August agreed to meet with Rhen again in two nights, which suited both parties' preferences.
By then, Rhen would have undertaken the Union exams and settled so he would be free to come back.
Naturally, the meeting location was the underground cavern.
It was located on the outskirts of an area where space was unstable and on a normal day, the monsters lurking around here could be handled.
Rhen, with his newfound strength, also believed he served as a big boost to attack power, making the monsters less dangerous.
Speaking of new found strength, based on Zena's advice, he decided to review his status before returning to town.
So, he remained seated at the entrance, going through the panel which was invisible to others.
- - -
Name: Rhen
Titles: Talent Breaker, The False Divine
Citizen Tier: 5 [0/6000 Points]
Talent: Cryo Genesis [S+]
Core Stage: 3 Rings
En Coins: 49,924,785
Skills: Cold Touch, Gravity Control, Bestow
Bond: Zena
Haven: Emberhold
Tickets: Neutral Ticket x2, Item Gacha Tickets x3
Quests: 1/4
Inventory: 1/25
Mount • Character Gacha • Item Gacha • Loot Inventory: 10 • Pulled Characters : 1•
- - -
From top to down, Rhen started reading, receiving some explanations from Zena here and there.
Titles were rare. Even in Enma, only a few knew of their existence.
One needed to achieve a feat Enma deemed worthy to be granted a title by it.
It was like a special mark Enma grants to know those who are special.
And Rhen had obtained two right off the bat.
- - -
Talent Breaker: You shattered the natural limits of a Talent, altering its path forever. You are no longer a follower of essence — you are a shaper of it.
Title Effects:
You comprehend your Talent 30% faster than others.
Your Talent's shape is yet to be defined, you may absorb unlinked Talents or Talent Skills that align with your Talent's nature.
- - -
The False Divine: Having replaced a God's seat, you are connected to their Almighty Talent, but you still lack the divinity and status of a real god.
Title Effects:
You are connected to abilities once wielded by a God.
You have a false status.
- - -
For Talent Breaker, Rhen didn't know how broken it was but the look of surprise the now semi-corporeal Zena had made him know its value.
Apparently, Talents were typically limited to granting abilities directly, but now Rhen could obtain abilities from others now…
It didn't really make sense, but Rhen was told he would understand the more he used his Talent and the more he encountered Talent users.
For the False Divine, the name alone made Rhen anticipate something great.
Although he didn't necessarily worship any god, he knew of their existence.
And now, he was considered a False God.
Even the foreigners standing in a corner of the cavern were unsettled by Rhen's sudden grin.
He checked his Talent description and got a weird description that said, "The Birth of Ice begins from you."
'I'm not even a lady,' Rhen muttered and shrugged. 'Next is skills!'
Skills are refined powers derived from raw abilities—stable, reliable techniques you can control and use consistently.
–Zena's words that Rhen roughly understood.
He had three new skills, two seemingly from his False Divine title effect and one from his Talent.
- - -
Cold Touch:
The user's touch carries an unnatural chill, draining warmth from whatever they contact.
- - -
Gravity Control:
The user can change how gravity affects things—making objects heavier, lighter, or even floating—by bending gravitational forces around them.
- - -
Bestow:
You can bestow a part of yourself to strengthen others, forming a bond with them.
- - -
"Oh, is it the Bestow ability that Zena used to become stronger?" the thought popped up in his head.
After reading it all, Rhen wore a genuine look of satisfaction.
He felt like his hard work had paid off.
But he knew this was merely the start—there was much more to come
He was blessed this much because he had tasks to carry out.
False Divine? His instincts told him he was going to even deal with gods soon.
He wasn't scared or demotivated, instead, he was pumped.
Finally, there was a light at the end of the tunnel.
Rhen concluded his observation by viewing Zena, his bond, and Lilac, his pulled character's status.
---
Name: Zena
Species: Spirit
Core: 8th Ring → Stagnated
Skills: Solforge
[Solforge – Allows the user to create and control a miniature sun. The orb's size depends on their core capacity, and its power depends on the energy invested, though both have natural limits.]
