Freddy eyed the collection of unmoving spirits. The number of groups coincided with the exact number of abilities he had ready for an upgrade. What he didn’t immediately understand was why there were several spirits in some groups, but he had a pretty good guess.

  Insanity didn’t give him all that much time to puzzle it out. “You will be rewarded a choice upgrade for all your abilities. The choices will include all those you’ve been considering.” It grinned. “And a few will have my recommendations.”

  Freddy snorted at that, but Insanity immediately scowled at him. “Do not look down on me. I am Insanity. Not Stupidity. I will not give you bad suggestions.” It got off the chair and rushed over to him, pushing its face into his and snarling. “Insanity is to depart from order in thought and action. You have done so many times. And to great benefit. So show some respect!”

  “I get it. And I apologize.”

  “Good!” it barked. “Now get your ass up and get to choosin’!”

  Freddy got up and walked all the way to the end of the line, where he was greeted by a single spirit.

  It was his Lake of Blood upgrade—volume. That was the only choice. Anything else wouldn’t just be insane. It would also be dumb. “How do I take it?” he asked. “Do I have to fight it?”

  Spirits could enter reality, meaning they could be fought outside the Netherecho. The tricky part of capturing them was that it still needed to be done within the Netherecho.

  Now, killing a spirit in reality was relatively simple. Weakening it for capture was a different beast. As soon as a spirit received a substantial injury in reality, it would no longer have the strength to remain there.

  The fight needed to be finished in the Netherecho.

  Some were tempted to imagine that capturing spirits was even easier than capturing remnants. After all, an archhuman’s projection didn’t grow as much in power as their true body did. Being able to rely on one’s true body should make it a lot easier, right?

  Wrong.

  Capturing spirits was a hundred times harder than capturing remnants.

  For starters, just finding the right concept was tricky enough. They couldn’t be permanently imprisoned through any means. Meaning, they had to be tracked down in the wild.

  This was much easier said than done.

  They were rare. The interspace was big and dangerous. On top of that, the sheer variety of concepts made tracking down even just a specific category a monumental task.

  There were people who made a living out of tracking down spirits of specific concepts and then selling their most recent location to the highest bidder. And that was just their most recent location. In the meantime, they could move elsewhere or even die.

  And that was the easy part.

  To capture a spirit, one had to subdue it all on their own.

  This could be done through a verbal agreement. Any sentient ether construct, from the most regular of vestiges to the most powerful of eidolons, could be made to simply surrender themselves with the right choice of arguments.

  But even though they couldn’t lie, they could and often did change their minds. Sometimes in the last moment, just as they were about to be captured.

  Trying to talk it out was a viable choice. But it was not a safe way to handle them.

  So what about fighting?

  Their power ranged drastically. with the most powerful among them being an even more significant threat than Thor. Pick the wrong fight, and it was lights out.

  As mentioned, one needed to ensure they didn’t die. Spirits were already dangerous enough, even without having to be careful when fighting them. Wound them too little and they’d crush an archhuman’s spirit projection. Wound them too much and they’d die before they become an upgrade.

  The spirits Freddy was being offered seemed to be completely unmoving. And that was enough to make him worry.

  “Relax,” Insanity said. “Just touch the one you want to pick, and it will move to the Netherecho where you can safely capture it without resistance, while the others will vanish.”

  Freddy raised an eyebrow and squinted his eyes at Insanity.

  Insanity snorted. “I am still a construct. I represent a truth of the universe. I can not lie to you.”

  It was good to hear that that still applied.

  And it most certainly got Freddy excited.

  It would have taken him years of work to gather every one of the exact constructs he was looking for. And even with Bloodshed’s help, there was a non-zero chance he’d have died during the search.

  There were many two-stars who had reached the upgrade threshold for a stage 2 ability and then just never upgraded it. Capturing spirits as a three-star was one thing. Capturing them as a two-star was a death sentence for most.

  Despite the fact that it was the absolute greatest challenge he had ever faced, and the fact that it had likely fucked him up in a million different ways, he was starting to feel really glad to have entered this dungeon.

  And frankly, even though this was an incredible reward, he was already aware that this wasn’t the main prize.

  Those strange visions that had nearly split his head apart.

  Everything else was extra.

  And that had been his main reward.

  He couldn’t tell why yet. But it had changed him. The way he saw ether. The way he understood everything.

  He refocused on the task at hand. Freddy approached the spirit and cautiously touched it with a finger. Before he could even feel it, it simply vanished, blinking out of his sight like a hallucination.

  Taking a deep breath, releasing Bloodshed from his ring, and making some distance from where the spirit had been, he entered the Netherecho with his soul projection, ready for a fight. Just in case.

  To his relief, it was standing at the same spot as in reality. As promised, it was completely and utterly without ego.

  Freddy focused, releasing the ethereal chains of his Lake of Blood and thoroughly tying the spirit up. Then, he pulled it in.

  It was an intoxicating sensation. He could feel something powerful rise within his soul, the shell growing a bit in size, its blue cage shimmering almost as if it were metallic. Within, he could see the amalgamation of the vestige, remnant, and finally, the spirit.

