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Tanya von DegurechaffThea MarshallZac

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Crossovers & Fandom FusionsStrong Female CharactersPost-ApocalypseLitRPG

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Published:2026-07-30Updated:2026-10-04Words:219,820Chapters:47/?Comments:420Kudos:423Bookmarks:87Hits:16,515

Tanya's Defiance of the Fall

Failninjaninja

Chapter 4

Chapter Text

Chapter 4

It wasn't until I reached Level 26 that we finally accumulated enough Nexus Crystals in order to purchase the [F-Grade Nexus Node]. No one else had reached Level 25 in our group. Zhou was likely the closest. We also had some casualties as Samuel and another one of the Tutorial participants had been slain by the Zhix. If it hadn't been for my personal contribution, our little settlement would have been overrun as the Zhix had regularly attacked.

Which was probably a good thing, as the few times we had ventured out and gotten close to the Hive we ended up facing more powerful warriors. One of them had given me a nasty gash across my shoulder that had taken a medicine pill and a couple of days of cultivation to heal.

Desperate times had called for desperate measures and our community had been forced to consume some of the oversized animals which we had avoided eating for fear they were tainted somehow by their changes. We were all pleasantly surprised when we learned that there wasn't anything poisonous about most of them, and even the more exotic transformation that had taken place for some didn't cause too many issues. Especially for us Tutorial goers.

We really had a leg up compared to our peers based on raw stats. Everyone, even the ones who picked the easiest difficulty every time, had a Chosen title of some sort that granted them at least +5 to all their stats. My own granted me +18 to all of my stats which was absurd. Every level we gained two Free Points. And there were seven stats, or attributes. In order to raise seven stats by 18 that would require 126 Free Points or 63 levels. That was the reason that the Tutorial participants, the cultivators, were so far away and ahead of everyone else.

That and our free skill. And the fact we could cultivate. And the other Titles and benefits we received.

The stark difference between the haves and the have-nots in this world made any sort of prior class disparity the commies always droned on about seem like a molehill compared to Olympus Mons. Someone who survived the Tutorial had a nearly insurmountable and enduring advantage that didn't seem possible to ever overcome.

That made Jayden's own improvement so exemplary in my eyes. He had run a Pawn Shop in a less than pleasant part of town and had survived being shot at more than a few times before the Multiverse came and sucked our planet into itself. I suspected he was still well below Zhou's current level but he had the same prowess as some of the more cautious Tutorial participants.

That was another oddity that some, but not all, of the Tutorial pixies had mentioned. The ability to share your menu information, but a caution to only do that with trusted individuals. This had led to fewer people being free with sharing their stats with their peers as the Tutorial had marched on and informational security seemed to now be ingrained in the culture of cultivators and that had spread to the mortals. I saw the good and the bad in it, but went along with what everyone else did and kept my own level under wraps.

The cat was, of course, now out of the bag. It was time to select my class. I eagerly examined my options now that we had ponied up the three thousand Nexus Crystals.

[Top 5 Class choices]

[Acolyte – F Grade, Common. Fledgling wielder of the elements. Initial proficiency with elemental magic. Upgradeable.]

[Swordsman – F Grade, Common. Fledgling wielder of the blade. Initial proficiency with swords. Upgradeable.]

[Inscriber – F Grade, Uncommon. Fledgling ability to inscribe runes and arrays. Upgradeable.]

[Enchanter – F Grade, Rare. Fledgling ability to unmake and create enchantments upon items. Upgradeable.]

[Sky Mage – F Grade, Epic. Advanced ability to ride the skies. Initial proficiency with elemental magic and levitation.]

[Random F-Grade Class. 93.1% Common. 4.8% Uncommon. 2.0% Rare. 0.1% Epic. Roll the dice.]

I immediately discounted the idea of rolling dice for my class. That seemed stupid and would likely only get me a Common one. I knew from Lily that the rarity of a class impacted my stat growth. By default the rarer the class, the better the stat growth. I felt a little bit disappointed that I had already lost a level of higher stat growth due to not being able to get a class right at Level 25, but compared to the guys who didn't have a Chosen Title, it really wasn't a big deal.

However, the pixies had warned people who asked a lot of questions about classes, that the rarer the class the more uncertain the upgrade path. This was due to common classes having the most people in them and through shared experience and millions of years, with countless trillions of people walking that path, the way to upgrade to the next level once they reached Level 75 was known. That wasn't the case for all classes.

What also sparked my interest was that Sky Mage could only have come from my second life of experience. It also was missing the 'Upgradeable' tag which meant that if I selected Sky Mage it meant I would not be able to advance to a different class later. Which could be a good thing, as it was already at the pinnacle, or it could mean it was a dead end for progression. Lily had been clear that in the grand scheme of things, the maximum a F-grade race like humans could achieve was Level 75 without upgrading their race. As a Human, we could upgrade our Race-grade through the use of [Constitution Pills] and other means, but she had been rather contemptuous of the idea of anyone on Earth rising much higher than that. Every tier up was supposed to grant another 75 levels of growth potential.

Sadly, the Tutorial pixies had disappeared along with the Tutorial and the System was monumentally not helpful as it just consisted of menus without a helpful FAQ.

Shoddy design really.

The other feeling that gave me pause was the almost instinctual urge to select Sky Mage. Like I was being pushed toward it. And that made me dig in my heels. I didn't want to be on the frontlines. I didn't want a replay of my second life. I had enjoyed the intellectual exercise of plotting military campaigns, but I hated being on the frontlines.

I had meditated and focused on crafting something while I cultivated for a reason and that had seemingly accomplished something. Two crafting classes. Inscriber and Enchanter. With the promised stat increases being better at the Rare level than the Uncommon level, I paused for only a moment before selecting the Enchanter class.

I immediately felt different and realized I had not just gained a boost for selecting a Class, but also gained Titles and something Lily had only hinted at. A Dao Seed. The System Menu even informed me via a blue pop-up box in front of my eyes.

[Dao Seed gained – Volition]

I eagerly reviewed my Status screen.

Name: Tanya Degurechaff

Level: 26

Class: [F-Rare] Enchanter

Race: [F] Human

Alignment [Earth] Human

Titles: Defier of Gods, Indecipherable Anomaly, The Eleventh Goddess, Devil of the Rhine, Chosen of the Skies, Flame Savior, Commander of Men, Adventurer, Giantsbane, Full of Class, Rarified Being, Genesis Crafter.

