Desire: A LitRPG Adventure (Volume 3), page 4
“What? What makes sense? Quickly tell me!” Connor said impatiently.
Vincent spent the next few minutes telling him about his lifeforce ability and explaining some of its functions. Connor started to salivate as he listened. After Vincent was finished, Connor clasped his shoulder and shouted, “Come, come! Quickly give the living tree your blood!”
“Uhh, no thanks…” Vincent took a step backwards while shaking his head.
“Ahh!” Connor grabbed his hair while begging, “Just a teeny, weeny, little bit, yeah?”
Ace sent Vincent a telepathic message, “Hey, we’re about to ask him to undergo a tremendous task. Can’t you do this with that in mind?”
Vincent groaned and said, “Fine.”
“Haha, good lad!” Connor laughed and stomped the ground. The roots separated a living tree from the others and brought it closer to Vincent.
Vincent pointed his finger at the tree. A glob of blood exited from the tip of his finger. The blood shot towards the tree and splashed onto the bark. The tree quivered as the blood was absorbed into its body. A moment later, the tree began to grow larger and larger. It’s branches grew longer, and its roots grew thicker.
Connor hopped up and down as he witnessed this, “It’s working, it’s working!”
Suddenly, Connor froze in place. His eyes widened as he said, “It has feelings now! I can sense it communicating with me! Oh my god, it called me Father!”
Tears streamed down Connor’s face as he ran towards the tree. The branches of the tree wrapped around Connor as they embraced each other. Vincent shook his head as he thought, “This Connor guy is so stressful to be around.”
Vincent looked over at Ace and was surprised to see a tear falling down his face. Vincent mused to himself, “No wonder Anderson didn’t want to come. This place is a riot.”
Chapter 110
A few minutes passed as Connor inspected all of the changes that the tree underwent. He found that it could now think simple thoughts and it was slightly stronger. He nodded to himself while rubbing his beard, “Hm, hm. Still not strong enough. It can think, but it’s like a dog.”
Vincent looked at the time and decided that he had to take the initiative or else they’d be here all day. He called out to Connor, “Connor, have you been informed of the recent news and changes our society is undergoing?”
“Hm? Oh yes, Anderson informed me,” Connor glanced at Vincent out of the corner of his eye, “Terrible news, that.”
“Yes, well… we’ve run into a bit of a problem, and you’re the only one who can help us,” Vincent said while staring at Connor.
“Really, now? What can a simple farmer like me do to help such powerful people like you?” Connor said while leaning against the mutated tree.
Ace folded his arms and said calmly, “We need to terraform Mars, and fast.”
“Terraform Mars, you say?” Connor widened his eyes slightly before regaining his calm. He had heard about the plan to colonize other planets from Anderson, but he didn’t pay much attention at the time.
“Yes,” Ace nodded with a solemn face, “the easiest way to do that is to develop an atmosphere… and to develop an atmosphere y-”
“You need plants,” Connor interrupted and rubbed his beard.
“Precisely,” Vincent said from the side.
“Can you do it?” Ace inquired while giving Connor a hopeful look.
“Hmm, can I do it? Sure… but will I do it?” Connor frowned and shook his head, “I really don’t want to be alone on another planet so far from home. In addition, my experiments are making steady progress…”
“Not a problem,” Ace said with a smile, “There was someone who spent 150 million points to purchase a small spaceship. We’ve asked to borrow it and they agreed happily as long as they’re the ones to fly it. You can travel to Mars and back in a day. The only downside is that there is only room for two passengers.”
“Huh, someone spent so many points on that?” Connor widened his eyes in surprise before shaking his head.
Ace and Vincent waited patiently for Connor’s answer. They looked expectantly at him. Connor noticed this and sighed deeply, “I suppose if I said no I would be betraying humanity, huh?”
Ace nodded slowly, “You would be.”
“Fine, then. I guess it won’t be so bad. I can finally grow plants limitlessly without Anderson breathing down my neck,” Connor laughed hoarsely. Anderson always gave him so many rules. He complained by saying things like, ‘Too many potatoes! Diversify the food! Stop making trees come to life, you’re scaring the workers!’
Ace’s face lit up with a smile, “That’s great!”
“However,” Connor raised his finger and said, “I have one condition.”
“Anything,” Ace replied. Connor was performing a great deed for humanity. If he wanted some points, land, or anything else, they would try their best to provide it.
Connor pointed his finger at Vincent, “I want some of his lifeforce every now and then for my experiments.”
“Ugh,” Vincent groaned aloud but didn’t decline.
“No problem,” Ace nodded while patting Vincent on the shoulder.
“Okay, then. When do we start?” Connor said while walking over to them.
“Uhh, well, we need to setup the infrastructure on Mars first,” Ace recalled what was needed to create an atmosphere. He couldn’t do it, so he said, “Just talk to Anderson.”
