Chapter 6: | Losing my composure
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Pain.
A searing, unbearable pain struck me from every direction.
My body was being ripped apart.
Wharks, my kin, growled and gnashed, their fangs tearing into my scales, ripping them from my flesh.
Blood poured out, staining the water a deep crimson.
And I smiled.
Impressive.
So these cowardly bastards dared to gang up on me?
Haaa.
Anger surged.
Something inside me snapped.
For so long, I had been forced to suppress my violent instincts.
In my past life, I had no power to fight back.
I had to embrace calmness. Pretend to be kind.
Because what else could I do?
Do I have the strength to fight those with power?
No.
I didn't.
But here?
This is a new world.
And in this world, I will change.
I will gain overwhelming strength.
Power so great that no one shall ever dare to question me.
Even if they call me a monster… I will not care.
Because without power, without authority, I am nothing.
A mere pebble on the road.
I refuse to be nothing.
Opening my maw, I chomped down again and again.
Screams of the pathetic opportunists rang out.
Notification after notification flooded my vision, but I didn't care.
I had embraced something greater.
Something that defined this race.
Violence.
Primality.
Strength over intellect.
And I agreed.
Because without strength, I am nothing.
The pain of my flesh being torn apart no longer mattered.
Another set of jaws clamped onto me, ripping my flesh again.
I didn't care.
With a violent thrash, I broke free, my fangs crushed the skull of the one near my maw.
Blood splashed.
I let myself loose.
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Minutes passed.
My health had plummeted.
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[Health: 17/41]
[Stamina: 23/39]
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There was no stopping this.
I let myself run wild.
I embraced my desire for destruction.
I had spent my entire life being scorned.
Hated.
Why?
Why was I treated as less than human?
Was it because I was born a commoner?
We all live.
We all die.
We're all the same.
So what made them better than me?
Why did they look at me like I was nothing?
Why?
Why?
WHY?!
Just because I didn't have wealth, fame, or power?
They dared to treat me as a bug beneath their feet?
These bastards.
These arrogant, self-righteous bastards.
I refuse to remain beneath them.
I, Alister Von Fai, will rise.
I will acquire power so great that they will never dare look down on me again.
I will devour the world itself if I have to.
With each kill, my blood boiled hotter.
With each bite, I tore through flesh and ripped their gills apart.
The remaining Wharks scattered, panicking like stray dogs.
But some remained.
I growled.
Amused.
How dare they not fear me?
I charged forward, my jaws clamping down.
One of them had their head crushed inside my maw.
Another tried to flee.
My maw opened, grabbed its tail, twisted my body, and slammed it into the ground.
But my rage didn't fade.
Instead, it grew stronger.
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My mind was clouded with words of murder, kill, and destruction.
I howled.
I smashed my body against the nearest rock pillar.
The pillar trembled.
But my anger wouldn't fade.
Why?
Why was this inferiority complex buried so deep inside of me, have risen to the surface?
Damn it!
I bashed into the rock again.
And again.
And again.
Blood seeped from my wounds, my body battered and broken.
But I didn't stop.
I just wanted this feeling to disappear.
Someone… help me.
Elara… my dear wife…
What should I do?
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[Health: 10/41]
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No answer.
Only silence.
I closed my eyes.
And whispered the words that had always kept me grounded.
Be calm like water. Be kind like a priest.
By doing so, I shall remain who I am.
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Minutes passed.
As I calmed my mind.
But my body was shattered.
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[Health: 5/41]
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I was on death's door.
Every inch of me screamed in pain.
But it was still bearable.
I exhaled, forcing my breathing to steady.
Then, I looked up.
Fourteen carcasses.
A smirk tugged at my lips.
Slowly, I moved forward, my fangs sinking into the nearest corpse.
Crunch!
Chump!
With every bite, my health slowly returned.
And I laughed.
Those sneaky bastards, running when they realized their opponent was leagues beyond them.
Were they scared?
Or simply cautious?
I burped, glancing at the notifications.
A satisfied grin spread across my face.
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[You have slain:]
• Stage 0 Tier 2 [Whark] x14
[You have gained 5450 EXP.]
[You've successfully devoured.]
• Stage 0 Tier 2 [Whark] x14
[You have absorbed some of their stats.]