  With every added construct, the old one was fused into the new one, transforming into a complex concept.

  But this one. It was no longer completely unmoving. He could see the spirit within stir slightly as if having a restless sleep.

  He sighed. The next upgrade—stage 4, would be far more complicated and unforgiving. This was the last chance he could even consider being picky with the concept he would use.

  Sea of Blood: Stage 3—0% Progress.

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  Quickly, he returned to his body and opened his eyes. He kept Bloodshed outside, just in case. Insanity said nothing about it.

  That was one. It was time for the next upgrade, and this was the first one he got several offers for.

  Choice 1: Titaniumness.

  Choice 2: Tungstenness.

  Insanity’s offer: Radioactivity.

  The choice between titanium and tungsten was a tough one. Heh. Tough. Indeed, both of these metals were quite tough. Tungsten was a lot stronger. But tungsten was also very dense. His blood metal would finally stop being lightweight, but this would have its consequences. It would also considerably increase the essence cost of forming his blood metal.

  Titanium was considerably lighter. But it wouldn’t be as strong.

  Frankly, both were good choices. His heart tugged him in the direction of tungsten, but titanium had enough merit that he couldn’t part with it.

  But between those two, either would be fine.

  What caught his attention was Insanity’s offer. “Radioactivity? Really?”

  Insanity grinned at him.

  Back before ether, radioactivity caused certain atoms to decay, releasing extremely energetic particles. After ether, this property changed. Now, those same substances produced essence.

  Tzenekite was the most prominent of such materials.

  Freddy was already aware of “radioactivity” as a choice for Crimson Mercury. There was just one small problem with it—it sucked.

  It made it so that his blood would produce its own blood essence. This couldn’t be absorbed, so most of it would just be lost. But when he used an ability to form blood, that ability would be able to sustain whatever functions it had on it’s own.

  For example, his Blood Javelin could float in the air due to anti-gravity. But this only lasted for about a minute. With radioactivity, the blood essence that was maintaining this function could be replenished, allowing his blood javelins to float significantly longer.

  His shields could also recharge their blocking function, and his Knuckle Blade could recharge the piercing function.

  Seemed pretty amazing, right?

  In theory, it was phenomenal. In reality, it was disappointing. The ether generation was just too slow.

  Sure, he could replenish the blocking function of his shields. After more than ten minutes of waiting. In a real fight, that might as well be eternity.

  “I know what you’re thinking,” Insanity said. “But don’t forget about those Crimson Dragon Scales. They will be able to regenerate on their own.”

  “And if I take either titanium or tungsten, they will take significantly less damage than they will ever realisically regenerate in a real fight.”

  “That is true, but”—it lifted a finger—”what if you found an eidolon—”

  “Let me cut you off right there,” Freddy said with a raised hand. “That is just insane. On brand for you, I guess, but I’m not gonna gamble on finding a specific eidolon. Even if I do find the right concept, the eidolon’s personality could be horrible.”

  “Hmph. Coward. But, all right, fair enough,” it said. “But! You will get the chance to reform this ability at stage 3—50%. If you find the right inspiration, you might be able to bring out a lot more power out. Whaddaya say?”

  “That…” That wasn’t a bad point. He eyed the rest of the waiting spirits and then slowly shook his head. “This choice will impact the rest of my decisions. And I haven’t planned my choices around radioactivity.”

  Insanity clicked its tongue. “Just make your choice.”

  Freddy eyed the other two spirits.

  Titanium. Tungsten.

  Usually, titanium would be the more rational choice. His abilities were already very expensive. But he had his Blood Ring, which would keep growing and giving him an even bigger discount. Besides, the power tungsten would bring was more than worth the cost.

  His finger floated over to the concept of “tungstenness.”

  Crimson Mercury: Stage 3—0% Progress.

  Next up was Purifying Crimson Spring. He already had “purity” and “cleansing.” He was quite happy to have taken Crimson Spring down this route. It was time to upgrade it.

  Insanity had no suggestions. And he was considering only one choice.

  The concept of “untaintedness.”

  Purifying Crimson Spring: Stage 3—0% Progress

  Next was another single-option choice. Ten Thousand Wet Hells.

  The concept of “obliteration.”

  Freddy turned to eye Insanity. “You know, I was convinced you’d suggest something here.”

  “Oh, no, that choice is already batshit insane. In fact, I’m quite proud of you for this one.”

  Freddy scoffed.

  He had a whole century to consider what he would do with this ability. By all means, this was a batshit insane upgrade. And he wasn’t even choosing this because he thought it was the best choice.

  No. Rather, he knew damn well that if he didn’t continue to go down this path, he’d regret it for the rest of his life.

  Just how tough could he theoretically become?

  It was a question that he needed to answer, lest it plague him forever.

  Maybe even enough to start the tempering technique over.

  That being said, if using this was truly impossible, he might be forced to start over anyway. But it was a risk he was willing to take.

  Hundred Thousand Wet Hells: Stage 3—0% Progress.