Strength: 30

Dexterity: 47

Endurance: 34

Vitality: 38

Intelligence: 69

Wisdom: 70

Luck: 34

Free Points: 0

Nexus Coins: 12,203

My Wisdom had jumped a huge amount and in general my stats were higher. I took a look at the new Titles first.

[Full of Class: Reach level 25 and attain a Class. All stats +1]

[Rarified Being: Attain a Class graded as Rare. All stats +1]

[Genesis Crafter: First to gain a Crafting Class in world. +5 Wisdom, +10% Cosmic Energy Gain from Crafting]

Anyone who lives long enough to obtain their Class will get Full of Class, but many won't get a Rare Class. That's a leg up, and Genesis Crafter is going to give me an enduring edge when I compare myself to other crafters.

Next I looked at my Class.

[Class: Enchanter, Grade-F, Rare]

Wisdom +10, +10%

Level +3 Wisdom, +1 Dexterity, +1 free point each level gained

Skills:

Temporary Enchantment (LOCKED)

Suppression (LOCKED)

Crafter's Wisdom (LOCKED)

That's where a big addition to Wisdom had partially come from. Not only the whopping +10 but also the 10% improvement. Stacked on top of my existing 5% to all stats from one of my earlier Titles I now had a 15% increase of my base Wisdom. It was already reflected in my stats, but if I hadn't had it, my Wisdom would be below my Intelligence.

I was kicking myself a bit, because while Intelligence had helped the power of my Fireball and my total available mana pool, it seemed that the primary stat that influenced what I could do with my Class would be Wisdom, not Intelligence. It also looked like on the Quest Menu I had three new quests.

Temporary Enchantment (Class) Enchant 1,000 items. (0/1,000)

Suppression (Class) Disenchant 1,000 items. (0/1,000)

Crafter's Wisdom (Class) Upgrade an F-grade item to E-grade through an Enchant. (0/1)

The knowledge in how to Enchant and Disenchant hit me like a freight train. I realized that it would take some time to process that information, but through that epiphany I learned that Enchanting was immensely flexible, but also time consuming. I suspected these abilities would take some time to acquire. What they were was also a mystery. I could infer some based on their name, but that was just guesswork.

I had received a very brief overview on what the Dao was. It was a universal concept and fundamental truth of the universe, or Multiverse in this case. It sounded quite a bit like some New Age nonsense, but the stark reality I faced was that the System defined reality. At least from where I was standing. If they chose to incorporate concepts like being able to meditate to understand some universal truth, then I had to play ball.

The Dao Seed was the very beginning of the journey and it was not a physical object, but something that had been unlocked inside of myself. When I willed myself to review my Dao through the System Menu, I saw where some additional stats had shown up.

[Dao Seed of Volition – Early. Dexterity +10, Wisdom +5]

I pondered on that for a moment. Volition was the word that meant the cognitive process and power of using one's own will to make conscious choices, decisions, or intentions. It was what we all had as individuals. Free will. By selecting something other than the Epic Class, Sky Mage, I had reinforced the concept of choosing my own path. I would not go where I was being herded, but make my own choices, for good or for ill.

It felt right. The stat bonus to Dexterity felt appropriate because being able to move quickly and escape situations by dodging or leaping over them allowed for my path to be unique. I vaguely understood that the Dao Seed could also be applied as more than just stat improvements, but I wasn't sure how that worked and the System naturally didn't give me any clues.

While I was interfacing with the [F-Grade Nexus Node] I gawked at the few Combat Skills and Spells that were available for sale. The cheapest was 20,000 Nexus Coins. I only had around twelve thousand and I was certain I had the most wealth among the little community that had been formed.

That is very disappointing, but Nexus Coin drops have been increased as the animals grow to larger stature and grow more dangerous. Perhaps it won't take too long. Though now I have another use for my time.

It was time to start Enchanting!

***

Enchanting was bullshit! I learned very quickly that even the simplest Enchants took forever. Hours on end passed to provide a very minor improvement to a piece of gear. But that wasn't all, the Cosmic Energy that I used was my own experience! Fortunately, after my first Enchantment I realized what was happening and stopped. After meditating for a bit, the knowledge that had been dumped into my brain by the System allowed me to understand that I could use the Cosmic Energy that was going toward my next level, but I didn't have to.

What I could also do was Disenchant magical items, magical creatures, or use Nexus Crystals. I also realized that I could partially direct and add on effects when I used certain materials. The High Quality Beast Scale actually turned out very nicely when applied to my armor. On top of the enchantment that improved how sturdy and able to resist damage it was, I also gained additional resistance to fire and heat.

The frustrating issue was that it took me about four hours to Enchant something. I did gain Cosmic Energy during that time, but only fractionally more than I did by just cultivating through meditation. I also had to either use some sort of body part of a decently leveled mutated beast or a Nexus Crystal. And we were short on Nexus Crystals! The next issue was that it cost mana to do all this too! It was exhausting and mind numbing work. I was a bit more engaged when using the higher quality materials and could help shape the final Enchantment, but for the basic stuff, it was like watching paint dry.

This is miserable.

As far as personal progress was concerned, I had probably really shot myself in the foot by not going Sky Mage. That said, I was determined not to have to live my life on the frontlines forever. I still had to for now, but my Enchanting did provide some benefits, even if the gains were meager.

My sword was now upgraded to cut and pierce more effectively. With some testing it looked to be about a 10% increase. My armor, thanks to the High Quality Beast Scale, made even hot sunny days feel mild and I knew I had increased resistance to flame-based attacks. Testing it wasn't as easy, but I felt it was a bit stronger than the Enchantment on the sword. Either way, I was glad for the additional protection.

I had also enchanted the weaponry of some of our best fighters over the next several days, but I had to stop and go out and defend against the Zhix several times. Fortunately, they didn't seem to want to come all at once, and the most we ever faced was around thirty. Thanks to that, the current status of the quest was heartening.

