“Hello you little money grabbing formation,” Erik said addressing the auction platform.

With sales made through the platform he had raised another three gold, just paying for the previous losses.

Erik pulled out a chair and sat down, he looked over the list of different people. There was information on what they did and the paths that they wanted to pursue.

Erik looked them over, he couldn’t give them all books and some of them he had information or items that would be able to help them.

Slowly he made notations beside each name, quickly he had filled up the pages.

He opened up the auction platform, placing bids on different manuals and technique books, buying out some fully.

He then moved to the weapons section. First he browsed shields, when he selected it he could ‘view’ it, a version of him appearing with the weapon or item next to him. Erik checked out the size and build of the shield.

He went through a few different types, once he found what he wanted and they had enough, he bought a group of fifty Square shields priced at three silver each.

Then he moved over to the weapons, getting a single handed sword. It went for four silver each but there were batches of thirty.

Just the weapons came to nearly three gold, the manuals and technique books had come to three gold. Erik used the remaining gold he had to buy healing potions and powders, draining all of his savings, in the next three days his auctions would be completed and he could expect more gold to come back to him.

Erik shut down the interface, looking at the items in his different storage rings.

With a sigh he headed for the main square where dinner was being served.

He found the different leaders and a tired looking Taran sitting there waiting for him with food.

Erik grabbed his own meal and joined them. He transferred over the different goods to them. They all got different books with their list detailing which items were to go to whom.

Then Erik passed Jasper the healing potions and powders, the shields and swords were given to Blaze, he gave the excess over to Glosil.

Blaze gave out a report on the condition of the heavy infantry. Glosil on the last of the training and the training that the specially picked archers would be undergoing to increase their levels.

Everyone else had been trained at least with the crossbow and were working to build up the defenses or cutting down more lumber.

People were putting their all into their work and it showed, morale was high and the people were confident, the showers and bathrooms were being used properly, dealing with the waste of the city.

“Most think that they’ve died and moved into a noble household,” Jasper joked, the others smiling and grinning.

Bathing with warm water wasn’t something that they were used to, let alone doing it everyday, having beast meat in their meals and being given healing powders and potions in case of emergency.

“Well, for the next couple of days we won’t be able to get anymore manuals and books, currently we don't have anymore gold remaining,” Erik said.

This got shocked looks but they seemed to understand, they had been spending so much on books it only made sense that it would run out at some time.

Rugrat appeared and wandered over to the eating line, retrieving his dinner he made his way to the stage, he looked like he’d just woken up as he hid a yawn.

“Alright, so construction, first from my lesson,” Rugrat cocked his head to the side, going back through his memories. “This morning, do you have any questions?”

People started raising their hands and Rugrat went one by one, trying to help them out as much as possible.

As he talked, the meeting with the department heads for Alva Village started to come to a close.

“So, Taran, how about those spears and crossbows?” Erik asked, the others were all interested too, wanting to know just what level his ability had reached.

“If it was just me, then mid apprentice grade, with Rugrat’s help I can make mainly mid apprentice grade, with the occasional high apprentice grade weapons,” Taran said with a tired but proud smile.

The others all congratulated him as Erik showed a pleased smile, with better equipment they could increase their attack power, increasing their combat ability even without increasing their overall level.

“Okay, also, tonight I will be attempting to temper my body, I don’t know how long it will take or what the effects will be, Rugrat will be assisting me, but depending on how long it takes we both might not be of much use tomorrow,” Erik said.

“If it’s okay with you I’d want to post a few guards at the village headquarters, that way your not disturbed,” Glosil said.

Erik paused before nodding.

“I’ll agree to it.”

The others didn’t look pleased that Erik was going to try and temper his body but they didn’t raise any other concerns.

***

Erik headed back to the village headquarters after the meeting.

He sat down and pulled out the forest snake sack. It was still full and there must have been two or so liters of liquid held inside still.

