Unchosen Champion-Chapter 330: Second Phase
Coop finally made his return to the Coral Forest. It was actually something like the fifth time he had entered the strange natural domain, so he believed he knew what to expect before he leapt beyond the edge. The unfamiliar sights that hailed his arrival had other ideas. His expectations were overwhelmed as soon as he crossed the threshold between Ghost Reef territory and the confines of the mana well. All of his senses were flooded by curiosities, and that feeling extended to his mana sight, sending his new sixth sense into overdrive, making it feel like he was submerged in a sea of clear energy, the density of which actually matched the ocean. The place was unlike any other on the planet.
When Coop leapt down the physics-defying hole in the sea and landed on the first prominent coral platform, he had to stop and admire his surroundings. He stood in the exact center of the waterfall, on top of a rough surface that displayed an impossibly deep purple, pockmarked by vivid shades of blue and green carved throughout, as if revealing more layers hidden within the structure. The whole thing was periodically highlighted with brilliant flashes of neon, like mana was bursting to life from within the formation at random points across its surface, providing focal points of concentrated energy. Before even looking past his feet, he had already caught himself absently oohing and aahing.
The one platform blew his memories away with new fascinations seen from a new perspective. Though the mana well had been physically preserved to almost exactly how he remembered it, he had somehow forgotten the staggering scale and intensely alien sensation of being among the open-air deep-sea environment. Water splashed onto one side of the coral from the waterfall, flooding its spiral pattern and sliding down its edges like an illuminated waterslide, concealing the full extent of its growth below. The water flowed through the flat twists of the platform while falling past the other edges before being caught by other grooved structures of varying shapes and designs.
When he tore his vision away from the surfaces and glanced back up at the sky, following the unbroken cascades of salt water with his eyes, he felt himself shaking his head in awe. The skylight was surrounded by smooth glassy flows of salt water falling until they collided with eager coral heads. It altered his perspective so much, he almost couldn’t recognize the red-streaked heavens. It was the second time he had felt like he was transported to another planet after returning to Ghost Reef, and both times had been an exhibition of Earth itself. Humanity’s home really was special.
When he finally tore himself away from the artful display and moved on from the literal first platform of the Coral Forest, flicking his hair back after crashing through the thin shower of water to enter the domain proper and follow a clearly demarcated path, he continued to be amazed by every structure and motion. Delving into the limestone ceilinged caverns reignited his excitement and admiration just a moment after he thought he had calmed himself down and was ready to move forward.
He was presented with a massive natural promenade filled with fingers of crystalline coral that curved over each other, shimmering and refracting light in unexpected ways at each branch. Eerie patterns of light poured through the thick atmosphere, casting soft dancing shadows along the ceiling and walls after splitting through prisms of translucent coral rock, briefly revealing tiny cutaways and dark narrow tunnels that had been formed by smaller pioneering creatures. The fluctuations of color cascaded through the well like a submerged light in a nighttime pool. The surfaces that caught the light were all layered, with corals growing on top of each other such that the actual limits of the domain were difficult to really discern by sight. Even with the eager, mana-empowered growth, the scale of the domain was completely undiminished. He was a tiny figure in a forest of giants.
If he sought the gaps between towering corals, no matter where he looked, his vision would be interrupted by yet another column, covered in other growths, reminding him in a way of the density of the rainforests in Central America and the competition for canopy real estate. The corals provided a kaleidoscope of colors, always maintaining the palette of Earth’s underwater environments, but in the open air, lacking the refraction of the deep sea, they created a visual feast that nightclubs could have only dreamed of achieving. The scenery was all further bolstered by the thickness of the mana in the atmosphere, providing a tangible depth even to the open air between gargantuan coral structures.
Coop had secretly been expecting to find the mana ignited with power, vibrating throughout the zone, as if it had received its own upgrade after the settlement interacted with the mana well in a new way, but not much had really changed. If anything, it was calmer than he remembered.
Still, as he looked back at the sheer cascade of seawater that rained down in a perfect ring from the connection to the surface, he felt as if his nostalgia for the sense of exploration he had felt when he wandered into the Coral Forest for the first time was fulfilled. The changes that he could detect weren’t caused by the settlement upgrade at all. The Coral Forest was simply a growing, evolving biome, and the Adventurer Guild had left traces of their presence for him to follow.
Filter-feeding tentacle blooms sprouted from glowing anemones beyond the lip of the platforms, pulsating with almost hypnotic patterns of dim light, so subtle, they seemed like hallucinations if witnessed through peripheral vision. Their objective wasn’t to capture smaller organisms, but to maximize the mana harbored in their soft bodies and it seemed as though the undulations were effective in that aspect.
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Floating creatures tucked themselves underneath the caps of coral heads like bubbles, embedded in tiny caverns that might have formed small treasures, letting their jellyfish-like tentacles hang in the breeze of the dense atmosphere. They were hosting what must have been symbiotic algae or bacteria that generated energy from mana. Smaller crustaceans and even some cephalopods skittered into hiding places, having found ways to not just survive in the relatively dry undersea environment, but make homes in the coral environments. The surface of the coral platforms, though formed as if they belonged on the bottom of the deep sea, was more like a series of tide pool shallows. They were covered in puddles, formed in exposed coral rock, with sea water constantly dripping from above.
