Blade of the Goddess
Chapter 56 - Master Stage 12 Mana Cores

Chapter 56: Chapter 56 - Master Stage 12 Mana Cores

Besides helping Alice’s mom, there were two things on Zion’s mind: finding Lidia and Alice, as well as getting stronger.

His battle against the demonic human Carl left him feeling weak, like his battle against Olzak. Sure, he could actually stand a chance against Carl and even managed to brutally harm him, but he was still far too weak to get past him and help Lidia.

He didn’t want to rely only on his tech and the people working under him, he wanted to be out there himself searching for his loved ones. But to do that, he needed to be stronger, way stronger than he was currently. His mana method wasn’t enough, his runic body wasn’t enough, his magic and aura weren’t enough, and it was time to break through to the master stage.

"Before I start, I’ll attempt to create a core in each meridian." And so he began. Zion vividly remembered every step he took when he started cultivating, how he absorbed mana, how he circulated it throughout his body, how he allocated it in his heart, and how he created his stars and eventual rings; he remembered it all.

He could feel how his mana core was attached to his meridian as if it were locked in place like a puzzle piece. This meant that by replicating the process it took to create his core on his heart, the same process should work on all the other meridians.

Zion started off by only doing one at a time, getting a feel of allocating his mana in an unfamiliar spot in his body. The mana gracefully accepted being allocated in the meridian he chose and started circulating mana as if it were normal.

Seeing how his body was working with him, Zion accelerated the process. He formed his mana field, then stars, then rings, then connected his mana path to it, creating his second core, and once that was completed, his mana almost surged out of control.

It wasn’t that his mana was backfiring or was unstable, it was because the amount of mana that suddenly increased in his body was so much that it needed to escape his body, but after that sudden burst of mana, everything called down, and Zion could feel two times stronger than before.

"This-This is incredible! I know I say this every time I feel even slightly stronger, but I genuinely feel incredibly powerful! This is only with 2 cores, I can’t even imagine how I’ll feel with all twelve."

Zion went back into his meditative state and created the other ten cores in his remaining meridians. The process took an entire day unbeknownst to Zion. He was sitting in the lotus position for 24 hours in a trance state, his power increasing every few hours.

Then, once his final core was created, Zion’s body couldn’t handle that amount of energy so his body forcefully broke through to the Master stage. And if that wasn’t enough, he broke through to the Peak of the master stage in one go.

This took another day to complete, and once Zion finally opened his eyes, two days had passed.

"To think my power has reached such a height while only being in the master stage. I feel like I could blow up the moon with the amount of power flowing through me! With this, I’ll be able to help Lidia!" Zion said with excitement.

He summoned a fireball, the most basic and weakest offensive fire spell. The fireball wasn’t like anything he expected. Sure, it was strong, the spell adjusting to just master stage strength and his mana method, but because the spell was powered by 12 cores instead of 1, the fire felt like a mini sun in his hands, the flames cracking with power.

"Amazing!" He proclaimed. Then, Zion turned the fireball into a flame sword, and the result was the same. The energy was intense and burned brighter and hotter than it normally should have.

"Heh, I wonder how powerful I am now?" With a simple swipe of the fire blade and no real intent to cause serious damage, Zion, like always, struck the training dummy with a horizontal slash, expecting the blade to carve through it like butter.

Instead, with a sudden and explosive BOOM, Zion accidentally cleaved his house in two. The training grounds, thankfully isolated from the main living quarters, spared anyone from harm. But Zion could only stare in stunned silence as the top half of his home groaned, shifted, then slid clean off and collapsed into rubble.

"We’re under attack!"

"Get everyone to safety!"

"Gather everyone!"

"Is it those demonic human bastards?!"

Within seconds, all the knights of the Zagan household gathered at the training grounds, ready to defend their home against whoever they thought attacked it.

To make matters worse, Hanna, Reina, and Zaleena all teleported in, shifting the space around them, and readied their most powerful spells.

Zaleena, not recognizing Zion from all the dust, used Aura Force to grab him by the throat, pulling him in close and holding her sword to his neck.

"Who are you?!" She demanded, her power sending ripples through the area

"Akkk, mom, mom, it’s me! Z-ZION!" He managed to get out.

"Zion?" She dropped him, dismissing the knights. "What happened here? And why is the house cut in half?"

"Heh, funny story actually, check this out." He told them everything that happened, how he cured Alice’s mom, found another way to gain power, and when he wanted to test his new strength, he accidentally cut the house in half.

"I guess you can say that this is Part 3 of my Mana Core Cultivation Method." He smiled proudly. "Oh, and I broke through to the master stage."

"OH MY GOSH! TEACH ME NOW!" Reina grabbed him

"NO! TEACH ME INSTEAD!" Hanna pushed Reina out of the way, grabbing Zion in the process.

"ENOUGH!" Zaleena yelled, stopping her daughters from tearing off Zion’s arms. "Ahem, he’ll be teaching me first, hehe." She quickly grabbed him and teleported away.

"You mother fucker!" They yelled in unison.