Special Dungeon: The Shaman's Partner III

## Special Dungeon: The Shaman’s Partner III Summary

[Entering Single Player Special Dungeon!]

[Difficulty: Fourth Dungeon]

[The Shaman’s Partner III: Your path was blocked by the unknown stone gate but you haven’t given up locating Nikorei and the others. You started to train yourself in harsher ways, giving your best efforts in an attempt to open the unknown stone gate. Though as the Sanctuary Trials are near, you had to take the ferry to the trial island first…]

[Main Mission 1: Clear the Holy Knight Trial in 1 week, 0/7]

[Main Mission 2: Open the unknown stone gate in 6 months, 0/180]

[Temporary language pack, Disappears upon exiting the dungeon.]

[Clothing, backpack, weapons, and other items remain unchanged, Temporarily altered appearance, Returns to normal upon exiting the dungeon.]

[Note: This a special dungeon. You can fail the Main Mission, but you will have to pay 400 Points as a penalty and your highest attributes will drop by one point. If your points are insufficient, the system will deduct from your equipment. If your equipment is insufficient, you will fail.] (Ch 450)

Kieran spawned inside a small room on a ship; he looked out of a window and saw they were in the middle of a harsh winter, the ship was crushing the layer of ice on top of the ocean as it sailed. He sat down on his hammock and started resting, practicing [Knight of Dawn Body Tempering Art] as he rested. That night, he was given a simple meal that he ate gratefully, though Kieran could hear other people in the ship complaining about the food, before they were thrown off the ship as they insulted the ship. Kieran was going to continue cultivating [Knight of Dawn Body Tempering Art] when someone knocked at his door, introducing themself as another passenger heading to Final Island, and asked if they could come in.

Kieran let the passenger enter his room, and Azinder, the passenger, started talking to Kieran about the person who just got thrown overboard. He said he saw the captain kill the person with a single slash of a sword before throwing them off the ship; Azinder then started talking about nothing in particular for a few minutes while Kieran said nothing. Azinder finally explained that he wanted to form an alliance with everyone who was taking the Sanctuary Trial, but Kieran quickly turned him down. As Azinder left, Kieran was impressed with how polite Azinder was during the whole interaction, even after being declined, but also figured that Azinder had some hidden agendas. Kieran started cultivating again.

[Through practicing, Master level Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art acquired a decent amount of experience, leveling cost decreased by 500 Points…] (Ch 451)

Kieran then heard screams, and the sound of a fight. He heard several bodies being thrown overboard as his door was broken open, and a knife-wielding man threw Azinder’s head into Kieran’s room. Kieran calmly watched the man, feeling no killing intent from him, and he realized that the trials had begun the second he stepped on the ship; Azinder’s head was made of clay, and he also suspected that no one was actually thrown overboard. The knife-wielding man was shocked that Kieran saw through everything so quickly, and unmasked himself, revealing himself to be the real Azinder. Azinder reintroduced himself as the elementary overseer of the trial, and congratulated Kieran for passing the first trial. Kieran asked for information about the future trials, but Azinder said not even he knew what they were. The next morning, the ship arrived at Final Island, and Kieran was shocked to see Schmidt on the shore, being guided deeper into the island. Kieran was angry, because he did not want Schmidt in danger, and couldn’t figure out why Schmidt would be brought onto the Island in the first place. Kieran left the ship, and Azinder told Kieran that he needed to find a wooden cabin before dark to pass the next trial.

[Sub mission discovered: Search!]

[Search: Search for Schmidt in the shortest amount of time possible, it is what you should do at the moment!]

[Note: Ratings will change according to time used.] (Ch 453)

Kieran immediately started following Schmidt’s tracks, until they abruptly ended without any further signs. Kieran had no clue what might have happened to Schmidt, but the sun was close to setting and he needed to reach the cabin before night to pass the trial. If it was any other random native, Kieran would have easily chosen to abandon them, but since it was Schmidt who Kieran saw as a good friend, he couldn’t do nothing. Kieran raced further into the Island, toward the cabin, causing the overseer who was watching Kieran through a crystal ball to be disappointed. Kieran shocked the overseer when he broke open the door to the cabin and pointed his sword at the overseer, demanding to know where Schmidt was. Nicil, the overseer, told Kieran that Schmidt was in the hall with the other trial takers, and told Kieran he passed the trial when Nicil felt the cold killing intent Kieran was directing at him. Nicil asked Kieran to stop pointing his sword at him, but Kieran only became more aggressive, digging the tip of the sword into Nicil’s neck as Kieran told him to make his approaching men stand down and to take him to Schmidt. Nicil broke the crystal ball, realizing he couldn’t reason with Kieran, which opened a staircase. Nicil led Kieran down the stairs, as [Arrogant Word] never left his neck.

In another room, a group of people involved with the Trials were watching Kieran with a crystal ball, an elder named Smulder was laughing, approving of Kieran’s direct methods, while everyone else disapproved of Kieran. Smulder praised Boller for recommending Kieran to take the trials as Simon, another elder, suggested they disqualify Kieran for threatening Nicil. Smulder attacked Simon, and threatened Maya and Ohara who seemed to support Simon, and stressed that he was in charge of this Trial, threatening to hurt anyone who would try to do anything to Kieran.

In the hall where all the trial takers were waiting, they watched as Nicil and Kieran entered the hall; there was an uproar when they saw [Arrogant Word] resting on Nicil’s shoulder, but Schmidt greeted Kieran nonetheless. When Kieran saw Schmidt, he put away [Arrogant Word] and the two walked to each other. Schmidt started talking about how everyone at the West Coast missed Kieran since he left after [The Shaman’s Partner II], and made sure to stress how Elli was waiting for Kieran’s return. They bantered for a while, before joining the other trial takers who were watching Kieran and Schmidt. Not liking the stares, Kieran gazed at all the trial takers, releasing some demonic energy that frightened them. Kieran wanted to display his power to the other trial takers in an effort to protect Schmidt, and when Kieran stopped his gaze, all the trial takers started avoiding looking at Kieran anymore.

Nicil then got everyone’s attention, opening up questions for the trial takers. Nicil revealed that there would be three trials, and at most three candidates could pass. He then passed around a scroll, explaining that there were three of these scrolls hidden on the Island, and that to advance to the last trial you would have to find a scroll. The moment Nicil started the trial, a few trial takers started fighting each other to take Nicil’s scroll from him. Nicil watched the trial takers fight each other for a few moments, before revealing his scroll was a decoy and would not count for the trial. Nicil recommended that everyone find shelter for the duration of the trial, since the hall and the cabin would be forbidden for the duration of the trial, and it was very cold outside. Kieran and Schmidt left the hall, as Kieran revealed that he did not expect the scroll to be a decoy, but did not enter the fight because he was waiting to fight the winner of the initial fight. Kieran planned to start looking for shelter as he saw Schmidt shivering, but Schmidt said he would pull himself together so they could find a scroll quickly; Kieran explained that speed was useless in this trial.

Kieran built a cabin out of the spruce trees on the island, and he and Schmidt heated up some food on a fire. Schmidt noticed how easily Kieran was able to wield [Arrogant Word], despite it being too heavy for Schmidt to pick up, and they talked about the trial. Kieran explained that so far the trials made the contestants decide between morals and goals, which made him think there would be some sort of plot twist at the end of this trial, since only three people can advance, yet cooperation is essential to find a scroll.

