Chapter 37: Hidden Attributes!

Aiden paused before the exit, then his gaze slowly swept across the abandoned subway one final time.

The shattered tracks, the rusted machinery, the battlefield where he had risked everything.

This forgotten station had become the place where his new life truly began.

A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

Without hesitation, He stepped into the portal and white light swallowed his vision.

The world dissolved into countless flowing streams of light and shadow. Moments later, his feet touched solid ground once more.

When his vision cleared, he found himself standing outside the half-buried subway entrance.

Sunlight poured through the fractured skyline, bathing the ruined city in a warm golden glow.

The wind carried the scent of dust and rust. Nothing around him had changed. Yet everything had.

Aiden looked down at his armored hands before clenching them into fists. Strength surged beneath his skin. When he had entered the dungeon, He had been little more than an ordinary survivor armed with a kitchen knife.

Now, He was Level 4 and Equipped with a Rare weapon and Fine armor.

His attributes far exceeded those of ordinary players through Soul Essence Absorption.

He possessed crowd-control soul trait, Legendary crafting materials, and had unlocked one of the rarest Life Professions available in the early game.

The foundation had been laid. A foundation strong enough to support everything that would come next.

His revenge, his rise, his path of endless soul absorption. And this... Was only the beginning.

...

Back inside the Rezvani SUV, Aiden Cross finally had a moment to calm down and distance himself from the escalating chaos outside.

For the first time since entering Jadewater Park, he could properly sort through everything he had gained from the trip and begin laying the foundation for his next steps.

He first pulled up his detailed status panel.

[Name: Reaper]

[Level: 4] [EXP: 1025 / 2600]

[Class: Sovereign of Souls] [Rank: SSS-Rank, Unique]

[Health Points: 275 / 275] [Base: 190 + Combat Suit 30 + Physique Boost]

[Mana Points: 115 / 115] [Base: 80 + Staff 1 + Spirit Boost + Level Up]

[Attributes]

Strength: 19 [Base 5 + Level Up 3 + Absorb 3 + Equipment 2 + Free Attribute 6]

Agility: 13 [Base 5 + Level Up 3 + Absorb 3 + Free Attribute 2]

Physique: 13 [Base 5 + Level Up 3 + Absorb 4 + Free Attribute 1]

Spirit: 13 [Base 5 + Level Up 2 + Absorb 5 + Equipment 1]

[Free Attribute Points: 0]

[Soul Traits]

[Slightly Sharp] [Regenerative Reconstruction] [Titan Strength] [Adhesive Dominion] [Thermal Perception] [Kinetic Smash] [Pressure Shot] [Root Entanglement]

[Skills]

[Charged Strike]

[Life Profession]

[Engineering Basics, Primary] , Not Activated

[Equipment]

Weapon: [Power Gauntlets (Rare)] , Attack: 15–20 , Strength +2 , Special Effect: [Charged Strike]

Upper Body: [Tough Combat Suit (Uncommon)] , Physical Defense +8 , Health Points +30

Accessory: [Damaged Ring of Greed (Rare)] , Item Drop Rate +15%

Special: [Vine Staff (Uncommon)] , Spell Power +3 , Spirit +1 , Effect remains active while equipped, even when not held.

Miscellaneous: [Glimmering Bracelet (Uncommon)] , Effect: Unknown

[Important Items]

[Engineer’s Core (Legendary)] [Skill Book: Engineering Basics] [Subway Station Locker Key] Various Monster Materials

[Assets]

Approximately 5 million anonymous gold coins [Rezvani Off-Road Vehicle]

Aiden stared at the magnificent panel for several seconds.

A sense of groundedness slowly settled over his heart.

It had been barely half a day since his rebirth.

Yet in that ridiculously short amount of time, he had gone from having absolutely nothing to possessing formidable attributes, decent equipment, millions in anonymous gold, a powerful class, several trump cards, and even the foundation of a life profession.

All of it had been made possible by his foresight, and, more importantly, the heaven-defying ability of Sovereign of Souls.

Aiden’s gaze eventually shifted downward.

It landed on the rusty bracelet lying among the spoils.

The Rusted Iron Bracelet.

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"It is time to deal with this piece of junk."

There was no hesitation.

Aiden picked up the Skill Book: Engineering Basics and crushed it.

