’Potions and equipment... that might still be a little bit far for me...’ as he recalls just how expensive said things are while taking a look at the materials that he acquired from his time at the Evolution Domain, Novus decided to deal with them later, as he knows what the most important thing is right now, and that is improving himself.

[Take out Evolution Crystal (F-Tier)?]

[Yes/No]

Without hesitation, Novus grabs a couple of Evolution Crystals from the Storage Space, scrutinizing them a little bit before he starts using them to improve himself.

It is truly similar to the image displayed in the Storage Space, that grayish, rocky texture with the bluish hue of light flowing around the vein-like structures surrounding it, making it feel life-like, this sensation being enhanced even more as the young man feels it in his hand, the comfortable warmth it gives off making it seem all the more mysterious, magical.

’The system says that I can either eat or absorb, is it the same absorption as with the mana in the air?’ Novus asked himself before starting to calm his own body, pacing his breathing so that it is easier to absorb mana freely flowing in the air, a process that he is all too familiar with, as it is the most basic of being a mage.

And as mana started dancing around him, his senses noticed a flow of energy completely different from mana itself, this one coming directly from the thing he is holding in his hand, that warm pulsing pattern continuing without end, pulling his attention away from the ambient mana and towards itself.

As he does so, that warmth starts flowing out from the small piece of rock and towards his body; this occurrence even surprises him for a bit, and the thought of dropping the Evolution Stone appears in his mind, only for this thought to be quickly doused the moment that he starts feeling the improvement brought about by absorbing the energy from this stone.

That warm energy flows not only along his vessels, but also along his nerves, each cell being brushed by this peculiar energy as if shivering in joy of being fed with a feast, such an occurrence further amplifying the ability of his body to absorb the contents of the Evolution Crystal, almost as if, while being fed with its energy, his body just keeps getting hungry for more.

With each circulation of this warmth all across his body, it made him feel like it follows a completely different set of rules compared to mana, which he practiced when meditating and absorbing mana, providing little to no assistance at all when it comes to dealing with what is inside the Evolution Crystal, proving it to be difficult to control.

Control isn’t necessary though as the energy seems to know what it is supposed to do, and even without his guidance, it continues to roam around his body, refining parts it never came into contact with before, refining his body as evenly as it can before it begins with another round of refinement from the start, repeating this process time and time again in an efficient, effective manner.

It was way too quick, both from his perspective as well as from an outside perspective, his body only taking a few minutes to absorb all the energy within the Evolution Crystal he is holding, making him realize that those over five hundred Evolution Crystals are not plenty at all.

’Maybe I should take out a lot of them... that way, I won’t be interrupted taking out every time a crystal ran out of energy,’ as the high he’s feeling from absorbing the Evolution Crystal starts dying down with the energy inside it being drained, Novus thought of the idea, immediately bringing out a couple of hundred Evolution Crystals for him to absorb.

Controlling himself, making sure that he only absorbs an amount that he can handle, the young man returns to his meditation, no longer trying to guide the Evolution Crystal’s energy according to his will but rather just freely letting it refine his own body, each passing moment making him stronger as he begins to get used to refining the energy around him.

Feeling the changes happening within his body, his heart skips a beat, in disbelief at the fact that improving oneself can be this easy, a smile creeping up his face without his knowledge, as his attention was fully absorbed into his own progress.

Once again, his heart skips a beat as the energy from the Evolution Crystal hastens as it changes flow, something in his mind telling him that there’s a threshold that he just went past, signaling him of a significant change that is about to come.

Then his breathing paused, unable to catch up with the changes brought about by the energy, forcing him to struggle his hardest while watching it continue refining his body on its own

As Novus continues to watch the changes happening with his body, he fails to notice the things happening outside and around him, the topmost layers of his skin starting to crack as they turn dry, before falling off his body in whole pieces like a snake shedding skin, a process that repeats a couple of times before it stops.

Moments later, he started thinking that extreme heat fills his entire body, as if he’s underneath the hot summer sun during its high noon, certainly something that is quite unpleasant, but still not something that he cannot deal with.

Enduring, no, enjoying this feeling of progress under this uncomfortable feeling, he was made unaware of the fact that he is starting to let out a lot of sweat as well, this one not the thin, watery sweat a person will usually excrete but rather a thick, heavy one with a yellowish color to it as well, the rate at which this thick sweat comes out of his body quite alarming as if there’s something wrong with him right now.

This lasts for a couple of hours before his bodily function returns to normal, and as he continues his meditation, Novus no longer notices the passage of time, only the endless refinement his body is undergoing right now, as well as just how much Evolution Crystal is remaining in his reserves.

Time continues to fly as the sun completes its descent, replaced by the moon and reclaimed its position once more.

Novus was woken out of his trance as he felt the touch of a warmth different from the Evolution Crystal’s energy warmth, snapping his eyes open, greeted by the first few rays of the glorious morning sun, just peaking through the horizon, signaling the start of a new day.

"That went really well..." standing up from lotus position to stretch himself, the young man was shocked as despite being in the same sitting position for the entire night, there’s not even a feeling of stiffness in his body, and in fact, it felt better than ever, the feeling of lightness in his feet and the weight of each motion, each attack he is throwing at the air despite of his ease of movement telling him that he improved by leaps and bounds.

And confirming his assumption of his, the system’s screen appears right in front of him, notifications of his refinement flowing out non-stop as it was left on its own devices for several hours.

[You absorbed Evolution Energy. Refinement of the body will continue until the source of the energy runs out.]

[Your talent: True Immortal Blood is being refined. +0.0001% progress, +0.1 maximum Immortal Energy.]

This continues to repeat for over hundreds of times, almost as if it is an improvement brought about by the refinement of each Evolution Crystal, an investment that he knows will bear great fruit in the future, but shows no effect right now.

It isn’t the only thing that the young man received, though, as there’s an immediate boon to his strength as well.

[Your physique has grown. +1 strength, +1 agility, +1 vitality.]

[You sense all sorts of energy clearer than before. +1 arcane.]

[Your body and soul seem to grow closer. +1 harmony.]