Another half month passed by in a flash. Finally, the teammates Damian and his brother Joseph had spoken of before had made their way back, making the empty 200 meter wooden yacht far more lively.
Leonel didn't have much interaction with these people. Though Damian and Joseph claimed to trust them with their lives, the less people who knew a secret, the better. As a result, Leonel stayed in a room on the lowest level of the boat and didn't leave. Obviously, his guard duties had been passed on to someone else.
Joseph had said that a high-level recruit like himself had to go through a deeper acceptance process. However, Leonel had seen through a while ago that this 'vetting' process was not much different from the Empire marking down all his secrets and treasures. The Slayer Legion and the Ascension Empire really didn't seem to have much of a difference between them from what Leonel had seen. One just happened to be weaker than the other, or so it seemed.
Despite knowing this, Leonel played along. He was truly curious to know more about the Slayer Legion. Aina had said that success in the future could influence the past, so who knows? If the Slayer Legion gained a modicum of success with their endeavors, they might be able to provide him with certain benefits now.
Either way, Leonel felt like he needed to see more of the world. The problem of his Ninth Node was weighing on his mind. Though he knew that completing the evolution and gaining a Fourth Dimensional Body could be done with just one Force Node, he obviously wanted to succeed with all nine.
Like this, Damian and Joseph separated. Joseph remained behind to oversee their lesser recruits while Damian led them toward what he called their checkpoint. According to the latter, the checkpoint changed every half year and was a floating military base. All those in their sector would converge toward it.
Since Royal Blue Province was ranked third amongst the Provinces, there were quite a few big shots assigned to this Sector. In addition, the Slayer Legion was several factors more lawless for obvious reasons. So, Damian warned him to be careful.
Still, it would take several more days to reach the checkpoint, so Leonel wasn't thinking about such things currently. Instead, he had entered the Segmented Cube once more and was finally forming his Sixth Node.
Violent swirls of Force surged into Leonel's body. He was like a bottomless hole, devouring Force that had been accumulating for a whole month without any reserve.
Just like before, his Sixth Node formed in just half an hour before sweeping changes took hold of his Ethereal Glabella, forming a second star that pulsed just as brightly as the first.
Leonel's body began to squirm and tremble. If one looked closely, it was possible to see muscle fibers wiggling beneath his skin, bulging and compressing again and again in an endless cycle.
According to the creator of [Dimensional Cleanse], forming a One Star Constitution was enough to make you the cream of the crop. After forming it, the impurities in Leonel's body were expelled in droves. This process expelled much of the lingering shackles of a Third DImensional Body. As long as this step was reached, forming a Fourth Dimensional Body wouldn't pose any issue at all.
However, in the end, this was just the first step. In fact, its impact could be considered to be the smallest of the three Stars, and for good reason.
The Second Star was a true remolding. Though the pain surpassed even when Leonel formed his First Node, the benefits were countless times more potent. It wasn't just Leonel's muscle fibers that were breaking down, reforming, and compacting in on themselves, but even his bones and inner organs.
As Leonel clenched his jaw, the crackling of his bones could be heard. The longer the process went on, the brighter the glow of his skin seemed to become. He looked like a deity who had stepped down from a loftier world, come to spread his blessings.
Leonel's hair fell once more as layers of his skin began to shed, but this time, it grew back much faster. He felt as though his whole body was somehow both being broken down by a sledgehammer and floating on a cloud. The two contrasting feelings left him in a complete daze, as though his mind could slip away at any moment.
But, he pushed through. Much like a Lineage Factor would give more benefits the longer one retained their consciousness, so too would the formation of the Second Star. Leonel had no intention of letting this opportunity go.
For some reason, he had still failed to awaken his Spear Force. And, he had yet to awaken his Metal Synergy Lineage either. In the end, the only option he had for increasing his power quickly were his Force Nodes and his constitution. And… They most definitely didn't let him down.
Leonel felt that not just his body, but his Internal Sight and his ability were strengthening many times over. Before, the region of sharpness for his Internal Sight was just 200 meters, but he felt it rapidly doubling. At the same time, he felt his Dream World growing sharper and could tell, even without testing it, that his simulations would be a few degrees more accurate.
Leonel could once more sense the endless potential of his ability. It might not be as flashy as Damian's, but if he used it appropriately… The sky was the limit.
Over half a day later, Leonel finally opened his eyes, his body covered from head to toe in sweat. The situation was so bad that there was even a shallow puddle beneath him. Though his breathing was heavy, his eyes shone like two lanterns, a deep rooted confidence growing within him.
[Leonel Morales]
[Strength: 1.99; Speed: 1.78; Agility: 1.83; Coordination: 2.01; Stamina: 2.13 (+0.05 - nullified); Reactions: 2.03; Spirit: 2.32; Force: 0.60]
Leonel's new stats left him speechless. Just what kind of strength was this?
"Scan my ability."
[ *Ping* ]
[ Evolution Stage: Tier 3 Bronze ]
[ Evolution Type: Sensory ]
[ Evolution: Dream World, Dream Sculpt ]
[ Dream World: A virtual world formed in the mind capable of running simulations of the real world with a certain degree of accuracy. ]
[ Dream Sculpt: Ability to create a perfect, immutable, and unforgettable memory fragment with 100% accuracy. ]
Leonel's eyes widened. 'My ability was Quasi Bronze before, but now it's Tier 3 Bronze?!'
Though Leonel didn't know much about this new world order, he was absolutely certain that having an ability that surpassed their Dimensional Grade was ridiculous. One had to remember that the 'Black Grade' was assigned to the Fourth Dimension. This was why high level abilities could swing battles so fiercely, especially since Earth was still a Pseudo Fourth Dimensional World.
Leonel had the equivalent of a Fifth Dimensional ability! Of course, this was still ranked very low amongst the Fifth Dimension, but its influence on the Pseudo Fourth Dimension could be imagined. After breaking through this barrier, Leonel was certain that his simulations would all be above 90% now.
'Hm?'
Leonel's eyes widened once more. He hadn't even finished being astonished by his improvement when he noticed something about his hands.
He had reached the Advanced Grade One designation…