In the Temple of Panther God, everything seemed ordinary at first glance.
However, when viewed through a certain energy perspective, it became evident that the most radiant area in the temple was the sacred pool as it was shining brilliantly and even dazzlingly.
Right now, Leo found himself buried in the most radiant sacred pool, surrounded by an ocean of shimmering light.
His soul had returned to his body, allowing him to keenly sense the changes occurring within himself. An immense and profound life essence was surging into his body with a portion of it being absorbed by his physical body while another portion escaping from him.
Yet, in the next instant, a new wave of life essence poured into his body, a constant and unending flow.
Time passed in in a repetitive cycle and it was unknown how much time had elapsed.
If one were to take Leoâs body as a bucket, then the volume of that bucket was finite, destined to be filled at some point. The life essence was gradually absorbed by him until it finally filled his vast vessel.
The moment he was fully filled, with his eyes shut and amidst the darkness, he suddenly found his entire field of vision illuminated as numerous system notifications bombarded him.
ăSystem Notice: Your strength has reached a certain threshold. Skill âMechanical Force â Burstâ has been granted.ă
ăMechanical Force â Burst (Active skill): Enhances the attack with the Mechanical Force and deals 1.5 times critical damage. 10 seconds of minimum cooldown between each activation. Increases stamina and Mechanical Force consumption.ă
ăSystem Notice: Your physique has reached a certain threshold. Skill âMechanical Force â Recoveryâ has been granted.ă
ăMechanical Force â Recovery (Active skill): Gathers the Mechanical Force on the injury to swiftly stop the bleeding and slightly restore health. Increases stamina and Mechanical Force consumption.ă
ăSystem Notice: Your mental strength has reached a certain threshold. Skill âMechanical Force â Relayâ has been granted.ă
ăMechanical Force â Relay (Active skill): Enables data-based communication and command of your machinery. Consumes Mechanical Force.
Note: This skill can be used with âMechanical Force â Burstâ and âMechanical Force â Recoveryâ to bestow critical strike and automatic repair abilities upon your machinery.ă
ăSystem Notice: Your maximum Mechanical Force has reached a certain threshold. Skill âMechanical Force â Waveâ has been granted.ă
ăMechanical Force â Wave (Passive skill): Allows Mechanical Force to propagate through wave-like patterns, increasing transmission range and transfer speed.ă
And that concluded the system notifications. The three abruptly acquired active skills granted Leo increased offensive power, restorative abilities, and flexibility. Meanwhile, the passive skill increased his range of control.
All in all, these four skills significantly enhanced his prowess.
At this moment, the life essence began to slowly fade away, and Leoâs glowing body returned to its normal state. His consciousness started to perceive the external world once more, including the sensation of fine sand against his skin.
Then, he felt some itchiness in his nostrils as some sand particles mischievously entered his nose as if being alive. He hastily sat up from the sacred pool, letting out a loud sneeze that kicked out the sand from his nostrils.
Rubbing his nose, he noticed Bucky in front of him, assuming an odd posture of neither lying nor standing.
âWhat are you doing?â Leo asked curiously.
Buckyâs face was filled with indignation. âI didnât sneeze when I got out of the sacred pool. Why did you sneeze? And why in my direction?â
âMy bad. The sand suddenly got into my nose,â Leo apologized to Bucky.
Grumbling, Bucky replied, âItâs good that I managed to dodge it.â
Meanwhile, twenty kilometers deep underground, a burst of playful laughter seemed to echo.
Leo casually brushed off the sand from his body and stood up in place. After a few steps, he swiftly adapted to his newfound strength.
Looking up, he asked Bucky, âBucky, how much time has passed since I entered the sacred pool until now?â
âAround a little over thirty minutes,â Bucky estimated the time and nodded slightly. âYou lasted longer than I did. You sure can take a hit.â
Buckyâs thoughts were apparently caught up in a weird understanding. He believed that Leo had engaged in battles with the past Black Panthers within that special realm and was defeated.
But he didnât dwell on the topic and changed the conversation, âLeo, how effective is your enhancement.â
âBetter than ever before,â Leo was satisfied. Clenching his fist, he sensed the explosive power surging through his body, a clear mind, and the overflowing Mechanical Force within him.
âIâm fairly sure that right now, I can go hand-to-hand with you without any equipment and wonât necessarily lose.â
âReally?â Buckyâs eyes lit up. âThen, how about having a friendly match when we get back?â
âSure!â Leo readily agreed after a brief moment of consideration.
