Skullius had used [Greatest Mana Crafter] on Baddan before, along with [Immoral Authority].
The latter had yielded a brighter result, while the former had rewarded Skullius with nothing quite as tangible. However, it wasn't the same as gaining nothing, because a theory had emerged from what he vaguely felt.
The Hybrid Luman sensed the chaotic pulse of Baddan's purple mana core, finding that even with more time afforded to him, he couldn't break it. Doing such a thing to beings well versed in using their cores, and guarding them, was ridiculously difficult, and attempting it on a purple core with a normal skill was foolhardy.
However, Skullius wasn't looking to shatter the Sky Watcher's mana core.
Once again, Skullius activated [Swordmaster's Quiescence]!
Thankfully, like [Destined Warp Steps], the skill remained viable for use until all the minutes allowed in its specified duration were spent. With Skullius having been turning it on and off since his epiphany, he had a lot of time left for spamming it as he wished.
'My growth will not only be limited to Swordsmanship!' Skullius thought as the overwhelming feeling imposed by the [Swordmaster's Quiescence] clutched him firmly. He steered it – in the 10 second window free-roam he had – towards his capacity for understanding mana.
Yes.
This is what he needed.
As he successfully did so, he felt as if he had entered another plane of thought higher than that of normal, established elites, with his Omniscient Thought Cracker helping him settle all spontaneous thoughts and sparks of inspiration!
Baddan's gurgling and twitching as he seemed to have been stormed by damage Skullius had not seen...
The growl of the striped Retriever as it galloped towards him only to be pounded into the ground with a grunt that belonged to Maxim...
The shivering of Baddan's mana core as he forced every fibre of his being to invade it. Just a little bit...
Taking all this in, was a herculean task.
Just by attempting it, several notifications popped up in Skullius' view.
['Greatest Mana Crafter' has levelled up!]
['Greatest Mana... ]
He ignored them all and focused wholly on what he needed.
There had been many clues ever since Skullius had begun to think of Baddan, and what was represented on the guidance field about him.
Both his race and class were shown as Beckoned Sky Watcher, like the Fleeting Pioneer.
This, to Skullius, meant the creature's powers were not varied. His whole existence was tied to one thing, and by some interpretation, lacking in versatility.
What did this say to Skullius about how he should deal with Baddan then?
The Hybrid Luman dove into the creature's mana core, and vaguely saw the three parts that made it whole.
The mana core resisted terribly, but Skullius forced his way in with treacherous difficulty.
The Centre, the Refinery, and Shell...
He saw them a bit clearer.
Within the Refinery, he spotted...
'Right... there it is. The pattern is just as I was hoping for...' Skullius thought.
When he had his mana core destroyed, Skullius had made a new one, and got to learn how a mana core was created from scratch. The Refinery was easily the most important part of it, for combatants at least, because it governed what one could do with said core.
High level techniques required mana with a certain pattern, said pattern having been nurtured by the layout of the Refinery. An example of this, was how Skullius could produce the gravitational effect because of how his mana flowed, refined specifically the Refinery he personally forged.
When it came to Baddan...
All his skills; the Kiiyataka, the wind bears, the clones, and the recent dark tide.... all of it reeked of a pattern because of how centralised it all was
This was it!
This was why Skullius had insisted to Tallo and Maxim, that he needed to feel the attacks from Baddan more, so that he could figure out the pattern of how the mana from his core brought on these effects.
Of course, it was too complex to figure it out from just the attacks he ate alone. Upon activation, a technique only carried a vague semblance of how the mana used to ignite it flowed.
It was possible for Skullius to discern this from simple attacks just by being struck by them, and even replicate their effect. However, given how advanced, and at least idealistically nuanced Baddan's powers were, Skullius needed to look into their source for additional understanding to eventually find the missing pieces.
As profound as the mechanisms behind his scheme sounded, he could only execute them fractionally, or more aptly, tweak just a little portion of Baddan's mana core.
'I got it. Now all I have to do is...' Skullius thought, as with his consciousness diving into the Sky Watcher's core, [Greatest Mana Crafter] empowered by his [Swordmaster's Quiescence]... he grasped cruelly, and turned what felt like a gear in the Sky Watcher's mana core!
He tuned one thing, and one thing only.
...!
The Sky Watcher stop twitching, and a hoarse scream fled from his mouth.
Skullius backed away and tumbled back.
He had felt it.
Baddan's mana core lost some of it lustre, and it sparked like a malfunctioning machine!
The splatters of light from it didn't last long though, and he soon just laid on the ground taking deep breaths while feeling that something was very wrong with his mana core and body.
'Hopefully, that worked,' Skullius thought tensely.
