{Chapter 34} Material Creation

That was a long time ago...

At that time, Kaelis's attention was completely focused on that abnormal Inquisitor, so she didn't notice that the man she had saved, the same man who later suddenly burst forth and bought her precious time to counterattack, was actually Struth...

Unfortunately, due to the extreme chaos on the battlefield back then, Old Struth didn't get much chance to interact with Kaelis. Soon after the retreat, he was assigned to another location for a different mission.

Although his life hadn't drastically changed its course, one thing was undeniably real, his arm had returned.

Yet he himself didn't even remember ever losing that arm.

Past memories had blurred with time. Now, Old Struth couldn't clearly recall the face of the person who had once saved him. But when he saw Kaelis, he faintly sensed something stirring within his heart.

After all, in this world, people with black hair and black eyes are extremely rare.

It was said that only one kind of person in the world possesses this genetic trait... though that was far beyond what Old Struth, an old blacksmith and veteran soldier, could understand.

Considering that the commander from over a decade ago had been barely twenty years old at the time, after cautiously testing Kaelis and realizing she had absolutely no knowledge of what he was referring to, Old Struth concluded that this girl in front of him merely resembled that person in a few superficial traits.

But perhaps to repay the life-saving favor she had once given him, Old Struth felt he should, to some extent, take care of this helpless girl, Kaelis.

After hearing his words, Kaelis fell momentarily speechless.

Yet more than the fact that she had unintentionally altered Old Struth's fate, Kaelis was actually more curious about another matter.

“Um... that commander who saved you... what happened to her later?”

“Her...”

Perhaps Kaelis had stirred up old memories. Unlike his usual silence, Old Struth this time began, unusually, to recount the past.

“To be honest, my memories of her aren't many. I only know that the day after that battle against the Dias Empire's Inquisitor, she was transferred unconscious into the Inquisition Council's prison... her loyal deputy officer was imprisoned along with her.”

“Huh?!”

Kaelis froze in shock.

But Old Struth didn't notice her reaction. He merely sighed with regret.

"Even though it was wartime, the Inquisition Council still deployed a high-specification spiritual object prison to detain her. I heard that even a third-stage Ascender couldn't escape from it... The Council is dominated by members from three nations. Two of those nations had lost their honor of first conquest because of her, and many bore deep grudges against her... Perhaps that's why I never heard any news about her afterwards."

The old man sighed deeply.

“Though those two viscount's daughters weren't exactly good people, still... ordinary folks are ordinary folks, nobles are nobles. The gap between us is just too vast.”

The old man's mood grew heavy. Kaelis, meanwhile, furrowed her brows.

She didn't remember being captured by the Inquisition Council at all.

But Old Struth had no reason to deceive Kaelis. He was merely stating the facts as he knew them. Still, this indirectly reminded Kaelis that her actions during the simulation could indeed affect the present timeline.

Even established facts could be changed, just like the old man's arm.

Therefore, facing the past recounted by the old man, Kaelis didn't panic. The only issue was the possibility of a temporary game-over scenario.

The old man said she had been transferred the day after the battle ended.

And that “next day” would naturally be the 24th day of Kaelis's simulation... but her save point was on the 25th day. That meant, during her next simulation, she'd probably still wake up inside that prison cell.

“A prison even a third-stage Ascender can't break out of?”

Kaelis frowned slightly.

Although with her current talent, reaching the Warrior level was merely a matter of time, and this dead-end will eventually be overcome.

But... it also meant Kaelis might have to experience death several more times... Although simulated death didn't carry over to reality like other things, she absolutely hated that suffocating sensation.

And besides, she truly didn't believe she had done anything wrong.

Thus, after pondering for a moment, Kaelis lifted her head and looked at the old man.

After briefly explaining her desire to rapidly enhance her abilities, the old man could only sigh helplessly.

Frankly, he didn't understand why Kaelis was in such a hurry to strengthen herself... In his opinion, her current rate of improvement was already unprecedented.

To speed up her learning even further...

“It's not like there's truly no way.”

After a long silence, Old Struth actually revealed that there was a method.

But seeing Kaelis's wide, hopeful eyes, he continued cautiously.

“But... this method has its own problems.”

“Huh?”

“...Ultimately, advancing in cultivation relies on accumulating spiritual essence... Within a certain range, you expand your spiritual capacity limit while repeatedly consuming it, waiting for your spiritual essence to undergo qualitative change, allowing that enhanced spiritual power to infect your other spiritual essence, finally achieving an upgrade in quality.”

The old man exhaled deeply as he spoke.

“And there are usually only two ways to expand your spiritual capacity limit...”

“The first is straightforward cultivation through meditation techniques... The second is using external objects...”

“There exists in this world certain items, or even other lifeforms, that possess spiritual essence... But as ordinary supernaturals, we naturally cannot absorb such power directly. However, if you obtain these things, you might be able to offer them as sacrifices to some religious god... If they're satisfied, they might directly bestow power into your body, expanding your spiritual capacity limit..."

...

After a long conversation with the old man, time gradually approached the afternoon.

Having confirmed that Kaelis no longer needed his instruction, Old Struth didn't shamelessly accept the two silver coins she offered as wages. Instead, he only took the fifty copper coins he was rightfully owed for one week of teaching, returning the excess to Kaelis.

This left Kaelis feeling somewhat helpless.

Yet she couldn't immediately find a way to make this proud old man accept her kindness, so she reluctantly took back the money and immediately began thinking of alternatives.

Although Old Struth's suggestion of sacrificing to a god made her feel uneasy, it was indeed the only viable path available to Kaelis at the moment.

She didn't necessarily have to use it, but she absolutely couldn't be unprepared.

But...

“Spiritual objects?”

Kaelis murmured, frowning.

Right now, she only possesses two things that could be considered spiritual objects.

One was the floral-patterned charm protecting her chest, and the other was that storage space called “Embrace.”

Both items were essential to Kaelis. To truly part with them, she felt reluctant.

As for buying one... although these items were rare, they did circulate to some extent on the market. However, their value always starts at five digits. Given Kaelis's current financial situation, obtaining such an item was clearly nothing more than a fantasy.

Was there truly no other way?

Kaelis frowned, troubled.

Yet, after struggling with her thoughts for a while, Kaelis suddenly stopped in her tracks as she passed by a blacksmith's forge.

Watching the blacksmith laboriously hammering metal, Kaelis hesitated for a moment, then suddenly froze.

Spiritual object...

Items imbued with spiritual essence...

If that's all it takes...

She might not be completely helpless after all?