Spirituality surged and grew wildly.
That exquisite sensation—once experienced even a single time—was impossible to abandon.
Anyone who had ever felt their spirituality increasing would likely spend the rest of their life chasing that very feeling.
[Talent Acquired — Dead Soul Control >> God-Tier · Soul Sovereign]
Dead Soul ControlOne of the possible talents obtained after awakening the Death Priest class.
It was originally a Common-tier talent, allowing a Death Priest to occasionally obtain faint fragments of soul from creatures that had died recently—provided the priest had not personally killed them.
But the effect of God-Tier · Soul Sovereign was entirely different.
[Command any soul that does not belong to your own body and turn it into your power.]
The effect was astonishingly simple.
And terrifyingly powerful.
[Death Priest Mastery Acquired: Warden of Souls (Exclusive)]Effect: When performing large-scale soul sacrifices, the degree of soul decay is greatly reduced.
[Death Priest Mastery Acquired: Return Sacrifice (Exclusive)]Effect: All sacrificial rituals using souls yield significantly greater returns.
Reduced decay.Greater rewards.
It matched perfectly with how Kanzaki Rei had behaved during his class advancement.
The rule had always been simple:
Your performance during advancement determines the masteries you receive.
Increasing the efficiency of soul usage was essentially the same as acquiring more souls.
In the future, one soul might be worth ten.
In other words—one ant could be worth ten.
[Death Priest Specialty Learned: Soul Fusion]
[Death Ritual Learned: Corpse-Soul Resurrection]
This time, however, Rei hadn't naturally learned any Death-attribute spells.
That was slightly disappointing.
The specialty Soul Fusion allowed the user to merge a large number of souls together, producing a more spiritually potent—but corrupted and twisted—soul.
Normally, when a Death Priest lacked souls with sufficient spirituality, they would rely on this specialty.
But for Kanzaki Rei—
It was completely unnecessary.
Besides that, he had also naturally learned a ritual:
Corpse-Soul Resurrection
This ritual allowed the caster to inject souls into a slain creature, enabling it to regain part of its abilities from when it was alive.
It felt somewhat similar to the ability of the Face Parasite.
As for how much of the creature's former power could be restored—that depended entirely on the strength and quantity of souls used in the ritual sacrifice.
This ability could probably be categorized as a summoning ritual.
Summoning itself took many different forms.
Calling forth creatures through magic was only one method.
A truly powerful summoner mastered numerous summoning systems and coordinated many different summons into complex offensive strategies.
The advancement to Level 2 Death Priest had brought immense improvements.
The God-Tier talent alone hardly needed explanation.
But more important than anything else—
was the increase in Rei's spirituality.
When Kanzaki Rei opened his eyes again—
The snow drifting down from the sky no longer looked like snowflakes.
Instead, they resembled pure white crystals of ice element energy.
The blizzard blanketing the sky seemed to carry faint traces of higher-order power.
The Monster Tide was now completely visible to the naked eye.
If the world he had seen before had been like viewing colors at their most vivid—
then the world now looked to Rei like a layered sandwich biscuit, stacked with countless dimensions.
Multiple spaces overlapped each other.
And in each layer, the world manifested in a different form.
He could even see subtle fluctuations of spiritual energy between individuals.
Their thoughts and emotions seemed almost materialized—as if they could be observed directly.
If he trained this perception further…
Would it actually become possible to read a person's thoughts just by observing these mental fluctuations?
Even without training, Rei could already clearly sense changes in a person's emotions.
Even if someone maintained a completely expressionless face—
their inner spirit would still ripple.
And those ripples could be seen.
Perceived.
Captured.
At the same time, many of the mental knots he had encountered earlier while contemplating opposing origins dissolved as his spirituality increased.
The elemental layer of the world,the spiritual layer,the Monster Tide layer,the Moon-Star influence layer,the physical layer,the vital energy layer…
Each layer overlapped the others.
The visible and the invisible together formed the true structure of the world.
For a moment, Rei felt as though his consciousness had risen into a higher dimension, gazing down upon reality from above.
Spirituality…
It elevated perception into higher dimensions of awareness.
That was why he could now see more clearly.
Understand more deeply.
It almost felt as though he had become a different form of life from ordinary humans.
On a spiritual level, they were practically different species.
To him, ordinary humans felt like—
how monsters must feel to ordinary humans.
After all, the greatest difference between them was simply the level of spirituality.
The floating, transcendent sensation lasted for a short while.
Then suddenly—
Rei snapped back to reality.
He forcefully gathered his wandering thoughts.
That was dangerous…
That feeling of looking down on the entire world…
It was frightening.
"I'm fine now."
Rei calmed his mind and stabilized his mental state after the advancement.
He closed his eyes and sat quietly in the snow for a while, deep in thought.
The cold wind brushed against him, clearing his mind.
Maintain humility.
Remain cautious.
Never forget your principles.
Rei opened his eyes once more.
The arrogance and dominance in his gaze had completely vanished.
Only a calm, steady, humble expression remained.
