Unchained Potential (The Whispering Crystals: A LitRPG Series Book 4) Read online

  THE WHISPERING CRYSTALS

  Book Four: Unchained Potential

  H.C. Mills

  THE WHISPERING CRYSTALS, BOOK FOUR: UNCHAINED POTENTIAL

  First edition. June 4th, 2022.

  Copyright © 2022 H.C. Mills.

  All Rights Reserved.

  Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Names, characters, and places are products of the author’s imagination.

  Front cover by Proi.

  Table styles and Status Bar art by Marleen van der Fluit @fluffycthulhu.

  www.hcmillsofficial.com

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Chapter 1: Don't be a lawyer

  Chapter 2: To sleep, perchance to dream

  Chapter 3: Child’s play

  Chapter 4: Hello darkness my old friend

  Chapter 5: The cake is a lie

  Chapter 6: Baby it’s cold outside

  Chapter 7: The fractured but whole

  Chapter 8: These are desperate times

  Chapter 9: Into the unknown

  Chapter 10: Footloose

  Chapter 11: Ground Control to Major Tom

  Chapter 12: Miss Communication

  Chapter 13: Obey gravity; it’s the law

  Chapter 14: Defying gravity

  Chapter 15: Tag, you’re it

  Chapter 16: Your friendly neighbourhood...

  Chapter 17: This is gospel

  Chapter 18: Tell me somethin’, girl

  Chapter 19: Take a hint

  Chapter 20: In the arms of a squid

  Chapter 21: Some say love

  Chapter 22: Happy together

  Chapter 23: X bird(s) with Y stone(s)

  Chapter 24: Ratrace

  Chapter 25: Kicking off the race one-legged

  Chapter 26: If you give a mouse a cookie

  Chapter 27: Always gonna be an uphill battle

  Chapter 28: 20/20

  Chapter 29: The cold never bothered me anyway

  Chapter 30: Predecessor? I hardly know her!

  Chapter 31: Bye bye birdie

  Chapter 32: The final countdown

  Chapter 33: Major Tom to Ground Control

  Chapter 34: Lifestyles of the rich and famous

  Chapter 35: Fortune favours the brave

  Chapter 36: The only man who could ever teach me

  Chapter 37: Hit me with your best shot

  Chapter 38: Prohibidado

  Chapter 39: Release the kraken

  Chapter 40: Gotta go fast

  Chapter 41: Parry this, you filthy casual

  Chapter 42: They paved paradise

  Chapter 43: Revenge is a dish...

  Chapter 44: Someone kill the DJ

  Chapter 45: The shell game

  Chapter 46: Me, myself, and Irene

  Chapter 47: Hello from the other side

  Chapter 48: Peilor’s best friend

  Chapter 49: Breaking the mould

  Dear reader

  Emma’s notes

  Acknowledgements

  About the author

  Sign up for my Mailing List!

  To dad, who always has ten solutions to every problem.

  To mom, who always keeps him from implementing at least nine.

  CHAPTER 1

  Don’t be a lawyer

  KAITLYNN’S WARM, SOFT GRIP on my hand tightens briefly when the heavy stone door slams down behind us, effectively cutting us off from the sunny beaches of Hub Three.

  It’s a strange feeling, to know that our dear friend Loudmouth and my pet ray Elizabeth are mere feet behind the uncaring grey slab, and yet we’re completely cut off from them in every way that matters.

  With a sigh, I squeeze back reassuringly.

  Even before the slam finishes reverberating on the bare stone walls of the dimly crystal-lit hallway, a window pops up in front of me.

  I give it little more than a glance, my heart still heavy with the weight of the goodbyes we just said, not just to the friendly creatures we left behind, but to the rest of the Blue Dragons.

  I’m not too worried about the two-man team formed by Dave and Alec. Between Dave’s calm rationalism and Alec’s creativity, I’m convinced they’ll be able to handle whatever comes on their path.

