Chapter 109: Feast of Awakening
'Success!'
Darius's body, still suspended in the lotus position, blazed with golden light.
A warm, powerful surge radiated from his core, filling every corner of his being. The Arcane Sanctum, now solidified, began to fully integrate within his dantian, the energy weaving itself into place. Focusing sharply, he directed his senses towards the changes unfolding inside him.
His skeleton, crystalline and radiant, shifted as it's barriers repaired themselves. Mana flow redirected smoothly, aligning with the sanctum's foundation. The empty reserves within his bones surged to life, each crystal structure glowing intensely as they filled.
'The Arcane Talisman Technique is cycling on its own. I just need to continue absorbing as much ambient mana from Agarttha as I can while in this state. Barrond has no idea how great of a gift this place truly is—these ley-lines outshine any amount of crystals I could've used.'
Above him, the rivers of mana twisted together, each element raging as they converged directly overhead, fighting for dominance. His golden aura flared wildly, winds whipping around him in response to his breakthrough. Opening his eyes, Darius's smile widened, savoring the raw strength flooding his body.
His grin stretched wider as he looked up, eyes blazing. "How could I not eat my fill?!" Laughter burst from his chest, raw and wild, as his body unleashed the full might of his technique. His newly established Arcane Sanctum devoured mana at an insatiable pace, pulling from the very veins of Gaia itself—a once-in-a-lifetime feast.
The golden aura around him intensified, its brilliance consuming the ley-lines above before suddenly breaking apart. The radiant color fell away, replaced by a colossal wave of pure elemental mana cascading down in response.
The surge crashed into him like a tidal wave, and Darius's meridians eagerly drank it in. His body surged with power as it absorbed the raw mana, his meridians stretching to their limit. A sudden pressure built within them, the unmistakable feeling of another breakthrough approaching.
'The benefits aren't over?' The realization sparking even greater ambition. He locked his gaze on the ley-lines above, his voice echoing like a thunderclap across the cavern, "MORE!"
At his command, the ley-lines roared to life as if summoned by their sovereign. The sound was overwhelming—rushing water, booming thunder, shuddering earth, searing flames, and howling wind—each element roaring its answer, cascading toward Darius in an unrelenting flood.
His laughter tore through the cavern like a battle cry, wild and unrestrained. His aura exploded outward, a chaotic swirl of red, blue, yellow, green, and purple, each element surging upward to meet the descending torrent—a literal waterfall of mana crashing down, as if the foot of a god sought to crush him.
Every creature in Agarttha scattered, fleeing in terror, all except Barrond. The world-bear's small form swelled, roots and bark expanding to withstand the immense pressure flooding the air. As the mana cascade collided with Darius, Barrond's eyes squeezed shut. 'Is Gaia trying to kill him?!'
"MORE!" Darius's voice roared from within the storm, his figure swallowed entirely by the overwhelming surge.
Barrond instinctively retreated, genuine fear flashing across his features as he watched the vortex of mana spiral around the boy. His amber eyes burned bright, both awed and shaken by the display.
'I knew it!' Darius's focus sharpened, every thought directed toward his meridians as the flood of mana poured through them. The array encasing them—the foundation of his personal runic language—suddenly activated. Patterns shifted and expanded, lines once fractured now filled with pulsating energy. His runic language had evolved.
'The flow has increased at least fivefold. This feels… incredible!' His body absorbed the leylines mana greedily, like a man lost in the desert stumbling upon an oasis. Each surge tested his limits, but he held firm beneath the onslaught.
Within his dantian, the borders of his five-element yin-yang symbol now solidified, its whispy confines were gaining color. As mana flowed into each section, it condensed into a thick mist, filling the newly formed spaces.
'Just as I predicted,' Darius celebrated, his pride swelling, 'the Arcane Sanctum will advance mana into forms never seen before. Fascinating…'
His meridians seemed to hum with joy, the energy rushing through them as if alive, singing a triumphant chorus. Each element fed into the Sanctum, transformed into the fine mist, and settled into its designated section, a perfect balance at last.
Darius closed his eyes, his smile fading as his focus sharpened. 'Seventeen years… it's been too long since I felt like this.' But he quickly tempered his excitement. 'I can't get carried away—I still need to ensure I don't deviate.'
His resolve firmed, his temperament returning to the steady calm of a seasoned cultivator. He divided his attention: most directed toward pushing his cultivation to the peak of the early-stage of the second layer, while a portion focused on deepening his comprehension of his runic language.
Suspended mid-air, his aura wrapped around him like a five-colored tether, drawing directly from the leyline's above. Agarttha seemed to hold its breath, the massive vortex glowing brighter as elemental streams spiraled into him.
While he focused on his cultivation, two weeks quickly passed, the relentless cycle uninterrupted until Barrond finally noticed a shift. He raised his massive head from his paws, blinking in surprise. "Was starting to think he'd never stop…"
Barrond had kept a close watch on Darius throughout these two weeks, his eyes keen on every shift. He noticed it immediately when Darius's aura wavered, glancing up, he saw the leylines above begin to recover, their light slowly recovering.
