Death… And Me

However, Rean noticed a small problem. 'Now that I think about it, where would I be able to test it? Should I head back to the Demon Beast Continent? I don't want to fight the demon beasts of Koran Forest since they are under Gulan's territory. Fighting with Roan or Kentucky wouldn't make much of a difference since I'm used to it already.'

It was then that Rean had an idea. 'Right! I can change my appearance and challenge the experts of the tribes in the Tribes' Zone! As long as they can't tell that I'm not a Zasfin, they'll think I'm just someone from another tribe trying to take their territory or something like that.'

Rean then sent a message to Roan, explaining his idea through their Soul Connection. Soon, Roan responded, 'That's not a bad idea. In fact, this would be a good chance to try everyone's strength. First, finish my White Star, then we can head out together.'

Rean nodded, replying, 'Sure. Are we going after the same tribe?'

'No,' Roan replied as he shook his head. 'We don't need to always be together. Now that we can't enter the Dimensional Realm during dangerous situations, we need to get used to not relying on it. Kentucky, you, and I are going to find some different tribes to challenge.'

Rean couldn't help but add, 'Hey, if that's the case, let's who can bring the best reward back. It's only valid to get something from the tribes after challenging their experts. We'll let Celis decide who got the best item.'

Roan didn't care about that, though. 'If you want to do so, then go ahead. I just want the training that comes along with it.'

Kentucky, who had been listening to the conversation nearby, snorted as he said, 'Could it be that Roan is afraid to lose?'

Rean immediately nodded, replying, 'Obviously. After all, he would have me and you to go against.'

Roan obviously noticed the cheap provocation, saying not long after, 'Do you think I'll fall for this shit?'

Rean shrugged his shoulders as he replied, 'Whether you fall for it or not doesn't matter. The point is that you can't beat us in this challenge. Am I right, Kentucky?'

Kentucky agreed with Rean, saying, 'That's very obvious.'

[Hahaha! To think I would see the day that Death would be afraid to lose.] Sure enough, Sister Orb added oil into the fire. She wanted nothing else than to see the house burn into ashes!

Of course, Roan still understood that they were just provoking him. Nevertheless, the smug expression on their faces irritated him very much. With that, he acquiesced to their wishes, saying, 'Hmph! So be it. Let's see what you'll bring back then. Don't come back complaining that it wasn't fair later.'

With that settled, Rean headed straight into the Dimensional Realm once again and began to work on Roan's White Star. Both White and Black Stars were quite similar swords in their forms. Still, they had very different materials. In any case, the materials he had obtained from the Demon Beast Continent were more than enough for Rean, who didn't take long to finish Roan's sword. 

Rean then came out and threw the sword at Roan, saying to him, "Take a look and see if it's comfortable to use. I made a few modifications based on the reports you gave me about the Earth-level one."

Roan swung his sword a few times while using a few skills. In the end, he nodded with satisfaction as he said, "It has improved quite a bit. Not only that, but the amount of Light Element it can gather has increased a lot."

Rean smiled in response, saying, "Obviously! There was Luminous Ore on this planet, so I added it to the alloy during the forging process. That's a very good ore for absorbing Yang-related elements. In this case, my Light Element. Not to mention that this is a Heaven Middle-level sword, so it would naturally absorb more Light Element than your previous sword anyway."

Kentucky, who was atop of Celis, then called the twins through a Spiritual Sense message, asking, 'How is it? Can we head out already?'

Roan was just about to nod in agreement when suddenly, Sister Orb intervened. [Of course not! Hey, you two! Have you forgotten how many Destiny Points you have? It's about time for you to buy something.]

Sure enough, Rean and Roan agreed with Sister Orb as Rean said, "Oh, that's right! Let's go inside and check it."

The twins then quickly entered the Dimensional Realm and touched the Soul Gem Orb before sending their Spiritual Energy and Sense inside. Soon after, they accessed the reward list.

[Authority Level 30 detected. Opening new reward options]

[Soul Power and Spiritual Energy Fusion - 20000 Destiny Points] (New)

[Nascent Soul Revival - 20000 Destiny Points] (New)

Rean and Roan already expected new rewards to be added, but they still were taken aback. "Fusion? Nascent Soul Revival? What are those things, Sister Orb?"