In the hall, Nicil was yelling at Smulder, saying that the new arrangements Smulder was finishing would kill many trial takers. Smulder simply ended the conversation, not bothering to say anything as Nicil called him a murderer. Nicil wondered if he was intending to kill Kieran with the arrangements, recalling Smulder had a grudge against Nikorei.

The next morning, a white-furred beast appeared on the Island, with two scrolls sacred around its neck. Orgeton, Fenix and Black Hound, the three trial takers that initiated the fight against Nicil for the scroll in the hall, were among the group of trial takers who were surrounding the beast. They all realized the two scrolls were for Kieran and Schmidt, as they were the only group of two that traveled together, so they did not fight the beast and risk weakening it, making it easier for Kieran to fight it. They simply watched the beast, waiting for a good opportunity to snatch the scrolls without fighting it. Black Hound sneaked up on the beast and skillfully grabbed the scrolls off of its neck, which caused the other trial takers to chase after him, hoping to steal the scrolls from him. The sudden activity alerted the beast, and it started fighting the trial takers; it released a frosty breath that froze everyone who was unable to escape in time. Orgeton and Fenix fled immediately, escaping the beast; Black Hound threw the scrolls back to the beast before retreating also. When the beast got the scrolls back, it started chasing the other trial takers; Orgeton and Fenix led the retreat, and they realized they were running in the direction of the cabin Kieran built. They all decided to dump the beast onto Kieran.

The beast by now had eaten many trial takers that couldn’t run fast enough, but it still decided to continue hunting them down. It reached Kieran’s cottage, but when it attacked the building, darkness shrouded the area. Purple lightning struck the beast, and although it was unharmed from the lightning, the curse contained within the lightning dulled its teeth and claws, and sapped it of its energy. Sloth Kieran was summoned nearby the beast, and he bewitched the beast, lulling it to sleep. As the beast fell asleep, it died and disintegrated, blowing away in the wind. The surviving trial takers could only watch as the darkness died down, and Kieran exited his cabin, approaching the scrolls. Despite fearing Kieran, greed got the better of the trial takers, and they charged at Kieran, hoping to steal the scrolls from him. Kieran used [Deadman’s Gaze], killing all of them that tried to attack Kieran. The remaining few who did not attack Kieran, including Orgeton, Fenix, and Black Hound, retreated without looking Kieran in the eye.

As Kieran went back inside his cabin, he realized that there was something about the Island that could touch people’s hearts, similar to how he could use the Creature of Desire’s part of the [Fusion Heart] to bewitch people. Kieran explained this theory to Schmidt, guessing that anyone who was affected by the power of the Island wouldn’t have passed the Trial, regardless if they got a scroll or not. Not having to worry about obtaining the scrolls anymore, Kieran started cultivating [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art] again.

In the hall, Boller was reporting to Smulder that Kiernan had easily dealt with the Snow Beast. Smulder was interested in Kieran’s strength, then gave Boller an order before disappearing. Boller was shocked at the order, and wished Kieran luck.

When the three day time period was almost over, and Kieran and Schmidt were close to completing the trial, Kieran stopped cultivating;

[Through practicing, Grand Master level Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art acquired a significant amount of experience, the leveling cost decreased by 79500…]

[Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art, Grand Master to Musou, cost 0 Points, 9 Golden Skill Points. Yes/No?] (Ch 461)

Kieran wondered if it would be possible for him to decrease the amount of Golden Skill Points he needed to upgrade the skill, but quickly realized he was being greedy. Kieran thought about the Church of Dawn from [The Failed Great Detective] where he learned [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art] from Guntherson, before eating breakfast with Schmidt. Kieran ate quickly, then gathered his equipment before looking outside, seeing an army of trial takers who were striving to snatch a scroll from Kieran or Schmidt at the last second. The trial takers that had been affected by the Island were devoured by their own greed and envy; they mindlessly charged at the cabin as Kieran slaughtered them with [Arrogant Word]. Orgeton and Fenix did not fight Kieran, but rather snuck around him hoping to get inside the cabin; as they got close, Kieran summoned the two headed hydra which ate Orgeton quickly. Fenix narrowly escaped the hydra, but was killed by Kieran; he dropped [The Slicer] and Orgeton dropped the [Perfected Raging Blood IV]. Kieran remembered the Blood Moon War between the East and West Coast, and how alchemically altered humans were produced using blood similar to the [Perfected Raging Blood IV]

After picking up the loot, Kieran and Schmidt went to the overseer’s cottage, where Black Hound, who had found the third scroll, was already waiting. Black Hound had phenomenal hiding skills, and Kieran would not have noticed he was there if not for his purposefully heavy breathing. Nicil arrived, and congratulated them on passing the trial; he then broke a crystal which transported them to their next trial. When the crystal broke, they were enveloped in a bright light, similar to what Kieran goes through every time he goes in and out of a dungeon; he initially closed his eyes, but then opened them back up to read runes within the blinding light.

After the teleportation, Kieran realized they were no longer on Final Island, and he also realized that Black Hound was not surprised by the light. He wondered if Black Hound had gotten insider information, but he also realized he did not care about any conflicts between different parties; Kieran mainly concerned himself with why Schmidt was brought to take the Trials. As he wondered why Boller would invite Schmidt, a man shrouded in golden light walked toward them. When the light shone on Kieran, he suddenly grunted in pain, and glared at the man who was shining holy light on him. Schmidt was shocked to see Kieran in pain, since Kieran usually hides any injuries from him and since the holy light felt pleasant to him. Nonetheless, Schmidt pulled his gun on the man who brought the light that was hurting Kieran, but Kieran grabbed Schmidt’s hand, stopping him from attacking.

The man, Smulder, continued approaching until he was right in front of Kieran. Kieran was shocked at how tall and imposing Smulder was, as Smulder explained that his trial was simply to walk down a path. Three doors shrouded in darkness appeared, and Black Hound quickly dashed into one, confirming Kieran’s suspicion that he had inside knowledge. Knowing that the two remaining doors were probably dangerous, and wanting to protect Schmidt, Kieran asked if they could give up. Smulder sharply told him he couldn’t, and Kieran continued to wonder what Schmidt’s purpose in the trial was. Kieran walked into the middle door, and Schmidt waited ten minutes before going into the last remaining door.

Kieran walked down a dark hallway, until a dim light allowed him to see the hallway fork. He realized the three doors connected to the same area, as a very harsh holy light shone down on Kieran. The light tortured Kieran, making him feel like his body was being stabbed and sliced open, and he fell to the ground, unable to do much other than endure the pain while screaming. After a while, the light dimmed enough for Kieran to move his arm; he went to grab a healing potion, but Black Hound appeared and stole the potion from him. Black Hound teased Kieran’s helplessness, and then kicked him. Black Hound reveled in Kieran’s pain, and as the light grew harsh again, Black Hound was about to kick Kieran again, when Kieran grabbed his ankle. Kieran used [Mardos Arm]’s [Soul Devour II], and started flinging Black Hound across the room, never letting go of his ankle. After Black Hound died, Kieran got the [Phantom Illusion Ring]. The holy light still shone on Kieran, but it was mild enough that Kieran could function, growing used to the stinging sensation after being continuously tortured by it. Smulder entered the hallway, and congratulated Kieran on passing the trial, though he did not look happy.

