Chapter 216: Holding Up the Sky
Jack remained in a trance. A thousand thoughts crossed his mind instantly, each reinforced or repelled by the Dao in and around him.
What significant insight did he have that was not yet a Dao Root?
His resolve to reach the top? He had that. His understanding of how power shaped the world and weakness was a curse? He had that, too. An understanding of life? That was also a Dao Root though by a roundabout way.
What other feeling or concept was deeply rooted inside him?
Fear.
The thought came unbidden. But why? How?
He was trapped in a sealed cave. There was no light. No sound. He was alone, and he might die here without ever seeing another face. His loved ones would never know what happened. Brock might wait outside the cave for who knows how long?
And the dark solitude It bore heavy on his soul, a crushing weight that would sooner or later drive him to insanity.
Of course, Jack had the resolve to escape. His Dao wasnt one to sit and accept its fate. He was fighting, not giving up in the slightest.
But what if it was someone else in this cave, and not him? In fact, there was no cave. The cave didnt matter. What mattered were the feelings of fear, powerlessness, and despair. They could make a man kneel or despairgive up. And he understood these feelings, because he had experienced them for who knows how long already. He was deeply steeped in them.
Then, for this new Dao Root, is there a skill I could
His thought process skidded to a halt. His eyes shone. Once again, he laughed, uncaring about the pain that tore his throat.
Of course he had a skill to couple with his new Dao Root! Brutalizing Aura! The one that came from his Fiend of the Iron Fist class.
Oh, System! he cried out mentally. You knew. You always knew! Or is this fate?
So be it. If I am a fiend Then let me become the greatest fiend to ever live!
He buckled down. His mouth opened wide and took a big bite of the pill in his hand. Once again, he dove into a trance that unraveled the world into the Dao, but it was even more intense than before.
He had all the emotions. He had the resolve. He had the understanding. He had the perfect pill to help him.
Perhaps using the Dao Sprouting Pill just to get a Dao Root was overkill, but Jack couldnt care less. He set his mind on these feelings of weakness. He used the awareness provided by the pill to dissect them, inspect them, experience them deeply. He let them invade and pervade his soul. He let himself sink into despair. He let powerlessness flood his being.
The process reminded him of how he had fused the Dao Root of Power. Back then, he had restrained his power and fought Copy Jack again and again, until he comprehended power from the side of the weak. Then, he had reversed the situation and used that understanding to glimpse at his own power through the eyes of a weak opponent, thus comprehending how Power could fully augment his Fist.
But why skip that weakness? Why use it only as a springboard to comprehend power? If he could inflict this weakness on his opponents, if he could infect their minds and hearts with it, would his strength not rise in comparison?
To comprehend power, one had to comprehend weakness. Jack had already walked this road. He just hadnt realized it then.
Weakness itself was a concept. One that could enhance his understanding of the own fist. After all, to truly understand his fist, he had to see it from all sidesand weakness was the feeling one got when they faced its business end.
Jack saw himself from outside his body, and this vision superimposed itself on seeing himself from the inside. All the dark feelings hed suppressed while inside this cave erupted at once. For a moment, he fell into the darkness. He screamed in despair.
And then, he snapped awake, and he was more lucid than hed ever been. The last bit of the Dao Sprouting Pill was gone from his palm. The last bit of darkness had vanished from his soul, contained into a black orb that hovered orderly around his fist. It was no longer a parasite, but a weapon for him to usea truth of the world he could finally see.
It felt like he finally acknowledged a missing piece of himself.
It wasnt just a Dao Root, either. Under the miraculous effects of the Dao Sprouting Pill, Jack had gone one step further. He hadnt just developed it. He had fused it, too.
Congratulations! The Dao Root of Weakness had been successfully fused with your Dao Seed.
Mental +20
Will +40
Congratulations! Brutalizing Aura I Brutalizing Aura II
Brutalizing Aura II: The fear of death is one of the most primal instincts of all living creatures, as is crippling weakness. You have learned to project your Dao and intent in a way that targets these fears, amplifying them and paralyzing all weaker targets in a wide range around you.
Additionally, the fear of your enemies feeds into your own power, enhancing you as you affect more and stronger enemies with Brutalizing Aura.
That was an intriguing skill. Jack even had the feeling that it wasnt just the Dao Root of Weakness that participated in this upgrade, but also the Dao Root of Power.
In any case, pondering this skill would come later.
He drew a deep, trembling breath. His eyes opened to find darkness, but it was no longer an enemy. Just a grim reality. As the last of the trance dissipated, Jack opened his status screen.
Name: Jack Rust
Species: Human, Earth-387
Faction: Bare Fist Brotherhood (E)
Grade: E
Class: Fiend of the Iron Fist (Elite)
Level: 124
Strength: 575
Dexterity: 525
Constitution: 545
Mental: 70
Will: 140
Skills: Ghost Step I
Dao Skills: Indomitable Body III, Meteor Punch III, Iron Fist Style II, Brutalizing Aura II
Daos: Perfect Dao Seed of the Fist (peak+), Dao Root of Indomitable Will (fused), Dao Root of Life (fused), Dao Root of Power (fused), Dao Root of Weakness (fused)
Titles: Planetary Frontrunner (10), Planetary Torchbearer (1), Eighth Ring Conqueror
He couldnt help but wonder if there was any other E-Grade in the galaxy with stats like his. There probably were. Somewhere. Maybe.
