aldur9090

Chapter 38 - Terrible Odds

Lan had often wondered what exactly the monsters in the tutorial were. Did they respawn like humans did? Could they level up? Could they die?

He glanced up at the Vesper Inferno and wondered about these things.

So far, he had yet to meet a monster with sentience or initiative. Althoug...

Chapter 37 - The Path of least Resistance

To say climbing back up to the throne room was difficult would be the understatement of the century.

Lan had wedged his knees against the freezing, icy rock and shimmied up the tight shaft for over half an hour before he finally made it out. When he arrived at the exit, his legs were scrape...

Chapter 36 - The Price Of A Smile (Part 4)

"Student?" Lan spat out the word like it was revolting to the taste. "Who would be your student?"

The old man smirked, "You will." He said it with such absolute confidence Lan almost believed it to be true.

Lan glanced at the unconscious girl, trying to figure out the old man's angle,...

Chapter 35 - The Price Of A Smile (Part 3)

Something about the quiet city streets was almost scarier than the boneyard. Where there should have been people, there was nothing but desolate silence.

In the dead of night, as Lan strolled through the city, he was alone. It was almost apocalyptic; there was no nightlife, bustling bars or...

Chapter 34 - The Price Of A Smile (Part 2)

Lan and Bo devoured the bread in seconds, too hungry to savour it. Even though the bread was stale, it tasted like ambrosia. Every mouthful was heaven, every bite a miracle.

It was around midday, so the bus wasn't as cold as the previous night. But even then, their breath fogged up as they ...

Chapter 33 - The Price Of A Smile (Part 1)

The District – 7 years before the tutorial began

Lan and Bo had a secret spot that only they knew. Past the edge of the District, in the boneyard, where the skeletons of vehicles are left to rot after being picked clean.

Their secret spot is a bus tipped on its side...

Chapter 32 - No Guardian? (Edited!)

Before letting go of the wall and jumping into the icy water, Lan wanted to try something. So far, he had succeeded in containing fire and water within mana, so logically, the same should be possible with air.

Since, despite his affinity with water, he couldn't breathe under it, having extr...

Chapter 31 - The Sixth Step

The train thundered on down the tracks, gradually drawing closer to the two massive stone doors at the end of the tunnel. The doors slowly opened wide as it neared, and the train passed through, barrelling on into oblivion.

When he passed through the doors, Lan vanished. His whole world wen...

Chapter 30 - Meanwhile, in the Throne-room

Sleeping was hard for Lan. He had never particularly enjoyed it, owing to the fact that most of his dreams were plagued by visions of things he couldn't have. Money, a family, a childhood. He had always kind of wanted a dog, but that wasn't possible. Not for him.

And when he would wake, and...

Chapter 29 - The Station

Lan held his hand in the furnace and watched as his fuel ticked down. He had killed so many worms that it was an insignificant change, and he wasn't worried about running out of fuel anytime soon.

After the first 1000 units of fuel disappeared into the train, the furnace started to glow, an...

Book Idea (Partial joke)

I have been late uploading chapters lately, so while I edit chapters 29 and 30, here's a concept I came up with on a whim:

The Dao of Bread

Even should the sky fall.

The Bread shall rise.

· Cultivation comes to...

New Covers

Please let me know what covers everyone likes :)

Chapter 28 - The One, True, King (Revised)

Welcome, Challenger. The Fifth Step is yours to overcome.

Lan was shocked awake by the booming voice, sitting up and slamming his head off a coal shovel hanging from a hook on the train's wall. It rang with a low thrum as he clutched his head and curled up in a ball.

...

Chapter 27 - The Threat

At the same time, Lan entered the fourth step.

Archie breathed heavily as he stared into the cave. He could smell the smoke that drifted from within, but the conversation he would expect to accompany it was absent. Of course, considering the two people inside, this was not ...

Chapter 26 - Kitsune of Five

Lan stared down at the icy tundra, his gaze drifting across an endless expanse of white. There were no features, no obstacles, and no creatures. Only snow, so thick and soft that merely stepping on it posed a challenge.

The wind blowing across the tundra was cutting. It whipped across his f...

Chapter 25 - Unvisible

Lan groaned as he stretched out, his joints clicking audibly. He was on the home stretch now, eagerly waiting to move on to the next step as the sun sank below the horizon.

He double-checked with the system, and it said he had twelve hours left before the trial ended. More than enough time ...

Chapter 24 - The Prince and The Fool

Lan didn't much like the desert. There was nothing to see, nothing to do except trudge through the shifting sands. He felt like the more effort he put in and the harder he tried to walk, the more difficult making progress became.

He set foot on a nondescript patch of sand, which erupted. A ...

Chapter 23 - Man of Many Talents

No rest for the wicked, or in Lan's case, no rest for someone with four monsters to kill in the next 20 hours. Although, that doesn't roll off the tongue quite as well.

Lan lay on the ground for a good 20 minutes before finally finding the nerve to stand up. His body felt raw; the very bree...

The Shark - New Book - Chapter 1

I am planning to release this on RR in the future, but for now, I want to build up some chapters and get advice from readers. This story is not taking the place of The Bridge to Forever, it's just a side project I am working on.

That being said, please enjoy :)

Blur...