Outpost Formation (Normal): Become the Dominant Race within ten kilometers. (521/1,000) Zhix slain. Highest Contribution becomes default leader of Outpost. Contribution Ladder:

Tanya – 421

Zhou – 30

Amanda – 28

Jayden – 22

Shawn – 9

And then a bunch at one. Only Jayden was a 'mortal' and not a cultivator who had gone through the Tutorial. Amanda was fairly proficient with a bow, but unless she shot one of the Zhix in the eye, it wasn't enough to kill one. Despite that, she had racked up an impressive kill count.

However, not everything was running smoothly. We learned something awful, children, specifically anyone under sixteen, could not gain Cosmic Energy at all. Our encampment had dozens of children and teens below that threshold who could easily be killed by even the weakest mutated beast. Some also thought that the children were a waste of resources.

"Why should we let them stay? If their parents wish to go, they can go. None of them are cultivators." Zhou said dispassionately.

"Fuck that shit," Jayden snarled. "We ain't gonna turn out kids to let them get killed. It's my decision, not yours."

Several of the mothers chimed in, angry at Zhou.

"It is not your decision, it is hers." Zhou said pointing at me.

I blinked.

"We came in later and I don't know these people from prior to the Merger. Many of them know and trust Jayden," I argued.

He shook his head. "When the Quest to form an Outpost is completed, you will be the leader. You waste your time Enchanting for those so much weaker than us. Now that we cultivators have Enchanted armor and weapons, you should return to more active hunting. Meanwhile, if someone does not pull their weight, we do not need them here. This is not like our old world. The weak serve no purpose, do you not recall the lessons the pixies taught us?"

Jayden looked at me nervously. In reality, I probably couldn't kill several hundred people if it was all of them against me. I probably could get away with my superior stats and kill a lot of them though if I was so inclined. The issue wasn't that simple. The cultivators would almost certainly follow my lead and while Amanda had a look of guilt on her face, she tightened her own grip on her sword hilt and gave me a firm nod. She was with me, either way.

Great.

"We've been so busy, we've not truly taken the time to decide how our community should function," I said slowly. "Or what it is we hope to do, other than obtain strength so we aren't massacred by dangerous monsters. In all honesty, my intent was never to stay here. I have a family I want to find. It made sense to help out, pool our knowledge and resources, and then take advantage of the System-generated Quests. But I have no intention of leading this community, especially since I intend to travel."

This was met with loud protests; several people were begging me not to abandon them. Zhou gave me a considering look. He obviously hadn't considered the idea of travelling.

Shawn grimaced. "Do we even know if anyone else is out there? Maybe we are it for humanity."

"I doubt that, the military if nothing else would have had some people grouped together and high caliber guns, which won't help them level, are still strong enough to handle most beasts without too much issue."

I couldn't be certain of that, but 9mm rounds were still able to stop the mutated sparrows and cats. I could only imagine what an M4 could do. Some of the more vicious and strangely armored monsters I had killed probably could withstand it, but the M4 was just an infantry weapon, not even a heavy weapon.

"But regardless," I went on, "even if that possibility exists, I still need to confirm it. I don't know when I'll leave, but I do intend to at some point, so I will not consent to being the one in charge."

Between hunting, defending, cultivating, and Enchanting, I don't have time!

"But the System will appoint you as leader of the Outpost," Zhou replied.

"Probably, but there has to be some way to hand over control. Either way, I'm not looking to replace Jayden, but if people are unhappy with Jayden who seems to have just assumed control because he was the first one to organize and help people make sense of things while we were in the Tutorial, then I suggest we have a vote."

Zhou frowned, but then nodded. He intended to run against Jayden and the vote was going to be held the next day. Democracy really was the worst system – it just happened to be better than all the other ones.

***

Zhou was a gifted orator. He spoke of his leadership experience as an executive in Shenzhen before the merger and how his talents had led him to be the second most powerful person in the area. Since the most powerful individual, me, wasn't running, it was obvious that he should lead. It was their best chance to survive. Or so his arguments went.

It didn't sway many people and the secret vote was a humiliating defeat. People liked Jayden. He had risked his life to save several people while we were still stuck in the Tutorial. Not just against monsters, but he had helped organize defense against people who had sought to take their belongings at the point of a gun. Over ninety percent had voted in favor for him.

He spoke with me privately afterwards.

"When you leave, I would like to join you."

"Because you lost the election?"

He snorted. "They are fools. If they had elected me, I could bring proper order and everything would be run efficiently. I am willing to serve someone else, if they are strong. You have that strength, just look at the Contribution Ladder for the Quest."

I was hoping when I left I wouldn't also be taking the second strongest in the encampment with me. But I wasn't going to turn him down, there was still safety in numbers.

"I have no problems with you accompanying me, but I am not ready to leave. We just built the [F-Grade Nexus Node] and I'd like to pick up at least one secondary skill. I imagine you'll want to get your Class before we leave."

"Yes, that was my hope."

The next day our hunting groups set out as normal. No Zhix around, but we slaughtered some strange almost zebra-like monsters. They were a rough challenge for most of the group, but I was still able to dispatch them easily. The Enchantments rarely made a huge difference, but over time I believed I was able to kill faster, which allowed for quick bouts of meditation to recharge my mana before pressing on.

What was surprising was seeing dead Zhix. We came across several of their patrols. I didn't want to risk everyone's lives, but if there was a seriously new threat in the region, I needed to know about it.

"Zhou, take the rest back home. I'm going to see what may have caused this."

There was some consternation, but the group agreed. Jayden was back at camp, and even when he was with me, I had battlefield command. Both because it allowed for my aura to give the stat increase, and because I was good at it.

Parting ways with the group I sprinted at full speed toward the direction we believed the Zhix were based. I found two more groups of them dead, before I ran into an ongoing battle. Giant mutated bears, not a few of them, but hundreds of them, were charging and fighting over a hundred Zhix. Included in their number was one twice as tall and slaughtering bears with ease, however the other Zhix were struggling.

What the hell? This is almost like they are facing a Tutorial mission. I see the place is carpeted with other dead bodies of other creature types. This isn't normal mutated beast behavior.

I also realized our little Human settlement may have gotten extremely lucky because judging by the power of the giant Zhix, it was far stronger than I was. It seemed, despite their numbers and ferocity, the Zhix were winning simply because of their primary champion. Smiling widely, I realized this was a fantastic opportunity.

