The Primal Hunter Chapter 1220 - A Gambit For Recovery

More than a month had slipped away since the process began. The avatar of the Malefic Viper and Artemis were once again watching over a meditating Jake, having spent a significant amount of time observing him lately, particularly over the last few days. Artemis had become increasingly agitated as time passed, and though Vilas kept his composure, he privately confessed to feeling a growing sense of dread.

The makeshift repairs he had performed on Jake’s soul were beginning to unravel, an alarming development compounded by the fact that the soul was undergoing severe decay and trauma. Had the First Sage not been the architect of this situation, Vilas would have intervened, despite knowing his efforts would likely be futile.

Waking Jake manually was out of the question. Even if they could somehow trigger his primal survival instincts, the two deities doubted Jake’s mind would remain whole if they forced him back. At this stage, Jake was the only one capable of saving himself.

“This level of soul damage…” Artemis whispered, watching as another day went by while Jake’s presence grew increasingly faint.

“Can still be mended if he succeeds,” the Viper added, finishing her thought. “The surge of Records that will saturate his being should facilitate a recovery, and the system surely has no interest in seeing him permanently crippled.”

“We are both aware that the system is indifferent,” Artemis countered sharply. “Success does not guarantee an automatic restoration of his soul to its peak state.”

“Not explicitly, no,” Vilas admitted with a shake of his head. “However, if he can seize the momentum of his triumph, he can accelerate his healing to the point where the scars become trivial.”

Artemis fell silent, choosing not to argue further despite her obvious skepticism. The Viper didn't blame her; his own confidence was rooted solely in the unique synergy between the First Sage’s methods and Jake’s Bloodline.

Hours dragged on, and Jake’s condition spiraled downward at an accelerating pace. Even the Viper began to show true anxiety, but just then, a shift occurred—or rather, the shifting ceased.

The decay halted instantly, as if Jake’s soul had been locked in ice. Both Artemis and Vilas noticed the change immediately, with the goddess of the hunt looking toward the Primordial for an explanation.

“I assume it is a positive sign,” the Viper said with a shrug, unable to give her a definitive answer. Typically, individuals undergoing a transformation of this magnitude were far more advanced in Cultivation and better equipped to handle the strain. They didn't usually have to deal with a crumbling soul simultaneously.

“It shouldn't be a bad omen…” Artemis murmured, her eyes fixed intently on Jake with deep concern.

Vilas remained quiet, joining her in a silent vigil. He noted that Artemis had become bolder over the past month, her usual reverence for a Primordial like himself being replaced by raw worry. He suspected she would be mortified by her lack of etiquette once the crisis passed.

He didn't take offense; in fact, it made him respect the woman Jake had chosen even more. Her genuine care was a rarity in a multiverse where ego and cold individualism were often seen as the only paths to true power.

Several hours passed with Jake in this state of suspended animation. His soul was neither mending nor worsening, a stagnation that threatened to become a problem in its own right.

While his soul remained in flux, the injuries hadn't yet set. If he lingered in this shattered state for too long, the damage might become permanent or significantly harder to rectify. Thus, while the end of the deterioration was good, it wasn't a total victory yet.

There was a possibility that even if the First Sage and Jake were on the right track, Jake might simply be too slow. High rewards always demanded high risks, and the First Sage clearly believed in using danger as a teaching tool. Furthermore, his Master hadn't known Jake for very long; perhaps he hadn't fully grasped the nuances of Jake’s Bloodline.

As the Viper weighed this possibility, his concern deepened. Jake’s Bloodline was pure chaos to anyone attempting to predict the future, as his transcendent instincts were fundamentally erratic. It was how he had derailed the plans of powerful gods before—but it might have also led the First Sage to a slight miscalculation.

Just as these dark thoughts began to take hold, another transformation occurred.

The stasis shattered, and Jake’s soul resumed its rapid decay. Artemis’s eyes widened in horror, and the Viper fought back a grimace, fearing the end had come. But before they could conclude that all was lost, a massive pulse of energy radiated from Jake’s form.

The Bloodline that had been dormant for a month surged with life as a thunderous heartbeat resonated through the chamber. It provided a desperate surge of power, and just as the soul seemed ready to collapse, a second heartbeat thudded.

Neither deity could see exactly what was happening within Jake’s inner world. This was either the moment of breakthrough or the final, desperate scream of a Bloodline trying to survive its own destruction.

The answer arrived with decisive force as a brand-new aura exploded outward.

With a final heartbeat, the heavy presence of his Bloodline merged with a different kind of power that both gods recognized instantly. This energy poured from Jake’s body, saturating his vessel and soul. Within that power, they felt a familiar, unmistakable resonance:

The faint glimmer of divinity.

Despite this, the Viper knew the peril wasn't over. Jake had just tapped into something no mortal mind was meant to touch. Paradoxically, Vilas found himself hoping that Jake hadn't been *too* successful.

Jake watched as fissures radiated out from where the golden arrow had struck. As the cracks widened, something poured out from behind the barrier, sending a wave of energy that crashed over him seconds later.

Bracing himself, Jake stood his ground against the current, feeling as though he were submerged in a raging river. Simultaneously, a deluge of visions and concepts flooded his consciousness—a chaotic mess of information that threatened to overwhelm his senses.

Before his mind could snap under the pressure, the flow eased, revealing the golden gate once more. The golden arrow remained lodged in the center, surrounded by expanding cracks that continued to leak the mysterious energy.

