Title: The Clash of Cores
Lightning streaked across the darkened sky like veins of wrath. The ground trembled beneath the sheer power of the beast before Liam.
The Lightning Snake—its scales glimmering with crackling blue arcs—coiled itself, eyes burning with killing intent. The air around it hummed and sizzled, distorting with raw energy.
"Fuck…" Liam hissed, already bracing himself.
The snake let out a deafening hiss—"SSSSHHHHHHHHHH!"—and a violent surge of lightning erupted from its fanged maw.
Without hesitation, Liam activated Dash, his body blurring into motion. Sparks danced at his heels as he darted across the scorched earth, leaving a trail of dust and flickering light behind.
The lightning blast hit the ground where he had just been standing.
The explosion was cataclysmic.
A blinding flash consumed everything—earth, stone, and air—erasing it in an instant. The shockwave rolled out like a divine hammer, tearing trees from their roots, burning everything in its path.
Liam wasn't spared.
The side blast of lightning struck him mid-run, sending him spinning through the air like a broken ragdoll. His vision blurred; the smell of ozone and burnt leather filled his nose. He crashed into the ground hard, rolling several meters before slamming against a cracked boulder.
"Gah—dammit!" he groaned, forcing himself up on shaky arms. His clothes were torn, skin burned in streaks where lightning had kissed him.
When the smoke cleared, the landscape looked like a wasteland—a crater where life used to exist.
The Lightning Snake, panting heavily, surveyed the destruction it had wrought. Its scales dimmed, the arcs of lightning fading to faint sparks. Its breathing grew shallow. That blast had taken everything it had.
Liam saw the beast falter. "Tired already?" he muttered with a pained grin, pulling something from his pocket—a talisman, inscribed with glowing red runes that pulsed like a beating heart.
"Guess it's my turn."
The Lightning Snake turned, sensing danger. But before it could move—
BOOM!
A massive fireball appeared before it, roaring like the sun incarnate. The world turned crimson as the talisman dissolved into dust in Liam's hand.
"Burn," Liam whispered.
The fireball slammed into the Lightning Snake, engulfing it completely. Its screech was drowned out by the roar of the explosion. Flames consumed the area, lighting up the forest like a second dawn.
When the fire died down, there was nothing left but ashes and the faint scent of ozone.
Liam stood there, panting. His arm trembled as he looked at the blackened remains of the beast.
"I… never thought talismans were this powerful," he muttered. "And this expensive…"
He opened the system shop, the holographic screen glowing faintly before him:
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[ Talisman Section ]
[ Fireball Talisman ] — Able to summon a fireball — 20 SP
[ Lightning Talisman ] — Able to summon lightning — 25 SP
[ Greater Fireball Talisman ] — Summons a greater fireball — 40 SP
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"Forty soul points…" Liam sighed, looking at the ashes of his enemy. "Guess that was forty points well spent."
He bent down, brushing aside burnt soil until he found what he was looking for—the Lightning Snake's mana core.
It pulsed with an eerie purple light, the same hue as storm clouds before a thunderstrike.
"Purple, huh? That's new." Liam turned it over in his hand, feeling the energy ripple through his skin. It was wild, untamed… and dangerous.
"Well," he said with a smirk, "only one way to find out what it does."
Without hesitation, he swallowed it.
The moment it touched his tongue, energy exploded through his body.
"Ghhhhh—ah!" Liam's veins lit up like lightning circuits, purple energy surging under his skin. He staggered back, eyes wide, chest heaving.
The system's voice echoed in his mind:
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[ You have leveled up! ]
[ Your mana core is evolving… ]
---
His legs gave out, the rush of mana too much to handle. He collapsed onto the ground, his vision blurring as exhaustion crashed over him like a wave.
"shit…" he murmured weakly.
Then, darkness swallowed him whole.
---
When Liam opened his eyes again, he was standing in a boundless void. Purple clouds swirled around him like smoke, and beneath his feet was an endless reflection of light, as if he stood upon liquid glass.
"Right…" he muttered, stretching his arms. "Guess I should check what's happening with my core."
He closed his eyes and focused—and saw it.
Inside his chest, a glowing orb pulsed rhythmically, like a heart made of mana. It was larger now—no, it was growing right before his eyes.
Then, the system's voice echoed again.
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[ Host's core has different affinities detected. ]
[ System will pick the higher affinity. ]
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"Different affinities?" Liam frowned. "Wait, you mean—"
Before he could finish, his core began to split into two lights.
One side glowed purple, crackling with streaks of lightning. The other burned red, flaring like molten lava.
The two colors began to swirl, circling each other violently.
"Oh, this can't be good…" Liam said, stepping back instinctively.
The two forces collided.
BOOM!
A shockwave erupted inside the Dream Realm, sending ripples through the reflective floor. Lightning and fire danced around him like raging spirits, colliding, merging, tearing apart again.
"System! What the hell is happening?!" he yelled.
---
[ Conflict detected between Lightning Affinity and Fire Affinity. ]
[ System recalibrating… ]
---
Liam gritted his teeth. "Recalibrate faster!"
The two forces refused to yield. The purple lightning lashed out, burning holes in the void, while red flames surged up like dragons, devouring everything in their path.
Then, from the chaos, something began to happen
A new coexistence, lightening stayed in one side and fire in the other
The two opposing forces coexisted , twisting together .
It pulsed once. Twice. Then he felt something new inside of him.
Liam stared in awe at his new mana core. "Damn… that's beautiful."
---
[ Core evolution complete. ]
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The system chimed again.
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[ Warning: Core evolution complete. Body synchronization required upon awakening. ]
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"Body synchronization…? Yeah, that sounds painful.