Terror Infinity Side B

Chapter 24, BTOOOM Intermission

Everyone wanted to immediately return to the real world right away, but Aqua's words made them hesitant. Going back was a luxury for them, and only if they all could scrap the rewards and points to go after they make themselves stronge as possible. There was no point in returning to the real world for one month, only to die once they get back.

Due to the amount of points and valuable ranked rewards they earned this time in BTOOOM!, everyone had the opportunity to exchange for great stat enhancements or a higher tier weapon. Even Shuai who was absent from the final battle had two D rank reward and 600 ( From the Players ) points to spare in addition to what else he earned in the mission.

Everyone was in deep thought about what they should get, yet we had already decided on positions. Like Saki suggested we all shouldn't take the same enhancement paths as each other. It was a good idea and without needing to discuss it in depth we had a general idea of what we wanted to do and it didn't conflict with each other. In the end, our positions were split into four groups ( Oddly similar to a certain Manga about a border agent and an alien neighbor in black armor ) and they were the following:

ATTACKER/CLOSE RANGE FIGHTERS - To fight up close. To fight/distract the enemy while fighting up close and were responsible for defeating enemies to protect the team.

1. Shin: Ki Energy, One-eye Ghoul genetic mutation and Na Ring.

2. Aqua: Nen/Aura, Wolverine genetic mutation, Werewolf genetic mutation and Robo Cop Auto 9.

3. Misaki: Undecided.

GUNNER/MID RANGE FIGHTER - To fight from a distance. To either support those fighting up close, or to decisively defeat a enemy with a powerful attack.

Kampa: Undecided.

Saki: Undecided.

SNIPER/LONG RANGE FIGHTER - To fight from long distance away. Defeats the enemy from a distance or has an ability that can't be used from close up.

Shuai: Undecided.

SUPPORT/OTHER - Has a role that helps team members or plays another role outside of battle.

Hikari: Undecided.

Once positions were decided we went our own ways to decide our enhancements. Saki thought the we should decide together, but Aqua and I were against it.

Position were one thing, but our points and rewards belonged to ourselves, so choosing something that increase your survivability or the teams could only be your own choice. I for one wouldn't get something that I wasn't confident that I could use, or use for other and not myself.

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Shin: Now... What should I buy from Ebay, no I mean God's store this time? I have 7573 Points, 2B, 1C and 2D rank rewards to spend after all. My first priority should be... A good weapon. I can make myself stronger with more stats and skills later if I have the points, but I critically need a good close range weapon.

Those battles against the Btooom Soldiers and Btooom Commanders in the last mission taught me an important lesson. I wouldn't have been a match for them if I hadn't unlocked my genetic constraint, and doing so takes a lot out of me.

I just talked to Aqua about it and she said it will start to have less of a effect on my body now that God had fixed my genetics and I am building up a tolerance for it, but it isn't good to keep relying on it early on. To face future dangers I need a good weapon. One that even if I wasn't in Unlocked Mode, I could defeat opponents like the Btooom Soldier and Btooom Commanders with.

Shin: And since I am apparently a close range fighter... A sword, or fist type weapon would do me good since I fought that entire mission pretty much bare handed. A sci-fi gun would be cool as well, but it has to be a sword for close range combat.

Also, another issue for me is that it's a weapon that doesn't make me weaker over time with its use. A weapon that doesn't drain my Ki Energy, or makes Ki Energy more efficient to use would be nice. My Na Ring is great, but if the opponent isn't supernatural/magical then it is useless in a fight and it will also drain me of Ki. Weapons that drain me of Ki would probably be powerful for its energy consumption, but for me in the early game of enhancement I'll prefer a dependable tool over a powerful yet short lived one for now.

And as I attend to go down the martial arts path as well, I will be exchanging for skills from God that will drain Ki already. Soul Crushing Strike and Instant Movement were amazing, but they drained my Ki by a noticeable amount with each use.

Shin: So for weapons lets look them up. Also, I should look into armor for protection. Thanks to being a Ghoul I can heal from a lot of wounds, but it drains my stamina and hurts like hell. With a higher 'Defense Stat', I can fight longer as well.