[Main Mission 1: Complete the Holy Knight Trials within 1 week. (Completed)] (Ch 466)

Kieran confronted Smulder, having pieced together that Smulder had purposefully made it look like he held a grudge against Nikorei, to make his enemies and a mole within the Sanctuary think the purpose of the Trials was to kill Kieran. He had Schmidt take part in the trials too to further convince the mole that Smulder was out to get Kieran, when in reality the purpose of this Trial was to eliminate the mole. Smulder was indifferent that Kieran figured all that out, but just couldn’t believe that Kieran had remained sane after transplanting the heart of the Devil into his own body. Smulder left, ordering Kieran to remain here, just before Schmidt arrived.

Schmidt was alarmed to see Kieran injured, but was happy to see him alive. Kieran explained to Schmidt that the Trial was just a trap for Sanctuary's enemies, with Kieran and Schmidt acting as the bait; Kieran suggested they leave quickly, but as they reached the exit, they found it sealed off. Kieran tried piercing through the stone seal with [Arrogant Word], but as the tip of the sword pierced the stone, a very harsh light poured from the hole. Kieran quickly retreated, realizing that the light was strong enough to lethally wound him if he let it touch him directly. Kieran noticed how tightly sealed the hallway was, and realized Smulder must be planning to imprison Kieran here, with the intention of having Nikorei, who he had a grudge against,  personally submit to him in order to rescue Kieran. Kieran poked the seal with [Arrogant Word] again, releasing more holy light, before telling Schmidt that he believed there was an exit; the two of them started walking down the hallway to the other side.

In the hall where the three doors were, the Elder Simon was apologizing to Nicil for deceiving him while he led an army. There was a fleet of battleships in the ocean sailing toward Sanctuary Island and the Commander, Barry, was thrilled to have found the Island as he ordered the fleet to start firing cannons at it.

In the hallway, Kieran and Schmidt reached a wooden door, though Schmidt was hesitant. Kieran opened the door while keeping his body hidden, allowing Schmidt to look through it before closing it again. While it was open, Kieran could see the holy light, Sanctuary Force, shining through, though it did not land on his body. Schmidt said that through the door was a room where a diamond was emitting Sanctuary Force so bright that Schmidt himself couldn’t even look at it directly; he again tried convincing Kieran to change the plan, knowing that the harshness of the light might actually kill Kieran. Kieran stubbornly insisted on this plan, and continued asking Schmidt about the room, though Schmidt couldn't see much past the brightness. Kieran retreated far enough away from the door that the light wouldn’t reach him, then Schmidt opened the door allowing Kieran to see inside of it too. Kieran saw the diamond, but not much else since he didn’t have a good view; he pulled out a gun and shot at the diamond.

Before the bullet hit, a sword blocked the bullet, and a tall armoured figure walked out of the room. As the figure charged toward Kieran, Kieran shot another bullet at the diamond, and another armoured figure blocked the second bullet. Kieran used [Boots of Modii] to jump over the two armoured figures that were charging at him, then shot the diamond again; the bullets finally hit, but the diamond was unscathed. After being shot, the diamond merged with the pedestal it sat on, then sunk into the ground, only showing the very top of the diamond. Kieran then fought the armoured figures, breaking their weapons and armour, revealing electricity and gears inside of their armour. Kieran recognized them as Iron Puppets. As he fought the puppets, the walls of the hallway emitted Sanctuary Force that started out dim but was slowly getting more intense. After defeating the first puppet, Kieran realized the walls were quickly going to reach an intensity that would be fatal for him. As Kieran went to finish off the second puppet, all the Sanctuary Force suddenly dimmed, and went out.

Kieran celebrated the removal of the holy light, but then the [Fusion Heart] became active, angry that it had been sealed from the light. The Creature of Desire summoned itself, and devoured the Iron Puppets, before devouring the residual Sanctuary Force within the walls. Kieran then saw an illusion of being surrounded by people, who Kieran then killed with a wave of his arm that was covered with magma; he spread his fiery wings and flew, covering the lava covered land in darkness. He saw a figure shrouded in white light, and wanted to reach out to them, but the illusion forced him to keep his hand still and watch as the white figure disappeared, which filled him with sorrow and anger; he then roared, venting all of the mental pain he was in.

The battleships led by Barry were firing cannons nonstop at Sanctuary Island, and Barry was looking forward to killing Smulder. Then everyone on the battleships heard Devil Kieran’s roar, and it filled them with such fear that they froze, unable to continue firing the cannons. Barry commanded his alchemists to attack the Island, and the alchemists jumped off the boat, carrying three boxes that ranged from the size of a car to a house. Smulder blocked the path of the alchemists, and was trying to figure out how Kieran could have broken through his Sanctuary Force prison.

Kieran kept reminding himself of who he was, a human playing a video game, in an effort to dispel the illusion. No matter how much he told himself that he was not really the devil though, he could not break it. Kieran spent years within the illusion, almost forgetting to remind himself of who he was, watching as the devil fought countless, unending battles. He grew familiar with the devil’s fighting style, and grew used to the life of the devil, until he saw the white figure again. This time he did grab it, and felt a very intense pain that caused him to suddenly remember all of his human memories. He suddenly couldn’t move, but used his claws to rip open his own devil body, allowing his human body to spill out, breaking the illusion. He opened his eyes and saw Schmidt sitting next to him, and wanted to let Schmidt know that he was in a horrible condition, but he couldn’t speak. Kieran then realized he was holding the diamond, dull and covered in blood, and he also looked at the game system;

[Foreign matter influence, the balance of Fusion Heart was broken]

[Creature of Desire devours the foreign matter, triggering Fusion Heart’s Imperfect Evolution]

[Authenticating Constitution, Spirit…]

[Authentication passed, Imperfect Evolution starts…]

[Devil Bloodline running rampant!]

[Imperfect Evolution interrupted!]

[Altering to Imperfect Special Evolution…]

[Reauthenticating Constitution, Spirit…]

[Reauthenticating failed, Constitution, Spirit hasn’t reach required rank…]

[Inspecting Fusion Heart, anomaly occurred in Imperfect Special Evolution, Extra Special Evolution begins…]

[Repulsion!]

[Repulsion!]

[Repulsion!]

[Puppet of flesh and blood conversion begins…]

[Foreign matter/energy detected, conversion halted!]

[Extra Special Evolution restarts…]

[Authenticated!]

[Extra Special Evolution complete!]

[Fusion Heart leveled up!] (Ch 470)

Kieran wondered why the [Sanctuary Star] caused a Special Evolution, and was curious about [Saint Thorns], but quickly thanked Schmidt when he realized Schmidt had placed the diamond in his hand, and it was the diamond that had prevented Kieran from becoming a puppet of the Devil. Schmidt explained that he tried prying the diamond out of the ground, but nothing worked until he punched the diamond in anger; the diamond then flew to Kieran who Schmidt said was surrounded by dark red energy. Kieran was curious about the [Sanctuary Star], but he knew he and Schmidt had to leave the hallway. As they ran out of the exit, they saw the fleet of battleships firing at the Island’s barrier and Kieran asked Schmidt to go back into the hallway where it was safe;

[Triggered special event!]