  It doesn’t hurt that they’re well-prepared with a veritable array of both energy and Lavi-based Skills, not the least of which would be Regeneration, which they both have. Alec even has it at the second level, only one step away from being able to regrow his eye.

  I might actually miss the eye patch once he does. It’s pretty cool.

  Anyway, that’s not to say Jacob isn’t well-prepared, but his Trial-partner Mark—who we basically abducted from Dominique’s ex-council team, even if my Charm made him come willingly—is just too much of an unknown factor...

  For a moment, I almost wish I’d refused Jacob’s offer to enter the Trials with Mark, but as I glance at the blue-haired girl beside me, I can’t find it in me to truly regret the decision.

  Kaitlynn’s brows are set in a serious slant over her storm-grey eye and ruby eye-crystal. Above that, a pair of smooth, ivory horns—so different from my ribbed ones—come out of her pale, silvery forehead. From there, where mine curl back to my ears, hers stick straight up in front of her bangs.

  I could stare at her for days. But friends don’t stare, and we’re supposed to be friends. Best friends.

  Just friends.

  That’s what I’d decided, after all. Because there’s too much at stake here for further complications, and there’s no telling what will happen to my Yin-Yang attraction to her if we do make it back to Earth somehow.

  Either way, her aesthetics—pleasing as I find them—aren’t why I’m so happy to have her along. I’m happy because this way, I get to make sure she makes it through these Trials in one piece.

  Don’t get me wrong; Kaitlynn’s a badass and I don’t doubt her ability to succeed without my help in the slightest. Regardless, there’s a big gap between trusting that someone will be fine, and knowing it.

  Seemingly unwilling to let go of my hand just yet, Kaitlynn uses her free hand to make a dismissive gesture in front of her face—most likely to banish her own notification window.

  I can’t help but revel at how naturally her slightly smaller hand fits in mine, at the warmth of her skin, that’s become so much hotter ever since she reached Level 3 and gained the Heat subtype.

  Her gaze falls on something up ahead, and she stiffens, her warm hand squeezing down on mine once more.

  I quickly follow her gaze, glancing around the still open notification window to a pair of doors up ahead, each with a hole in the wall next to it.

  At the sight of the twin doors, my heart skips a beat, but I quickly calm myself down again.

  “Don’t worry,” I say, rubbing the back of her hand with my thumb, as a friendly gesture. “After making us go through all that trouble to enter these doors in pairs, I’m sure they’re not about to split us up just up yet. There’ll be a living room behind it for both of us.”

  Kaitlynn cocks her head for a moment, then lets out a relieved sigh. “Kai says you’re right.”

  Despite my assured words, some hidden tension releases in my shoulders at the confirmation. After all, I really don’t trust the bastards who built this place.

  Kaitlynn wriggles her fingers. I reluctantly let go, and she makes her way over to one of the holes next to a door. She peers into it for a moment, then starts taking out pearls hidden in various spaces around her armour, and dropping them in.

  I blink and tur
n my attention back to the pop-up window still in front of me. “Wait, what? We have to hand in basically all of our consumables for a measly one Trial Point a piece?!”

  It soon becomes apparent that the doors won’t open until we do, so I grumble and set to handing in my own.

  Lavi Crystals were not something we could obtain in Hub Three, and I didn’t have any left when we got here anyway. As for Qi Pearls, we divided the remaining equally per affinity over the Blue Dragons, which means Alec and I ended up with slightly more than the rest. The Energy Crystals we divided per subtype, with the Cold ones being split between me and Alec. Now, however, our division of spoils is pretty much moot.

  By the time I drop in my last Minor Toxic Energy Crystal with a huff, the door in front of Kaitlynn has long opened up.

  However, mine remains closed. “Hey Suri, what’s the hold-up?” I ask impatiently.

  [Nice try, Emma,] she chimes dryly. [There’s one more Qi Pearl in your shoe, another in your backpack, and a final one in the left-rear pocket of your pants, below your armour.]

  Damnit. Stupid eye-crystals with their stupid energy vision.

