Chapter Forty-One: The Two-Hundred-Pound Strongman

Saving these people would undoubtedly require a certain price...

But the price, in truth, was not very steep.

At least, it was not nearly as high as Shana had imagined.

"The hint offers two ways: The first is to upgrade these five servants to level three. That way, their base attributes would break through two, and with Shana’s own 'Holy Light Healing,' it would be enough for them to withstand the ordeal..."

"But while upgrading a level one servant only costs five Mist Points, level two requires twenty-five, and level three is even more brutal—a hundred and fifty straight away..."

Colin abandoned that plan without hesitation. Counting his own and the ones he'd just scavenged, he had about five hundred Mist Points. He could trade for more...

But that was far too wasteful.

No one would naively exchange Mist Points for water anymore...

Even if someone did, it would be rare, and by the time he finished trading, the bodies on the ground would be cold.

"The second method, comparatively, is much more acceptable: Upgrade the servants to level two, their base attributes will reach about 1.5, then spend three hundred Mist Points to help Miss Shana upgrade once. She’ll gain a new skill..."

Colin didn’t hesitate; he opted for the second approach.

The first plan—seven hundred and fifty Mist Points for five level three servants with all attributes around two—he simply wouldn’t do.

A compromise: spend one hundred and fifty to upgrade five servants to level two, then three hundred to boost Shana one level. That, he was willing to accept.

Moreover, Colin had previously seen from the hints that this would fulfill a secret regret she harbored.

Though he didn’t know what that regret was, she had contributed the most this time, the greatest hero...

So, he would grant her wish.

Colin gathered his thoughts, walked to the mage’s corpse, claimed control over all the servants, and examined their information.

[Servant]

Identity: Belongs to Colin.

Status: [Poisoned by Flesh Mushroom]: "Frenzied," "Deranged," "Dying," "Hallucinating," "Half-shock"...

Satiety: 11

Strength: 1.7 (continually decreasing)

Agility: 1.6 (continually decreasing)

Endurance: 0.4 (continually decreasing)

Stamina: 0.3 (continually decreasing)

...

That string of debuffs made Colin’s eyelids twitch; he hadn’t expected eating the mushroom to have such dire consequences.

He didn’t dwell on it; suppressing his pain, he quickly upgraded their levels.

With one hundred and fifty Mist Points spent, the cries of those collapsed on the ground noticeably diminished.

Colin saw their numbers improve considerably.

Yet, it was still not enough.

“We need your help now,” he said.

Shana nodded without wasting words.

Colin opened her panel, and without a hint of reluctance, pressed the upgrade button.

This time, he noticed something: three strands of mist, pure and similar to the gray mist yet fundamentally different, emerged from him.

Three strands... Only visible when spending over a hundred Mist Points?

Colin speculated.

He watched as the mist entered Shana’s body, and her aura shifted.

[Priest of Holy Light: Shana Heraka.] (Note 1)

Identity: Priest of the Everlasting Radiance Church.

Description: Loving, gentle, a bringer of healing.

Power: Second stage.

Status: "Inspired," "Blessing of Courage"...

Satiety: 77

Strength: 3.9—7.1 (first is base, latter is with blessings and buffs)

Endurance: 3.3—5.9

Stamina: 3.1—5.4

Agility: 2.1—3.4

Spirit: 2.8—4.1

Intelligence: 2.5—3.9

Mana: 1200/1200.

Skills mastered: "Robust Health," "Meteor Hammer," "Sweeping Kick"... "Wind of Revival (new)."

[Wind of Revival: Within an eight-meter radius, the user conjures healing winds. All orderly beings in this area recover swiftly (effects stack).]

[Level Up Note: All attributes +1. All skills’ effects increased by 10%.]

[Next Upgrade Requirement: 1000 Mist Points, Light Trace *1, Condensed Light Stone *100.]

...

“A monster’s attributes…”

Colin glanced at the panel and felt a chill. Shana’s appearance hadn’t changed much.

But now, her aura was clearly more sacred and noble.

If one ignored her ability to kill a bear with a single punch.

“This kind of situation could happen only in a world like this. In a normal world, how could someone with such power look so small…”

Colin couldn’t help but marvel. Tyson’s muscles were big, thick, and heavy, but his stats weren’t as high as hers...

She only needed to stand there; even a two-hundred-pound strongman might not be able to bend a single finger of hers...

At that moment, Shana too felt the transformation within herself—a new skill appeared in her mind, and she intuitively understood its effects and usage.

“Praise to you, Lord Colin…”

Shana’s sapphire eyes grew moist, her eyes reddening. She bit her lip, so much she wanted to say in gratitude, yet the words that came out were only that brief phrase.

She knew such an upgrade surely required tremendous resources.

[Priest of Holy Light Shana Heraka’s loyalty to you has increased by 30%. Current progress: 100%!]

[Note: She will never betray you again.]

[Hint: Your efforts are not without reward. You sense that, at some future moment, you will reap rich fruits.]

[Hint 2: You discover that your willingness to save several dying servants without regard for the cost has moved all the servants present, who share in their feelings.]

[You realize they will, in the future, offer you unwavering loyalty—even beyond your death.]

Colin ignored the system messages, paid little heed to the hints, and patted Shana’s shoulder: “Go save them now.”

“Alright.”

Shana nodded heavily, took a deep breath, suppressing her excitement.

But just as she was about to use her new skill, Colin suddenly called out to stop her, meeting her confused gaze.

He coughed twice, his expression awkward. He recalled that Shana’s skill would heal and purify everyone within an eight-meter radius.

There seemed to be no limit on the number of people...

No matter how many were saved, the cost remained high; but for such a large cost, to save only a handful seemed...

A bit wasteful.

He shared his newly formed thought, and after Shana agreed, the group of dozens quickly gathered together.

Eight meters in radius, around two hundred square meters—fitting forty or fifty people was dense but not overcrowded.

Soon, a pale green, gentle, visible wind, summoned by Shana, swept through the area.

...

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