The Evolution Forge was quiet.
Not silent, just quiet. A low, humming pulse beat steadily from the walls, like the heart of a sleeping machine.
The place remained as sleek and sterile as always, its pure white expanse glowing softly, clean and cold like a surgeon’s dream.
Ren sat cross-legged in the center, eyes narrowed in focus despite the slight fatigue he was feeling.
Today had been a very eventful day. He had single-handedly dominated an arena during the first trial and had qualified for the next trial taking place tomorrow.
With his performance today, one thing was clear, his fa was already spreading rapidly throughout the three side blocks.
The strength he demonstrated today was sothing that was shocking to most.
The first male weaver to ever exist had shown the world just how terrifying he could be today.
Ren had already expected this and didn’t care about it. He was sending a ssage to a certain family.
Besides, he had barely shown his true strength today. He still had a ton of surprises if he ever had to get serious.
In his hands were two transparent crystals. Eight more were before him in a curved formation.
Inside each crystal, a different type of leaf hovered mid-air, suspended in a dull crimson light as the final stages of their evolution ticked away.
He didn’t move. He didn’t dare disturb the process, not when this might solve one of the biggest problems he’d been facing since acquiring Bloodsucker.
The cursed kusarigama was a monster to wield.
Sharp. Brutal. Deadly.
But its greatest strength was also its greatest drawback; it demanded blood. Lots of it. Not just from enemies but from him, its own wielder.
The more power he wanted from it, the more it fed from his veins like a parasitic beast with a steel smile.
Ren had spent hours running simulations in his mind. Blood loss ant decreased stamina. Decreased stamina ant slower weaves. Slower weaves ant delayed attacks.
In a real battle, that wasn’t a flaw, it was a death sentence!
So, like always, he adapted.
He’d found an old mory orb in the side block library that listed hundreds of flora with mild blood-related properties.
So could enhance blood flow. Others could accelerate regeneration. A rare few even hinted at triggering blood production on demand.
Ren didn’t need a miracle.
He just needed sothing cheap. Repeatable. Better than burning through a thousand points on high-grade blood potions after every spar.
That’s why he was here now, pushing basic herbology with the terrifying precision of the Evolution Forge.
His gaze flickered toward one of the eight transparent crystals, the one farthest to the right.
Inside it, a dull green leaf quivered slightly. It was just a leaf from the Ironvein shrub. It wasn’t impressive at first glance, but he’d suspected it had hidden potential.
The leaf twitched again.
Then his watch dinged.
He blinked. The notification flashed brightly on the floating blue screen just beside his right wrist.
[Evolution Complete.]
His eyes lit up.
Imdiately, he grabbed the first crystal and ntally willed the leaf within it to co out.
With a faint hiss, the transparent shell shimred briefly, and the evolved leaf floated down into his open palm.
It was warm.
Red veins now ran along the center of the leaf like pulsing arteries. The dull green had been replaced with a richer, mossy hue. His watch scanned it instantly.
[Evolved Item: Crimson Veinleaf]
[Grade: Common Magical Herb]
[Properties: Very slight increase in blood flow. Temporary stamina boost. Faint tallic aftertaste if ingested. Duration: Ten Seconds.]
Ren tilted his head, unimpressed.
Ten seconds? That was barely enough ti for one weave combo. He dropped it into a pouch beside him and moved on.
The second evolved leaf was worse; Glowvine Twist. Pretty na. Completely useless. All it did was give off a faint bioluminescence when crushed!
The third, fourth, and fifth were similarly disappointing.
Snowplum Drifter: made his fingers cold!
Hollowroot Curl: looked cool, slled weird!
Thornberry Leaf: sharp enough to nick skin but offered no actual benefit!
The sixth had so potential. Redcap Coil. It slightly boosted blood pressure, which could help, but it had a minor side effect of causing lightheadedness.
"Not ideal," Ren muttered, tossing it beside the others.
By the ti he opened the seventh, his expectations had already dropped through the floor.
He tapped the crystal.
The evolved leaf floated gently into his hand, and imdiately, he paused.
It was beautiful.
Translucent, almost glass-like. Its edges shimred faintly in the Forge’s white light, casting delicate prisms on his palm. It had a faint lavender tint, almost as if it was half-blooming.
He narrowed his eyes and turned his wrist.
The veins inside the leaf pulsed, not red this ti, but a soft violet. Almost like it was alive.
His watch scanned the leaf.
[Evolved Item: Crystal Orchid Leaf]
[Grade: Common Magical Herb]
[Properties: Stimulates red blood cell production. Speeds internal blood recovery by 28%. Mild pain relief. No side effects. Duration: 2 minutes.]
Ren stared at the screen.
Then blinked.
Then stared again.
Slowly, a grin tugged at his lips.
"Bingo."
Out of the eight test leaves, only one had produced sothing of real value. But that was all he needed. His entire combat style didn’t require quantity, it demanded quality.
Two minutes of accelerated recovery? That was gold.
Ren could already picture it. A quick chew of the Crystal Orchid Leaf before a battle, and he might just be able to activate Bloodsucker’s advanced state without falling flat afterward.
He placed the leaf carefully inside a sealed capsule and marked it with a faint rune from his finger. It glowed softly, sealing it for later use.
Then he leaned back, sighing with deep satisfaction.
The Evolution Forge humd around him, its energy pulsing in sync with the slow thump of his heart. For now, the pain in his veins was gone. The fatigue in his limbs had vanished. His experints were paying off.
But he wasn’t done yet.
His thoughts spun like gears. Crystal Orchid Leaf was a breakthrough, but it raised another issue.
Why did only one leaf evolve properly out of eight?
Was it pure chance? A pattern? Sothing related to the type of leaf or the evolution sequence used?
He opened his watch again and pulled up the data logs.
He began comparing each of the herbs’ original properties, tracing their similarities and checking how much blood and life force was used during each evolution.
Another problem with the Forge was how inconsistent the blood cost could be.
Sotis it drained a few drops.
Other tis, it felt like he’d lost half a pint.
So tis, it drained nothing at all!
And most tis he wasn’t even asked before it took it. Only when the drain was going to be huge would it deem it worthy to even ask him!
There was a pattern. He was sure of it. But the Forge wasn’t exactly cooperative in telling him its rules.
Still, he’d figure it out.
He always did.
After all, this was what he did best; not just fighting, not just weaving, not just adapting, but understanding. Breaking systems down. Rebuilding them stronger.
He stood up, arms stretching above his head.
A few hours remained before morning. The second stage of the trial would begin at sunrise.
He would be ready.
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