Eric groaned, even as his thankfully more personal interface message offered a balm that definitely took the sting out of all his enemies knowing his name and what he had just accomplished, his next move now all but inevitable.

Congratulations! You have earned the Adept Title: Realm Forger!

Your unique juxtaposition of two realms allowed you to infuse Ashland with 3 Lesser and 1 Greater Bounties! Now, all future territories whose destinies you shape under the mantel of Conqueror will also enjoy the bounty of 3 Lesser and 1 Greater land enhancements!

Of course, only the strongest minds are able to tap into resources beyond that of any mere mortal could hope to mirror your accomplishment!

Willpower, Arcane Potential, Spiritual Energy, and Soul Reserves have each gone up 5 points as your interface acknowledges mental feats of strength not even you realized you were capable of!

Hidden Perk: You dare a forbidden path! But even for a Vessel of Oblivion, there is virtue in grace, all the more so with a champion who tempers his ravenous appetite with a ruler’s grace.

Path of Endless Bounty now grants 1 additional lesser land enhancement (2 at Apprentice Tier) when you grant your conquests the mercy of the gentlest of feedings. Drink deep… and share with your supplicants!

But as grateful as he was for the Adept Tier Title he would never have expected, It was the Endless Bounty boon now granting him the ability to infuse his territories with 2 lesser boons even when he drank deep of their potency that he thought the greatest gift… And boon to his conscience, knowing the path he felt more pressure than ever to take with any future territories he would claim.

But it seemed that the interface wasn’t done yet, and that there was a final consolation prize to be had, for the entire world now knowing his name, dreadfully certain that he now had in his possession a territory that every single player competing for Earth’s prizes would be eager to claim as their own.

It was a territory enhancement, not a personal one, but effectively, it would allow him to progress along paths that he had been denied for far too long.

You have earned one bonus enhancement to your Ascendant (Bronze Tier Adventuring) Territory!

Advancements include:

A. Enlightened Mentors. - Your realm forging feat has granted you a System boon transcending Edicts of Suppression and Laws of Dominion! You are now permitted to hire and make use of System Tutors who possess the insights and basic skill masteries you need to best shape your present and future class evolutions!

Selecting this advancement will grant you one free Late-Bronze Tier Mentor & the right to purchase others to benefit your territories on Subjugated World 6783Y (Earth!)

B. Enlightened Cultivators – Your realm forging feat, tied as it is to a Spiritual Cultivation realmsas much as it does a System dominated one, has garnered the interest of many sects, including those permitted to find and teach disciples, regardless of any local Edicts of Suppression!

Selecting this advancement will grant you one Elder Cultivator (Half-step away from Silver) whose affinities perfectly match your own! An elder more than happy to make his home in Ashland territory, and perhaps partake of at least some of the hidden prizes you hope to sell for a fortune!

C. Ascended Tier 2 Evolution Pod Centers. - Your realm forging feat now serves as proof of your Terran ancestry’s untapped potential, deemed worthy of the same tier of pods as those used by all elevated races and their chosen scions!

Ascended Evolution Pods list all classes available to you upon touching said interface! Note: Any party that lacks the requisite nodes/meridian channels (1 or more) will be unable to enter the facility!

All Pristine Pods will be elevated to Tier 2 Ascended Evolution Pods!

All Tainted/Trapped/Exploited Pods (deathtraps) will be decommissioned!

Your Territory will be granted a free Tier 2 Ascended Evolution Pod.

Eric did his best to keep his cool, to focus on the opportunity before him, for all that his heart pounded with excitement.

Finally! After all his tribulations, all his struggles, there was finally a path forward to ascension. Enlightenment. Leveling up without ignorance leading him down countless paths that promised only failure and despair and the mocking smiles of all those that would see him fall spectacularly. Best of all, it wasn’t thanks to any indulgence, grace, or gifts wrapped in bows of condescension from any invading force, but a direct boon from the System itself. Even if it was only because he was a Contender earning a prize for a feat that would no doubt strengthen the System’s hold on this world like never before.

So be it.

It would strengthen him and his allies as well. Which was all that really mattered.