Master: Rhen
—
Name: Lilac Cipher
Species: Beastgirl - Cat Type
Titles: The Catnoir
Core: 4 Rings
Talent: Shadowstride [B]
Skills: Umbra Step, Dusk Veil, Midnight Lunge
[Umbral Step – Harnesses nearby shadows to move at great speed, slipping between them to evade attacks or bypass obstacles.
Dusk Veil – Wraps the body in a light-absorbing shroud, concealing the user from sight and muffling movement.
Midnight Lunge – A sudden burst forward, striking with speed while leaving a fleeting shadow image to mislead foes.]
Perk: Being your first summon, any rewards or loot boxes gained through her assistance are guaranteed their full quality.
- - -
Reading this life, Rhen was shocked to see Zena almost reaching the 9 Ring – the highest ever attained.
"Stagnated? Well, that's not even the problem here, how the fuck does Zena had a 8 Ring core?"
Zena hid her smile as she said, "I was shocked to realize that too. It's the after effects of the bestowal."
"You are now 5 rings above your 'bestower'!" Rhen tried as much as possible to keep his voice low.
Zena remained silent, making Rhen hiss a bit.
"That aside. Lilac is stronger than me right now, as expected. I think she was a three star character when I pulled her.
"And this perk thing, I don't know the value much right now, but in the long run definitely."
At the edge of the screen, Rhen opened his loot inventory and navigated to the 4-star loot.
He guessed, based on what he saw, that—like everything else—loot could reach 5 stars, and the number of stars he got from loot was based on his performance.
Looking at the screen displaying a square box with four stars drawn on it, Rhen took a deep breath and willed it to open.
- - -
You have obtained the following:
Twin-headed Viper Fang Dagger (3★ Weapon)
Neutral Ticket ×1
Greater Poison Resistance Elixir ×1
Mana Crystal ×1
Viper's Hide Strip ×2
- - -
Loot inventory 10 → 14
Neutral Ticket 2 → 3
- - -
The stylized dagger icon shimmered on the screen, its twin blades glowing with a faint green sheen.
"A dagger that inflicts poison, huh. That sounds fun to use." Rhen chuckled, "Honestly, everything sounds fun to use."
[Hmm, can I use neutral ticket for a pull now?]
Standing behind him like an assistant, Zena replied:
[You can. But if it's not urgent, I'd advise you to keep the tickets so you can do 10 pulls at once. Chances to get high ranked pulls are increased.]
'Is that so… I'll need 7 more of them for that.'
He smiled. "I think I'll have to return here to hunt."
Now that he's done with that, Rhen opened his palms and closed them tightly. He was reflecting on the final changes.
He could feel it in his body – he had obtained new resistances, strength and limit.
The only thing that didn't change was his core.
"That's my current limit…" Rhen sighed.
But Zena pulled in to save him.
"Something has been prepared for that as well. I just haven't had time to give it to you."
"Eh?"
Not giving Rhen time to ask for an explanation, Zena placed her hand on Rhen and let a small warm light enter Rhen.
[You have received a skill, Leech!]
- - -
Leech:
Draws energy from nearby sources—environment or weak opponents—smoothly and safely, restoring the user's own energy.
- - -
Reading the content, Rhen was once more shocked.
He had barely come to terms with his current power, and now Zena handed him more.
Still, this skill felt like taking a pill or herb that enhanced Core Cultivation.
People had techniques for energy absorption, and he felt like this skill could be compared to them, and high-level one at that.
The young man chuckled nervously and said to Zena, "At this rate, I really can't fail, huh?"
Zena wore a slight smile. "We will be fine."
Rhen lingered and sighed. "We will."
He then turned to the group of foreigners making eye contact with Jiro who was curiously looking at him.
He tried composing himself as he turned away and looked towards the exit.
"Alright," Rhen said aloud, standing up. "I will be leaving now."
It was time to return to Grayland.