Within Darius's dantian, his Arcane Sanctum was now filled with swirling elemental mist, each segment of the yin-yang symbol churning steadily.
'I've reached peak early-stage. Time to stop and stabilize.'
His breathing slowed, the rhythm steady and controlled as he gradually withdrew from his cultivation state. The aura surrounding him began to retract, pulling away from the leylines above.
As his aura finally separated from the heavenly streams, the rainbow glow emanating from him faded, restoring Agarttha's equilibrium. Life stirred; animals cautiously emerged from their burrows, the cavern resuming its natural rhythm.
Opening his eyes, he released the last burst of golden light in two brief beams before they disappeared. His body gently descended, settling into the lotus position on the ground.
He lifted his arm, feeling the cracks echo throughout his bones, like small detonations. Raising his open hand, he clenched it into a fist, a shockwave rippled out from his muscles, drawing a grin across his face. "My strength has doubled—at least 160 cauldrons now… wait."
He glanced around, then down at his tattoos, before erupting into a hearty laugh. "How wondrous!"
Standing abruptly, Darius unleashed his aura, fully flexing his new realm.
The area around him instantly sank, the ground compressing and the flora flattening under the pressure of his unleashed aura. A 15-meter radius became a dented circle. "My Arcane Gaze is now useless," he laughed. "This new ability is more than just spiritual sense… mana sense, perhaps? I'll refine that later."
His eyes, now locked in a permanent state of heightened awareness, responded instantly to his will. With a mere thought, he could filter, extend, or shift his vision in any way he desired, rendering his previous technique entirely obsolete.
Throwing a punch, the motion was sharp. The air snapped, a shockwave erupting as 160 Cauldrons of Force speared outward, slamming into a metallic tree in the distance, the trunk exploding. "But the real surprise is my tattoos," he smiled. "They're no longer fueled by my own mana—they draw in ambient mana on their own. This means my physical strength will constantly increase, even without effort. It truly is the perfect body cultivation method."
With a burst of laughter, he launched into the sky, his body arcing through the air. The wind whipped through his hair, and just before landing, his aura blazed with purple and blue.
As he hit the ground, he pulled his palm back, frozen mist swirling down his body along with arcing snakes of electricity.
Two, meter and a half long ice serpents materialized over his shoulders, roaring in tandem as Darius thrust his palm forward. An immense lightning-infused palm exploded from the sky of Agarttha, striking the ground with crackling force.
"Finally," he said, a sense of satisfaction evident in his tone. One of the ice serpents coiled affectionately around his arm. "I can wield every element at once."
He stared at the lingering arcs of lightning crackling through the air, his expression shifting. "Purple?"
Pausing, he pressed a hand to his stomach, feeling the subtle shift within. "Seems Daemen had more affect than I realized. Fitting, I suppose… they were his to begin with."
He dismissed the thought, turning his focus inward toward his dantian. The sight of his Arcane Sanctum brought a sense of satisfaction; his mana pool had expanded at least a hundredfold. "With this, I could sustain my current techniques for hours without exhausting my reserves. Not just in quantity, but this new mist form—it's at least twice as potent as before."
He drew a mental comparison to wine: if his previous mana had been like a cheap vintage that required an entire bottle to feel its effects, this new form was akin to a fine spirit, potent enough to achieve the same result in a single cup.
"I can push my Martial Techniques even further, but now comes my next problem," a new dilemma formed in his mind. "Which path should I ultimately pursue in this life?"
The surging water and lightning around him brought back memories of his past life as a formations master and the formation flag born from his Taiji Talisman Technique.
Cultivation, he knew, was more than just a cultivation technique. A cultivation technique was like a book with blank pages—each breakthrough adding new pages, reinforcing the spine and cover to better hold the wisdom within.
But what filled those pages were the cultivator's personal gains: Martial Techniques, body enhancements, and spiritual transformations that came from rare resources or fortuitous encounters.
But at the heart of it all, lay the cultivator's true nature—whether it was rooted in formations, the sword, or mastery of the elements.
"A cultivator mustn't be spread too thin," he reminded himself, reflecting on his past. "I collected everything that caught my eye, but I rarely fully cultivated those gains. My mastery of formations became my core, the center of everything."
His thoughts drifted to Wu Chen, his disciple who had wielded the Dao of Fire with the devotion of a warrior to his blade, his flames becoming his core. "Perhaps I should focus on the elements themselves instead."
Then, as if struck by an idea, his head tilted slightly. "Maybe…" With a swift motion, he touched his pouch, and his bare chest was soon covered by his green tunic and chestpiece. Raising one hand, he summoned the mysterious black orb—a primordial artifact of unknown potential.
Holding the dark sphere at eye level, he studied its surface, spinning it slowly between his fingers. "Last time, you responded when I offered each element individually… Let's see what you do when i give them simultaneously."
