When Luo Shu opened the system's notification panel, a series of prompts immediately appeared.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations, Host, for successfully eliminating one Lesser Demon. Reward: 300 points.]
This was the first Lesser Demon Luo Shu had killed alongside Takina Inoue. The points were mediocre, at least by Luo Shu's standards.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations, Host, for successfully luring one Mimic Demon to its death. Reward: 2000 points.]
This demon had died by Ayano Kannagi's blade, with Luo Shu subtly manoeuvring it right into her path. 'Luring to its death' was an apt description.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations, Host, for successfully luring one Miasma Demon to its death. Reward: 3000 points.]
Upon seeing this notification, Luo Shu immediately recalled Mapa from the sealed grounds. So that body of his had been called a Miasma Demon.
It hadn't registered at the time, but now Luo Shu understood how Mapa had poisoned Ayano Kannagi - through miasma.
That said, Mapa alone had contributed five thousand points.
'Was he some kind of treasure-delivery boy?' Luo Shu mused internally as he scrolled to the next notification.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations, Host, for successfully capturing one High-Rank Demon (juvenile form). Your prestige in mystical circles has increased. Reward: 10,000 points. Monthly fixed income increased to 8,000 points.]
"Prestige can earn points, too? It seems the avenues for acquiring points are broader than I imagined."
After considering these notifications, Luo Shu made some mental calculations. He factored in the deductions from creating Utaha Kasumigaoka's fake account for covert communications, then glanced at his current balance.
[Total points: 48,973. Monthly automatic increase: 8,000 points on the 1st.]
Looking at these figures, Luo Shu frowned. He'd previously checked that advancing his Wind Element Manipulation to Wind Element Control required 52,000 points.
[Wind Element Control: Advanced form of Wind Element Manipulation. Elite Rank evaluation.]
[Advancement requirements: Main material: Heart of the Storm (50,000 points). Supplementary materials: 200ml water, 20ml Siren's Tear (2,000 points).]
"If an Elite Rank ability costs over fifty thousand points, then Hero and Demigod abilities must require even more?"
Luo Shu did some quick maths. Even if he didn't spend any current points and ignored future earnings, just relying on the 8,000-point monthly baseline, it would take nearly seven months to upgrade one ability.
And to raise his overall evaluation from Excellent to Elite Rank, Luo Shu needed three skills upgraded to the Elite standard.
Meaning, even with his current points, it would take at least one year and two months to reach Elite Rank.
"This growth rate is too slow..."
Admittedly, spending just one year—and a year of doing nothing at that—to advance to Elite Rank was, by Luo Shu's estimation, an exceptionally rapid pace in the mystical world.
After all, take Sharon for example. Though barely reaching the Hero realm with the aid of artefacts, as an Elite Rank, she was already considered a top-tier figure in the mystical world—a Seven-Star Demon Hunter. Those who surpassed her were limited to the leaders and high-ranking members of major secret organisations. This clearly indicated that the current standard of the mystical world wasn't particularly high.
Yet Luo Shu couldn't shake his unease.
Since his transmigration, barely four days had passed, and how many incidents had he already encountered? How many dangerous Abyss Artefacts had crossed his path?
There was the Lucky Wallet, equivalent to a Grade 3 Abyss Artefact; the Sealing Blade, also Grade 3, which sealed Kisara; and the Kusanagi Sword, a Grade 4 Abyss Artefact that functioned like a silence spell, muting others' abilities.
Additionally, there was Sharon herself, whose danger level matched that of a Grade 3 Abyss Artefact, despite barely entering the Hero realm.
"Hah, now that I think about it, even within the same Hero Rank, a Grade 3 Abyss Artefact poses less of a threat to me than Sharon at the same tier. And Sharon only barely reached Hero realm through equipment. This suggests that, at equivalent ranks, Abyss Artefacts are less dangerous to me than living beings."
This didn't surprise Luo Shu.
Abyss Artefacts' effectiveness often depended solely on output and user compatibility, whereas intelligent beings could more easily unleash greater power than artefacts. Moreover, their inherent intelligence made them far more dangerous.
Under these circumstances, it was predictable that artefacts were generally weaker than sentient lifeforms.
Even so, within just three or four days, Luo Shu had encountered two entities related to the Demigod Rank—one being the Lucky Wallet crafted from a demigod's scale, the other the outright Demigod Rank Kusanagi Sword.
This frequency of encounters left Luo Shu genuinely convinced that this world was fraught with unpredictable dangers.
"Besides, I've already promised Lacus to branch out and manage a department. If the department head can't even measure up to the officers of other secret organisations, then..."
Though the reasoning was somewhat peculiar, Luo Shu now felt intensely motivated to level up.
But here lay the problem: with points hard to come by, how could he rapidly boost his strength?
It seemed an unsolvable dilemma.
"Ultimately, I still lack understanding of this world's mystical knowledge... I have no idea which direction to develop in..."
With this thought, Luo Shu focused his mind on the Astronomy Club's inner sanctum—a space specially prepared for Sharon.
There, resting quietly in the small room, was the Sacred Relic Sharon had presented to him.
Narrowing his eyes, Luo Shu immediately used the system's power to appraise the relic's origins.
[Joan of Arc's Dagger (Hero Rank)]
[A personal weapon imbued with the convictions of a saint who stepped into the Demigod Rank. It possesses extreme efficacy against demonkind and is a rare treasure with no side effects, seemingly blessed by the saint. (Click for details.)]
Luo Shu's expression remained unchanged at this, but the "click for details" prompt piqued his curiosity.
With a thought, he opened it, and a series of contents appeared in the information panel.
A Sacred Relic infused with a saint's intense will is one of the main materials for Sharon, the Blessed, to advance as a Temple Guardian.
[Temple Guardian (Hero Rank)]
[Possessing formidable defensive capabilities, these fortress-like guardians are the sentinels who protect the celestial temples, the holy clergy closest to the Demigod realm.]
[Advancement Materials: A Holy Shroud, a Sacred Relic infused with a saint's intense will.]
[Supplementary Materials: A single tear from a maiden of pure soul (10,000 points per drop), 100ml of pure water, and a temple envisioned in one's heart.]
[Advancement Ritual: At the gates of the temple envisioned in one's heart, block the assault of a Hero for no less than five minutes, comprehending the true essence of power in the process. Note: The interception must last at least five minutes.]
"What the hell? Advancing to the Hero Rank not only requires materials but also completing a ritual?"
Luo Shu was utterly dumbfounded by this information:
"Do you think I haven't read 'Lord of the Mysteries' or something... But this isn't even the Warrior pathway. What kind of nonsense is this?"
Although he now knew Sharon's advancement direction, Luo Shu couldn't muster any joy at all.
'Your godly self here is only at Excellent Rank, not even Elite Rank yet. What use is it for me to know how you become a hero?'
And where on earth was he supposed to find the temple Sharon envisioned in her heart? Where would he find a hero to duel her for five minutes, all while helping her comprehend the true essence of power during the process?
If he had that kind of ability, wouldn't it be better to advance himself?
"Trash system, not even providing a guide. From now on, I declare I'm unilaterally blocking you!"
Luo Shu cursed under his breath.
Just as he was berating the system, he suddenly noticed some commotion within the Astronomy Club.