Erik moved to the bath in the headquarters, he pulled out the forest snake’s scales and laid them down inside the tub, the scales were unaffected by the poison so they were the best material.

Erik poured in hot water he’d taken from the showers, being in his storage ring it hadn’t cooled yet.

Rugrat knocked on the door a few minutes later.

“Come on in,” Erik said, feeling his guts twisting in nervousness.

“Look at you, just like taking a bath right!” Rugrat laughed, Erik laughed but his heart wasn’t in it. They both knew that it would be much more than that.

“Alright so the plan is that I will get in, monitor me and release the poison slowly, first it will attack my skin, then my muscles and finally reaching into my organs. I will be using minor wounds heal to increase my regenerative abilities. I will be using Wraith’s touch cream on my neck, it numbs the nerves so I won’t feel anything below my head. Make sure to monitor me and if anything happens, use minor wounds heal to help my regenerative ability,” Erik pulled out an an IV bag, it had a pink on the border of red color to it.

“What did you add to it?” Rugrat asked.

“I took saline solution, mixed it with healing powder and injected it into the IV, it shouldn’t create any problems,” Erik pulled out another three needles.

“These are weak novice grade healing potions, if things are going badly, use these in the IV to boost my healing ability. If that doesn’t work, inject it straight into my neck,” Erik said.

“Your body is going to be in the bath, how will you hook up an IV?” Rugrat asked.

“You’ll hook it up, and it’s going to go into my neck,” Erik said.

Rugrat’s head recoiled back, as he looked at Erik with his lips pressed together, he looked like an offended lama.

“Dats fucked,” Rugrat said.

“Thanks for the confidence boost,” Erik muttered. “Fucking support lama.”

“Who’s a lama, you’re a lama!”

Erik put the items on a table and put the IV bag on a stand next to the tub.

Rugrat took his time, checking everything and then moving to the IV. He put on gloves and sanitized Erik’s neck as he had Erik sit down in the tub and look off at the ceiling. His hands were steady as he inserted the needle, blood appeared as he advanced it a bit more, seating the catheter properly. He taped it down, removing the needle and attaching the IV tube before taping that down as well.

Rugrat checked everything once again.

“Good?” Erik asked.

“Good,” Rugrat said, there was no playing left.

“Thanks Rugrat,” Erik said, feeling a rare moment of vulnerability, his brother had been the reason that he was here, the reason he hadn’t taken his life back on Earth.

His debt to Rugrat wasn’t simple.

“Anytime, brother,” Rugrat said, patting Erik’s shoulder, there were no need for complicated words between them.

Erik let out a shaky breath before he pulled out the snake poison sack and handed it to Rugrat.

Rugrat put it to the side and applied warith’s touch around Erik’s neck, Erik had a moment of fear as the feeling of nothingness returned, it was the same as when he had lost his limbs in Africa.

He took deep breaths as Rugrat started letting some of the snake poison enter the water.

They waited as the poison diffused through the water, it started attacking Erik’s skin, burning it, Erik didn’t feel anything and just watched as he started using his minor wounds heal spell.

Rugrat could see what Erik was seeing, one hand on Erik’s head, the other on the poison sack.

Slowly he increased the dosage.

The poison was more of an acid than poison as it broke down Erik’s skin, and then moved through to his veins, his tempered blood fought back, but this was a much stronger poison than anything it had dealt with before.

Erik decreased his minor wounds heal, he didn’t want to heal too much too fast, otherwise the poison might not go through his entire system.

The poisons moved through his muscles, Erik felt his body slump, still he held off from pouring out all of his mana in healing.

The poison moved to his organs.

His entire body was shutting down now.

Erik found it hard to concentrate as his brain was being deprived.

Rugrat increased the poison concentration and used focused heal on Erik’s brain, clearing his thoughts and allowing him to function fully.

Rugrat put the poison sac away, Erik’s entire body was now falling apart below the neck, the water started to turn red as his muscles and skin were dissolved. Erik’s face showed strange fluctuations.