I ran forward at the edges of the battlefield and then began to use my Fireball spell on the struggling Zhix. The mutated bears were ignoring me and it was like I was back in Dacia. It was free kills, I didn't get as much Cosmic Energy per kill, because if they were wounded by something else still alive, the System didn't credit me with the full amount, but it was quite generous, nonetheless.

The Zhix realized something was happening and a few turned to fight me, but I was far and away stronger than they were. I burned away all my mana using Fireball over and over again. A few of them chucked spears at me, but with my high Dexterity it was easy to dodge at this distance. When I had exhausted my mana, I moved further away, sat back and meditated with my eyes open, drawing in the Cosmic Energy in the air and refueling my reserves. Normally this would have been impossible in a battle, but a shimmering portal had opened and deposited even more bears, even larger than the ones before.

I chortled with glee as the Zhix defenses seemed to completely crumble as even more of the insectoid-like humanoids fell under the grisly power. When I had recuperated a decent amount of mana I returned to my task. The Zhix were retreating now, back into some sort of hive-like structure adjacent to a rocky hill, and only the extraordinarily large one was keeping the bears at bay. Throughout all of this, the bears had not once turned on me.

I advanced cautiously and saw an abnormally large bear face off against the big Zhix. It had bones jutting out of its fur and the cataclysmic clash between the two titans sent shockwaves of power radiating around them. Other bears tried to help, but they accomplished little. I watched for a while and disappointedly saw the massive one prove victorious.

You may have won, but you are on your last legs.

I came in just as the last bear had fallen and let loose with an intense Fireball. The exhausted Zhix shrugged it off and limped toward me. I came in low slashing at its legs, and even with the Enchantment on the blade, it deflected off. I had no idea how high its Endurance was, but this was ridiculous. Despite its limp it was fast and I had to scramble back and send another Fireball at its face. Gritting my teeth I feinted in one direction, sent the last Fireball my mana reserves would allow and made it launch slower than normal, behind the blazing heat I came forward and stabbed straight for its eyes. The accumulated damage, battle-weariness, and distraction proved enough as my sword pierced through its eye socket and into its brain.

A veritable flood of Cosmic Energy entered me and I gasped as I felt myself fill the last bit of my previous level and then leveled an entire level again. The System had allocated none of the Cosmic Energy to the dead bear and I had been granted it all! In shock, I also realized the System had given me another Title.

Quest Breaker: Successfully end an Incursion Quest that the System believed had a high likelihood of being completed. All Stats +2.

I realized that the Zhix were not random monsters or System created beings. They were like humans, except insectoid. They had their own Quests that were given by the System. Lily had said that there would be other races because our planet was merged with others, but I had made some assumptions along the way. Based on the cutthroat way the System operated, it wouldn't surprise me if there were Zhix that had their own Quests that involved killing us Humans.

Regardless, I was a bit worn out. I quickly examined the magical essence around me through my Enchanter Class and discovered that several of the bears could be 'Disenchanted' but there was no way they could fit into my Cosmos Sack. I did take the heart of the big bear as well as its skin, and I knew I could make great use of that.

With their greatest champion felled, it will be time to come back with the others and finish our Outpost Quest.

***

I took some time with the boney bear skin and heart. I was originally planning to Disenchant both, but then I grew inspired. What if… what if I turned the bear skin into a proper cloak and enchanted it with the Disenchanted bear heart? I had a quest to turn an F-grade item into an E-grade one. Did the bear skin count as an F-grade? I wasn't sure since it really wasn't an 'item' at the moment, but I'd give it a go.

I worked with two of the other members in the camp to shape the skin into a cloak. It wasn't a pretty job, but I figured the Enchantment would allow it to take proper shape, as long as it was cloak-like. I knew the bear had to have been higher level than me, so I felt like this had a real shot at working.

Disenchanting the heart was not easy. It took far longer than I had hoped, and I learned that I could pause an ongoing Disenchant, but not for too long. I had to quickly meditate, regain some mana and continue the process.

So this is why Wisdom is the primary stat for this Class! Ugh, this is miserable.

When I was finally done I felt the essence brimming inside of me and I transferred it onto the cloak. I realized we would have to delay our departure to the Zhix hive, and I would get zero sleep that night, but I was determined to do this. Slowly but surely I began to shape the bear cloak with what I wanted.

From my Class, I knew the lines to lay, the imprints to push, the essence fractals to track in order to provide the necessary scaffolding for the Enchantment to take hold. Slowly but surely I completed the process and when the sun was high in the sky it was done. I had finished it. I had crafted… an F-grade magic item.

DAMN IT!

All that work and effort and it wasn't an E-grade? This Quest was not going to be easy. I doubted I would have been able to solo kill that giant bear. Well, maybe with time and trees I could jump around on while I slowly whittled it down, but it would not be pleasant. How much higher level did something need to be before I could turn its essence into an E-grade item?

I inspected the cloak and that's when I grew a bit more mollified. The cloak granted superior protection than my armor. It also had a hood that covered more of my head. Helmets seemed to be rare things, so this was altogether great all around protection. It also seemed to grant me some minor resistance to poisons and toxins. All in all, it was by no means what I had hoped for, but was not a bad consolation prize.

I put on my bear cloak and noted that I remained cool despite the added layer. Temperatures didn't cause as much difficulty for my body to regulate cold and heat, but it could still be annoyingly uncomfortable, and this seemed to keep me at the temperature I desired. I wondered if that was all enchanted cloaks or some unique property of the bear, or even some subconscious desire that I had within me when I formed the Enchantment. I'd meditate on it later, for now we had a Zhix Hive to exterminate.

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Tanya von DegurechaffThea MarshallZac

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Published:2026-07-30Updated:2026-10-04Words:219,820Chapters:47/?Comments:420Kudos:423Bookmarks:87Hits:16,515

Tanya's Defiance of the Fall

Failninjaninja

Chapter 5

Chapter Text

Chapter 5

I had somewhat expected there to be some sort of queen figure in the Zhix hive, given their insect-like physicality and their near-perfect coordination in battle, but it was not to be. With almost all the more dangerous warriors slain, the remainder were easily dispatched. Knowing that they were also a sentient race and not System mutated creatures gave me only momentary pause. Just because they were sentient didn't mean their value systems or even their consciousness was anything like humans.