He too, was curious about the extent of his current strength, and having a sparring partner was a welcomed opportunity.
âAre we going to leave now?â Bucky thought for a bit and realized there was nothing left to do before urging.
âJust a sec,â Leo bent down, reaching his right hand into the sandpit, and began to rummage around. A few moments later, he pulled out a fist-sized jet-black sphere.
Although the sphere seemed dull and plain, it was actually made of Vibranium, an incredibly durable material.
âWhatâs this?â Bucky was puzzled and startled. Leoâs right hand hadnât gone deep into the sandpit and according to his estimation, it was barely forty centimeters or less. That bit of distance meant that if the large metal ball had been buried in the bed of fine sand all along, he couldnât have missed it while in the sacred pool.
But Leo had no intention of hiding it from Bucky. He stared at the black Vibranium ball in his hand and said softly, âA gift from the Panther God.â
âWhy donât you say itâs a token of love from the Panther God to you?â Bucky rolled his eyes, evidently finding it unbelievable.
Leoâs lips twitched as he was speechless. He gave up on explaining the story about Lilith to Bucky. It appeared that no matter what he said, Bucky wouldnât believe it, so it was a waste of breath.
Right after, he followed his earlier idea and activated both âMechanical Force Analysisâ and âMechanical Force â Insightâ on the black Vibranium ball in his hand.
ăDiscovered unanalyzable target. Please strengthen your Mechanical Force and try again.ă
He was taken aback as it was the first time he encountered something that couldnât be analyzed. He tried different methods several times but still failed.
Ultimately, he gave up on his attempts.
Holding the black Vibranium ball in his hand, Leo stepped out of the sacred pool and circulated his Mechanical Force, beckoning the nearby Viper.
The next moment, he felt the difference in his Mechanical Force. It wasnât just a matter of the quantity of Mechanical Force increasing significantly. The overall way in which the Mechanical Force functioned had changed.
Under the effect of the passive skill âMechanical Force â Waveâ, he learned that manipulating his Mechanical Force became much more convenient and could propagate over a greater distance.
Previously, his effective range of transmitting the Mechanical Force was only around one hundred meters, but now it had increased by fivefold, surpassing five hundred meters.
However, this effective range referred only to the range within which his Mechanical Force could transmit data. The effective range of his control over objects had always been ten meters and had never changed. Before this, he wasnât able to lift a thin iron wire with the thickness of a hair at a distance of ten meters. But now, he was confident in doing so although he hasnât tried it.
Currently, the Viper was less than three meters away from him. At this distance, his influence on metal was extremely strong and consequently, Viper swiftly disassembled and its various components flipped and rushed towards him.
Leo tossed the black Vibranium ball into the air and leaped in place, while each piece of the Viper attached itself to him.
After landing, he had already donned the sleek black Viper, looking very cool. With a swift motion, he reached out and caught the black Vibranium ball descending from the air, exuding a captivating aura.
âStop showing off. Itâs just us here, no oneâs watching,â Bucky also donned his Winter. âAre we going now?â
âHold on, one last thing.â
Stashing the enigmatic black Vibranium ball into his Storage Belt that he couldnât analyze, Leo then took out a peculiar device from the belt. Through the enlargement effect of the Forwarding Box, the device returned to its normal size, revealing itself to be a massive excavator.
He then swiftly leaped into the driverâs cabin of the excavator which had been modified to his liking. Operating the machine was a breeze for him, thanks to its simplified control. Skillfully maneuvering the excavator, he drove it towards the flowerbed.
THWACK!
The excavatorâs bucket descended upon the flowerbed and scooped up half of the heart-shaped herbs along with the soil. Next, Leo placed the herbs into the Forwarding Box and shrank them down before storing them in his belt.
Following the same procedure, he dug up half of the herbs in the Temple of Panther God. Happy with the harvest, he finally ceased his actions.
Astonished, Bucky stood there with his jaw agape in disbelief, âLeo, why are you digging up so many herbs? Are you planning to grow them yourself?â
âYup,â Leo replied without any elaboration, knowing that Bucky wouldnât believe it even if he explained.
With that, he stored the excavator and immediately prepared to leave.
Bucky shrugged his shoulders, no longer pressing for answers, and followed Leo toward the exit of the temple.
However, before they could ascend the steps, the alarms inside the temple began to flash intensely.