[Profile]
Host: Ashton West
Race: Human
Aptitude:
Mageroot: Mysterious Rainbow
Magical Artifact: Unsealed Book of Infinity
Providence: Fey Emperor's Grace.
Traits: Purity, Scholar
Specialization: White Mage, Gunslinger
Rank: Lv.8 Warlock (4th Refinement)
• Virtues: Mana, Purity, Life, Death, Water, Fire, Earth, Space.
Cultivation Technique: Treasure Glazed Nine-Refinements Sutra
Skill Points: 549
Spell Points: 0
***
There have been changes to Ashton's profile ever since he returned to Last Bastion.
He managed to raise his cultivation to Lv.8 Warlock Rank and refined it up to four times within a short period of time. If anybody knew about this, they'd probably throw a fit since this cultivation speed was just unreal.
If there's one thing that Ashton doesn't fully understand about his arsenal, that would be his Virtues.
The first few...he could understand, after all, he was aiming for those. But from the 5th until the 8th Virtue, those are something that just came to him naturally during his breakthroughs.
Now, he's not saying that they're unwanted nor is he saying that the Virtues he comprehended were weak because truthfully, they're not.
Water, Fire, Earth? Anybody would be happy to comprehend even a single one of these Virtues yet he had them all. Not to mention, there's also Space too.
The Virtue of Space is so incredibly elusive that only a handful of people in all of humanity's history managed to be blessed by it, and all of them ended up being celebrated as legends of their own accord.
So, really, Ashton couldn't complain about these.
It's just that...he didn't understand why he has them.
Back then, when he comprehended the Virtue of Water, he was still cursed. But even with that, it still happened.
Now that he's not cursed anymore, it continued. Followed by Fire, Earth, and Space.
As far as he knows, the likelihood of encountering a Virtue during a Breakthrough was already abysmal. Yet for some reason, it's the opposite for him.
He didn't even need to do anything, it just happens. And it's weird because, for some reason, he feels like he doesn't deserve them, but he's also not going to turn away an opportunity like that so he ends up getting them anyway.
This seemingly simple yet complex array of Virtues made Ashton incredibly powerful. It allowed him to stand at the same level as those who already broke through their mortal shackles.
Sure, the speed of his cultivation was bound to take a hit because of how ridiculously powerful he was getting but Ashton discovers more ways to neutralize that and progress at an alarming speed that would leave people speechless.
If things really continued this way, he'd truly step into the Sorcerer Rank by next year. Although he would have no way of knowing what would his last Virtue would be, that's fine. He's strong enough anyway.
Closing the Profile Page, Ashton sighed and rested his back against his chair. He looked at an empty space and couldn't help but feel a little bored.
'What's the use of having this much power if I'm going to end up as a paper-pusher anyways.'
Another sigh escaped his lips. Paperwork was quickly turning out to be something that he'll never miss once the development of Fantasia stabilizes completely and could be left with Jerry to manage.
'We're nearly there...' he mused to himself.
There were many things that he still has to pay attention to for now, but it's never piling up on him since he works fast.
'Perks of an enhanced intelligence and being able to multi-task, I guess.'
But that's exactly what makes it boring...
Aside from his usual training routine to keep his instincts sharp enough, there's no other action to be had while in here.
Yes, this was his intention for the sake of many, after all, others can only take so much harassment from the enemy until they eventually break. But without anyone to play with, Ashton felt bored.
Fortunately, this is a him problem...
Peace and serenity were good for the territory since that was the perfect atmosphere for development to prosper.
Ding!
A system prompt appeared before him. It was a notification from the Party Chat, one that belongs to the Big 3.
Ashton's face turned serious as he opened the chat without any hesitation.
[Batch 9022 GC]
Blake: Yo, Boss! We're done with the mission.
Blake sent a photo.
Mary: I hate here, please ferry us back home.
Alice: Same, Ash take us back home pls.
GM: Sigh, only because it's you guys.