Rugrat opened up the IV as the healing solution entered Erik’s neck and started to move through his body.

Erik didn’t hold back anymore as a healing spell formation appeared on his forehead.

His body was trying to fight back against the poison, it was like building levees in the midst of a flood, trying to slow a flood that was already happening.

Rugrat focused on maintaining Erik’s brain, keeping him conscious as he grabbed a needle filled with healing potion, he had it inserted into the IV drip assembly, ready to push the plunger at a moment’s notice.

Erik started to panic as he saw that nothing was happening with his healing spell and the regeneration powder solution.

Thankfully he didn’t feel the pain as he concentrated his mind, eliminating the random thoughts.

Fight mother fucker fight! You going to let some kind of poison kill you?

Erik used a burst of healing power, his entire body was coming apart, the water was fizzing slightly and colored red with blood.

The mana in the room was stirred up under the two’s draw.

Rugrat changed spells using minor wounds heal to assist Erik.

Rugrat let out a low grunt, his eyes flashing as his mana channels lit up. Erik might be a mana lord, but Rugrat was like a duke, able to move an army with a single word.

Power rushed into Erik’s body, his body started showing concentrated signs of fighting back, every time he advanced slightly, the virulent poison would destroy it.

Erik’s body was in a state of rebirth, trying to advance and being destroyed, each time it regrew, it would become stronger, evolving to fight the poison.

Rugrat couldn’t hold off longer and injected the needle of healing solution into the IV drip.

The pink saline solution took on a deeper red appearance as Erik’s body increased the speed that it was destroyed and rebuilt.

Rugrat grabbed another needle, ready to act as he watched.

The room was whipped up into a frenzy as threads of mana could be seen, drawn in through the mana gates of the duo.

The mana in a thirty meter radius was stirred up as those passing the village headquarters backed away feeling uncomfortable.

Erik and Rugrat might not be moving but they were fighting one of the hardest battles in their lives with Erik’s life on the line.

There was no time for them to care about what was happening around them.

Finally Erik’s body wasn’t being torn apart anymore and was actually stabilizing, it wasn’t regrowing, but it wasn’t being destroyed anymore.

Rugrat was surprised at the tenacity of Erik’s body, his tempered blood and heart acted as the framework for the rest of his body, with each beat of his heart the vitality of his body started to increase.

Erik’s organs that had failed long ago started to show signs of life, it wasn’t sudden, but an incredibly slow progression, still Rugrat watched, not letting his concentration waver in the slightest, not putting down the needle filled with healing potion.

As Erik’s body started to recover, one could sense power coming from within his organs and his muscles.

Erik’s body had been destroyed and healed continuously, going through countless cycles of rebirth, each time his organs, skin and muscles were tempered, their impurities removed as he seemed to become closer to the ten realms. Threads of golden energy from the ten realms entered his body.

Rugrat and Erik worked throughout the night.

Rugrat could tell that Erik would be completely changed.

Erik’s recovery ability took a leap upwards as he fell into unconsciousness, the mental and physical strain too much for his mind and body to handle anymore.

Rugrat continued to heal and watch over Erik.

Finally Erik’s body fully recovered, sitting in that highly concentrated poison that could no longer affect him.

Rugrat used a storage ring to gather the poison water up.

He hauled Erik out of the tub, checking his vitals again.

Erik’s body was fine, he had just sunk into a deep sleep from the strain.

Rugrat pulled out the IV and picked him up.

“Well, at least the extra strength makes it easier to carry you,” Rugrat said, throwing him unceremoniously over his shoulder, he dropped Erik off in his bed, checking him again.

Rugrat paused for a minute and then pulled out the needle with healing potion he put it in Erik’s neck and injected it.

“Better safe than sorry,” Rugrat said, feeling light headed and nauseous. “Damn hurts worse than that second hand tequila from Columbia.”

He went back to his room and collapsed.