SHAMAN PROTOCOL - Chapter 48: The Bad Guy Is Back

Welcome to The Last Step – A Tale of Fate, Power, and the Unforgiven.In a world where magic defines one's worth, three souls walk a path toward an uncertain destiny—each bearing a power that can shape the fate of nations.Lucas, the God’s Chosen Sorcerer, wields divine magic that bends reality itself, blessed by forces beyond mortal comprehension. A shining beacon of hope—or a harbinger of destruction—his path is riddled with expectations he never asked for.Celia, the Queen of Curses, commands a power feared by even the strongest mages. She carries the weight of a past filled with whispers and condemnation, but where others see a curse, she sees the strength to carve her own future.Kaiser, the Unwanted Void, stands apart. Neither blessed nor cursed, he is the anomaly that should not exist. In a world that measures worth by magic, he is a shadow in the light—yet, the abyss within him holds something far greater than mere sorcery.Together, they are bound by fate yet divided by their own battles. As war brews and forgotten gods stir, the lines between hero and villain blur. In the end, their choices will decide more than just their own lives—they will determine the very foundation of their world.This is their journey. This is their Last Step.

As soon as he opened his eyes, Li Ming was plunged into these tumultuous interstellar spaces, where countless civilizations held their shotguns at the ready, eyeing everything in the universe with covetous intent. For him, the most crucial issue at hand was solving the problem of food and warmth.Fortunately, he could control special items and gain special ability bonuses—【Thunderclap Armored Exoskeleton—Grade D】【Control Effect: Power Amplification—100%】【Control Ability—Armored Four Arms: Develops four mechanical arms to aid in combat, and amplifies control by 50% with Thunder Element.】He could even evolve it—【Electromagnetic Power Engine】→【Cold Nuclear Reactor】→…【Stellar Furnace】………An evolutionary path with no boundaries in sight, a supreme arsenal spread across the galaxies, and a grand expedition fleet casting endless blood and fire.When Li Ming unfolded the prism wings that covered planets and fired the super-range photon lasers, and the Stellar Furnace in his chest blossomed with a brilliance far surpassing the sun’s, supported by computational power from the Quantum Photon Calculator...In the universe, countless life forms exclaimed, “Flesh is weak; ascend through machinery!”Li Ming helplessly said, “but this really isn't mechanical ascension...”

Warning This fiction contains:

Graphic Violence Profanity Sensitive Content

Summary – Level 1:

Delve is an isekai litrpg that follows an average guy who just happened to wake up in a forest one day. He wasn’t summoned to defeat the demon lord or to save the world or anything like that, at least as far as he can tell. The only creature there to greet him was a regular old squirrel.

Soon enough, he meets other people, only to discover that he can’t speak the language, and that not everybody immediately trusts random pajama-wearing strangers they met in the middle of the wilderness. Things generally go downhill from there, at least until the blue boxes start appearing.

Delve is a story about finding your way in a new, strange, and dangerous world. It’s about avoiding death, figuring out what the heck is going on, and trying to make some friends along the way. It’s not about getting home, so much as finding a new one.

Did I mention that there will be math?

Summary – Level 2:

Okay, but what are you in for, really?

Well, this story is supposed to be realistic, or at least, as realistic as a fantasy litrpg can be. The main character doesn’t instantly become an all-powerful god and murder-hobo his way across the universe. Delve is, at its heart, a progression fantasy, but that progression is meant to feel earned. The numbers in this story actually mean something. Everything is calculated, and if you find a rounding error, I expect you to tell me about it. That said, if math isn’t your cup of tea, there is plenty more that the story has to offer. Characters are meant to feel real, and progression isn’t only about personal power; it’s also about allies, connections, and above all, knowledge. Figuring out how the system works is a significant theme.

...

What, you want more details? Okay, fine, but this is going to get a bit spoiler-y. Are you sure?

Yes!

Really sure? I mean, this summary is practically half as long as the first chap–

Now!

Okay, okay!

The main character becomes a magic user, but he takes a route that is not very popular in adventurer culture, namely that of a support. There is a full magic system with various spells, skills, and abilities, but our MC decides that aura magic is the way to go, and that the only stat worth investing in is mana regeneration. Most people at the Adventurer’s Guild think that this makes him a bit of a dumbass, but he’s playing the long game. We’ll see how that works out for him, won’t we?

