Silent Wind

< Ding! Congratulations, You have successfully absorbed the Vanishing Seed >

The message appeared before Karsha's eyes, but the changes in his body never ceased. His cells were constantly regenerating, steadily building his foundation even further.

The Vanishing Seed was one of the most challenging items for Karsha to retrieve when the system tasked him with securing it within 20 minutes. The seed came from a snake called the Grey Horn Ember. Initially, Karsha underestimated the snake, but when he confronted it, he broke into a cold sweat.

The seed rendered the snake nearly invincible to all attacks. Its speed surpassed Karsha's capabilities, and if not for the domain, he wouldn't have been able to locate and complete the quest on time.

The snake was so fast with the seed that Karsha could barely keep track of its movements. Now that the seed was in his body, it implied that he would transform into someone worthy of possessing it.

The seed had to transform Karsha into a being capable of fully harnessing the power of the Wind Seed. For someone who had already begun tempering his body, the seed seemed to have found the perfect candidate.

What is currently happening to Karsha's body is a process of modification and regeneration. It modifies his existing cells and generates new ones, making his body more adaptable to the energy hidden within.

When someone awakens an element, they gain access to a unique energy source called essence, often referred to as Elemental Essence. This energy is similar to Mana, but distinct in its properties. It allows the wielder to harness the element they have awakened. While the essence is fundamentally the same for all elements, the amount one can harness increases as their affinity with the element grows.

Additionally, the more elements a person can wield, the stronger their essence becomes. Karsha has now awakened seven elements, seven of the most powerful elements in existence. This means his core is now brimming with essence that can be harnessed at any moment.

Karsha is possibly the first to achieve this feat, granting him a significant advantage over his peers. This advantage lies in the essence and elements at his disposal. Even without Mana, he can still utilize the essence of the elements to empower his attacks.

While Mana is generally more robust than essence, a wielder's affinity can rise to a level where the strength of their essence surpasses that of Mana. All Karsha needs to do is increase his elemental affinity. However, this requires continuous training. For the Wind element, though, Karsha has gained a permanent enhancement. His body is being rebuilt to handle extreme speed, which will be invaluable as he trains for the remaining levels of the Stormsride Ninefold.

As a swordsman, Karsha is meant to achieve extreme speed—so fast that when he wields his sword, his presence will become almost invisible.

With the Wind element added to his abilities, Karsha is close to achieving that goal.

< Ding! Congratulations, You have awakened a Wind Element; Silent Wind >

< +1000 added to agility, +500 added to other stats, +100,000 added to Mana>

< You have unlocked a passive ability; Silence >

< Silent Wind >

-- With the wind as a conduit, your movement becomes swift and silent. You can tap into the essence of the wind and move with great speed while maintaining near Zero presence. The wind is your walkway so walk it to the end.

"I always welcome good things," Karsha grinned from ear to ear as he read the poetic description. With an element like this, he would be able to move more swiftly and strike with lethal precision.

What was there not to be happy about? Initially, he struggled to keep up with the overlords. His first encounter with the Scalecrusher made him realize just how slow he was.

Had it not been for the waterfall, he would have died that day. Now, however, he had awakened a unique element that had elevated his speed to the next level.

As if that wasn't enough, the element he had awakened was the undisputed Silent Wind, a type of wind element that excels at concealing the wielder's presence.

While many people and monsters are known for their high speeds, they can still be tracked using sensing techniques or spiritual senses. Their presence remains detectable, and no matter how fast they move, countering their attacks is still possible.

However, the Silent Wind surpasses most techniques and abilities. Its primary function is speed, but before that, it excels at concealing the wielder's presence based on their comprehension level.

Although Karsha is not yet invisible, once his comprehension reaches a certain point, tracking his presence will become nearly impossible. When that happens, he will become a presence from which many will flee.

Fighting something fast that cannot be sensed is a challenge few would relish.

"I wonder what the Varon family will say once they realize they sent me to an island full of treasures instead of danger," Karsha laughed loudly.

Being banished to an island full of venomous snakes seemed like the worst fate imaginable, and as a result, the Varon family faced disdain from almost everyone.