Besides, we need to finish the System-given Quest.

Outpost Formation (Normal): Become the Dominant Race within ten kilometers. (1,000/1,000) Zhix slain. [COMPLETE]

[Quest complete. Calculating personal contribution. Contribution 84%. Completion Grade: B. Time taken: 19 days. Distributing rewards.]

Tanya – 842

Zhou – 59

Amanda – 48

Jayden – 33

Shawn – 11

Tamika – 3

Aaron – 2

Deon – 1

A small box appeared, and in it was 5,000 Nexus Coins and an upgraded Cultivation manual, which was the real prize. I examined the manual and allowed a trickle of Cosmic Energy to flow into it. Oh, that was interesting, it seemed to boost my cultivation speed. Not by a massive amount, but certainly noticeable, and appreciated. I shared with Zhou and Jayden what I had received. Zhou had been given some Nexus Crystals and healing medicine, while Jayden had only received Nexus Coins.

"You can go ahead and have this," I offered my F-grade Cultivation to Jayden. He seemed not to be able to use cultivation, but he had sworn he had felt something after repeated attempts. Maybe it would help, maybe it would not, but I had no further use for it now that I had received something better.

I was also made leader of the Outpost and there were additional quests added that could potentially make it into a 'Town.' I was still rather set on leaving, both because I wanted to find my family, get a better understanding of what groups still existed, and because I could sense better areas to cultivate. This area had a low energy level compared to what I sensed in my meditations elsewhere. This impacted both my ability to cultivate Cosmic Energy to gain levels and my natural rate of restoring mana after using my Enchanting abilities. Which was important because until my mana was restored I could not even have any cultivation go towards raising my Level.

"What are you doing?"

The voice was womanly, but I had grown used to being on guard, and I had not sensed anyone else approaching. I whirled around fire already gathering in my palm and saw a monster. It was a floating disembodied eye. The pupil looked like that of an artist's rendering of a black hole. The sclera was not white as with a human, but black studded with shining lights. Jayden and Zhou both raised their spears.

"Hold," I commanded, and they obeyed.

I recalled from the Tutorial that as populations grew and civilization formed; additional post-Tutorial helpers would arrive. I figured this was one of them due to its strange appearance and, so far, non-hostile intent.

"Jumpy lot, eh? You can call me Seth-Barak. I am here to assist you in your endeavors regarding your outpost."

I smiled. "Great, first things first, I've been made the Outpost leader due to my contribution score, but I'd like to assign it to Jayden here."

The great eye made some sort of buzzing sound.

"Why would you want to?"

"I plan to leave the area."

"Ah, well, yes I can show you how to do that. But there are fantastic rewards for turning an Outpost into a Town. Generally, you don't want to lose those."

"I want to find my family and find a better place to use cultivation."

The great eye looked around. "Huh, well, yeah I can see that. This place is the dumps. Well here is how you can do that…"

The Stargazer, which he later identified himself as a racial name like Human as opposed to an occupation, also shared other information when asked. His time was short, but we managed to milk some information out of him. Mortals typically stayed where they were when a planet integrated in the Multiverse, except for the Tutorial participants. However, since apparently Earth was such a backward, primitive, and low-grade world, it had been combined with multiple other worlds. When that happened, things could get odd. Sometimes, areas of thousands of kilometers just moved all together to another space mostly intact and then next to other seemingly vast areas from other worlds, other times, it was a hodgepodge where slices of less than a kilometer were sent out at random to connect with parts of the newly created planet.

So I got screwed that my parents aren't in this area of Chicago, that part of Chicago could have been sent thousands of kilometers away, perhaps even further away than the circumference of Earth as I knew it. Damn it.

Still, learning more about how things like Cosmic Energy worked, even at a high level, was useful. I also learned that the System tested newly integrated planets with Incursions from existing worlds in the Multiverse.

"Wait, are you saying that if we don't defeat the Incursions they'll be able to take over the planet? How can we possibly defeat them, given their headstart?"

"The System is generous in that it limits the power of these Incursions. They tend to be somewhat manageable during the grace period, which varies. Closing them often gives great rewards. But do take heart, as the various Incursions typically don't work together. They will war with each other often after the grace period is over and the limiters are taken off. I'm sure you'll be fine. Probably. Maybe. Who knows really. Either way, my time is up, farewell, and good luck."

I transferred ownership to Jayden and blanked out for a moment. A vision came over me. The assembly line. The stock market. The King. The Prime Minister. Soldiers saluting. When it passed, I shook myself, Jayden was looking at me with worry.

"You good?"

[Dao Seed gained – Delegation]

"Yes, just had a Dao vision. I've gained a new Dao Seed."

I quickly looked at my status screen.

Name: Tanya Degurechaff

Level: 28

Class: [F-Rare] Enchanter

Race: [F] Human

Alignment [Earth] Human

Strength: 33

Dexterity: 53

Endurance: 36

Vitality: 41

Intelligence: 76

Wisdom: 92

Luck: 36

Free Points: 0

Nexus Coins: 21,120

I navigated through the System Menu to the area that listed my Dao Seeds.

[Dao Seed of Volition – Early. Dexterity +10, Wisdom +5]

[Dao Seed of Delegation – Early. Wisdom +10, Intelligence +5]

Well, that was pretty helpful! It seemed that by making the choice to hand off control to someone else it had me resonate with a core aspect of the Dao. A core aspect of myself. While it wasn't truly delegation, since I was handing over control completely and held no direct power anymore, the universal idea of having someone else do work while you focused on something else had been triggered by what the System had viewed as something monumental at the individual level.

I'll take it. This will help with Enchanting as any Wisdom gains seem to help me replenish mana faster. The Intelligence buff will help the lethality of my Fireball.

Jayden asked my advice as well as some of the other higher level folks on what to buy with the communal resources. There were a few Arrays that could be purchased in the new shop found in the Outpost. Some of them were reasonable and convenient like a Small-Scale Water-Gathering Array that would provide clean drinking water pulled from the atmosphere. It was a bit burdensome to have to purify water, even if those with over 20 Vitality could drink contaminated water without too many issues. Children, however, could not as they were still stuck at Level 1.