  “Fiiiine,” I say, rolling my eyes, causing Kaitlynn to giggle. “God, Suri, you’re such a narc. There,” I say, dropping in my actual last one. “Happy now?”

  [Ecstatic.]

  My door grinds open.

  I frown. “Wait, how did you even know about the one—”

  [I kept track. Now stop wasting time and proceed.]

  I shoot Kaitlynn one last forlorn glance.

  She smiles at me. “See you in a bit, partner.” And with a wink, she’s through her door.

  I sigh and walk through my own.

  My hexagonal single room is the same as ever. I shrug off my backpack, dump both my trusty old Greysteel spear and my shiny new Toxic Crystal Spear, then flop down on the surprisingly comfy bed.

  That is to say, it’s almost as soft as hard-packed dirt, this time around. Almost.

  Must be my increased Toughness.

  “All right, can I start my five minutes?”

  [Of course,] Suri chimes.

  “Great. First question: why the hell did we have to hand in our pearls and crystals?”

  [Having access to too many consumables would trivialise certain challenges and ultimately only hurt your growth. That’s also why their sale is prohibited for now.]

  That was a more thoughtful answer than I expected. I was really mostly pestering Suri out of irritation, as I don’t hold out much hope of getting those items back. While I sincerely dislike not having access to the safety net that Lavi Crystals and Qi Pearls can provide—not to mention the potential use of Energy Crystals as grenades—I never expected things to be made easy for us anyway, so getting screwed over like this is ultimately par for the course.

  “Fine. Do we have the usual twenty-four hours, shared living room, yadayadayada?”

  [Actually, it’s not quite as usual,] Suri chimes unexpectedly. [There’s a mandatory twenty-four-hour waiting period, which will likely extend for a while before you will be called upon to enter the Trial.]

  My brows rise. “What? Why?”

  [The Seventh Trial for you and your partner is currently still being prepared.]

  I frown. “Why would that... wait, is it like, personalised to us?”

  [I’m afraid that’s classified.]

  I roll my eye. “Of course it is. You say we’ll be called upon... how long ahead of us having to enter will that be?”

  [You will be notified ten minutes in advance.]

  My eyes widen.

  Ten minutes? Sheesh.

  “All right, I guess we’ll just have to stay ready once our twenty-four hours are up,” I mumble. “What else can you tell me about the Trial? Should we bring sunscreen and tiny little umbrellas, or pack our skis? Actually, I suppose those don’t mutually exclude each other...”

  [I can tell you there’ll be danger mixed with opportunity.]

  “So... nothing,” I remark dryly. “You can tell me nothing. Great.” I guess we’ll have to see if Kai-the-AI-guy is looser with his lips again, this time around.

  [Actually,] Suri chimes. [I do have something for you. Remember when you asked me to tell you when the Fifth Law of Being would become declassified?]

  “Yeah?”

  [It’s declassified.]

  “Ooh!” I purse my lips, all thoughts of the Trial forgotten. “Have any more Laws—actually, could you just list all the laws I’m allowed to know about?”

  [Sure thing,] Suri chimes, sounding vaguely amused. [The First Law: All are One.]

  Aaand she started from the top. Guess I should’ve seen that one coming. Well, whatever.

  [The Second Law: All are Yin or Yang. The Third Law: All are quantified. The Fourth Law: Yin and Yang attract.]

  I grimace at the reminder of that particularly hateful law.

  [And the Fifth—and final—Law: Yang is motion, Yin is still.]

  Right. So, Yang is motion and Yin is still. But the way she said it, it means more than that. Yang holds dominion over motion, it controls the domain of motion, and the same goes for Yin and stillness, the lack of motion.

  Gotta say I’m a little disappointed there are only five, I’d hoped to learn more.

  But Suri isn’t done yet.

  [That’s it for the Laws of Being, but there’s also the slightly less fundamental five Yin-Yang Principles that are now declassified, would you like to hear them?]

  “Would I? Hell yeah!”

