Every time an Otherworlder profession advances, they receive three random traits.
These traits, when combined, form the subtly unique Otherworlder profession of each individual.
In the game, these traits could be re-rolled by repeatedly running advancement dungeons. Otherwise, it would be very difficult for players to experience different build styles.
But Aiwass obviously didn't have any in-game store items.
He only had one chance to choose his traits upon advancement.
However, he had already decided on his occupational direction
To advance to Great Beast Master, one needs to seal their own six-attribute Great Beasts.
And each attribute's blank card requires fifty points of pure mana to craft.
When the Priest profession level increases, it boosts the mana pools of the Light and Fire attributes. The ratio is generally three Light to one Fire.
When a Demon Scholar levels up, they can only gain mana pool corresponding to the attribute of the demon they have a contract with. If there is no contracted demon, then it is an even five-point increase across all attributes except Light. The demon Aiwass contracted was a Shadow Demon, so he could only increase his Dark attribute when leveling up. However, among the traits available during his advancement, there was a possibility of randomly appearing expansion traits for Wind, Earth, Water, and Fire.
If Aiwass leveled up normally, probably only his Light and Dark attributes would reach fifty points.
So, apart from the Light and Dark attributes, he had to choose all expansion traits whenever possible even so, he might not necessarily be able to get all six attributes to at least fifty points. At that point, he would either have to brave experience penalties to open a third Path, taking on a specific spellcasting profession to raise the corresponding mana pool, or rely on different types of elixirs to slowly increase attribute limits, or wear Otherworlder items to temporarily boost mana limits.
The basic principle was that if expansion traits for the four attributes of Wind, Earth, Water, and Fire appeared, they must be chosen.
Only if a rare golden trait appeared would Aiwass hesitate and seriously consider whether to forgo the expansion this time.
However, the first advancement could at most only yield blue traits. Furthermore, spellcasting professions were bound to produce both affinity and expansion traits so he had no room for hesitation here, as he had no other choice.
But Aiwass was quite lucky.
Si Zhu's Blood did not necessarily yield a Fire attribute trait; Light attribute was also possible. If the expansion he randomly got was Light attribute, then he would only be able to choose affinity. Because his Light attribute mana pool was actually very abundant he wasn't an Otherworlder specializing in the Dedication Path, so he didn't need to raise his mana bar too high.
Moreover, the Phantom Demon on Yulia was Fire attribute.
This meant that Aiwass had to craft a Fire attribute blank card before that incident began to have a chance of sealing it.
He had calculated before that a level 10 Priest's standard mana pool should be 8 points of Light and 2 points of Fire, and at level 20, it would be 23 Light and 7 Fire.
By the time Aiwass reached level 20, including this current one, he would have advanced three times in total. These would be this guaranteed success at level 2, and two ritual trials at level 9 and level 19.
As long as he randomly got another Fire attribute expansion in these two trials, Aiwass's Fire attribute mana pool could increase by another 28 points. Without using any Otherworlder items, adding the original 7 points and the 14 points given this time would make it exactly 49 points.
A maximum mana pool of 49 points, when four points were stored in advance the day before, could already craft a 50-capacity Fire attribute blank card!
And as long as he possessed the "Phantom Demon · Paradoxical Flame Butterfly," Aiwass would gain combat power far stronger than a first-level Fire affinity!
At least fighting through to the end of version 0 would definitely not be a problem!
So Aiwass did not hesitate.
As soon as the trait appeared, he had a thought. The teardrop-shaped flame flew up on its own and entered Aiwass's mouth.
The next moment, the illusion before his eyes shattered abruptly.
Aiwass's fingertips suddenly felt a subtle burning pain. This burning pain rapidly became distinct, like touching a candle flame after dipping a finger in water.
He suddenly woke up.
As Aiwass's attribute list changed, the altered parts popped up before his eyes:
Priest LV2: [Basic Prayer - Level 1 (99%)], [Sacrificial Fire - Level 1 (5%)]
Paths Illuminated: Dedication - First Layer; Transcendence - First Layer
Mana Pool: 2 / 2 (Light), 4 / 4 (Dark), 14 / 14 (Fire)
Free Experience: 53
Path Trait
Dedication - Flame Vessel Lv1: You have consumed Si Zhu's Blood, and your soul has expanded. Your Mana Pool (Fire) maximum capacity has increased by 14.
Aiwass looked up, dazed, at Bishop Mathers' astonished face, revealing a confused and innocent expression as if he had just woken up, and subconsciously said:
"I just… I think I saw a red deer.
"Its entire body was covered in black thorns and bleeding. On its antlers were white flames…"
"That is Lord Si Zhu!"
Bishop Mathers quickly interrupted.