Arrays came in varying sizes and shapes. They were essentially a closed system of energy in circulation, similar to the internal pathways we had in our body that allowed us to cultivate. What was interesting about them was that I felt that I could probably make them myself, but I sensed that it would take some time and that my Class was not best-suited for that work. That was more along the lines of an Inscriber. It was something to consider for the future, but for now I reviewed the other choices Jayden might purchase.

There were some minor protective Arrays and finally a Gravity Array. At first I thought it had something to do with perhaps manufacturing or crafting something under different conditions, but Amanda suggested that it might be a training Array. Designed to help push higher physical stats through training under high-G conditions.

Eh, it feels like that wouldn't necessarily be the case and might lead to more injury, but perhaps it is true. We've gone far beyond physical biology, even without focusing on Strength, I'm already far stronger than my muscle mass would suggest. I also have to remember the Multiverse is governed by the System, if through learning or programming it thought that higher gravity was a training device, then so it was.

It reminded me of the old anime I used to watch when I was younger. Goku was a character who had trained under such conditions, if I recalled correctly.

I had recommended the protection Arrays and the clean water one. Beyond that the shop had expanded with a few more skills. None really called to me except the Minor Healing one. I ended up purchasing it and would give it a try the next time someone was injured. I was… disappointed. I had hoped for a single fast heal, but it instead it was more of a heal-over-time that required my constant channeling of more positive aligned Cosmic Energy to speed up the process of healing. In the old world it would have been quite miraculous, but here, spending a few hours fixing a broken bone was great and all, but time was precious. If I wasn't hunting, Enchanting, or cultivating, I wasn't being productive.

Nonetheless, it was still something that might save my life or someone else's in the future, so better to have it than not.

***

Meditating on the Dao of Delegation while I cultivated led me to snap my eyes open with astonishment and glee. I could use my Dao Seed as part of my Enchanting! By channeling the Dao of Delegation, I could create a unique Enchantment that could help me considerably, at least in the long run. It had some tradeoffs, but there was some real utility and it was at a low enough scale that it shouldn't bother most people.

I still had to wait for Zhou to reach Level 25 before journeying on. I didn't have to, but I had told him I would and keeping one's agreements was good. Plus, I liked having a meat shield. An extra pair of eyes on the road would be invaluable and given my high Dexterity and powerful Fireball skill, I could avoid many enemies who would then turn their attention on him, instead of me, since he was a close-in fighter.

My own progress was disappointingly slow in other respects because the mutated beasts and 'monsters' as we called the creatures from other worlds, tended not to pose that much of a challenge for me. The experience required for later levels increased at a steeply accelerating rate, far beyond linear and even steeper than a simple exponential curve. Killing comparatively low-level foes therefore barely moved the needle. Enchanting helped some, but I needed resources, and the low-level Enchantments weren't great at grinding out experience either.

With this new trick…

I waited to test my new Enchantment until I was able to find something higher level. An eagle, five times the normal size, had nearly slain one of the people in our encampment and I had to hit it with multiple fireballs before it went down. I Disenchanted the heart of it and then used that essence to improve an axe. It would be sharper, sturdier, and actually mildly accelerate when swung, thanks to the essence being a bird's. I would have to tell Aaron to be careful with the swing, but it should prove quite the aid in taking down tough-hided foes.

"There's something else that was part of the Enchantment, Aaron," I told him as he grinned as he swung around the axe.

"What's that?"

"I focused on my Dao Seed to see if it would impact my Enchantment, and it seems successful, but isn't necessarily beneficial for you. I believe the difference will be minute, say 1%, but a portion of your kill's Cosmic Energy that would have gone to you, will instead be conferred to me."

He blinked. "Well, shit. 1% ain't bad, as long as it isn't more than that, we good."

I had him test it out and I realized there was slippage. As I meditated on it my Class and my Dao gave me insights to what was going on. I was right about the 1% but I wasn't gaining the 1% I was gaining about a quarter of it. The rest was being 'wasted' and in theory, this was completely detrimental to an encampment because we aren't using all of the Cosmic Energy of a kill. However, it also provided me a direct personal benefit, and my Enchantment might also make the difference between victory and defeat.

The amount of Cosmic Energy I get from that axe is minuscule. However… I don't intend to just make one weapon.

I grinned. While eventually people will no doubt find better and more powerful weapons, and my own creations would be cast aside or hopefully passed down to other people who were still low Level, for a time I would be gaining around 1/400th of someone's own Cosmic Energy from every kill made with one of my weapons. Given that everyone here was below my level, this would never amount to much, but as I created more and more weapons I would make gains even if I did nothing.

Ah, just like passive income. Is there anything that is better?

Already I was imagining my life, far into the future, when thousands of my Dao Seed of Delegation empowered weapons littered the Multiverse sending me thousands of tiny streams of energy throughout my days while I enjoyed a well-deserved retirement.

It was a nice dream, but still far off in the distance. I also wasn't sure if there was a range factor to this either, so I did temper my expectations. In any event, I was truly happy with the discovery and realized I could also probably enchant things with the Dao Seed of Volition.

Hmm perhaps boots that are sure-footed. Or perhaps boots that would allow people to walk on snow or even water.

I had some more meditating to do. My leveling progress may have been curtailed, but I was slowly gaining better Enchanted gear and hopefully more progress on advancing my Dao Seeds. The Outpost we now had was far more able to protect itself than when I had first come, and only rarely was I direly needed to ward off threats. I still regularly participated and helped oversee lower level hunting parties, both to do my part and also for my own Cosmic Energy gains.

I had Enchanted more than a dozen weapons and finally hit Level 29 when Zhou finally managed to hit Level 25. In the last few days he had been really pushing himself. I suspected he thought I might leave him behind if it took him too long to level up. As it was I was very curious to see what Class options were available to him.

"Warrior, Administrator, Spearman, Seeker, and Blood Lance. Seeker and Blood Lance are Uncommon. The Seeker description indicates only that the search for knowledge, treasure, and power never ends. The Blood Lance looks to be a better Spearman." He was very still as he thought through his options. "The choice is obvious. The Blood Lance is Uncommon so my stats will grow, and the Seeker is too vague for me to understand."

"Well reasoned," I complimented.

