Atlas: Seekers Of Strength

Walking through the ancient courtyard, I have a quick look around. Analysing my findings I realize this base wasn't created to keep things out, but rather to keep something locked in!

The main reason for the conclusion is several thick steel chains are bolted around the courtyards, most have been ripped open.

From the outside you could see eight weapons placed upon the towers, but within the courtyard there's forty weapons aiming their muzzle towards each tower door.

Four aimed at each door but one tower has an entire twelve weapons pointed at its direction, why would the owners concentrate more weapons inside the walls?

If the enemy had already broken through the castles walls, wouldn't the base already be near its end?

I carefully begin exploring each tower one by one, I begin with the northern most tower. Entering there isn't any defences as they've long since lost function.

Inside its not too large, its got three floors. The first floor has several manuals which record experiment results of something called mimic experiments.

Opening a manual, I read the words Mimic Master Introduction.

"Mimic Master introduction, by Mr. Dorian the Mimic Master" curious I begin reading the stack of manuals, with just a glance I could memorize each word without needing a second look.

It doesn't take long before the entire shelf has been memorized by me, If only I could take them away.

With this thought, I recall something from some reading materials when I was training as a Forge master.

Looking at my ring, I try something. Our town had been cut off from the rest of the world but we have retained some knowledge like the existence of Spatial Rings.

Our town couldn't craft them as you must be a Tier 1 Array and Forge master at the epic level to craft the most common spatial ring.

Considering how ancient this ring is, could it be a spatial ring? testing out my thought, I send some astral qi down towards the ring.

I watch as the astral qi passes into the ring without resistance, my spirit can now see a mainly empty space with 100 m3 of storage area.

Only a single item is placed within the centre, its a white marble tablet only thirty centimetres tall, a single name is engraved within the middle.

"Tedorian Astral Technique"

Sending my conscious into it, my mind gains a large amount of information about how to cultivate this Astral Technique.

Unfortunately its an incomplete technique as the aura needed to cultivate it is missing.

Stopping, I recall the contents of the technique. Its an Epic Tier Astral technique that allows you to cultivate until the Earth Astral realm.

So the following realms after True Astral realm is; Spirit Astral realm and Earth Astral realm? taking note, I wonder what realm that great astral is?

I doubt he is an earth astral, he wouldn't be this patient to wait 800 years just for an Epic earth technique? he would surely be able to obtain another in this time.

So spirit astral? but even so he wouldn't wait this long just for this technique, he must be after something else.

Could it be due to Master Dorians status as a Mimic Master? I look through my memories at the contents of the Mimic Masters notes.

Mimic Masters are even rarer than Forgers and Array Masters, although they aren't as needed as the latter.

Thinking here, I get slightly excited. Scanning the rest of the floors, I find experiment data for different kinds of Devils. I place them inside my storage ring after reading each of them.

After reading through them I get slightly shocked, People can actually create life from astral qi? No! not life but more of a computer program brought to life.

You design its shape, thoughts and traits beforehand. After you remember millions, billions and some Devils require Trillions of different sets of codes.

No dna or Genes exist within the devils, its a strange process.

You must find a Devils Egg, carefully erase the data from within the devils egg and Inscribe your own devils code.

Devil eggs can be found anywhere within the world, they are created through astral qi being condensed together.

Afterwards the devil egg will hatch into a random devil depending on the environment it was condensed. If you manage to find a devil egg, you can do two things with it.

1. Insert your spirit within the devil egg, you combine it with your own spirit. you can then summon what ever devil was within the devil egg, this is now called a Mimic.

(only one devil can be fused with your spirit, if you want to change a mimic you must discard your old one and replace it. you cant get it back once you discard it)

(The mimic follows your cultivation until its potential limit, If you buy a True devil to use as a mimic then its realm will be suppressed to your own until you break through, it will then too breakthrough to match you.)

(If you break through into the Spirit Astral realm, the mimic will still remain at the True devil realm)

(Even if the mimic is killed, all it will do is harm your spirit until you restore it, you can then re-summon the mimic as many times as you need to)

2. Sell it to a mimic master, (devil eggs are split into; common, un-common, Rare, Epic, Legendary, Mythic and Fabled).

(Each Tier makes the devil stronger than the previous)

(To Mimic Masters, Common or Fabled devil eggs don't make a difference when creating their own devils, so they always buy common devil eggs the most cheapest one)

Its really interesting, no wonder Mimic Masters make anyone sufficiently greedy! you must be incredibly smart beyond comprehension to become one.

Even the most basic Mimic Master would take someone decades to step into the first stage, you can buy the blue print of a common mortal devil from most influences.

Even with the blue print, you must remember millions of lines of devils code for the most basic mortal devil.

You must then spend time Inscribing each piece of code without mistake and in perfect order into the devils egg.

The problem is, you must have created a Variant Mimic to become a Mimic Master, Variant Mimics are created when you design your very own devil that deviates from the original.

If you can only copy a devil code, then your only a Mimic Apprentice. No one will buy from a Mimic Apprentice as you may as well just buy a devils egg and fuse your spirit with it yourself.

There are some special cases, if you cant find an egg of a devil you want.

