The three Starless Summons were promoted to 1-Star Warriors by unraveling bits of their hidden potential.
Upon unleashing their hidden potential, the presence of the Starless Summons changed gradually. Their muscles bulged a little bit, and the origin energy coursing through their veins grew more potent.
They were all born as blank sheets without any special talent granted by the Will of the Origin Expanse, but now they were slowly developing into sharp blade. Basic knowledge about the essence of combat, weapon mastery, and tactics entered their minds, evolving the weaponless sheep into fierce wolves.
The Starless Summons' minds grew more mature and affine to the essence of combat and warfare. They kept changing constantly under the influence of the promotion to 1-Star Warriors. Several hours passed, but not a single spectator left. Everyone observed their transformation and the events of their promotion to 1-Star Warriors with interest.
It was a magnificent event, and the spark of hope most Starless Summons desperately needed. Almost all Starless Summons were unsatisfied with their potential and progress so far. They didn't understand why they were resurrected as Starless Summons when thousands of their brethren had been resurrected and summoned as 1-Star Summons.
Most Starless Summons felt that it was unfair. They were Starless and were thus mostly used as a workforce, whether it was on the farmlands to support the Farmers and Gardeners, assist in the kitchen, join the construction sites as laborers, or assist the Alchemists, Blacksmiths, or Enchanters in their work.
They were merely a workforce to support the Starred Summons. At first, that might have been fine. Some might even think that it was fine to keep working like this forever. They were given a place to sleep, and enough free time to entertain themselves, and the amount of food they were given was far more than most of them could eat.
As long as they were given the means to survive and live a pleasant life in Michael's territory these Starless Summons would be fine.
However, the majority desired more. They wanted to be more than just helpers. They wanted to be of immense value. But they thought that it was impossible. Their potential was horrendous, and not even 1 out of 10,000 Starless Summons had the chance to naturally attain enlightenment and be promoted to a 1-Star Summon.
And witnessing the promotion of three Starless Summons to 1-Star Warriors gave them just that- hope to change everything.
Every Starless Summon, who witnessed the potency of the Warrior Enlightenment Potion was starstruck. Only two batches of these potions had been distributed up to this point, yet three Starless Summons had already attained enlightenment. Their fates changed between one moment and the next. One moment they were laborers, but the next moment they entered Michael's army, and were given the opportunity to use the energy absorption technique Pandemonium's Requiem, Energy Nourishing Pills, Body Strengthening Pills, and Sacred Rectification as the warrior-specific body refinement technique.
Their strength would increase by leaps and bounds within the next few days, their lifespan would increase by advancing to Tier-1, and they were given more opportunities to study more about Berserkers, Knights, and other 2-Star combat occupations.
All it took to change their lives forever was to work hard and be noticed by their Lord's attendants. Once noticed, they would be given Warrior Enlightenment Potions, and their future would take a new direction.
Various thoughts ran through the minds of the Starless Summons, whether they were questions, doubts, or foolish thoughts. But all of them circled back to one particular thought, and desire- All of them wanted to grasp the opportunity and become 1-Star Warriors through the Warrior Enlightenment Potions.
Observing the reaction of his Summons, Michael felt blessed, but also a bit pressured. It was a blessing that his spar with Tiara and the Forest Elven Adventurers resulted in the promotion of three Starless Summons. Hundreds of Starless Summons witnessed the birth of three 1-Star Warriors. It was extraordinary.
Michael couldn't have wished for a better for his Warrior Enlightenment Potion.
However, there were two downsides – of which one could be considered a peculiar problem.
The real problem was that Michael witnessed humans' greed more often than he wanted to acknowledge. He nearly fell victim to it as well. Thus, he knew that the scarcity of Warrior Enlightenment Potions, and the competition for every bottle would end up with quarrels.
As long as the Starless Summons fought only a little, Michael's military force could keep the situation under control. However, once the first murder occurred, things would change.
The crime rate in Michael's territory was eerily low because everyone was mostly satisfied with the benefits they obtained from being Michael's subordinates. Michael had always been focusing on creating tight-knit Links of Loyalty with his subordinates, resulting in him treating his subjects like family. He gave them everything they needed and more.
