As Arthur's body collided with the ground, it curled up unconsciously like a marionette without its strings. The expression plastered over his face didn't change, but the condition of his body worsened in an instant.
His hands moved unconsciously to cover his pelvic area, considering the ground could affect the area quite a lot. However, the damage had already been done. His shaft had already collapsed, and his peanuts were on the verge of cracking.
His face was encompassed in blood, and so was the rest of his body. Wood chips, sticks, sharp grass… they all impaled Arthur's body, drawing the fluid within.
Melzer rushed to him but halted his advance due to Arthur's emotionless gaze. The latter simply limped over to a safe place before assuming a meditative position. He channeled mana across his body.
"You fucking lunatic," cursed Melzer as he inspected Arthur's condition from afar. Broken bones, torn skin, and most of all… a pelvic organ on the verge of collapse. If things continued Arthur would be left infertile.
Melzer hesitantly searched through his pocket before retrieving another golden vial. However, he couldn't approach Arthur due to the aura swirling around him. "Do… not. I don't need… nectar."
"So you want to be infertile?" Melzer shot back. The man complained inwardly about Arthur's adamant nature. Melzer warned Arthur that falling flat on his body would only result in consequences he couldn't bear.
Yet, the crimson-eyed man was too much of a lunatic. Moreover, he was a lunatic that wished to display his lunacy at all times.
"I'm trying to make a skill," Arthur shot back with a gaze dripping with annoyance. "So would you shut up for a few seconds? A few seconds are all I ask."
"A new skill…" Melzer muttered under his breath. It was probably a type of regeneration skill, and the fundamentals to acquire the skill were quite simple to pick up. The only problem was concentration. Could Arthur ignore the sheer pain eating away at his sanity to create a skill?
If he could, Melzer wouldn't be able to consider him a human. Humans didn't treat their bodies like tools.
However, judging by Arthur's unwavering position and his calm aura, it seemed the man could truly numb the pain assaulting his body. Despite having a semi-crushed pelvic organ, Arthur could ignore the reactions of the pain receptors.
"How are you going to heal the brain damage?" Melzer asked. The damage from the fall didn't simply affect Arthur's physical body. It should have also damaged his neurons, which were impossible to treat without nectar.
It was one of the reasons nectar was well-renowned across Heaven's Spire. It was due to its properties capable of regenerating damaged neurons present in one's brain.
"Ever heard of something called stem cells?"
"What are those?" Melzer asked, forming an expression of confusion. Anatomy wasn't well-known on their planet, and Arthur suddenly realized that fact.
"Stem cells can help the growth of neurons… reversing brain damage," explained Arthur calmly. "Now shut up and let me order my mana circuits."
Although Melzer's mouth clamped shut at those words, he wasn't able to ignore them. Replacing neurons? Helping them grow? He knew neurons were the components that created the brain and were also known as nerve cells.
But could stem cells, something he'd never heard of, reverse the damage of nerve cells?
Nectar, Ambrosia, and a few other medicines were the only serums capable of reversing such damage. They were like divine presents that only the high-ranking clans monopolized. However, a mere man on an unknown planet could create something similar?
Melzer wouldn't have believed it if he hadn't witnessed Arthur's skills firsthand.
The skill that drained his energy… it felt like the jaws of death were wrapped around his skin. It was like he stood before a God on judgment day, waiting to be accounted for his sins and virtues.
It was a very unreal feeling.
However, somehow, releasing his true strength caused the feeling to fade. He'd glossed over it then, but he couldn't help but remember it now.
Suddenly, a violent aura raged from Arthur's body, and a flurry of system messages manifested before his eyes. Although invisible to Melzer, he could clearly sense the changes in Arthur's body.
The mana circuits were in the correct order, and the only thing left to do was to activate the skill.
[User has created a new skill.]
[Choose a name.]
'Basic Recovery,' thought Arthur, and a skill window appeared before him.
[Skill 'Basic Recovery' has been created.]
[It is registered in your status window.]
A verdant aura burst from his body, embracing it and trapping it in what seemed like a cocoon. A tremendous amount of mana was sucked from Arthur's body, but his injuries seemed to heal at a rapid rate.
The torn skin was replaced with new skin, while the broken bones simply plopped themselves back into place.
But that was it. There weren't any changes to Arthur's neurons or pelvic organ, which left the observing Melzer confused. He recalled the crimson-eyed man's words and wondered if they'd been empty.
"You're fine with being infertile?"
"No," Arthur shot a glare towards Melzer. "It'll take several hours, maybe even days to heal that. Regeneration isn't omnipotent. An Elite Ranker should know better than to expect miraculous results."
"Oh, forgive me," Melzer shot back. "I was brazen. I didn't know you could only do miracles 'sometimes.' You could've just fell on your arm and all of this could have been avoided. We could've returned to training by now."
"Who says I'm not continuing?" Arthur inquired, tilting his head.
"With a broken dick?" Melzer asked, widening his eyes. "You'll be lucky if you managed to prevent an infection, you fucking dumbass."
"You're an uncultured swine," replied Arthur. "If you're going to do masochist training, commit to it. Just like Shang."
"Who's Shang?"
"No one," replied Arthur, letting out a sigh. "We'll continue this at dusk. Go away."
Melzer muttered a few curses under his breath before disappearing. After confirming his disappearance, Arthur summoned his status window.
[Name: Arthur Solace]
[Title: None]
[Physical Age: 18]
[Skills: Sin Toll, Mana Step, Basic Recovery]
'Eventually, I'll have achieved that skill.'
