I could not say for sure how long I lay on the ground. It felt like just a moment, but my head was still spinning and pounding when I finally felt ready to approach the oasis. In theory, modifying Flicker Step to teleport other things was a simple enough task requiring only willpower and mana control, but it was far from easy in practice.

Sitting up, careful to avoid moving to avoid abrupt motion, I rose to my feet, glancing over at the monster. Most of its corpse was unharmed, but the rounded mass on top of its neck was a grisly mass of red, white, and black tissue, staining the dirt beneath an onyx shade.

Stretching out my mana senses, I detected nothing to indicate life, though I did catch hints of strange energy fleeing the remains. It felt similar to Aether but different somehow. Maybe it had been altered by the creature's body? I would need to bring the corpse back with me and examine it when I had a chance.

After all, if my suspicions were correct, this creature might provide hints to further my body refining techniques. Although I would prefer to retain my natural appearance and sanity, I could not deny the effectiveness and raw strength that the beast possessed. What might cause a person to mutate and transform like this? Questions for later, I decided, kneeling down and retrieving my dagger before sliding it into its sheath.

Taking a few steps towards the oasis, I was suddenly racked by shooting pains down my left arm, as if a hundred red hot nails were pushing into my flesh. The adrenaline from battle had kept me from noticing most of my injuries, but now that I was calming, it must be wearing off. Grimacing, I reached down to my belt and opened the pouch, pulling out a regeneration potion. I had purchased a few, intending to use them for body refining, but taking one now seemed prudent.

Gripping the cork with my teeth, I popped open the vial, spitting out the stopper before downing the contents in one long gulp. The cold liquid burned down my throat, and angry itching sensations broke out across my body, concentrated on my arms, head, and chest. Letting out a sigh, I closed my eyes, taking in a few steadying breaths.

Only to cut them off and fall to the ground when the pain in my arm returned, three times as bad. Holding back a scream, I pulled the limb close to my chest, biting at the ties of my bracer with my teeth. Pushing my shirt up with the side of my face, I barely noticed the nauseating sensation of cloth pulling free from my open flesh.

Underneath the crimson stain of blood, a dozen puncture marks stood out, ragged and deep. While that was to be expected, what was far more alarming were the blackened veins, stark against my pale skin, working up my forearm. They covered my arm from hand to elbow and were spreading even as I watched, creeping up along my bicep.

Accompanying the strange infection was an even more bizarre sensation, almost as if my arm was weighed down by something. Trying and failing to clench my hand, I swore and pushed my awareness into the limb. Running along my channels, I found something that confirmed my worst fears.

Coating the entire pathway was a dark, ink-like substance, clogging my natural energy and preventing it from flowing. As I watched, the fluid seeped into and through the walls of my organ, penetrating flesh and spreading further with each passing moment.

Somehow, that monster must have spread something to my body, an infection of some kind. While I had no idea what it was, I had no desire to find out after seeing the results on that thing. I needed to eliminate it and fast. But how?

Closing my eyes and reaching into my core, I grabbed hold of my meager supply of mana and pulled it down my left arm. Concentrating, I pushed it into the corruption, watching as it crashed into the inky black energy. The attempt brought to mind images of a cup of water thrown at a roaring fire, and the infection appeared almost emboldened by my failure.

Gritting my teeth, I took several deep breaths, pulling in more mana before focusing inward. I scoured every inch of my body, gathering every bit of energy I still had and focusing it, compressing it into a tight sphere. When I was sure I had as much power as I could muster, I drew it down to my left arm, throwing it again into the layers of corruption.

The bits nearest to me burst and seared away, and its advance halted. I felt an ember of hope that was summarily snuffed out when the creeping darkness surged forward, regaining ground in just seconds. Although my attack had slowed it, in the end, it was unharmed.

Looking down at my arm, I became unnaturally aware of the weight of the dagger hanging on my belt. My knowledge of first aid told me that there were two choices with an infection. The first was to cure it, and the second was to cut off the infected portion of the body to save the rest. If I lacked the power to burn away this sickness, I might not have any choice left. Would it be so bad to fight only with one arm?

As I took several racking gasps, readying myself for emergency surgery, I let my head fall to one side, the gentle glow of the oasis still shining nearby. Staring at the pool, I grit my teeth, pushing aside the despair threatening to overtake me. Maybe I did have one option left, after all.

Pushing my right hand into my pouch, ignoring the agony as my barely stabilized broken bones grated, I grabbed two more healing potions. I had only purchased six, but now was not the time to be frugal.

Drinking both, one after the other, I waited several seconds for them to start to take effect. They worked well on wounds, but against toxins, not so much. I had little hope they would do anything against this corruption spreading through my body like rot, but that was not why I drank them.

Although I would rather wait longer and let my wounds heal more, time was of the essence. With no small amount of protest from my cracked ribs, I rolled only my chest, trying and failing to stand as my legs refused to cooperate, giving out under me.

Grunting, I reached forward with my right arm, my left similarly refusing my commands. Digging fingers into soft dirt, I pulled, dragging myself less than a foot along the ground. Sharpened rocks dug into the delicate skin of my stomach, but I ignored the pain, knowing I might have only minutes left.

Again and again, I reached and pulled, moving forward inch by agonizing inch. There were only a few dozen feet between where I lay and the edge of the oasis, but it might as well have been miles in my condition. Each foot brought new, painful sensations as the corruption spread. My left arm and legs felt numb, my chest heavy, and my sight started to fade.