He selected his Class and seemed a little disappointed not to get a unique Title like I had been able to. After selecting his Class I spoke with Jayden. I was glad that no one else wanted to risk the road with us. Outside of Amanda and Jayden, the rest were not even close to hitting Level 25.

"If you learn that our country or state still has some sort of government, let us know. And of course, you'll always be welcome back," Jayden offered. "And… thank you. It would have been easy for you to take this place as your own, but you didn't. Even let democracy happen. And you're taking this soulless ghoul with you, man, talk about win-win."

He had said it with an easy grin, indicating no bad blood. Zhou had not been popular with his talk of pushing the kids out of the community as deadweight. None wanted to fight him of course, as he was the second best fighter after me.

In my cultivation efforts I had sensed where richer pastures lay. To the south.

***

"You are strong, but also too compassionate. Westerners like you will not survive long in this world. I will follow your lead, because the strength you have gives me the best chance to survive in this world, but you are also a person of reason. You know I am correct."

We were running, because we both had the Vitality and Endurance to run marathons without strain and I wanted to find more of humanity, my family, or at the very least better hunting grounds along with places of higher Cosmic Energy density.

"Billions have likely died through integration. Humans have always been valuable resources. As an extra set of eyes, an extra set of ears, potential diversity in Class to allow us to face different foes or craft different goods, I could go on with several other reasons, but I feel my point is clear."

"You speak of years and generations, when we may not see those. The Stargazer told us about the Incursions. We must focus on increasing our own power." But then he paused. "I am still surprised. We have not spoken much outside of the practical, but I did not think that you would view this so… dispassionately."

I understood what he meant. He thought I was one of those people who would sacrifice themselves and their well-being for others. That wasn't who I was. I greatly admired truly altruistic people, for they were the kind that could help me and made society a more pleasant place to reside in. But that was not me. Any time I had thrown myself into danger on behalf of a comrade was due to trying to keep alive a potentially valuable meat shield.

"My immediate priorities are the safety of myself, my family, useful comrades, then humanity at large. I'll risk my life to save you, just as you'll risk your life to save mine, because it improves our long-term longevity. It isn't more complicated than that, but of course, I wouldn't say the same to the general public. I speak to you honestly, because I know you will understand."

He laughed. "No, I think it may be different, but nonetheless I applaud your words, if they are true. I suspect most of humanity is dead and gone. The difference between cultivators and mortals is too stark. Without the Tutorial most will be dead. Those that survived may include intact military bases who have the firepower to deal with threats. Unfortunately, guns and tanks do not grant levels, so they too will fall behind. I tested one of Jayden's guns, by the way, the bullet does not pierce the armor you Enchant and does not inflict any significant damage to my calf."

I blinked. "That was bold of you to test."

"You had learned your Minor Healing Skill, and I was curious."

"What is your Endurance?" I asked, still surprised it hadn't accomplished much.

"Thirty, I put extra points in it when I could."

That's lower than mine and I've not bothered to put any points in it. I am a few levels higher, but I think the major difference is the Titles.

It was good to know that the fleshy parts of me were resistant to small arms fire. I didn't want to test getting shot in the eye if I could help it though. We continued our run and made insane time, but other than a few slightly stronger mutated dogs, we hadn't seen much sign of civilization.

Zhou told me a bit more about his life. He was a widower who had never re-married, no children but had several nephews. I sensed a sore spot and had no desire to see my stoic companion open up emotionally. It would be awkward. He held little hope of seeing his nephews again, unless they were fortunate enough to also be cultivators. And even then, the odds seemed slim.

He felt that his own people were ready to make the hard sacrifices necessary post-merger. He expected China to dominate in the Multiverse, assuming they weren't completely and utterly scattered. Given their population and potentially a more unified government, it was possible. While they called themselves communists, in practical terms, they really weren't. While the CCP did still have ultimate power and would interfere far more than I would ever have been comfortable with, it was still a market economy where companies had to produce a profit to survive.

I think his national pride blinds him to more likely results. With communication channels gone, people will break apart based on more local affiliations.

As it was, I wasn't sure if humanity would even be the dominant force. The Tutorial made it clear we were merged with several other planets. The Zhix were just one of potentially many races, and then there were the Incursions. Having grown up in Japan, the Empire, and now America, I was far less patriotic than most. I just wanted to survive and hopefully still be able to retire.

To my delight, as we travelled south I could feel the air become a bit more Cosmic Energy dense. My meditations had proven correct, our exit from the Tutorial had deposited us in a low density area, which made cultivation gains less than ideal. As we continued to travel my sharp eyes spotted potential trouble.

A dozen or so individuals had gathered in the pass between two unfamiliar mountains. The pass was several kilometers wide, but they were astride the center of it. To my surprise they also had two pickup trucks. When they spotted us they gathered their weapons.

"Should we turn back?" Zhou asked.

"No. I see most are armed with melee weapons. Swords, axes, and spears. There's three with bows, so they've also understood the message. Guns don't give Cosmic Energy. If you do spot anyone with them, aim to kill them first if they prove to be hostile."

He followed my lead, both because I had proven myself over the last month, but also because by clearly following my orders he gained the aura bonus that my [Commander of Men] Title granted. As we approached, I kept my own blade hidden beneath my cloak and let Zhou step forward first as we grew nearer.

"We haven't seen many folk come this way. Where are you from?"

The man in front was dressed in somewhat ragged clothing but had actual honest-to-goodness chainmail on. The others around him wore leather, and one had what looked like SCARAB LT body armor.

"From part of Chicago," Zhou said plainly. "We hoped to find more people and perhaps a functioning government."

I saw a couple of people move ahead of us. We were being casually surrounded. I could see Zhou tense.

"Hey, you, take off your hood."

I did as I was asked. The man whistled.

"Well, you never know when trouble comes along, so how about this? You give us your stuff and we'll take the girl, and we'll let you on through. We'll even let you keep your spear. The furries… eh Ishiate village lets humans trade with 'em and even gives you a place to stay if you are willing to work for them. If not, there's Pontiac where some people have holed up. So, what do you say?"

I was watching carefully how they moved. I wasn't impressed. I didn't have the ability to just zero in on someone's level but I could get a decent feel for some of their physical attributes just the way they moved.