"Thank you, Big Sister Kumironi. I'm fine now."
Akasei immediately slung an arm around Rei's shoulder.
"Hahaha! That look you had earlier was pretty good!"
"Akasei, please don't tease me… I just felt a little carried away after advancing."
Akasei laughed.
"I get it. I totally get it. When I first advanced to Level 4 Warrior, I thought I was unbeatable."
"And when Iz advanced to Level 5 Mage, he thought he was the greatest genius alive."
…
Oh.
So it wasn't just me.
Rei had been worried that he hadn't remained cautious enough.
Now it seemed—
he might have been too humble instead.
Luluvi pouted.
"Tch… it's just a Level 2 class."
Low-level classes had very little influence on high-level ones.
In Luluvi's opinion, Rei taking so many low-level side classes was a waste of his talent.
If not for those side classes holding him back, his Mage or Warrior class might already have reached far higher levels.
Rei smiled confidently.
"It's not just that."
Akasei suddenly lifted Rei into the air with both arms.
"Alright! Everyone ready?"
Even the normally silent Obadus raised his stone arm.
"Yeah!"
Akasei shouted excitedly.
"Finally—time for another big fight!"
"Obadus! You're up!"
Obadus nodded and stepped forward.
Then he vanished from everyone's sight as he entered.
The second to enter were Akasei and Kumironi, stepping in simultaneously.
After them, Iz paused briefly before walking inside.
Next came Luluvi.
And last of all—
Kanzaki Rei entered the dungeon.
The order of entry was strictly controlled.
This maximized survival probability.
No matter how powerful they were—
when stepping into a dungeon, their sense of caution never diminished.
Inside the dungeon, there were no monsters in sight.
Instead, the first thing they saw—
was a massive boulder sealing the entrance.
Luluvi spoke first.
"Very strong sensory interference… my perception can only see about one kilometer beyond the rock."
"There's no monster ambush behind it. There are three branching paths."
"The middle and left paths are dead ends filled with traps."
"Only the far-right path leads forward—but it has traps too. I can disable them."
This was the power of an Observer.
Having one in the party changed everything.
Although Rei could also see beyond it—his Final Perception couldn't be blocked.
Akasei removed the greatsword from his back.
"So step one is smashing this rock, right?"
Rei shook his head.
"No. There's a magical restriction on the rock."
"If we break it, it'll trigger something inside."
"Better not destroy it."
Rei was now a master of trap studies.
He recognized the trap embedded in the stone instantly.
"I can disarm it."
"Iz probably could too."
"But I'll handle it."
Iz nodded and gestured politely.
"Be my guest."
Rei placed his hand on the stone.
[Decrypt Scholar Technique: Transparent Deciphering (LV 301)]
This was the technique "Permeation Analysis" learned by a Level-2 Decrypt Scholar.
Rei had already trained it to maximum proficiency.
The stone was a Soul Aggregation Stone, condensed from countless resentful spirits.
The correct way to remove it was to purify the souls.
If the stone were broken by force, the spirits would scatter wildly and retaliate against the attacker.
Akasei probably wouldn't fear those spirits.
But something inside the dungeon was clearly linked to this stone.
If the stone broke—
whatever it was connected to might also be destroyed.
Rei thought for a moment.
Then he activated his Death Priest power.
God-Tier Talent — Soul Sovereign
SHWOOOSH!
In a single instant—
all the spirits were ripped out and absorbed into Rei's body.
The wandering resentful souls instantly became part of his Noble Soul reserves.
The Cavern of Despairing Wails was filled with spirits, undead, and ghosts—creatures born of suffering and resentment.
They were practically perfect prey for a Death Priest.
As the souls were extracted, the massive stone suddenly became light as air.
Rei grabbed it with both hands, lifted it, and moved it aside.
"That should do it."
The path ahead opened.
Just as Luluvi had said—
there were three branching paths.
At that moment, a mental signal entered Rei's mind.
He instinctively resisted—
but realized immediately that it was Luluvi's consciousness.
She wanted to share sensory perception.
Right—this was an Observer ability.
Rei relaxed his mind.
Their senses merged.
SWOOSH!
Rei finally experienced the terrifying scope of Luluvi's perception.
Her senses spread through the dungeon like a massive web.
Anywhere without magical interference was fully exposed.
Every tunnel.Every intersection.Every trap.Every treasure chest.
The distribution of monsters.
Their species.
Their levels.
Even their field of vision and weak points.
Everything was perfectly clear.
Luluvi removed the bow from her back.
"Can I start attacking now?"
From this location alone—
she was already within attack range.
If she started shooting now, targeting monster weak points…
By the time the monsters reached her—
they would already be turned into pincushions.
And she would probably conceal the source of the arrows as well.
Rei imagined himself in the monsters' position.
If arrows suddenly rained from all directions—
while the attacker remained undetectable…
That would be absolute despair.
"Oh? You're already attacking?"
"But my brother here needs to comprehend his Battle Ultimate."
Luluvi pouted slightly.
"Will that monster be enough for him?"