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• Health +15
• Stamina +17
• Physique +0.21
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[You have gained skills:]
• Bronze Stomach x5
• Enhanced Teeth x3
• Scaled Hide x6
• Blood-Forged Resilience
• Keen Predator Eyes
• Elastic Tendons
• Stone-Bound Muscles
• Hardened Bones
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I stared at the notifications, my mind blank.
Five new skills?
How?
This… this was impossible.
Had the goddess of luck finally blessed me?
Oh, dear beautiful goddess of luck.
ACK!
Pain.
A horrific, mind-shattering pain.
I screamed, thrashed, my body convulsed as my eyes, tendons, blood vessels, muscles, and bones mutated all at once.
It didn't stop.
It only got worse.
Damn it.
My struggles only intensified the agony.
I couldn't fight it.
I had to endure.
Clenching my teeth, I whispered the only words that had kept me sane all this time.
Be calm like water.
Be kind like a priest.
By doing so, I shall remain who I am.
Be calm like water.
Be kind like a priest.
By doing so, I shall remain who I am.
I recited it again.
And again.
I lost track of time.
Had it been minutes?
Hours?
Days?
The pain never stopped.
At some point, my pain receptors went numb.
I exhaled shakily, my gaze colder than before.
And then.
A hologram appeared.
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[You may now ascend.]
[Yes] / [No]
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I muttered the answer.
"Yes."
More notifications appeared.
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[You have already acquired all of your racial skills.]
[Error.]
[...]
[Finding solutions…]
[You may choose:]
• Tier up one of your skills
• Combine all of your skills
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I froze.
…Interesting.
Two options.
Evolve one skill into Tier 2?
Or fuse everything into a single, unknown ability?
I, the ever-genius, had always picked the best decisions.
So, what was the best path here?
Evolving a skill was safe.
A guaranteed upgrade.
But fusing them all…
It was a risk.
A massive one.
I had no idea what the outcome would be.
Would I lose something?
Would the fusion weaken some of its aspects?
Or… would I gain something beyond my wildest expectations?
The unknown terrified me.
But at the same time…
It tempted me.
I hesitated.
For the first time in this life, I was truly scared.
There was no one to ask for advice.
No one to rely on.
It was my decision alone.
And so.
I chose.
I gambled everything.
My lips moved on their own, muttering the words that sealed my fate.
My eyes locked onto the notification.
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[Fusion initiated.]
[Loading…]
[Your skills have successfully fused.]
[You have gained:]
• Apex Predator Physique
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My eyelids grew heavy.
And as my ascension began, I fell into darkness.
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Hours passed.
The currents were gentle.
The water rippled from the distant clashes of Wharks.
My eyelids twitched.
Then opened.
I awakened from my slumber.
The hologram appeared before me.
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[You have gained a level.]
[You have gained a level.]
• Level +2
• Health +2
• Stamina +2
• Physique +0.02
[You have ascended.]
[You can choose to evolve.]
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Apex Predator Physique (Passive) - Level 1
Your body has adapted for peak survival. Your teeth are sharper and more durable, your layered scales provide greater resistance to damage, and your digestive system efficiently processes tough materials while neutralizing toxins. Enhanced muscles, bones, and tendons grant improved strength, endurance, and agility, while your keen eyesight sharpens tracking and reaction speed.
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Dismissing the hologram, I grinned.
So the merged skills didn't vanish—they became stronger, compressed into one ability.
If I level this skill, every aspect of my body improves.
Impressive.
This means I no longer have to waste time debating which skill to evolve.
At first, I thought this was a risk.
But now?
This was the most optimal path.
The more skills I gain, the less attention I'd give to the least-used ones.
But with this?
Every upgrade benefits my entire body.
And since I had already obtained every racial skill a Whark could have at Stage 0…
Then each time I ascend to the next Tier, the Dimensional Record will allow me to upgrade a single skill to the next Tier.
Meaning...
If I keep devouring Wharks and reacquiring those same skills, I can force Apex Predator Physique to level up rapidly.
My grin widened.
If that's how it works… then getting Apex Predator Physique to Tier 10 would be a breeze.
A path specially designed for me.
I flexed my tail fin, testing my new strength.
With a single flap, I bashed into a rock pillar.
It trembled.
Another bash.
Then another.
I laughed.
I was stronger.
Just from one skill.
I turned my gaze toward the center of the rocky canyon.
It was time to hunt again.
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