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The Apocalypse Grinder - Chapter 56
🕑 Added 2025-06-20 21:13:21 +0000 UTC<< Chapter 55 | Index | Chapter 57 >>
[Endless Treasury Token (Common)] has been consumed!
You have received [Eye of Oras (Common)]!
Eye of Oras (Common)
An enchanted gemstone hanging from a silver chain which bolsters the regeneration of the wearer
+1 Regeneration
[Endless Treasury Token (Common)] has been consumed!
You have received [Enticing Bait (Common) x5]!
Enticing Bait (Common)
Ground and compressed organic matter of dubious origins which attracts nearby beasts
He put the eye of oras around his neck, since a small stat buff was still a buff. As for the enticing bait, he left it in his inventory. It might come in handy in the future, but right now it was useless.
Ronan turned to the next item in the list. It was another endless treasury token, but this time of rare rarity. He had much higher hopes for it than the previous two, which hadn’t even earned him more stat fruits.
The accompanying animation and sound effects were similar to the common treasury tokens, but on a grander scale. The depictions of wealth had increased in lustre and magnitude. Ronan was almost deafened by the jangling of coins and the tinkling of gemstones as the message informing him of the results appeared.
[Endless Treasury Token (Rare)] has been consumed!
You have received [Warrior’s Fortitude Elixir (Rare)]!
Warrior’s Fortitude Elixir (Rare)
A miraculous elixir which fortifies the body against damaging side effects resulting from the consumption of body aspected cultivation shards. Effects are limited for shards over level 75 and useless against shards over level 125. The effects of the elixir last for 6 hours after consumption. Consuming further elixirs will dampen the effects, with repeated consumption causing it to become useless.
Ronan’s eyes went wide in surprise as he saw what the rare treasury token had given him. While the items from the common tokens were useful but not that great, the warrior’s fortitude elixir was another story entirely.
He had just dismissed cultivation as too reckless given the potential risks, but this elixir would alleviate those risks. There were limitations to the elixir, but they didn’t apply to him as all the shards he possessed were under the level cap of 75.
In his excitement he almost took out the shards and started cultivating on the spot, but decided against it. He was exhausted after everything they’d been through and Keith was right in saying he should get some rest. There would be plenty of time to figure the shards out when he woke up.
The final thing he did before getting some shut eye was inspect the rift key to see what it did. The description was frustratingly vague, as usual, and he ended up falling asleep halfway through cursing out the system in his head.
Rift Key (Common)
A key which grants the user access to a common tier rift
Ronan woke up feeling incredible. All the minor aches and pains he’d suffered were gone and he was filled with energy.
Unfortunately it was the middle of the night, which meant he’d likely suffer tomorrow. On the plus side, he would have some time before the sun rose to finally dip his toes in the murky waters of cultivation.
First things first, he needed to relieve Keith of his watch duty. It didn’t take long to find him. Keith was sitting on the roof of the half-constructed building, staring up at the… two… moons which dominated the night sky.
“That’s new,” Ronan said, startling the poor man so much that he nearly tumbled forwards off the building.
Ronan had jumped forward and grabbed him by the shoulders, preventing an unfortunate tragedy. “Sorry about that, didn’t mean to scare you,” he apologised.
“No worries. Two moons. Somehow that’s the least crazy thing about all of… this,” Keith said with a dry laugh while waving around at the unrecognisable landscape. “At least they’re pretty to look at.”
“That they are,” Ronan answered, forced to admit that Keith was, on occasion, right.
One of the moons resembled the old moon of Earth, but had either increased its size threefold or its orbit was much closer to their new planet, making it appear as such. As for the other, it was bright red and about half the size of the ‘regular’ moon. It had such a smooth surface that it almost resembled a star.
“You go get some sleep, I’ll keep watch until morning,” Ronan said, offering Keith one of the odd tasting protein bars by way of apology.