[Player will be placed in an extra faction!]

[You do not belong to the general, or Smulder’s faction. The actions you take against the general, Smulder’s faction will be the standard of your dungeon rating in the end!]

[Note: Actions include but doesn’t limited to destroying, the bigger your actions affect, the higher your rating will be!]

[Do you want to join the extra faction? Yes/No.] (Ch 470)

Nicil was arguing with Ohara, a Sanctuary Archdeacon, asking why she had betrayed Sanctuary. Ohara explained that she wanted to destroy Nikorei for an incident forty years ago in which the Holy Knight Hugh was sacrificed during a collaboration between Sanctuary and Nikorei. She did not consider Sanctuary under Smulder’s rule the true Sanctuary, and wanted to destroy it before taking revenge on Nikorei. Ohara then attacked Nicil, who knew he could never survive a hit from her, before Kieran shielded Nicil from the attack. Kieran threw Nicil out of the room to protect him from the upcoming battle; Kieran briefly fought against Ohara who was in a frenzied rage, until she regained some of her senses. She released some Sanctuary Force, but Ohara and Nicil were amazed when Kieran used his [Saint Thorn] force that the [Fusion Heart] just gained. The two Deacons recognized the light surrounding Kieran as the skill that the previous Holy Knight Hugh was most known for, and they couldn't figure out how Kieran had learned it. Both Ohara and Nicil came to the conclusion that Nikorei had crafted a replica of Hugh’s skill, and taught it to Kieran, which made Ohara slip into a rage fueled frenzy again. As Ohara charged at Kieran, more halos of light circled around Kieran until Kieran’s [Saint Thorn] light overpowered Ohara’s Sanctuary Force. Nicil watched as Kieran allowed Ohara to attack him, as [Saint Thorn] converted the damage from her punches into health, and he realized it truly was High’s skill.

Kieran was about to deal a finishing blow to Ohara, but suddenly realized something was wrong with his heart. He felt empathy for Ohara when he thought about killing her, and Kieran realized that this was a result of the Extra Special Evolution the [Fusion Heart] went through when he absorbed the [Sanctuary Star]. Kieran remembered the diamond “contains the life energy of the Holy Knight of the previous generation”, and he felt repulsed at the thought of becoming a true Holy Knight. Kieran tried to ignore the empathy he felt, but when he tried killing Ohara again, he suddenly couldn’t move his body. Kieran remembered how he had to come to terms and compromise with the emotions correlated with the Devil and the Creature of Desire. Kieran offered to communicate with the [Saint Thorn] part of [Fusion Heart], and a mirage of a compassionate man in full armour with snow white skin appeared; Kieran told the man he would spare Ohara in exchange for the man not preventing Kieran from killing anyone else, and the man agreed. Kieran grabbed Ohara, then asked Nicil to gather the traitors who sided with her.

Smulder was on the ocean, killing the last of Barry’s alchemists; when he was done, Smolder punched the air, releasing a wave of Sanctuary Force that destroyed a whole battleship. As he prepared to punch at another ship, Devil Kieran released a wave of fire that melted several battleships. Kieran’s Devil form brought chaos to the surviving battleships, as they were common soldiers and were not prepared to face the devil. Barry recognized the devil as Kieran, and opened up the boxes that his alchemists were previously carrying. The boxes opened up to reveal chimera-like monsters that started eating the sailors and soldiers; Barry did not mind the deaths of his men, and commanded the monsters to kill Smulder and Kieran.

Smulder saw the monsters, but put all of his attention on Kieran; he recalled books in Sanctuary explain that hybrids between humans and magic species could trigger a bloodline evolution, though it was extremely rare and even more difficult to survive. Though, if one were to survive the evolution, their bloodline would grow denser, stronger, and might even result in gaining the power of their ancestor. Smulder knew Kieran had a high density of the devils bloodline in him since he was so sensitive to Sanctuary Force, and he could also sense that Kieran had completed the bloodline evolution; Smulder feared the power that Kieran might wield now, but started fighting the chimera monsters that had began attacking him.

Kieran and Smulder each killed a monster at the same time, and then glared at each other. As if understanding each other, the two of them then turned to look at the fleet of battleships at the same time; the box the size of a house that the alchemists were carrying had been opened, and an alchemically modified giant cyclops revealed itself. Kieran and Smulder charged toward the cyclops at the same time, and the cyclops started attacking. It fired lasers from its eye, and threw water balls, and whipped up whirlwinds, though all of its attacks seemed to be targeted at Smulder. Kieran flew toward the cyclops, firing [Flame Blast II] at it, and then kicked the cyclops’ head while it was busy repelling the fire. Kieran had learned how to fight in the devil form from the illusion he suffered while turning into the devil’s puppet, and capitalized on the knowledge while fighting the cyclops.

Smulder freed himself from the cyclops’ previous attacks, and used Sanctuary Force, which activated a trap that teleported him onto the battleship. Kieran kicked it’s elbows to prevent it from attacking Smulder, then Kieran flew up and summoned a giant beheader sword made of the same fire that shrouded his devil body. Kieran used [Devil Libra] to convert some of his intuition attribute into agility, and used his newfound speed to dodge the cyclops’ final attack and plunge the giant sword into the cyclops, killing it. Smulder freed himself from the latest trap, and although Kieran knew Smulder would be much stronger than Ohara, he had a sudden burst of confidence that he could defeat Smulder.

Smulder started charging Sanctuary Force in his hand, preparing to deal a single lethal punch, when he saw Kieran use [Blaspheme Whisper] and resurrect the cyclops. This intimidated Smulder, as he had heard that [Blaspheme Whisper] was a skill that ordinary devils could not learn, but he still continued charging his punch. The cyclops released some of its energy that was specifically made to suppress Smulder, and Kieran prepared to swing his giant fiery beheader sword down when Smulder caused a giant explosion of Sanctuary Force that required Kieran to retreat. The explosion caused a tsunami that finally broke Sanctuary’s barrier, and Smulder appeared, wearing an armour made of Sanctuary Force, and used his charged punch on the tsunami, trying to protect Sanctuary from it’s force. Smulder fell unconscious from overexerting his power, though his punch did not completely stop the tsunami. The Sanctuary members thought they were going to die from the tsunami when Smulder fell unconscious, but Kieran used [Fire Blast II] on the wave, completely evaporating it.

Kieran stopped the tsunami simply to save Schmidt who was still on the Island, and when Kieran landed onto the ground, he still approached Smulder with his beheader sword. As he walked toward Smuder, Kieran noticed the Sanctuary members wholeheartedly saluting him, thankful for being saved from the tsunami even though they were shocked at being saved by the devil. Kieran raised his sword, but as he swung it down he felt the emotions within [Saint Thorn]’s part of the [Fusion Heart]; Kieran stopped the swing, and tried to feel the emotions to better understand [Saint Thorns].