GM: Find a place where there will be no disturbance. Tell me when you're ready.
***
As soon as he sent this, Ashton left his office, appearing at the guild hall where the members are hanging out.
He could hear some people saying how they can never get used to him appearing out of nowhere like a ghost but Ashton doesn't have time to be bothered by these.
Instead, he found a relatively spacious spot in the hall and waited.
When he got the green signal from the Big 3, he initialized the Spatial Fold.
Spatial Fold is a Spell that Ashton invented. After learning the movement technique: Vorpal Steps and gaining more insights about the Virtues of Space, Ashton could effectively fold space between himself and his target.
Doing this allows him to shorten the amount of time needed for him to go from Point A to Point B. Similarly, he could also use this to shorten the trip of his friends back home.
That being said, due to the distance, this process can be incredibly taxing for Ashton. Anywhere within the Last Bastion is fine since this is practically his turf, but the outside?
The Outside World will actively make an effort to stop him. This is because of the Foreign Races' influence on the land. Therefore, folding the space that doesn't 'belong' to him, will take a more considerable amount of effort.
The Guild Members who happened to be there at that moment felt weird.
Most of them knew who the Guild Master was, they've interacted with him and were even coached by him on several occasions now.
Aside from those heterochromatic eyes of his, nothing else stands out from him. That's what most of them think. Sometimes, they are even wondering if he was truly the Guild Master or some imposter instead.
Sufficed to say, none of them saw him in action yet. In fact, even though some people already received his buffs, they were still doubting him since they never saw him personally casting them. Justin, Doug, and the rest of the Guild Members never saw him fight or anything, he just appears here and now, sometimes he would make an announcement or two but that's about it.
Though now...now they could see why he's the Guild Master.
The sheer density of mana he was exuding was dominating, some people reckoned that he has enough mana to flood this entire guild if he wanted to.
With his back facing them, his clothes flapping due to the strong wind and that incredible pressure he's exuding just from the way he stood. He had every look and feel of a true and experienced expert.
They saw him holding out his hand in front of him. They saw how the space in front of him twisted and turned, seemingly being controlled.
Then, they saw him performing a diagonal chop using his bare hand, and all of a sudden, the space in front of him distorted.
It twisted and turned until it became a portal. A portal where Ashton called out: "It's safe now, you can enter."
Not even a few seconds later, a leg popped out from the opposite side of the portal, followed by the torso and the head.
"Oh, it's the Big 3!" Someone from the crowd exclaimed.
Now, the Guild Members finally understood what was happening, as it turns out, the Guild Master was ferrying them back home. Though, looking at how exhausted the Guild Master looked like, it would seem that this takes a lot out of him.
"...are you okay?" Mary asked after seeing Ashton's pale face.
"I will be." He shrugged and waved his hand. "Anyway, let's see the goods."
The portal closed off and the space returned to its usual behavior. It was Blake who took out a special bag with limited space which could contain living organisms.
The Guild Members reeled back in alarm as soon as the creatures were freed.
10 Beast Demons immediately appeared and started growling everywhere. Their auras struck fear in many, they even started corrupting the Guild Hall. But how could Ashton allow them to do as they please?
"Behave."
This one word he said echoed in everyone's ears, causing them to freeze where they stood. His voice was filled with unquestionable authority and power.
And it seems that it was more effective to the Beast Demons, because the moment they heard his voice, they all collectively recoiled in abject fear and whimpered.
Ashton just snapped his fingers and the corruption immediately vanished without a trace.
They all saw how the Beast Demons cowered as Ashton started inspecting them one by one before nodding and telling the Big 3 that they did well in hauling these.
Ashton then collected the Beast Demons before asking the Big 3 to follow him, leaving the Guild Members to collect themselves in their absence.
Then, someone from the crowd said:
"Phew! I guess he isn't the Guild Master for nothing."
The collective silence that went on after that was the subtle agreement of everybody who witnessed that.
