Chapter 215
Zeke examined the changed screen.
Surprisingly, the room Zeke was in was displayed on the screen in such detail that it was as if it had been directly copied.
All sorts of information, from the structure of the room and the arrangement of the furniture to the material of the walls, appeared and floated up.
"So this is what constructing a defense area meant."
In areas designated as defense areas, it was possible to check area information much more detailed than on a normal map.
Zeke got up from his seat and moved other objects.
The movements were immediately reflected on the screen.
"If I could use this in a siege, it would be incredibly advantageous."
If fortresses and defense bases the size of Agamemnon's Castle could be linked with Defense Mode, it would be possible to quickly grasp not only the enemies' movements but also the allies' movements, making battles much easier to lead.
Zeke recalled the wars he had fought in his previous life.
The situations where he was on the defensive, trapped in a castle and forced to fight the imperial army, were incredibly bleak.
'If I had had this ability back then, everyone might have survived.'
It was a bitter memory. Still, much had changed since his regression.
If similar events were to occur, he had no intention of being easily defeated like he was back then.
Because his regression had changed the future, a different outcome than the Third Continental War might occur.
Zeke intended to thoroughly crush Abel's ambition so that the terrible war of his previous life, which he remembered, would not happen.
'If I stop Abel and those Abyss bastards, the worst-case scenario won't happen. The best thing would be to kill Abel first, but... if I carelessly provoke him, I might face a backlash, so for now, let's have Cali keep him in check, and I'll focus on getting stronger.'
Zeke steeled his resolve and opened the settings window again. This time, it was to allocate his Karma Points.
"Let's see. I have 6,834 Karma Points. That's quite a bit I've accumulated."
Zeke first decided to increase the size of his inventory, which had increased further with his promotion to Upper Administrator.
Intermediate Administrators had a limit of 500 slots, but Upper Administrators could have up to 1,000 slots, twice as much.
Since four slots could be expanded for 1 point, he could add 500 more slots by spending 125 points.
"Alright, this should be enough. That leaves me with 6,334 points."
Zeke pondered for a moment before nodding.
"Let's unlock the 4th stage of Draconian Skills."
Unlocking the 4th stage of Draconian Skills required 3,000 points.
However, by acquiring the title Ancient Dragonkin, the points required to unlock Draconian Skills were reduced by 20%.
"2,400 points to unlock. Alright, let's go."
Zeke unlocked the 4th stage of Draconian Skills.
[Unlocking the 4th stage of Draconian Skills.]
[The title 'Dragonkin' has been detected.]
[The title 'Dragonkin' has been changed to the constitution 'Dragon God Body.]
[The active skill 'Hydra's Poison' has been absorbed into the constitution 'Dragon God Body'.]
[With the complete unlocking of the 'Dragon God Body' ability, it is now possible to transform parts of the body into those of a dragon.]
[With the unlocking of the 'Dragon God Body', part of Bahamut's Heart seal has been lifted. Current compression seal is 47.5%.]
[The Dragon Breath skill has grown.]
[The Dragon Tooth Soldier skill has been changed to the Dragon Warrior skill.]
"The ability to transform my body into that of a dragon."
Having acquired the Dragon God Body, Zeke instinctively knew how to use this ability.
He raised his hand and focused his spirit energy.
Crack!
Surprisingly, Zeke's hand transformed as if it were a dragon's hand.
His fingernails grew longer, and dragon-like scales sprouted on his forearm.
Zeke casually swung his transformed hand.
A mark like a dragon's claw scratch appeared on the wall.
"It's a combination of dragon scale armor and dragon claws."
Hydra's Poison had also merged with his physical abilities, allowing him to freely create and use poison.
"As my constitution changed, abilities merged with my bodily organs."
This time, when he focused spirit energy in his eyes, Dragon Eyes appeared in both eyes, unlike before.
The range and amount of information he could see with his Dragon Eyes had increased, and the dragon's senses that allowed him to read the past were also much more natural to use.
