"Acolyte Marek!" The instructor called out, pointing towards a hooded student, who sat at the very back of the class. Fifty mages-in-training sat in rows upon rows of ornate tables and chairs, and upon them were stacks upon stacks of tomes, each containing arcane knowledge. The air around them sizzled with mystic energies, each and every single one of the acolytes being the finest of their generation, hand picked from thousands of other mage universities all across the known world.

Marek was the very best of them.

He stood up from his seat on the front row and straightened his back. "Yes, senior-magos Doil."

"Would you be so kind as to explain to the class the difference between Qi and Mana?" The instructor asked, gesturing towards the other students behind him.

Nodding, Marek turned and addressed his fellow acolytes, many of whom looked to him as some sort of stepping stone to further their own power. Fools, the lot of them; the mystic arts was not about competition or power, it was simply about knowledge and understanding - such foolishness was better reserved for the barbaric cultivators.

"Origin and function, my fellow acolytes; Qi and Mana differ greatly in both origin and function." He raised a single finger up absently, like a professor, preaching to a chorus of uneducated masses. "Mana originates from the spirit realm, otherwise known as the Mind Realm, where all your thoughts manifest and all your dreams and nightmares are real. Our own souls serve as conduits to the Spirit Realm and, thus, we draw mana into ourselves by focusing on our souls. In terms of function; mana is used to affect the world around us, mostly through the use of spells, altering reality depending on our own willpower and how much mana we're willing to expend. In theory, anyone can become a mage through hardwork, dedication, and practice."

He began pacing, catching the eyes of all of his peers. The senior-magos smiled under his hood as he watched. "Qi, on the other hand, is simply the manifestation of physical energy and, thus, is present in every living thing - to varying degrees. Cultivators, living beings, whose Qi is much higher in magnitude than is normal, are able to harness this physical energy to affect their own bodies, bolstering their strength, speed, and their mental fortitude to superhuman levels. I believe there are also several other advanced functions of Qi, but I am no cultivator and I have no interest in their world."

Smiling and more than a little satisfied with the answer he gave, Marek turned to the senior-magos and dipped his head. The instructor smiled back and dipped his head in turn, before addressing the class. "I could not have said it better - myself. Qi and Mana are two very different forms of energy. Before you develop negative outlooks towards cultivators; let me tell you now that one is not stronger than the other. In a duel, something I hope you will avoid in the future, it is the smarter fighter who wins, not the stronger."

Marek disagreed, though he kept his thoughts to himself. Sure, the smarter fighter is more likely to win in a duel; outsmarting one's opponent's is, after all, a time tested skill that has stretched back all the way to the dawn of man and age of gods and heroes. However, there comes a time when power becomes so hideously overwhelming that no amount of trickery, mindgames, or planning could ever hope to counter it.

Even he, who cared little for power, recognized that fact.

In a battle, cultivators, on average, were more powerful; mages hardly ever trained their bodies and their senses, whilst cultivators studied martial arts on the daily, whilst leaning to further strengthen themselves and their techniques with Qi. What good was a blast of fire when your opponent was faster than your eye could possibly follow? Sure, in terms of destructive capacity, mages had the advantage, being able to summon hurricanes and thunderstorms and all sorts of mystical things that could ravage entire cities in a single day. In a duel, however, cultivators had all the advantage, unless they were dumb enough to attack from a distance.

Marek hoped, however, that he would never have to face a cultivator in combat; those murderous hobos can reach for the heavens all they like. The only reason he was even here was to study the mystic healing arts to-

He shook his head; now was not the time to lament.

The instructor continued. "So, this being combat class, can anyone tell me how best to engage a cultivator?"

One of his peers raised a hand. "From range?"

"Care to elaborate, acolyte?"

"We can attack them from afar, sir, and bombard them with powerful explosive spells, whilst keeping a distance." The acolyte explained. "I don't think we can defeat them from up close."

The senior-magos shrugged. "Quaint, but what would you do if a cultivator got close and personal? Would you get down on your knees and beg for mercy? After all, you admitted it yourself that you can't fight them up close, yeah?"

"I...I...ugh..." The acolyte stammered, much to the chagrin of his fellows. Then again, Marek mused, none of them had a good answer to that. If a decently strong cultivator with a knife ever got within stabbing distance then it was definitely over; still, magic was nothing if not versatile and there was more than likely a good, realistic, answer to that question.

