B2 Chapter 4: Fumigation

[Year 21 Month 9: A month later]

[Blessed: 3748 – 5 + 2]

[Marked: 2500 – 1 + 1]

Codex hit his level cap once again, and this time, at level twenty, he unlocked a much better skill that would still work in tandem with [Simulation]. It was [Analyze] the backbone to any scientific civilization and a consistent staple in any isekiad hero’s skill list, and up till now, I didn’t have it. Each use of his ability would consume a small amount of whatever was analyzed, but its uses far outweigh its cons.

Instantly, I assigned the runic researcher to re-analyze every material we had made, and while some of it had been devoured by the miasma that even now was still lingering in small quantities, his two skills in tandem allowed him to extrapolate the other aspects of the technically non-existent materials. It wouldn’t be as accurate, and need testing once I could produce them, but it would do for now.

Of course, the first thing I had him analyze was multiple portions of mana steel and the holy metal I had left over. I had been curious about both of their compositions and how they compared to one another, considering their properties that had differing effects on mana. Curiously, Codex revealed something interesting during his analysis.

“They are made of the same material.” The researcher spoke, “But their structures are completely different in nature. The manasteel is a highly dense crystalline lattice that has been naturally infused with a great deal of ambient mana. It makes sense that it is rare, as such regions are few and far between, with the Wildlands being the best but most dangerous source.”

The researcher paused, going back over the more anomalous holy metal. “The holy metal is perfect, unnaturally so. Similar to the manasteel, it has a dense crystal lattice, but feels like it’s been grown in a highly specific manner, and then influenced by the divine energies that course through it. I will need to do further research on the holy metal to see if it’s possible to create our own version. It is possible that it requires a divine being to bless, but it may not be required. This will likely consume the remnants of the metal.”

I thought about it and ended up agreeing. We had salvaged a few kilos of the material from the Commander’s armor set, but most of it had been consumed by the explosion that occurred. If we could create something even somewhat similar, though, it would be worth it.

Thinking for a moment, I asked Codex, “What about mana steel? Can we synthesis that too?”

“Yes, it should be rather simple once we regain the proper facilities to do so. Our previous mana experiment didn’t have a catalyst, which is the probable reason for the mana degradation and subsequent explosion. If we were to introduce a refined crystal to a highly dense mana environment, it would likely create an equivalent mass of mana steel. The crystal refinement itself will take one of the dwarven crucibles to reach adequate temperatures, however.”

“Sounds good,” I replied. “We can have that moved to one of the newly explored rooms; it will just take some time,” I almost dismissed him before I realized something. “Codex? What are the restrictions on [Analyze]? Is there a range limit?”

Pausing for a moment, the assistant spoke, “If an object is within a short range of any pillar or obelisk, I can use my skill. What do you want to analyze?”

Rubbing my imaginary hands together, I said, “Well… the miasma, of course.”

It was time to see what we were dealing with.

****

Codex took two days to process the information, and yes. The mist was not alive but not inanimate either, which was a horrifying thought. On a microscopic level, they were essentially a virus that hunted for anything living or having been made by living beings.

It’s like they were made to wipe the world clean, to reset it to the bacterial stage of life.

There was a caveat to that, and it was underwater. A few nearby streams proved that the miasma wouldn’t spread into water sources and would just sit on the surface, rather than diffusing into the liquid.

I wonder why? Perhaps some limitation of the mist itself rather than an intended feature? Or was it made to be like that?

It all clicked into place, the Vexus… were really an underwater civilization of beast tamers looking to take back over the surface world… yeah, no, I didn’t really think that, sounded good though.

Anyways, for whatever reason, the viral lifeform refused to diffuse into water, which was a really, really positive fact. It meant that the rest of the world was certainly left intact, as it wouldn’t be able to replicate itself enough to expand across the ocean, not with limited biomass.

Since they were somewhat like most life, I was almost positive that it would be possible to get rid of the persistent mist. But the presence of magic made anything I learned on Earth not always consistent.

As I continued to stir over the possibilities, it struck me. The solution was simple. The core part of the wildlands naturally pushed back at the miasma with tremendous amounts of mana, and while I could do something similar, it would be prohibitively expensive. When I had flooded the Vexus Boss battle with mana, it required me to drain a large portion of the Wildlands. Truthfully, it would have probably been in much better shape if I had done nothing, and I was worried of destablizing it further.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

So with overwhelming mana out of the picture, I considered the other, hopefully more reasonable situation. According to Codex’s new data, while almost indetectable, the all-consuming Vexus swarm generated a tiny amount of corrupted mana, and like anything else related to the invaders, couldn’t survive without it if I could somehow purify it into normal mana, which, logically, should be possible as the Vexus turned normal mana into their own corrupted mana. It was as simple as reversing the formula. The problem was… actually doing it.

We would require a ‘live’ sample, if the miasma could really qualify as live. It would be tricky to gather, as it would consume refined materials, and they could target my golems and use the mana within them to multiply.

On second thought, maybe that’s how I figure it out. Create a golem out of raw materials, like a boulder, and once its mana is drained, it collapses in on itself, sealing it inside. With walls not being an issue, I could better observe it and have Codex run some experiments.

The biggest issue would be sealing it completely. The issue we had with collapsing tunnels is that the microscopic cracks were still large enough that the miasma could make its way through, essentially ignoring obstacles. We avoided this by using Therisa’s skill to completely fill in the cracks.

I would need some help, and here comes the Ebonguard’s use. Many of the local craftsmen had joined the burgeoning bureaucratic, theocratic, and religious group.