  Next up was Abyssal Depths. Again, no offers by Insanity, allowing Freddy to complete the trifecta of “compression,” “liquid compression,” and “water compression.”

  Abyssal Depths: Stage 3—0% Progress.

  Water Body followed. He already had “water” and “potency.” And he had a few ideas for this one.

  Choice 1: Fluidity

  Choice 2: Pressure

  Insanity’s offer: Tide

  Fluidity would make his abilities a little cheaper, while pressure would make his abilities a bit more powerful. He turned to Insanity. “What in the everliving fuck would ‘tide’ do?”

  It smiled. “Glad you asked. It would kick up the water in your body into a cycle. During a ‘low tide’ your abilities would be a little more expensive and a little less powerful. During a ‘high tide,’ the opposite would happen.”

  “That is insane.”

  “The effect would be quite prominent, swinging up to 25% in both directions.”

  “What!?” Freddy shouted. “That is bonkers. Wait, how long would these tides last?”

  Insanity moved its hand in a so-so gesture. “Couple of seconds.”

  This was honestly a pretty damn good offer. The tradeoff was obvious; if he could time it correctly, this would be a horrifying boost to his power, but if he were forced to time it poorly, it would be severely punishing.

  He mulled it over a bit. It was tempting. But it was just too much hassle. He would head into action as soon as he left this dungeon, so he didn’t have the time to master this power.

  Sighing with some regret, his hand reached for “fluidity.” He needed something to cope with his skyrocketing essence expenditure.

  Insanity balked at him. “You’re not fun at all.”

  Water Body: Stage 3—0% Progress.

  Gore Knuckles was next.

  Choice 1: Bleeding.

  Choice 2: Persistence.

  Insanity’s offer: Pain.

  The effect of “bleeding” was obvious, but “persistence,” while a bit more involved, was almost the same thing. It would make wounds caused by the Gore Knuckles more challenging to close and heal. They already created very jagged and messy wounds.

  Gore Knuckles was already great at both of these things, so honestly, this was a complete toss-up. Either choice would work just fine.

  But this time, his eyes moved over to Insanity’s offer.

  Insanity smiled at him. It already knew what choice he was going to make.

  Gore Knuckles weren’t the most effective weapon in the world. But that wasn’t the point. They were meant to intimidate.

  Sure, they allowed him to get more use out of his talent, but from his experience, the brutality aspect was just a lot more beneficial than a small boost to his healing.

  This ability perfectly complimented the horror of fighting Freddy, the undead and undying maniac who feared no injuries.

  Adding pain to them was such a good choice that he almost considered it perfectly rational rather than insane. But that probably said more about him than he was comfortable to admit.

  And this upgrade definitely warranted a name change.

  Terror Knuckles: Stage 3—0% Progress.

  Blood Javelin followed.

  Choice 1: Unity.

  Choice 2: Piercing.

  Insanity’s offer: Chaos.

  “Unity” was an exceptionally solid choice. It would make every Blood Javelin he conjured bonded to one another. As soon as he threw one, the rest of them would follow right after like a swarm of angry bees.

  “Piercing” was a little more pragmatic. It was just a good option, plain and simple.

  “Okay,” Freddy said. “Why ‘chaos’? What exactly would that do?”

  Insanity made a swerving motion with its hand. “It would make the trajectory of the Blood Javelin chaotic. It no longer matters how good you are at aiming or how good your opponent is at dodging! You might hit! But you also might miss! You never know! Isn’t that exciting?”

  Freddy gave it a long look and then reached for “Unity.”

  “No, wait!” Insanity urged. “That’s not all. You could choose precisely when that trajectory starts being chaotic. You don’t even have to activate the function at all!”

  Freddy raised an eyebrow. That wasn’t that bad. He could see it being a fantastic way to throw someone off or to mess with particularly speedy enemies who enjoyed narrowly avoiding projectiles.

  He actually didn’t mind this option at all. He quite liked it, even.

  But in the end, he liked “unity” just a bit more.

  Blood Javelin: Stage 3—0% Progress

  Accelerate Blood Projectile followed, and this was a tricky one.

  Option 1: Charge.

  Option 2: Acceleration.

  Option 3: Blood.

  In the end, he landed on “acceleration.” He already had “charge” with Hydraulic Flex, and charging two abilities at the same time was a bit distracting.

  “Blood” was a solid choice, as it would both reduce cost and increase power, but “acceleration” had an element of trickiness.

  His thrown projectiles would continue to gradually speed up the longer they traveled. Not infinitely, of course, but it would both be enough to throw opponents off and to give him more punch when throwing from further away.

  Accelerate Blood Projectile: Stage 3—0% Progress.

  Next up was an ability he’d spent a long time thinking about, and one he was sure would always be an integral part of his power.

  Saving an innocent from a drug-crazed superhuman should've left Nil broken. Instead, it wins him the Nexus' attention.

  Nil is done feeling small and watching his family scrape by. He now has the opportunity to make a difference.

  Go Check out Apocalypse Arena!