"No need to be ashamed, acolyte." The instructor smiled. "I understand why you would think so, but never ever underestimate the power of the mystic arts."

The senior-magos turned. "Now then..."

Human Cultivator Core absorbed!

+50 Intelligence

+20 Agility

Magical Beast Core absorbed!

+50 Strength

+20 Agility

Qi incompatible...

Converting...

Psionics enhanced!

New Perk Unlocked: Psychic Speech

My eyes snap open.

Something doesn't feel quite right.

Everything seemed clearer - more vibrant. Voices and whispers echoed all around me - thoughts and emotions, both primal and sapient. There were thousands upon thousands upon thousands - so many all at once that my head should've cracked apart.

And yet it didn't crack apart and I was perfectly fine. The voices didn't echo in the wind, I noted; I was hearing them all in my head. I wasn't 'hearing' anything, otherwise my ears would've perked up from the sounds. Most of the voices came from small critters, insects and the like - most of the larger creatures, predator and prey alike, seemed to avoid this place as though it were haunted by humans. The air was crisp and cool, though the faint smell of dried blood lingered around me. No, the only explanation I could come up with was that I was 'hearing' their thoughts - most of which consisted of simple things such as the need for food and water, or the need for a suitable shelter. Emotions came in at random - fear, anxiety, and contentment all seemed to be present at a greater magnitude that all others.

Base things that-

What was I thinking?

Why was I thinking?

What the heck was all this?

I willed the voices away and...somehow it worked. The thoughts and emotions stopped immediately and my head was quiet again.

I was perceiving things differently from before.

But no

That wasn't it either. The strange thing, I thought, was that I could understand all of this at all.

A few days ago, I would've panicked and ran into hiding at the mere notion of hearing things without having to use my ears; I would've roared into the wind, swiped my claws at random things, before running into the safety of my den. Now, I could understand perfectly. I could understand that this...whatever it is...is an ability of mine that allows me to hear the minds of others.

How and why I understand any of that is...beyond me - for now.

What I do know for certain was that I was far beyond any of my kind - far beyond. Even if every other ability of mine was removed; as long as my mind remained as it was, then I would remain superior.

My mind was my greatest weapon - far greater than my nose, my teeth, my fur, my strength, or even my claws.

Still, none of this was normal; though I loathed to admit it, I was supposed to be nothing more than a brutish beast, incapable of thinking beyond the dictate of its instincts.

And so...what am I now?

I pushed myself up and shook my head. Now wasn't the time to be thinking such thoughts. This place was unsafe - though there weren't a lot of things in the wilderness that could threaten me. On my legs, my eyes looked left and right; around me was a pool of dried blood. There were bits and pieces of...something on the grass, but I knew well enough that those things, while not inedible, would be pointless to eat.

I paced, eyes wandering the carnage around me - splintered bits of wood and stones scatted all around.

What the heck happened back there?

That human was powerful - far more powerful than any human ought to be, but I ate it all the same, down to the bone. The rhino, too, was powerful - one of the numerous, but reclusive, strange beasts that roamed the wilderness by their lonesome. They never did travel in pairs, as far as I've noticed, though a few would pair up on occassion to mate, before continuing on their way to...somewhere. This meant the strange rhino was alone, there was no threat of immediate family or pack members rushing out of the woods to gore me with their horns; I could probably - maybe - take on one of them by myself, given the right circumstances and some distance between us, enough distance to utilize my unnatural abilities. Two or more, however, was too much to handle.

It was fortunate, then, that I could actually feel the fact that there were no other strange beasts within - at least - a ten kilometer radius.

If a human, frail and easily hunted down if I felt like it, held that much power; how powerful would an empowered rhino be in comparison, a creature that, even without the strange energies that strengthened the human, would be more than a match for me?

The answer was quite simple - really.

But then that also begged the question: why?

Why were they powerful? Why was I rapidly gaining power?

There was something going on that I knew nothing of; the thought irritated me.

And that was another thing I found strange about my new self - the need to know things, asking questions and getting irritated at the lack of immediate answers.

Ultimately, however, I huffed and shrugged, absently flicking a rock away with my mind as I took a small step forward. The rock soared through the air before crashing against a small tree and causing the whole thing to explode on impact, sending wooden debris flying everywhere. My eyes lingered over the destruction for a moment. 'What...I could've sworn it wasn't nearly as powerful before.'

