The Primal Hunter

Chapter 966: The Concept of Desolation Chapter 966: The Concept of Desolation

Desolation…

A concept Jake knew a lot about yet felt like he barely understood. Not because he was a moron – though that could be debated - or didn’t have the affinity for the concept, but because he was only a C-grade. The concept of desolation was simply not something Jake had ever expected to see in a context like this.

Not to say the concept couldn’t be used by those at C-grade or even at lower grades, but this was desolation in its purest form. It wasn’t just a part of some skill that had some aspects of desolation added to it. No, this was far scarier. One thing was certain… Jake was a lot more apprehensive about this ”I” character now than before. If it was a creature that could actually control the concept of desolation to this extent, this system event had just gotten a lot more dangerous than before.

One of the distinct aspects of the concept of desolation was its ability to cause ”permanent” damage. As was shown when Villy removed the arm of the one from the Azureflight back in the Order, the concept wouldn’t just erase the arm itself but the part of the Soulshape it usually inhabited. That meant there was no easy way to heal it, and no amount of potions or meditation would help.

Not to say it couldn’t be healed… but Jake had no idea how to, and he doubted anyone on Earth knew how either. The only surefire way of healing something like that was through evolution, where you were effectively reborn. Jake had no desire to lose any limbs or anything like that, though, but the mere fact such a risk existed for him and the others from Earth was unsettling. If someone did get injured, they would likely have to wait till the event was over and find someone worth healing them in one of the larger factions in another universe.

Standing up, Jake really took in the environment and its effects on him. His energy was slowly being drained, but what’s more, his resources weren’t regenerating at all. Jake even felt that should he sit down and meditate, he would only be draining himself further.

Turning to the Prima Vessel, he decided to inspect it more closely. He found that the damage caused to it was primarily surface-level, but the mere fact it had taken any damage at all was surprising. After inspecting the Vessel a bit further, he found its entrance that was unlocked after killing the Prima Guardian, which he honestly wasn’t sure if he could even enter.

However, when he got close, the barrier allowed him inside. Jake even noted how it didn’t seem to check his key at all but just let him enter, which definitely wasn’t how it worked on other planets. At least not those with living World Leaders.

The inside of the Prima Vessel was pristine for the most part, except for one thing. Down the hallway leading to the three different rooms, a set of footprints could clearly be seen. They had left imprints that gave off the same concept of desolation as the world outside. When Jake used his foot to wipe away one of the footprints, he saw they had all been made up of gray dust and that the Vessel itself hadn’t been affected.

Jake continued further into the Vessel and saw more traces of the creature that had entered it. From the form and size of its footprints and other minor clues, he estimated it was some kind of humanoid being. Oddly, it also seemed to have some kind of limp. He couldn’t gather much more from what was left behind, except for the fact he only felt the concept of desolation and nothing else from all its traces.

While desolation was an incredibly powerful concept, it was also very limiting. It tended to not work well together with other affinities or concepts due to its nature. In fact, its properties made it so very few creatures natively able to use the affinity existed. In many ways, something being alive or at least possessing a soul was counter-intuitive to the concept in the first place. Desolation was all about not only non-existence but the continued state of non-existence, and a creature existing while being all about non-existence was weird.

There were some creatures and people in the multiverse well-versed with the affinity, though… Jake’s very own Patron being one of its most well-known users.

To the Malefic Viper, the concept had been a part of his Path for a long time. Likely all the way back to when he was known as the Wyvern of the Desolates. At least Jake doubted it was a coincidence the snake god was known under that name back then while also being well-versed in the concept of desolation now.

understand yet. He said that, despite his own constant usage of the

using Touch, though.

within the Prima Vessel, Jake saw everything was still active and working, with the only traces of the creature a bit of gray dust here and there. After only a moment of hesitation, he began seeing if he could control the Vessel. This also didn’t prove any trouble, as Jake did

this wouldn’t be without risk. The core room was bound to be far more dangerous than the surface of the

arcane barriers. While doing this, Jake even used Arcane Awakening in its stable defensive form, increasing relevant stats by 50% while forming yet another layer of defense in the form of the small membrane of protective arcane energy right above

can be when about to enter a very hazardous environment, Jake exited the Prima Vessel. Instantly, he felt a shiver run down his spine as a sense of wrongness overwhelmed him. Everything within the core room was gray, even Jake himself and his arcane mana; the concept

allowing nothing to exist. Jake looked on with wide eyes as his barriers simply faded away one after another. He had to focus while he still

Royal Road.

Jake focused his eyes as he saw the cracked

big boars. The item had been intrinsically bound to the lake, and

the entire planet. It was what caused the atmosphere to exist, regulated affinities, maintained balance, and was the source of constantly spawning new energy for the world. Now, it had been corrupted. Rather than do all those things, it had become the source of the planet’s total destruction. It permeated desolation into every single part of the planet until, one day, the constantly

Viper. Jake was ready to quickly charge back into the safety of the Prima Vessel as something unexpected happened. For the

in its tracks entirely. That wasn’t all, as Jake felt something even more unexpected next: Mana. A little bit of mana

quickly recalled parts of the description

will store excess mana from any magical attacks that would

it was just pretty bad so he didn’t really ever think about it. It mainly sucked because Jake didn’t really get hit a lot by small constant attacks to absorb a bit at a time, but when he did get hit, it was by powerful attacks where the scales could only offer some extra resistance and nothing more. The mana he did absorb would simply be too powerful with too much quantity, resulting in

Scales were incredibly potent at absorbing the light affinity, as

against, and it had come at just the

environment Jake was incredibly apprehensive about even approaching had, in an instant, turned from a danger into an opportunity. With gusto, Jake tried opening his mouth as he

smolder like it was made of ash.

a bit as if he was wearing a space suit and decided to open the helmet and take a deep breath… in other words, really

his scales absorbing the desolate energy. It was odd to imagine that the concept of nothingness could be turned into mana like that, and Jake seriously didn’t understand how it worked… but

which his scales made the constant attack of desolate energy into mana wasn’t only dependent on the scales but a skill specialized in turning harmful energies into resources: Palate of the