Driven by a renewed sense of purpose, Joe hobbled down the corridor to the last and final hall. His body was still blue and frostbitten from the previous trial, but the promise of healing himself in the fountain drove him forward with enthusiastic zeal. Overall, he felt a surprising level of determination. The hall had been challenging but not as dire as initially feared, thanks to the second half of the hall turning out to be an illusion. Perhaps the fifth hall would turn out to be the same.

The experience under the illusion had left him contemplating the nature of this place. At first, he thought the hall's sole purpose was to test and improve one's ability to control Spiritual Aura but now believed there was another purpose. In addition to training his Spiritual Aura, each hall had focused on a theme dedicated to tempering one or multiple attributes. It felt fitting that the Heavens had deemed to call this place the Halls of Temperance. So far, all his stats had been tempered except for Spirit, foreshadowing what was still to come. The fourth hall, in particular, had done wonders for his Willpower. Joe still had a giddy smile every time he looked at his improved stat sheet.

“Status,” Joe said excitedly.

Name: Joe Heraldson

Level: 19

Experience Points: 19,243/39,877

Race: Human (F)

Grade: Mortal

Blessings: Heaven's Chosen

Strength: 49

Vitality: 51

Agility: 61

Will: 54

Spirit: 45

Free Stats: 0

Though his level hadn't increased, most of his stats had received a respectable boost since arriving on the second floor, giving him an overall gain of 35 stat points just through training, the equivalent of six levels. The fourth hall alone had added 5 points to Vitality and 9 points to Willpower. It turned out that spending hours tempering his body in blistering cold temperature had been worth it. If the experience hadn't been so harrowing, Joe would have considered going back for a second round. The other halls had also done wonders for his physical stats. Strength and Agility had grown, with Vitality seeing the most significant bump, increasing by 13 points. Joe guessed constant near-death experiences did wonders for the stat.

Joe closed the stat menu just as he rounded the last corner. However, his mouth quickly fell open with a shocked expression when he saw what was waiting for him.

“Is this for real!” Joe blurted out loud.

The dreary-looking recovery room was gone, replaced with a multi-chamber complex that looked more akin to a heavenly beings' training cave. The area Joe had entered was the central chamber which held a large garden pool that would put any five-star hotel to shame. Standing on a pedestal in the pool's center stood the Angelic statue in the same pose, welcoming him home. Joe's eyes started to sparkle once he noticed the glowing orb in the palm of its hands, as though rewarding him for his hard work. He hadn't expected the Tower to throw another opportunity his way so soon, yet who would he be if he rejected such a generous offer.

Up until now, he had considered the second black floor to be quite stingy with rewards in comparison to the blue floors. Apart from the technique, he hadn't found any other treasures no matter how hard he searched. Instead, he had to train with his life on the line just to increase a single one of his stats, a far cry from the attribute fruits he was able to gobble up in the forest of penance. Though, it wasn't all bad. Thanks to constant training, Joe's control of his body had improved by leaps and bounds, allowing him to adapt to his new strength. However, finally, it appeared his perseverance had paid off. Joe couldn't wait to see what new technique the Tower would gift him, but he restrained himself for now. It would have to wait until he reached peak mental and physical health.

Before exploring the side chambers, Joe hobbled over to the pool to heal his weary body. It was already a miracle he had kept going for so long, and he was already on the verge of collapsing. The pool comprised multiple basins, each inlaid with an intricate web of patterns that regulated the temperature.

He selected the basin with the most steam rising from its surface and plunged in. The weight of accumulated exhaustion soon overpowered his mind, and he soon drifted off into a deep sleep. For the next few hours, Joe lay submerged in the warm water, allowing his body to absorb the heat until his blue skin slowly returned to its soft pink pigmentation. Eventually, he emerged feeling refreshed and well enough to explore the rest of the complex.

In addition to the central chamber, there were also two sections on opposing sides. The main section, where Joe was now, held the statue and pool, while the left area contained the living quarters. Finally, the right chamber looked akin to a training dojo, equipped with numerous training dummies.

