[NR] Exquisite - Chapter 619

The giant mole that Jason had just landed on was less than pleased with the situation. Though in the end, it didn’t get much of a say in the matter. For one, they were of similar size, so the mole wasn’t able to run off with Jason on its back and the two together certainly weren’t going to fit back into the tunnel. More insidious though, was Jason’s assassin title and how it added to the fight.

This wasn’t some high-level mole to begin with and so it didn’t have much System based protection against “cheap shots”. However, out here in the Deep Wilds, the System had even less control and Jason’s chokehold on it seemed to count as a form of kill shot for the title removing any System assistance. All there was is Jason’s arm around its neck and Jason isn’t weak.

The giant mole struggles, but soon loses consciousness as it is nowhere near strong enough to begin alleviating the need for oxygen to the brain. Jason, now free to do what needs done, puts it down in one swift action so as to not have it suffer. Then he lifts the body onto his shoulders and carries it a suitable distance away. No need to scare away any future prey with the scent of blood.

With that all settled, Jason got down to the messy bit. Well, for most, it would be messy. Jason however had a new trick up his sleeve. By coating his skin in a thin layer of Energy, he prevented blood from coming into contact with him and with a pulse removed any that managed to stick to the Energy, leaving only the blade of his knife bloody.

Though Jason took this trick even further. With coated fingers, he slides them down the knife, pushing off the blood. Satisfied with that, the next step was processing all the bones, the pelt, and so on.

His Energy more than capable of cutting meat and bone, was weakened and modulated. Jason starts it as weak as he can, before running his finger over the side of a femur. With each pass, the hardness increases until all that remains is a pristine bone. No need to use his knife to try and scrape it or anything. Besides, his Energy can get into every nook and cranny, leaving nothing behind.

From there, he moved onto the pelt. This was going to be harder and require much finer adjustments. In the end, though, Jason manages to thread the needle, leaving a perfectly scraped pelt. Doing this had skipped some steps, but he didn’t exactly have a stream to soak it in or a bunch of salt.

Besides, unlike a normal animal, this was a magical beast and that very magic would help preserve the pelt until he could get it to a professional. Though because of its unfinished state, the System was less than informative about it. A thing that wasn’t a problem for the skeleton.

{Complete Earthshaker Mole Skeleton

Description: The complete skeleton of a lv26 earthshaker mole, including the claws and teeth, that was harvested with astounding meticulousness. The skeleton is infused with earth magic, though much of that magic is in the claws.

Grade: lv26 Exquisite (Ingredient)}

Jason wasn’t exactly sure why it rated being called an “earthshaker”, but whatever, the System does as the System does. More important was the exquisite tag. Though having it rate mid as noted by the lack of a second marking wasn’t bad either. After all, most of the things he has harvested so far tended to rate as low.

Sure, going from low to mid isn’t much, but the scale only has two more steps, high and top. With top being basically nonexistent, only marked on top quality items. It seems that when the game first came out the devs had described it as such. “While many highly skilled athletes end up in the olympics, only a few of them can get the gold. So while their actual skill may not be far apart, a few special items will be marked at being at the top.”

Jason mostly assumed this was a marketing gimmick to really pump some auction sales of “top” grade items. Though it has been noted that what top grade items are out there do tend to be at least at the top end of all the high quality items. So maybe there is more to it, Jason just isn’t exactly in a position to double check this.

Besides, he did manage to get the top quality on the other side of the scale. While exquisite isn’t as rare as top, what it means is recognized. Starting with the unranked trash tier, up to normal, and finally exquisite. The mark of an item is really well made or an ingredient harvested with amazing skill and knowledge. And that is actual skill and not just a Skill. If someone with a high level skill does a sloppy job or doesn’t know how to handle something, they won’t manage. While on the other hand, someone like Jason who doesn’t have a skill and yet has a very in-depth knowledge of the subject, in this case bone structures, can still manage it.

Though speaking of not having a skill for it.

{New Skill Earned

Formless Butchery (Variant)

The normal Formless Butchery skill uses Mana focused through a variety of implements to create the perfect tool for any task needed to butcher a corpse. This skill was earned through exquisite control of Energy. The user shapes their Energy without any implement and forms tools capable of shifting and flowing around any odd shape while still cutting through others as if made of metal.

Initiate Level 6 - 0.0%

Rarity: Variant Exquisite Uncommon

Type: Active, Production

Effects:

• Perfect Tool - No penalties from not having the right tool when butchering something as long as a close enough approximation is formed from Energy

• Subtle Sense - Gain an intuitive sense of how tough the various parts of a corpse are

• Seeking Perfection - Gain an intuitive sense for when there is work still undone}