Because of his build, the MC levels up fast, at least compared to normal people. There are no cheats, though, and he is limited in other ways. There are some clear and pretty obvious downsides to his build. That’s what makes it fun, no?

Morals? Our MC has them. Again, we’ll see how that works out for him. Realism, remember? Would you be okay with killing someone and looting their body? I sure hope not.

POV? The focus is on the main character, but there will be occasional varying perspectives from people around him, or involved in the events related to the main plot. It isn’t going to jump all over the place.

Tech is standard medieval stasis. No smartphones, but the MC does have a technical background. Computers and their programming might be involved. There might even be a bit of uplifting down the road, who knows? Anyway, it isn’t the focus. He isn’t going to invent the gun in chapter 1 and change the face of warfare.

Romance is not a major focus. Friendships are more the name of the game, though there will be some characters in romantic relationships.

There is exploration, though not as much of the geographical nature as you might expect. It is more about exploration of the system and the culture.

The pace is slow and detailed, sometimes verging on slice-of-life. The action is meant to be realistic and grounded in the numbers, and it is intended to have meaning beyond simply punching things until they stop moving.

The general tone of the story is grey, and some parts can get quite dark. People die. Sometimes, people with names, but not anywhere near GoT level. There is plenty of light, too, though, to balance the darkness. The world is dangerous, but overcoming that danger is why we’re all here, isn’t it?

Anyway, if you’ve made it this far through the summary, you clearly like words. I hope you enjoy the story!

“Battling young masters for some treasures in mysterious caves? No, thank you.What's so special about a ring containing an old sage's trapped soul? I'll just toss it away.Becoming a direct disciple of some big expert with many enemies? Count me out.I'll flip the bird to the pointless struggle in prestigious sects that only attract calamity.What I have here, this opportunity I've seized, is plenty for me.I'll choose safe and steady methods of progress, even if they're slow. After all, I'm just a simple farmer seeking peace through cultivation. I'll rely on myself to pave the way.”- Aksai Everwood (Chapter 7)============Meet Aksai Everwood, a guy who thought he was done with life, but life had other plans.Aksai wasn't always Aksai. He used to be Arman Arlott, a terminally ill dude who decided to take one last wild ride before checking out. Little did he know, a crazy experiment would flip his world upside down. Arman's mind got tangled up with artificial intelligence, and things got seriously weird.Instead of peacefully bowing out, Arman ended up sacrificing himself for some mind-blowing breakthrough. But instead of eternal rest, he got a second chance as Aksai Everwood, a spirit farmer in a new world. Talk about a cosmic curveball!You'd think being a farmer in a serene, pastoral paradise would be easy, right? Nope. Aksai's new world is anything but peaceful. Farming is far from sunshine and rainbows here.Aksai dreams of a chill life cultivating his crops, but in the wild world of immortal cultivation, peace is a rare commodity.Luckily, Aksai's got some serious advantages. He's got a neural link fabric that makes him a whiz at alchemy and array formations, giving him a leg up on other Spirit cultivators. Plus, he has the Enchanted Everwood Farm, a magical place where he can grow all sorts of mysterious cultivation resources with awesome bonuses. This farm comes with perks that make Aksai a one-of-a-kind Spirit farmer.And here's the kicker: the farm is suspended in a spatial junction of all existing realities. That means Aksai can hop between different worlds as he levels up in his Spirit cultivation.With these unique advantages, Aksai ditches the traditional path of joining a sect or a renowned clan. Instead, he explores various worlds, using their unique resources and methods to forge his own path as a Spirit cultivator.What do myriad worlds unlock? A druid bloodline, body cultivation, martial arts, and lots more. Who’d join sects when given such perks?The stage is set for our Spirit farmer. Now Aksai, his companions, and you, his readers, are in for a journey of rebirth, redemption, and a whole lot of dirt under your fingernails.============Additional Tags: #druid #bloodlines #Martialarts #worldhopping #artificialintelligence #coldmc #battlenovel #calculatingmc #villain #farming #spiritcultivation #mindcultivation #bodycultivation #worldhopping #rpgelements #low-keymc #sliceoflife #nonarrogantmc