Since he could use the ability much more instantaneously than when using it as a skill, it seemed like it would be useful in combat.
Next, Zeke checked the changed Draconian Skills.
Draconian Skills (4th Stage Unlocked): Gluttony (Expert) / Dragon Language (Proficient) / Dragon Breath (Proficient) / Dragon Warrior (Beginner+)
Due to the influence of the Dragon God Body, the proficiency of Dragon Breath had increased.
"Dragon Breath consumed too much mana at once, so I haven't been able to use it properly. Now that its proficiency has increased, it might be usable."
The Dragon Tooth Soldier skill had changed to Dragon Warrior, and its proficiency had returned to Beginner.
"Dragon Warrior can summon up to 20 units..."
Zeke summoned one Dragon Warrior.
Swoosh!
The Dragon Warrior was larger than the previous Dragon Tooth Soldiers, and its armor looked sturdier.
Moreover, unlike the Dragon Tooth Soldiers who used bows, the Dragon Warriors were equipped with spears that looked like they were for javelin throwing and crossbows.
Zeke could summon a total of 25 units: 20 Dragon Warriors and 5 Ghost Soldiers he had received from Hoshgar.
"The number has decreased, but the range of tactical applications has broadened compared to before."
Zeke dismissed the Dragon Warrior summons with a satisfied expression and checked the skill list for the 4th stage of Draconian Skills.
---Draconian Skills 4th Stage---
Dragon Wings (Locked) / Dragonkin Summon (Locked)
8,000 Karma Points required to unlock the 5th stage of skills
After checking the list, Zeke read the descriptions of the 4th stage skills.
---Draconian Skill Introduction---
Dragon Wings: Grants the ability to freely fly through the sky. (2,000 points required to unlock)
Dragonkin Summon: Allows for the temporary summoning of Dragonkin through a medium. (2,500 points required to unlock)
"The ability to fly, and I can summon Dragonkin?"
The required points were enormous, but they were highly desirable abilities.
Especially the ability to fly in the air could be a significant advantage on the battlefield, allowing him to strike at the enemy's weak points.
"With a 20% reduction, that's 1,600 plus 2,000 points. I need 3,600 points."
He had 3,934 points remaining after unlocking the 4th stage.
It felt like the hard-earned points were flying away at once, but since Draconian skills were always useful, Zeke decided to invest 3,600 points.
"Alright. I'll unlock both."
Zeke boldly unlocked Dragon Wings and Dragonkin Summon.
[The Draconian skill 'Dragon Wings' has been unlocked.]
[The Draconian skill 'Dragonkin Summon' has been unlocked.]
Zeke opened the Draconian skill window again.
Draconian Skills (4th Stage Unlocked): Gluttony (Expert) / Dragon Language (Proficient) / Dragon Breath (Proficient) / Dragon Warrior (Beginner+) / Dragon Wings (Beginner) / Dragonkin Summon (Beginner)
"Let's try using them."
Zeke used the Dragon Wings skill without hesitation.
He felt his body lift into the air according to his will.
"Hoo?"
He could easily turn this way and that in the air as if moving his hands and feet.
He would need to test various aspects, such as how high he could fly, his maximum speed, and how long he could sustain it.
Zeke, who had deactivated the skill, landed back on the ground.
He wore a satisfied smile.
"Alright. This is worth the points."
Zeke decided to test Dragonkin Summon later after obtaining Dragonkin components from Richmond. This time, he decided to organize the items he had obtained from the tower.
"Let's see."
Zeke separately sorted and took out only the items whose abilities he could absorb with Gluttony.
He took out Annexie's flute with the ability of Mental Suppression, the Orc Tribe's Medal, the Dark Elf Tribe's Medal, the Necklace of Shambhala, and the Royal Vampire's Medal.
"Is this all I can Gluttony for now?"
It seemed better to keep the Ring of Solomon, a legendary artifact, and the horn that contained the power of the 'Incessant Struggle's Judge' for now.
