Elijah heaved the last stone block into place. Even as it slid into the hole, he let out a sigh of relief. He glanced from one to the next, appreciating the symmetry on display. Eighteen uprights, each one roughly the same size stood in a circle that would soon become his latest dolmen. However, to say he still had a long way to go was an understatement. He had barely even begun, and he still had a lot of work to do before he could use Roots of the World Tree to incorporate it into the rest of his personal network. Nearby were nine other stones, each one nine feet long and meant to become the lintels. But before he could place them, he needed to anchor the uprights, then carve the mortice holes and tenons. Only then could he complete the rough shape of the trilithons that would comprise his stone circle. But for now, he needed a break. Carrying almost two dozen forty-plus ton stones from the quarry, across dozens of miles of rough terrain, was the work of more than a week. In the midst of that labor, he’d only stopped to rest a handful of times, and only for a few hours in each instance. To say he was worn out was an understatement. So, he deployed his tent, undressed, and took an impromptu shower using Blessing of the Grove to provide a cascade or pure rainwater. It was the first real cleaning he’d subjected himself to since the swamp, so he was forced into a vicious scrubbing that left his skin red and raw. More than once, he drew blood, the wounds from which it flowed healing over after only a moment. After all, Blessing of the Grove was meant as a healing spell, and it was more than capable of curing a few self-inflicted scrapes. In any case, it took more than half an hour before Elijah judged himself clean, and by that time, he’d worked up quite an appetite. So, he enjoyed a meal of whale steak, potatoes, and pickled onions that definitely hit the spot. Idly, he found himself appreciating the fact that his travel rations were meals prepared by a Cook with a decent level. Otherwise, he’d have been reduced to chewing on dried meat and hard cheese. Not bad food – there was a time when he considered himself a jerky connoisseur – but nothing compared to a hot meal. He had his Arcane Loop and its Timeless trait to thank for that. Once he’d finished his meal, he climbed into his tent, cloaked himself in thick blankets, and at last, allowed himself to sleep. He didn’t really dream, but when he awoke, he felt rested and oddly serene. Ever since he’d taken the next step in his mind cultivation, his sleep had become a lot more peaceful. Hopefully, that would continue. After all, he knew there was plenty of trauma in his future. He was well aware of the importance of dealing with it, but that wasn’t always possible in the heat of the moment. For instance, it wouldn’t do to become a weepy mess in the middle of a Primal Realm. Or when some idiot tried to kill him. No – sometimes, it just had to wait. And in those instances, Elijah knew he’d miss the ability to rest peacefully. It only took a few minutes for that peace to fade, replaced by a subtle feeling of dread that came with the knowledge that he’d already wasted quite a lot of time. He wasn’t in a hurry – not really – but he’d recently made a resolution not to let himself get distracted. Obviously, there were benefits that stemmed from saving the tree or building a dolmen, but there was a part of him that kept insisting that he had bigger fish to fry. Elijah pushed that part of him into the shadows. He wouldn’t be much of a Druid if he ignored the duties implied by the archetype. For better or worse, he was simply incapable of seeing something like the situation in the swamp and not respond. If that meant neglecting some of his other responsibilities, then so be it. It was just who he was. And the dolmen was necessary. He needed another foothold in the Hollow Depths, especially if he wanted to avoid depending on the dark elves. And given the way he felt about their teleportation network, he definitely needed to remain entirely independent. The thought of subjecting himself to their power felt simultaneously chilling and infuriating. He refused to allow it, even if he wasn’t certain why. In this, he would trust his instincts. Regardless, once he extricated himself from his blankets, he took a few minutes to eat a grove fruit and enjoy a cup of coffee before he got back to work. The first task was to drill the mortice holes, which was a lot easier now that he had a few tools suited for the job. Every other time, he’d just used his claws, which were anything but precision instruments. Oddly, though, he discovered that, aside from getting the holes started, he found himself abandoning those tools. Not because they weren’t effective, but rather, because he felt a widening disconnect with the task at hand. That faded as he shifted into the Shape of Thorn and used his claws, giving him some hints as to what was going on. He wasn’t a crafter. Not really. And his methods were more primal and personal than any Tradesman’s. He could accept that much, and for the rest of the process, he chose to rely on his claws. It was slower, though. Even so, it wasn’t that long until he’d carved the mortice holes into the lintels. Next came the tenons, which were small peg-shaped structures at the top of the uprights. They were meant to fit inside the mortice holes, forming a mechanical connection not unlike the Legos he’d obsessed over as a child. That required a lot more work, because he was forced to remove a good portion of those stone uprights. He kept at it, though, and slowly, things began to take rough shape. Once the mortice holes and tenons were completed, he moved on to the uprights themselves. The earth around them needed to be filled in and hard packed. