With Black Whirlwind's explanation, Luke finally got a rough idea of what Endspace actually was.
First of all, the place they were currently in was the Endvine, a colossal vine that climbed upward through the void. Its branches divided the space into ten heavenly tiers.
Or rather, nine tiers. The lowest level was the commercial district, usually called the Bottom Tier by Explorers. They were currently on the First Tier, where all first-rank Explorers lived.
The commercial district on the Bottom Tier was also home to a special kind of Explorer known as Supporters. Luke figured that was probably what Endspace had meant by a "downgraded contract."
From Black Whirlwind, Luke learned that not every Explorer faced trial worlds with conditions as harsh as his. Some Explorers were not executed for failing their missions. They returned alive, but because they had failed their trials, they were demoted to Supporters and assigned to all kinds of production work within Endspace.
Since those people were not suited for combat, Endspace would not force them into mission worlds. After all, teleportation consumed spacetime power. Compared to Explorers, who carried out missions more frequently, Supporters only entered mission worlds two or three times a year, and their assignments were much easier—collecting special materials and the like.
They were a bit like crafting-class players in games. Their road to becoming stronger might have been cut off, but if they were good at production, they could still make a fortune.
Once he had learned where all of Endspace's facilities were located, Luke parted ways with Black Whirlwind. Though he had not signed any contract with the man, he still paid the agreed fifty Endspace Coins.
In Luke's view, fifty Endspace Coins was not expensive for quickly acquiring information someone else had already organized. It saved him a great deal of time.
According to Endspace, Pioneers normally remained in the space for one month. Luke had already planned out what he would do next.
His first destination was the Enhancement Hall. The so-called enhancement facility was nothing like the modern building he had imagined. Smaller branches extended from the gigantic vine, and at the end of each branch bloomed an enormous carnivorous flower. Viscous slime slowly dripped from the edges of some of those flowers.
Luke watched Explorers pinch their noses and let the carnivorous flowers swallow them one by one. A while later, they would be spat back out. Though they emerged covered in sticky slime, every one of them looked refreshed and invigorated. That told Luke he had come to the right place.
Still, Endspace's method of enhancement was disgustingly gross.
Once he confirmed it was the right place, Luke did not hesitate. He climbed straight into the maw of a carnivorous flower and was instantly enveloped by dense liquid.
It was different from what he had expected. Soaking in the liquid did not make him feel suffocated, nor did it feel sticky and revolting. Instead, it was cool and refreshing.
Once he settled down inside the flower, a floating menu appeared before his eyes. He could control it with his thoughts.
[Pioneer No. 008, you have 5 free attribute points. Please choose how to allocate them.]
Luke had already decided on the way over. He immediately allocated two points to Constitution, two to Strength, and one to Agility.
His Spirit attribute was naturally high, and the Spiritual Might training method he had obtained in the world of Bleach could also improve his Spirit effectively. For now, Spirit was the attribute that needed points the least.
As for Charm, Luke had yet to see any use for it. Being handsome would not stop an enemy from cutting him down. And if it was about influencing his interactions with natives, Luke figured adding points to Strength worked just as well. Physical communication would do the job.
[Enhancement will now begin. There will be a certain degree of pain during the process. Pioneer, please prepare yourself.]
Not long after the notification sounded, Luke felt pain as though his muscles were being ripped apart. But he had weathered plenty of storms. This little pain was nothing—nowhere near as painful as being cut down by Instructor Unohana.
After a little over an hour, the carnivorous flower spat Luke out. Ignoring the slime covering his body, he eagerly checked his new attributes.
[Pioneer No. 008, your base attributes are as follows (title included):]
Constitution: 20 (+2)
Strength: 20 (+2 +1)
Agility: 19 (+1)
Spirit: 24
Charm: 6
Luck: 1
Luke had not put two points into Agility because Prison Demon, once released in Shikai, could improve his dynamic reflexes and compensate for that weakness.
He had also learned from Black Whirlwind that an Explorer's private room could be modified far more extensively than he had imagined. He could turn his room into a training ground and continue training there, pushing his stats even higher.
After cleaning himself up, Luke decided to browse the market and see whether there was any equipment—or perhaps a cultivation manual—that suited his current needs.
If he had to choose, Luke was more interested in cultivation manuals. Martial arts had declined in the world of his previous life, and much had been lost. He wanted to see a manual that could cultivate internal energy, or perhaps a powerful body-tempering technique.
Before long, he arrived at the trading market for first-rank Explorers. Perhaps for ease of management, Endspace's markets were divided by tier rather than being located in the Bottom Tier's commercial district.
On the Endvine, aside from the Bottom Tier commercial district, Explorers could only move within the authority range of their Explorer Marks. Put simply, first-rank Explorers could only remain on the First Tier and could not go up to the Second Tier.
Luke could go up, however. His Pioneer Mark granted him one extra rank of authority, which meant that as long as he had the money, he could visit the second-rank Explorers' market and purchase some better things in advance.
Of course, Endspace did not completely cut off low-rank Explorers from obtaining high-rank items. As long as they had enough money, they could have Supporters in the commercial district custom-make equipment for them. The price of custom orders was generally much higher, though.
The items in the trading market were all finished products Explorers had acquired in mission worlds. Since they were of little use to their owners, they were put up for trade in exchange for Endspace Coins, which could then be converted into effective combat power.
After making a circuit around the market, Luke gained a general understanding of Endspace's prices.
Taking equipment as an example, depending on the rating, a Fine-quality main weapon generally cost between 1,000 and 3,000 Endspace Coins, while a Rare-quality main weapon cost roughly 3,000 to 10,000.
So he had been right not to choose the treasure chest. Its upper limit was only around ten thousand Endspace Coins anyway.
As for Small Inheritance Crystals, he had not seen any for sale yet. When he asked a stall owner about them, the man looked at him as if he were an idiot. Luke guessed that ordinary Explorers would not be willing to sell such things, leaving them in a state where there was a price but no market.
"How much for this?"
Luke stopped at a stall. He had his eye on a "cultivation manual."
The quotation marks were necessary because this manual differed somewhat from what he normally thought of as a cultivation method. Still, he figured it could be classified as a body-tempering technique.
[Armament Haki Training Manual]
Grade: Rare
Category: Cultivation Skill
Learning Requirements: Constitution 15, Strength 15, Spirit 20
Details: An ability from the derivative world One Piece. It is a latent power possessed by all humans, an inborn ability. When invisible sensations such as presence, killing intent, and fighting spirit are controlled, one's will can become a weapon. People call this powerful force Haki.
This item is a training method for Armament Haki. After being used in Endspace, it allows an Explorer to directly learn Armament Haki at Level 1 to Level 3, depending on the Explorer's aptitude.
Rating: 100+
Evaluation: Dodging? Not a chance. Just charge in and smash them.
Looking at Endspace's evaluation, Luke now seriously suspected that the evaluations displayed on items were different for every person who viewed them.
He knew of the manga One Piece as well, but because his master had only collected a few incomplete volumes, he did not know the full story. He could catch up on it in Endspace later. After all, he might enter the world of One Piece someday.
He did know something about the Haki system and believed it was a power system with a respectable ceiling and considerable growth potential.
Though this item was only Rare grade, that was probably because it could only teach an Explorer the ability, rather than directly granting them a high starting level of Haki.
And if one entered the world of One Piece, Haki was not some difficult training technique to obtain. It was a common ability in the New World. But common did not mean it had a low ceiling. What mattered was the person using it.
Comments (0)
Please log in to leave a comment. Login or Register