With that in mind I asked God to bring up suitable equipment for me, and since this was important I filered it so that it will show up to B rank weapons/armor/tools.

Sapphire Dite -

Rating 50.

A portable, retractable weapon fulled by Ki and increases the efficiency of Ki. Has a preset sword mode and Ki thread mode. Requires 2000 Points and D rank reward.

Adamant Dite -

Rating 74.

A portable, retractable weapon fulled by Ki and increases the efficiency of Ki. A weapon with a variety of forms including swords, lances, bows and guns. Requires 2500 Points and C rank reward.

Light Saber -

Rating 70.

The formal weapon of a Jedi Knight. A blade of pure plasma is emitted from the hilt and its said to be able to cut through anything. 2000 points and two D rank rewards.

Shin Adamant Dite -

Rating 61.

A portable, retractable weapon fulled by Ki and increases the efficiency of Ki. A high quality dite in the shape of a Katana. Requires 1700 Points and C rank reward.

Captain America's Shield -

Rating 60.

A shield that is physically indestructible under normal conditions. It is able to absorb all kinetic energy and transfers very little energy from each impact. Requires 2000 Points and C rank reward.

Thor's Hammer -

Rating 91.

The hammer of thor from Norse mythology. Can summon lightning and can be called back if thrown/leaves your side. By expending large amount of energy one can summon lighting storms. Requires 9200 Points and two B rank rewards.

Iron Man's Suit, First Movie -

Rating 83.

The suit of armor designed and worn by Tony Stark in Iron Man 1 Movie and equipped with a variety of advance weaponry. Requires 7600 Points and B rank reward.

Sword of Kusanagi ( Naruto ) -

Rating 70.

The legendary sword of Kusanagi. Has a very charp edge, the blade can extend and can be controlled with telekinesis. Requires 1700 Points and two C rank reward.

Hestia Knife -

Rating 93.

The knife given to a young adventure by the goddess Hestia. The strength of the Knife is equal to the stats of its chosen wielder. Requires 3500 Points and B rank reward.

Black Demon Series Weapon -

Rating 80.

The strongest cursed gear containing rank 1 demons sealed within. Highly lethal to vampires and undead type monsters. Requires 2000 Points and two C rank rewards.

Key Blade -

Rating 75.

A mysterious weapon used to seal and unlock barriers. Especially effective against creatures born from the darkness of human hearts. Requires 1500 Points and C rank reward.

Broad Legged -

Rating 66.

A great sword once held by the Terror of Death. Requires 1100 Points and D rank reward.

Barbarian Armor -

Rating 75.

The standard armor of the Hero of the Shield which carries his essence. Greatly increases the wears defense against physical, spiritual and magic attacks. Magic Repair Function: Can repair itself over time and if destroyed can be recreated for 210 Points and D rank reward. Requires 2100 Points and two C rank rewards.

Elucidator -

Rating 64.

The primary weapon of the hero of SAO. This sword is a demonic monster drop from a boss on the 50th Floor. Requires 1500 Points and D rank reward.

Wind Spirit Boots

Rating 78/100

Magic boots blessed by wind spirits. Passively increases moving speed by 15%. The skll "Slide" is attached to the boots and becomes usable. Requires 2200 Points and two D rank rewards.

Dark Repulser -

Rating 69

A one-handed sword, created by Lisbeth for Kirito out of a Crystallite Ingot, which was obtained from a special quest, becoming the second weapon for the hero of SAO. Requires 1600 Points and two D rank rewards.

Night Sky Sword -

Rating 77.

A Priority 46 Divine Instrument-class long sword of the hero of SAO and Personal one-handed sword in Underworld. Requires 2100 Points and C rank reward.

Kanshou and Bakuya -

Rating 69

A 'married' twin sword set representing yin and yang. Requires 1800 Points and two D rank reward.

Emperor Qin's Sword -

Rating 90.

