Amid the jostling crowds of shoppers and the noise of carts, a plump man with a pleasant face stopped, staring into one of the shops specializing in selling Phantoms.
After a faint sigh, he turned and walked back to his companions, who'd been waiting for him on the side of the road with anticipation. When he reached them, one of them, a man with a long mustache, a thin beard, and a somewhat stout build, asked:
"Is the Phantom still there, Luo?"
Luo, the plump man, answered:
"Yes, Shun De, the Fat Reservoir Phantom is still there, but we still haven't gathered the required amount, and without it, we won't be able to make it through the cave. Did Cha Ji bring anything worth selling?"
Cha Ji answered:
"I only found ordinary herbs, and they didn't bring in much. We're still short about a thousand Crystal Notes."
Crystal Notes worked something like paper currency; a person would deposit real crystals with the Global Trade Institution and receive paper notes of equal value in return. This way, if someone wanted to exchange the Crystal Notes back for real crystals, they could do so easily.
This system had made life in the cities much easier, contributed to flourishing trade, and spared people the burden of carrying heavy crystals around with them everywhere.
The group was made up of just three people, and they carried large bags with them, visibly serious about this new Phantom, Luo especially; this Phantom would multiply his strength several times over.
Luo relied on Phantoms that increased body fat mass, for both offensive and defensive purposes. If he added the Fat Reservoir Phantom to his collection, he'd gain the fundamental base needed to build his own unique combat Patterns.
The Fat Reservoir Phantom turned the entire body into a storage vessel for Aether energy, which meant Luo would have enough energy to build any Pattern he wanted without worrying about running out.
Most people couldn't use Patterns efficiently because of how much energy they consumed, since most trainees focused on raising their rank while neglecting to train the quality of their Aether. This was exactly what left most trainees incapable of surviving long attrition battles.
Of course, this mostly happened among small organizations and wandering freelancers. Large organizations and factions, generally speaking, paid close attention to Aether quality, and their members trained regularly to improve their Aether energy and raise their rank in a balanced way, because most fights between people of the same rank came down to attrition.
After all, what good was a high rank if you couldn't land more than a single strike before your strength gave out, letting even a child defeat you at that point?
For this reason, some had started searching for alternatives to increase the amount of energy stored in their bodies, alternatives that weren't without their side effects.
...
"Let's go fight a few beasts. I can barely imagine how strong I'll be once I get this Phantom. And don't worry, after we explore that cave, I expect we'll have more than enough money to buy any Phantom we need, or we might even stumble onto a few useful ones along the way."
The plump Luo said, after a moment of thought. Shun De answered him with a carefree laugh:
"Hahaha! Even if we don't find anything, it doesn't matter, as long as we're adding new strength to you, everyone benefits too."
After spending a long time together, real trust and genuine friendship had formed between them. They started making their way out of the great city, which was imposing in its infrastructure, roads, and buildings; everything in it was perfectly organized, and wherever you looked, you'd find moving carts weaving through the streets.
Cha Ji said:
"We might even buy a cart too, heheh. I can't wait to try one made by the Lin clan!"
Luo smiled, imagining a bright future ahead, though he knew full well that danger was close at hand, which was exactly why they were trying so hard to prepare properly.
Their determination to buy this Phantom was proof enough of how important the matter was; normally, three people wouldn't pour their money into boosting just one person's strength, unless that strength was going to benefit all of them in return.
...
In the forest, Luo and his two companions moved around searching for anything of value, or a beast weaker than them, anything that would bring them closer to their goal.
They dragged along a live deer that Shun De had caught with one of his Phantoms. Selling it alive would bring in more money. The forest had a variety of trees, some of them strange; nothing grew around them, no grass or other trees within a hundred meters, which left the forest exposed in those spots.
Luo wished he could cut those trees down, but they were protected by powerful individuals, and they could barely even hunt in that area, having to pay twenty percent of the value of anything they caught.
They knew exactly where they were headed; nearby was a river home to a giant beaver, one a certain merchant wanted badly enough to offer a very tempting price.
Cha Ji said, yawning:
"Do you have a Pattern ready, or are you going to invent one from scratch? I feel like that'd take forever."
Luo answered calmly:
"I've got one... actually, I can only use it once per fight, but I always keep it as a trump card. Thank god I've never had to reach that point, but I've still been training on it constantly. I think with this new Phantom, I'll be able to use it a few times, which could help enormously in a real fight, heheh."
Luo bragged in front of his two companions, and Shun De winked at him and said:
"I think it's about time we actually test it in a real fight. Use it at the start, and leave the rest to us."
Luo nodded with determination, resolved to test his Pattern against the giant beaver.
When they reached the river, they found something strange.
A hawk, imposing in appearance, with two blue eyes, stood on top of the beaver's head. The beaver was frozen in place, its limbs trembling in a desperate, useless attempt to move.
With complete dignity and authority, the hawk pecked at the beaver's neck, tearing off a large chunk, but without killing it. The beaver was then able to move again, letting out a deafening scream that startled animals as far as a kilometer away.
The beaver tried to flee toward the three of them, and Shun De found a real opportunity. He activated his Phantom to pin down the injured beaver, and even though his technique was weaker than the hawk's, he could hold it in place for a few seconds, enough for Cha Ji to catch it or for Luo to finish it off.
But Luo put his hand on Shun De's shoulder and said:
"Don't activate it. Are you trying to steal prey from that beast? That hawk is at least Level Three. Even if I used my Pattern, it'd barely affect it. I don't think it's a good idea to provoke it. Let's think of a way out of here."
After a brief shuffle, the three of them managed to avoid the beaver and hide.
The hawk didn't move, but a feather detached from it and shot toward the beaver, killing it on the spot. An explosion followed, mangling its corpse. The blast's aftershock even hit the three of them, but the skin on Luo's arm stretched out like a curtain, shielding them from the damage.
Once the dust settled and cleared, the hawk landed in front of the corpse.
Suddenly, a few Phantoms burst out of the beaver's body, all of them damaged, except for one; the only one that didn't enter the bird's body, instead fleeing toward the three of them, specifically toward Luo.
Luo caught it in an involuntary reflex, but regretted it instantly the moment he saw the hawk's imposing gaze. He tried to let the Phantom go, but it was already too late; he froze in place, unable to move.
Panicking, Shun De and Cha Ji ran, but when they noticed Luo hadn't moved, they stopped and came back, calling out to him:
"What are you doing? Drop it and come on!"
"....."
Luo couldn't answer.
And the biggest shock of all was that the Phantom he'd caught was a Fat Reservoir Phantom too.
The hawk arrived with regal, imposing movements, and the two others stood in front of Luo. Shun De and Cha Ji had no idea what had happened to him, but they weren't about to leave their companion behind alone.
The hawk's e
yes glowed even brighter, and suddenly, the two of them felt themselves unable to move either.
"Oh, no...?"