He found Maxim looking at him with a questioning expression, under her foot the striped Retriever which was flattened up by her technique. It returned to normal in the next moment, only for Maxim to flatten it again.
Tallo was laying motionless on the ground, blood pooling around his head.
Skullius hurried to him, and placed his hand on his back. He felt complex rhythms and vibrations within his body, as if multiple cords were snapping continuously.
The man was barely alive, and it didn't look like he was going to stay that way for long before he turned worse.
Whatever he had done just now had probably taxed him extraordinarily.
What was it?
Could Mages dismantle Territories? Even Prime Mages?
The thought sounded absurd.
Baddan rose uncomfortably.
He looked to be in a torrent of pain and could barely sit up right.
He clutched his belly, and shuddered.
He tried to perform a few hand seals, and to his horror, not even a breeze whirled about.
He tried again and again and again.
Nothing.
His mana core seemed to reject what he set in motion; a sequence for activating the abilities branded onto his bodies!
"What... did you.... do?!" he looked at the three multiple times with a ferocious face.
Skullius stared at him, but said nothing.
They were halfway through the ten minutes required for the game. He wouldn't tell the Sky Watcher anything that could help him out of his predicament. In fact, he was looking to use the solution as a bargaining chip in case – in the likely case – Baddan didn't commit to what he promised at the beginning of the game.
The Sky Watcher screamed again.
"What did you do?!"
No one answered him.
He tried to stand, but it felt like thousands of thorns, as well as a heavy weight nailed him to the ground.
What was this?!
His trusty beast was being 'taken care of' and couldn't come to his aid.
Skullius watched, keeping an eye on the other riders Baddan had come with, whom, until moments ago he had forgotten existed. They didn't intervene, which gave him hope.
Now, all that left was Tallo.
Skullius tried to heal him, but nothing happened. The condition of his body didn't change at all, as if rejecting [Saint Lumis' Benign Arc].
"What did you do?" Skullius voiced to the Mage.
Did this guy use some forbidden secret art to save his and Maxim's skins?
Did it reject all healing as a consequence then? Even potions perhaps?
It seemed noble for Tallo to have used such a thing, and it was, but...
It didn't make sense.
Why?
Regardless of what Tallo's reasons were, first the group needed to win the game. As far as the rules told, the participants were supposed to be in the innermost circle by the end of the game to qualify as victorious.
Thus, Skullius lugged Tallo as well as the raging Baddan, and together with Maxim, and the striped Retriever, they walked to the ringly destination.
....
Before long, 10 minutes passed.
Baddan had on a pale, but furious face as each minute had elapsed.
He didn't understand how this was possible.
Skullius walked up to him.
"You lost. Will you keep your end of the bargain?"
The Sky Watcher looked to be ready to bark insult after insult at Skullius. He wasn't at all pleased. His ego and religious stance had been bruised.
"You desecrated the grounds as a means to rattle me! How... can I even consider this game valid?!"
"Flesh you, sockethole. You did it too, and with that whole thing about willing to make sacrifices and all. Besides, you were clearly lying about that Retriever of yours! It didn't just heal you, it started participating too!"
"I will be punished for how I desecrated the grounds even if it.... was to beat you all... but how will you be punished?! Me and my beast are one! Where I am, it is permitted also. I did not breach the rules!"
Skullius shook his head.
"Underneath that saint facade was a sockethole like you, huh? Look, even if it is within the rules that you can bring your Retriever in, you NEVER told us that! That was way too convenient from our perspective, and unfair! And it doesn't help that even with your beast, you lost to us! We beat you, and ended the game in the first circle. According to the rules! My friend here is on death's door because of it. So you better do what you promised, or so help me...!"
Baddan's face grew red. He glanced at where Skullius gestured; this friend of theirs who had somehow conjured an array within his Territory. He was lying there presumably close to dying.
Even a Super potion hadn't even made his circumstances better.
Baddan, while feeling a little pang of guilt at the sight, was still furious.
The logic was tangled, roiled, and murky, but in the end, Skullius and team were in the innermost circle by the time the game ended.
That was the ache of it.
A voice came, adding to the argument for Skullius and his group.
"Right, right. Plus, this dashing young man here can heal your core back to the way it was if you keep to your promise, and we can all be on our merry way at the end."
"Yeah. Thanks for that, Tallo," Skullius said with a nod before turning back to Baddan. "Right, see what I wa—"
Skullius stopped and turned.
He searched on the ground to find Tallo lying there, almost dead, and then focused on the healthy Tallo who was brimming with energy, barely any scratches on him but his robes.
The Hybrid Luman stammered, as did Maxim.
The looks on their faces made Tallo burst out into laughter.
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