Chapter 76

Utterly exhausted, Keith opened his eyes and found himself lying on his bed. For a moment, he wondered why he felt so weak when he saw a blinking notification covering his vision.

Warning: You’ve acquired Mana Sickness from using more Mana than your body could handle. -80% to all stats. Duration: 3 months, 1 week, 3 days, 14 hours, 2 minutes, 45 seconds.

Recalling everything, Keith sighed. That was close. A few more seconds and his stats might’ve dropped to 0. Thankfully, he succeeded. Even now, Keith could feel the presence of his Mana flowing through his body, bringing him great comfort.

But three months of Mana Sickness? That was a hard pill to swallow. Considering everyone was exploring the Grandsky Realm, now was the worst time to fall ill. Keith could already imagine everyone else growing rapidly while he remained the same.

Keith opened his status, hoping that whatever he unlocked was worth it.

[Transcendant] Mana Manipulation

Description: Grants the ability to manipulate Mana. Skill level reduces the mental strain of controlling Mana.

Keith gasped. Transcendent grade? That was the highest grade in the Grandsky Realm! He remembered that Yara said there were less than 20 Transcendent grade items in the entire Realm. While skills were less rare, that still meant there couldn’t be more than a few hundred. And Keith actually had one in his possession?

That wasn’t all.

Keith noticed he had two more titles.

[Path of Mana: Beginner]

Description: Take your first step onto the endless Path of Mana. Reduces the Mana cost of all skills by 5%.

[Transcendant Skill Holder]

Description: Possess a Transcendent grade skill. All skills level slightly faster (up to level 1,000).

Slimeballs. Both titles offered incredible effects, making them the best Keith had acquired so far. Though, the Path of Mana left Keith thinking about its implications.

Struggling to sit up against the wall, Keith returned his attention to the Mana Manipulation skill. He’d never seen such a barebones description. What exactly did “grants the ability to manipulate Mana” entail?

Once again, Keith moved Mana onto his finger, where it lit up with a pale blue radiance. When it grew dark, Keith flicked his finger and shot out a small ball of Mana. It hit the nearby wall with a splat and dissipated, leaving no visible damage.

“Huh?” Keith was confused. He could intuitively feel he spent nearly 30 points of Mana to create that ball, about as much as the Fireball skill would use. But even a Level 1 Fireball would leave some scorch marks, so why did his self-created ball pop like a harmless bubble? There must be something he was missing. Otherwise, the Mana Manipulation skill wouldn’t be Transcendent grade.

Mariane must’ve noticed the movement of Mana because she opened the door a few seconds later. As soon as she saw Keith was awake, she turned hostile. “If Yara hadn’t said there was another reason, I would’ve thought you were trying to kill yourself because I’m forcing you to move out. What the hell do you think you were doing? Yara said you were this close to dying!”

Keith blinked in surprise. “Oh, come on, why would I do that? I was just experimenting. Besides, I had everything under control.”

“Bullcrap!” Mariane spat.

“I did!” Keith persisted. “I stopped as soon as my Mana Sickness reached 80%.”

“Oh, good for you,” Mariane snapped. “Do you know how long you’ve been sleeping? Almost two weeks. I’ve been worried sick. If you really had everything under control, why leave us in the dark?”

Keith scratched his cheek when he saw the tears in his Mother’s eyes. “Uh, okay, that’s fair. To be honest, I didn’t expect to fall unconscious.”

Mariane glared at Keith. When she saw his guilty look, she relaxed her posture. “Was it worth it? Whatever you were doing?”

Keith shrugged. “I don’t know yet. Hey, have you ever seen a title like this?”

A notification flew towards Mariane, showing his new title’s information. She shook her head. “No.”

At that moment, Yara rushed into the room with an expectant expression. She asked, “Did you acquire a Mana Body?”

“Huh? What’s that?” Keith grew curious. Did she know something?

Yara frowned, somewhat unsure. “What did you spend so much Mana for?”

Keith didn’t want to keep it a secret. There was joy in sharing his accomplishments. With a wave of his hand, Keith sent Yara info about his Mana Manipulation skill.

“So it’s this,” Yara’s eyes brightened.

Keith sat up. “Grandma, you’ve seen this skill?”

Yara nodded. “Yes, a handful of people have it. All level 1,000. One person had a special opportunity, while the others had a Mana pool of several million.”

Keith was shocked to hear that. He quickly asked, “Can you tell me why it has such a high grade? I’ve tested a little, but it doesn’t seem that useful.”

Yara recalled someone from the Conceptual Dimension. With a sorrowful tone, she explained, “Although I don’t have the skill, I had a good friend who did. According to her, there were two things the Mana Manipulation skill was great at. Creating skills and forming a Mana Body.”

Keith was more interested in the term Mana Body. Yara continued before he could ask, “My friend said to form a Mana Body, you had to create a complete network in your body for Mana to flow. Other than that, I don’t know much else.”

“Huh!” Keith leaned back and closed his eyes. Inside his body, he could see the central ball of Mana in his chest, with tendrils randomly forming and dissipating. Keith immediately recalled the diagrams on human anatomy he had learned in school. Should he form the Mana Body based on veins and arteries?

Growing excited, Keith visualized an interconnected system of lines flowing through his body for his Mana to follow. To his surprise, a notification appeared.

Mana Body Completion Rate: 13%.

Please choose whether to confirm or deny your design.

Warning: Deconstructing an established Mana Body results in immense pain.

Keith opened his eyes and asked Yara, “What completion rate did your friend have?”

Yara was puzzled. “I don’t know. Why?”

Keith explained the details to Yara, causing her to fall into thought. Back then, Elaine observed that her friend’s vessel doubled in size after forming her Mana Body, meaning this process was crucial.

Taking a deep breath, Yara said, “I know someone who could help you. He’s a bit of a workaholic, though I’m sure he’d be more than interested in your situation. Have you heard of William Frisk?”

“Of course!” Keith exclaimed. The genius scientist behind the magic tablet, magic network, and countless other inventions? Who hadn’t heard of him?

Yara nodded to herself. “I’ll contact him immediately.”