In a room on the third floor of the Vigo estate mansion, Reyn sat at the table. Before him lay two soul stones.
The Thunder Lizard soul appeared to Reyn as a swirling cloud of pale blue mist, with tiny but fierce lightning flashes erupting in its depths; three elements floated in the haze, sometimes taking vague outlines of a massive beast. The Crystal Giant Lizard soul, by contrast, resembled a living clump of iridescent colors: seven hues continuously shifted, swirling and blending in a fanciful dance. It contained four elements, and an palpable chilling aura emanated from the stone—legacy of ancient draconid blood.
Reyn carefully compared the two demonic souls. No doubt, the Crystal Giant Lizard was stronger, with truly limitless future potential. Thunder Stomp was good, but the allure of Dragon Strength and Reynbow Beam proved greater. Reyn didn't hesitate long.
"Choice made."
He took the Crystal Giant Lizard soul stone, sat cross-legged, and pressed the artifact to his forehead. Activating his phone interface, he initiated the demonic soul fusion process.
In the next instant, the soul force in his mind whirled into a powerful suction stream. The Crystal Giant Lizard soul, as if bursting from its stony prison, left the artifact, intangibly passed through the flesh barrier on his forehead, and rushed straight to Reyn's soul core.
The World Tree immediately trembled and began growing upward rapidly. The Crystal Giant Lizard demonic soul appeared at its roots, turning into a stream of pure soul force nourishing the entire Tree. At the same time, the colorful, lizard-like demonic soul slowly ascended the trunk.
However, the single branch on the Tree, born from the gold-devouring ant soul, suddenly stirred, shaking violently. It seemed hostile to the newcomer, trying to hinder it from forming a new branch on the trunk.
Reyn realized—this was soul conflict. The worst that could happen to a superhuman during demonic soul fusion: when an existing soul and the new one clashed fiercely due to differences in nature. Last time, with the gold-devouring ant soul, it went smoothly since it was his first main soul, with no interference.
This time was different. If fusion wasn't completed in time, letting the two souls drain each other, the elements in the Crystal Giant Lizard soul could be lost—or fusion could fail entirely.
Reyn was mentally prepared. Fully immersed in meditation, he felt his own soul force respond to the intrusion with powerful vibrations. The World Tree emitted a soft golden glow that enveloped the quivering branch, quelling its rebellion. At that moment, the Soul Fusion Seed, born from the Golden Oak Fruit, took effect, its beneficial influence amplified by the World Tree's light bringing peace to Reyn's inner spiritual space.
Reyn possessed Perfect Soul Transformation; his soul force far surpassed his peers'. He easily withstood the internal jolt, and the Crystal Giant Lizard soul was unharmed. In just over ten seconds, the soul conflict was forcibly suppressed.
The Crystal Giant Lizard demonic soul rose along the trunk and soon reached the level of the existing branch. It halted on the opposite side of the trunk at the same height, and a new branch immediately began growing from it. This second branch emerged at eye-visible speed, quickly lengthening and extending outward. Four leaves unfurled on it, each bearing an element rune.
At the same time, the entire World Tree continued growing.
After a quarter hour, the Crystal Giant Lizard demonic soul fully merged with the World Tree. The glow gradually faded. Fusion complete.
Reyn opened his eyes and exhaled deeply. He approached the mirror and saw his soul's reflection: a vibrant, living World Tree. Its two branches swayed as if in a gentle breeze, seven leaves shimmering and iridescent. A smile of satisfaction lit his face.
"Ultra-high fusion degree! Near-perfect fusion; soul conflict resolved. Crystal Giant Lizard barely damaged, elements intact. Excellent!"
Reyn clenched his fist, sensing the changes within. The Crystal Giant Lizard soul force had fully integrated into him. This fusion far outstripped mere "recharge"—efficiency over ten times higher. Though just an entry-level draconid soul, his energy charge jumped thirty percent—equivalent to absorbing a fifth-rank superhuman soul!
