Dexter soared out of the mountain with the wind behind his back. His eyes met the towering pillars that offered to take his life over countless times, and he wasted no effort walking into them. The runes that riddled the base of the stone formation activated at his presence, drawing in ambient wind energy to power the trial.

Moments later, the gray creature that was once human walked out of the mountain. As she zeroed in on Dexter, she stood to a height of nearly two meters, bearing a lithe figure that held toned muscles. Her limb proportions had been altered in favor of her wingspan, but there was no doubt her skeletal structure was in pristine condition. Her body was greater than athletes, pushing her dexterity beyond what world class gymnasts were capable of.

It was clear the woman's attributes prioritized Dexterity before she had been altered, compared to the awakened that prioritized Strength. Was there a way to turn them back? The more Dexter thought about the question, the more he thought it was futile. The changes to their body was marked by the wild, and no predator would ever willingly give up their fangs.

As the feral woman stalked towards Dexter, she activated an awakened ability and her nails began to grow, morphing into bladed claws. Her fingers then flexed, and her bone blades increased in size, slicing through the upper parts of her knuckles.

"Munchkin, you better not screw this up. I know hers are girthier, but you have a good heart. Don't let them intimidate you."

The wind blade had been stored in the silver lining across Dexter's robe. Whatever the material was made of, it was the part of the robe that produced the wind aura, and could be used as a scabbard to sheath the skill. When he discovered that, the wave pattern on the robe had made more sense. It gracefully flowed across his chest and back, swirling down to the cuffs of his sleeves and the bottom of the robe.

Each trail was an avenue that the blade traversed, and would exit at any point on his command. By the time the blade increased in size, it wouldn't have to navigate the waves and would encompass the entire robe, able to strike simultaneously from all directions. The ingenuity was of brilliant design, and Dexter couldn't wait to discover more of the Sky Priests artifacts. But he would have to survive first.

Circling his aura, Dexter increased his energy resonance and floated towards the heavens. His technique was seamless thanks to his new robe, and he rose faster than ever before. As he neared half the height of the first pillars, who rose to ten meters, the woman's predatory instincts kicked in, taking his bait. She then rushed forward into the Heaven's Fury trial, leaping right at him.

Dexter muttered something about basketball, and how even though she was a freak of nature, he refused to be dunked on. She had stepped into his stadium and he wouldn't allow any disrespect. Pushing an energy wave away from himself, Dexter watched the wind slow her momentum just before she made contact, swiping razor sharp claws at his face. He then pulled himself in higher into the sky, guiding her between air streams as she floundered below him.

The turbulence in the first pillar wouldn't hold her, it was the second set that would show the true might of the deadly vortex. And the higher they rose, Dexter would force her into the third tier, where the heavens scythes awaited.

As Dexter passed the first barrier, he pulled the awakened into a pair of stone daggers. She screamed like a captured dog, flaying as the scent of blood entered the air. But he didn't stop there. Her scream was out of frustration rather than pain, the awakened skin was simply too tough and regenerated too fast.

Annoyed at the harassing winds, the awakened attempted to scale the bladed pillars like a cat climbing a tree. Dexter watched in awe as its claws managed to dig into the stone. Not only were they protected by blades of wind energy, they were crafted from a dark stone packed with natural energy. The durability was leagues beyond ordinary tree bark.

But the creature's intention was easy to read, and as it jumped towards Dexter, moving with a speed that broke the air streams, he assisted it. Under his command, the air around him formed into a vacuum and pulled the woman forward. She careened into a deadly longsword, narrowly snatching Dexter with her as he maneuvered out of the way.

This time, the screams that assaulted his eardrums were drenched in agony. And as Dexter stared at the gaping wound on her shoulder, he knew he had finally cracked her shell long enough to begin a true assault. The bombardment would drain her energy reserves, leaving her defenseless.

Dexter's eyes darted through the trial as he juggled the awakened between air streams. Like a puppeteer, he forced her to move to his will, and her flesh was carved to pieces as a result. But even with her shoulder wound, her endurance wasn't quick to give out. Speeding the process up, Dexter slammed her back into a pair of axes, amazed at how she took the blow with gritted teeth, turning her head to stare daggers at him. The waxy skin was a natural armor like rhino hide, and it was bolstered by vital energy in a similar way to his armor.

The more he saw her endure the blades of the stone pillars, the more his understanding of vital energy grew. Through advanced manipulation, it would enhance one's body without assigning points into Constitution. But what about his Strength, how would it affect his muscles if he focused his wind aura there? By default, the wind energy had enhanced his speed, but it was vastly different from assigning points into Dexterity. That attribute increased his finesse, granting him greater speed by discarding useless movements.

Dexter was eager to test his new theories, but he filed them away for later, continuing to bombard the awakened. Her flailing had only increased as she lashed out at the wind shackles, but as they rose higher she grew more disoriented, bearing the weight of the vortex. There were countless paths for a blade to strike, each as swift as the wind, and Dexter noted all of them. Soon, ripples fluttered out of his robe as Munchkin consumed the knowledge.

[ Synergy increased! - Bladed Vortex: 7% ]

[ Synergy increased! - Bladed Vortex: 8% ]

[ Synergy increased! - Bladed Vortex: 10% ]

[ Your understanding of the First Art of the Ozkaari Sky Priests: Bladed Vortex, has passed the first mark! Ozkaari Sword Mastery (Basic) has been instilled into your Scythe. ]

As the notifications flashed by Dexter, he summoned the little scythe out of his robe, and watched it dance, mirroring the attacks that caused screams to echo out over the world. Each blade on the stone pillars held a Mastery skill, and Dexter began to look at them as fruits hanging from a tree. He was truly in a garden, the name had never rang so true.

