Infinite Awakening: 10,000x EXP Converter!

The moment he spoke, the world answered.

The second proficiency wheel lit up. The brass and steel body that was sitting still under the main roulette wheel spun into action. Three reels blurred together, weapon pictures, gear icons, and star symbols all turning into a fast streak of spinning metal.

The magic energy leaking through the broken rocks of the Warrens began to hum along with the wheel’s spin. Alvian’s hair stood on end. Small cracks spread across the concrete floor under his feet from the raw luck energy pouring out from the spinning wheel.

The first reel slowed down. The brass turned into a bright gold color. The symbol locked in with a heavy clunk.

Gold.

The second reel stopped next. The air pressure in the room dropped, pushing heavy against his skin. The emergency wall lights blinked and went out, leaving the subway station in pitch darkness except for the bright gold shine of the wheel. The symbol clicked into place.

Gold.

The third reel did not stop at Gold. It kept spinning past gold into a rainbow glow that shone brighter than anything else. The reel shook back and forth between gold and rainbow light for three long seconds, and then locked in place with a loud ringing sound.

[DING!]

[EPIC PROFICIENCY MULTIPLIER! 6,500X!]

[Proficiency Pool: 100 base EXP × 6,500 = 650,000 Proficiency EXP!]

[SHORT-SWORD MASTERY THRESHOLD BREACHED!]

A wave of alerts hit his vision all at once. Notification after notification popped up in front of his eyes, each one glowing brighter than the last.

[Novice → Adept!]

[Threshold bonus: +5% sword damage. +3% critical strike chance.]

[Adept → Master!]

[Threshold bonus: +10% sword damage. +5% parry effectiveness. Technique unlocked: Riposte.]

[Master → Grandmaster!]

[Threshold bonus: +20% sword damage. +10% attack speed. Technique unlocked: Blade Storm.]

[Grandmaster → MAXIMUM!]

[Threshold bonus: +30% sword damage. +15% critical damage. All Short-Sword techniques mastered.]

Each rank level-up rushed new knowledge straight into his brain and body. It was not book knowledge, but instant muscle memory. His hands moved on their own, making perfect sword moves he had never practiced. His grip on the sword handle adjusted with expert control that would take a normal swordsman years to learn. Every strike, every movement, and every stance shift felt as easy and natural as breathing.

But the System was not done.

[Short-Sword Mastery has reached MAXIMUM proficiency at Novice rank.]

[Evolution triggered.]

[Analyzing evolution factors...]

[Host STR: 28 (Moderate)]

[Host AGI: 27 (Moderate)]

[Talent Resonance: Clearwater/Dissolution (HIGH COMPATIBILITY)]

[Proficiency Multiplier: 6,500x (Epic Tier)]

[Evolution outcome calculated.]

[SHORT-SWORD MASTERY EVOLVES!]

[New Passive Skill: SEVERING SWORD AURA (A-RANK)]

[Effect: The Host’s sword strikes generate compressed blades of air extending 15 meters from the blade’s edge. These air blades carry the Host’s Talent resonance, applying Clearwater corrosion to struck surfaces. Air blades ignore D-Rank and below physical defenses.]

[Cost: 5 Essence per air blade generated. Passive activation on sword swings.]

Alvian stared at the text. A-Rank. Not B-Rank. Not a powered-up C-Rank. A-Rank. He had made an A-Rank Skill using an E-Rank Talent and a basic Novice sword skill, all thanks to one massive Epic multiplier.

His hands were shaking from sheer shock. He had not felt this way since he hit his first 800x jackpot in the beetle nest, where the energy almost tore his body apart. This power was far beyond his math and plans. The System was not just multiplying numbers. It was mixing sword techniques with his acid power to create something brand new.

The sword in his hand began to glow with magic energy. The blue lines in the steel grew brighter, spreading across the whole blade like glowing wires inside the metal. The chips and dull spots on the edge smoothed out completely, fixing the blade to match his Clearwater power. The weapon was fixing itself, completely healing all the damage from his fight with Torsten.

He swung. Not at a target. At the air.

The blade moved and something visible launched from the edge. A silver crescent of compressed air, approximately two meters long and paper-thin, shot across the subway platform in near silence and struck the far wall.

BOOM!

