The Primal Hunter

Chapter 943: Planetary Pylon

”This makes little sense,” the Sword Saint frowned. ”The Milky Way is only that big, how could a third being roughly on the level of you and Ell’Hakan have appeared?”

Jake could only remain silent, as he truly had no idea. This made the old man sigh as he continued. ”If it was someone from Earth or related to us, it would make more sense… do you think this individual may have some kind of connection to Ell’Hakan?”

”No way to know,” Jake shrugged. ”But I somehow doubt it. Either way, chances are we will end up meeting this person at some point, and we can learn the details then. If it’s another enemy, fine. If it’s an ally, even better. For now, who cares? I think we got plenty of other matters to deal with.”

The Fallen King looked at Jake, who expected what he was about to say to be about this ”I” individual, but instead, he reminded Jake of something quite important.

”Seeing as we’re now close to the Planetary Pylon, perhaps going to claim it would be an idea? Possibly, there are bonuses to doing that first,” he reminded Jake.

”Oh, fuck,” Jake realized. ”Be right back.”

With those words, Jake stormed back down the hallway to exit the Prima Vessel, leaving the rest to enjoy staring at the pretty map of the galaxy. It was finally time to lay claim to his planet for good.

Ell’Hakan clenched his newly regenerated fist, recognizing that the Prima Guardian had been more powerful than expected. In the end, he even had to give up one of his arms to strike it down for good. The losses they had taken also weren’t insignificant, and the Chosen had to recognize that these ”helpers” he had chosen left much to be desired. At times, he regretted getting rid of the Ashen Devourer, but he also knew that keeping the Unique Lifeform under control wouldn’t have been feasible.

Nevertheless, this hadn’t been something Ell’Hakan couldn’t handle with his most trusted aides, and he made sure all who died were those he didn’t view as essential. It did help a good amount to have the powerful ”champions” of other planets die, as they would make them more reliant on Ell’Hakan going forward, but he also couldn’t overdo it. No, ultimately, it was far better to simply turn those champions into his own aides.

The Prima Guardian they faced had been an odd creature. It was some form of chimera that, after a bit of fighting, had morphed and transformed into a creature reminiscent of a large stone elemental, just with a bit of the stone replaced by biological parts. With its level at 345, it had nearly reached peak C-grade, far above what most of the people present could handle.

Its primary abilities seemed to have been to absorb all forms of energy attacks thrown at it while at the same time taking in the atmospheric mana and using that to create an optimal form for itself. An interesting and tricky opponent, for sure.

The assistance of the many regular Primas had naturally also been a problem, but they’d handled it pretty well. Sure, a few tens of thousands had died, but they were all from the more problematic camps. Meanwhile, the ones from the greater factions had done quite splendidly. The armies from the Holy Church, as one example, had done exemplary.

Which perhaps shouldn’t be suprising considering they controlled so many of the planets part of the alliance and were more than willing contributors to his cause. Striking a close relationship had been one of the best decisions Ell’Hakan had made.

With the Prima Guardian slain, he proceeded into the Prima Vessel and headed straight for what he recognized as the control room. A few of his most loyal aides went along with him, studying the Prima Vessel.

Laying his hand on the dashboard, the map of the galaxy appeared. His eyes opened wide, when he saw it display not just the planets part of the alliance, but all of them. Knowing the exact location of a planet held a lot of value… far more than most recognized. Having everyone know where his own homeworld wasn’t particularly pleasant either.

Manipulating the map a bit, he finally had the rankings appear.

His face fell as he stared at the list. The Chosen of the Malefic One being in the first spot on the list to become an Administrator of the Seat of the Exalted Prima was not something he liked to see, but it also wasn’t unexpected. It could be worked with, at the very least.

However… the third individual… someone simply named “I,” a single letter…

Ell’Hakan truly had no idea how that had happened or who it could be. He had no intelligence from his god or any of the other gods who worked with Yip of Yore either.

Sighing, Ell’Hakan wasn’t a fan of this development.