The currents that flowed through the thick domain remained, seeming like wispy gusts of damp wind carrying small clouds of bioluminescent phytoplankton in a soup of concentrated mana. They pushed through giant sea fans that slowly drifted back and forth, large enough to wrap entire buildings, absorbing what they could from the zephyrs sweeping across the abnormal reef. Coop squinted as he watched clouds of light drift into the distance, spinning around each other, combining, then splitting upon the surface of a particular angular coral that could have matched the size of the largest ships in the Tempest Fleet.
Coop stuck to the center of the largest coral platforms, crossing city-block sized platforms, not wanting to risk touching the growth on the edges, where unfamiliar filter feeders might have developed their own defense mechanisms. In his previous life, he had done enough diving and subsequently brushed against the wrong patch of seaweed only to find himself stung or itchy to know he didn’t want to mess around too much. He only leaned over the edges where gaps had been created, glancing into the abyss of blue and red structures that expanded below.
The dominant corals were primarily inverted, allowing him to stand on the mana-reinforced calcium carbonate structures without interacting with the colonies of coral polyps within. They were incredibly solid, seeming like they would never erode away. They forced everyone else to accommodate their presence rather than be engineered by outside forces. Even now, with much greater Strength than he had the previous times he visited the well, he really doubted his ability to even scratch their surfaces, let alone break pieces off.
He followed a clearly outlined trail, created on top of the surfaces, weaving across flat, plate-like platforms as the path drove through the top layer of the mana well. Loose rope bridges had been constructed across bottomless gaps, accounting for shifts caused by potential growth of either anchor point with plenty of slack. Coop bypassed them with quick mistjumps, deciding that subjecting himself to the jungle gym apparatuses was an unnecessary experience. Many of them didn’t even have planks to stand on, but were instead just three-rope bridges meant to be held while sliding feet across. The mana well clearly wasn’t for the faint of heart.
Despite the efforts of the Adventurer Guild, the Coral Forest was naturally a dangerous place, and that was before considering the mana-infused monsters that evolved in the depths below. However, even as Coop progressed deeper into the dark blue and ocean-green haze, he didn’t run into a single aggressive creature. He had anticipated at least a few of the elite shrimp monsters lingering along the trail, but the top layer was excessively quiet. Other than the clicking and popping of cavities expanding and the trickling of seawater carving through the porous rock formations, the domain was rather calm. The only other living beings were actual animals rather than either invader manifestations or mana mutations, and they seemed mostly confused by Coop’s presence.
Coop continued on his journey, keeping his eyes peeled for anything dangerous or valuable. He took his time progressing through the domain, admiring the scenery, while moving toward the human-installed base near the massive pyramidal coral colony that he had first used as a grind spot. He knew it had been transformed into an open yard, like he would have expected to find outside of a barracks, except instead of a military facility the main structure was clearly more of a casual clubhouse.
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He made it all the way to the grand platform where the Last Chance Saloon had been built without a single combat event, and even then, he hadn't run into any seasoned residents on the hunt either. However, outside of Derek’s lair and one of the Adventurer Guild primary outposts, there was a storm of activity. It seemed like all the residents that had been actively hunting within the mana well were gathered together because the settlement upgrade had disrupted their quests. There were at least 250 people who had congregated on the park-sized purple platform.
Coop weaved through agitated parties, going mostly unnoticed in the crowd as they concentrated on sharing their experiences with each other while discussing the mana well. As he went, he overheard their conversations and gathered bits and pieces. The settlement upgrade had actually influenced the mana well rather abruptly, completely resetting the concentration of mana within the domain. It sounded like the pulse had basically sucked up the stagnant mana within the domain, carrying it into the depths in one big rush. For a brief period, the mana well was empty before mana began to recirculate, flowing up from the unreached depths and causing the external display he had noticed with Jones.
The whole domain had almost immediately returned to normal, but the mana-infused creatures had temporarily disappeared, literally being swept away in the pulse of mana. The abrupt change caused the locals to play it safe and return to their headquarters while runners sought the groups that lingered in their hunting zones. He heard a few considering the idea of a tsunami, as if the mana and the mutated monsters had pulled back right before they formed a massive wave. Others considered what could have siphoned the mana away, worried that an Icon of Mana had taken the opportunity to make an appearance in one of the deepest unexplored corners of the well.
Coop was finding the zone extremely similar to the state it had been months prior because the main difference, the concentration of mana, had essentially reverted. He suspected that the atmosphere would have been even thicker with mana if he had visited before the settlement upgrade, more akin to the Underlayer than its current state.
As Coop entered the modest bar, feeling like it was better fit to be a beachside shack than the headquarters for the mana well, he quickly found some familiar faces lit by the mana-powered wall sconces. At the end of the bar, Emmanuel and Madison were discussing the implications of the whole event with Derek while other guild members took attendance on a large board that accounted for every party active within the domain. Coop noted that only a few were missing, but there was no panic just yet as they had been the groups pushing the deepest layers that anyone from Ghost Reef had explored. They were the most competent and highly ranked parties and they had the largest amount of ground to cover before being able to confirm their safety and presence.
