Path to Transcendence

Chapter 344: Roaming Heston

Julius found himself roaming the streets of Heston with Lily and Marcus right beside him. They had insisted on coming with him, considering that he had been attacked not too long ago.

Part of his reason for doing so was that he wanted some time to relax and enjoy shopping around. The other reason was that he wanted to test out his new skill, and Lily recommended that he walk around a densely populated environment to help him adapt to the skill.

[Absolute Spatial Perception] was just as good as he could have hoped. It retained everything that his old skill had, plus more. The only thing he found challenging was processing all of the information he was getting from the skill.

Much like when he first received [Spatial Perception], his mind needed time to adapt to the additional stress and information load. For example, the overall distance he could sense had doubled, which meant the information he was getting at all times had increased exponentially. Since his skill acted as a sphere, it was more like eight times the amount of information. It required him to take advantage of [Sage of Savagery] to use the skill properly.

Luckily, he was able to modify this new version of the skill. Previously, he wasn’t able to manipulate certain functions of the skill. However, he could now narrow the distance and choose only to sense specific targets.

If he restricted the skillʼs sphere of awareness, he could also extend his range of perception in a singular direction.

The clarity was much nicer as well. He could now see things in much sharper detail. What used to be a bit blurry and sometimes confusing to look at was now crisp.

However, what was probably the most important improvement to the skill was that it had combined his mana and aura senses into the skill. Previously, he had to manually use his mana senses and aura senses individually. He also didn’t have a dedicated skill to help with either of them. This meant that it took significant focus to perceive mana and aura.

To his credit, he was very good at both of them. Still, his new skill, alleviating much of that process, would be a massive boon.

Regardless, he was having a hard time acclimating to all of these new changes. It was why he was out in public desperately trying to expose himself to as many people as he could.

Everywhere he looked, he was assaulted by colorful bursts of mana. It wasn’t like before, either, where he could simply look away. With [Absolute Spatial Perception] active, there was no looking away. He had to take the good with the bad.

However, he had to admit it. Seeing all of the mana floating through the air was quite the sight. It made him realize just how integral mana was in this world. Almost everything around him had some measure of mana. It didn’t matter if it was a stone wall or a piece of meat a vendor was grilling. Everything had mana.

If it were only mana, then he might have been able to handle the new skill with less difficulty. But it was the aura that was truly challenging. It was less present than mana, usually limited to living beings. However, it was the fluctuation that really got him.

Any deviation or minute changes of emotion were able to be felt with his skill. Sometimes he would see someone’s aura bloom out in a raging red, signifying their anger. Or someone’s bright, twinkling aura when they got excited.

It was just a lot to take in at once, but that was why he had asked Lily for help. She had recommended this particular exercise to him. When she was learning about her psychic powers, her family had forced her to expose herself to chaotic environments.

Some might think that cruel, considering that she was only a little girl at the time, but she insisted that she was grateful for their harsh decision. It had helped her gain control much faster and with greater confidence than she otherwise would have.

So he followed her lead and kept on extending his perception skill. When he would experience a particularly harsh wave of sensations, she was right there next to him holding him up. Marcus was there keeping a close eye on the environment, making sure nobody attacked him.

Surprisingly, he felt very protected. Lily was already a really good person to have when it came to detecting threats. Her psychic abilities were really good at sorting out dangerous people with nasty intentions. Then there was Marcus, who was a powerful Tier 5.

After he had to stop and take a break from the overload of sensations, he spoke to the man.

“How come you’re staying in Heston? Don’t you have a lot of important stuff to do?”

Marcus shook his head. “Not at the moment. Plus, with Lady Lily’s graduation coming up, I didn’t think staying around for a bit would be a bad idea.”

“Fair enough,” Julius said with a grin, admiring how much the man clearly cared for Lily. It was sweet that he wanted to celebrate her achievement with her.

Lily suddenly pointed at a nearby shop. “Hey, let’s head in there. They sometimes have some really good stuff.”

Julius looked over at where she was pointing. The shop in question was quite minimal in design, and if he was just passing by, he might have thought it to be a simple shop. However, he could tell with his new skill that the materials of the building contained an extraordinary amount of mana. The enchantments that went along with it were even more impressive. He was practically blinded by the complexity of it all.

He winced but nodded at her. “Sure, weʼve got plenty of time,” he said while walking toward the door and opening it. He held it for Lily and Marcus, giving each of them a mocking bow as he ushered them in.

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When he followed them, he was stunned at what he saw. The shop wasn’t like anything he had expected. It was actually a jewelry store. Accessories and other wondrous objects were displayed in gorgeous crystal cases.

It was also spatially enlarged as well and for the first time since he got it, his Concept of Space was pulsing aggressively. When he reached out with his new skill, he choked on his tongue for a moment at what he saw.

It was nothing like the cracks he had formed with his skill. The space in front of him was intricately woven with spatial ripples. It was like someone had painstakingly folded each individual thread of space by hand. It made his teleportation attempt, which he had been so proud of, look like a child’s ugly attempt at a self-portrait in comparison.