Joe limped over to the living quarters first. Inside he found a bedroom, pantry, and even a strange lavatory that looked like something from the Roman era. Joe first entered the bedroom, which held a full king-sized bed, a considerable step up from the ratty and worn-out cot from the last hall, and a wardrobe built into a small alcove. Joe's eyes gleamed with avarice once he spotted the closet. He rushed over and opened it in eager anticipation. The inside was packed with various training robes and shoes of different sizes, causing a tear to form in Joe's eye. He would finally be able to ditch the ratty strips of fabric that itched like crazy.

He took out a simple gray robe and inspected it. The robe was plain in color, containing no unique sigils or inscriptions, but was soft to the touch and smelled of freshly cleaned laundry. Unable to hold back, Joe untied the old strips around his body, threw them into a corner, and quickly put on the new garment. The robe wrapped comfortably around his frame, neither too big nor too small. It was composed of an undershirt, a full-body robe, and a pair of trousers. Joe took a moment to appreciate the new style while relishing the feeling of being clothed like a civilized person again.

With clothing taken care of, Joe strolled through the rest of the living quarters. His next target was the pantry which he found stocked with a small mound of basic food rations. Joe quickly tore into several food blocks with the eagerness of a starving animal, uncaring about the stale taste. Discovering food had taken a weight off his shoulders, eliminating his fear of death by starvation. Joe didn't know why the Tower had been kind enough to add food in the last recovery room. Perhaps it was to account for people who ran out of food during the prior halls, or maybe it was the last meal given in consolation before undertaking the final trial. Joe shook his head. He would face that obstacle later.

After getting his fill, Joe explored the last area in the living quarters. He couldn't help but stare at the Tower-designed toilet with mixed emotions. The issue of hygiene had caused Joe no end of grief since arriving on the second floor. Fortunately, higher stats increased his body's efficiency at extracting nutrients and eliminating toxins, significantly reducing the need to go. Still, it hadn't been a pleasant experience, and Joe promised to find a solution the minute he could access the divine store.

After leaving the living quarters, Joe visited the right chamber next to the main room. This section was simple in design, containing only a single square stone room. The walls and ceiling were covered in scorch marks and scratches, suggesting extensive use in the past. Along the sides were simple metal dummies embedded into the floor. Each was constructed from a material with the same tint as dull bronze. Most looked fine apart from a few dents. However, a few others had suffered extensive damage, with pieces of their frame torn off or melted through completely. Joe tried punching one of the dummies with his body-enhancing technique, yet could not leave even a single dent. Joe shuddered. Just how powerful were those who had come through here before?

Having explored the entirety of the chamber, Joe settled in for the long haul. The next few days passed by with little fanfare as Joe spent most of his time recovering in the pools or catching up on lost sleep. Weeks of training had left their mark, building up stress that had pushed his mental state to the edge. Now there was no immediate threat to grab his attention. He could finally decompress and unwind.

A week later, Joe groggily left his new bed. He yawned while stretching his arms out to the side. Momentarily, he believed he was back home in his childhood bed. However, the dark stone walls and flames from the wooden torches quickly brought him back to reality. He scowled before taking a deep breath. There was no time to lament. Besides, today was finally the day he planned to activate the orb. Joe grabbed a quick bite to eat and then headed to the fountain while promising himself that the next time he visited the Divine Shop, the first thing he would buy would be a decent meal.

The orb had continued to shimmer in the palm of the statue's hand for the entire week, alleviating any fear the thing had run out of power. Joe jumped over to the base of the pedestal and stared up at the orb with excited enthusiasm. He had spent the entire week preparing for this moment, doing everything he could think of to be as ready as possible. This time he knew what to expect. Without a moment's hesitation, Joe stepped up to the base and calmly touched the sphere with the tips of his fingers. Like before, the orb shone and encased Joe in holy light, flooding his mind with various concepts and ideas. Joe worked quickly to parcel the information into bite-sized chunks. His excitement caused him to smile with a wide grin once he realized the technique was again related to Spirit Aura. Joe quickly parceled the information until he confirmed the technique's name was called Amplify.