For anxious minutes that he simultaneously understood measured for less than a single heartbeat of time, he agonized over the choices before him. How he yearned for the benefit of any sort of heritage library, or even better, a master trainer deep into Bronze that no doubt had a library of lore at his or her fingertips. A System-sanctioned adviser with his best interests at heart, who could help him cut through the chaff and set him on a path that might see him far past Bronze and the ranks of Titans, all the way to Silver, the realm of beings that could control the fates of countless kingdoms and shape entire continents to their whim, even affect the fates of entire worlds as they ascended up the ranks. He really didn’t know, but with his mother as an example of a Silver Power, it was clear that the scope was far beyond what any classic level 1-50 game could possibly offer.

And this was no game at all.

And master Bronze trainers that could help him forge a path that might lead past even Silver, perhaps all the way to Gold, assuming he had the strength, skills, and luck to survive what might be countless thousands of battles… that was a dream worth almost any prize.

Save for one.

That being tutelage under an actual master cultivator. One who could gift Eric with the greatest prize of all, the path of ascension best suited to his peripherals, eight levels of now scarred peripheral channels forged only by dint of blood tattoos and the magic of actual Bronze Tier fruit in a cultivation realm. A miracle he could never hope to repeat. But with a true master willing to take him on as a disciple? It would almost make having to find his own way as a System Classer worth it. Because Cultivation was a completely separate path to power that would compliment and synergize perfectly with any White tier adventuring class. And who cared if his experience requirements would effectively double? He would have twice the power, if not considerably more, mastering his two Qi attacks with what would hopefully soon be healed peripheral meridians, and on a path to learn so much more. He was somehow certain that any decent master worth his help could help him nurture and direct the currents of Fire fed by Wind and Wood within him, until they grew to encompass his body entire and he was one day ready to ascend to Bronze, and embrace all the insight and power such an achievement would grant him. Just the first crucial step in an ever grander stairway of endless potential. With enough diligence, training, and hard work, he might one day stride among titans, equipped with the skills and battle prowess he would need to protect his planet from all the sharks that would devour his realm to nothing but ashes and broken dreams.

A dream worth fighting for, no matter the cost, or how long it took to achieve.

Yet his hand froze before he could visualize pressing a metaphoric button that would change the fate of his territory, and perhaps his very existence, for all time.

Haunted by the memories of countless terrified mortals, just like he had been, so many sacrificed to an insane pod by laughing orcs. That biotechnological abomination had been more monster than tool of ascension, devouring far more than 90% of the souls thrown inside it’s vegetative maw, as Eric and his sister had seen firsthand, to their eternal regret.

The words blazed so bright in his mind.

Tier 2 Ascension Pods.

The pods trusted even by the heads of ancient powerful clans that were no doubt the true masters of this galaxy, to safeguard and hold sacred the lives of their children.

Whatever other benefits it might have in terms of making sure all classes one was eligible for were, in fact, made available, was almost beside the point. At least compared to the boon it offered above all others.

A boon that could literally change the face of humanity, when a few thousand survivors daring, desperate, or mad enough to risk their lives become millions of adventurers working to better their fortunes and the well-being of their communities. A positive cycle that would one day empower humanity as a whole. An occurrence that would go from infinitesimal to inevitable, the minute the horrific specter of a 90% death rate was transformed to the near absolute assurance of pod survival.

Because, as the System had made exquisitely clear, those individuals not blessed with a single intact node or pristine meridian gate would simply not be allowed to enter the pods at all.

A truth that would allow the countless millions of sane, thoughtful, upstanding men and women who lived their lives with prudence and caution to join the ranks of adventurers en masse, adding their influence to what was now primarily a pool of ex cons, daredevils, ex slaves, and men and women so desperate that they were willing to do absolutely anything to better their circumstances. That alone would have positive repercussions in countless ways for both their fellow adventurers, and for humanity as a whole.

Eric swallowed, ruthlessly forcing his hand away from mental options promising an immediate path to power potentially transcending his wildest dreams, to the choice that could save the lives of countless millions, and give his entire race, the human race, a shot at redeeming themselves in their own eyes, and reclaiming this world once more.

