Utopian System

"Sounds straightforward enough," Elio said. "And the challenge?"

"Similar to titanium and about 250,000 enemies to defeat this time. They're based on..." Dionz paused, realizing his predicament. "Well, they're based on these birds that... um..."

"They're like... regular birds, but with really big tails that fan out and... they're very proud? And colorful?" The god was already floundering. "They sort of strut around showing off their feathers, which are covered in these eye-like patterns..."

Elio's blank stare told him this wasn't working.

"Okay, imagine a bird that thinks it's the most beautiful thing in existence," Dionz tried again. "It walks around like this…" He attempted to demonstrate, making Emberg flicker with suppressed laughter. "And when it wants to show off, it spreads this massive tail full of colors and..."

Seeing Elio's increasingly confused expression, Dionz finally gave up.

"Wait, I remember! Name is peacock… should have just done this from the start." He created a holographic peacock, complete with its full display of tail feathers.

"Oh," Elio said, studying the projection. "That's... actually quite impressive."

"Right? And the vanadium ones will be even more spectacular, their tail displays will create magical patterns that... why didn't I just show you this immediately?" Dionz shook his head at his own oversight.

"Because you enjoy making jokes, things unnecessarily complicated and think of yourself as funny?" Elio suggested.

"I do not… okay, maybe a little of those," the god admitted. "But look at how the tail fans out! The real ones do this dance where they… you know what? Never mind. The important thing is, you'll be facing more than 250,000 of these, but vanadium-enhanced. Though given your current power level..."

"They'll just take time to eliminate," Elio finished. Like the titanium challenge, this would be more about time efficiency than difficulty.

"Exactly. The vanadium properties will make them look spectacular as they attack, all shimmering displays and magical light shows, but they're not going to pose much actual threat to you anymore."

Elio approached the book entry, ready to begin, but Dionz couldn't resist one final comment.

"Just... try to appreciate the aesthetic while you're destroying them? I spent a lot of time on those tail patterns and… why are you looking at me like that?"

"Are all your challenges based on creatures from another world that will take forever to explain to me?"

"Not ALL of them are from that world," Dionz protested. "Just... most of them. But hey, at least I'll use holograms! That's fast, right?"

With a shake of his head, Elio entered the book. Behind him, he could hear Dionz muttering something about "nobody appreciating the artistic value of mana particles combined with avian display behavior."

♢♢♢♢

The vanadium mountain offered little resistance to Elio's enhanced powers.

Like the titanium challenge, the barriers fell more to technique than force, his control allowing him to manipulate the element with ease.

In the challenge chamber, the peacock constructs put on a dazzling display, their vanadium-enhanced tail fans creating intricate patterns of magical energy.

They made barriers and metal formations that may have been lethal to a lesser opponent. But against Elio's current power, they were more spectacle than threat.

Wave after wave of the creatures fell to his systematic assault. Their beautiful displays of power served only to create mesmerizing light shows as they dissolved into pure mana. The 250k+ enemies took time to eliminate, but less than he'd anticipated, his increasing power making each wave fall faster than the last.

Yet as he collected his reward, a sobering thought occurred. The challenges were doubling in numbers each time. Soon, even his enhanced capabilities wouldn't prevent these battles from becoming endurance trials of increasing magnitude. What would happen when the numbers reached… Billions?

For now, though, another element had fallen to his power, another sphere collected. The vanadium peacocks, for all their beauty, had been just another step on his path forward.

When Elio emerged from the book, he found Dionz floating cross-legged in the air, absent-mindedly playing with a white cube. The god quickly tucked it away when he noticed Elio's return.

"How'd it go?" Dionz asked, trying to sound casual.

"Easy enough," Elio replied, "but I can see the problem coming. From what I observed, the mountains can only hold about a million enemies at most."

Dionz nodded, then studied Elio's face carefully. "How are you feeling about the corruption? Any changes?"

"Actually..." Elio paused, a slight frown crossing his face. "I'm starting to worry about my friends again. The concern I had before is coming back."

A smile spread across the god's face. "That's a good sign, you know. Maybe you're ready for the first real level, eleven."

Elio considered this for a moment, weighing the implications on efficiency. His earlier confidence remained, also he could die with no worries, but now he was also worried with something else, a renewed awareness of time and what he was fighting for.

"Alright," he said finally. "Let's do it… Maybe it helps me clear faster and doesnt take that long."

"The first 2 enemies will be kobolds," Dionz began confidently, then immediately faltered. "Which is... well..."

The god created a hologram that kept shifting between different interpretations, a small dragon-like creature, then a goblinoid figure, then a house spirit, then a mining fairy. Enjoy exclusive chapters from My Virtual Library Empire

"You see, in different games and stories they're... um..." The hologram continued morphing. "Sometimes they're like tiny dragons, but other times they're more like small humanoids, and in some traditions they're actually helpful house spirits, but then there's the mining version..."

Elio watched the rapidly changing hologram with growing amusement.

"And in some cases they're tricksters, but other times they're just primitive warriors, and sometimes they're actually quite intelligent with complex societies..." Dionz was getting more flustered as the hologram struggled to keep up with his scattered explanations.

"Which version did you choose?" Elio interrupted practically, saving the god from his spiraling explanation.

"Oh!" Dionz looked relieved. "Right, yes. I went with the small reptile-like, dog faced warrior version. They're craftier than goblins, use basic weapons and armor, and have a slight resistance to magic."

The hologram finally settled on a single form, showing a creature that looked like a miniature of what he just described standing upright and wielding primitive weapons.

"That's all I needed to know," Elio said. "Their abilities?"