Zeke used Gluttony without hesitation on the sorted items.
Tss tss tss—
Zeke's shadow rose and swallowed all the items.
Then, a message appeared.
[The active skill 'Discord' has combined with 'Battle Cry' to change into 'War Cry [B-rank (Beginner)]'.]
[You have acquired the active skill 'Taming [B-rank (Beginner)]'.]
[The skills Mental Suppression, Blood Mist, and Eye of Truth have combined to change into a new skill.]
[You have acquired the active skill 'Bloodshot Eye [S-rank (Beginner)]'.]
Zeke checked the information of the newly acquired skills.
---Skill Information---
War Cry: Instills fear in enemies within range and boosts the morale of allies. It can also recover allies from abnormal statuses.
---Skill Information---
Bloodshot Eye: An ancient and powerful sorcery that pierces and suppresses the soul. It can exert a stronger binding force through blood as a medium.
Zeke wore a bewildered expression after seeing the ability of Bloodshot Eye.
"Ancient sorcery? Isn't this a forbidden technique that only black mages would use?"
Since the skill rank was S, its power would be tremendous, but the fact that it was somewhat risky to use was also true.
Feeling a slight unease, Zeke decided to try using the Bloodshot Eye ability first.
When he activated the skill, a symbol was engraved on his forehead, just like when he had used the Eye of Truth before.
However, unlike then, the shape of an eye drawn in what looked like blood was engraved on his forehead.
Whoooooom!
The eye engraved on his forehead began to turn blood-red, and his third eye opened. As a result, Zeke could see the mortal and spirit realms overlapping.
"Kuh-uk."
Zeke had strong mental fortitude, but seeing two dimensions simultaneously was a considerable burden even for him.
With pain that felt like his brain was burning, Zeke had to frantically use his Healing Factor.
After his brain recovered and he barely adapted to the Bloodshot Eye, Zeke was able to perceive the spirit realm's dimension, which had been invisible before.
Unlike the mortal realm, the spirit realm, filled with an aura that displayed vibrant colors, looked like a completely different world.
'So this is how it's possible to pierce through the world of souls and suppress them.'
Zeke recalled the trouble he had gone through when capturing a necromancer before. If he had Bloodshot Eye, dealing with such ancient spirits would likely have been easier.
When Zeke stopped using the Bloodshot Eye skill, the blood-red symbol engraved on his forehead disappeared.
Zeke felt quite fatigued and caught his breath.
"This seems to be the most taxing skill I have."
As it possessed powerful strength, it needed to be used carefully.
Zeke finally took out the random box from his inventory.
It was another non-ranked random box he had received as the final reward after conquering the tower.
The previous random box had yielded the legendary artifact 'Ring of Solomon', so he was curious about what would come out this time.
"I hope another item containing a divine power comes out."
Zeke muttered his wish and slowly opened the random box.
At that moment, a message appeared.
[The divine power 'Luck' has been activated.]
[Due to the effect of Luck, the result of the random box changes.]
'Luck activated?'
Just like before, a rainbow light flashed brilliantly from inside the box.
After the light subsided, Zeke slowly checked what was inside the box.
"What is this?"
What came out of the box was none other than a compass.
"A compass?"
Zeke was slightly taken aback when a seemingly ordinary compass appeared even after the divine power Luck had been activated.
He quickly checked the compass's information.
---Compass Information---
Description: Indicates the direction to find what the user seeks.
Unique Divine Power: Absolute Search
Special Note: Detects holistic causality to designate the direction to find what the user seeks. However, until the chosen target is found, nothing else can be found.
"It designates direction by detecting causality?"
The fact that it was a compass yet possessed a unique divine power suggested it was no ordinary item.
Something suddenly flashed in Zeke's mind.
'With this compass, I might be able to find the Lake of the Fairies...?'
At that moment, a message appeared before Zeke's eyes.