Without the slightest hesitation, Noah tapped "Upgrade Skill."
[You will spend 3,000,000 gold coins to upgrade the skills Judgment and Sanction from Lv1 to Lv2. Confirm?]
The system notification popped up instantly.
Noah's eyes widened.
Three million… just to level up two skills?
That wasn't just expensive—it was daylight robbery.
But then again, the Divine Fury Mage wasn't your everyday class. If the class itself was already a symbol of prestige and power, its exclusive skills being expensive was almost… justified.
Almost.
Clenching his teeth, Noah swallowed the pain in his wallet and confirmed the upgrade.
[Skill Upgrade Successful!]
[Judgment Lv2]: Ignore target's level and apply the Judgment Mark. If target's Luck is lower than your own, Judgment succeeds. Target enters Weakened State for 5 minutes and takes 1,000 (+500% Max HP) magic damage.
Cooldown: 15 seconds.
Mana Cost: 100.
[Sanction Lv2]: Pass judgment on the target, ignoring magic defense and all buffs. Deals 1,200 (+2000% Max HP) magic damage. If the target is under Judgment, deal 1,800 (+5000% Max HP) magic damage instead.
Cooldown: 20 seconds.
Mana Cost: 200.
After reading the descriptions, Noah felt his earlier complaint melt away.
Worth it. Every single coin was worth it.
This wasn't just an upgrade—it was a rocket launch. The power spike was insane, almost absurd.
And that 5-minute Weakened State?
That was enough time for a crippled player with arthritis to land a perfect follow-up strike.
The implications made Noah smirk.
In Judgment state, if he landed a Sanction with a guaranteed critical hit, the instant damage could break 20 million—minimum.
"So this is the true terror of a hidden, special-tier class… Now it's starting to feel like a Divine Fury Mage." His eyes gleamed with excitement.
Next, he checked the unlock requirements for his third class-exclusive skill.
[You will spend 5,000,000 gold coins to unlock skill Purify Lv1. Confirm?]
The moment he saw the cost, he didn't even blink.
If Judgment and Sanction were already this monstrous, there was no way Purify would disappoint.
[Skill Unlock Successful!]
[Purify Lv1]: Release divine energy to cleanse a 100-meter radius of any unknown, hazardous aura, converting it into a safe, explorable zone. While inside the purified zone, all allies gain +100% HP, Defense, Magic Defense, and Speed. Experience and rewards gained are doubled.
Cooldown: 30 seconds.
Mana Cost: 3,000.
Noah let out a sharp breath.
"This… This is ridiculous."
In the Land of Divine Punishment, this skill wasn't just useful—it was god-tier.
He knew for a fact that maps above level 1000 often contained mysterious "Nightmare Zones."
These regions were covered in thick, impenetrable fog. No player could enter.
For centuries, humanity's strongest players had tried to break through them…
And failed. Every time.
But with Purify, I could just… walk right in.
His pulse quickened. If no one had ever explored those areas, the treasures inside would be untouched—prizes locked away for two hundred years.
And the best part?
He'd get double rewards and double experience while inside.
The only catch… the mana cost was massive. Three thousand points per use meant that with his current 6,100 MP, he could only use it twice.
"Guess I'll need to stockpile some mana potions." Noah grinned.
He went down the list of all his skills, classifying their upgrade conditions into four categories:
Category One: Requires Job Advancement
Divine Fury Mage exclusives: Judgment, Sanction, Purify.
Category Two: Requires Level Threshold
Basic Mage skills: Radiant Flash, Fireball, Ice Arrow, Lightning Strike, Earth Burst, Hurricane.
He ignored these entirely. Being a permanent Level 1 player meant they'd stay at Level 1 forever.
Category Three: Requires Rare Materials
His SSS-tier skills: Flame Cataclysm, Divine Domain, Summon Deity.
Unfortunately, all needed high-grade SSS materials he couldn't get yet.
Category Four: Requires Weapon Advancement
Special weapon skill: Asura Slash, tied to his Asura Sword.
Advancement required a Grandmaster Blacksmith—another dead end for now.
But job advancements weren't just about skills. They also gave full attribute boosts.
From this promotion, he received a +100 All Stats pill.
Noah snorted. "Only 100? What a joke."
Still, without hesitation, he tossed the pill into his mouth.
For him, used to eating +150 and +200 stat boosts like snacks, +100 felt like nothing.
But to an average player, that was equivalent to the stat growth of 20 levels—a massive power spike.
No wonder a freshly advanced Level 50 could crush a full party of unadvanced Level 50s.
With his promotion complete, Noah headed to the Forest Capital's trial room to test his new skills.
When he saw damage numbers in the tens of millions erupting from his attacks, satisfaction spread across his face.
Night had fallen by the time he was done.
A yawn slipped out.
He had planned to grind all night, but…
Well, he'd already overachieved today by clearing the newbie map.
Rewarding himself with a good night's sleep didn't sound unreasonable.
"Tomorrow, I'll tackle the Level 200 dungeon."
Logging out of the Land of Divine Punishment, his consciousness returned to the real world.
The Next Morning
Sunlight slipped through the gap in his curtains, falling across his handsome sleeping face.
A faint smile tugged at the corners of his lips—whatever dream he was having, it was clearly a good one.
BANG!
The bedroom door flew open with a kick.
"Who's there?!"
Noah shot up in bed, nearly summoning his Blood Dawn Staff on instinct.
"Who do you think it is?"
Snow stood in the doorway, her confident posture framed by the morning light.
She was wearing a fitted sports outfit that perfectly outlined her stunning figure—dangerous curves and athletic grace in one.