Infinite Potential System

William felt much more comfortable approaching the poisonous miasma now. The X-Rank Poison Resistance Talent was even better than his Heat Resistance now, and William even felt like he could drink poisons and be perfectly fine.

I wonder if I can bathe in the poisonous miasma now? It wouldn't hurt to become immune to it, right? he thought as the group traveled at slow pace.

They had already reached an area filled green smoke that became more and more translucent as it billowed into the sky, but somehow the bottom area was constantly refilled with smoke. Maybe the source of the miasma was hidden below the earth.

"Mister Grotnet, what is your Cultivation if you don't mind? I can't see it." Gunther asked. He had been wondering this for a while.

"I'm in the Nascent Soul Realm, it's natural you can't see." Grotnet replied simply.

"Nascent Soul? How come you're a Miasma Navigator? In Azures, you could be an Elder of the Sect! Why waste time doing a job like this for just a few thousand Gold Coins?"

"Don't misunderstand. Cultivation is a bit faster here than other places because of the Mana of the higher Realms, I thought you'd already know this since you want to visit the Revista Faction so badly. After all, their Cultivation Site is one of the best in the entire Continent."

William became curious at this point, "What is the Cultivation Site?"

"Isn't that what you're here for? The only reason the Velos Continent ever gets visitors is when people want to poach our Magical Beasts, loot our rare Alchemy ingredients, or request to use the Factions' Cultivation Sites."

They all shook their heads while William replied, "We're here to find a few people."

Grotnet didn't ask further, "In that case, I'd still recommend requesting access; it can be good for your growth. You're all quite young, but compared to the geniuses of our continent, you probably wouldn't stand a chance."

"Do they allow anyone to go into the Cultivation Site?" Tia asked.

"Of course not!" Grotnet laughed, "But that doesn't mean you won't have a chance. They usually ask for payment if you don't prove yourself in their exam."

"Really? That sounds too good to be true. What kind of Faction would let normal people have access to their holy lands?" Gunther jumped in.

"Only they know, I suppose. They've been doing it for hundreds of years now. Follow me, and hold your breath." Grotnet said as he took out a small canister and threw it on the ground. From it, red smoke burst forth and mixed with the green smoke, turning it into an unpleasant shade of brown.

"This smoke saturates the area and greatly lessens the amount of miasma nearby. As long as you stay in the brown smoke and don't breathe, your medallion will do the rest. Touch the green smoke and you won't last very long." he warned.

William and the others nodded, following closely behind with their hands interlocked in a line to prevent them from getting lost. William stood at the end and held onto Charlotte's right hand with his left, but he tested the waters a little by reaching out to touch the green smoke with his right hand.

The smoke that touched William's finger seeped into his skin and turned his entire hand black in a matter of seconds. His Poison Resistance Talent was actively working against the toxin, but he was forced to retract his finger after around a minute, before the toxin could spread to the rest of his body.

Even after pulling back his hand, the poison continued to damage his skin cells and tissues, even rotting down to his bones. Worse yet, the Recovery Talent's regeneration was hindered by the toxin, reducing William's healing by a few times.

-Your soul is being absorbed: -1 Soul Strength

What? My soul too?! What is this poison?!? William exclaimed as switched his vision to Spirit Mode, watching as his own consciousness was slowly dragged into the miasma. It was incredibly slow, but if he spent more than a few minutes in the miasma, he'd probably lose his soul before he lost his body.

He stabilized his condition less than a minute later, but the Soul Strength didn't seem like it would return. He was forced to give up on bathing in the miasma for now, since he had no easy method to Cultivate Soul Strength without the Forbidden Technique.

He was still holding Charlotte's hand as well, and William didn't want to endanger his friends. To be honest, he wasn't expecting such an exaggerated effect from the miasma, otherwise he wouldn't have tried until he was alone. Even while he walked behind the group, the pain lingered for six hours before dissipating, further exaggerating the effects of the miasma.

I only lasted around a minute. I can probably make it five or ten minutes with my Recovery Talent, but I might lose a few years of lifespan, and my Soul wouldn't last... Why is an X-Rank Talent so bad?

Not only can the Poison Resistance Talent not keep up, but the ninety-nine percent pain resistance from the Mind Talent is also not enough! I would have passed out from the poison a long time ago if I didn't have the Mind Talent...

-It's Poison from a higher Realm, what did you expect? For it to be as trash-tier as the toxins you've come across so far? That's the Poison Grove's Soul-Sapping Necrotoxin, not something you can compare to.

How am I going to bathe for ten hours inside this? William wondered. Just dipping his finger inside wouldn't count, since it had to be his entire body. That being said, the Recovery Talent would be affected even more, though the Life Element might be helpful.

-You won't gain any bonuses if you can't stay inside for more than an hour at a time, either. So don't even think of trying to go in and out one minute at a time.

Damn it. Why do you have to be so unreasonable. If you gave me the Talent, just let me use the effects my way. William cursed at the System's foresight.

-You have to prove yourself worthy. Besides, this is how the Talent was created, and that is how things must be done. Even I cannot change that.

Yeah, yeah. Worthy this. Worthy that. You can't bend the rules of your own Talents?

The System didn't respond.

William focused reliving the effects of the poisonous miasma on his body. The System labeled it as a necrotoxin, which explained why there was so much skin damage. Rather than poison, it might be more relatable to venom.

I have the Soul Talent still, I should see if that helps with the miasma. If it does, I can upgrade both that and the Life Element to X-Rank and try again. Not to mention my Poison Element is still S-Rank. I can go for all three!

The smoke was so thick that no one noticed William's unique condition, while Grotnet continued using special smoke bombs to clear the poisonous miasma. At the eighth hour-mark, the group breached the wall of miasma and broke through to the other side.

"Welcome to the Revista Faction's territory. We will have to go through one more wall of miasma in a few days, how are you all feeling? Is anyone injured?" Grotnet asked.

He looked at William, "You... where is your medallion?"