"Level one is the base of awakened beings," Cal said, pointing his hands to the cultivator spinning in the air. "They have a soul, but it is not formed. At level two, he has formed a foundation. Level three, he gains a second foundation. At four, they gain another foundation, and their soul has completely formed. Now, they can start filling the soul with mana. Level five is when mana and soul have been completely attuned, and a new layer can start forming..."

I was still reeling from the discovery of my possible power level. Seeing the numbers made the thoughts I had about my path more validating. Cal was explaining his new system and how he divided each stage of progression into five levels. I somewhat listened, getting the gist of what he was saying.

Currently, I was a disciple-rank templar. To become a deacon, I needed five more levels. Three would be cultivating body essence, and two levels would be absorbing mana. Once I became a deacon, I had a chance to reforge my physical essence. After that, I'd repeat the same leveling process until I reached the rank of bishop, cardinal, and apostle. The only difference was that I'd be cultivating my spirit for the last fifteen levels.

Oddly enough, the bastardized cultivation system made a lot more sense. More than that, it mapped my path in a more comprehensible manner. It might seem insignificant, but if I knew anything about maps, it was that the more understandable it was, the better.

My path forward was certain and clear. My goals were within reach. I didn't tell Cal, but I planned to take another run at saving my friends after I refined my body. That was just a few training sessions away. Five levels.

"Thanks, Cal," I said after the Flayen wrapped up his explanation. "This Calypso system is amazing. Tell the other Cal as well."

"Yeah, about that… Your split is a bit wrapped up in all of this. He might not be making an appearance anymore."

"Did you kill him?"

"A mere sacrifice to the mind gods," Cal said jokingly.

"Worth."

"I will let him know. By the way, would you like to see something cool?"

"There's more?" I asked.

"Sorta… Just say stats."

"Stats?" Information about myself presented itself in an organized manner.

Kip Mapper | Race: Islander Orc

Level: 25

Power: 28

Class: Ranger

Soul: Water | Rank: Templar

Layers: 5 | Disciple

Body: —

Agility: 3

Endurance: 1

Strength: 2

Mind: Platinum

Knowledge: 3

Survival: 3

Wisdom: 3

Spirit: —

Perception: —

Refinement: —

Talent: —

Mana Skills: 4

Water Domain

Water Sense/Aura

Summon/Manipulation

Water

Razors

Anchor

Mend

Ice

Weapons

Domes

Clones

Familiars

Fog

Shroud

Cloak

Other:

Time loop

Amount: 167

Duration: 4 Months

Mind Palace

Mental Defense

Conjuration

Time Dilation: 3x

Bow

Sword

Tracking

Survival

Mapping

Cooking

Curse

Stolen novel; please report.

Memory Wiper

2.79%

"Wow," I said, analyzing my stats. "What a succinct summary of my soul."

"I know." Cal nodded. "Calypso can't stop looking at it. Your split is a bit obsessive, maybe a little vain. He keeps tinkering with it, hoping to get better results. He really wants to improve the skills section and is working hard on that. I think he is even interacting with the other splits. That being said, I would like to keep working on the system if that is alright with you?"

"Sounds great. I'm just gonna do some shopping, maybe a bit of fighting, then try not to die under a pile of dirt."

"Good luck," Cal said as he stepped out of vision.

I looked over my stats for a few more minutes, then paid a visit to my splits. Fender and Culter were both working on the body essence issue. They were trying to find ways to improve the refreshing of my essence without dying. Cutter and Bower were both doing their own thing, and Tack ran through simulations of the recent battle with Purity. With the real-life experience and Tack's trials, I didn't think I'd ever lose a fight to the sage or her squad again. I was quickly outpacing them.

Still, it would be nice to add more advantages to the fight… which was sort of the reason I was out here. I had a fortune and wanted to spend it. It was like Cal was saying… there's more than one way on the path to power.

Shopping got a bit messy. It started out fine. I left Landfall, teleporting to a major city on the west side of Agoria. There were several large cities with plenty of shopping options, including Sunset City.

Sunset City wasn't a city on the west coast of Agoria. Like Landfall, it was primarily a strategic military base. The most significant difference was that Landfall faced dangers from raiders and spirit beasts. Sunset's biggest problem was that it was filled with tourists.

The beach city was nestled between two other major port cities on the west side, both of which provided more than enough security to keep the westside shores safe. It helped that there were no threats of raiders from the Horde. That left the occasional spirit beast, which wasn't much of a threat, if at all. If the adventurers or fishing crews weren't taking care of them, soldiers from the other ports would. Worst came to worst, Sunset would have to restrict beach access for a day at most.

Safety, sandy beaches, beautiful water, and waves drew people in from all over the world. All sorts of tournaments were held. More people came. Shops were established. Even more people came. It didn't take long for the military port town to turn into a bustling city.

I had vacationed here a couple of times with Lana. She shared my love of oceans, having grown up on the chilly shores of Lumin. The elf boasted that her love of water ran deeper since she had to endure the cold to enjoy it. I argued the water was only cold because she wasn't open to it and, therefore, didn't quite love it as much as I did.

On our last trip here, we did our best to ignore the crowds while staying in a private inn and playing on the farther side of the shore. Eventually, we grew tired of the trek to and from the beach, so we set up a small camp. We hunted, explored, and foraged for food. At night, we feasted by a bonfire. She sang. Though I couldn't remember the song. We danced… at least, I thought we did. Then we did it all over again the next day.

I didn't expect a warm embrace when I entered the town. Sure, the thought of being here filled me with warmth… and a bit of sadness. The memories were golden, and the air was almost as welcoming as home. Warm. Abundant… So maybe I was wanting a bit of an embrace. Which wasn't what the Jesters were offering.

I had just left the library when I noticed I was being followed. Part of me thought the streets of Sunset City were too packed for a brawl like the one in Landfall. The other part of me didn't care. I slowed my steps until I was at a complete stop in the middle of the street. My blatant disregard for the flow of foot traffic earned me bumps and curses. I paid them little mind. Eventually, people gave my odd behavior space. Space that was quickly filled by a tall, slender elf in high-tier armor.

Sage, Level: 50, Power: ~20.

The sage gave me a cool, confident smile. "It seems our reports on you might be outdated." His voice was higher than I expected it to be. "How did you get through Serene's watch?" The crowd dispersed, leaving the street entirely empty. Few lingered to watch the confrontation. Most moved on. Some of the lingering watchers stepped forward. They watched the sage carefully, who gave them a slight nod. His eyes remained on me with a concentrated focus.

I returned the gaze of the sage with my own smooth glare. The tension was palpable and was only tightening as the Jesters closed the space around me. There were seven of them in total. One sage and six templars. The ranks closely matched that of Purity's squad. Maybe they were a few power levels higher. Just as my mind's eye had estimated the rank and level of the sage, it did the same for the rest of the squad.

Disciple, Level: 25, Power: ~8.2

Apostle, Level: 45, Power: ~10.3

Cardinal, Level: 40, Power: ~9.2

Cardinal, Level: 40, Power: ~9.3

Cardinal, Level: 40, Power: ~9.1

Bishop, Level: 35, Power: ~8.7

"I don't know who Serene is," I said, trading glances with my new friends. "I just came here to shop and for some sun." I figured it didn't matter what I said, so I said what I wanted. The Jesters looked determined to fight no matter what. Fortunately, I didn't sense the presence of a sleeper. It looked like we were destined for a classic sunset brawl.

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