts you to remain on one essence only, you get a lot of possibilities. When I say so, you'll be gladdened."
Perplexed by the concept of conjuration, my uncertainties were swiftly dispelled as the figure revealed something truly extraordinary.
Illustrating the process of how these were done, he left me utterly astonished.
At first, I thought soul enlightenment seemed to be subpar than other benefits I'd get after repairing my incomplete soul but I was wrong.
Achieving soul enlightenment was the most extraordinary benefit I could have ever received and imagined.
…
"Hahh… Hahh…"
Letting out uncontrolled breathing, still minding my surroundings, I continued meditating and replenished my exhausted soul.
An hour had already passed while remaining in this state yet not even a quarter was brought back from me. This only shows how much was put in that spell alone that burnt the golem into ashes.
Halting my meditation midway, with nearly twenty percent of my essence harnessed, I rose to my feet and surveyed the chaotic aftermath, nonchalantly dismissing the mess I had created.
My gaze swiftly shifted towards the spoils of my actions, the medium-grade essence crystals, pondering the significance of my deeds so… why?
There's something amiss about the current situation.
In this area where not even light could be seen, why were there two 'things' that were shining?
In this obscure area devoid of any discernible light, why were there two 'things' standing out conspicuously amidst the darkness?
'Another Horror?'
Swiftly becoming aware of the imminent threat, I seized my weapons and proceeded to encircle the vicinity, keenly observing the unfolding events.
I mused inwardly, 'I understand that there are essence crystals here but what is this… glowing translucent ball?'
Observing the imprints on the ground, remnants of the once formidable golem, my eyes widened as a realization dawned upon me.
'Is this its soul core?'
There was no explanation other than this.
'But it's big!'
The soul core possessed dimensions equivalent to the amalgamation of two, if not three, standard ball. Assessing its size, it became evident that the soul core originated from the colossal golem, necessitating a proportionately large core.
If it's not exactly right, how the Horror desired to use its essence might affect its performance…
'Size of the soul core?'
Upon reflection, I recalled the figure's guidance stating that crafting a soul core involves compressing it into a tiny ball of essence from the soul through concentration and manipulation of the soul.
However, the figure's reference to "tiny" remained ambiguous, leaving me uncertain about the specific scale. As I endeavored to create a soul core of regular proportions, it occurred to me that perhaps the figure's definition of "tiny" corresponded to no other than this kind of size?
Since he was teaching the concepts of his lessons from the 'Horror' perspective, what if he forgot to take note to use it on the 'human' perspective?
No, that's not it.
He had been teaching me all about everything he had known through the former perspective, all relating to Horror, and everything seemed to have worked, not until the making of soul core came up.
What if, just a big what if, that I'm having a misconception about soul cores? It's not entirely different but something I missed which would've been superficial if I'd found out sooner.
'D-does that mean I'll have to create a soul core that is the same as this size? This 'tiny' core which was I'm supposed to put on my subconscious?'
Hah… Hahaha.
This could only mean that I have been wasting my precious time and soul essence because of just a slight misconception.
There's not even a damn theory to support my claim so these ideas in my head were just merely assumptions…
But there's no harm in trying this idea of mine.
Over the next few hours, I dedicated myself to replenishing my soul, and without taking any respite, I prepared to transition seamlessly into the next phase of my plan.
Having thoroughly inspected the barren surroundings and detecting no imminent threat of monster ambush, I put my idea to the test.
Stretching my limbs and flexing my muscles, sensing the numbness from hours of immobility, I redirected my focus towards channeling my essence into the creation of the soul core.
Attempting to craft a 'tiny' soul core, I envisioned it from the Horror's perspective as a regular-sized ball. However, the challenge lay in the fact that the ball I aimed to create turned out to be significantly larger than intended.
But so what?
I persisted and finally, there were results.
'Yes…! I can—'
Though, not very satisfactory.
'What!?'
Merely minutes into shaping the shell of the soul core, it crumbled, depleting a quarter of my soul in the process. Recognizing that the required amount had doubled unexpectedly, I opted to experiment with the essence crystals, since I'm just trying things out.
Once I use the essence crystals, it will be the real deal.
But…
Again, it failed.
'I changed my mind. I really do want to make this work!'
I've heard and seen how important the soul core is and I'm starting to realize that this easy task has not been easy at all but…
Zero improvements? Give me fucking break.
Once more, I tried.
Commencing with the essence from the crystal to construct the inner core of the soul, I endeavored to establish the internal structure before shaping an outer shell. However, the attempt proved futile as the structure collapsed.
It failed. For the five tries, I did, nothing good came back.
Second, I used the crystal's essence to build up the outer shell but before even building the inner one, it broke down.
The downside is that the essence crystal only has half of what's been there before.
The same thing happened just like the first one.
Third, I used my soul to transfer the essence by building the inner shell first before it broke down very instantly which made me quite annoyed.
Then, a realization hit me.
'The figure told me that making soul core must've come from the one's soul essence. Is he hinting to me that there will be no way to use the essence's crystals to make it?'
After trial and error, there's only more method left to try the idea of mine.
Employing the soul essence, I set out to fashion a soul core matching the size I perceived in front of me. Instead of initiating the process with the inner shell, as previously attempted without success, I decided to begin the creation from the outer layers this time.
With this revised approach in mind, I began implementing the new method.
Slowly, carefully, and with concentration, I compressed those essences into a 'tiny' ball to form a core the size of three balls combined.
Intently focused, I touched the essence crystals in front of me, harnessing its energy to replenish my soul. Even though i couldn't utilize the essence inside these crystals, I could just transfer them onto my soul and replenish myself.
'This…'
In just an hour, I felt something forming inside me.
'Focus…!'
Unaware that I had crafted a significantly larger core than initially envisioned, the success of the creation left only one task remaining—to integrate it into my subconsciousness.
'There!'
Within the realm of my consciousness, positioned just outside the door to my subconsciousness, I maneuvered the colossal core and pushed it through the entrance. The door seamlessly adjusted to accommodate the newfound addition aligned with my current position.
Upon entering, the landscape of my subconsciousness underwent a transformation. A section of the walls expanded, revealing a space precisely matching the size of the ball in my hand.
Struggling to maintain my footing, I forcefully thrust the core into the designated space before abruptly snapping back to reality. My eyes opened wide, and I found myself breathing heavily, returning to the real world
"Finally…"
I've made a soul core…!
"Finally!"
The process consumed a significant amount of time and effort, but finally, the fruits of my labor had paid off.
"Yeaaaaah!"