Amplify was a method that taught him how to manipulate and focus his Aura around any part of his body, allowing him to unleash powerful, focused attacks with his fist or increase his speed with concentrated bursts of Aura around his feet. What's more, it was the first ability Joe had learned that allowed him to change the nature of Aura into something more than just pure harmless energy. Joe worked quickly to absorb the diagrams and images, comprehending as much as possible about the technique before the process ended.

Finally, the light subsided, bringing Joe out of the epiphany. He blinked open his eyes to see the sphere crumble into tiny shards in the Angel's palm. However, he wasn't sad. Joe clenched his fist and closed his eyes while controlling his Spiritual Energy. Soon, an even layer of Aura spread around his body, surrounding him in a serene luster. Joe then focused on manipulating the energy using the method laid out in the sphere. A second later, a concentrated ball of Aura appeared around his fist, glowing with a rich white hue. Joe opened his eyes and smiled as he held the ball of energy in the palm of his hand. Thanks to his preparations, he had absorbed a significantly greater amount of knowledge than last time. In addition to his already high Willpower, activation of the new technique had become almost instinctive. Joe dispersed the ball while letting out a pent-up sigh of relief. It was now time to test out how effective Amplify was.

Joe stood in front of the bronze color dummy with his fist primed. Taking a deep breath, Joe released the maximum amount of Aura he could without damaging his Spiritual heart. Though he hadn't made any headway with repairing his core, he had made inroads with increasing his energy control, making better use of the energy he could access. At first, his Aura flared uncontrollably, forcing Joe to grit his teeth and rein it in with his Will. Eventually, he got the energy under control, forcing it to flow smoothly around his body. Next, he directed up to half his Aura to his fist, causing his hand to shimmer with a surge of power. Joe stared with wide eyes at the power he held in his hand, but he quickly regained his composure. He couldn't afford to mess up now. Releasing his pent-up breath, Joe punched out at the dummy, smashing his fist into its metal torso with the force of a cannon, causing a reverberating clanging sound to ring out across the room.

The dummy vibrated violently as the strike's power transferred into the figure, leaving a fist-shaped dent in the center of its torso. However, Joe wasn't celebrating. Instead, he fell to his knees and clutched his bloodsoaked hand with bloodshot eyes. The impact had hit the dummy with the force of a cannon. However, Joe's fist was unable to handle the power. His fist and fingers had shattered and warped, with multiple fractures and broken bones. Joe rushed to the healing pool and immersed his hand in there for the entire day while berating himself for being so foolish.

The power behind the Amplify technique was devastating but also dangerous. Joe had failed to account for the backlash of his strike by enhancing his body to withstand the impact. It effectively meant that he needed to combine Amplify with the Body Enhancing technique to ensure his skin, muscles, and bones could handle the blow. It was a lesson he wouldn't forget anytime soon.

While Joe waited for his hand to heal, he reviewed his progress. The strike had used up twenty percent of his Spiritual energy, meaning he would only be able to unleash a few powerful strikes before depleting his reserves. Fortunately, he would be able to extend this by reducing the amount of Aura he imbued into a strike. In the future, he decided the maximum amount he would amplify an attack would be twenty percent until he improved his control.

It took Joe two hours to replenish his reserves based on his regen rate. However, with the water from the fountain, he could reduce that by half. Joe wondered if there was a way to increase this rate naturally. He thought back to an old buddy from college who had been a martial arts fanatic. His friend believed people could absorb energy from the environment through meditation, effectively becoming cultivators. At the time, Joe had shrugged the idea off as nonsensical. Though, the concept of being able to breathe in and absorb energy no longer seemed so outlandish.

However, up to now, Joe had been unable to find a way to turn theory into reality. Meditation helped speed up his energy circulation, decreasing the time to charge skills, but he hadn't found a way to pull energy from the world around him. Did the world even have Spiritual Energy to absorb? Joe sighed as he inspected his hand. Without more information, he was just shooting in the dark. What he needed was a mana or spirit potion. He had seen a few sold in the shop when he searched for healing remedies but, at the time, hadn't deemed them a priority. However, after seeing the benefits of the healing fountain, he knew he'd have to get his hands on some in the future.