Rei felt her perception shift.
It locked onto a sixth-tier King-rank monster.
A minor boss.
In reality, the dungeon contained an absurd number of King-rank monsters.
A quick scan revealed over a hundred.
The tunnels branched endlessly.
Without proper perception guidance, it might take three days and three nights just to explore all the paths.
As for Lord-rank monsters—
they were practically everywhere.
In a sixth-tier dungeon, even the weakest monsters were Lord rank.
Luluvi sighed.
"Fine… I'll clear the monsters near the entrance first."
"There's a room nearby where perception can't penetrate, and a guardian wandering around it. Probably a hidden treasure."
"You guys can deal with that guardian."
"Alright."
Luluvi pulled the bowstring.
SHING!
Thousands of streaks of light flowed from the bow.
The arrows curved through the air—
bouncing violently off the cave walls.
Thousands of ricochets erupted.
The arrows shattered trap triggers as they passed.
Then they rebounded from ground to ceiling—
piercing straight through the skulls of the Soul Hunters whose bodies were covered in corpse-like fur.
The arrows slipped between bone and flesh.
Elegant.
Precise.
Nothing like the embarrassing scene when she had fought Rei earlier and couldn't land a single shot.
Luluvi glanced at Rei.
She saw the surprise in his eyes.
I'm not someone you defeated easily.
Truthfully, Rei probably couldn't guarantee victory against her again.
But then she remembered how he had effortlessly dodged every arrow she fired.
That had been the most humiliating defeat of her career.
Losing to Akasei at the same level was acceptable.
After all, Akasei had forged the world's strongest greatsword, practically comparable to a divine weapon.
But she had lost to a lower-level mage.
Even while wearing the Untouchable Garment.
Every possible excuse for not losing had been present.
And yet she had lost anyway.
She hadn't slept well for days afterward.
When she tried to challenge Rei again—
he ignored her completely and refused every request.
"Big Sister Luluvi, that was amazing."
At Rei's praise, Luluvi nearly lifted her nose into the sky.
"Of course it is."
Oh…
So that's what happiness looks like in spiritual fluctuations.
So easy to read, Luluvi.
Sixth-tier monsters were no joke.
But everyone in this team was equally extraordinary.
Fighting enemies above their level was practically routine for them.
After clearing the entrance monsters, Luluvi continued deeper with the group.
Akasei collected monster corpses along the way.
In a sixth-tier dungeon, nothing was trash.
Every corpse was valuable material.
And Luluvi's arrows were so precise they only destroyed weak points.
The bodies remained mostly intact.
"Oh! Iz! There's a Lost Spellbook here!"
Akasei suddenly shouted.
Inside the corpse of a monster—
a magic book was clutched in its hand.
Huh?
A monster holding a spellbook?
That was a first.
Unlike video games, monsters here didn't usually drop equipment.
Their real value came from their bodies as crafting materials.
"Whoa! A Lost Spellbook! Today's luck is incredible!"
Iz used telekinesis to pull the book into his hands.
After flipping through a few pages, he looked toward Rei with a trace of pity.
"Too bad… it's Tier-5 magic. You can't learn it."
Iz…
Why do I feel like you're secretly pleased?
I can see your mental fluctuations, you know.
Maybe I should prioritize leveling my Mage class.
Raise it first, then deal with the Second Origin later?
But Iz reached Level 6 before comprehending his Second Origin…
Maybe I should level first, then comprehend it…
No.
Better comprehend it now.
Iz couldn't be measured like a normal mage.
And comprehending the Second Origin was already extremely complex.
At Level 4, it would only become even harder.
One branching path led to five more.
Choose one, and four more appeared.
The dungeon became increasingly labyrinthine.
Deeper inside, perception interference intensified.
Distortions and misdirections filled the tunnels.
Without Luluvi's Observer abilities, simply finding the right path would have been difficult.
So this was a high-tier dungeon.
Incredibly complex.
As Rei passed the monster corpses, he casually extracted their souls.
Just as expected—
souls from Luluvi's kills could also be harvested.
They continued deeper until they reached the perception-blocked room Luluvi had mentioned.
A creature wrapped entirely in bandages wandered nearby.
Faceless.
Dragging a massive greatsword behind it.
A sixth-tier King-rank monster.
Behind it hung a corpse bound by countless black chains.
The corpse dangled upside-down.
The chains looked like a seal.
Akasei studied it seriously.
"Doesn't feel like something good."
"Should we open it?" he asked Iz.
Iz stared at the chained corpse.
"We should be able to handle it. Let's try."
Rei watched their conversation with mixed emotions.
Hey…
Are you sure you should be saying things like that?
That sounded dangerously close to a total-party-wipe flag.
"Well then, brother. That guardian's yours."
Rei nodded.
His staff appeared in his right hand.
"Alright."
His Battle Ultimate was almost complete.
What he needed now was real combat against strong enemies.
His path of enlightenment focused on battling many different types of monsters.
And in the Cavern of Despairing Wails—
there were plenty of powerful enemies waiting.
..
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