In the ancient times there lived an emperor that was both kind and known to all under the heavens. His saber was named Long Quan but in the midsts of a fierce battle, it snapped in half. The broken pieces were then buried into the ground, staying there for countless generations. At last the broken sword has been unearthed and still contains the vast powers of the emperor. This sword would be known to the future generations as the king of swords and after the previous owner of the sword as Emperor Qin’s Sword. This sword can not be broken and is Soul Bound to its user. Special Skill, Kill For Blood: For ever life that this sword takes a random state of the holder will increase by 1%, Cap 50% for any one stat and resets every twenty-four hours. Sword can evolve to a higher rank by offering an A rank reward and 8000 Points. Requires 5000 Points and B rank reward.

Shining Darkness -

Rating 90.

A two-handed sword used by a hero who fought under Hero Maban. Shining Darkness has special abilities that can be used when fighting the forces of darkness. Increases the holders stats and damage dealt when dealing with enemies with the Demonic Attribute. Special Skill, Shining Darkness: A knockdown technique used against the demonic forces. In order to use this skill, the sword needs to be charged with the demonic energy, either from the user or stolen from enemies, and the subsequent explosion will overpower the darkness. The damage depends on the amount of demonic energy charged. Once used collected demonic energy is reset and one hour cool down time. Requires 7500 Points and B rank reward.

Shin: They are all great and all and especially the last two, but none of them are calling to me... Wait!

Those were just a few among many great and amazing weapons, but towards the very bottom two stood out and called to me. One was the sword of one of my favorite protagonist in a sequel of a great manga, which 150% lives up to its predecessor. The other was a piece of armor that I never heard of before, yet it reminded me of my favorite Korean light novel protagonist Ark and his profession Dark Walker.

Gravity Blade -

Rating 77.

A pure black katana created by an evil mage. This sword is a blade with the ability to increase its "gravity", or, more accurately its weight. Doing this increases the relative power of the blade's physical strikes on an opponent. Located on the hilt of the blade, under the guard, is a dial which has a "heavy" and "light" setting, flipping the dial in either direction allows any user, to alter the blade's weight, heavier for increased power, lighter for ease of use. The gravity blade is able to talk to it's master telepathically and give combat advise. This sword was originally created to help those connected to "3-A", but God has made sure that it's master will be recognized as such. As a special bonus as a magic weapon, God has allowed Gravity Blade the ability to slash spirits and other nonliving entities, yet there will be no additional damage like with Blood Energy's corrosive properties or Holy Magic's purification power. A seal has been placed on the Gravity Blade and with an A rank reward it can be lifted. Requires 2500 Points and two C rank rewards.

Lesser Fenrir Coat -

Rating 89.

Thin, flexible black armor with the shape of coat. Made from the the fur and leather of a direct decedent of the monster wolf Fenrir. High durability and resistance to physical force, magic attacks, spiritual attacks and Psyche Force. Passively increases Muscle Density, Intelligence, Mental Capacity and Immunization Strength by 10%, and Reaction Speed and Cell Vitality by 20%. Darkness Attribute Bonus: Passively increases all stats by an additional 30% at night or inside caves/tombs. Magic Repair Function: Can repair itself over time and if destroyed can be recreated for 300 Points and D rank reward. Requires 3000 Points and B rank reward.

I choose Gravity Blade since it can be used on both normal and abnormal opponents, and doesn't drain my Ki. Also, the seal sounds suspicious. It must be because UQ Holders is still a new manag and the protagonist has yet to bring out all of it's mysteries. Shining Darkness and Emperor Qin's Sword are badass, but I won't have enough points afterwards for a skill or armor if I get them.

As for the Lesser Fenrir Coat it offers great protection and passively raises my stats ( I feel like Ark ) and despite being a B rank item it can be repaired if broken with just 300 Points and a D rank reward. How OP is that! Also, I will feel closer to Aqua since she is part wolf... and hopefully she won't mind that I am wearing one of her potential bretheren.

Shin: Ok, I made my two choices!

To buy the sword I had to break one of my rank B rewards to three C rank rewards for a total of now 4C, and I spent 1B and 2C's for my purchases to buy both the Gravity Blade and Lesser Fenrir Coat.

Shin: I'll buy these two first. 5500 Points, 1B and two C rank rewards gone in a flash... I definitely want to cry. At least they fit my criteria to a T.