They intended to doom Karsha, but that was far from the truth. While neither Karsha nor the Varon family may know it, the Old Man and the Hell Sister played a significant role in getting him to the island.

The rest, of course, rested on Karsha's shoulders. While the system might have made things easier for him, the fact that he didn't fail any of the quests speaks volumes.

The island that was supposed to become his grave has now turned him into a force capable of fighting those three stages above him and even holding his own against those four stages above him.

While this might be true for a select few, the fact that he can squash anyone in the Grandmaster Stage speaks volumes. And this is just the beginning of his cultivation journey.

Once he unlocks his Persona, he will become even stronger than he currently is.

Of course, a significant part of his success is thanks to the Purple Tail Anacondas that aided him when he needed help.

Had it not been for Ayarr's timely intervention, he would probably be dead by now. He owes them a lot, and true to his word, Karsha will do whatever it takes to kill the Overlords, even if it's the last thing he does.

"I will be sure to teach these arrogant heirs a lesson or two. I will show them that General Karsha is no pushover," he declared. Turning back to the system, Karsha began reading the rest of the messages and learning about his newest passive ability.

< Silence >

-- Based on your comprehension of the Silent Wind element, your presence will become almost invisible making you an existence akin to a Phantom. 

While the element alone would be enough to hide his presence, Karsha is still at the beginner stage of his Silent Wind element. At this level, the element can only conceal him from those with weaker or lower cultivation stages.

Currently, even Grandmaster cultivators can sense his presence. However, with his new passive ability, he can hide his existence to a certain degree even at this stage.

While that may not seem like much, Karsha is no ordinary cultivator. He wields almost all eight primary elements and possesses incredibly high agility. His speed is already on par with a beginner Saint.

Such speed, combined with a slight ability to hide his presence, means that even those at his level will struggle to keep up with him.

While Semi-Saints and Saints might be able to detect his presence, Grandmaster stage cultivators will find it challenging. Moreover, not all Semi-Saints and Saints will be able to sense him accurately.

He is invincible among his peers, and this advantage will only grow as he advances his understanding of the Wind element.

"System, be sure to purchase cultivation methods I can use to increase my mastery of the elements. I trust your judgment to surprise me."

<Acknowledged. >

"Now to the last item, the Forbidden Fruit." A cold sweat appeared on Karsha's forehead as he mentioned it.

He obtained the last fruit from the scariest section of the island, the Eternal Abyss. It is the domain of the strongest overlord, the Abyssal Leviathan. While the Overlord didn't make an appearance when he was there, Karsha could swear he felt something calling out to him from within the forest.

The feeling was anything but good. He sensed dread, chaos, and pain emanating from the darkness, which terrified even him.

Had it not been for the venom he sought, stepping foot on that island again would have been out of the question.

There is little to no light on the island; the deeper you go, the darker it gets. Karsha could even swear he felt a distant gaze upon him when he obtained the demonic fruit.

Even the fruit scares him. It's a pitch-black, apple-like fruit. Unlike many fruits that have distinct colors, the Demon Fruit is entirely pitch black. Its appearance alone is enough to signal danger to anyone.

Karsha signed and then retrieved the demon fruit. At once, darkness started gathering around him. The fruit in his hands started absorbing the darkness and little by little, it started cracking. The visible crack could be hardly seen on the cover, but Karsha could feel them. The fruit was so dark even as it started to crack, Karsha couldn't see the cracks.

< The host is advised to consume the fruit and absorb its essence. Further delay will attract dreadful spirits... >

Karsha didn't need to think twice. He immediately tossed the fruit into his mouth, feeling an immediate darkening of his vision.

Dark smoke began to emit from the sockets of his eyes, making him look the opposite of the golden aura he had exuded just a few hours earlier.

Perhaps due to the dreadful essence of the fruit, Karsha's skin started to crack, with dark fumes seeping through.

The process continued for about two hours until he was once again cocooned, this time in pure, absolute darkness.

"Arrgh!" A hoarse scream escaped his mouth, making the cocoon shudder in response. The essence began to be absorbed, and Karsha was in for a world of pain once again.