“It sure is odd, but we’ve never had monster respawns exceed a standard rate. Their complete disappearance doesn’t automatically mean something huge is coming, Derek. Quit being such a baby.” Madison seemed to have taken control of the situation as though it was her usual stomping grounds.
“C’mon, at least we can retreat to the surface. I’d rather gather information from the Clumsy Shark than at the edge of the action.” Derek whined. “This is no place for the administrator to be.”
Madison scoffed at his poor attempt to retreat from his responsibility. “The Coral Forest just became an official pocket domain of Ghost Reef, whatever happened is bound to be a positive development.” She argued. “Why would we be punished for upgrading?”
Derek squeezed his eyes shut as she made her point. “Ugh, I know, but the problem is we’ll run out of alcohol if everyone returns to base at the same time...”
“There it is.” Emmanuel muttered.
“What?” Derek responded. “It’s a serious issue. Imagine what hundreds of unsatisfied powerhouses might end up doing. We could wind up with absolute chaos, or worse, an actual business conference.”
“You’re not going to take a day off while we figure out what happened.” Madison declared, placing her hands on her hips.
“Alright, alright.” Derek conceded with an exasperated sigh before pointing over her shoulder. “Look, Coop is here anyway. He can take over.”
“I am here, but I am not taking anything over.” Coop confirmed as he approached the bar where they had positioned themselves, Derek among the glass bottles on the inside and Charlie’s parents standing between the last two stools on the outside.
“Damn, already level 200?” Emmanuel commented, stepping over to grab Coop’s shoulder and squeezing the way a personal trainer might test to see if he had been slacking off. “Impressive, big man.”
Coop nodded with a smile. “Thanks. Figured I’m ready for the mana well, but I upgraded the settlement on the way. Didn’t think it would cause any problems like that. My bad.”
Derek shrugged like he wasn’t the one trying to use the changes to take a break. “It’s no big deal.”
Madison spun her head, already scowling at Derek. “What do you mean ‘no big deal?’ After all that talk.”
Derek shrugged. “It was worth a shot.”
“You are such a pain in the ass.” Madison declared while others among the Adventurers within earshot nodded.
Rather than providing a buffer for his wife, Emmanuel simply agreed. “You really are.”
“Look, Coop is here!” Derek repeated, trying to distract them as he realized he was on the losing end of their argument.
“Don’t look at me.” Coop responded. “You’re on your own.”
“Wow, dude. After all that work we did trying to make sure you could enjoy all the blessings and advantages of our mana well and you would just abandon me like that?” Derek replied. “I feel like that’s not a good way for the leader of our settlement to behave.”
“Do you actually have anything for me?” Coop wondered, having already overheard enough from the other residents to guess that the mana well was potentially a bust for his experience gains. And that was before he considered Derek’s reliability.
“No idea.” Derek answered. “We were gonna keep you around the coral colony until Hai Yun made it to the bottom, but unless you just want to wander around the environment, you’re not gonna accomplish much.”
“Is Hai Yun already back to fighting?” Coop wondered. He hadn’t been sure she would willingly enter combat ever again, let alone only a few weeks after he met her at her lowest in the Underlayer. She probably deserved retirement even more than he did.
“Dude, she is so awesome.” Derek commented a bit too sincerely. “She rolls 150 deep, and they have their own internal and external rotations so that she is the only one constantly in combat. It’s no wonder she was whooping you in levels in the beginning.”
“She was whooping everyone on the planet.” Coop pointed out, trying not to be singled out.
“We are just waiting on her squad at this point. They haven’t returned yet, but there shouldn’t be any monsters, even beyond the fourth level after that energy pulse.” Madison added. “Hopefully, they’ll be back soon to let us know if anything strange happened further down. If monsters are respawning, they would have been in the perfect place to see them moving up the levels.”
“You might as well just wait with us.” Emmanuel suggested. “I doubt there will be a shuffle in monster locations, but they’ll definitely have their level reset.”
“You think?” Derek questioned.
“Why not?” Emmanuel asked, restarting another discussion where Derek tried to convince them that everything would go wrong.
Coop considered his own plan. He had already declared his first phase of releveling complete, having surpassed the natural levels of local monsters that he had hunted in the past. He had intended to avoid venturing beyond his previous conquests by shifting his focus into the mana well for phase two, hoping that would carry him a few hundred levels on its own, if not more. Afterwards, he would be free to complete every Slayer quest chain he could find, pushing through the diminishing returns of on-kill experience with the level rewards for the quests.
If there was nothing for him in the Coral Forest, he would skip straight to phase three, where he started to focus on the incomplete Slayer quests. Ideally, he would get closer to his competition before he reached that point, but it was nice to have a clear path forward, regardless of extenuating circumstances.
Hopefully, Hai Yun and her people would bring good news. In the meantime, he intended to continue as planned, with at least some grinding in the Coral Forest, even if it was for less time than expected.