Darius had long known that this artifact harbored deeper secrets. Primordial treasures were inherently enigmatic, each boasting unique abilities, but all sharing one trait—complete control established a clear, mental bond with the wielder. He had accomplished this with the brooch and the barrel, yet the black orb resisted full ownership, its imprint within his mind still incomplete.
His eyes glowed faintly as he began channeling every element through his Sanctum. The refined mist filled his meridians, gradually streaming onto the orb.
At first, there was no reaction, the orb's surface as lifeless as ever. Frustration crept into his expression, but he doubled down, maintaining the flow of all five elements. He focused on keeping the balance—each element evenly distributed, none overpowering the others.
'I still lack fine control,' Darius noted the flow of mana. 'I need to stabilize this realm.' Though a part of his mind had already begun planning the next steps for his cultivation, a sudden shift pulled his full focus back—the orb was finally reacting.
He steadied his breathing, keeping the mana perfectly balanced around the artifact. The swirling mist forming a protective shroud, its multicolored mana reflected against the orb, which now glowed faintly with an orange light.
'It's absorbing again,' he thought, a surge of excitement threatening to disrupt his focus. He suppressed it quickly, maintaining the equilibrium as the orb's light flared briefly, only to fade back as it absorbed the surrounding mana mist in a sudden burst.
Sensing a small gap opening within the artifact, Darius seized the moment. "Bind!" he commanded, sending a thin thread of his mana sense into the treasure. As the last of the mist was drawn inside, he felt his connection deepen.
Inspecting the orb closely, his brow furrowed. "Still incomplete… but I've made progress." He closed his eyes, visualizing the black gauntlet to summon it.
The sensation was immediate—his mana sense linked with the orb, guiding it as it dissolved and slithered up his right arm. The shifting black substance coiled around his limb, solidifying into a black gauntlet that stopped at his shoulder.
"Huh?"
Unexpectedly, he felt a tug from within, as if the artifact itself was asking for permission.
'Maybe a remnant will? Most likely a part of the design to guide the user.'
Stretching his senses to confirm there were no living beings nearby, Darius steeled himself. 'No telling what this will do,' he braced, then nodded internally. 'Show me.'
Heat exploded from Darius's arm as the gauntlet glowed molten red. His skin easily withstood the intensity, but his tunic and clothing ignited, the fabric curling away from the creeping metal that slithered over his body.
The shifting alloy moved like a living entity, burning across his form until it forged itself into a full suit of heavy plate armor. Jets of steam burst outward as the armor cooled, the fiery glow fading into a deep obsidian black.
With a gesture, he summoned a water mirror, expanding it to view his reflection fully. "Not bad… not really my style, but—" He paused abruptly, feeling a strange tug from the artifact, a foggy sensation creeping into his mind.
"Trying to communicate?" He closed his eyes, focusing on the impression. It wasn't a language in words, but he sensed intent. 'It can change… it's responding, almost like... it's embarrassed?'
A warmth of reassurance spread through him from the armor, causing a pang of guilt. 'I didn't mean any offense… I just prefer lighter attire.'
On impulse, Darius projected a mental image of a more personal design. He opened his eyes to the mirror, anticipation in his gaze. "Something like this."
The armor immediately shifted in response. The heavy plate began to ripple and reform, condensing into a lighter form. Its bulky structure smoothed out into a set of elegant pearl white cultivator's robes, complete with a hood and trimmed with intricate black designs. The long sleeves billowed slightly, adorned with swirling runes. The fabric was thick yet moved fluidly, a mix of strength and grace.
On his right arm, however, the black gauntlet remained. It's surface now marked by faint, glowing engravings.
Darius scrutinized the transformation, nodding with approval. "Much better," smiling, he admired the design and feel of his new robes.
Adjusting his stance, Darius felt an overwhelming sense of rightness settle over him. He crouched slightly, testing the fit, his satisfaction evident in the subtle roll of his shoulders. "This artifact… it's more than I expected. The gauntlet's lost its invulnerability, but the defense is now spread across my entire body."
Secretly, though, Darius couldn't deny his fondness for the gauntlet. He'd never admit it aloud, but the way it suited him added a touch of pride, even vanity.
Releasing the water mirror with a flick of his wrist, he turned to his right. "Since you're here, I could use your help."
For a moment, there was only silence. Then, a deep chuckle broke the stillness as Barrond materialized from the ground, his form emerging like roots sprouting from the earth. "You can't have expected me to ignore all that," Barrond said, scratching his head with a clawed hand. His tone held a trace of guilt. "Even if I'd tried, my curiosity would've gotten the better of me. Forgive the intrusion."
Darius shrugged. "Nothing to forgive. I was expecting you." He paused briefly before adding, "I need your assistance with something. Can you mimic the strength of a steel knight?"
Barrond's brow furrowed, considering the request. "Not with complete accuracy, but I can get close enough."
Darius's eyes lit up, clapping his hands together. "Perfect." Extending his arms outward, he grinned widely, his voice daring. "Hit me with the full strength of a steel knight. Let's see what this new body can take."