You can bring any old egg to a mimic apprentice, the mimic apprentice will then inscribe the devil of your choice for you for a price.

The amount of resources to become a Mimic Master are unimaginable.

Changing just one devil code out of the billions could make the devil egg fail and waste your time and resources.

It could take months just to inscribe one devil egg, stopping half way through would cause it to fail, so to create your own variant mimic that's stronger than the original? difficult!.

Leaving the tower after gathering my thoughts, I move on to the other seven. One tower had over a hundred battle skills engraved into tablets, most haven't retained the aura needed to cultivate them so they are useless.

But the descriptions on how to cultivate them will increase my knowledge a little.

Only a dozen still had a bit of aura infused into their tablets, so I could cultivate them if need be. The highest tier was a spirit blade skill at the epic tier.

The next few towers were an Array workshop with the experience and notes of an Epic Tier 4 Array master, another tower had an Epic Tier 4 Forge masters notes and comprehension.

The last tower was filled with cages that had been ripped apart, several human bones are scattered around while the walls are stained with dried blood.

In the centre of this tower, a ten meter tall giant cage had been ripped in half. nearby several meter thick chains had been ripped from their bolts as they scatter across the room.

"Just what monster would be able to break through the chains?" I had been startled when looking at this scene

I'm starting to understand what this ancient base was used for, it was a research base owned by an Earth Astral Mimic Master.

Besides the first and last tower, the other six towers around the edge didn't belong to him but his followers.

Some followers were; Array masters, forge masters and battle skill researchers. Each follower was atleast at the spirit astral realm.

They spent most of their time experimenting on creating arrays and weapons to contain devils should they break away from their cages.

They had created a small organization together called The Chaos cloaks, this pocket world was created after they spent almost all their resources on it.

It was quite secretive and only few people knew of their name as they didn't propagandize their organization, they would sell Mimics to the great sects around here.

Looking at the trace marks of a fierce battle within each tower, the floors filled with bones that had been chewed until not much remain.

I come to the conclusion that this organization was most likely wiped out from within.

Although a genius, this Master Dorian could only create Rare Mimics that reached the Spirit Devil realm, it was a famous Mimic called the Shadow screamer.

It got this name from its screech that would temporarily stun people when heard.

If I'm not wrong then this Master Dorian wanted to try evolve the Shadow screamers potential so that it could advance into that of an earth devil.

To do so he needed research material, he was only at the earth astral realm himself, he doesn't train in fighting.

Unlikely being a match for an a.d.u.l.t earth devil, he most likely bought a common earth devil egg to hatch under safe conditions.

After dedicating an entire tower to lock up the devil egg, it had hatched.

Getting what he needed, through the notes I find he had experimented on it repeatedly. Devils aren't alive, it would be like experimenting on a computer.

Taking it apart doesn't do anything because it doesn't think, feel pain or have an ounce of emotion, its literally made out of astral qi itself.

After repeated experiments it had been placed back inside the cage.

With a one in a million chance, a mutation occurred. The Devil had managed to mutate into an Un-common tier!

Each tier gives it tremendous strength, with its new found power it broke free from the cage, smashing apart its chains and the other jails of the caged specimens while doing so.

But how could Mr. Dorian not know mutations? The cage should be able to hold even a Rare Earth devil, he was most likely betrayed by someone from within the organization.

Being no match for even a common Earth Devil, how could Mr. Dorian take down the devil himself? his followers weren't even able to resist as the formations within the tower deactivated on their own.

This allowed the Devil to have zero resistance when escaping the most fortified tower of the eight.

"The betrayer should of been the Array master?" raising a brow, I could conclude this much.

Although the arrays surrounding the last tower are no longer active, I can see they are relatively intact.

The Arrays of the other seven towers are all damaged and destroyed after using them to resist the Earth devil.

Someone who has access to the arrays other than Mr Dorian should be the Array master.

That skeleton back in the dungeon, could that of been the Array master? thinking I remember that the skeletons bones had been blackened by what seems to be poison.

After betraying the organization and taking Mr Dorians most valuable data, he had met with his accomplice who waited for him outside the pocket dimension?

When they gathered, the array master was then planned by his partner.

His partner poisoned him and stole Mr. Dorians Earth devil research data along with the Array masters storage ring.

The storage ring is the key to enter the pocket dimension, but it seems the Astral who had stole the Variant earth devils data isn't interested in anything else within the pocket dimension.

He must be at the same level of Mr Dorian himself, otherwise there would be no need to go through all this planning if he was a lot stronger.

But if he was weaker, would he dare plan Mr. Dorian who has connections to the great sects?

Could The Great astral who had killed my great grandfathers mercenary group have anything to do with the Mastermind behind the Chaos Cloaks destruction?

Although curious, I hold back on looking into things any further, I have no sentimental value to revenge for this Mr. Dorian but I do like mysteries.

Its been 8 hours already? Stretching I can have a small moment of peace, luckily this ancient base is hidden inside a Camouflage Array.

This world really is exciting.

Finishing my conclusion, I have taken everything that can be taken from within the towers. I move towards the last building, the main castle itself!