Chapter 221 - Bloodline Ability: Thousand Core Resonance!

"Huh?" the two siblings were confused and stunned.

After taking some time to process the information, Freon started slowly, "That isn't a funny joke, uncle. You said it before, didn't you? The chances of me inheriting the family's Bloodline Ability was low because my Magic Potential was poor." His tone was filled with self-ridicule. "The reason why you wanted to meet with Nassandra was because she had likely inherited it, right?"

"I won't deny that. Normally, the offspring who inherited the strongest Magic Potential will gain the Bloodline Ability," he confirmed, much to Freon's disappointment.

Freon was a Medium Gaseous Fog, recently at the Low level until promoting through dubious means. Meanwhile, Nassandra was a Low Condensed Drop Arcanist! This reflected the vast Magic Potential difference between them. Where he would take one step, she would take ten. It seemed like it was impossible for him to ever bridge the gap, even if he exhausted his entire life! So, the legendary Arcellius Family's Bloodline Ability should go to the better suited one. That was how it should be! At least, that was what he tried convincing himself.

"Don't assume things so quickly, Freon. What I said is not absolute." Just as the boy began losing confidence, Protector Avin shattered those preconceptions! The man's eyes exploded with a blinding light, as if finally seeing hope after decades. The resurrection of the Arcellius Family was finally here! He pressed on by saying, "There is no rule that states that only one person can inherit the Bloodline Ability. It is entirely possible that both of you have it!"

"… Explain everything from the start, uncle. Why do you think I'm awakening the Bloodline now?"

There was a lot to explain so the man started off slowly by properly introducing the concept of Bloodlines. It was the manifestation of a family's unique lineage in the form of both Magic Potential and Bloodline Abilities. When one said that their children took after their parents, this was one of the ways it could really happen! This was how the Engelsheft Families were capable of ruling over the magic society of the Zino Kingdom. However, every Bloodline had a minimum level to fulfill before it would awaken. It was like the human body. Only after childhood passed could one reach their full potential as an a.d.u.l.t. This requirement was Condensed Drop Core Level!

This was not so strange and there were many examples like this already. For martial artists, the Fundamental Realm was a stage of strengthening their foundation. In essence, it was building their body's strength to the absolute limit before breaking through to Perception Realm! By reaching that realm, one would finally be able to unlock the body's hidden potential through Martial Perception and transcend human limits. For Arcanists, Gaseous Fog Core Level was the same way. A Magic Perception would remain restrained to the inspecting the body until reaching Condensed Drop. Then, they could freely explore the world around them and unleashed unprecedented power. Therefore, for a Bloodline Ability to awaken with the requirement of Condensed Drop was not strange but expected.

Connecting this with the experiences of Freon, one could glimpse at the truth. Freon's Bloodline Ability was forcibly awakening! However, because his Core was too weak to support the transition, it tried to supplement the missing energy from the environment. That is, his Core siphoned World Energy wantonly to explosively advance toward Condensed Drop! That explained his sudden loss of control, despite having done nothing to trigger it. Protector Avin had never heard of anything like this before. It was quite extraordinary. Instead of being incapable of using his Bloodline, his body actively tried to reach a state that it could!

Such a convenient road to strength could never exist though. Protector Avin wondered if the repeated near-death experiences Freon went through acted as a catalyst for this? The man voiced his suspicions to which Freon remained silent. His mind travelled back in time. Just looking purely on close encounters, he should be well above his peers. The breakout at the Yunyun Stronghold, the attack in the Kuthong Forest, the final battle with Emperor Lianghu, the ambush at his home, and finally the brawl with the Third Hand… Five might seem small in the grand scheme of things, but he nearly died in every one! Remember, he might have been a soldier in the Quinvoren Army, but he never fought on the frontlines. Who could sport the same achievements at his age? Almost no one could!

Anyone that survived so many predicaments would inevitably grow. And for someone as weak as he was, it kickstarted his hidden potential, beginning to forge a diamond out of this roughness! The same went for his friends as well. Elizabeth miraculously stepped into the level of High Condensed Drop and learned spells with relative ease, even going as far as using both martial techniques and magical spells in combat. Benedict explored the Hawken Style to a deeper level and made headway into Sword Intent, a state that the Sword King deeply treasured. Shirley caught glimpses of Perception Realm, despite being far from it, and hardened her willpower further. Now, Freon was starting to awaken his latent Bloodline and Magic Potential! Although they were weak, they were blessed with immense fortune! Their future was paved toward the peak!

"I'm starting to understand the circ.u.mstances," Freon said with disbelief. He meant his words, but he could not believe that he had inherited the Bloodline. A strange sense of irony crept up on his face. If he had his Bloodline awakened from the very beginning, perhaps… No, it was wrong to regret, he sighed.

"This is a new case for me as well." Protector Avin was the Protector of Sage Serana, the once matriarch of the Arcellius Family. As such, he knew every case of a family member awakening their Bloodlines, most of which he personally witnessed. The main family was not particularly big, but everyone gave it a try anyways. The chance of transforming their lives forever was too attractive an option to pass up. Yet, he had never seen a case as peculiar as Freon's! The man added, "The first sign was your Core breaking into Medium Gaseous Fog. The second sign was when your backlash occurred during the fight with the Third Hand."

"I didn't progress Core Levels then though," Freon refuted. "How does that fit in with everything else?"

"On the surface, it might appear as a backlash resulting from powerful magic. However… the truth is that your Bloodline Ability was already materializing!" Avin declared wryly. "I have to explain what the Arcellius Family's Bloodline Ability is for you to understand."

The Arcellius Family's Bloodline Ability, which allowed them to reign supreme and legendary throughout the Zino Kingdom, was not some godlike transcendental power. It could not allow them to fly, revive the dead, split mountains, or become immortal. In fact, none of them could do that! An example of a Bloodline Ability was the Vensire Family's which Ten Dawn Tengon Vensire possessed. Ten Dawn Tengon could sense the slight fluctuations in an Arcanist's aura, allowing them to detect the early signs of Bloodline Awakening. It was an extremely niche ability with limited uses.

On the other hand, the legendary Arcellius Family's Bloodline Ability was less support-oriented and more combat-oriented. Its formal name was Thousand Core Resonance! Thousand as in ten thousand hours to master a spell, Core obviously as in the magical reserve for Magic Energy, and resonance as in 'growing accustomed to one'. From the name alone, one might be able to guess its true nature. When the ability activated, it would attune the Core and Channels to any chosen spell. This attuning would dramatically enhance the performance of the spell to a very high level. Things such as power, range, and casting speed would increase, while Magic Energy costs would decrease. Even a simple spell like Elizabeth's earth-type Stone Shard would become a devastating weapon! This was the true power behind the Arcellius Family's dominance!