[Saint Thorn’s experience increased slightly…]

[Saint Thorn: If you choose not to activate Transform Devil II or Desire Summon II, you will gain 26% resistance against holy energy attack. When you receive damage (regardless of holy damage), of Average, Strong and Powerful level, you can activate a “Halo of Thorns” with different levels, to reflect the damage you receive by 6%, 11%, 26% respectively. You will also be healed with Light, Medium, Heavily wounded state respectively. When you choose to activate Transform Devil II or Desire Summon II, Saint Thorn effect will be temporarily halted.]

[Saint Thorn’s experience increased slightly…]

[Saint Thorn’s experience increased slightly…] (Ch 478)

Kieran looked back at the Sanctuary members who were expressing their gratitude, and he let the beheader sword dissipate without killing Smulder; he reasoned that allowing [Saint Thorns] to level up would be more valuable than killing Smulder. As Kieran let the intent to kill Smulder leave his heart, he felt changes within [Fusion Heart], and transformed back into his human form to help [Saint Thorns] level up; when he was in his human form, Kieran was shrouded in the white light of Saint Thorn Force, and the same halos of light from before appeared again. The Sanctuary members recognized it as the previous Holy Knight, Hugh’s, skill.

Kieran and Schmidt were sitting in a room together when Nicil entered; Kieran was examining the [Eye of the Wicked Waters] he got from the cyclops, and yearned to chase after Captain Barry to get more good loot like it. Nicil revealed that the Sanctuary members thought that Kieran was Hugh’s reincarnation, though Kieran thought they were idiotic to think that since he was a descendant of the Devil.

[Sub mission discovered: The name of reincarnation]

[The name of reincarnation: A certain trait that you displayed as caused some misunderstanding, you need to successfully dissolve his misunderstanding in a smarter way!] (Ch 479)

Kieran wanted to leave Sanctuary Island to return to Final Island, where cultivating [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art] was more efficient that anywhere else, as he wanted to gain strength quickly in order to open up the Stone Gate, but the misunderstanding was getting in his way. Nicil said Kieran had to stay within Sanctuary’s premises until either Smulder woke up, or Simon and Maya returned from their trip to prevent more assaults on Sanctuary Island. Kieran then asked if Final Island was considered Sanctuary premises, and if he could wait there; Nici found that funny, as he said Hugh also preferred to live and train on Final Island. Nicil was confident that Kieran was not truly Hugh’s reincarnation, but he said that if Kieran left for Final Island, it would solidify everyone else’s belief that he was Hugh’s reincarnation.

Nicil, Kieran, and Schmidt were in the main hall of Sanctuary Island, where Kieran and Schmidt were waiting for Nicil to set up a long range teleportation; as they waited, Sanctuary members were eagerly watching Kieran, which annoyed him. Nicil finished, and they teleported to Final Island, where Kieran and Schmidt went back to the small cabin that Kieran had made during the Trial. They made plans to go into the forest for more firewood and to hunt some meat, and they bantered about Sanctuary; Schmidt revealed they had been trying to recruit him as an apostle, and he also found it absurd that they believed the devil was the reincarnation of their previous Holy Knight.

After a few days, Kieran was unsuccessful in cultivating [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art]; he believed he had hit a bottleneck, and came up with some theories on how to break though. He left the cabin, and immediately felt like the conditions were better for cultivating when he was unprotected from the relentless blizzard. Kieran started wandering, trying to find where the blizzard was at its strongest, and he noticed a mountain peak. Kieran walked toward the mountain, each step bringing himself further into the worsening blizzard, until even his  [Secondary Elemental Damage Resist] could not protect him from the cold and the razor sharp winds. He kept walking, step by step, as his body kept freezing over, until he was freezing quicker than his hands could break the ice covering his body. Kieran allowed himself to freeze solid, as the blizzard continued to rage around him. After a few minutes, Kieran activated both [Saint Thorns II] and [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art], breaking the ice and warming his body.

[Through harsh practicing, Grand Master level Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art acquired a substantial amount of experience, leveling cost decreased by 1 Golden Skill Point…] (Ch 481)

Kieran repeated the process every day, while Schmidt stayed in the cabin, enjoying this vacation. After a few days, Nicil entered the cabin; he had been visiting regularly, giving them rations and other supplies. Schmidt and Nicil talked, as Nicil explained what it was like to be an apostle, and expressed disbelief at Kieran’s training method of freezing himself repeatedly. Nicil then offered to recruit Schmidt as an apostle, explaining that Sanctuary could at the very least teach Schmidt enough that he’d be better able to protect himself, though Schmidt was able to infer that Nicil wanted Schmidt to tether Kieran to Sanctuary. Simon and Maya’s had left to fight Sanctuary's enemies in the West Coast, and Smulder had already woken up but immediately left to assist Simon; Nicil wanted Kieran to further reinforce Simon, Maya, and Schmulder. Schmidt was about to decline Nicil’s recruitment attempt, when Kieran returned to the cabin and said he thought it was a great idea for Sanctuary to teach Schmidt some self defense skills. Nicil grew angry at Kieran, never expecting him to agree to the recruitment, and he thought Kieran was trying to take advantage of the situation to infiltrate Sanctuary's upper levels. Nicil then realized it would be very good for Sanctuary if Kieran did establish relations with them, and calmed down; Kieran explained to Schmidt that he just genuinely thought it would be for the best if Schmidt could protect himself.

[Triggered special event: Full scale war!]

[Based on player’s previous special event’s influence, the player is automatically placed in the extra faction!]

[The West Coast government and Sanctuary’s war isn’t over yet. After the assault last time, a full-scale war is inevitable. While being involved in the matter, you’ve become the target of hostility from the West Coast government and the hospitality of the Sanctuary because of your previous actions. In the upcoming war, your actions towards both sides and its effects will be your final rating at the end of the dungeon!]

[Note: Actions include but aren’t limited to destroying. The bigger your actions influence, the higher your rating will be!] (Ch 483)

Schmidt hesitantly agreed to the recruitment, still not liking the idea of Sanctuary taking advantage of the recruitment to get closer to Kieran, and Nicil left to make preparations after Kieran threatened him. Kieran and Schmidt then ate, joking with each other as usual. Kieran went back to the eye of the blizzard, much closer to the peak of the mountain than he was the first time he tried this training method, and he felt like he was very close to removing the last Golden Skill Point needed to upgrade [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art]. After a while, he successfully upgraded the skill; as Sanctuary members watched from a crystal ball, they saw Kieran become shrouded in a white light that they recognized as Sanctuary Force, and they became completely convinced that Kieran was Hugh’s reincarnation.

Kieran, Schmidt, Nicil, and another deacon were walking up a grand staircase toward the foyer hall on Sanctuary Island; it was sunrise, and the staircase was lined with knights wearing shining white armour. The knights were watching Kieran with reverence, and he and Schmidt were glad when they reached the top of the stairs. They entered the hall, which was a very large room filled with chairs; Nicil and the other deacon led Kieran to a circle made of eleven seats, and gestured for Kieran to choose a seat first; figuring it was a test, he promptly chose a seat outside of the eleven seats. Nicil facepalmed, and the other deacon smiled at Kieran and announced Hugh’s return. Kieran realized quickly that it had been a trap, and he was purposely led to the eleven seats to make him think Hugh’s seat was one one the eleven, while Hugh’s seat coincidentally was the one Kieran sat down in. Kieran grew frustrated, arguing with the other deacon, before he saw for himself Hugh’s name carved into the chair.

