Water began to pour out from where the Harvest Critter was stabbed, but it was still alive as Zero did not hear the voice. Additionally, the creature was wildly flailing its limbs, making it difficult to approach.
Zero backstepped and found himself standing next to Caelum.
"It seems my blade isn't effective against it."
"Indeed, I believe it is starting to recover, so perhaps it is best to run until it dies?"
"I'm a huge fan of that idea."
Zero and Caelum took off, and a moment later, the monster followed. They ran for about 30 seconds before the monster visibly slowed down, then stopped and fell onto its side. Water was still leaking out from its wound.
"Is it dead? I have not heard anything from that voice."
"I didn't either, so I assume it's not."
Zero bent down and grabbed a nearby rock. Shifting Valiant Blade to his other hand, he cocked his arm and took a step forward while swinging. When he let go, the rock was going surprisingly fast and hit the Critter with a thud. Zero had aimed at its wound and surprisingly hit it from around 20 meters away.
{Enlightened Harvest Critter slain}
{Received Enlightened Spirit Crystal}
"Ah, that pushed it over the edge."
Zero threw his sword at it for good measure, then dismissed it. They each took a sip from it before heading back on their way to Caelum's shelter.
Zero summoned the crystal and looked at it. This one was larger and a bit smoother than the last.
"Hey Caelum, how many of these have you crushed?"
"I have crushed 3 by now. So I am at the max according to the scroll. For now, at least."
'Wait, his goes up to 6? How unfair. Maybe it depends on the class.'
Zero shattered the crystal and saw his level go up. This time, it went up 2 levels. Perhaps because it was an Enlightened crystal as opposed to a Seeker crystal. This time as well, he felt twice as invigorated.
It was becoming quite dark by the time they reached Caelum's shelter, but Zero could see quite well in the dark for some reason.
Caelum's shelter was a crater in the side of a cliff. Rocks that presumably broke off were arranged at the entrance in a neat manner, presumably by Caelum. The place seemed spacious enough for two and safe enough. Still, Zero placed a bunch of twigs around.
Zero entered and set his bag down.
"We should sleep soon, Zero. But for now, I have some questions if you do not mind."
Zero nodded and listened.
"Firstly, you mentioned a skill earlier. I would like you to share what it was."
"Yes, my skill is called Optic Sight, and it lets me see the weak points of anything living. There is a limit to its power, but it is useful against injured or new beasts."
Zero continued, past his question.
"I also have a Blessing, but it is rather ambiguous on what it does. I think it has something to do with instincts. Like a slight danger sense? I have only felt the feeling once. I also have a boon that helps with my recovery speed."
"I see, that does sound useful to us. And you already answered another one of my questions. My last questions are how you found the sanctuary, and what statue did you interact with? Oh, and not to be rude, just curious about what kind of clothes those are? I have not seen anything like it in my many travels."
'Ah, I should probably not mention I'm not a fugitive. I feel kinda bad lying, though. Huh? My clothes?'
Zero looked down at the shirt and pants he was wearing. The shirt was red and made of a material that was a bit slippery. His pants were cut before the knee, and a flexible waistband held them in place. If Zero knew what it was, he would say he was wearing shorts.
"Uh… I guess I kinda just… got these clothes. So about the statue I interacted with. It was the one with a heart in its chest. A beast brought me to it. But not the aggressive kind that attacks on sight. This one was kind."
Zero omitted the parts of his past and the murder he committed. He did not want Caelum to know he killed a man, and one who was his friend.
"I was wondering if you had a Blessing, too. After all, the path to achieving one is arduous. But simply us touching the statues managed to do it. My Blessing had to do with my will and in extension my spirit. I touched the center statue that seemed to be glowing a hue of blue."
What Caelum shared was not quite useful at the moment, but it began to unravel the variety of mysteries in Zero's head. Apparently, Blessings were hard to get. Also that the statue must have been of a Forsaken Deity.
'What is a Forsaken Deity anyway?'
"As for my skill, it is called Falling Petal, and it can heal myself and others. My staff here is called Unbroken Stick, and it allows me to control the wind a bit. Its ability is amplified by my spirit."
Zero nodded thoughtfully and decided to ask a couple of his questions. By now, it was starting to become hard to make out Caelum's face.
"What's a Forsaken Deity?"
Despite the darkness, the reaction on Caelum's face was so great, Zero was able to make it out.
"I would think a Forsaken Deity is a god who has been turned by Chaos. It goes without saying that they would be the same as a Heavenly Deity in terms of power. But why do you ask? No Heavenly Deity has fallen to chaos. Even if a Celestial turns, they are swiftly killed."
'That is a mouthful of words… Heavenly, Celestial, Chaos?'
Zero assumed the first two are names for gods. He did not know what Chaos was, but he was hesitant to ask. It was painfully obvious that Caelum was suspicious of the question and, by extension, suspicious of Zero.
Still, Zero did not want to mention his amnesia to Caelum yet. Zero decided to just blame the glyphs and stay vague. But he was too hungry for knowledge, so he considered taking some risk.
"Ah, it's just something I saw in the… scroll, you call it. Another thing, what are these tiers you are naming?"
'Was that too suspicious of a question. I really hope not…'
A hint of relief played across Caelum's face.
"I see, so your scroll mentions it too. It is quite perplexing, but for both of us, it is best not to mention it. The mention of such a thing could be considered blasphemy. Such a thing would send us to the Great Colosseum, where we would certainly die."
'Little does he know. Wait, what's so great about that accused place?'
"As for those tiers, I am mentioning the ones at the top. I suppose not all know of them. It goes the 9 Immortals, 27 Deities, the Celestials, the Primordials, and I figure you know the rest. Actually, sorry, there is also the Eternals under that in case you did not know. The 9 Immortals and 27 Deities, and even some Celestials, I suppose, are what control all of existence."
'Oooh.'
It seemed Zero had hit a bit of a jackpot with those answers. From the looks of it, he had also hit a jackpot with his Blessing.
'Forsaken Diety huh?'