However, that was not possible with rare resources such as Energy Nourishing Pills, Body Strengthening Pills, and the Warrior Enlightenment Potions. There were many other resources Michael couldn't share with everyone. Thus, it had been quite a while since he created different levels of treatment.
Those who didn't want to do anything were given a small bed and enough food to survive. They shared their High Treehouse with dozens of people but were still given enough space to allow survival.
The people who worked hard were given their home, enough free time for entertainment, and the opportunity to build a family, go to school, get educated, and make themselves useful for the Librarians and scholars afterward, or to train and potentially become Warriors or practice other Combat Occupations.
They often became apprentices and made an effort to become a valuable asset to the territory. Thus, they were given much better treatment than those, who were merely given food and a place to sleep because they were connected to Michael via the Link of Loyalty.
Afterward, summons that had jobs with responsibilities and a certain danger level were given better treatment. Their value was determined through their occupations, achievements, and how hard they worked and they were given special incentives such as Energy Pills, Energy Potions, highly nutritious meals, and much more.
The Military was given the best treatment as they put their lives on the line whenever they left the territory. They had to grow rapidly into powerful Warriors to protect the weak with their sharp blades, or fast Scouts to scout the surrounding area. It was only given that Michael provided them with Energy Nourishing Pills, Body Strengthening Pills, and special techniques to ensure their growth and safety. After all, they were the first line of defense so if the military crumbled nothing else would survive for long.
But the treatment and benefits received by those in the military and other occupations were not uniform either. Everyone had different responsibilities and they were given the perks and benefits accordingly.
Tiara and The Forest Elven Adventurers were not only the strongest but they were also the Captains of their respective teams. They were responsible for the lives of hundreds of team members. Thus, they were given a slightly preferential treatment to ensure that they would be strong enough to control their subordinates, and lead their Unit to victory!
Michael was about to create Spirit Weapons and other Armaments using the Relic of Draka. They wouldn't be given to just anyone because the Relic of Draka could only create one Spirit Armament in six hours. To be precise, six hours was the least amount of time required for it to produce an ordinary longsword with low external enhancements.
Michael was certain that products such as a Spirit Armor Set created from highly purified Zention ore would require days. Since Michael wanted to focus on enhancing the combat prowess of his strongest fighters it made no sense to create Spirit Armaments weaker than 1-Star Tier-2 Artifacts. They required 2-3 days to be completed, meaning that the Relic of Draka produced merely 10 Tier-2 Spirit Armaments a month.
One month was a long time. It was more than enough to turn a Starless Summon into a 1-Star Warrior, and nourish him into a Mid TIer-1 Warrior – if they worked day-in and day-out. 2-Star Knights and Berserkers had enough potential and comprehension of energy absorption techniques to use Energy Nourishing Pills to advance to the 2nd Tier within two months – once Michael's territory could produce enough Energy Nourishing Pills for everyone.
Thus, given that Michael summoned dozens of 2-Star Summons alone from daily Summons, he would never have enough Spirit Armaments for everyone. That meant he had to give the Spirit Armaments to those Summons, who contributed the most on the battlefield if he wanted to fuel the motivation of the rest.
Michael never really liked to manipulate others, but there was nothing else he could do about it. Playing favoritism in his territory wouldn't be a good thing, so he had to use his Summons' contribution to determine their treatment level.
This only left him with the peculiar problem Michael faced since he came back from the Lord Rift.
The potency of the Body Strengthening Pill and the Energy Nourishing Pill was exceptional. They were more than tenfold more potent than ordinary pills. Adding the high demand and low supply for them, followed by the desired Warrior Enlightenment Potions his Starless Summons wanted, Michael began to note that he lacked ingredients the most.
He had many Alchemists, but he lacked the tools, and ingredients to mass produce anything. His Alchemists could learn to mass produce everything, but that would require time, effort, and resources.
Unfortunately, he didn't have time or resources given the impatience of his Summons. And Michael understood their desire very well. He wanted to grow stronger as well, after all!