Kieran, still trying to argue, started displaying the Dawn Force from [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art], he let the white light of Dawn Force shine on his hand, but the deacon just ordered Nicil to record that Kieran had created a deviation of Sanctuary Force and named it Dawn Force. Kieran then threatened the deacon, releasing killing intent, and the deacon claimed neither he, nor any other Sanctuary member, was afraid of death if it meant assisting Hugh. The deacon introduced himself as Phandle, and Nicil escorted Schmidt to where he would start being taught Sanctuary techniques.

After Schmidt and Nicil left, Kieran thought Phandle might start acting differently, but he kept talking to Kieran as if he was talking to Hugh, and he spent hours just talking about Hugh’s past achievements. When he was done, Phandle then asked Kieran if he remembered what happened the last time the foyer hall was opened, though he was disappointed that Kieran had no memories of Hugh’s life. He finally started talking about Ohara, saying she needed help.

[Discovered sub mission: Heart]

[Heart: Ohara, one of the Archdeacons of the Sanctuary, had shut herself away because of the past. You have to help her…] (Ch 486)

Kieran remembered when he had fight Ohara, she had betrayed Sanctuary because of matters related to Hugh’s death; if Hugh was no longer dead, then she would have no reason to betray Sanctuary, allowing them to keep an archdeacon. Phandle then led Kieran out of the foyer, to an incredibly tall tower. As they climbed up, Kieran could sense guards, though they had an unusual hiding technique, until they arrived at the last stretch of stairs. Phandle told Kieran Ohara was past the stairs, and he did not accompany Kieran up them; Kieran knocked on Ohara’s door, and was shocked when she actually responded. Kieran entered the room, to see Ohara calmly reading, a very different sight from when she was frenzied during the battle. Kieran explained the situation with Simon, Maya, and Smulder, realizing that he couldn’t deceive an archdeacon with lies; she did not care about that, and suggested Kieran leave after implying she believed he was Hugh. Kieran then told her outright that he is not Hugh’s reincarnation, then showed her his Dawn Force that looked very similar to Sanctuary Force. She asked if Phandle was tricking her, and Kieran started walking toward her, with each step he released the Devil’s aura, the Creature of Desire’s chaotic aura, and then the sin’s aura.

Kieran went to leave Ohara’s room, but Ohara remembered a conversation she had with Hugh a long time ago, and came to the conclusion that Kieran truly was Hugh’s reincarnation. She ran to Kieran and grabbed his arm, stopping him from leaving, and refused to let go when Kieran demanded her to. Kieran stressed again that he was not Hugh, but she interpreted that as him not regaining Hugh’s memories, and promised him that she would help him get Hugh’s memories back. Phandle, who was watching, ordered one of his men to reveal that Kieran regained Hugh’s memories after meeting Ohara.

[Sub Mission: Heart (Completed)]! (Ch 488)

Kieran, Ohara, Nicil, and Schmidt were on the docs of Final Island. Nicil was noticing the way Ohara was looking at Kieran, and wondered if she was in love with him, while Schmidt was asking Kiera if he was sure he really wasn’t Hugh’s reincarnation. Kieran and Ohara then boarded the ship that Azinder captained, and set sail. As they sailed farther from Final Island, Kieran saw the giant blizzard that he trained in; he hadn’t been able to reach the eye of the blizzard with his current strength, but fully intended on reaching it in the future. Ohara approached Kieran and expressed her happiness that she was able to look at Final Island with Hugh again, then revealed that Hugh had believed that Final Island contained the secret to break through the shackles of death.

The two of them went into a room where a map of the entire West Coast, where Ohara started labeling the map, showing which cities were allies, enemies, or neutral. Ohara explained that they were going to target Ciaran City, where Simon and Maya had attacked Captain Barry’s headquarters; even after Smulder left to assist them, the battle ended in a stalemate. Ohara also mentioned that Sanctuary housed a “secret” that could change the world, which was hidden in the very tall tower, but only Phandle knew where it was.

Kieran spent the duration of the trip practicing [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art], remembering how Guntherson from [The Failed Great Detective] was able to use Dawn Force. He then switched to [Charles’ Fire], still practicing on keeping it completely under his control.

[Through practice, Uncontrollable Lineage Fire II ascended into Controllable Lineage Fire II] (Ch 491)

Kieran then started updating the tattoo Charles had drawn on his chest, arm, and hand to upgrade the skill. Just as he tried out the upgraded [Charles’ Fire], the ship was attacked. Kieran went up to the main deck, seeing a small fleet shooting cannons at their ship, The Coral, and also releasing water mines into the ocean, sealing the area. Azinder commanded his crew to retreat and plot a different course to Ciaran City. Kieran said he would clear the path for them, and jumped off The Coral and used [Reckless Rush] to run across the surface of the ocean. As he ran, the force of his speed caused the water mines to crash into each other, and they all exploded; Azinder and the crew admired and feared Kieran’s display of strength. Kieran then used [Charles’ Fire], summoning giant fireballs that he sunk the three battleships with, then stole a lifeboat and returned to The Coral. As he rode on the lifeboat, the fire and the sunset shone one his [Crow’s Black Feather] mantle, making it shine red; Azinder, Ohara, and The Coral’s crew saw that, and the crew started reciting Nikorei’s prophecy;

“Assistant o’ assistant, in the form of a raven, ominous befallen. Named Bird of Death, a body of chaos, a heart of light, he will reign the land with a kingsly might.” (Ch 493)

They figured the “body of chaos” meant his devil bloodline, and the “heart of light” meant that he was Hugh’s reincarnation. They stared at Kieran with reverence when he boarded The Coral, which greatly annoyed Kieran; he released some of the Devil’s aura, making the entire ship smell of sulphur. The energy brought Azinder back to his senses, and remembered that the “Bird of Death” Kieran was not someone who you would want to anger; he quickly ordered his men to continue sailing as Kieran went back to his cabin. Ohara followed Kieran into his cabin, and heaped praise onto him, saying he was just like Hugh. After a while, she told Kieran that the reason why Azinder and the crew were looking at him so strangely was because of Nikorei’s prophecy, reminding Kieran of the prophecy’s existence; she theorized that Nikorei had known from the very beginning that Kieran was Hugh’s reincarnation, which made Kieran wonder if Nikorei knew that he would be accused of being Hugh.

Azinder then entered Kieran’s cabin with a cart full of food, and placed it all on a table; after seeing Ohara still in Kieran’s cabin, he then pulled out a candlestick, placing it on the table and lighting it. As he left the cabin, he turned the lights off and closed the door behind him. Kieran and Ohara then shared a very embarrassing candlelit dinner, where neither of them spoke. When he was no longer able to stand the embarrassment, Kieran left the cabin. He leaned against the railing on the deck, waiting for Ohara to leave his cabin before returning, when Azinder appeared before him. Kieran realized Azinder was to blame for the dinner, and threw him overboard. After the crew finished helping Azinder back onto his ship, Azinder confronted Kieran before quickly giving up, realizing why Kieran had thrown him overboard. Kieran then asked about the small fleet that attacked them, wondering how they were able to find The Coral so reliably. Azinder got angry, declaring there was no traitor among his crew, and Kieran went back to his cabin since he saw Ohara leave. Kieran spent the rest of the trip cultivating, and they reached the West Coast without any more trouble.

