Alpha Zero (Alpha LitRPG Book 1) by Arthur Stone (top 5 books to read TXT) 📕

power, one for each wisp I had killed. Strength was the weakest of my main three attributes, so I decided to try an attribute power on that.

It worked like a charm. The last unlocked Strength attribute level now contained 55 units rather than 50—giving me a Strength total of 205, instead of the former 200. In theory, I was now 2.5% stronger. In practice, though, calculating physical strength was not so straightforward, but there was definitely a difference.

The five units of warrior energy boosted the expected parameter, Warrior Energy—but they only gave a boost of 0.05. I had no way to evaluate the importance of this increase, since I didn’t have a single talent that used this energy.

The Monster Connoisseur talent mark was clear enough. It would unlock a new skill, tier 1, with that same name. I did not use it at this time, since that would require a large number of lesser marks of Chaos. Just as ORDER talents required chi. I had only 7 of these lesser marks, and I needed 10 in order to complete the first tier.

Now, I had heard that Chaos talents were very rare and usually valuable. I wasn’t sure about the latter point, but the former was confirmed by the fact that only one had dropped for me, even though I had killed five creatures. The kotes had given me an average very close to one per fish. My magically pathetic fingers found drops a thousand times more often than those of a typical native.

Running a little math made me realize that a skilled hunter would have to kill about 5,000 wisps in order to obtain such a talent mark. I was raking in trophies a thousand times faster.

Did the trading post workers often send parties to hunt wisps? Judging by the fact that Beko didn’t even know they could fly, I doubted it. So, it was possible that the whole region did not contain a single living native with a Chaos talent. Perhaps even the whole world. That didn’t mean the talent would be incredibly useful, but I definitely wanted to test it out.

At some point. For now, I had nothing to unlock or develop it with. Into the bag it went.

The lesser primal essences were beyond my understanding, as was the emblem of valor. I did know for sure that certain items related to working with artifacts only dropped from Chaos creatures. As well as items that could improve certain raw materials and ingredients. Such as steel which yielded blades of unmatched sharpness and fabled strength.

But did my loot have anything to do with these activities? I didn’t know. There was still so much I didn’t know. So, I would hold onto these prizes, hoping that they were not just garbage.

I did know that improved metal weaponry was extraordinarily expensive, and so I surmised that the raw materials which made it must be worth a fortune.

I could find that out later. For now, the Chaos talent interested me the most. Its name suggested to me that I could use it to get information about creatures such as the wisps. Given that those buzzers were blocking our only exit from this foggy lowland, I wanted to know as much about them as possible.

Simple plans for the immediate future began to form in my head. I would catch kotes and garpikes, taking an occasional foray into the red lands. The creatures’ buzzing sounds would guide my step. Perhaps I could find a way to take them out one by one without risking getting attacked by a swarm.

Handling one wisp was easy enough. I would not attack two. Perhaps with Beko at my side, but he could not yet even stand.

“Beko, how are you feeling?”

“I don’t know. I’m sleepy, but I can’t go to sleep.”

“Just don’t die, OK?”

“No one dies of wisp poison.”

“Why did you yell at me to kill the one that stung you, then? Revenge?”

“Revenge? Why would anyone take revenge on a wisp? It’s not a person. It’s not a thinking being.”

“Then why did we have to kill it?”

“Wisps don’t work on their own. They paralyze anyone who walks among the cystos. Once the wisp stings the hunter, it goes to tell its master that the prey is ready. The master comes and claims it.”

“Master?”

“A beast called a rukh.”

“A strong beast?”

“Of course.”

“What kind of beast?”

“I don’t know. No one has ever told stories about the rukh, because no one has ever seen one. Those who have—well, they don’t tell any more stories ever again. Not even Degree 20 Enlightenment can save you from a rukh.”

“What about degree 40?”

“Why would someone with degree 40 hunt the land of the cystos? The rukh would never come for such a man, because that man would easily kill all its wisps. They would be unable to paralyze him. The rukh only comes for the paralyzed.”

“Maybe he’s not that strong, then, if all he can catch are invalids?”

Beko turned his head to look at me, fear in his eyes. “Ged, don’t even think like that. Chaos has passed through these very lands. I know we’re winners and all that, but this is a rukh we’re talking about. A rukh!”

Chapter 38 The Wisdom of Chaos

 

 

Degrees of Enlightenment: 0 (337/888)

Shadow: 337

Attributes:

Stamina: level 7, 350 points

Strength: level 4, 200 points

Agility: level 5, 250 points

Perception: level 3, 150 points

Spirit: level 2, 100 points

Energy:

Warrior Energy: 150 points (+4.89)

Mage Energy: 100 points

Talents:

Extreme Boatman (tier 3): 10/10

Fishing Connoisseur (tier 3): 10/10

Cure Wounds (tier 3): 10/10

Throwing Knives (tier 3): 10/10

Apprentice Navigator (tier 3): 10/10

Free Talents:

Spinning Rod Master (tier 3): 10/10

States:

Equilibrium (15.44): level 15

Enhanced Enlightenment (0.79):