Second Set of Excerpts

With these additions, all chapters now have excerpts.

Chapter 21

Is there any mana orb more varied than the elemental orb? Perhaps possibly the matter orb, but the rarity of those makes focusing writing on them considerably difficult. The mana orb, from nearly the start, has six different possible focuses that grow even more unique as the ranks of the orb increase. The rumors of just what can be controlled at the highest levels should scare anyone facing off against such a host.

The Many Facets of Elemental Mana Orbs by Henjen Klank

Chapter 22

Does the ranking of affinities even matter? Sure, people often get them when their core forms, but as no link can be found for their evolution, what exactly does the rank mean? It would help if we had a complete study of a person before and after gaining their affinity, but the logistics of doing that seem like a nightmare.

Taken from Karlinovo’s submission to a newspaper.

Chapter 23

Once the soul-core reaction has begun, the need for food will rapidly increase; this is one of the reasons the Arena dining halls are always overflowing with food on the lower levels. The problem is, though, as your mana usage climbs, food won’t always be enough to keep up. Those who have moved into their first transcendence must begin to develop their own mana flows if they hope to push further, but that isn’t what you’re reading this cookbook for. Let’s start with one of my more favored dishes, spacial stew…

100 Recipes for Your Core by Jordan Hamsy

Chapter 24

Cactomen hail from one of the rare Spiral universes that have shattered and fallen into the darkness of chaotic space. Their various settlements across other Spiral worlds are the descendants of those lucky enough not to be in their home universe when it happened. Their status has never recovered, and few even bother to Arena climb these days.

Peoples of the Shattering

Chapter 25

The Life mana orb was once considered a revolutionary advancement in magical skills throughout the Spiral; now, it's one of the most common orbs in existence. Like the Shield mana orb, many try to keep one in reserve, swapping it into their core during moments of desperation. The problem with this move is that they are often ranked for the task needed. That said, they are still the first mana orb any settlement makes an attempt to acquire.

Mana Sources by Henjen Klank

Chapter 26

The negatives of aging are now symptoms belonging only to the poor. Those most capable of escaping their beginnings can soon find themselves in a world of immortals, where age is but a costume worn to convince others of their years of built-up wisdom. Often, though, the offered wisdom is just another disguise for something else. The gatherings of truly ancient beings have started to grate on me. Is this all we chose to live for?

The Last Recorded Words of Zhrole

Chapter 27

Environmental replication skills are some of the most sought-after skills. They can give anyone who can access them an easy leg up, sometimes even bridging the gap between someone with no access to the greater resources elite factions have to someone born in poverty. Given the right commerce world and suitably trained transmogrifier, enough wealth has been known to change hands to buy an entire faction before…

Rare Skills & Their Value by Kongus Kingly

Chapter 28

One of the things that I most wanted to know before I began my experiments was how the System used replication skills to create experience. Where was the experience coming from? In the time it took me to find twenty people willing to speak on their extra sockets, I found a total of one willing to talk about their replication skill, and by the time I arrived to speak to them, they had already sold it to the Windows & Doors Dynasty, which means I’ll hear nothing else about it, damn those secretive bastards.

Karlinovo’s What is Experience?

Chapter 29

The transmogrifier is not a career choice; it is a calling. It isn’t a job you get to work towards, it’s something the System decided you should be one day, and if you don’t choose the path, you’re a fool. It has very little risk, and the demands by the elite for your services will make you rich beyond your wildest dreams within the first year. Most won’t even have to do anything horrible in their activities, as there are very few transmogrifiers out there capable of ripping a skill from an unwilling subject. Few, but not zero.

System Paths, Careers in the Spiral by Glarppp

Chapter 30

System exploitation is a tried and true method of maximizing your gains while minimizing your losses. One must be careful on how far they are willing to push it in combat, though. There have been many lives lost to someone trying to fight a dungeon core boss without using their mana orbs or setting aside their weapon to wrestle a simple squirrel. It’s important to remember that experience is worthless if you're dead, and it’s pretty unlikely you have the connections to make death nothing but an inconvenience.

Grom’s Musings

Chapter 31

System Breakers, a path no sane person chooses, is something you do totally alone. There is no guide; there won’t be any mentor figure. There is maybe one of them a generation, and should the factions learn about them before they have a chance to push themselves far enough along the path, it will be a very short one. Should a System Breaker grow strong enough, there is little that will stand in their way. A System Breaker at their peak will change everything.

The Forbidden Paths by Glarppp

Chapter 32

Mana backlash as a power source is an extremely dangerous path, but it is viable. There's a group of warriors that call themselves masokinetics, and they utilize their own backlash pain to push their spells even stronger. Some of them are even capable of fighting well beyond the point they should be dead and yet somehow returning very much alive in the future. These are the elite warriors of the Phrentic Collective.

Mana Sources by Henjen Klank