Seeing the second battery circle filled to thirty-three percent, Reyn was more than pleased.
Moreover, he noticed a detail. Both the gold-devouring ant soul and Crystal Giant Lizard soul contained the "Strength" element. Each branch had a "Strength" leaf. But these two leaves counted as one element. And "Strength" was a body element that could stack upon fusion.
Previously, his "Strength" was second level, with progress at about fourteen percent. After stacking, it surged to fifty-six percent—over half! Though still second level, his physical might had grown significantly.
As a first-level mage, Reyn could lift around two thousand pounds sterling. Later, with soul force reaching second level, it rose by five hundred pounds sterling. Now, after the new boost, Reyn sensed—without testing—he'd surpassed three thousand pounds sterling!
"Three thousand pounds sterling... Wonder if I can lift more?" Reyn eyed the progress bar under the "Strength" icon. An up arrow appeared beside it. He gauged the energy cost and tapped.
Energy charge plummeted. As it drained, the progress bar advanced. From fifty-six percent, it crossed the mark in seconds...
All Reyn's muscles and bones tensed, as if invisible energy waves poured into his body, fortifying him from within with each second. Sensations mixed: slight bloating and ticklish itch blended with profound, indescribable growth of power and pleasure.
In just over ten seconds, the bar hit one hundred percent. It flashed; the small "2" changed to "3," then reset to zero.
On the World Tree, the two "Strength" leaves quivered faintly, emitting golden glow.
Reyn instantly felt the shift.
"Third-level Strength! And it evolved from common to rare!"
Reyn was overjoyed. He raised his hand, clenched his fist a few times, feeling inexhaustible power. He itched to punch a rock or something to vent the surplus energy.
Calming with effort, he noted upgrading "Strength" to third level cost about eighteen energy units. Fifteen percent remained in the second circle—less than expected.
"Time to test in the training hall."
Reyn grabbed his warhammer, descended, exited the mansion's side door, and entered a nearby standalone building. This single-story structure, about three hundred square meters, split into two: a large covered training hall and a smaller magic lab.
Reyn entered the training hall, once honed by Viola's father, the legendary demon hunter. The floor was paved with sturdy stone slabs, equipped with various machines and gear.
He didn't rush tests, warming up muscles and joints for minutes, acclimating to his enhanced body. Faint crackling came from within.
Finished, he approached the wall gear: a row of large iron blocks from light to heavy, each bigger than the last—like those in Zoltan's yard. The heaviest weighed ten thousand pounds sterling!
Reyn chose the three-thousand-pound sterling block. Gripping the handle, he spread his feet slightly, steadied his stance, tensed his body. The massive iron block lifted off the ground. Reyn walked a few steps easily—clearly, his strength now far exceeded three thousand pounds sterling. He replaced it and went to the four-thousand-pound sterling one.
Harder this time, but he lifted and walked.
After tests, Reyn gauged his current limit: around four thousand six hundred pounds sterling!
Reyn was stunned. One pound sterling in Ellunes roughly matched one jin from his home Earth. Exact match tricky, but error minimal. Four thousand six hundred pounds sterling—over two tons! In his old world, he'd lift a sedan car effortlessly, even jog with it...
"And that's not my limit."
Reyn focused mentally; soul force flowed through the World Tree, activating the "Dragon Strength" leaf.
Soft light flashed. A spectral dragon head appeared over Reyn, issuing a silent but viscerally majestic roar, then descended, merging with his body. A layer of illusory, shimmering scales covered his skin—from head and neck, spreading to chest, abdomen, limbs—enveloping him entirely, leaving no vulnerability. Finally, the scales fused seamlessly into his skin, becoming invisible.
Reyn inspected himself closely. Faint, ghostly glow streamed beneath his skin. Simultaneously, his strength surged again. Blood raced faster, spirit invigorated, vast energy churning inside, seeking release.
"So that's the feel of Dragon Strength..."
Reyn eyed his hands, exhaled—his breath now scorchingly hot.