Once I told God my choice the points and rewards were taken and I had my two new toys, I mean weapons in my hands. A Kirito level cool dark coat materialized in my hands that had the crest of the white full moon on the back and on top of the coat was the pure black Gravity Blade in the sheath from the color pages of the Manga.

I downed on the black coat and instantly felt my power increased. It felt different from when I had God enhance myself. It must be because the power up didn't come from my natural strength, but an external tool. Just wearing this coat gave me a rush of power, and it was basically day all the time in the Terminal Lobby, so I couldn't imagine what it'll be like during the night.

Then I preceded to tie the sword to my hip ( God, I felt lile Kenshin Himura, except I'll won't be using this sword to not kill anymore ) and drew the sword from the sheath and held it in my two hands. It felt light to the touch, but one flip of a switched it could weigh as much as 100 busses and if thrown you bring down a large building or magic barrier with its weight alone.

Shin: I guess we are partners now Gravity Blade.

GB: ...

SHIM: Ahh... I guess you really are shy, huh. Touta called you Sidestick when he didn't bother to learn your real name. Could you introduce yourself.

GB: ...

Shin: Fine... I'll call you GB from now on. Great name right? Looking forward to working sith you GB.

GB: ...Fool.

Shin: What!

GB: ...

Shin: ...You better watch yourself GB.

Now that I was done talking to my antisocial sword, I placed GB back into her sheath and turned to my next set of exchanges... Ki skills!

Shin: I now have 2,073 Points, 2C and 2D rank rewards. During the Btooom mission I learned Soul Crushing Strike and Instant Movement by accident and gained Skills Mastery for them. Now I can exchange them to cheap. I could use them well enough, but I doubt that I can master the more advance techniques for them without a deeper understanding of the skills.

Soul Crushing Strike -

Rating 71.

Matching physical moment and Ki circulation to create an exceptional powerful Ki strike. A ki strike that can deal internal damage as well as crush bones. A proper SCS cause a small sonic boom when unleashed, an explosion directly in front of the extended fist. 1500 Points and C rank reward. SKILL MASTERY CONFIRMED. NEW COST 150 POINTS AND D RANK REWARD!

Instant Movement -

Rating 78.

Is a basic foot technique to move from one place to the next with high-speed movement. Ki or magic power is used to jump from point A to point B as quickly as possible. 1700 points and two C rank rewards. SKILL MASTERY CONFIRMED. NEW COST 170 POINTS AND D RANK REWARD!

Shin: One tenth the price and a reduction in rank rewards. I can feel happy with getting away with just 320 points and two D rank rewards.

I made the exchanges to God and two scrolls that looked like they came right out of Naruto appeared in my hands. On contact they disappeared, then a large amount of new information about the two skills came rushing into my head. It was a short headache and it took a while for me, a full twenty seconds to calm down, so I can organize the new information. It was basically what I knew about the skill already, but ways to improve the power, speed and Ki efficiency was added to my knowledge.

Shin: Now that this is out of the way I can focus on my final exchanges for new skills.

They were the many enhancement belonging to the skill category. I took a look at top tier enhancements before, and some of them were skills from Wuxia. Like a QingGong that required a rank A reward and a huge amount of points. In comparison these skills that I'm considering were of a lower tier and it just happened to be usable.

Ki Blast -

Rating 50.

A basic Ki blast shoot outward from the palm. 1000 Points and a C rank reward.

Spirit Gun -

Rating Rating 70.

A concentration of energy channeled into the index finger and shot out like a bullet. Requires Spirit Energy or Ki. Requires 2000 Points and a C rank reward.

Spirit Wave -

Rating 94.

The user turns the entire body into a catalyst of energy, creating a powerful flow of power within the body and released as a devastating wave of energy, or focused into a single punch or kick. All of the body's energy is used up afterwards. Can also be used to heal. Requires 4500 Points, B rank reward and B rank energy or higher.

Seikuken -

Rating 60.

Combining physical martial arts and Ki to control the space around the user into a spherical shield. Requires 1500 Points and a D rank reward.

Ryusui Seikuken -

Rating 77.

