The Midgaard forest was a damp, cold envelope of shadows and noise—a chaotic system that offended Ares's need for order.
He stood by the remains of the crude bandit attack, the host body, Kael, still slick with congealed blood. The 4.3% survival probability was a clear and unacceptable indicator of immediate failure. Ares did not have the luxury of grieving for his lost Tiers; survival was the prerequisite for all future calculations.
"Chronos, prioritize wound closure and infection mitigation. Use local flora if necessary. Initiate anatomical correction and power accumulation simultaneously."
CHRONOS SYSTEM: Immediate Assessment: Host vessel lacks sufficient metabolic energy for rapid trauma resolution. Correction Proposal: Implementation of the Tier 0 Foundation Technique is required before physical recovery can commence. Energy must be created. Environmental Analysis: Local energy matrix is primitive. Mana flows are sluggish and inefficiently absorbed by native species. Local atmosphere contains 0.00001% excess thermal energy suitable for conversion.
Ares ignored the weakness in his legs and the throbbing wound on the back of his skull. He was a magus of absolute truth; he knew the fastest path back to power was not through local mysticism, but through the universal laws of thermodynamics, kinetics, and gravity that bound even this pitiful world.
He settled against the root of a massive, gnarled oak, closing the host's brown eyes.
"Execute custom Tier 0 Foundation Technique. Designate the compression point as the former soul core. Ignore local 'cultivation meridians'; they are inefficient bottlenecks."
The Tier 0 Foundation Technique was not magic—it was physics weaponized. Instead of attempting to absorb the large, unpredictable mana particles of Midgaard (the local 'Cultivation System'), the Chronos AI utilized the host's latent knowledge of Primordial Vacuum Energy principles. It began calculating the gravitational and thermal flux of the immediate forest area.
The goal was to draw in the smallest, most fundamental energy signatures—residual heat escaping the damp earth, the infinitesimal kinetic energy of falling leaves, the molecular friction of the air—and compress them into a perfect, uniform Foundation Seed.
Where a local novice would take weeks of painful meditation to gather a single wisp of disorganized Mana, Ares's mind, guided by Chronos, was running trillions of micro-calculations per second. He was treating the universe as an efficient energy harvesting grid.
Hours passed. The cold seeped into Kael's thin porter clothing, threatening hypothermia. Yet, Ares remained immobile, his mind a hyper-efficient machine of extraction and conversion.
CHRONOS SYSTEM: Energy Accumulation Rate: 1,200% greater than statistically verified Tier 0 Midgaardian techniques. Status: Foundation Seed integrity: 10%. Host vessel critical temperature approaching threshold. External threat detected.
Ares opened his eyes. He felt nothing from the host body, but Chronos had signaled a high-probability danger: three massive, shaggy wolves, their eyes glowing red in the dark, had tracked the scent of Kael's blood. They surrounded the oak, low growls rumbling in their chests.
A local weakling would panic, but panic was a chaotic waste of energy.
"Chronos, calculate attack vectors. Prioritize neutralization with minimum kinetic expenditure. Maintain Foundation Technique."
CHRONOS SYSTEM: Target Analysis: Wolf 1: Frontal approach, mass 45kg, velocity 8.1m/s. Wolf 2: Flank approach, mass 49kg, velocity 7.9m/s. Wolf 3: Rear approach, mass 52kg, velocity 8.5m/s. Optimal Defense: Utilize high-probability environmental variables.
The largest wolf lunged first.
Ares did not meet the attack with strength. He simply used the 0-Tier force of his right leg to snap off the dead branch resting beside the tree. The motion was so precise, so flawlessly calculated, that the sound of the snap, combined with the motion, caused the first wolf to instinctively flinch and veer slightly left. This miniscule deviation caused its trajectory to intersect with a perfectly placed patch of slick, unseen moss.
The wolf's paws slipped. Instead of biting Ares's throat, its momentum carried it headfirst into the base of the oak, striking the exposed root with crushing force. A sickening crack echoed in the night. It collapsed, neutralized.
The other two wolves paused, their primitive predator instincts confused by the chaotic turn of events.
Ares did not move. He was still meditating, still gathering the infinitesimal energy of the forest. The elimination had cost him zero energy and zero risk, relying entirely on the Omniscient ability of Chronos to turn a hostile environment against itself.
Seeing the largest pack member eliminated by seemingly invisible force, the remaining two predators broke formation and retreated into the darkness, their statistical probability of success having plummeted.
CHRONOS SYSTEM: Local Threat Status: Neutralized. Foundation Seed Integrity: 15%. Correction: Host vessel requires protein for metabolic energy. Wolf 1 remains an abundant local resource. Probability of immediate host survival updated to 55.02%.
Ares opened his eyes, now gleaming with a fierce, cold resolve. His face remained expressionless as he looked at the dead wolf. He was not disgusted by the necessity; he was only grateful for the resource.
I survived the annihilation of perfection, Ares reflected, pushing himself up. A pack of wolves is irrelevant. Tier 0 is merely a coordinate. I am the Apex. I will not stop until the capacity of the universe is no longer an obstacle.
He began the cold, calculated process of harvesting the resource, the infinitesimal energy of the forest continuing to flow into his core, one perfect calculation at a time.