Curiously, I lifted up another rock with my telekinesis, before flinging it towards another distant tree. The results were...unexpected; instead of blowing up entirely and sending debris flying everywhere, the rock simply pierced through the bark and out the other side, stopping at the root of another tree. 'Strange...'

Another question with no real answer; though, I suppose, I could eventually figure this one out through trial and error - and maybe exploring my abilities in general. After all, there were still two I've not used as of yet; they seemed interesting, I suppose. Nuokinesis allows me to control insects for a whole day, which means I'd have an easier time eating honey off of beehives. Cosmokinesis is....something I fail to comprehend and trying to think about it is giving me a headache.

'Well...no use overthinking about this stuff in the middle of nowhere.' I mused, turning my head towards my den's general direction. I sniffed the air and found a few unwelcome scents a fair distance away. I wasn't too interested in company, but neither was I particularly hungry - quite the opposite, in fact. Also, I wasn't interested in cannibalism - though, I have seen a few others of my kind, loathsome beasts they are, engage in the practice.

Still, scaring away a female of my species and her cub shouldn't be too hard.

I could probably just literaly throw the cub away with my mind.

A strange scent accompanied them, but - whatever it was - it was mostly overshadowed by the mother and her cub.

This was not what I expected.

Frankly, I wasn't quite sure what I was expecting either, but this was definitely not it.

I arrived at the site of my den after a while of constant running, a task which, as I noted, was a lot less tiring than it used to be. Now, I could run for hours without stopping, as opposed maybe thirty minutes at most, before all this. What I saw at the foot of my den was...something that caused me to stop almost immediately and just...stare at the absurdity of it.

I hid behind a thicket of trees, carefully crouching down and keeping deathly still as I observed.

A mother and her cub wandered the woods near my den. That, in itself, wasn't really strange; I've had visits from fellows a few times in the past and they were...mostly pleasant memories. From the smell of blood that lingered over them, I'd say they'd just come from stalking and hunting prey. Again, not strange - quite normal, in fact.

What was strange was the naked human, who walked alongside them, carrying a straight stick that he kept close to his form.

A very powerful human. The sweetness that oozed out of it was terrifying - far greater than the sweetness of that human's I ate a while back or the rhino's. This was on an entirely different order of magnitude. The mother and cub didn't seem alerted or even concerned with its presence, treating it as though it was a part of their family, which didn't make sense. Mothers were extremely dangerous, especially when they were out with their cubs. And yet this human was safe.

The human turned and locked eyes with me, smiling. It could see me.

Hello there, my child. The human spoke in my head. There is no need to weary or distrustful of my presence, little one.

I have been watching you, Ursus.

The human used my name.

Who are you?

I am Volos, the father of Bears. The monstrously powerful human answered. We must talk, my child.

Basic Status:

Name: Ursus

Race: Ursine Sapien

Title/s: The First

Level: 2

HP: 1020

MP: 105

SP: 1010

Strength: 560

Speed: 205

Agility: 145

Intelligence: 90

Wisdom: 7

Luck: 11

XP: 0/200

Perks:

Gaze of the Watcher: Illusions have no effect on you. At all times, you are able to perceive only the true nature of things.

Mind of the Beast: Your intelligence is not like those of humans, and so the concept of Karma does not affect your soul in the same manner as it does humans. Good and Evil has no claim over you.

Eldritch Soul: Your soul is a twisted amalgam that has never truly been witnessed before in all of creation. Given enough time, it may evolve into something more. You are able to communicate with other Eldritch beings.

True Name: By having a true name, human mages and cultivators will not be able to bind you to their will.

Blood Rush: You move 2x faster when chasing down or moving towards injured prey.

Qi hunter: You can track down Qi users without having to rely on your basic senses.

Psychic Speech: You can bypass the need for language by speaking directly into a living entity's mind.

Skills:

Scan level 2: You are able to discern an entity's given name, alongside their total HP and SP. Costs no MP.

Telekineses level 3: You are able to move objects, weighing 150 kilograms or less, with your thoughts. Costs 5 MP per second.

Nuokinesis level 1: You are able to control the minds of small insects for 24 hours. Costs 5 MP per entity.

Cosmokinesis level 1: Alter 1 Cubic Meter of reality for a period of five seconds. Costs 100 MP.