And the thought of any corrupt or tainted pods, what the System had literally called deathtraps, being put offline was an added bonus as well.

You have shown proof of your Terran ancestry’s potential! (though your Sylvan mother would claim it all her doing, of course!) Regardless, your forgoing the quickest paths to power for the sake of millions of Terran monkeys shows a degree of enlightenment far beyond any barbarian tribe!

Ashland has hereby been granted the first (and presently only!) Ascended Evolution Pod Facility upon Planet Earth!

You need but touch any of the pods within for a full selection of eligible classes to be revealed! Degrees of class resonance will also be revealed! Enter when you are ready to make your choices!

NOTE: All other Terran pods have been compromised!

You have played the card: System Contention!

Cards of Conquest trump Intrigue!

Goblinoid corruption has been revealed!

Congratulations! You are directly responsible for the destruction of 67% of all other pods on planet Earth!

Eric froze, outright stunned by the last message blinking across his mind’s eye, praying like hell that no one would associate that glorious clusterfuck with him.

He fought to remain lucid, to focus on one matter that absolutely demanded his attention before he was lost in the rapture of an entire realm reforging itself to his will alone, knowing cold hard choices had to be made, no matter how sweet the rapture of holding a crown might be.

Even now, high on his own power, he was all too well aware that the ultimate stakes were for the entire world, and that there were no doubt countless powers that could effortlessly take away what he had fought so hard to forge.

He swallowed the bitter lump in his throat, making a choice that tore free the mantel of king from his flesh, and kept open for him a crimson path that he hoped would one day lead him to power beyond all his foes.

Even if it left him a crownless lord with no troops at all, save for the dead he dared to bind to his soul.

You have elected NOT to claim Ashland Territory as the seat of your empire, what is now indisputably the most valued territory on all of Subjugated World 6783Y!

“Damn right I didn’t,” Eric whispered to himself with a bitter chuckle as the mantel of rulers torn free of his metaphoric brow, the glorious connection he had had to this pristine land now but a halcyon dream, barely remembered, the grass now blowing to the will of the wind, the glorious sunlight rich in Fire Qi now longer shining at the angle he preferred. Yet it warmed his soul and soothed his strained peripheral channels nonetheless, and was, in truth, a glorious comfort. A reminder of a realm he had brought to glory, even if he could no longer claim it as his own.

The world was well and truly its own once more, though he still did have one magnificent right left, which he exercised immediately, even as his Dominion Interface pinged with countless scores of messages from what he suspected were Contenders across the globe.

E – Caliban, are you there?

A message in the dark to a Blue Corp contact he had increasingly thought of as a friend, no matter that he hadn’t spoken to the gloriously Vulcanesque elf in months. Only now, when he had a chance to finally eyeball what amounted to his Interface in-box after months being effectively Incommunicado in a pocket cultivation realm recently blossomed into a sister planet, did he have a chance to appreciate just how full and bloated his in-box had become.

He wince at the half dozen messages left for him under the Blue Corp header, and felt chills to see a handful from his mother, which was quite a feat, considering that he had put measures in place to keep her contact with him at an absolute minium. He also spotted a surprising number by one Administrator Narri.

Eric’s eyes practically watered by how brightly his ‘What the Other Party Wants’ and ‘Nose for a Bad Deal’ perks blinked over this Administrator Narri’s missives with the same blaring urgency as a software check would websites linked to a dozen trojans. Eric’s metaphoric hands froze to absolute stillness, and he carefully avoided opening even one of the administrator’s letters. Because in this world of unexpected obligations, traps, and retroactive blood-bindings, ignorance was often the best defense. And even if such wasn’t the case, there was only one party he trusted enough to take messages from at all.

He grew increasingly tense with every Blue Corp missive he went through, as a quick recap of emergency measures on his behalf taken turned to what sounded all too much like a desperate plea behind carefully couched words.