Still, I did not surrender, driven forward less by willpower or determination, and more by an overwhelming fear of what lay in store for me if I failed. Would I die? Would I become another abomination, waiting here until another mage came by and put me out of my misery? I could not decide which was worse, and so I persevered, focusing only on the motion of my arm and the glowing light shimmering just a few feet away.

Finally, my hand sunk not into dirt or grass but warm water, soaking my armor and touching flesh. By this point, my entire body felt cold and distant, and I clung to awareness by the barest scrap of willpower. The infection had spread throughout at least half of my body and was starting to invade my core. With a final heave, I pulled forward and fell into the oasis, the weight of my armor dragging me into its depths.

Floating, I thought back desperately, recalling lessons on magic that I had not thought of for months. Some mages learned to direct energy from ley lines directly, as one could alter a river's flow. I never attempted the skill, finding it useless for the skillset I sought to develop, but it seemed I was wrong. Though I never learned the technique, I no longer had a choice.

Opening up my core, I pulled, allowing the flow of Aether in the water around me to enter my body. As the ravaging energy slammed into my flesh, I instinctively closed myself off from its power, a scream leaving my mouth in a spray of bubbles. Water gushed into my mouth and down my throat, but somehow I retained the ability to breathe. It was as if the pool's energy was providing air to my lungs, though I shook off my shock, not bothering to question the effect.

Rebelling against every part of me that screamed to hold firm, I relaxed, and again, the energy of the waters slammed into me. Moving more through instinct brought about from months of constant cultivation, I dropped into Iron Forging, letting the energy flow down my channels and into my core. As it swirled, I pushed, letting it burn down each pathway, headlong into the horrific energy infesting my flesh.

Agony, worse than even the infection, ripped through my body, and again I screamed, my entire body tensing. Still, motivated by an even greater fear of death, I let the energy flow. Channels flexed and burned, but I persisted. Crippling injuries were preferable to dying or losing my humanity.

While it withstood my power, the raw Aether of the oasis was far too great to resist. Bits of corruption tore free from the mass, ripped from my body, and expelled out of my pores. After the wave subsided, the creeping darkness attempted to gather itself and continue to spread, only to meet another wave of energy, driven by the rhythms of my breathing.

It was a delicate balance, letting the energy burn through my body just enough to break down the taint without serious injury. My tempering, body refining, and the healing potions all helped improve my durability, but I knew I was walking a fine line even still. The water around me had been stained an inky black color.

Finally, after hours had passed and a dozen cycles brought forth nothing more, I stopped, letting my body relax. In just seconds, my exhaustion reached a critical point, and I let the darkness take me.

Regaining consciousness several hours later, judging by the sun's height, I shifted in the water. Checking my core and channels, I found that they looked stressed and injured, but not to the point of permanent damage. A few days of rest, maybe a week, and I should be healed enough to resume casting magic.

More importantly, during my time unconscious, I must have absorbed some of the waters' effects. The mass of energy in the center of my core looked twice as large as before, and I let a smile cross my face. I had only a rough estimate of how much I needed before attempting to move to the next stage, but I was near Peak Vapor by my reckoning.

With regular training, I should be ready to move to Mist within a month or two, just on the low average. If I could stay here and use the oasis regularly, I could reach it in just days, but that was too much of a risk. Sooner or later, Ferris would discover my deception, and besides that, overusing this place would cause my power to again outstrip my ability to contain it.

Adjusting my position, I spun, paddling towards the edge of the oasis and pulling myself onto dry land. Taking a few steps, I paused, looking down at the ground.

I felt...light? Weightless even. I thought it was due to the water, but the sensation remained even after leaving the pool. Bouncing on the balls of my feet, I leaped a foot into the air with only a slight flex of my muscles.

Landing, I looked down at my hands, opening and closing them several times. The place where my arm had been torn open looked the same as before, healed and unblemished, and my muscles looked unchanged. Despite this, a strange sense of strength ran through my flesh.

Drawing my dagger, I spun it between my fingers before lashing out in several quick stabs. My arm moved in a blur, faster than any natural human could manage, but still perceptible by my eyes. The blade whistled, slicing through the air, and I felt a smile come across my face before I stopped, sheathing it in one quick motion.

I had hoped that the oasis would produce this effect thanks to my injuries, but the results exceeded even my expectations. While before, I had been within human limits, although only barely, now I had stepped beyond them. It was impossible to say just how far without any conclusive tests, but I was sure of it.

And all I needed to do to get these results was nearly die to an unknown infection and use an untrained, improvised technique just as likely to kill me as save me.

Shaking my head, I walked over to the monster's corpse, pausing for just a moment before activating the spatial pouch and placing it inside. As I willed it, the opening expanded, and the body vanished, only crushed grass and stained dirt marking where it laid before.

After a few minutes spent retrieving the rest of my things, including my sword-staff, and bottling a few vials of oasis water, I started back towards the village. Running through the forest with inhuman speed and grace, dodging boulders, and tree limbs, I allowed myself a smile.

When I jumped fifteen feet into the air, leaping over a fallen tree and landing without the slightest stumble, my smile turned to a laugh. If body refining brought me this far after just a few months, how strong would I grow in the years to come? And would I even be a human anymore when those changes were finished?