  [The First Principle: Motion creates Heat, stillness breeds Cold. The Second Principle: Rapid motion causes Vibrations, prolonged stillness builds Electric charge. The Third Prin—]

  “Woah, slow down!” I say, cutting her off, repeating the first two in my mind. “Man, these Principles are a lot wordier...”

  [As I’ve said before, they’re less fundamental. Naturally, the most fundamental truths can be worded the shortest.]

  Right. Anyway, it seems like the Yin-Yang Principles have to do with the different types of energy. Moreover, the different types of Yin and Yang Energy all seem to share a connection to those domains of stillness and motion...

  I frown. “Hold on, how is Electric Energy part of the domain of stillness? It’s, well, it’s fast as lightning!”

  [That’s how it works in the Entropic Realm, yes. Here, however, things are a little different. You see, Electric Energy doesn’t really move much at all. It forms a static connection between two points, a bridge, if you will. Once formed, for all intents and purposes, the Electric Energy treats the two endpoints of the connection as the same place.]

  My frown deepens. “Hmm. I guess I’ll take your word for it.”

  I still need to gain Lightning Manipulation, maybe this knowledge will help... though I don’t feel like I fully understand it.

  “All right, give me the next Principle.”

  [The Third Principle: Extreme motion Radiates outward, true immobility gives rise to Toxicity.]

  This one, I have no problem believing. My Toxic Energy flows sluggishly at best, while Radiation Energy—like Dave’s Restoring pink light—has always seemed to affect things nigh-instantaneously.

  [The Fourth Principle: Momentum is motion given direction, Inertia is stillness given location.]

  Huh. I hadn’t thought of it like that. Interesting.

  [The fifth and final Principle: In their ultimate expressions, Yang causes unavoidable motion, Yin is everywhere at once.]

  So Gravity and Space are considered the ultimate expressions of Yang and Yin respectively. Gotcha.

  Sounds like Distort Space leads to some form of teleportation like I hoped!

  Now I really want to continue learning that Skill. However, I need to be practical about this.

  “Suri, could you show me my Skilldream Shopping Window, please?”

  Let’s see what’s new here.

  “Reconversion?” I ask with a frown. “I’m quite sure I’ve never heard of that Purpose before... W
here did I come across this and what does it do?”

  [Actually, you have not encountered reconversion before,] Suri chimes to my surprise.

  My frown deepens. “Really? But I thought new Purposes only showed up in this list after I’ve come across them”

  [That is correct,] Suri chimes. [However, reconversion is not a Purpose.]

  I blink. “Well, what is it then?”

  [Technically speaking, reconversion is more of an extension of the Infuse Skill than a separate module,] Suri explains. [As for why it has only been added to your Skilldream Shopping Window now, that’s because you can only learn it after you’ve broken past 50% Toxic Energy Tolerance and gained the Toxic Energy Subtype. Reconversion is essentially a method to apply your newfound control over the Toxic Energy in your body to help you condense it and turn it back into Qi.]

  My brows rise. “Oh damn, that sounds pretty useful. Though I probably would have given it a miss if I’d still had my pearls... I’m sensing a connection there.”

  [You’re not wrong. Learning the appropriate reconversion Skill extension for your Subtype sooner rather than later is highly recommended. Its functionality will be limited at first, but given time to grow, I think you’ll find it becomes quite useful.]

  “Hmm. I’ll definitely consider it. By the way, why do you call it a Skill extension?”

  [Reconversion isn’t a specific level for any Skill. As long as you have the related Skill, it can be learned at any point, adding an important, but more or less independent functionality.]

  I see. That must be why there’s no level listed behind Infuse in my Shopping Window.

  Good thing Jacob managed to gain Wave Manipulation back in Hub Three. I’m assuming that’s the related Skill for Vibration, at least. For Kaitlynn it should be Astreum Manipulation, I suppose, so that shouldn’t be an issue either.

  [By the way, considering your extensive experience with manipulating Toxic Energy using the Infuse Skill, and your track record of gaining Skill unaided, I would recommend half a Skilldream for reconversion.]