When they docked at Holgest Port, Elli, Simones, and Charles were waiting for Kieran. Elli quickly noticed Ohara who walked at Kieran’s side. Elli and Ohara started arguing about Kieran while Kieran greeted Simones and Charles, showing Charles the upgraded tattoo on his hand. Elli and Ohara were showing signs that they were about to actually start fighting each other, and Kieran walked away; Simones and Charles were shocked that he didn’t intervene, but were impressed with his decision when Elli and Ohara stopped fighting to follow Kieran. The group went to an inn, where Elli, Simones, and Charles had been waiting for a few days for The Coral to arrive.

Elli started explaining that Ciaran City had been shrouded in negative energy, and was overrun with alchemically altered people, Alchemy Warriors, and the citizens were all killed. Kieran recognized the day Ciaran was targeted was the same day The Coral was attacked by the small fleet. Elli told Kieran that the negative energy within Ciaran City was very powerful, and no one who went inside it could be expected to survive; Elli and Ohara argued again, as Tally Landsky entered the room. She handed Kieran a package from the Landsky family, though Kieran did not open it; he looked at Tally with disgust, she explained that the Landsky family was being targeted and under surveillance, and she was only just able to escape. Kieran opened the package, finding many papers handwritten by Rosland Landsky, explaining what had recently been happening in the West Coast; Rosland concluded that someone was trying to recreate the Blood Moon in the West Coast.

Rosland had meticulously set up a plan to prevent this, which Kieran, Charles, and Simones agreed was very well thought out. Kieran asked Simones and Charles to start putting the plan into action in West Coast City, while Kieran investigated Ciaran City. Elli demanded to accompany Kieran, though Kieran firmly turned her down; Elli then gave Kieran the [Whisper of the Dead] scroll.

Kieran and Ohara were in a car being driven by Azinder; Kieran was sleeping in the backseat. When he woke up, Azinder told him that they were almost at Ciaran City, and Ohara was worried about how often Kieran was sleeping since they started the drive. Kieran confirmed that they would be meeting up with Smulder, and he noticed a veil of darkness in the distance. As they drove closer to Ciaran City, Kieran could feel malicious gazes, so he retaliated with releasing the Devil’s aura, which formed a giant goat-like devil’s head mirage in the sky that glared back at them. The people that met the gaze of the devil mirage were struck with a [Fear] debuff, then their bodies burst into flames, killing them. Everyone who did not meet the devil's gaze just watched as they died from the flames, and tried to guess who summoned the mirage.

The car stopped, and Kieran got out, revealing himself to all the people who survived the devil’s mirage; Felly, the East Coast mystic who Kieran allowed to survive after defeating the East Coast invaders, greeted Kieran. Kieran did not respond because he was busy relishing the feeling of the negative energy field, which was a very good environment for him from [Body of Evil];

[Arrived at high-density negative energy field, related skills effect increased, player gains +1 buff to all stats and skills…] (Ch 499)

Kieran was excited to reach Ciaran City where the negative energy was denser, since he got an obvious buff while he was still at the outskirts of the negative energy field. Ohara and Azinder got out of the car too, and the East Coast mystics recognized Ohara from her status of a Sanctuary Archdeacon; Phandle’s rumour that Kieran had refined Hugh’s memories had reached the West Coast, and the East Coast mystics started believing that Kieran was Hugh’s reincarnation.

Kieran and Ohara went further into the negative energy field, until they saw an explosion of white; they recognized it as Smulder’s Sanctuary Force. Kieran felt a change within the negative field, and heightened his guard. The explosion revealed a giant hoard of evil spirits; most of the East Coast mystics succumbed to [Fear] and were immobilized, while the others quickly retreated. Kieran charged toward the evil spirits, shocking the mystics and again reminding Ohara of Hugh; she and Azinder charged toward the spirits, following Kieran. Kieran reached Smulder, who was surprised to see Kieran, and he started using [Hundred Violent Kicks] and [Charles’ Fire] to quickly kill as many spirits as he could. The flames breached through the hoard of spirits, and Kieran caught a glimpse of a figure within the hoard, controlling them. After killing many spirits, they retreated and the figure left with them; Kieran told Ohara that something was controlling the spirits, and she made some guesses on what it might be. Smulder then spoke up, embarrassed that Kieran had to see him in bad shape, but revealed that it was a Fallen; a person who betrayed what they believed in and lost all of the humanity within their heart. Ohara argued, revealing that Fallen could only be created through very harsh conditions, and were powerful enough that they could only be killed by a Holy Knight. Smulder explained that Barry had captured Simon’s men and forced them to watch as Barry massacred the citizens of Ciaran City; those who mentally broke down from it turned into Fallen.

They wanted to fight Barry and the Fallen before more Fallen could be created, but Smulder remorsed that the negative energy made all of them significantly weaker. Smulder announced that he would go back into Ciaran City, until he and the other Sanctuary members realized Kieran had already started walking deeper into the negative field, followed by Ohara. Angry, Smulder too followed Kieran, but he walked into a solid wall of darkness that prevented him from going further into the City. The negative energy then formed into claws that attacked Smulder from all sides, and he had to relentlessly dissipate them with Sanctuary Force.

As Kieran went deeper into Ciaran City, the negative energy that kept getting denser made him feel increasingly comfortable, as Ohara struggled to follow, comparing the negative energy to the thick bloody stench of a slaughterhouse. Kieran noticed the plants within a nearby jungle had withered from the negative energy corrosion, which he found interesting since plants had a much higher negative energy corrosion resistance than humans; he concluded that there couldn’t be any living humans within Ciaran City anymore. Kieran felt the presence of the citizen’s spirits, and could tell they were absorbing the negative energy, slowly turning into evil spirits, but he did not act against these lowly spirits; Kieran summoned a fireball and threw it at a signboard. A figure escaped from the signboard, and Kieran fired a [Blade Kick] at it, before easily killing it with his buffed stats; it dropped a [Cracked Obsidian].

[High-density negative energy field, related skills effect increased, player gains +2 buff to all stats and skills…] (Ch 503)

Ohara continued to stress how difficult it was for a Fallen to be created when Kieran said the figure was similar to, but not exactly like the Fallen he encountered within the hoard of evil spirits. The two of them then saw the deepest part of Ciaran City, Barry’s headquarters, where the negative was so dense that Ohara’s Sanctuary Force felt like it would be extinguished. Before they could start advancing again, they were surrounded by Alchemy Warriors; this confused Kieran, as he figured Barry would not send out his men to die by Kieran’s hand. Having a theory, Kieran killed all of the Alchemy Warriors with a single slash of [Arrogant Word], and started investigating their corpses.

A team of Old Southern mystics were in Ciaran City drawing magic circles and placing items within the circles, they moved robotically, setting up these circles all around the City. A scarred man dressed similarly to them was overseeing the mystics; he was asking questions, and then answering them himself, sounding like he was having a conversation with someone else even though he was talking to himself. He revealed that his “guests” were heading toward a trap. Barry was inside his headquarters, smoking a cigar and drinking whiskey and distilled alcohol relentlessly until he completely passed out. Two men entered the room and grabbed his unconscious body, carrying him to a bed where they laid him. The two men then left, shutting the door to the room that was actually a prison cell.