Connor’s face blanched as he said, “Fine.”
“Thanks, Connor. It was nice meeting you,” Ace held out his hand.
Connor gave a firm handshake and said, “Same here, now let me try and finish some experiments before I get sent to Mars.”
Vincent gave a nod before turning to leave. Ace followed after him, and when they left the dome he said, “That wasn’t so bad.”
“He’s energetic for an old man,” Vincent commented. He was way too hyper for Vincent’s tastes.
“Haha, true,” Ace agreed while recalling the image of Connor depriving a tree of its branches and then kicking it.
They stopped and looked back at the dome before growing silent. A few moments passed before Vincent said, “Now the rush for 500 begins.”
Ace’s face became solemn, “The sooner we complete it, the better.”
“We don’t have much time, after all,” Vincent nodded. They never knew when they would make first contact with another civilization within their galaxy.
Ace began his teleportation process for home and said, “I’ll go to Planet Baugh with an ambassador from Earth. We’ll coordinate with them so that we are prepared for when they eventually migrate to Africa.”
“Understood,” Vincent replied. Ace disappeared a few second later. Vincent sighed as he mused, “I guess I’ll go stock up on lifeblood essence again. Oh, and I’ll get some for Connor too.”
Chapter 111
A young boy around the age of 10 walked inside a gym with his head down. Strapped on his back was a backpack with the character of a superhero. The sound of fierce shouting and fists hitting punching bags rang through the gym. All of the people inside the gym were women, save for one, a middle aged man with a stocky build. He had a shaved head and walked around the gym, giving pointers to the women. He noticed the young boy enter the gym and head into the back. He frowned and called out, “Ace!”
The young boy shook with a start before running towards the door that led to the back of the gym. He opened the door and rushed inside. The middle aged man gave a sigh before turning to look at the women. He clapped his hands to get the attention of the women and shouted, “Mind if I take a 10 minute break?.”
A woman with sweat dripping off her body shook her head, “No worries, Danny, go take care of your kid.”
The rest of the women nodded their heads, all of them shared the same sentiment. Danny smiled and said, “Thanks, ladies.”
Danny turned around with a frown on his face. He walked through the door Ace left open and entered another part of the gym. The entire building was split into two sections, one for the boxing gym, and one for his home. He liked living where he worked, and he could also train with the equipment at any time. He saw Ace’s backpack lying on the floor. He walked down the hallway and stopped before Ace’s bedroom door. He knocked softly on the door and said, “Ace, is this about the call I got from school today?”
The room was silent. Danny’s voice with filled with concern as he said, “I’m not mad. I just want to know what’s going on, the school only said you got into a fight. Things happen, I just want to know if you’re okay.”
Danny heard footsteps approach the door. The door opened slightly. Danny pushed the door open and walked inside just in time to see Ace hide underneath his covers. Danny walked up to the bed and sat down. He pulled the covers down gently and saw Ace’s face. His eye was blue and black while his lip was bleeding lightly. Danny chuckled softly, “They got you good, huh?”
“Nuh uh!” Ace snorted and turned to look at his dad, “I got them worse!”
“Haha, is that right?” Danny said while tousling Ace’s hair. He looked Ace in the eye and said, “So who started it?”
“They did!” Ace promptly responded while grinding his teeth.
“Let me rephrase my question,” Danny shook his head, “Who punched who first?”
Ace fell silent. Danny raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything. He was somewhat proud of his son for defending himself, but it depended on why he did so. Danny inquired, “What did they do?”
Ace glanced around the room, keeping his eyes everywhere but his dad’s face. Danny noticed this and sighed, “How often do I get mad, huh? You know you can tell me anything.”
Ace looked down. He clenched his hands and mustered his courage, “They said my father only trains women, so he must be a pervert! And that he cheats on his wife with them.”
“Ah, they said that?” Danny widened his eyes with surprise. He was somewhat stunned that kids in 5th grade could be so cruel.
Ace looked at his dad and was a little disappointed with his lackluster reaction. He said cautiously, “Aren’t you mad?”
“Mad?” Danny scratched his head and laughed loudly, “Haha! This isn’t the first time someone has said something like that about me. I’m used to it.”
Ace said with some hesitation, “Dad, if people make fun of you for training only women, why do you do it?”
Ace was curious why his dad never trained men. Wasn’t boxing for both men and women? Danny was startled, “Right, I guess I never explained to you why I do that.”
Ace looked at his dad expectantly. Danny stood up and flexed his arm. He pointed at his bicep and said, “See that?”
“Ooh!” Ace clapped his hands and looked with awe at his dad’s massive muscle. He always admired his dad’s muscles and couldn’t wait to get his own. He only had to wait a few more years..
Danny chuckled at his son’s reaction before explaining, “Unfortunately, only men can have muscles like this. It’s downright impossible for most women to accomplish this through working out.”