-Your funds have been successfully sequestered. Amount Best undisclosed. Do I have your permission to secure these funds by any means necessary? -

- Unexpected resistance from multiple hostile forces. Steps have been taken. It is my sincere hope that you are able to respond ASAP -

And finally,

- Eric, please contact me immediately. It is urgent. -

Then nothing else.

Eric felt a hot flush coming to his cheeks, heart pounding as he glared at the blinking messages of Narri and, he was almost certain, a Contender with a goblinoid name.

“Shit. For fuck’s sake, please don’t tell me you over-extended, Caliban!” He gave a frustrated shake of his head. And even though he knew his mother would castigate him as a fool for letting his emotions get the best of him, perhaps signing away rights that were all that separated this fool and his gold…

He trusted Caliban.

And if his hunch was right, his months of forced hiding had worked to his enemy’s advantage.

Perhaps fatally so.

Unless, of course, retroactive consent was actually a thing here.

So Eric quickly scribbled a reply, hoping it would be enough, having no way of knowing if it would be, but it was all he could do.

- YES, CALIBAN. As we AGREED when last we spoke, you have my full permission to invest the funds I had entrusted into your care in whatever way you see fit. You have my full and unreserved permission to sequester, secure, or otherwise make use of said funds in whatever way you think to be in my best interest or otherwise deem necessary. Let this reply serve as proof of my consent and heartfelt appreciation for your ethical and upstanding stewardship over the resources I have entrusted into your care.

Eric Silver -

“And send.”

He then closed his Interface, took a deep breath, and opened his eyes to behold an absolutely glorious autumn day within what the System assured him was the only territory rich in life-giving Qi on the North American continent, and raced for what he deemed the ultimate prize.

The miles fled under his feet in just minutes, Eric not slowing down until he caught sight of a marvel that filled him with wonder, a magnificent structure of shimmering alloy and translucent crystal shaped like an obsidian pyramid, sparkling and flashing with the golden rays of the morning sun.

He could sense that this was a far grander and safer affair than the twisted amalgamation of spirit, tree, and magi-tech that his deathpod had been. For one thing, he sensed that multiple people could make use of this facility at once, the crystalline matrix comprising the pyramid walls parting like liquid to his touch.

In a trance, he entered the cool, ultra-hi tech looking facility, noting the flashing lights on monitors flashing runic scripts radiating arcane energies he couldn’t hope to decipher, his eyes immediately pulled to the twelve obsidian pods resting upon massive slabs of marble pulsating with energies that sent shivers through his soul.

The obsidian pod closest to his hand immediately lit up, its display mirroring almost perfectly the interface he visualized in his mind’s eye, showing what he had waited for so many desperate months to see.

_____________________________________

Eric Silver Level 9 Basic Conscript (You are 100% of the way to level 10!)

Core (Upper Dantian) Saturation = 100%!

Rank 20 Wind/Wood/Fire Cultivator

Physical Characteristics

Strength – 140

Vitality – 149

Finesse – 79

Quickness – 127

Appearance – 19

Mental Characteristics

Scholarship – 16

Perception – 63

Willpower – 48

Charisma – 13

Potency Pools

Arcane Potential – 30

(Mana Pool = 360)

Spiritual Energy – 147

Soul Reserves – 71 (64)

Stamina – 1510 Points

Health – 1915 Points.

Resistances & Recovery

Physical Resistance – 26

Physical Regeneration – 14.9 health per second

Elemental Resistance – 3

Qi Resistance – 25

Mental Resistance – 12

_____________________________________

You have gained multiple Cultivation skills!

You have achieved Apprentice tier skill rank with multiple arcane weapons! (Fire affinity)

You have achieved Journeyman Status with multiple Unorthodox disciplines! (Blood Magic, Necromancy)

You have achieved Adept status with multiple combat disciplines!

You have achieved affinity with the Essences of Wrath, Dominion, and Fire!

You have successfully synergized Essence Affinities with Unorthodox Disciplines and Combat Disciplines!

You have achieved Rank 9 as a Basic Conscript!

You have achieved Rank 20 as a triple elemental affinity cultivator!

You have infused each of your 12 Pristine Meridian Gates with Divine Tier Spirit Fruit!