The situation and event overall were already complicated enough as is, and he didn’t need some other unknown factor to mess things up further.

You have claimed a Planetary Pylon.

By controlling the Pylon, you have claimed ownership over the planet known as Earth. Your aura seeps into the planet itself, marking it as your own. While on your own planet, all energy regeneration is increased. Protect the planet, expand your empire, and walk the Path of Kings. Note that contrary to Pylon’s of Civilization, a Planetary Pylon cannot be taken from you unless you are slain.

Having claimed the Planetary Pylon, so have you claimed every Pylon of Civilization on the planet. All City Lords will remain unaffected unless actions are taken to make it otherwise.

Bonuses to all citizens on your planet:

Increases all experience earned while within the domain by a minor amount for all non-combat-related activities.

Jake stood in front of a large all-black core that looked like it was made out of pure carbon. He had his hand on it, and despite the blistering heat of the Core Room, Jake didn’t feel a thing as an aura expanded from the Planetary Pylon.

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He had finally fully laid claim to Earth, and he felt his energy spread out through the mantle of the planet. Every single part of it was marked as his territory, and Jake faintly felt the slightly increased energy regeneration. It was incredibly minor and didn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things – neither did the extra experience points for doing non-combat stuff – but it was all just good bonuses to get.

These were also the exact same bonuses the Pylon of Civilization gave. In fact, one could view this as Jake having just claimed a Pylon of Civilization that covered the entire planet. It was all his now… or, more accurately, it was all Miranda’s to deal with now.

Having claimed the Pylon, Jake also got a small bonus of his own, though it wasn’t really anything he cared much about.

Congratulations! For being one of the first people to claim a Planetary Pylon in your universe, your nobility title has been upgraded!

Titled Upgraded: [Nobility: Marquess] --> [Nobility: Duke]

[Nobility: Duke] – A noble who has been voted World Leader and finally fully claimed his planet as one of the first in his universe. Allows you to control several Planetary Pylons. Grants access to certain events and opportunities exclusive to nobles. Opens many new paths to power

Now, calling himself a Duke was maybe a bit cool at times, but the title was really wasted on Jake. He was perhaps one of the people in the multiverse who made the least use of his nobility title, as he’d actively avoided ever picking any skills or classes reliant on or using his nobility status. But it wasn’t like having a high nobility title had any downsides, so Jake didn’t really care.

Scanning the core room that now had a big metal egg sitting in it right beneath the core, Jake couldn’t help but admire the size of the place. It was a huge circular cavern surrounded by magma and rocks. A few streams of lava floated as if there was no gravity from the bottom to the top or vice-versa in several areas, and Jake reckoned that the area alone would kill most early-tier C-grades. From ceiling to floor, there had to be nearly a hundred kilometers, and the mana density in the room was quite frankly insane.

Staring at the Planetary Pylon itself, Jake also had to admit that it was quite something… mainly in the sense that it felt so damn dense not even a B-grade could break it easily. The energy it contained was also through the roof. As a Planetary Core, it also had the ability to create new mana, not unlike that of a soul. It was what regulated and created most of the environmental mana on the planet, and in some ways, it was in a feedback loop with the planet itself.

It would absorb the Records of those on the planet, making itself grow. At the same time, it would spread those Records back into the planet, allowing those on it to grow. This effect was very minor, though, and it was generally recognized that there was a slight decay over time. Especially when people left the planet after having absorbed a lot of the Records provided to them.

When it came to pure energy, the Planetary Core was nearly inexhaustible. This was also the reason why Jake was certain Miranda was gonna use it to strengthen Earth’s defenses. Pretty much all barriers that protected planets relied on the Planetary Core to power themselves, as there rarely were any better power sources. While using a Planetary Core to set up a barrier was quite difficult, it was far different if one had a Planetary Pylon.