“That sucks!” Ace said with a frown.
“Right, it does suck,” Danny sighed. He folded his arms across his chest and continued to explain, “Men are generally much stronger than women. Therefore, most men can protect themselves just fine. Women, however, need to find their strength elsewhere.”
“Oh,” Ace’s eyes lit up as he understood, “so you teach them boxing!”
“Precisely!” Danny nodded with a smile, “I teach them technique over brute strength. I’m giving the women who come here the ability to protect themselves.”
“That’s awesome! Go, dad!” Ace leapt out of his bed and imitated the boxing moves he saw in the gym.
Danny saw Ace’s enthusiasm and thought it was about time. He clasped his son’s shoulder and said, “Ace, want to learn some boxing techniques?”
“Ah, I can?” Ace said with shining eyes.
“If you want to,” Danny said with a nod.
“Can I invite Vincent?” Ace asked as he jumped up and down.
“Sure,” he said. He didn’t mind at all. He was glad Ace had a close friend.
“Yippee!” Ace said and ran out of his room. He shouted down the hall, “I’ll go get him right now!”
Ace’s eyes snapped open. He looked around and found himself in the gravity room. He thought aloud, “Dreams are so realistic now. Is this the result of higher stats?”
He glanced at the time. Aghast, he snapped to his feet and rushed out of the room. He thought as he ran up the stars, “Damn. I’ve been so stressed lately that I’ve started taking naps. Now I’m late for my appointment on Planet Baugh!”
Just as he reached the top of the stairs, he wondered what he was doing. He forgot he could just teleport there. With a flash of light, he disappeared.
Chapter 112
When Ace and Vincent returned from Rogdul, they set up a teleportation circle near the adamantium wall so they would have quick access back. Their closest teleportation circle before was near Moscow, but that was a few hours away. The portal was located in the middle of Russia, and the only reason why a small city developed here was for the military stationed at the portal. For reference, this small city was built in a single day due to advancements in construction. Nowadays, construction workers either had earth manipulation or telekinesis. Just this alone sped up construction speed drastically, and that’s not even counting the increased agility and strength that humans now had.
With a flash of light, Ace appeared inside of an area designated for high level military personnel to teleport to. On the floor around him were around a hundred other teleportation circles. Just as he walked outside of the building he was in, a familiar figure approached him.
“You’re late,” Anderson said with a frown. He was dressed in his familiar business suit attire.
Ace sighed lightly as he dropped his head, “Sorry, I overslept.”
Anderson noticed that Ace looked a little tired, and his face was slightly pale. He clasped Ace’s shoulder and said with a chuckle, “Don’t worry about it. This is a first for you, so I’ll let it go.”
“Thanks,” Ace said and raised his head. He looked around but couldn’t find anybody else. He asked with raised eyebrows, “Where’s the ambassador?”
The person accompanying him to Rogdul was an ambassador who would stay on Planet Rogdul as a liaison between Earth and Rogdul. His job today was to introduce both parties, among other things.
“It’s me,” Anderson said with a straight face.
“You?” Ace blinked at Anderson, “I thought clones couldn’t go through the portal?”
“That was true before, but once the portal transformed I tested it again. For whatever reason, this time the connection between my main body and clone was maintained,” Anderson said while walking towards the Adamantium wall.
“Huh,” Ace shook his head, unable to understand the profundities of how the portal worked. He walked alongside Anderson and gave him a look out of the corner of his eye.
Anderson noticed and said, “What?”
“You seem… different?” Ace said with a frown. He could sense that Anderson had changed, but he didn’t know in what way.
“Well, I checked out that soul awakening manual that you distributed,” Anderson said nonchalantly.
“What?” Ace froze in place. Did he mean? Ace’s face fell as he said, “It took me 6 months to awaken my soul! How come you could do it within a few days?”
“Beats me,” Anderson said with a shrug. Usually someone would be proud of awakening their soul because it gave a huge increase in strength, but Anderson was completely calm. He was only focused on his job, nothing else. If he grew more powerful, it was only so that he could complete his mission more efficiently.
Ace recovered instantly and ran up to Anderson, his face full of smiles, “Congratulations! How many clones can you utilize at once now?”
“Since I unlocked the soulforce stat, all 230 of my clones have been active. I haven’t felt the slightest strain on my soul yet,” Anderson said calmly without understanding how amazing that sounded.
“Holy crap!” Ace said with round eyes. He recalled how he trained in the center of Rogdul and thought, “If I could train with 230 clones at once, I would have skyrocketed in strength. Speaking of that, I should check on Grom and give him the good news.”
As they approached the adamantium wall, a soldier stationed on top of the wall recognized them and jumped down. He ran up to them and saluted, “Sir, we’ve been waiting for you. You’re clear to go through.”
