Chapter 96 - Rebellion – 5 (1/2)

Rebellion – 5

‘Is the entire Red Blood clan in this temple? Did they all only endure with the power of their mana this entire time? That would be ridiculous.’

Daishinjeon was a vast and odd structure, built to fit a spider’s body but not a human’s. As such, the corridor and ceiling were functionally indistinguishable as the spiders would have no problem walking anywhere throughout the temple. It was only natural they would have passages there meant only for them.

[Kiaahh!]

[You have gained 41 experience.]

[You have received 49 gold.]

[You have obtained a Red Blood Web.]

I wondered what kind of power other higher-level entities would have, and now in fighting these giant spiders, I was able to get some answers. They must have had more abilities once, but after losing their intelligence and becoming monsters, their power was now focused on their webs. The Spider’s Web was a powerful magical attack that could ignore the laws of physics and change its properties at will. It was remarkably similar to Jinma’s mana in a lot of regards, but ultimately it sacrificed the range of applications Jinma’s mana had for sheer power. I idly wondered how I could use it myself.

“Die.” After my evolution, I now had to control the balance between using Reaper and restoring my mana with Predation, which I hadn’t been able to use until now, without a break. It was working, though, as bit by bit, the energy I spread out created gaps between the spiders.

[Kiahhh!]

Reaper was a combat, stealth, and movement skill, as well as a skill related to all actions in killing the enemy. Unlike Jinma’s mana, it was my skill born through hard work and merit. It was a special skill born from all the power I gained since starting out as a goblin. Additionally, it was the skill helping me in gaining the upper hand over dozens of higher-level enemies, something that wouldn’t have been possible with just Jinma’s mana and Predation.

[Reaper became Lv2. You have gained a deeper understanding of death and have learned how to avoid it easier.]

It felt less like I gained a level and more like I had taken a step toward completing myself. Leveling up the skill increased the power of all the skills related to it and my characteristics that formed its essence.

[Level up!]

I would be lying if I said I wasn’t happy to finally be leveling up, but the psychological pressure that had been bearing down upon me since I evolved still didn’t subside as I went deeper into the temple. The monsters of the Red Blood clan kept appearing and swarming after me, seemingly endless in numbers.

[Kyahahah!]

‘This space is too wide.’ The battle reminded me of the mass haunts that would happen in the dungeon. Daishinjeon was wide like that place had been, and the spiders kept coming just like those undead had.

[Level up!]

I kept swinging my sword, no longer thinking of when this battle might end. A single stray thought would have been enough for a lethal blow to make its way through. Instead, I focused on expanding my sensory range to secure a safe place to move to with Ubiquitous and evading the spider webs.

[You gained 58 experience.]

[You have received 51 gold.]

[You have obtained a Red Blood Web.]

[You have obtained a Red Blood Shell.]

Amid this frantic fight, I suddenly felt tranquil as I tore through another spider’s abdomen. There were no more enemies in my detection range, and as I raised my head to look around, I noticed the temple was suddenly changing. It was because the spiders had all been killed that changes were taking place. The wide passage began to narrow, little by little, and something beyond it was approaching me. What awaited me was a huge, absolutely massive statue.

This must have been some magic they prepared in response to their death. Maybe it was their dying wish to the one who held the Web Key. If a human had obtained it instead, this temple would have remained closed forever. Or perhaps they had some sort of plan that I didn’t know about. As I considered this, the distance between myself and the statue gradually decreased. I didn’t even need to come forward; it was coming to me.

A temple is a place dedicated to worshipping a god or something similar. According to the giant spider’s words, the Red Blood clan was a race with high intelligence and strong magical ability. I couldn’t help but wonder what sort of existence they might have admired in the past. I was curious, but that didn’t fully overtake my suspicion. I had already learned to be vigilant and was on the lookout for the statue as it approached me. Keeping an eye on the statue, I decided to check how my status had improved after fighting for more than two days.

[Fate]

[Belkena Lv8]

[New Magic – 78, Soul Magic – 126, Luck-???]

[Skill- Predation Lv1, Reaper Lv2, Lunatic Trickster Lv1, Ubiquitous Lv2, Domination Lv1, Blackmine Lv1, Belkena Spell Lv2]

I was level 8. If that had been my progress from before, I would have laughed, but now I had been reborn as a Belkena. My new magic increased by 52, and my soul magic by 87. It seemed like a small number, but I could tell how much power was now overflowing from my body. Pulling out of my contemplation, I noticed the statue had stopped. It was an enormous red statue, right in the middle of the passage ahead of me.

‘What is it made of?’ I approached it with that question, examining it closer. It was made of some sort of stone that radiated a subtle light, and I wondered how expensive it might be. Its face was unrecognizable, and his body wasn’t particularly large. He was wearing some sort of light cloak, held a greatsword in one hand, and some kind of hook in the other. ‘It’s odd it has no specific features. Shouldn’t a god have his own personality?’

The light from the statue intensified, and I heard a sound.

[Thank you for coming here, great one.]