“Damn, the drain on my resource stats is worse than I expected, and I only made the tower three floors.” Thinking aloud, Brance pulled up his stat profile and looked at his available allocation points with hesitation.
His eyes drifted from his INT stat, which was currently at 575, down to his VIT, which sat at 514. Even though he had an impressive 6280 MP and 4880 STAM, it still wasn’t enough, making him sigh. As the seconds ticked by, he watched his numbers resource stats dwindling quickly.
“Brancie, it’s okay; they are only allocation points; you and Big Bro Cyn always said the whole point of them was to use them when we needed an explosive boost in power.” Leaning her head on the stressed-out Brance, Gabby encouraged her boyfriend with the words he had spoken to her hundreds of times.
“I know, but it just feels like such a waste, especially VIT, since I already get a lot of points with every level up,” Brance said as he looked down at Gabby, who was staring into his eyes with a worried expression.
“Sigh, you’re right, enough waiting; I’ve already used the skill, and if I want to give us enough time to beat the guys down below, the only way is to beef up my stats.” Shooting Gabby a warm smile, Brance added 35 points into VIT and 145 points into his INT.
Sucking in a sharp breath and allowing the warm sensation to surge through his body, Brance rolled his neck and smirked as he saw his newly acquired 9180 MP and 5580 STAM. With 180 stat points spent in one go, he ignored the buyers’ remorse he was experiencing and tilted his head down, popping it, and slowly looking up as he observed the two enemies analyzing their surroundings on the second floor.
The counter was at 15 and steadily increasing one point every 10 seconds, meaning in about 50 seconds, it would be time to move.
Not in the least restrained by the time constraint, Brance calmly placed his right hand back onto the column and opened the third window, this one, for Gabby to see; its purpose was to show the full skill description for [Radiant Tower] that way he wouldn’t have to explain it to her.
Giving her some time to digest the information on the screen, Brance snatched the broom and mop from her hand and began reinforcing them into weapons by using his Light and Terra Affinities.
-Tier-2.5 Tri-Fusion Affinity Skill: [Radiant Tower] (Terra, Wind, Light)-
-Category: Active Mana Construct Skill-
-A first-of-its-kind skill created by Brance Jetlensr. Light Mana Particles, with their innate ability to construct and create, Wind Mana Particles’ stability, and Terra Mana Particles’ durability, combine to form a majestically shining and ancient-looking Tower. Creating a powerful weapon and base for the User and their allies.-
-It takes three steps to activate the skill; first, the User must embed their legs into the surface of Terra-rich terrain; next, the User must channel enough Wind Mana to form a Gale where they want the tower construction to begin. The Layout must be a flat surface with a minimum of 20 meters².-
-The final stage is the most difficult; the User must utilize their Light Mana to form a Pseudo-Codex, which will become the powerhouse or heart of the Command Column, powering the entire Tower and all its resources. The Tower is then built in stages from the ground up. This is when the User must designate how many floors will be constructed. Once the blueprint and size have been chosen and the Pseudo-Codex created, it will begin drawing in vast amounts of Ambient Mana Particles to reduce the strain on the User’s Mana Pool. In just a few seconds, the User can build the Tower, but it’s recommended that they don’t push their limits when using this skill, as if they do so and add more floors than they can handle, the energy will drain directly from their body, killing them.-
-Pseudo-Codex: Housed within the Command Column, its Available Mana Points are Equal to 2.5 times the Tower Creator’s as it absorbs ambient Mana during the creation process. The Pseudo-Codex can be upgraded if proper resources are acquired, turning it into a true Codex, and allowing the Tower to become self-sufficient. Otherwise, when its MP hits Zero, it will dissolve, and the Tower will Collapse.-
-Central Command Center: No matter how many floors are created, the top floor will always be the brain of the Tower. Not only is this primarily empty room the second most heavily protected floor, but it also is where the Command Column is located. Through the Command Column, the Tower Creator can observe the happenings on every floor and the nearby surroundings outside the Tower, control the output and Mana allocation to each floor, trigger defensive or offensive protocols, and forcefully teleport any enemy or ally to any other floor in the Tower.-
-First Floor: Foundation, the Tower’s hardest and most protected floor; the foundation must be sturdy and unmovable to keep the higher floors stable. This floor should be built over an existing building to increase its strength, stability, and durability.-
-Second Floor: Mana Collection and Compression. This floor houses a sizeable arena-style platform, but that is because the Tower Creator has chosen this to be the main entrapment feature and battleground within the Tower. The second floor acts as an enclosed particle compressor, drawing in outside Ambient Mana particles during its creation and the Mana provided by the Pseudo-Codex. From the Command Column, the Tower Creator can adjust the floor’s Mana Density and use it to either Buff their Allies or Debuff their Enemies by a maximum of 20% to all the targeted beings’ stats.-
-Third Floor: Defensive Counter Measures. At Tier-2.5, this floor is equipt with four defensive protocols, which are controlled from the Command Column.
-Protocol 1: Particle Barrier Generator, which can withstand up to two hits from a being at Peak Tier-3 and covers the entirety of the Tower. Its durability depends on how much Mana is supplied during its charging.-
-Charge Time: 5 minutes.-
-Activation Cost: Minimum 2000 MP, chargeable. The more MP put in during charging, the higher its durability and the longer it can stay active.-
-Sustain Cost: 2% of Available Charged MP per minute.-
-Cooldown: 2 hours once broken.-
-Protocol 2: Mana Pulse Generator, which expels all the Mana stored on the second floor in the shape of a dome, forcing all nearby enemies away from the Tower.
