Chapter 470: Damned System

Chapter 470: Chapter 470: Damned System

Chapter 470 – Damned System

Cassius let out a small, satisfied smile at that. Finally, he could step into the Third Rank and become an Exalted. Finally, he could obtain his Soulblade, or maybe two if he was lucky.

However, his Aspect was Unique. And all his previous Skills, which were supposed to be random, had been gained by fishing directly from the Skills of his Ancestors.

Now the real question was how the process of gaining a Soulblade would unfold, considering his Aspect.

Cassius had no idea, but he was eager to find out.

"But not now," he said, letting out a small breath. "I must be at the Second Rank if I want to enter the Fractured Land in the Wastelands, not higher. So I must wait until I am out to rank up."

[True.] Ananke said, sitting cross-legged beside him, Marvela and Tysche doing the same, watching the Gate of Fate and Secrecy with its threads weaving continuously like a wheel. [But the very fact that you are at the absolute limit, and have even surpassed it in some of your stats, means your strength is beyond that of an ordinary Third Rank.]

"Yes." He nodded. "The only things that could possibly be dangerous to me are Fourth Rank monsters, those with real intelligence, and maybe a special Third Rank. But the latter is quite rare."

[But not impossible.] Lady Luck corrected. [So don’t just ignore that possibility.]

"I won’t. As a matter of fact, I would love to have more information about this Fractured Land. I don’t like being in the dark at all." A slight frown creased his fine features, his left eye standing out oddly, yet mesmerizingly. "I will ask Master about it."

The goddesses nodded, and Marvela finally raised an important matter. [So, darling,] she began, her eyes fixed entirely on his left eye, [what did you obtain with this Eye?]

It no longer looked the same, after all.

Now Cassius’s left eye had a white iris, the same white as Blanche’s, with two slitted pupils crossing into a stunning plus.

Each pupil looked different, and the goddesses could guess that one belonged to the dragon, the other to the phoenix.

Staring at the eye, they had the strange impression that they were looking at something that was not quite supposed to exist.

Dragon and Phoenix, at the same time?

"You would be surprised to know that it’s nothing too grand," Cassius chuckled, and raising his hand, he produced a pristine fire tinged with green. "Blanche’s power has increased the efficacy of my healing. In fact, I believe I can even regrow severed limbs if I use a lot of Sun Essence. But beyond that, it has also strengthened my Destructive Plasma and Poisonous Plasma. Both of them now have an element of... how can I explain it... let’s say, rebirth?"

[Rebirth?] Ananke cocked her head.

"I mean, if I use my Destructive Plasma or Poisonous Plasma inside my opponent’s body, even if it’s destroyed or runs out, I can revive it, like a phoenix rising from its ashes, and it will become even more lethal."

[That’s... that’s quite the Skill for a surprise attack. No one will see it coming.] Marvela whispered, quite satisfied.

That effect could be truly useful, even a game-changer, if used well.

"Right?" He nodded, satisfied himself. "I guess the White Phoenix knows how to give a Gift."

[I still don’t like her.] Tysche muttered.

Cassius chuckled, but didn’t comment on that.

Instead, he talked about the new fragments of information he had picked up from Hamdall’s memories.

Now he knew how the Red Dragons were structured, and what they valued most.

He knew their weaknesses, and even their mortal enemies – the Descending Sun Foxes – and how the two used to fight constantly.

He knew about their mating seasons, and how each one was literally an orgy on a grand scale, where these dragons simply let themselves loose without restraint.

The Last Born also learned about the god they worshipped — the Dragon of Nirvana, First the Ariel — and the sacrifices they offered her at the beginning of each Winter Season, which they called the Meditation Season.

Most important of all, he understood why the dragons so loved to tattoo their entire bodies.

All their tattoos depicted the many forms and shapes the Dragon of Nirvana had shown them. Nothing else.

And thanks to that, it was easy to recognize a strong Red Dragon by the number of tattoos on its body.