Crack!

The skill book instantly disintegrated into a stream of luminous particles.

The light surged into his body.

In the next instant, an enormous amount of knowledge flooded into his mind.

Basic mechanics, material processing, simple machine principles, energy conduction, structural design, tool construction. Even the fundamentals of mechanical assembly.

The knowledge was not merely dumped into his consciousness like a pile of disconnected information. Instead, it was rapidly organized and integrated with the digitized rules of the system.

A unique Engineering Skill Tree gradually took shape within his mind.

Although it was only at the Primary level, it already contained the knowledge required to craft dozens of basic items.

Aiden quickly located Engineering Basics within the Life Profession section of his skill list.

"Activate."

The moment he gave the command, the profession officially became active.

A simple Engineering interface unfolded inside his mind.

Aiden quickly browsed through the available recipes.

There were various basic tools, simple components, crude mechanical devices, and several useful consumables.

Then he found what he was looking for.

[Primary Rust Remover]

Recipe: [Clean Water] ×1 [Acidic Grass] ×1 [Metal Scrap] ×1

Effect: Removes rust from the surface of metal items. Has a certain probability of repairing minor damage or activating hidden attributes.

Aiden’s eyes brightened.

The materials were extremely simple.

Clean Water was already available among the supplies stored in the Rezvani’s trunk.

Acidic Grass was a Level 1 common herb. He had happened to collect several while hunting monsters in Jadewater Park, largely thanks to the increased drop rate provided by the Damaged Ring of Greed.

As for Metal Scrap...

He had accumulated plenty of it from killing the various mechanical and metallic monsters he encountered earlier.

In other words.

He already possessed everything necessary to craft the item.

Aiden’s gaze slowly returned to the Rusted Iron Bracelet.

The corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

Perhaps this supposedly worthless piece of junk wasn’t as worthless as it appeared.

Aiden immediately took out the required materials from the ring’s miniature storage space and the Rezvani’s trunk, then began following the instructions provided by the Engineering skill.

The process itself was not complicated. It mainly consisted of mixing the ingredients in precise proportions, grinding them into a uniform solution, and injecting a faint amount of mana to catalyze the reaction.

A few minutes later, a small bottle containing a viscous, pale-yellow liquid appeared in his hand.

[Ding!]

[You have successfully crafted [Primary Rust Remover] ×1.]

[Engineering Proficiency +1.]

Aiden picked up the [Rusted Iron Bracelet] and carefully applied the rust remover across its surface.

Hiss...

A faint reaction sounded as the thick layer of rust began to dissolve and peel away at a visible rate, exposing the dark-silver metal underneath.

As more of the corrosion disappeared, extremely fine and mysterious patterns gradually emerged across the bracelet’s surface. They were so subtle that they would have been completely invisible beneath the layers of rust.

When the final traces of rust vanished, a faint glimmer flashed across the bracelet.

At the same time, its previously unstable durability suddenly stopped deteriorating.

[Rusted Iron Bracelet] → [Glimmering Bracelet]

[Quality: Uncommon grade (Excellent)]

[Equipment Requirement: None]

[Attributes:] , Health Recovery Speed +1/sec , Mana Recovery Speed +0.5/sec

[Durability: 15/15]

[Description: A well-maintained old bracelet that appears to have once belonged to a meticulous engineer. It faintly enhances the wearer’s metabolism and energy circulation.]

A flash of satisfaction crossed Aiden’s eyes.

’Health and mana recovery... They could enhance my Regenerative Reconstruction!’

Aiden’s eyes lit up.

The values were modest, but their significance was far greater than the numbers suggested.

At this early stage of the game, when players had limited recovery options and every potion was precious, even a small amount of continuous regeneration could prove extremely valuable.

For ordinary players, the bracelet’s effects would simply provide slow, passive recovery.

For him, however, they could potentially work in tandem with Regenerative Reconstruction, accelerating his body’s ability to recover from injuries and replenishing his resources over time.

The stronger his regeneration became, the less he would have to rely on recovery items.

And during prolonged battles, that advantage could become even more pronounced.

Aiden had a feeling that this seemingly insignificant bracelet would become far more valuable as his abilities continued to develop.

Best of all, it had no equipment requirement, it was extremely practical.