He had never seen space like this before, and he couldn’t help but wonder if his skill or his Concept made it possible.

As he admired it, he could see that Lily had already walked up to a guy at the counter. They both seemed familiar with each other because the man was slightly bowing toward her.

“Lady Lily, it is wonderful to see you again.”

“It’s amazing to see you, too, Harold. I hope you and your family are doing well.”

The two of them exchanged pleasantries for some time, and in the meantime, Julius decided to look around. There were many interesting objects, many of which he had no idea of their purpose. But most of them were inlaid with breathtakingly gorgeous gemstones.

He spotted a particularly interesting black ring that was decorated with a green band in the center, wrapping around it. The green material looked almost like an emerald, but he had never seen a gemstone quite like it before.

But in a world of magic, he wouldn’t be surprised if someone was able to manipulate the form of gems to make them into previously impossible shapes. There was also a subtle presence of life mana flowing around the band.

“Ah, I see you have a good eye,” the man who had been talking with Lily said to him as they walked over.

“What does it do?” He asked curiously.

“That particular piece is meant for healers. It will boost the effectiveness of their healing skills and lessen the cost of mana. Some people might also buy it because it is pretty to look at,” the man said with a small laugh before gesturing at one of the female employees.

“Can you take it out and let our guest take a look at it?”

The lady swiftly came over and nodded. “Of course, it would be my pleasure.”

Harold nodded and turned back to Lily. “As for you, I want to show you something special. If you wouldn’t mind following me to the backroom, I think you might really like it.”

Lily gave Julius a little look but waved at her. “Don’t worry, I won’t be going anywhere.”

She then nodded at Harold and followed him to the backroom, with Marcus trailing right behind them.

The woman took out the ring for him to look at. Now that her boss wasn’t around, she didn’t look thrilled to be serving him. Of course, she had a polite smile on her face, but he could sense a bit of her aura hiding beneath that smile.

It reminded him of the times when he would go to a fancy store on Earth, and the worker knew he wasn’t interested in buying anything, so they didn’t really give him the time of day. He couldn’t exactly be angry at her either.

If his gut feeling was correct, then this woman wasn’t just a normal person. She was Tier 4 and had some right to be a bit proud when serving a child.

Regardless, he picked up the ring and turned it over in his hands. It was quite heavy, much heavier than he expected.

The woman who had handed it to him let her gaze wander to other customers who were looking at items. He didn’t mind, though. He took his time to inspect the ring thoroughly. He even discreetly channeled a small amount of life mana to see the reaction he got. The ring greedily accepted his mana, but he could feel the enchantments begin to activate, so he quickly stopped.

However, as this was going on, he noticed a man and a woman enter the store, hand in hand. They didn’t look like fancy people. Their clothes were practical and straightforward. He also could sense that they were around Tier 3.

Perhaps, they had seen the store while they were walking by and were curious about it. He subtly watched as the couple perused the cases for a little bit before eventually making their way to where Julius was standing.

“Do you think we can take a look at that necklace for my wife?” The husband asked the woman who was ‘helping’ Julius.

Julius saw the woman give a quick glance over at the couple’s outfits and must have made an immediate assumption about their status. She didn’t even bother to respond to the man and pretended like she hadn’t heard a thing.

He frowned at this behavior, as did the man.

“Excuse me,” he said to the woman.

She directed her polite smile at him once more. “Yes, sir.”

“Can I take a look at that necklace right there?” He pointed at the same exact one the man had asked to see.

The woman did her best not roll her eyes but her aura showed her exasperation. But she did indeed open the case and pull out the necklace, handing it over to him.

However, when he took it from her hands, he immediately handed it over to the man and wife. He didn’t give the employee a second glance but he could see her annoyance rise when he did that. And truthfully, it gave him more pleasure than it probably should have.

But the wife’s knowing smirk when she looked at him and the employee made him feel much better. He gave her a matching grin when she met his eyes.

The husband gave him a grateful nod. “Thank you.”

Julius shook his head with a good-natured grin. “No worries.”

The man pointed at the ring still in Julius’s hands. “That is a pretty ring. Are you planning to get it for someone as a gift?”

He shook his head. “Nope. I am just looking around, waiting for my friend to finish up her business. What about you? Are you looking to buy something for your beautiful wife?” He asked, not even being facetious either, after all, both of them looked quite attractive.

“Actually, I am hoping to get my daughter something as a present,” the man said with a bright grin.

“Ah, that’s so nice. She’s lucky to have such thoughtful parents,” he said with a smile. It was nice to see good parents out there.

“Yeah, she deserves it. She has been working hard and doesn’t like to treat herself, so sometimes we have to do it for her. Right, sweetie?” the man said with a bump toward his wife.

The wife rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. You just want an excuse to spoil her,” she said with a cute laugh.

“You’re right, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t do it.”

Julius chuckled alongside them and they ended up getting sucked into a pleasant conversation with the couple. They talked for several minutes as they continued to peruse some items while he waited for Lily to finish up.