God Of Crafting

"Were you the one to claim the life of my child?!"

I gritted my teeth, for there was hardly anything else I could do at this point.

This wasn't the physical restraint that forced me to eat dirt before while leaving me a whole lot of options beyond just movement.

This, however, was different.

Despite how furiously it bounced against the wall of the Qi-rich air, the domain I've controlled through my scythe, the bubble of influence… just couldn't force its way through this man's power.

And that left me with what meager Qi I could accumulate within my body alone.

'What do I…"

"Were you the one…" just as this oppressive being attempted to speak again, some sort of wave cut through the zone.

It wasn't a physical pressure, not of the kind I've experienced before at the very least.

It was as if…

The quality… No, the intent within the Qi in the air had changed…

It was a wave of extremely dense Qi, alright, but one that…

There was something extremely unsettling about it.

And as if responding to my deep desire to understand this strange phenomenon…

What little spiritual energy I could muster on my own, I used all to enter the state of near-meditation.

There was no other way out.

I couldn't move at all.

I could hardly use any of my spiritual force, outmatched in every possible regard in the realm of control over it.

So, escaping into the dangerous clutches of my weird ability was literally the only thing that I could still try.

It didn't matter what just happened and what caused it. The only thing that I cared about was that this wave, whatever it was, shattered the delicate control this weird, oppressive man had over what turned out to be… just a powerful spell.

And now that this gust of Qi has blown the whole illusion up, I suddenly could breathe again.

Breathe… and connect with just the narrow slither of my sphere of influence.

But that alone was enough.

I tightened the grip on my scythe before escaping through this narrow strand of my domain that made its was through the disturbed formation of the enemy's spell.

"Haaah!"

Breathing out with exhaustion, I fell down to my knees, in the relative safety of roughly a hundred meters of distance.

In a single jump, I've managed to translocate several times. This wave of weird Qi apparently affected my own bubble of influence, making it stretch much faster and further than before, allowing for this near-instant transportation.

"Are you…"

Looking down, I saw Claire's focused face as she held onto me with only her forearms.

Her focus was impeccable, and her concentration was immaculate. And thanks to those two, her hands were shining with all the Qi that was brimming in them.

'Wait, isn't she…'

I shook my head.

This wasn't the right time for those thoughts. The same applied to this weird wave…

'Oh shit.'

That was all I could say when it suddenly struck me.

The effects of meditation suddenly exploded in full force, forcefully expanding my consciousness, tearing and searing my brain as more and more info started to pour into my mind.

Every gust of wind had its meaning. Every flicker of Qi, spark of flame or a glister of a human soul… they all had their meaning.

And so did the wave that made me curious enough to take the risk and take a plunge into the depth of my weird ability.

It was only when the spiritual energy properly settled in my eyes and then in my brain, however, when I could finally take a single breath of relief off.

Now I understood.

And as scared shitless as it made me, this was nothing but another opportunity to do something!

Then again…

"Holy shit…" I squeezed out a short curse as I nearly stumbled back on my feet…

Only for the same, strange burst of energy to explode in my knees, quickly spreading to my legs, allowing me to easily regain my footing and reinforce my stance.

Claire…

Claire was too focused on her spell to mind anything that was going on around us.

And now that I have taken a proper look…

'Oh damn… This girl…'

Rather than trying to block attacks, prepare some herself or do anything else… Claire focused on doing nothing but fueling me with her own spirituality.

It was her silent support that allowed me to fully unlock the potential of my weird talent, or remain afoot right now.

A process so endlessly complex I would never even assume it was possible… But no matter how I looked at it, the energy from Claire's chaotic core moved not to her own anchors, but to mine instead.

Just by reading which part of my body drained more energy, Claire would send her own energy there to support my efforts, somehow deciding that entrusting me with everything was just the right bet.

And honestly speaking…

'Now I'm pretty much obliged to fuck that guy up, am I not?' I thought as I raised my hand… and brought it down upon Claire's shining palm, pressing her hands down on my chest.

All this hesitation, thinking and actions cost me the dear advantage of distance we've gained over the old, powerful man.

Sure, the extent of power I initially witnessed was on a whole other level… but even with the illusion torn, he was clearly at least a few stages above me. In all honesty, however… right now, he wasn't even the biggest problem on my mind.

'It's coming…' I thought, affording just one glance over the furious old man's back, at the depth of the woods.

"MY CHILD…!" locking his aim the moment he spotted us, the old man shrieked while raising his hand towards us.

'Here it comes…' Channeling all the information, knowledge, and logical blueprints for the situation, I've deconstructed the moment to the tiniest level I could, arranging for each and every part of it to go just along the favorable line. And as I braced for the impact…

The massive trees of the ancient forest suddenly shook, as if the earth's very core grew upset with all the atrocities committed on the earth's face.

Then, those massive, many-ton-heavy logs of wood… all exploded to the sides, as a horde of massive ancestral beasts came rushing straight at the greatest concentration of Qi in the whole place!