-Charge Time: 5 minutes.-
-Cooldown: 5 hours.-
-Protocol 3: Camouflage Generator uses Light Mana to bend the light around the Tower so that the Tower disappears from view if the being is under Tier-4.-
-Charge Time: 1 minute.-
-Activation Cost: Minimum 1000 MP, chargeable. The more MP put in during charging, the longer it can stay active.-
-Sustain Cost: 1% of Available Charged MP per minute.-
-Cooldown: 5 hours.-
-Protocol 4: Teleportation Station, the last resort meant to be used when the Tower is breached and a hostile takeover is imminent. Allows for up to seven Allies to be teleported to a preselected location to safety. WARNING, BY USING THIS PROTOCOL, THE SELF-DESTRUCTION OF THE PSEUDO-CODEX WILL BE TRIGGERED, EXPENDING ALL THE MANA AVAILABLE IN THE TOWER TO DEAL DAMAGE TO NEARBY ENEMIES.
-Charge time: 5 minutes.-
-Teleportation Distance is determined by how much Mana is input to the device by those who wish to leave. Those designated by the Tower Creator can activate it.-
-Fourth Floor: Offensive Counter Measures. At Tier-2.5, this floor can be equipt with up to one of three preset artillery layouts.-
-Layout A: Four Tier-2 Mana Construct Cannons.-
-Fires, one Terra-Light Shell.-
-Damage: Static 3000 Points of Magic Dmg.-
-Cooldown: 5 minutes.-
-Charge Time: 1 minute.-
-Layout B: Six Tier-2 Mana Construct Ballista.-
-Fires, one Terra-Wind Javelin.-
-Damage: Static 2000 Points of Physical Dmg.-
-Cooldown: 3 minutes.-
-Charge Time: 30 seconds.-
-Layout C: One Tier-2.5 Positron Cannon.-
-Activation Cost: 5000 MP.-
-Fires, One Terra-Light-Wind Beam.-
-Damage: Static 15000 Points of AOE DMG.-
-Cooldown: 30 minutes.-
-Charge Time: 15 minutes.-
-Damage varies depending on the Targets Tier and Defensive abilities.-
-Further floors are temporarily locked due to Skill Tier not being high enough.-
-Cost: The cost of this skill is adjustable depending on how many floors are added during the Towers Construction Phase. The prices of each individual floor are listed below. The cost is PER FLOOR.
-Activate Floors 1 and 2: 1000 MP, 1000 STAM.-
-Sustain Cost: 100 MP and 100 STAM per minute.-
-Activate Floors 3 and 4: 3000 MP, 3000 STAM.-
-Sustain Cost: 300 MP and 300 STAM per minute.-
-Any higher floors are currently Locked due to not having a high enough Tier.-
-Cooldown: 336 Hours (2 weeks)-
Finishing up the weapon enhancement, Brance looked over at Gabby, who had her jaw nearly touching the floor and pupils as large as saucers.
“Oh…my, Brancie, how…how is this real. YOU MADE THIS SKILL?” Snapping her head to her boyfriend, Gabby demanded an explanation.
“Eh? I mean, I had help from Big Brother,” Scratching the back of his head, brance also added the thought ‘and Tobs, of course,’ Before continuing.
“Initially, the skill wasn’t anywhere near as good as it is now. When I first developed it, I could only use one floor. If memory serves, you were there the very first time I completed my Mantra, that was when the CSH accepted it as an actual skill, and the description was entirely generated. I do have quite a bit of customization over the skill itself, and honestly, I am not really sure why or how.”
“All I do know is my [Radiant Tower] is such a significant drain on my reserves that It isn’t really viable in 99 percent of situations. Given a choice, I would run headlong into battle and try my luck rather than burn so much MP and STAM. However, things are a bit different this time. Not only are the enemies stronger than us, but we also don’t have our gear, so there weren’t many other options.” Twirling around his Elemental Greatsword and storing it on his back, Brance spun the dial on the command column counter-clockwise and watched as the number in the top right corner of the monitor finally hit 20.
Once the dial clicked two times, it allowed Brance to push it in, revealing a small tri-colored orb the size of a glass marble inside a half-egg-shaped housing. Placing two fingers on the orb, Brance closed his eyes and dumped half of his MP and Stamina into the Pseudo-Codex before removing his fingers and chugging down two more potions. When his fingers left the orb, it sunk back into the column, and the dial reappeared.
“Time to go; I just pumped enough Mana into the Pseudo-Codex to give us 20 minutes to kill these guys. Keep on your toes and NEVER underestimate your opponent. These two are in the early stages of Tier-3, and I can only support you to a certain extent.” Placing his hands on Gabby’s shoulders and turning her to face him, Brance spoke in a serious tone.
“I know, be careful, Brance…I lo…” Before she could get out the three-word sentence, Brance sealed her lips with his index finger and a smile.
“Silly rabbit, don’t go throwing up death flags on me. We will both be fine out there; they are just too losers who are stalking a group of kids; we’ve got this; just remember your training, and if you need help, I will be right there without a second’s notice. Now let’s do this shit.” Brance said as he tried removing his finger from Gabby’s lips, but as he did, Gabby caught his arm, pulled him into her, and planted a kiss on his lips while giggling.
“You little, Selene is such a bad influence on you!” Drawing back from Gabby, Brance grumbled and shook his head.
-This series is exclusively published on WebNovel if you are reading it anywhere else…You Wrong, Fam. PS Check out the discord, https://discord.gg/dcxKNJEMwg