You have achieved multiple (17) Titles!

You have earned 1 Elite Tier Title!

You have 4 primary characteristics over 100 points!

You have proven yourself as a CONTENDER, and have conquered multiple territories!

You have conquered at least one territory SINGLE-HANDEDLY!

(You presently claim ZERO territories.)

YOU HAVE ACHIEVED 100% UPPER DANTIAN SATURATION!

ALL CLASSES ARE OPEN TO YOU!

Eric was profoundly shocked by the announcements flooding his Interface, overwhelmed with feelings of wonder, awe, and utter disbelief. He hardly dared to believe that after so much struggle, so many trials, forced to push himself to the breaking point, over and over again, that finally, at long last, a genuine path of advancement was before him. A chance to ascend beyond his wildest dreams, if he made the most of the opportunity before him.

And somehow he wasn’t surprised at all to hear faint pounding on the farmost wall, absolutely refusing to be distracted by the furious glares being sent his way. His interface began pinging with a flood of messages from one Administrator Narri, and a single message from Blue Corp as well.

Eric couldn’t help but crack a fiercely satisfied smile, grateful once again that he had had the foresight to make arrangements with what had at the time been a bemused looking Caliban, on the off chance he actually managed to claim a territory of his own. From there he had only needed a quick interface mail regarding specifics to go along with flagging his recently claimed territory the same Deep blue as the only faction he dared to trust.

- Blue Faction accepts Dominion over Ashland Province in accordance to pre-established agreement between Lord Caliban and Contender: Eric Silver.

All sovereign rights to Ashland Province have been surrendered to Blue Faction.

Eric Silver accepts standard 20% share of all funds generated within Ashland Province. (This includes a 20% share of all resources (mining rights) recovered by any and all adventurers, delvers, or explorers within any and all portals, rifts, and interdimensional anomalies (hereto referred to as dungeons) proven to contain arcane crystals, soul coins, magical herbs, rare ores, mana-infused ores, spiritual treasures, or any other resource above standard dungeon profitability charts. (Exclusive of flora or fauna harvested from dungeons that are earmarked exclusively for personal or tribal use. )

Tier 2 Ascension Pod Center remains the SOLE property of Eric Silver.

Blue Faction reserves the right to develop said territory as seen fit to maximize profitability.

Eric Silver is entitled to a 20% share of any and all profits generated by Blue Faction and any other business venture or owner within Ashland Province or directly processing raw materials sourced from within said territory, or crafting higher tier goods within or from products derived from within Ashland Province.

Any ventures personally funded by Eric Silver will be deducted a 20% Royalty fee (Earmarked for future planetary sovereign) and a 20% Administrative fee (Blue Faction share) to be taken out of profits exclusively. -

With that missive, a massive weight seemed to lift off Eric's chest as the pressure of a Lord’s Dominion squeezing tight his crooked Path of Consumption finally eased, leaving Eric feeling light and free and with the whole world at his fingertips (to devour as he so chose!) Because there was a distinct difference between owning a share in a venture or a business, and ruling a territory outright. And no matter how fine the line, it was one he absolutely refused to cross.

His smile widened as the pounding on the pyramid paneling grew ever more frantic, ever more enraged. Glad that even a humble independent business owner like himself still retained sovereign rights over who was permitted to enter his Tier 2 personal establishment, and who was not. Because he didn’t need his Master Criminal or Negotiator Perks to know that the duo roaring for entrance into his sanctum sanctorum just moments before he was about to ascend were the farthest thing from benevolent parties.

Eric took a deep breath, pretending he didn’t see the snarling countenance of the wizened goblin beside an individual dressed so officiously that he could only be one of his enemies’ political pawns hovering just outside Eric's now hermetically sealed Tier 2 Ascension facility before he entered the closest pod and sealed it behind him, giving those asshats no chance to throw the equivalent of summons papers, writs of indentured servitude, or any other malicious Counsel-sanctioned bullshit at his feet.

Because vendetta had been declared, and Eric absolutely refused to step in any arena where his enemies, and the bureaucratic puppets they controlled, held all the cards.