Chapter 369

Another ability he had never seen before—

Directly extracting souls?

What kind of system was that?

Just how many surprises was this boy going to bring her?

Watching Kanzaki Rei’s performance, even Lottie felt a faint sheen of sweat form on her forehead.

If she had his help...

Her chances of winning would increase significantly.

As for the struggle over the position of the Lunar Sovereign—

No one could say who would come out on top.

Now that an opportunity had appeared—

She could only take the gamble.

If she succeeded...

She might truly have a chance to escape the Deep Lands.

Anything was better than waiting here for her end.

...

Kanzaki Rei looked down at the warrior below.

What a pity.

If I had just a bit more time—after dealing with the mage, he would’ve been next.

A faint violet hue surfaced over his right hand.

Poison.

It might not be fully effective against a Level 8 advanced class user—

But it would definitely weaken him to some extent.

Too bad...

I never got direct contact to inject it.

Shua!

Suddenly—

Final Perception issued a major warning!

He’s about to attack—

Bang!

In the very next instant—

The warrior appeared high above him!

Both hands raised his blade overhead, his skin spreading outward like the wings of a manta ray.

He had abandoned resisting the restrictions entirely.

Instead—

He was going all-in on a single, decisive strike to kill Kanzaki Rei!

Dong—

But—

Time stopped.

Whoosh—

When time resumed—

Kanzaki Rei had already vanished.

Splurt!

A sharp, urgent strike pierced through from behind!

Immediately after—

A vast surge of souls rose into the sky!

An overwhelming tide of souls enveloped the entire island!

This was why Kanzaki Rei had never panicked facing these four.

Even if they hadn’t mistaken him for Eltima—

He still had a way to defeat them.

He had too many tools now.

Even if he couldn’t win head-on—

He could always manipulate the environment to create an advantage.

The restrictions were one.

And the other—

Was Merso.

Merso could be used.

And more importantly—

Merso fought using the soul.

And Kanzaki Rei—

Could lend his own soul power to him.

The warrior spun around violently—

His heavy blade sweeping in a horizontal arc!

Whoosh—

With a single slash—

The clouds in the sky were split apart, torn in two by the residual force!

But the assassin—

Had already vanished once more.

Before the warrior could react—

His mind fell into chaos.

A whisper echoed in his ears.

[Eighth-Tier Death Magic — Supreme: Soul Extraction]

Countless souls now formed a cage around the island.

The warrior stood trapped within it—

His soul leaking outward uncontrollably.

If this continued—

Death was inevitable.

With a roar, he unleashed hundreds of slashes toward Merso’s position!

Whoosh—

But Merso’s figure dispersed like drifting mist under the blade’s arc—

Leaving only two long scars carved across the flesh-like ground.

The "skin" that formed this continent...

...was incredibly durable.

Shua—

Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh!

Two figures chased each other at speeds too fast to perceive—

Merso like drifting haze—

The warrior like a raging thunderbolt!

Meanwhile—

Kanzaki Rei concealed himself completely.

Tear—

As the pursuit continued—

Chunks of flesh began to fall from the warrior’s body.

During brief moments where time stuttered—

It was visible that his skin had begun to shrivel.

His soul was leaking.

And under the pressure of the restrictions—

His flesh was starting to peel away.

It wouldn’t take long.

As long as he remained on this island—

His death was inevitable.

Just resisting the restrictions alone drained immense strength.

Let alone facing two enemies of his level at the same time.

Splurt—

Another instant passed—

The warrior suddenly felt a chilling presence behind him.

He turned—

And saw Aldrius, who had once been his ally—

Standing again.

And this time—

He stood as though unaffected by the restrictions.

He...

Had also become undead.

Killed by Kanzaki Rei—

Just like that.

Now—

It was truly four against one.

[Eighth-Tier Arcane Magic — Boundary]

Hummm!

In an instant, a magical barrier expanded!

It sealed off all directions completely!

The warrior was trapped within—

Charging and slashing wildly in every direction!

BOOM!

His powerful strikes slammed into the barrier, producing thunderous reverberations—

But failed to break it outright.

Shua—

And the assassin’s attacks followed immediately after.

The pressure mounted relentlessly.

He...

Couldn’t hold on any longer.

It’s over...

His soul continued to leak—

Being drawn out by Merso.

[Eighth-Tier Arcane Magic — Annihilation]

Aldrius raised his hand once more.

In the sky—

A rune formed—

Simultaneously unstable and yet impossibly solid.

Shua!

In the next moment—

The entire island was filled with identical runes.

Shua—

Then—

Every inch of space—

Inside the barrier, within the warrior’s body—

Was stacked with that single rune.

Annihilation.

BOOM!!!

In that instant—

All things collapsed toward destruction.

Everything shattered apart in an instant—

Even his flesh began to disintegrate!

"AHHH—!"

"AAAHHH!!"

Despair.

Vacancy.

Lady Eltima...

I failed... the task you entrusted to me.

"I..."

Tap—

Kanzaki Rei was still watching his destruction—

When suddenly—

The entire scene froze.

As if time itself had stopped.

But this time—

It wasn’t Kanzaki Rei who had halted it.

"Congratulations."

"You have passed the final trial."

Lottie’s voice sounded beside him.

With soft footsteps across the void—

The surrounding scene began to fracture, peeling away like shattered glass.

Crash—

With a crisp sound—

Everything collapsed into fragments.

"Your performance far exceeded my expectations."

"I originally thought that if you could disrupt the auxiliary rituals, it would already be impressive."

Even those auxiliary rituals—

Were beyond what an ordinary Level 7 advanced class user could destroy.

Lottie had never expected Kanzaki Rei to dismantle Eltima’s core ritual.

And yet—

He had done exactly that.

"Why end it so abruptly?"

Kanzaki Rei didn’t accept her congratulations.

Instead, he questioned her.

"Because... it was already sufficient," Lottie replied.

But Kanzaki Rei pressed further:

"Is there something you didn’t want me to see?"

Lottie’s expression turned slightly helpless.

"You’re quite perceptive. As expected... I couldn’t hide it from you."

"Yes. You killed her last trusted subordinate."

"If all four of them were to die, Eltima would temporarily descend using the final one as a vessel..."

"So—it was enough."

Kanzaki Rei fell silent.

It didn’t feel that simple.

But she was a god.

If she didn’t want to explain—

There was little he could do to press further.

Sensing his doubt, Lottie let out a soft sigh.

"That concerns certain matters between Eltima and myself... secrets not particularly related to you."

"I ask that you don’t pursue it further."

"You have successfully completed all four trials."

"According to our agreement—you are now the next heir of the Deep Lands."

Ding—

Almost the moment her words fell—

Kanzaki Rei felt a new contract form upon him.

From now on—

He could freely travel to and from the Deep Lands.

With a casual gesture, Lottie conjured two comfortable sofas behind them.

She spoke:

"Now..."

"Let’s discuss the terms of our cooperation."