But, at the very least, he stood at the absolute highest level amongst mortals. He no longer possessed the weakness hed just comprehended.
Jack smiled sadly. He could sense that this Dao Root had changed him, somehow. Grounded him. His path remained the same, but he now understood better his hurdles and impact. His effect on the world.
His heart was a bit heavier, but his resolve was incomparably more corporeal. As was his power.
Slowly, Jack stood up. His perception ran over the cave, clearer than ever. He could see everything, but nothing new. The walls were as solid as before. Longswords cape remained propped against the far wall. The stone slab still stood before the entrance, challenging him.
And, finally, that was a challenge he would accept.
Perhaps his body wasnt at its strongest, but his Dao was. Unless he somehow progressed even further, he would never have a better chance of lifting the stone slab. And, if the Lords were still waiting outsidehe would just fight them as he was. An extra Dao Root was a great leap in power. He could easily take on Longsword now.
Belatedly, Jack realized that the devil he freed before must have been around this level.
He took another deep breath. The stale air now felt almost familiar. He mentally bade it goodbye, as he did to the cape. He then walked before the slab, reached inside his soul, and tugged at the Life Drop.
Power flooded him. His bones rumbled as he grew a foot taller. His skin burst open under the armpits as two new arms jutted out, ribbons of flesh that quickly weaved together. An ocean of life coursed through him, enhancing him in body, mind, and soul.
He was at the absolute strongest he had ever been. It was almost euphoricbut, with his new Dao Root of Weakness acting as grounding, he remained unchanged by this rush.
Jack placed a hand on the back of the stone slab. He sensed the vacuum. Like an army of horses, his Dao galloped in. It felt like a raging river through his veins. It was stunning.
The power rushed out of him and into the stone slab. Its quality increased its effectiveness. Slowly, the Dao vacuum began to fill up. Ten percent. Twenty. Thirty.
Jack remained there, still as a boulder. The energy was still leaving him. Fifty percent was filled. Seventy. Eighty.
He was growing exhausted. He tore at every scrap he could find to push even more energy into the slab. If he failed now, he would probably die. He had neither another Dao Sprouting Pill nor the insights to comprehend a new Dao Root, let alone break through.
Ninety percent. The vacuum was so temptingly close to full, yet a small part of it remained empty. Jack had scrapped up every iota of Dao energy in his body. Some was still running through the connection, but it was too little. It would come close to filling the vacuum but fall short.
Despair was born in his heart. No! he thought. I cannot fail here! I must succeed!
With such a strong stream of power between himself and the vacuum, he no longer needed to touch it directly. With a roar, he tried to dig his fingers under the slab. It was hard. The floor was unbreakable to the current Jack, as was the slab. But the vacuum was the seal that kept it down. With it almost filled, the slab could budge a bit.
Jack roared again. All four of his hands dug under the slab, struggling to find purchase. It shook a bit, rising half an inch over the ground. One finger succeeded. Then another. The more he got, the easier it became. With better grip, he could lift harder.
Jack snuck all twenty of his fingers under the stone slab. He had lifted it an inch by now. Its back was against the entrance wall, so lifting it from one side lifted the whole thing.
Veins popped on his forehead. He was running short of breath. His entire body was protesting. His back was cracking. His calves were burning. Even with the vacuum filled at ninety-five percent, this stone slab was too heavy.
But he had to lift it.
He gritted his teeth so hard they almost broke. He didnt care about the pain or burn. All that existed was him and the slab.
A couple more inches. It rose slowly, its speed almost torturing. But Jack pressed on. His fingers got a better grip. The higher he raised the slab, the faster it became. Its magical resistance waned. His stance got better.
Eventually, it was so high that Jack could sneak a shoulder under it. Then another. He felt like Atlas holding up the sky. His entire face was red, his eyes were bulging, his teeth were gritted, his body was screaming at him to give up, but he pressed on.
The energy hed poured into the vacuum began to dissipate. From ninety-five percent, it fell to ninety-four. The slabs weight increased. Jack had to succeed quickly. His shoulders were compressed under the stone, but he rooted his feet in the ground deeply and summoned all his strength, uncaring that, if he failed, the slabs unbearable weight would crush him into paste.
His palms met the stone. He managed to draw in a breath. He could see the light outsideit was almost blinding.
AHHHH! Jack screamed, pushing at the slab with every scrap of power he could muster. His calves buckled. He got cramps everywhere. A couple muscles were torn. He ran out of power.
But, just for a moment, hed pushed up hard. And that was enough to break the resistance. The slab passed an invisible barrier and suddenly lost all magic, becoming just a regular slab of stoneheavy, but nothing Jack couldnt handle. It suddenly shot up like a missile, smashing into the roof and staying there, hovering over the entrance like it always did. The lever rose as well.
Jack fell to the ground, his regeneration drawing on the last bits of his energy to repair his broken tendons. He couldnt stand yet, but he couldnt care less. His lips were drawn into a wide smile. He didnt even feel the pain. Fresh air and light were all he could sense.
He had escaped the cave. He was freeand stronger than ever.
Jack Rust was back.
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