All of it was interesting, but there was a real drawback: the information came with emotions, and so with grief and regret, with love and hatred, with... ambition.

The strongest of Hamdall’s emotions was his Love for Amate, an obsessive one, Cassius dared say.

And the strongest of his ambitions was to revive his dead sister, Moon, by taking her Soul from the Gate of Death.

But that was easier said than done when Vorn had an army of undead.

This was where Cassius was deeply surprised.

Because compared to regular undead, the armies he had glimpsed in Hamdall’s memories were not just made of bones with pieces of flesh dangling like tattered clothes.

They were human-looking, their skin as black as darkness, their hollow eyes reflecting nothing but emptiness.

Hamdall called them The Ones Who Never Die, from the Land of Death.

When Cassius paused his account there, Marvela nodded in recognition.

[That’s Vorn’s Personal Army.] she said. [They cannot die, that is true. But it’s been a while since he used any of them. I had almost forgotten about them.]

"How can something not die?" Cassius asked, bewildered.

[Vorn has the Authority of Death, and maybe another one he obtained himself after Ascending to Godhood.] Marvela shrugged. [I told you, Vorn is a sneaky fellow. And why do you think no one dares to cause much trouble in his Kingdom? He has Deathless Armies, darling. The Ones Who Never Die.]

At that point, the Last Born could only nod.

It seemed that the more time passed, the more he realized Vorn, the Lord of Death, was more than he had thought.

And he would be a great ally to have.

’If not a great ally, then the worst enemy I could face yet. Because going against him means going against the Hoods. Please, I hope not. That would be the worst thing anyone could do to me.’

Then why the hell did he have such a bad feeling in his chest?

He shook his head. "Having these memories is really useful. Still, I can feel them affecting me. However, soon, in the Wastelands, I will get to the Tree of Dreams and complete my Seed. It’s been a long time, damn."

The three goddesses hummed in response. Cassius then took the time to look at the rewards he had obtained from the System before going back.

[Echo of Desdemona]

[Description: This is a Legacy left behind by the Desdemona Family. You can find it beneath the First Seat’s Esteemed House in the Kruppe Kingdom.

But be aware.

The First Seat is The Dreamer.

Getting close to him means risking falling asleep and never waking up again.]

[Twin Love-Hate Potion]

[Description: This is a potion created by the First Witch when she finally decided to end her life and return to the mud.

However, seeing this as her farewell to a world that had never loved her, the First Witch decided to do one last thing before her death: to be killed by the one who loved her.

And so she captured a young human male, frail and weak.

She tortured him, subjected him to the worst things imaginable, until the hatred festering within his chest grew far beyond anything the First Witch herself had ever known.

A hatred that delighted her.

Then she freed him and gave him a potion: the Twin Love-Hate Potion.

There were two versions of this potion, the R-Type and the G-Type, each one the twin of the other.

The First Witch swallowed the R-Type, while the G-Type was given to the young human.

That potion granted him the ability to kill the First Witch with ease, even with something as harmless as a piece of paper, provided that he came to love her with a love both true and profound.

And that is precisely what the potion does.

The one who drinks the G-Type Potion can only kill the one who drinks the R-Type Potion if the love within them is strong enough to kill.

You know what they say?

Love is the ultimate murderer.

This Potion is not in your possession.]

Cassius had no time to express his shock.

[Couriel for the Gods!]

[Description: This is... a Couriel for the Gods, literally.

You can send anything to any god whose real name you know, setting requirements for what the receiver must do in order to open the Couriel.

You can choose to remain anonymous.

The System will protect your identity.]

Cassius’s mouth hung wide open, all because of the last two rewards.

He didn’t know which of the two was more outrageous. But one thing was certain...

"Why the fuck didn’t I get this Potion?" he cried out. "Do you realize how much I need something like this, you fool of a System?"

The Last Born was crashing out.

—End of Chapter 470—