"You want to rob us? And do what with me?"

The man grinned. "Just show you a good time. Or… we can get rough."

Zhou looked at me and I gave him a grin, one that jarred him for a moment. I guess he was surprised that I was so ready to kill. After I saw him recover I moved.

My blade cleared my belt as I bounded forward with all the natural agility an absurdly high Dexterity allowed. At the same time, I sent a concentrated Fireball at the largest clump of them. My opponent had not expected me to charge them and he was still fumbling with his axe when I was on him. My blade stabbed through his neck with contemptuous ease. Zhou's first strike also killed one, and then he clashed spear against sword for a few seconds before burying his spear in his foe's chest.

I launched a second Fireball, and killed another. These guys were pathetic! This was like Dacia all over again. These buffoons had tried to waylay me? I laughed as I killed and pulled up short of finishing the last one off as I realized I still wanted more information.

"M-monsters! How are you this strong?"

"What Level are you?" I asked.

The man babbled. "Thirteen."

"Are all of the people around you that weak? Were you cultivators?"

"John was… we weren't. We didn't get the Tutorial."

John was obviously dead. "What level was he?"

"He didn't tell us."

Zhou approached. "He wasn't very good, but he could somewhat keep up with my movement. Maybe he was Level 20. Maybe."

"Were there more of you? Did you do this often?"

He nodded. "Please don't kill me. I'll tell you what I know… hell, with the way you two move, I'll join you instead!"

Fat chance.

"Well?"

"Yeah, there's a camp, we aren't welcome in Pontiac. The mayor there managed to get most of the police to try to get people to follow laws and shit. John said that was bullshit and that the mayor wasn't even a cultivator. There was a fight, but that was before I joined up. Big John got shot up a bit, he survived, but he didn't want to tango anymore."

"So, what were you doing? Just hoping for travelers?"

"Partially. The furries have Nexus Coins and Nexus Crystals and items. We think they were trying to get to the Ishiate village and so we would attack them and take their stuff. Some Humans came by and if they are a small group we'd do the same, if it was larger we'd retreat. John likes his women, so… uh… I didn't approve, but you know…"

I was rather disgusted, but on the plus side we now had more Nexus Coins, Nexus Crystals, and a few knickknacks. Nothing particularly great, but I still had a quest to complete that involved Disenchanting. John even had a Cosmos Sack. I questioned Dave further. They had half a dozen women 'captured' and were being used as John's playthings, his and his buddies.

Revolting. What a violation of free will. Just as bad as Being X.

Zhou looked at me. "We could probably take the camp, but John probably had most of their resources that were worth mentioning. Dave said nothing of it being an Outpost or having a Nexus Node. Will you let your desire to help interfere with survival?"

I quirked an eyebrow.

"Surely you don't think valuable human intel from people who have travelled recently isn't something that I want to get my hands on? Those girls, as unlikely as it may seem, may have even encountered my family."

Zhou laughed. "Sure, that must be it. No, don't give me that look, I told you that I would follow your lead."

***

Zhou Jie had always been an observant man. He had risen the ranks to become an executive for that reason. He felt that he had done well in the Tutorial but knew the likes of Tanya had surpassed him. The American girl was a figure of great contrast. She had many of the same ridiculous notions that made her soft. The idea of deciding things democratically over who would be best to lead was one such absurdity.

It would be easy to dismiss her as a soft woman who had a natural knack for magic. But he had seen that grin. She had enjoyed the slaughter. Perhaps it was her view of the obscenity of rape, but there had been positive glee in that mad grin of hers when she had expressed her intent to fight.

As always, he marveled at the way she killed. It was not just her raw attributes that exceeded his own, but the way she seemed to blend sword and sorcery as one. Incredibly, her Class gave her no boons for such actions, as he knew her to be an Enchanter, a crafter. He was deeply curious as to how she ranked with the rest of humanity, and was eager for the promised global Ladder to appear.

Assaulting the camp was painfully easy. Dave had been a font of information before he was summarily executed. Zhou wondered if she would have the stones to kill someone outside of the heat of battle, and was pleased that she did.

She was a university student before this. Not a soldier. Not a police officer. Not a criminal. Killing comes easy to her, was it the Tutorial? Was that what changed her?

He himself had not been a man of violence, but the decisions he made in his former job had life and death ramifications. Futures had ended at the tap of the keyboard and he had never felt an inkling of shame or horror at it. Killing within the Tutorial had been easy and killing these men had not felt much different.

Kill or be killed.

They killed roughly half and then rescued the six women who had been held captive. Zhou himself was not easily swayed by tears and disheveled appearances caused by the obvious, but he did feel something. What had been done was… undignified.

"We will not hurt you." Zhou had said firmly and Tanya had gone further and used her Minor Healing skill to help one of the girls who had been beaten for attempting to say no. The spell healed the wounds but did not replace the two teeth that had been knocked out. The promised intelligence that Tanya had used as an excuse to go save them was extremely limited.

"Would you prefer to go to Pontiac or go to the Ishiate village? According to Dave, they allow we Humans to live there and it is closer by."

The girls were beyond grateful for being rescued, and after a bit of discussion they wanted to see the Ishiate village first.

Perhaps they fear a city run by men. It is for the better, as we will not have to shepherd low-level individuals that far.

It was to some surprise that night when one of the women asked if he wanted to lay with her.

"I was told that you had been molested by your captors, why would you offer yourself to me?"

"So I can be safe. I saw… I saw what you did with your spear. The bastards deserved it. And I know I can be safe with you."

Zhou grimaced. She was lovely, but he did not like the idea of taking another man's leavings. She hadn't even been bathed yet.

"Such a notion has its appeal, but I will not take your offer within a day of you being set free. Let us go and see the truth of these aliens and then proceed from there."

He had said no for a variety of reasons. The given one was something that Tanya might appreciate, because he knew her sharp senses would have heard that exchange. But beyond that, he did not know if he wished to have a hanger-on who couldn't defend herself. Zhou was in a strange place where he did not have luxury of being around his countrymen. He didn't wish to go it alone and Tanya blazed a trial that provided security. Their journey would have taken four times as long if they had weaker people like this woman tagging along.

No, I will not risk my position under Tanya for a night's solace.

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Chapter 1606 - 6