The tough concrete wall cracked wide open. A deep cut appeared in the stone, its edges smoking and hissing with leftover acid. The air blade had not just cut the wall; it had melted a piece of it, using acid energy carried right along with the flying wind.

Alvian’s mouth went completely dry. He stared at the giant cut in the wall. The edges were still bubbling. The acid was still eating away at the wall. The concrete was still melting.

He swung again. Another silver air blade shot out, flying fifteen meters before fading away. It sliced a long trench through the concrete floor, the edges bubbling and smoking with acid that kept eating into the stone long after the wind blade had hit.

’Fifteen meters range,’ he calculated in his head. ’No need to get close. No need to risk hand-to-hand fighting. I can melt enemies from fifteen meters away with acid wind blades. Right now, I can only throw three blades with full Essence. Each blade costs five. I need more Essence. A lot more.’

The Clearwater Palm pool, which only had one base EXP point, rolled automatically as Gambler’s Delay finished releasing. The brass wheel spun one last time, much smaller and faster than the sword spin.

[Clearwater Palm proficiency roll: 45x (Uncommon).]

[Proficiency EXP: 45.]

[Clearwater Palm proficiency increased. Approaching D-Rank cap.]

It was not enough to evolve Clearwater Palm yet. But the progress bar had jumped a lot, moving closer to the level cap. A few more training sessions like this using Gambler’s Delay and a decent multiplier, and his main Skill would level up into something even stronger than Severing Sword Aura.

The best plan to grow stronger became super clear in his head: Farm proficiency using Gambler’s Delay. Evolve Skills. Fight stronger monsters and gain more EXP. Level up Stats, especially Essence. Then farm more proficiency. Every cycle would make him far stronger than before, stacking power on top of power.

┌──────[ Profile]──────┐

│ [Host]: Alvian Vance

│ [Level]: 22 (Mortal Tier)

│ [Talent]: Clearwater [E-Rank, D-Rank effective]

│ [Skills]: Clearwater Palm [D-Rank, ~85% to cap]

│ Clearwater Coating [E-Rank]

│ Severing Sword Aura [A-Rank, NEW]

│ [Weapon Mastery]: Short-Sword [MAXIMUM, evolved]

│ [STR]: 28 | [AGI]: 27 | [VIT]: 39

│ [INT]: 16 | [Essence]: 6/16

│ [Karma Points]: 2

│ [EXP Bank]: ~50,000 / ∞

│ [System Version]: 2.0 (Proficiency Tier)

└─────────────────┘

His Essence was down to six out of sixteen. Throwing two Severing Sword Aura blades had cost ten Essence. One more swing and he would run completely out of energy. The problem was clear: he was running an A-Rank Skill using E-Rank Essence reserves. He had incredible power, but his fuel tank was way too small.

[The System congratulates the Host on a successful evolution. Next milestone: Clearwater Palm evolution. Current progress: 85% of D-Rank cap. Recommendation: Find something worth hitting. The air is not a worthy opponent.]

’Find something worth hitting,’ Alvian thought to himself.

He thought of the Magnus family. He thought of the World Will that the System had warned him about. He remembered every rich noble sitting in the VIP seats who had cheered against him while he fought for his life in the tournament.

But first, he needed to test Severing Sword Aura on real enemies. The Warrens were full of Rank 2 monsters that could show him how well the wind blades worked against living targets. Sludge Crawlers, with their heavy armor and acid spit, would be perfect targets. Their monster cores were worth twenty to thirty credits each, making this test a great way to make money too.

He put away his sword, its blue lines humming softly at his side. The dark tunnel stretched out ahead, full of monsters waiting to be melted. Morning was coming high above the Undercity, and the air vents blew the same old, stale air as always.

But today felt different. Something had changed in the quiet darkness of the subway station. A new top predator was here, and it was walking deeper into the Warrens to hunt.

Alvian turned toward the Crawler nests and started walking. His sword hummed at his hip. His hands still shook with leftover energy. And deep inside his mind, the System played a cheerful little victory sound that almost felt like it was laughing with him.

He had three hours before his meeting with Helen Croft. Three hours to test his new A-Rank Skill, kill monsters, collect cores, and pretend he was still the weak E-Rank trash the Academy thought he was.

The dark tunnel swallowed him up, leaving the subway station quiet once again. Behind him, the deep cut in the wall was still hissing as the acid slowly melted the concrete.