Quick thing to add here… all Planetary Pylons were Planetary Cores, but not all Planetary Cores were Pylons. This was something Jake had asked Villy about a while back, as Jake wondered why people spoke about some planets with cores and some with Planetary Pylons. It turns out that Planetary Pylons are just transformed Planetary Cores.

In a new universe, the system was behind this transformation, but in the rest of the multiverse, one would never find something like Pylons of Civilization or Planetary Pylons in the wild. They were all created using certain skills and crafting methods. It also took heavy investment to turn a Core into a Pylon, so most factions only bothered with the ”important” planets.

So, yeah, having a Planetary Pylon was just another gift to the newly initiated universe.

”I see you’ve finally claimed the Pylon,” Miranda sent to Jake a few seconds later after he’d taken the Pylon.

”Sure have. I assume you can see it on your end? Is there a lot to deal with?” Jake asked.

”A lot is an understatement. I have just been granted dominion over every single Pylon on the planet, all the statistics that come with that, as well as far more control than I could imagine… I believe I will find myself quite busy in the near future. I hope you didn’t count on me going hunting on other planets for this Prima Guardian Alliance,” Miranda quickly explained.

”Nah, I think you’re good,” Jake answered, shaking his head despite knowing no one was around to see it. ”By the way, do you need me to give you more permissions or something?”

”No, it doesn’t look like it,” Miranda answered. ”Also… I got my nobility title upgraded. You’re now speaking with a Marquis.”

”I see, I see… must be an honor for a lowly Marquis to be allowed to speak with an honorable Duke,” Jake joked.

”Damn, that title is wasted on you… and here I thought I had finally caught up when it came to my nobility title. Gained a few upgrades here and there, such as when we made the World Council. Oh well, I’m at least confident in making it to Queen first, as I’m not even sure where you would get more free upgrades from,” Miranda said, only sounding a little bit frustrated.

”You never know. Maybe I end up taking control of the entire galaxy by accident, turning myself into an emperor,” Jake joked.

”Wouldn’t even be surprised at this point. Anyway, you should look into coming topside once more. The Prima cleanup is finished, and we’re waiting for you and the others to discuss our next plan of action.”

“Alright, see you soon. Now I just gotta figure out a way to do so fast…” Jake muttered as he turned around and flew back toward the Prima Vessel. With the planet claimed, that was one other matter handled. Miranda had also mentioned that the Prima cleanup was just about done… and releasing a Pulse, he saw the inside of the Prima Vessel, including a few people standing in front of the barrier that Jake theorized would contain loot.

Guess it’s finally time to see if this damn event has some proper loot to offer.

The cracked, gray ground stretched out as far as the eye could see. The land was entirely dead, with not a single plant growing anywhere… yet this place was far from empty.

Tens of millions of figures were lying on the ground, their bodies perfectly preserved. Below them all, odd scripture marred the ground, signifying something grand had happened here. Something that had taken the life of every being on the entire planet, as there was no sign of life to be found on the entire celestial body.

The only movements to be seen were the ground dust that floated everywhere, originating not from the corpses of those who had once called the planet home but that which had arrived not long ago.

A large metal egg-like object sat not far away. Its surface was no longer blank and shiny but had an odd, almost rusted color in many places. The creatures that had emerged from this thing were now naught but the dust that made up the atmosphere of this dead world.

Yet, just then, there was movement.

A wizened hand raised itself from the ground as a creature crawled out. Dragging along with it, the giant corpse of what had once been a Prima Guardian began to turn to dust as it held it, a golden key-like symbol glowing on the creature’s hand.

Within seconds, the entire corpse of the Prima Guardian had become dust, and the world turned fully monochrome again.

Congratulations on becoming a potential Administrator Candidate for the Seat of the Exalted Prima.

You do not currently possess a name to display. Please choose your display name (this will also appear on your official status) or choose to remain anonymous.

This notification appeared in front of the creature. Words it couldn’t read but faintly understood.

”I… am… I…” a hoarse voice came out, as the gray dust shuddered before all fell silent once more, and the creature turned its attention toward the giant metal vessel.