Infinite Potential System

Chapter 516 Hidden Effects? A New Quest!

Becoming stronger had made William forget what creating Spells used to be like. Magic was like second nature to him now, but back in the Gravitas Ruins he had once beheaded himself while trying to learn the functions of the Space Element.

Other Elements had similar impacts. The Fire Element was easy to visualize and was William's first Affinity, but it also taught him about Mana Sickness and the dangers of upgrading Elements if his body wasn't strong enough.

Chaos reminded William that even his own power could turn against him if he wasn't careful, and Order spoke volumes of the Elements' intelligence, and that they weren't as two-dimensional as they seemed.

One thing was consistent across all Elements, and that was visualization. Without it, William wouldn't be able to cast a single Spell. If he didn't visualize the flow of Mana, he wouldn't be able to use it, and if he didn't visualize the Mana gathered into his desired form, the same would happen.

In two months, four years would have passed since William was transported to Efretta. In those four years, he had plenty of time to understand how each Element functioned, but the truth was that he was still very inexperienced in several of them.

When William tried to create Ascended Granite with the Earth Element, this was what stopped him from developing a suitable Spell. If he couldn't properly visualize what Ascended Granite looked like, what it felt like, and how strong it was, he wouldn't be able to conjure it up.

He scanned his memories for any moments in which he would have come in contact with Ascended materials— anything that had to do with the Earth Element. After a bit of carefully inspecting several unique terrain features, William had an idea of what Ascended Granite looked like, among other things.

Several thousand Mana went into creating a block of Ascended Granite, but it promptly exploded before William could finish channeling the Spell. It was an instantaneous failure, but he was at least successful in producing an Ascension-level material.

He tried again, this time with even more Mana to hold it in place. William assumed that since he was in the Celestial Planes, he simply hadn't used enough.

"Boom!" the granite powder exploded before it could even fully form. It was obvious that his logic was reversed.

He tried once more, creating a half-meter cube of lightweight Ascended Granite that floated above his fingertips. He used only three hundred Mana this time, which seemed to be an almost perfect ratio for the material.

Developed a new Spell: +1 PP

New Spell: Ascended Granite

William didn't care about the reward for creating a new Spell, nor was he happy with the process. He spent almost five minutes trying to create one of the most basic Ascended materials, using a Talent with Magic Control that far, far exceeded the minimum requirements.

If William didn't have his two hundred times bonus to Earth Magic combined with the Mana Dominator Talent, the five minutes spent would have turned into over a thousand minutes, maybe even two thousand. In short, it would have normally taken him more than a day to figure out how to develop one of the simplest Ascended Spells.

This had nothing to do with his Talents, but entirely because of his learning ability, and how unfamiliar he was with the Earth Element. A child could come up with his repertoire of Spells. Earth Wall? A Comet Pellet that is really just glorified compressed dirt? Something within William made him realize that he was actually quite pathetic.

My Earth Element is strong now. I need to improve my skills with it, before these Talents become a crutch.

He had thought this before, but it wasn't as obvious then as it is now. The System couldn't possibly be all-powerful. It too had rules to follow, and that wasn't something William wanted from his future.

He made a silent decision to clear the remainder of the Quake Dungeon with only the Earth Element, unless it truly wasn't possible. Professor Tenningbrew said earlier that he recommended William go to this place because of his Affinity for the Earth Element, but William was only just now realizing what he meant.

This is a training ground for students of the Filem Academy. There are probably dozens more Dungeons scattered across the Plane with similar functions. Obviously, the Academy staff are familiar with the layout of these Dungeons, right?

Which means... Earth Mages have some sort of advantage here?

-It took you this long to figure it out? Amazing deduction skills.

He didn't care about the System's sarcastic remark. If anything, it simply proved that his thinking was correct. If his theory was correct, Earth Mages can not only gain treasures from clearing the Dungeon, but they also gain experience in dealing with all sorts of problems!

In short, the further a Cultivator could get in the Dungeon with just the Earth Element, the more versatile they were!

I've cleared so far up the Dungeon now that no one is going to catch up to my progression in the short term. William thought to himself.

I don't have to worry about anyone stealing my loot from the higher floors, and the System Quests have all been cleared. The Vice Principal wants me to deal with one of the Elemental Realms, but who knows how old that man is? He probably wouldn't care if I waited a thousand years to go inside.

For the first time, William realized that he wasn't in imminent danger, nor were there any upcoming events he absolutely needed to make it to. The Cultivator's Induction Competition wouldn't start its next event until the end of the school year, so William had 11 entire months to train and prepare.

But if he cleared the Quake Dungeon, wouldn't that attract exactly the kind of attention he wanted to avoid? He would also lose this moment of respite, and he would quickly lose control over his own life.

———

System Quest: The Host has discovered the purpose of the Quake Dungeon training grounds, and identified a series of events that could destroy the Host's potential. Clear all 40 Floors of the Quake Dungeon using only the Earth Element. Floors cleared with Spells other than from the Earth Element will not be counted towards the progress bar.

Difficulty: Impossible

Rewards: 500 Ascended Points + Secret knowledge of the Earth Element

Penalties: None

Time Limit: 361 Days (December 30th, 2028)

Floors Cleared: 0/40

Note: Difficulty of Quest is relative to the Host's current strength. Difficulty will decrease as Host's strength improves.

———

Seeing the System Quest issued gave William even more motivation to complete the Quake Dungeon. He didn't care that his progress had been wiped, or that he'd have to start from the first floor again, because this would just provide more opportunities to collect loot.

Besides, with his current Earth Element, the earlier floors would be a piece of cake; it would barely waste any time. There was just one thing he wanted to do first, since this would be the last time he was alone at least until he reached the 15th floor again.

Before I go down there, this would be a great time to learn more Spells! The more the merrier!