The Human Giant



Yoze looked at the carriage before moving his gaze back to the Flower Lord's spiritual energy. Since they were nearing the location of the party, Yoze quickly searched for a talent he found would be a good addition to his own collection. 

He eventually decided upon getting the unique spiritual talent of Spiritual Gathering and Belief Healing. Even though he was interested in copying the grade 2 Spiritual Type Influence talent and grade 4 Photosynthesis talent he decided to copy those last since he felt he might get more use with Spiritual Gathering talent and Belief Healing.

[Locked on to grade 3 Spiritual Gathering talent. Grade 2 Spiritual Gathering talent has been added.]

[Locked on to grade 4 Belief Healing talent. Grade 3 Belief Healing has been added.]

The moment Yoze copied these talents he felt strangely relieved as if something that had been influencing had been reduced. The moment he felt relief Yoze instantly went into alert as he quickly pulled up a description of these talents.

Throughout his entire experience of having his cheat, the sensation that he had felt was too strange from the usual sensations, he got from copying other talents. It was as if he was being followed by something in the unknown darkness and he had just gotten a flashlight.

Even though he still couldn't see what was following him, the flashlight itself and the few feet he could see gave him some reassurance. This was too strange to be the sensation created by the Spiritual Gathering talent so he opened up the description of Belief Healing.

[Belief Healing is the talent that any great leader should have. This talent covers anything that has to do with reassuring and strengthening beliefs.]

"The description is pretty broad and doesn't give me any more clues to what the Flower Lord is but..." Yoze looked at the giant spiritual flower above his head with suspicion.

"If this thing has talents for reassuring and strengthening a person's beliefs then it should be possible for it to strengthen a certain belief in a person that it becomes distorted."

"Like someone who is fine with executioners killing but this belief gets strengthened so much that they start to believe that executioners are the gods of death and one should kill in their steed." As Yoze read the description of Belief Healing he quickly realized that this talent was a great way to brainwash people and create cults.

"Taking that a step further with the help of spiritual talents and abilities it might become even more potent and form a religion that goes from loving plants to viewing plants as their gods." 

As Yoze's mind raced at the many possibilities that the talent of Belief Healing opened up he also felt why he began to understand why his instincts were telling him that he was in danger. It wasn't only because the Flower Lord was extremely strong, he had faced strong opponents before but never felt they were this dangerous. 

Thinking about it further when he first met the 20-year-old Three-Headed Fox demon he was much weaker than it. If he had challenged the Three-Headed Fox demon back then there was a high possibility that he would lose and maybe lose his life.

Yet he didn't feel that the Three-Headed Fox demon was as big of a danger as when he currently faced the Flower Lord. 

"Thinking about the ratio of spirituality between me and the Three-Headed Fox demon was around the same as me and the Flower Lord. I had barely a year's worth of spiritual energy and the Three-Headed Fox demon should have had more than 20 years' worth." 

Even though Yoze knew that facing the Three-Headed Fox demon and the Flower Lord were very different circumstances he knew that there was more to the Flower Lord that made him more dangerous. And he felt that difference was related to this talent of Belief Healing.

"What if the Flower Lord is influencing my beliefs? Thinking about it, why was I so tempted to meet the Flower Lord face to face?"

"The only times I cared about meeting people who have great talents was back when I needed to see them. Now that I can just use their spiritual energy to copy talent instead of meeting them, that desire and belief has greatly diminished."

"Over these past several weeks I had never met anyone of my targets in person. For example, I haven't visited Martial Grandmaster Silver Thunder, the Tree Sect Blood masters, and the rogue immortal cultivators since then."

"I simply came close enough to find their spiritual energy and used his talent marks before leaving. Throughout that whole transaction, he hadn't felt motivated to see them at all."

"That brings up the question of why I wanted to see the Flower Lord so badly that I was tempted. If how intense the danger was and my high vigilance I might have just gone inside for just the hell of it." 

The more Yoze thought about it the more he began to recognize he was being influenced by the Flower Lord. If it wasn't because he had only been around the Flower Lord for such a brief period of time and him gaining his own talent in Belief Healing he would have only grown more attracted to the idea of entering the church.

"I need to trust my instincts more and be more cautious. I need to trust..." Since Yoze realized he was being influenced he repeatedly thought of phrases that reassured him of his decision to not enter the church.

Even though it was a slight feeling, he felt that his repeated reassurances were working as he felt increasingly less interested in meeting the Flower Lord. Instead, he felt his belief in being cautious and trusting in himself being reinforced.

"I need to get Dad out of this town fast or he might get influenced to enter the church. Once that happens I don't know what would happen but if I sense the Flower Lord trying to convert his spiritual energy into one similar to its own or anything at all."

"The only thing I can do to save him is enter the church and escape with him." Yoze clenched his fist with determination as he and the others slowly moved past the church.