All five stone tablets were fully displayed.
The quiet chamber was so still that even breathing felt like an intrusion.
Del sat there, unmoving.
He read through all five nodes from beginning to end, then again from end to beginning.
x520%. x380%. x460%. x210%. x290%.
Every number was like a lump of burning coal — scalding to hold, scalding to let go.
He drew a slow breath and worked to keep his thoughts cold.
"Chip, calculate the full parse time for all five nodes. Not preparation time — full parse time."
Calculating——
Three seconds of silence.
Then the chip's notification tone sounded. Its tone was, as always, entirely flat. But this time, the numbers it displayed made the air in the chamber freeze for just a moment.
[Full Parse Time Assessment]
· Nine-Merit Sect · Heaven-Splitting Palm: estimated full parse time — 23,000 years.
· Taixu Sect · Void-Extreme Sword Intent: estimated full parse time — 17,600 years.
· Blood Abyss Cult · Soul-Devouring Blood Sea Art: estimated full parse time — 31,000 years.
· Star Spirit Ancient Pact · Source Force Resonance: estimated full parse time — 12,400 years.
· Void Forger · Nameless Fragment: estimated full parse time — 18,900 years.
Note: The above times are calculated based on the host's current energy conversion efficiency. If energy reserves increase substantially, parse speed will increase proportionally.
Del stared at that column of numbers for a full ten-odd seconds without speaking.
Twenty-three thousand years.
Thirty-one thousand years.
He slowly closed his eyes. Then slowly opened them again. Confirming he had not misread.
"......"
"Chip," he said, his voice unnervingly even. "The unit you just gave — that was years?"
Yes. Earth standard years.
"Not days. Not months. Years."
Yes.
"Twenty-three thousand years. Thirty-one thousand years." He murmured the numbers quietly, as though confirming something absurd. "How many years can I live — as I am now?"
Based on the host's current level of Black Buddha Core integration, the theoretical lifespan ceiling is approximately——
"Enough. Don't bother." Del raised a hand and cut it off.
He simply sat there. The blue mineral light of the chamber cast his profile in a cool shade. There was something in his expression — impossible to name as regret or resignation — that settled finally into silence.
The five stone tablets floated quietly in his field of vision. Every one blazing. Every one unreachable.
He wanted them.
That much was beyond question. Something deep in his bones pulled toward those five numbers. It was like standing outside a door, seeing the light through the crack, then discovering the lock wouldn't rust enough to pry open for ten thousand years.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
After a long moment, he exhaled and slowly shut those five tablets away in his mind.
"Chip." He spoke again, tone returning to its usual calm. "Archive and seal all five nodes. Tag them as 'long-term objectives.' Do not initiate parsing."
Sealed.
"Then," he paused, "show me what I can actually use right now."
...The host's meaning?
"I am currently at the peak of Grand Knight," he said, direct, no concealment. "The Empire is not going to give me twenty thousand years. Find me nodes with parse times within a few dozen days — ones that can push me one step beyond the Grand Knight peak. I don't need them to be extraordinary. I need them to be sufficient."
Remodeling——
Filter criteria: parse time 60 days or less; combat power increase anchored to the range between Grand Knight peak and initial Grandmaster tier.
Filtering complete. Three usable minor evolution nodes detected, all naturally unlocked derivative paths following the completion of the Black Buddha Core's third stage.
[Usable Node One: Gravity Refinement · Sinking Scale]
Origin: Natural derivative of the Black Buddha Core's third-stage Extinction Gravity. No external system involved.
Principle: The current Extinction Gravity operates on the physical layer, with limited effect against energy-shield defenses. The Sinking Scale node lowers the gravity field's layer of effect, allowing it to act directly upon the opponent's energy meridian structure rather than merely their body. Simply put: the old gravity crushed stone. After Sinking Scale, it crushes the pipes.
Black Buddha Core Fusion Trait: The gravity within the field simultaneously compresses the speed of energy flow within the opponent's body — the speed of casting techniques and channeling power decreases by approximately 35% inside the domain.
Current Parse Progress: 0%
Estimated Full Parse Time: approximately 19 days
Combat Power Increase: Grand Knight peak baseline +18%; effect doubled against energy-type opponents.
Side Effects: None.
[Usable Node Two: Siphon Extension · Dark Current]
Origin: Natural extension of the Siphon Seed's third-stage Light-Shadow Devour effect.
Principle: The current Siphon Seed requires contact or extremely close range to initiate absorption. The Dark Current node extends the siphon radius outward. Within the range of Del's gravity domain, every unit of energy an opponent expends on a technique allows Del to passively intercept 8% of it and convert it into his own Black Sand Vigor. The larger the domain, the more stable the passive recovery.
Black Buddha Core Fusion Trait: If the Sinking Scale node is simultaneously active, while gravity compresses the opponent's channeling speed, Dark Current can simultaneously intercept the energy that overflows from compression — forming a cycle of "the more pressure, the more replenishment."
Current Parse Progress: 0%
Estimated Full Parse Time: approximately 26 days
Combat Power Increase: Grand Knight peak baseline +14%; combined effect with Sinking Scale node approximately +35%.
Side Effects: None.
[Usable Node Three: Core Reinforcement · Black Steel Bone]
Origin: A staged crystallization of the Black Buddha Core's continuous permeation of the host's physical body.
Principle: After the Black Buddha Core's third stage completes, its extinction attribute begins permeating the host's skeletal structure, raising bone density and toughness to near-metallic levels while simultaneously reinforcing neural reaction speed. This is not an external technique — it is the natural process by which the Black Buddha Core reshapes the host's body. Stable. No backlash. No ceiling. Only slow.
Black Buddha Core Fusion Trait: The body reinforcement resonates with the gravity domain — when the host moves within their own domain, the density of the Black Steel Bones is further compressed by the gravity field, adding an extra 20% to explosive force within the domain.
Current Parse Progress: 0%
Estimated Full Parse Time: approximately 34 days
Combat Power Increase: Grand Knight peak baseline +22%; physical defense simultaneously reinforced, physical damage reduction additionally increased by 15%.
Side Effects: None.
Integrated Recommendation: If all three nodes are parsed simultaneously, total time is approximately 34 days (determined by the longest item; all three can proceed in parallel). Upon full activation, combined combat power increase will be approximately Grand Knight peak baseline +55% to +60%, sufficient to stably cross the threshold into initial Grandmaster tier.
Del finished reading the three nodes and was quiet for a moment.
No ten-thousand years. No x520%.
Only +18%. +14%. +22%.
He lowered his head and stared at the white mark on the back of his hand — the one left by the mineral edge, gone within a second. He considered. Then spoke.
"Chip, begin simultaneous parsing of all three nodes. Now."
Confirmed.
[Gravity Refinement · Sinking Scale] Parse Progress: 0.1%
[Siphon Extension · Dark Current] Parse Progress: 0.1%
[Core Reinforcement · Black Steel Bone] Parse Progress: 0.1%
Estimated completion of all: approximately 34 days.
Del stood. In the moment of rising, the five sealed tablets flashed through his mind once more, without sound.
Twenty-three thousand years. Thirty-one thousand years.
He pressed that thought down, pushed open the stone door, and walked out.
