hotmtlnovel Chapter 49 - 49: Ethereal Bloom
Chapter 49 - 49: Ethereal Bloom
Curiosity burning, Ethan continued down the lone path, the terrain growing stranger with each step.
While he was wandering, marveling at the sights, he remained blissfully unaware that, somewhere deep within the world of Ethereal, chaos was brewing.
The ragged old man, the NPC he had encountered when he started the game, was
[Harvest successful. You've obtained Ethereal Bloom.]
Ding!
[You've gained 50 experience points!]
The notification startled Ethan. Opening his inventory, he inspected the flower:
Ethereal Bloom:
Rarity: Rare
Properties: Adds additional effects when used in alchemy. Effects are unspecified. Can also be consumed to increase soul energy.
Description: The Ethereal Bloom is a flower that blooms at the end of all seasons, thriving where life meets oblivion. It takes a thousand years to bloom and another thousand to wither, never meeting its own leaves.
Ethan was overjoyed, not because of the flowers properties, which he barely understood, but because harvesting it gave experience points. Normally, gathering herbs outside the game's wild zones didn't offer any XP rewards.
"I'm so glad I leveled up my Herbology skill while working on that land acquisition quest. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to harvest this!"
Thanks to his diligence, his harvesting skill had reached a level where rare herbs like this could be collected. If he hadn't leveled it, all this experience would've gone to waste.
Looking across the endless sea of Ethereal Blooms, Ethan felt like he'd struck gold.
"Man, it's great being a Druid. Other classes take 2.5 seconds to harvest a flower. I can do it in one."
One flower. Another flower. And another.
+50 XP… +50 XP… +50 XP…
Ethan dove into the field, relentlessly harvesting blooms, the experience rolling in far faster than fighting monsters ever could.
As his XP bar climbed steadily, his inventory began filling up with flowers.
Ding!
[Your inventory is full. Unable to harvest more items!]
Annoyed, Ethan opened his bag to see the problem. Each of his four 12-slot bags was crammed with random junk from monster drops, but the majority of the space was taken up by Ethereal Blooms. Packed into stacks of 20, the flowers filled every slot.
Checking his XP bar, he grinned.
Level 15: 83,742/156,800 XP.
In just a short time, he'd gained over 80,000 XP.
Ethan had never found leveling up so easy. Gazing at the endless field of Ethereal Blooms ahead, his excitement was beyond words.
He began to wonder, could he just keep going until he hit Level 100? Maybe Level 200? Or even higher?
This time, he took a closer look at the bloom's properties and noticed something interesting, it could be consumed directly, boosting soul energy.
He wasn't entirely sure what "soul energy" did, but he remembered it being a reward in the Dream Trial. Even now, its purpose remained a mystery.
"Well, it can't hurt," Ethan muttered, pulling one of the blooms from his inventory. He popped it into his mouth, chewing absentmindedly.
To his surprise, it dissolved instantly, leaving no flavor behind. Without hesitation, he began a rhythm of harvesting and eating, figuring it was better to consume them than leave them unused.
Ding!
[Congratulations! You've reached Level 16.]
Ethan did some quick math. He had eaten at least 1,500 blooms by now and was relieved to find that he didn't feel even slightly full. With his worries put to rest, he returned to his harvesting and snacking routine.
Ding!
[Congratulations! You've reached Level 17.]
Ding!
[Congratulations! You've reached Level 18.]
…
Ding!
[Congratulations! You've reached Level 21.]
He had no idea how much time had passed. The constant system notifications had dulled his excitement into monotony.
"What the hell are you doing?"
The voice caught him off guard.
"Harvesting flowers," Ethan replied instinctively, not bothering to look up.
A moment later, he froze. Slowly standing, he scanned the area, but there was no one in sight.
Was he hallucinating?
"You fool, you've been harvesting flowers in the Underworld! Don't you value your life?"
Just as Ethan bent down to continue, the voice came again, sharp and furious.
His eyes widened. That voice…
"Old man? What, are you here to cause trouble again?" Ethan snapped, annoyance bubbling to the surface. "First, you force me into this class, then you mess with my stat allocation, and now you're interrupting my leveling? Seriously, find someone else to bother!"
In the swirling chaos of Ethereal, the old man stared blankly, momentarily stunned by Ethan's outburst.
He took a deep breath to steady his patience. It had been eons since anyone dared speak to him like this. Still, he knew Ethan's personality too well, this kid thrived on defiance. Push too hard, and he'd dig in like a stubborn mule.
"Well, uh, listen, I intervened those last two times to keep you from screwing up your progression. But…"
"But what?" Ethan interrupted, glaring at the empty air. "Spit it out. I've got flowers to pick and levels to grind."
The old man sighed audibly, deciding to get straight to the point. "Do you even know how long you've been in the Underworld?"
Pausing, Ethan shoved another Ethereal Bloom into his mouth. He glanced at the in-game clock and mumbled, "The timer hasn't moved. How should I know?"
"You've been here for three days," the old man said, keeping his tone calm. "Did you know that?"
"Three days? So what?" Ethan muttered, waving him off.
The old man's voice grew sharper. "You have four days left. If you don't leave by then, your body in the real world will be sent to the mortuary."
Ethan froze mid-chew.
"What the hell? You're joking, right?" he asked, his voice unsteady as a sinking feeling crept over him.