Fortunately, the gate's destruction had slowed, leaving only a damaged section where the arrow protruded. The leaking energy confirmed Jake’s earlier suspicions about the nature of this place.

As he flew closer to the breach, the oppressive weight of the realm vanished. The initial wave of concepts had cleared the air, and the steady leak created a sort of protective buffer zone around the gate.

Upon reaching the barrier, Jake felt a new barrage of insights trying to burrow into his mind. Bizarre images and incomprehensible thoughts dominated his perception, but he forced himself to filter the noise and maintain his focus.

Closing his eyes, he leaned toward one of the fractures, allowing the escaping concepts to wash over him.

He knew he had already succeeded. All that remained was to stabilize his gains and mentally exit this realm. However, he had a different objective in mind.

Upgrading his Meditate skill was only part of the goal; he had also hoped the process would help mend his soul before his B-grade evolution. His soul was currently in worse shape than before, but he recognized that this damage was different from the fundamental breakage he’d suffered with Palate. This was the kind of damage his improved meditation could fix, whereas Palate remained a ruined mess.

He understood now that even a superior meditation skill couldn't simply "heal" Palate. He had corrupted the Records within the skill itself. It required a deliberate reconstruction—replacing shattered Records and either purging or reabsorbing the corrupted elements.

Villy had previously used a Transcendent skill to stabilize Palate, essentially placing a magical bandage over it that allowed limited use while sealing away the most dangerous parts.

Now, Jake had ripped that bandage off. The skill had remained calm during his long period of stabilization, but he knew it would soon begin to tear him apart from the inside. He could ask Villy for help again, or try to study it himself, but he had a bolder plan.

He would exploit this narrow window where the corrupted Palate was fully exposed but hadn't yet begun to self-destruct.

Touching the gate directly, Jake’s eyes flew open as he fought the urge to scream. An insane torrent of concepts—knowledge far beyond the capacity of a C-grade—invaded his mind. Just before his consciousness could be obliterated, he used his remaining willpower to trigger a system prompt he had prepared:

Do you wish to experience the forming of a High-Record Fragment related to the path of the Malefic Viper? Uses remaining: 2

Warning: experiencing a High-Record Fragment will consume 2 charges.

Without a moment's delay, Jake accepted. He was instantly pulled away by the system, his mind brimming with the raw concepts and Records needed to fuel the coming vision.

--

“It seems he’s found his way,” the Viper remarked with a smile as a trace of divinity began to fill the room. The aura was stable and controlled, suggesting Jake had only taken a cautious glimpse into that higher power.

“He actually succeeded,” Artemis said, her voice tinged with shock. “But he isn't safe yet. I won't celebrate until he actually wakes up.”

“Fair enough,” Vilas said, his anxiety largely replaced by curiosity. He was eager to see what kind of skill Jake would manifest, though the aura in the air gave him a strong hint.

Artemis was right to be cautious, though. One could never be certain what was happening in the mind of his Chosen. He hoped Jake would simply take his winnings and leave that mental space as soon as possible.

Of course, knowing Jake, that was unlikely.

As the gods watched, Jake’s aura shifted, taking on the distinct flavor of the Viper’s own presence. Before Artemis could question him, Jake’s body vanished from the room, summoned away by the system.

“What has—”

“Just wait,” the Viper interrupted, a wide grin spreading across his face as he realized Jake's gamble. The idea of stacking these two opportunities was something even Vilas hadn't considered. He was intensely curious to see the result.

Assuming, of course, that Jake survived with his sanity intact.

Jake’s consciousness drifted, but the system's Legacy protocol helped shield him. The overwhelming concepts from the gate were still present but were now being filtered and suppressed so they wouldn't shatter his mind.

This was a massive risk. Jake had bet that by using the Path of the Heretic-Chosen to inhabit the Malefic Viper’s perspective, the system would naturally limit his sensory input to prevent mental collapse.

If not for this filtering, experiencing the life of an S-grade dragon fighting someone like Valdemar would have left him a vegetable. The gamble paid off; the system allowed him to stay lucid despite the mountain of unprocessed data in his head.

Inside the vision, Jake focused entirely on the Palate of the Malefic Viper. He wasn't sure if he could force the vision's direction, but he had checked the possibility just before touching the gate.

Once again, Jake was a passenger in the body of the Malefic Viper. He couldn't tell what grade Villy was in this memory, as the Viper was simply strolling through a crowded city street in a humanoid form Jake didn't recognize. The Viper changed his appearance frequently in the old days, after all.

As the Viper walked, he would occasionally brush against a wall or a pillar. Once, he even knelt down to touch the pavement. Each time, a faint magical glow emanated from his hand, leaving behind a nearly invisible trace of mana.

Through Villy's eyes, Jake observed the city. It looked remarkably modern, reminiscent of Earth a century before the system arrived, albeit infused with high-level magic.

The streets were lined with opulent shops. Jake realized this was no ordinary settlement; most pedestrians were C-grade, with many B-grades among them, yet everyone behaved with the humility of F-grades. No one flew; they all moved at a measured, respectful pace.

Jake wondered what the purpose of this memory was until the Viper sat down at a small cafe. Sipping a drink, Villy looked toward a magnificent building in the distance. It was a gilded structure, clearly the most important landmark in the area, with a sign made of massive, glittering jewels:

Auction House.

Looking at that building, Jake became certain of two things: the Viper wanted something inside, and there was absolutely no way he planned on paying for it.