He reached out and touched his forehead, as if there were ethereal antlers there: "Si Zhu above… How could He be so fond of you? With just the first attempt, you have mastered the method of Sacrificial Fire…"
Bishop Mathers murmured softly, clearly finding it hard to imagine.
But it was self-evident that Aiwass's rank had leaped. As a superior of the same Path, he could clearly feel that Aiwass's Dedication Path had successfully reached the first layer.
"…What Path trait did you choose?"
Bishop Mathers didn't have time to continue instructing Aiwass, but spoke with some urgency: "I didn't expect you to learn it immediately, so I haven't had time to tell you yet… If you want to immediately gain self-preservation ability, you must choose 'Flame Affinity' or 'Light Affinity.' What did you choose?"
"It's 'Flame Vessel'."
Aiwass replied immediately.
A hint of nervousness appeared on his face: "Could it be that I chose wrong?"
Aiwass breathed a sigh of relief inwardly.
He thought to himself, it's a good thing he advanced before Bishop Mathers could react.
Otherwise, if he had heard Bishop Mathers' words and still chosen Flame Vessel, he would definitely have been displeased. But Aiwass indeed needed to raise his Fire attribute mana pool as quickly as possible, and the next round might not feature the trait he wanted. So if a Fire attribute expansion trait appeared, he had to choose it immediately.
"…No, no, it's not a big problem."
Seeing the nervous expression on Aiwass's face, Bishop Mathers instead quickly comforted him: "'Flame Vessel' is also a very good trait it allows you to master extremely powerful Fire power, it's just a bit more troublesome to use. Without affinity-type abilities, the operation will be a bit stiff… But I'm not saying this choice is bad, what I mean is, it's not very flexible but if viewed long-term, this choice is very good!"
Apparently, this scene was not part of Bishop Mathers' prior preparations.
But seeing that the tension and worry on Aiwass's face had not dissipated, he gritted his teeth: "Alright, Aiwass! Listen to me
"You have now gained powerful mana equivalent to a Second Circle spellcaster, you just don't know how to use it. You can first learn spells or divine arts that rely on Fire power, and before that…"
Saying this, Bishop Mathers handed Aiwass the large key he had used to open the door earlier, from his waist.
It was a deep red key.
It was so heavy that it felt less like a key and more like a broken sword.
"During this time, St. Genevieve's Chapel will not be open. I'm lending you the key; for these two months, you can temporarily use it for self-defense don't underestimate it, just by injecting Fire mana you can unleash a scorching illusory blade. Even if you can't move easily, it's enough to scare away most enemies.
"Just return it to me before the Si Zhu Festival on January first."
The moment Aiwass held the heavy key in confusion, he almost blurted out a Curse.
Because this key, while having an extremely ordinary name, also had a rather heaven-defying effect.
This not only proved his emphasis on Aiwass but also revealed his pessimistic assessment of the current situation…
And the moment he saw this effect, Aiwass knew who Bishop Mathers truly was
[Key to St. Genevieve's Chapel]
[Otherworlder Weapon (Deep Purple)]
[Dagger, Heavy, Unsharpened, Durable]
[Trait: It can be used to open the seal of St. Genevieve's Chapel (Dedication Path trigger only)]
[Otherworlder Module - Fire Infusion: Pay 1-10 points of Fire attribute mana to activate a Flame Blade, lasting 1-10 minutes]
[Otherworlder Module - Light Infusion: Pay 1-10 points of Light attribute mana to activate a Holy Energy Blade, lasting 1-10 minutes]
[Otherworlder Module - Gale Infusion: Pay 1-10 points of Wind attribute mana to activate an Invisible Blade, lasting 1-10 minutes]
[Spell: Holy Sword Technique (Once per month)]
[Required: Light 11 + Fire 11 + Wind 11, OR Light 33, OR Fire 33, OR Wind 33]
[Instant, Touch, Immediate Effect]
[Effect: Sanctify this weapon, causing it to transform into Holy Sword · red-hilt sword (Holy Weapon - Two-Handed Sword, Heavy, Evil-Repelling, Sharp, Durable, Agile, wielder temporarily gains Curse Vulnerability LV4) until the next sunset, and continuously retain activated module effects]
"The key forged from Galahad's broken sword, its power and a Curse are sealed within."
No wonder Aiwass had no impression of the so-called "Bishop Mathers."
Because he was indeed not entirely from the Eternal Church… He was a native of Avalon.
His true identity was the final BOSS in a certain main quest dungeon in version 2, "Avalon's Shadow"!
An avenger from the fallen Avalon Kingdom, controlled by the Curse entwined around the reforged Holy Sword - red-hilt sword
The Cursed Paladin known as "Holy Sword Keeper Samuel"!