The advanced form of Seikuken. Reduces Seikuken inwardly into a thin layer above the skin to dodge enemy attack at the last possible second. While active, greatly increases Reaction Speed and reduces stamina consumption. 2600 points and two C ranl rewards.

Zamaken Ni-no-Tachi -

Rating 80.

Cut a demonic spirit behind a person without injuring said person. Requires 3000 and two C rank rewards.

Soul Crushing Strike -

Rating 71.

Matching physical moment and Ki circulation to create an exceptional powerful Ki strike. A ki strike that can deal internal damage as well as crush bones. A proper SCS cause a small sonic boom when unleashed, an explosion directly in front of the extended fist. 1500 Points and C rank reward. SKILL MASTERY CONFIRMED. NEW COST 150 POINTS AND D RANK REWARD!

Instant Movement -

Rating 78.

Is a basic foot technique to move from one place to the next with high-speed movement. Ki or magic power is used to jump from point A to point B as quickly as possible. 1700 points and two C rank rewards. SKILL MASTERY CONFIRMED. NEW COST 170 POINTS AND D RANK REWARD!

Void Instant Movement -

Rating 85.

A movement technique and an advanced form of Instant Movement. Instead of using a fixed surface, the practitioner simply uses ‘air’ (space) as a foothold. Requires 3000 Points and two C rank reward.

Ki Injection -

Rating 84.

Allows Ki to be concentrated in the Palms and injected into a particular spot on another person's body. This enables treatment of most wounds to a certain extent. Requires 1600 points and a C rank reward.

Ultrapowerful Violent Palms -

Rating 83.

Concentrate your current ki within your hands, then you can utilize your hands to performs palm strike. A palm strike has enough power to rupture your opponent's Ki/other internal energy itself. Requires 1500 points and a C Rank Reward.

Invincible Divine Body -

Rating 89.

Condenses and concentrate all your ki into your body and release a tremendous aura. The aura protects you heavily from attacks even strong as a lightning bolt. Your body not only become more endurable, but your body also strengthen to the point when your body can break through steel. Requires 1900 points and two C Rank Reward.

Penetrating Force

Rating 91.

Rather than an attack itself. It's a technique to transform and condense to enable your ki to easily penetrate to the hardest defenses. Support technique. Requires 2200 points and C Rank Reward

Linear Drive

Rating 80.

Concentrate Ki in the body to rush forward and deliver impact or move to an area in an instant. Requires 2100 points and two C rank reward.

Diamond Rebound -

Rating 70.

A defensive Ki technique to harden the muscles and repelling attacks away, or even back at enemies. 3000 points and C rank reward.

Tornado Step -

Rating 65.

A foot technique that allows one to summon air currents and jump far distances while also blowing away those nearby with a strong gust of wind. Ideal for quick escapes. Rating 4000 and two C rank rewards.

Dou Ki Armor -

Rating 73.

A defensive technique where Ki is used to create a defensive armor around the user. Grows substantially with the level of the users Ki energy. Requires 5000 Points, B rank reward and Intermediate Level Ki or higher.

I was now looking over Ki Techniques to increase my arsenal. I wanted to get a defensive technique like Seikuken or some shield, but my new armor's added defence will suffice for now. What I needed now were techniques that I can use at a distance. I am a close range fighter, but it would be stupid of me not to have one ranged attack to rely on in an emergency.

Shin: I'll get the simple Ki Blast Skill for now. It is weaker then Spirit Gun, but I have a few ideas to improve the skill now that I know about Skill Mastery.

I made my choice to God and another scroll, a very thin one to show how not special it was came to me. It vanished and the information for the skill came to me. It was an all too basic skill, but what I really wanted was the knowledge on how to emit Ki outwardly. If my idea pans out I could end up with a pretty amazing skill.

Shin: Now, once more... I am broke. 753 Points and 1C rank reward. Rewards mean very little when you don't have the points to use them and I'll rather not break them to get low grade D rank items. I guess I'll use my remaining 750 to increase my... Ahh, that was right! I still owe Shuai 100 points! I should be glad that I didn't spend till I was at zero.

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Authors Note:

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