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Elijah considered making his own concrete, but to date, that hadn’t really been necessary. So, he decided to use a mixture of mud, clay, and water he brought from a stream on the far side of the desert. Getting them level was frustrating, but his high attributes gave him a bit of an advantage. He could see even the slightest tilt, and it was easy enough to correct any issues. Just time consuming and tedious – two issues Elijah had a lot of practice combating. He lost track of how much time he spent on the project, but he couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief and satisfaction when he levered the first lintel into place. It fit perfectly, which elicited a quick fist pump. In retrospect, the distinctly human gesture probably appeared quite odd, given that he was in the Shape of Thorn. Regardless, it gave him a jolt of adrenaline that drove him forward until, at last, he placed the final lintel. Only then did he retreat to his tent, take another shower, and go to sleep. The next day, he repeated his morning routine, eating a grove fruit and enjoying a cup of coffee before getting back to work. The basic structure was complete, but it was far from finished. Now, he needed to carve. But as he did, he also needed to put his ethereal stamp on the process. So, he summoned Blessing of the Grove, extended his Mantle of Authority, and opened Grove Conduit. The effect was immediate, and the local vitality and ethereal density skyrocketed. Fortunately, he could keep Grove Conduit open almost indefinitely, so long as he didn’t actively pull from it. He didn’t intend to, so the drain on the grove would be minimal. Still, he did keep an eye on it for the first few hours, just to ensure that he wouldn’t overstep and throw off the balance back home. But once he’d reassured himself that his fears were invalid, he moved on to the task itself. As was usually the case when he carved dolmens, the process was an odd mix of instinct and direction. On the one hand, he had a good idea of what he wanted, but on the other, he let himself be carried along by his instincts. Or maybe his subconscious. Either way, he wasn’t entirely in control, which was exactly what he wanted. He worked for days, steadily scraping the stone with his claws. At times, he rested, though he didn’t retreat to his tent. Instead, he settled into the center of the would-be dolmen, maintaining his spells so as to continuously bathe the area in his essence. That was a necessary step. Or maybe not. He wasn’t entirely certain, and there was no information out there about the ability. But it was the way he’d always done it, and his attitude was that he had no intention of trying to fix something that was obviously unbroken. Nearly a week later, he finally finished the last upright. He let out a satisfied breath, then stepped back. The theme was obvious and clearly based on his recent experiences. The uprights had been carved to look like they were coated in webs. The delicate stonework far exceeded the detail he’d been capable of instilling into his other dolmens, but as far as Elijah was concerned, that made sense. His dexterity had reached heights previously unconsidered, and he was capable of fine motor movements – even in the comparatively clunky Shape of Thorn – that would have been impossible for even the most coordinated pre-World Tree human. The lintels each bore the image of a spider, though not a vicious predator like the guardian he’d failed to save. Rather, the carvings were based on the juvenile arachnid he’d left behind. To him, the fuzzy creature was adorable. But he was self-aware enough to allow that, to others, it might’ve appeared quite frightening. Certainly, it wasn’t his most personal dolmen. That title belonged to the Circle of Spears, which he’d dedicated to his sister. However, there was definitely an undeniable connection. Moreover, it came with a pang of guilt and regret that he’d left the spider behind. What had it thought when it could no longer find him? Had it pined after him? Had it been sad? Could it even feel emotions like that? Elijah believed that it could, but he realized that might’ve been due to personal bias. Whatever the case, his logic for leaving it behind remained valid, even if he wished otherwise. He still wanted to go back and collect that cute little spider. Self-control and logic won out, though, and he spent the next few hours inspecting the dolmen. He made a few small adjustments, then stepped away. The next step was simple enough – he only needed something to stand at the center of the stone circle. And he knew precisely what could occupy that position. He set off into the desert in search of what he had in mind, and after only a few minutes, found a large cactus. The thing reminded him of an Arizona barrel cactus, though comparatively slimmer and a lot taller. It did feature a purple flower at its crown, from which Elijah gathered a single seed before returning to his would-be dolmen. He planted it at the precise center of the circle, then used a combination of Blessing of the Grove, Grove Conduit, and Nature’s Design to force it to grow. It reached its full height of nearly twenty-five feet after only a few hours, though Elijah continued to pump it full of vitality until it bloomed. Only then did he pull back. Once more, he inspected the dolmen, only to find a few more mistakes he’d made. He fixed those, then, at last, used Roots of the World Tree to activate it. Predictably, that resulted in a couple of notifications. The first was: Congratulations! You have created a unique structure: [Circle of Webs] Overall Grade: Growth (Current: Complex) “Circle of Webs,” he said appreciatively. It fit. The enchantment grade was a nice surprise, but the overall grade was as expected. He moved on to the next notification: Roots of the World Tree Empower a dolmen, connecting it to your grove. Teleport to any circle in your network. Cooldown: 1 Days Additional Effect: When inside any circle, create a persistent gateway to any other circle. Duration: 1 Minute. Maximum Capacity: 20. Cooldown: 1 Day Possible number of circles dependent on core cultivation. Current: 10 (8 Used) He only had two more to deploy until he reached his limit. However, he had some hope that the number would increase soon enough. His core was still a long way off from advancing to the next stage of cultivation, but when it did, it would affect the number of circles. It was just one of the many benefits. However, as happy as he was with the completion of his new dolmen, he was far more interested in the next two notifications. The first among those informed him that he’d finally reached level two-twenty. He’d already known that he wasn’t far off, but he’d never suspected that he was that close. Completing a dolmen provided a barely noticeable trickle of experience, so he must have been only a kill or two away. Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭⚫𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦⚫𝘯𝘦𝘵 But the second of those two was far more interesting. By achieving level two-twenty, he’d satisfied the requirements for another spell evolution.