"I guess it's about time I feed you, little buddy."

Drawing upon half his energy, Dexter pulled the awakened into the sky, who had now crawled into the fetal position to defend herself. As she flew past him, his stability fell, and he began to get blown around. The loss of concentration caused him to lose his grip on the awakened as she plummeted out of the arena, smacking into pillars on her way down.

Dexter looked back up to the sky where the scythes lay, and knew he didn't have the ability to carry her that far.

"Damnit."

He would have to deal the final blow in person.

Rushing down like a falcon, Dexter eyed the awakened, who lay sprawled across the ground. Her limbs twitched as she tried to rise, but her broken bones made it impossible. As Dexter approached, she began to snarl, biting the hair that fell down her face. Fortunately, she was faced down, having her range of movement cut in half, but Dexter hurried over to her opposite side, unwilling to take any chances.

His eyes took in the countless scars on her body, some of which continued to heal—a testament to her tenacity. If he waited for a minute, he was sure she'd recover enough to stand on her feet. Summoning Munchkin, who happily leapt out of his robe, Dexter put an end to the healing by reopening the axe wounds on her back. His attuned spear followed a second later as he stabbed directly into her heart.

[ Iron Shroud proficiency has drastically increased! ]

[ Points received! - 7,000 Renown! ]

[ Title: Giant Hunter - Kill an awakened beast 10 levels higher than your own. *Bonus experience awarded! +3 to all stats, +3% effectiveness to all attributes. ]

[ Quest: (Slayer I) has been completed! +1000 Renown! +500 Essence Tokens! ]

[ Quest: (Giant Slayer I) has been upgraded! Skill rewards have increased in rarity. ]

[ Quest: Giant Hunter II (Title) ]

Kill 10 awakened beasts over 10 levels higher than your own. 1/10 Reward: Choice between 3 compatible skills (Ranked).

Dexter was surprised to see the new Title modify the old one, raising its accompanying quest to the next tier. He thought he had missed out on the rewards as the quest was overwritten. But upon hearing that the new rewarded skills would increase in rarity, he lost all disappointment. It seemed the true way to pass the quests was to push past their requirements.

Dexter got ready to open up his quest panel and choose his reward for the Slayer I quest, when he pulled his spear out of the awakened and her body dispersed in a ray of energy particles, leaving behind a gray stone.

[ Do you wish to learn the Bronze skill Razor Claw? ]

Dexter held the stone, which was warm to the touch, visualizing the claws that sprang out of the woman's hands. On multiple occasions they had almost gutted him, coming inches away from slicing his face off. It was a deadly weapon, one he couldn't lose or break, but ultimately, he had no use for it, and it would interfere with his Spear Mastery skill.

Placing the skill stone away, Dexter retrieved the treasure box he'd taken from the Sky Priest's initiation room in the tower. The aura wafting off the box rejuvenated him, and his robe flapped in response. As he opened it, three pearly-white stones were revealed. Upon touching one, he expected a prompt to appear, but instead a wave pushed into him, billowing into a cloud.

He frowned at the sensation, attempting to gain control over his energy, but the foreign substance had modified it, turning a calm breeze into a swirling gale. His connection to the element grew, rising higher than the foundation that he had started with, as more of the stone's influence radiated through him. With the change, the intensity of his energy strengthened, and Dexter understood that without a doubt, he would need more of the stones if he planned to follow in the footsteps of the Sky Priests.

The last stone dissolved into motes as Dexter looked over the rewards from his Slayer I quest.

[ Identify (Unranked): Read the Essence of an energy source, understanding its true nature. Skill Link: +1 Perception. ]

[ Energy Bolt (Unranked): A charged bolt of energy that explodes upon impact. Skill Link: +1 Magic. ]

[ Healing Pulse (Unranked): Form a sphere of vital energy that boosts regeneration, healing those in its radius. Skill Link: +1 Constitution. ]

"Standard skills, for a standard quest," Dexter scratched his chin. As he read over them, he couldn't deny the value each of the skills held. But with his dwindling stock of health bars, his choice was clear.

[ Healing Pulse (Unranked) acquired! ]

Dexter felt the knowledge of the skill flow into him, and he soon let his energy flow out. The healing skill was slow to build, swirling in a circle under his feet that eventually formed into a meter wide sphere. With his energy attuned to wind aura, he expected it to have an extra effect where he could utilize his newfound skills. However, the skill showed no acknowledgement towards the aura. Whether that was due to its current level or unranked status, Dexter didn't know. But as he tinkered with it, he found a balance where his rate at drawing in natural energy aligned with his energy output for the skill.

Over ten minutes passed where Dexter gathered himself, walking into the mountain for the third time. Thankfully, there was no sign of another awakened, leading him to make a quick haste as he arrived at the Sky Priest's initiation room.

"You can come out now."

Stepping into the concentric circle, Dexter watched the tiny mist of wind aura float out in front of him.

"So how do I start this, is there a magic word—"

Before he could finish the sentence, the energy from the sky hunters forced him to kneel, weighing over his shoulders with dominance. All he could see were the feet of the statues around him, pillars that withstood the domineering aura. Dexter struggled to rise, but his shoulders were set, his legs locked against the floor. The best he could do was focus his will to raise his head, and as he did so, his eyes witnessed a tiny pool of mist stretch into a bladed cloud.