Kieran and Ohara were scouting the city, and Ohara was suffering from the negative energy though she pressed on without complaint. They traveled toward Ciaran City’s bank, where Kieran entered and killed another army of Alchemy Warriors. Kieran went deeper into the bank, until he reached a room where a cage filled with tortured Sanctuary members were trapped, when they noticed Kieran, they tried to gesture to Kieran before they were all killed. The scarred man, Braid, revealed himself and taunted Kieran before grabbing Kieran’s neck and releasing a black gel that completely bound Kieran’s body. Braid lifted Kieran and carried him toward the center of Ciaran City; the completed magic circle that spanned the whole City had a sacrificial platform at its center. Braid took Kieran to the platform, and grabbed a golden sacrificial dagger plunging it into Kieran’s heart. Kieran grinned at Braid and called him an idiot before the clone dissipated into thin air; Braid realized he’d been fooled, and quickly attacked Kieran who was attacking him from behind. He released the black gel again, which had a corrosive attribute, and dissolved Kieran’s face, revealing the high demon Bloody Mary from the Sunshine Mary in [The Shaman’s Partner II]

Bloody Mary created a whirlwind of negative energy, angering Braid as the seven Sin Kierans were summoned. After the arrival of the Sins, the negative energy field shrunk in size but grew much denser in the center, causing a violent negative storm to rage. The Sins absorbed the negative field, nourishing them. Bloody Mary laughed at Braid again before disappearing, leaving the Old Southern mystics to the Sins. The Sins targeted Southern mystics, bewitching the ones most susceptible to each of the individual sins; Braid watched, realizing there was no way he could succeed against the Sins that he referred to as “Ancestors of Spirits”. He was cursing out Barry when he was killed, his head and two gemstones contained within his body exploding.

At the Ciaran City Bank, there was a gallery full of paintings of Gods that started glowing when Braid died. All of the paintings dimmed quickly, until there was only one glowing painting left; it depicted a deity with lion, snake, and human features, and it was holding a scale. It walked out of the painting, and was immediately attacked by the real Kieran, who was wielding [Arrogant Word]. Since Kieran caught the deity off guard, he quickly was able to make it dissipate, though it reappeared on the roof of the Bank. The deity started chanting, and the bank that was actually a temple started shedding and melting, and the negative energy around the temple was expelled; a radiant light shone on the deity. The melted temple oozed toward the deity, who absorbed the lava-like temple, becoming more and more solid instead of illusory. Souls appeared around the solidifying deity, kneeling before him, as the deity summoned a few gold armour-wearing executioners. One of the executioners reached into the ground and returned with Barry’s soul in it’s grasp; Barry’s soul started confessing that he had purposefully betrayed Braid and tipped Kieran off to Braid’s plans.

Kieran had learned of Braid’s plan and came up with countermeasures after seeing Braid’s plan depicted on tattoos on the Alchemy Warrior’s bodies. The Deity then set Barry’s soul on fire, killing him. The deity turned to Kieran, calling him a sinner and sending the golden executioners on Kieran. Kieran’s Sins then appeared, defending Kieran from the executioners as the Sins brought the storm of negative energy with them. Kieran smirked at the Deity, calling it an imposter which hurt its pride and greatly infuriated it; the Deity shot a blast of white light at Kieran, which Gluttony ate in a single gulp, causing it to explode. Gluttony then absorbed the negative energy and regenerated itself. The Deity fought with the Sins, blasting their bodies apart which reliably regenerated; as the Sins fought in between regenerations, the Deity was slowly being worn down.

The violent negative energy storm that the Sins brought destroyed the barrier that prevented Smulder from advancing earlier, and all of the Sanctuary members raced into Ciaran City to see Kieran completely suppressing the God of Judgement. Smulder, Maya, and Simon recognized the Sins as the Ancestor of Spirits, which is what Braid also called the Sins. The Sanctuary members felt even more fear and reverence for Kieran, realizing he was not only Hugh’s reincarnation, but he also had the bloodline of the Devil and the Ancestor of Spirits, which were the two most evil bloodlines. As the negative energy faded, Ohara got down from the roof of the building she was watching from, and approached Kieran without being stopped by the other Sanctuary members; she congratulated Kieran on his victory, making him uncomfortable. The Deity finally turned into rocks and shattered into pieces. Kieran then started looking for the fallen, taking advantage of the buffs he got from the negative energy field ever since reaching the center of Ciaran City;

[High-density negative energy field, player acquired temporary enhancement, all stats +2…]

[Detected player has a special bloodline, Shadow Domain (Incomplete) temporarily activated…]

[Detected player has a skill, Touch of Cardinal Sins, level temporarily boosted by +3…]

[Detected player has skill, Body of Evil, level temporarily boosted by +3…]

[Detected player has a skill, Saint Thorns, skill is being suppressed, temporarily disabled…] (Ch 509)

Kieran couldn't find the Fallen, and concluded that it must have escaped the moment it realized the situation was getting bad; Kieran was confident in his ability to find it with [Shadow Domain] if it was still in Ciaran City. Kieran then dispelled [Touch of Cardinal Sins], making the SIns disappear. He realized that if he allowed the Sins to continue absorbing the negative energy, they could have dramatically increased in strength, but they had already gotten much stronger from the energy they already consumed and he did not want to disrupt the balance of the [Fusion Heart]. Feeling a stinging pain in his heart from the increasing strength of the SIns, Kieran quickly left the negative energy field which had significantly decreased in size after getting the [Scale of Judgement] from the Deity;

[Absorbing substantial amount of cardinal sins energy, Touch of Cardinal Sins leveled up to Touch of Cardinal Sins II!] (Ch 509)

Kieran had learned from the tattoos on the Alchemy Warriors that Braid was also targeting West Coast City, so he wanted to quickly get there. He said goodbye to Ohara, and summoned a Night Owl, which he started riding toward West Coast City. Ohara stood still as she watched Kieran ride away on the horse, but when he was out of sight she stole Azinder’s car keys and started driving to West Coast City, following Kieran. The other Sanctuary members were left to clean up Ciaran City of the remaining negative energy, which was at a manageable level now.

At Holgest Port, the same port The Coral docked at, a very old ship with sails docked. The guards at the port felt killer intent from the crew who unboarded, and they were wearing the same red outfits the Old Southern mystics and Braid were wearing. A guard approached them, noticing that up close they did not release any killing intent, and they were clearly corpses. The guard backed up, drawing the attention of the zombies, and the guards started opening fire on the zombies to stop their approach. The bullets did little to stop the zombies, it looked like they didn’t feel pain. The guards tried escaping, but as soon as they ran, the zombies pounced on them and started eating them. The whole port evacuated, citizens running for their lives, and in the distance more ships with that same sail could be seen heading toward the port.

Simones, who was in West Coast City enacting Rosland’s plan, got a call from the Innkeeper Sphenlly, who informed Simones that Holgest City and the Inn were being overrun by the living dead. