Eager to test Soul Ascension, Noah wasted no time and ventured deeper into the wilderness of the ninth floor. Activating his Presence Detection skill, he quickly honed in on a nearby monster—a towering, two-headed ogre.
The beast stood over ten feet tall, its two heads snarling in unison as it spotted Noah. Its hulking body was covered in thick, scarred skin, and it wielded a massive club that could easily crush boulders. The ogre's rank was high—A-rank, a formidable opponent for most.
But Noah wasn't intimidated.
The monster let out a deafening roar, one that might have struck fear into others. But to Noah, it was nothing more than noise. His calm demeanor remained unshaken as he drew his black sword, Nemesis, its blade glinting ominously in the dim light.
"Let's see how much you'll elevate me," Noah muttered as he advanced.
The two-headed ogre charged, its enormous club swinging downward with the force of an avalanche. Noah sidestepped with practiced ease, his Shadow Steps skill activating to blur his movement. Closing the gap, he slashed upward with Nemesis, the blade carving through the ogre's thick hide.
The monster roared in pain and fury, its second head twisting to track Noah's movement. It swung again, this time horizontally, aiming to crush him against the nearby rocks. Noah leaped backward, summoning a shadow tendril with his Darkness Rune to entangle the ogre's legs, momentarily slowing its movements.
Capitalizing on the opening, Noah dashed forward, his blade glowing faintly with mana.
"Splitting Ripple Slash!"
The skill activated, sending a shockwave of slicing force through the ogre's torso. Blood sprayed as the monster stumbled, but it wasn't done yet. Both heads roared in fury, and the ogre swung its club in a wild frenzy, smashing through trees and scattering debris.
Noah danced around the attacks, his movements precise and calculated. His Unprecedented Sense skill kept him a step ahead, reading the ogre's patterns with ease.
With a final surge of mana, Noah activated Fangs of Insanity, his blade surrounded by a menacing black aura. He struck the ogre's chest in a devastating series of rapid slashes, each one tearing through its defenses. The monster fell to its knees, its massive frame trembling as it tried to rise again. Follow current novels on 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦•𝘯𝘦𝘵
In a fluid motion, Noah plunged Nemesis into the ogre's heart, silencing its roars. The beast collapsed, lifeless.
As the ogre's body disintegrated into mana particles, Noah felt the effects of Soul Ascension kick in. A surge of energy coursed through him, a faint glow surrounding his body as the ogre's stats flowed into his own.
A sudden System Notification. He was much looking forward to it.
[Soul Ascension activated. Absorbed stats: +2 Strength, +1 Dexterity, +1 Mana.]
Noah exhaled, the exhilaration of the fight still fresh in his veins. He opened his status window to confirm the changes, smiling as he saw the incremental boosts.
Noah continued his testing, methodically hunting down monsters to gauge the true potential of Soul Ascension. It didn't take long for him to confirm the skill's limits.
• A-rank monsters were the sweet spot, offering substantial stat gains that made the effort worthwhile.
• B-rank monsters contributed moderate boosts, useful but far less impressive.
• C-rank monsters and below, however, provided barely anything—so insignificant it felt like a waste of time unless he was using them for pure combat practice.
Satisfied with his findings, Noah pushed himself further. He slayed two more A-rank monsters, five B-rank monsters, and several C-rank creatures. Each kill pushed him closer to his next level, though the process was noticeably slower than it had been in previous ranks.
Finally, after his last hunt, the familiar chime of the system rang in his mind.
[System Notification:]
Level Up! You are now Level 61.
He opened his Status Window, feeling the rush of power that came with the level increase. As expected, all of his stats had risen by two points, a consistent reward with each level-up.
Class: Angel of Death
Mana: 175 (+2 from level-up, +5 from Soul Ascension)
Strength: 179 (+2 from level-up, +7 from Soul Ascension)
Intelligence: 147 (+2 from level-up)
Dexterity: 176 (+2 from level-up, +4 from Soul Ascension)
Luck: 124 (+2 from level-up)
The combination of regular level-ups and Soul Ascension was staggering. Not only were his stats increasing naturally, but the stat absorption from defeated monsters was accelerating his growth at an unprecedented pace.
"A skill shouldn't even exist," Noah thought, his lips curling into a smirk. The ability to steal power from his enemies had already given him a substantial edge—and he had barely scratched the surface of its potential.
Looking out over the dense wilderness of the ninth floor, Noah felt his confidence soar. "If this is what I can do now, it's only a matter of time before I dominate this floor and beyond."
He gripped his black sword, Nemesis, ready to continue his climb. With Soul Ascension bolstering his progress, Noah's path to the pinnacle of strength was all but assured thanks to this tailored crafted system created by his late mother. He silently vowed to make a better use of it and hide its existence until he had enough strength to face anyone desiring to snatch it. For a moment he had even briefly entertained the thought of using this system as a bait to draw his mother's assassins but considering his pitiful strength he quickly discarded this idea because it would be a suicidal thing to do. For now he must focus on acquiring an overwhelming strength capable of facing anything, he would bid his time and besides he had an ally, he would ask for help, with his girlfriend help things would be easier.
"Testing complete," he said, gripping Nemesis tightly. "And the results are… better than I expected."
This was only the beginning. If an A-rank monster could elevate him this much, he couldn't wait to see the results of defeating even stronger opponents. Soul Ascension was proving to be as broken as he'd imagined, and he was ready to push it to its limits.