He lifted the five-thousand-pound sterling block effortlessly.
Boom!
He tossed it, grabbed the six-thousand-pound sterling one. Also easy. But that was the limit. Reyn took three-thousand-pound sterling blocks in each hand and did routine exercises. Minutes later, he sweated lightly, skin reddening.
He hastily replaced them. Two-three minutes more, the overflowing power faded. The subsurface glow vanished.
Reyn checked the time: "First-circle Dragon Strength: cast time ~two seconds, duration eight minutes five seconds, energy cost four units."
He cast Dragon Strength again. Identical effect. Confirmed repeatable without side effects.
Roughly, first-circle Dragon Strength boosted his base strength by about fifteen hundred pounds sterling. Wonder what it'd do to someone else? Add flat fifteen hundred, or scale proportionally? No one around to test.
"Try later when possible."
Reyn shook his head, set Dragon Strength aside, and focused on the other spell—Reynbow Beam.
He concentrated and extended his left hand forward. Soul force quickly flowed through his consciousness, activating the element. A ball of rainbow light rapidly formed at his fingertips. A second later, the ball released a straight beam like a sharp sword, piercing the air with a light click. The beam flashed and faded, lasting less than half a second. The rainbow ball in Reyn's hand also dissipated.
He lowered his hand, curiously examining it. In fact, specific gestures weren't necessary to cast a spell. The extended hand was just a subconscious action. Gestures helped casters focus and slightly reduce casting time. Without chasing speed, one could cast even lying down, without any movements.
Reyn calmed down, his hands freely dropping along his body, his gaze fixed straight ahead. Soon, a rainbow light ball appeared before him. After a second of preparation, he released the beam.
"Without a guiding gesture, casting the spell slowed by about three tenths of a second, and controlling the beam's direction is difficult," Reyn noted with interest.
This was his first offensive spell. He used it several times in a row, studying it. Each Reynbow Ray consumed about one unit of energy. As expected, the attack range was short—less than five meters—and the duration about half a second. The beam's diameter was roughly three centimeters, with impressive penetration—it easily pierced a brick-thick stone slab. However, against a steel plate, the effect was weaker.
To test the true power of the Reynbow Ray, Reyn applied Dragon Strength to himself and fired at his own palm.
Swoosh!
Reynbow light flashed before his eyes. Reyn himself was inadvertently hit, momentarily blinded. At the same time, he felt pain in his hand.
After a few seconds, his vision recovered. Reyn raised his hand and saw blood oozing from his palm. It had a blurry wound, as if someone had struck it hard with an electric drill.
"And the penetration is no joke..." Reyn marveled.
He had Steel Body, making his entire body as hard as iron, and Dragon Strength further increased his magic resistance. Yet the Reynbow Ray still left a wound. It would probably pierce another person clean through.
"Short range, of course, but powerful. Very useful."
Reyn shook the blood off his hand. The wound slowly healed. In a few minutes, only a shallow scar remained, and by morning, even that would be gone.
"A second to cast is still slow. I'll need to practice often to reduce it to half a second. Also, I need to overcome reliance on guiding gestures to hit targets accurately. Only then can I catch enemies off guard in battle for maximum effect."
Reyn made a training plan, then tested the "Charge" element.
He took a step, slightly crouching into a running stance.
With a sharp whistle of air, he shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bowstring. His tall body cleaved the air, objects blurred past, wind howled in his ears. In an instant, he covered more than ten meters.
"Damn, that's fast!"
Charge demanded huge stamina expenditure. Each burst was a massive strain on the body. He couldn't perform charges without breaks, or his body wouldn't hold, and he'd collapse midway.
One had to admit, the "Charge" skill brought incomparable pleasure. The sensation of instantaneous, near-lightning movement was incredibly exhilarating, blood boiling in his veins from thrill and surging energy.
Reyn's figure darted through the training hall. Every few seconds, he charged, savoring the rush of speed while using his phone's gyroscope to control his body, trying to change direction and manage the start and end of the charge.