Day 220, Thryndol — Frostbound Cavern
Ashura stepped carefully over the shattered ice and splintered stalagmites, his black halo pulsing faintly, remnants of Transcendent Wrath still flickering around his blade. The cavern was silent now, the echoes of Thrynos' roars and the clashing of lightning finally fading into a heavy stillness.
He let his eyes scan the cavern, every shadow and crevice, sensing the residual magic left behind by the demi-god. Frost still licked the walls, shimmering like frozen shards of amethyst in the dim light.
"Treasure hunting in the aftermath of chaos… not bad."
With a few careful steps, Ashura's gaze fell upon a mound glimmering faintly beneath the frost. He knelt, brushing the ice aside, and revealed piles of gold coins, dozens of intricately carved rings radiating minor enchantments, and several ancient spellbooks bound with dragonhide.
SYSTEM UPDATE:
[New Loot Detected — Rewards Can Be Copied or Stored]
[Option: Copy Skill / Store Item / Inspect]
Ashura smirked. He knew exactly what he wanted. Selecting Copy Skill, the system hummed as the runes on the spellbooks glowed, scanning and imprinting the magic within his mind.
"So that's how you preserve power… neat."
Each skill from the books had restrictions and prerequisites, but his system was adaptive. Within minutes, he had three new offensive abilities, each tailored for elemental, ranged, and martial combat.
Frostbite Shard — launches concentrated shards of frost energy, can pierce most magical defenses.
Glacial Ward — creates a temporary shield of condensed frost that can absorb and redirect energy.
Froststrike Volley — summons spectral ice claws that attack in rapid succession, following his targets.
SYSTEM NOTIFICATION: Skills successfully copied. Energy cost reduced by 15% due to mastery of Transcendent Wrath.
Ashura continued moving deeper, his boots crunching on frozen soil. More treasures awaited. He found:
Gold Bars: stacked neatly in frost-covered crates, each inscribed with runes from a forgotten age. Mystic Rings: one pulsed with fire, another hummed with wind, all infused with latent elemental energy. Magic Tomes: some with spell techniques long thought lost, others detailing ancient martial arts forms.
With a flick of his hand, Ashura stored items in his system's inventory. He didn't need to carry them physically — the system could materialize them on demand.
"Why settle for learning one thing when you can take it all?"
Ashura crouched in the center of a small alcove, black and purple lightning dancing along his arms, as he tested his newly copied skills. He unleashed Froststrike Volley at a massive boulder. Shards of spectral ice shot forward, tearing the stone into jagged fragments.
Then, combining Glacial Ward with Transcendent Wrath, he reflected a lingering frost spike back into the cavern ceiling, causing a small avalanche — all controlled perfectly.
"The system makes it almost… too easy. Almost."
But Ashura knew better. Nothing worth gaining ever came without effort.
As he gathered the last of the treasure, he let his mind drift for a moment. Thrynos wasn't the only demi-god, and the Frostbound Cavern was merely the first of many tests in this northern continent. Each skill, each piece of loot, each battle — all were steps toward greater strength, mastery over his class, and the path to surpassing even the gods themselves.
SYSTEM NOTIFICATION: Quest Complete — Frostbound Sentinel
[EXP Gained: +65,000]
[Level Up! Ashura Bellet — Level 130]
[Reward: Skill Copy Complete / Materials Added to Inventory]
Ashura's violet lightning flickered brighter for a moment. Transcendent Wrath was evolving subtly, reacting to the infusion of new elemental knowledge.
"Not bad… now, let's see what other trouble the north has in store for me."
With that, Ashura prepared to leave the cavern, system inventory loaded, skills mastered, and his resolve sharper than ever.