Since Vaan’s second visit to the Witch Union Bank, he carried over 200 low-rank mana stones and 50 mid-rank mana stones on him.
Although the balance surprised him, he never doubted the business prospect of the Pore Stimulation Potion.
‘Mid-rank mana stones are less common and easily draw attention if used for large purchases. I should consume them to grow my aura and keep the low-rank mana stones for necessities,’ Vaan mused.
Shortly after, he took out five mid-rank mana stones and ingested them at once.
Ding!
<You consumed 5 mid-rank mana stones>
<You have acquired a moderate quantity of pure mana>
<…>
Right after the system’s reward options surfaced, Vaan repeated the same process to fuse the pure mana into his blood and produce more aura.
Ding!
<You have successfully produced some aura>
<Your status has been updated>
=====
«Cultivation»
Aura Circulation Method: The Way of the White Tiger (Mid rank)
Cultivation Level: Low Rank 0 Aura User → Low Rank 1 Aura Warrior
Aura Power: 1 → 26 (↑25)
=====
After checking the increase in Aura Power, Vaan furrowed his brows slightly. The improvement slightly fell short of his expectation.
A single low-rank mana stone was used to produce 1 point of Aura Power, but five mid-rank mana stones, worth fifty low-rank mana stones, only produced 25 points of Aura Power.
Evidently, the value of mana stones depreciated as his aura power grew.
Nevertheless, Vaan went ahead and consumed another 35 mid-rank mana stones, saving himself the last ten for emergencies.
Ding!
<You have successfully produced some aura>
<Your status has been updated>
=====
«Cultivation»
Aura Circulation Method: The Way of the White Tiger (Mid rank)
Cultivation Level: Low Rank 1 Aura Warrior → Peak Rank 1 Aura Warrior
Aura Power: 26 → 95 (↑69)
=====
Seeing he was so close to reaching a hundred points in Aura Power, Vaan consumed another 55 low-rank mana stones to reach his goal.
Ding!
<You have successfully produced some aura>
<Your status has been updated>
«Cultivation»
Aura Circulation Method: The Way of the White Tiger (Mid rank)
Cultivation Level: Low Rank 1 Aura Warrior → Peak Rank 1 Aura Warrior
Aura Power: 95 → 100 (↑5)
=====
«Physical Attributes»
[155 Defense] [95 → 100 Aura Power (↑5)] [Mid-level Rank 2] [Total Defense: 255 (Low-level Rank 3)]
[101 Strength] [95 → 100 Aura Power (↑5)] [Low-level Rank 2] [Total Strength: 201 (High-level Rank 2)]
[85 Speed] [95 → 100 Aura Power (↑5)] [High-level Rank 1] [Total Speed: 185 (Mid-level Rank 2)]
=====
In a short instance, Vaan had raised his aura cultivation by leaps and bounds. However, the large consumption of mana stones was not small either.
It wasn’t farfetched to say that fast power growth burns a lot of wealth.
‘This sort of cultivation speed is enough to make anyone die from envy. Fortunately, I have a good source of income to support it,’ Vaan mused.
However…
As a man, he couldn’t keep withdrawing mana stones from the Witch Union Bank. His large withdrawals would eventually draw suspicions.
‘System, using your numerical measurement system, compute the human power system with my current known knowledge,’ Vaan instructed.
Ding!
=====
«Power System (Human)»
[Rank 0 Ordinary Human: 0 – 24 Power] [Normal Witch] [Aura User]
[Rank 1 Special Human: 25 – 99 Power] [Apprentice Witch] [Aura Warrior]
[Rank 2 Super Human: 100 – 249 Power] [True Witch] [Aura Master]
[Rank 3 Ascended Human: 250 – ??? Power] [Senior Witch] [Aura Grandmaster]
[Rank 4 Extraordinary human: ??? – ???? Power] [High Witch] [Aura Lord]
[Rank 5 Transcendent Human: ???? – ???? Power] [Transcendent Witch] [Aura King]
=====
‘Thanks to my swift rise in aura cultivation, my true combat power is almost comparable to other Senior Witches and Aura Grandmasters…’ Vaan mused.
The enlistment mainly targeted the Aura Masters, so he was more than qualified to compete for a spot.
Furthermore, he shouldn’t have a problem securing it.
After all, Senior Witches weren’t reliable in the region affected by the Curse of the Purple Umbala. On the other hand, there weren’t many Aura Grandmasters either.
As such, the majority of the hired mercenaries on the expedition would be comprised of Aura Masters.
…
Shortly after Vaan completed what he needed to do, he left the Peaceful Gentlemen Inn and visited the nearest public restroom. He ensured Lord Helia’s spies weren’t tracking him before he entered.
Moments later, a different person exited the public restroom.
The man had a middle-aged face with a few jarring scars and wore a black winter coat outfit that was made of high quality and was seemingly new.
However, there were minor cuts and the dry bloodstains of several different beasts on the black outfit, which seemed to have been there for several days but, in fact, had only been a few breaths.
Undoubtedly, Vaan had used Head Manipulation to alter its state.
Nevertheless, with a face that wasn’t handsome nor ugly and an outfit that slightly stunk, Vaan made his way to the enlistment competition while carrying his White Unicorn Spear wrapped in a ragged cloth.
…
As Vahn approached the market square, the roaring cheers of thousands of people could be heard, and the tremoring ground of their beat-like steps could be felt.
“Beat him! Beat him! You can do it, Kaspar!”
“No, Goran! How can you get hit like that?! You’re stronger than him!”
The massive crowd continued to roar with excitement.
It wasn’t just interested parties presented for the enlistment but also curious spectators that came to watch the competition.
A displeased look immediately appeared on Vaan’s face as he recalled the blasting music of the nightclubs in his past life.
If not for the deafening noise that wouldn’t let him hear shit when people talked to him, he would have enjoyed the environment and experience much better.
Alas, now that he had multiple enhanced senses, the noisy environment of the market square as Aura Masters competed on the battle platform provided even more discomfort.
Vaan briefly closed his eyes and took a deep breath to attune his sense.
He may not like the noisy environment, but it was also an opportunity to train and sharpen his senses.
The surrounding noises steadily went quiet as he focused his hearing on the battle platform while making his way closer to join the battle queue.
Boom!
One of the topless Early Rank 2 Aura Masters on the battle platform suddenly flew off after receiving a solid kick to the chest…