CHAPTER 66: PRACTICE

The Voidpiercer Lance was a sleek, obsidian lance with violet Runes shimmering like stars in a dark sky on its base.

Max picked it up and began to examine it. He was mostly focusing on its physical external structure, though, as he didn’t need to know more details now.

There were various aspects he needed to know like its length, its weight, where the materials were more concentrated to give the wielder better control, its grip, and many other things.

These were just its external qualities, though.

When he progressed further to copy the Enchantments too, then he would need to study its runes, their placement, then the materials used to make the Artefacts, their concentration in the making, and many other things.

It was a long journey to become capable of bringing out Everform’s true potential, but he would. It was the path he had chosen and would follow it through.

After checking out the lance, Max asked, "Is there any place I can practice with these?"

The best way to know a weapon was to use it in a battle, well, at least for him. Since he mainly needed the external structure, he would easily understand it through practice.

After all, he had the Adaptation Skill. It would help him even here.

"There is a backroom, so just choose the one you want to practice with and come with me," Harley nodded and went towards the door.

He didn’t spend long to choose the Artefacts and picked Voidpiercer Lance, Aether Fang, and Phantom Daggers.

He then followed Harley to the backroom, where he practiced with the weapons for almost four hours.

He didn’t have a proper technique for any weapons, so Harley helped him in the best techniques for every weapon.

She was surprised at the rate Max was learning. He was like a sponge absorbing everything she threw at him so quickly that it left her baffled.

In those four hours, Max not only examined the three Artefacts but also learned some of the best techniques of those weapons.

Harley was a powerhouse, but more than that she was the mistress of information. She had the best sword, spear, and dagger techniques the Empire had to offer.

She also didn’t shy away from indulging Max about those techniques, as that was a part of their deal. She even dug out more things for him upon seeing that he was learning quickly.

However, their practice didn’t stop at that, as Harley even joined in the fun and battled Max herself.

That made his combat experience improve further and, most importantly... deadly. Harley always attacked his vital parts and sometimes used those attacks to attack other parts.

She was a master of combat and it showed. Max wanted to have some fun with her, but he soon forgot about it when he noticed how serious she was.

In the end, they continued to practice until Max was too exhausted to even hold his weapons properly.

It was past midnight by then, though he also stopped because he had to enter the Third Floor in the morning.

As he lay on the floor, catching his breaths, he went through every single mock battle he had with Harley and tried to improve however he could.

"Good job!" Harley said, as a cold metal can touched Max’s cheeks, jolting him to his butt.

He sighed and took the cold drink from her. As he relieved his thirst, Harley inspected him and said, "You’re in a better state than I imagined."

"You went easy on me," Max smiled wryly at her words.

She certainly did hold back a lot, not only power-wise but also through her techniques to not overwhelm him. Still, she had displayed more than he ever hoped.

"How are you so fast in learning things?" Harley asked.

Max stayed silent and just gave her a mysterious smile, making her lips twitch in annoyance.

"Just you wait! One day, I’ll learn all of your secrets," Harley snorted and drank her portion of the drink.

"I’m sure you will," Max chuckled softly.

"By the way, do you want to check out some shields?" Harley asked.

"I want to but I don’t have time for that," Max sighed. "I need to enter the Third Floor tomorrow otherwise I’ll need to wait for another nine days."

The entrance portal opened at different times for every floor. While the First Floor portal opened every day, the Second Floor opened every four days, and the Third Floor took a total of nine days to open and so on.

So, if he didn’t enter the Portal in the morning, he would have to wait another nine days. There was no going around it, sadly.

"I see. Then, I’ll help you with the Manaflow Restoration Elixir," Harley nodded and gave him the Manaflow Restoration Elixir.

Max took it from her hands and remembered how he needed to take it. However, he decided to follow her instructions just to be on the safe side.

"Thanks!"

"It’s not really that complicated. All I need to do is keep an eye on you so that you don’t burn your Mana Veins," Harley smiled and said. "Now sit in the Lotus position and drink it."

Max did as he was told and sat up properly. Then, he opened the packet, taking out a purple colored glass bottle sealed with a wooden cap.

Just when he was going to drink it, he heard Harley’s words.

"Remember one thing, the Manaflow Restoration Elixir contains ingredients that are highly dangerous to pretty much everything except for Mana. That’s how it cleanses those blockings, but it could also burn the Mana Veins, potentially doing permanent damage."

Max shivered hearing that, quite thankful he had decided to follow her instructions because the Tier 2 Manaflow Restoration Elixir was not this dangerous.

"There is the Twin Spirit Flower mixed in it, so it will protect your insides for a while and give you enough time to make the preparation for the actual Elixirs."

He paid extra attention when she got to that part.

"I’ve seen your Mana control, and while it isn’t the best, it’s quite good. So use it to coat your Mana Veins so that when the Elixir passes through them, only the blocking gets harmed."