[Let me check. Hmm...oh, there we go. Soul Power and Spiritual Energy Fusion. It has only one level, and as it says, both power will be merged. That way, you'll be able to cultivate both abilities at the same time. If you improve your Soul Power, your cultivation will improve as well. If you cultivate, your Soul Power increases. Both powers will always be at the same level, though it's highly dependent on your cultivation level.] Sister Orb explained.

Rean and Roan were quite surprised to hear that. Soon, Rean asked, "Wait! Doesn't that mean if we buy it right now, our Soul Power will increase all the way to match our Nascent Soul Realm cultivation?"

Sister Orb confirmed their suspicions, replying, [It's exactly that. However, that's not all. Kentucky is connected to you, so you'll also pull him together once you do so. After all, you guys always pulled each other together with your cultivation.]

[Last but not least, when you use your attacks from now on, they'll always have the full support of your Soul Power. There's no need for you to concentrate on it since it'll be natural. You can think about it as if your Spiritual Energy had always contained Soul Power or vice versa.] Sister Orb finished her explanation by dropping that bomb.

Kentucky couldn't help but feel excited as he said, "Great! This is a huge improvement in combat power without any drawbacks! Doesn't matter what you do. Make sure you buy this one first!"

Obviously, Rean and Roan had the same idea. "Indeed. Considering our safety, this is definitely the best option. Even if it costs 20000 Destiny Points, it's totally worth it. However, why do I feel like this reward didn't exist before?"

Sister Orb agreed with their words as she laughed. [Hahaha! You're right. This is a result of the System's upgrade. I told you I analyzed Soul Power after you got your marks, right? Naturally, that's the same thing as saying that the System did it. If you guys haven't found about Soul Power in the past, Authority Level 30 would only give you the Nascent Soul Revival option.]

Rean had to admit it made sense. "Well, that's good for us. When Roan and I exchange elements, we can fight an entire realm above our cultivation. I wonder how much we'll improve with this natural fusion."

Sister Orb disagreed. [Not really. The difference between stages at the Nascent Soul Realm is a lot bigger than the difference between stages of the realms below. I doubt you would be a match against an Initial Stage Soul Transformation Realm cultivator or a Stage Six Demon beast. And that's already considering your Soul Power in the mix. If I'm not wrong, your power in the Nascent Soul Realm will allow you to evenly fight Peak Stage Nascent Soul Realm opponents. But if you really buy the fusion, you should be able to match a cultivator at the Initial Stage Soul Transformation Realm.]

Roan agreed with Sister Orb, saying, "We haven't fought against a Soul Transformation Realm opponent yet, but after seeing how much our Spiritual Energy Pool increased after our breakthrough, I thought that was the case. At most, we would only be able to hold back while focusing on defense. Of course, buying the fusion reward is still very much worth it."

Rean nodded, saying not long after, "Alright, the first thing we'll buy is decided. Now, how about the remaining 14402 Destiny Points? After all, we got 34402 after we completed the mission."

Roan shrugged his shoulders, responding, "We can think about that after finishing this upgrade. Perhaps we might change the idea after completing it, so let's do it first."

With that said, Rean and Roan selected the Soul Power and Spiritual Energy Fusion.

[Soul Power and Spiritual Energy Fusion - 20000 Destiny Points]

[Confirm Purchase?]

"Yes!"

[Purchased confirmed.]

[Destiny Points: 34402]

[Initializing Upgrade...]

In an instant, Rean and Roan felt like their heads were being split in two. Not only them, but Kentucky also put his wings on his head as he fell down to the ground in pain. Well, it wasn't as if they didn't expect it. Two humans and a giant demon bird then kept rolling on the ground while holding their heads.

As for Sister Orb, one could only see several flashes while she imitated the sound of a camera taking shots. [Good! Good! Now, curl down a bit more. Perfect! Now, pretend you're a snake that was hit by an arrow and is contorting in pain. Impressive! You guys are naturals! These images will be kept for posterity.]

The twins didn't know which one was harder to bear, the pain or Sister Orb's antics. 'I hate that orb!'

The process lasted for an entire hour until, eventually, it was over. As always, the pain disappeared as it had never been there. If not for the sweat on the twins' bodies, no one would be able to tell something like that happened. In any case, they got through it.