Chapter 259: Giant’s Paradise Grows Even More

-----

Giant Paradise looked mostly the same at first glance, yet it had clearly gained a massive "Expansion" of itself. An entirely new zone of towering mountains had appeared, complete with a gigantic volcano rising at the center and vast volcanic lands filled with boiling magma and flowing rivers of lava.

The volcano trembled faintly as it sensed the presence of a certain someone. Ignias seemed to be resting deep within its fiery depths. At the same time Riven noticed the Kobolds stepping out of the Whispering Caves. They had now become permanent residents of this much larger world. Their eyes were wide with pure awe as they slowly walked forward and admired the strange new surroundings that stretched out before them.

Farther away from this volcanic region stood the ruins of an abandoned civilization. Fallen skyscrapers and crumbling buildings were covered from top to bottom in thick grass and dense forests. At the very center of those ruins lay the entrance to a deep subway line that had been expanded into a massive underground labyrinth.

From that dark entrance small creatures resembling humanoid rats and humanoid cockroaches stared at the sunlight coming from the distant horizon. They inhaled the fresh air with cautious curiosity and slowly walked into the shade. Yet the moment the sunlight struck their bodies they quickly scurried back into the safety of the subway tunnels.

Deeper below the surface Riven could sense that there was no longer just one Mad Locomotive. Several of them now moved about as if they formed a giant colony of these underground monsters. At least they seemed content to remain underground, so he did not particularly mind their presence.

He felt a much greater flow of Mana and Spiritual Energy circulating through the entire realm. The world itself had further expanded into the distant horizon, leaving Riven both perplexed and deeply amazed by the scale of the change.

"Wow, this is... I really can’t get enough of this sensation. This is incredible."

Ding!

[Congratulations, you have successfully combined the D-Rank Gate "Whispering Caves" and the E-Rank Gate "Abandoned Subway Line" with the C Rank Spirit Dungeon Realm "Giant’s Paradise".]

[Your Spirit Dungeon Realm "Giant’s Paradise" has grown much stronger, advancing to C++ Rank.]

[New Biomes have been created: Smoldering Lands, Giant Volcano, Dragon’s Throne, Kobold Caves, Forgotten Civilization Ruins, Abandoned Subway Labyrinth.]

[All Dungeon Monsters have been adjusted and evolved to adapt better to this new environment.]

[The Believer Race "Kobolds" and "Mutants" have gathered into two separate Villages.]

[Mana, Nether, and Spiritual Energy are now being produced in large quantities within the Spirit Dungeon Realm and will help replenish the Realm’s requirements and the Lord’s power.]

[Your Authority as a Lord has grown much stronger.]

[Due to the surplus amount of Mana and Spirit Energy within your Divine Land, you’re beginning to absorb and synthetize it permanently as a part of your own power.]

[Your Mana Stat has increased by 1,000,000.]

[Your Spirit Stat has increased by 1,000,000.]

What Riven had not expected at all was that he would even gain permanent increases to his Mana and Spirit Stats after this fusion. One million points for each was more than decent. It gave him an even greater pool of energy to draw upon and use however he saw fit in future battles.

"It’s done," he said as he opened his eyes again and nodded with quiet satisfaction. "Before we go, I have to go talk with Elisa. I’m worried she might be a little too angry."

"Sure, go ahead," Natalie nodded understandingly. "It’s all my fault, but I know I might only worsen things if I go with you..."

"Yeah, better stay here for now," Riven agreed. "I’ll return soon."

As Riven turned and walked away, Natalie watched her friends Philip, Emma, and Clair fighting with tooth and nail against the ninjas. They were constantly being beaten down to a pulp, only to pop recovery potions, heal themselves, and throw themselves back into the grind without hesitation.

"You’re pretty good at taking blows, but your skin is way too soft! And you call yourself a warrior?" Goki laughed heartily while smashing Philip’s face downward with another heavy strike. "You have to train, train, and train until your skin becomes harder than steel! Then you won’t even need to wear that heavy armor that only slows you down!"

"Tsk!" Philip roared in frustration. He was wearing only simple gym clothes as Kagehisa had requested of him and the others. He attempted to land solid kicks and punches against Goki, yet every single one was blocked or avoided with ease. He ended up on the floor over and over again for reasons he still could not fully understand. "Damn it, Goki, let me hit you at least once! This is completely unfair!"

"Oho? You think so, bud?" Goki asked with a wide grin. "Sure, go ahead and punch me." He stood completely still and open. "Come at me, bro!"

"You’ll regret that," Philip smiled with sudden confidence. His arm bulged with concentrated muscle as pure Mana erupted around his fist. The empowered punch flew directly toward Goki’s exposed stomach and...

CRACK.

"Gaaaahhhhh!"

Philip dislocated most of his fingers in the process. He felt an intense, sharp pain as if he had just punched a solid boulder. His entire hand turned bright red from the impact.

"Hahaha! I told you that you could punch me! What was that? Did you not punch me yet? I haven’t felt a thing!" Goki laughed even louder.

"Y-You’re a monster! What sort of person undergoes so much training that their skin becomes this damn hard?!" Philip gasped while clutching his injured hand.

"Not just the skin. The muscle too!" Goki answered proudly. "This is the training I underwent for over a decade up in the mountains! And let me tell you, bro, I am way kinder than those monks who starved us and tortured us for years just to get us to the level my clan expected. Some kids never even made it. They died before they could reach proper age."

The harsh truth of those words hung in the air for a moment, reminding everyone just how different the paths of strength could be.

-----