“Yeah, I could do with some rest. Thanks, mate. What’s the plan for tomorrow?”
“I was thinking we should explore our surroundings. Get the lay of the land around us and figure out how much has changed during the terraforming. We’ll need to secure our base of operations for what lies ahead,” Ronan explained.
“Sounds good to me. Good night, Ronan. Thanks for… everything. I’m sorry I was such a dick earlier. Looking back, I-”
“Don’t worry about it. You did what you needed to do when it mattered. Whatever this new world has in store for us, we’ll face it together,” Ronan said, cutting him off with a wave.
Keith just nodded, a strange look in his eyes as he made his way inside to get some sleep. Ronan took up watch in the same spot, occasionally glancing at the two strange moons.
With at least a few hours to himself until Keith woke up, Ronan figured it was a perfect time to use the warrior’s fortitude elixir and figure out the secrets of cultivation. He expected to encounter plenty of monsters and possibly dangerous humans as they explored their new world, so Ronan wanted every edge he could get.
He took out his five cultivation shards, laying them in order of level and type. First was the level 19 elite shard, with the boss shard coming last. He hoped to be able to use them all while the effects of the elixir persisted, but that was probably too ambitious.
Once that was done, he took the elixir out of his inventory, holding it up between two fingers. It was a glowing red liquid stored in a vial right out of a modern chemistry lab, cork and all.
Honestly Ronan had to stop himself from laughing at how much it resembled a health potion from some rpg game. However, the function of this mystery mixture couldn’t be any more different.
With nothing left to do except begin, Ronan uncorked the vial and gave the elixir a tentative sniff. The odour was warm and made his heart beat faster, as well as filling him with a sensation that he could win any fight that came his way.
He took a cautious sip, still worried it would taste awful despite the pleasant scent. He was pleasantly surprised to discover it tasted of cherries and almonds. All hesitation disappeared as Ronan upended the vial and downed the rest of the elixir in a single gulp.
Contrary to the comforting aroma and sweet taste, the effects of the warrior’s fortitude elixir were painful and immediate. Ronan felt as though molten metal was being poured through his veins.
He was forced to clench his teeth as he doubled over. The pain lessened over the course of the next thirty seconds but didn’t go away entirely. A faint stinging sensation throbbed from every cell in his body.
You have been inflicted with [Warrior’s Fortitude]!
Duration: 5 hours, 59 minutes, 59 seconds…
Inflicted is damn right, he inwardly cursed. The item description never mentioned how painful it would be.
With the timer on the elixir already starting to run down, there was no time to waste. Ronan picked up the first of his cultivation shards, the level 19 elite shard, and sat in a meditative position.
He didn’t know why he did that, but it just felt right. In the cultivation section of his status, there were four types of cultivation displayed, but all of his shards were body-aspected.
To be honest that was probably for the best. Ronan’s current fighting style was that of a melee brawler, so anything that boosted his physical prowess would be a major buff.
One worry he had was his lack of a suitable technique to absorb the shards, but he assumed the elixir would handle the consequences of that. Without further ado, Ronan focused on the shard, feeling a strange aura of strength and physical might emanating from the red crystal.
No problem, just do what all those cultivation novel protagonists do, Ronan told himself. Focus on the energy coming from the shard and attempt to draw it into my body. Easy peasy.
In the end it wasn’t that difficult. The energy was strangely responsive and the moment he tried to draw it inside himself it flowed like a tidal wave from the shard.
Unfortunately it was equally if not more painful than the warrior’s fortitude elixir had been. The sensation of burning was similar, but it came from every part of his body at once rather than just his veins.
He hoped the elixir would counteract the agony, but that was a foolish dream. As with anything related to physical training, the old adage held true—no pain, no gain. Ronan clenched his teeth as he prepared for the six hours of suffering that lay ahead of him.
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Comments
CrypticAnon
Isn’t Ronan supposed to keep watch? I guess he could fight while absorbing the shard, but it could fk him up
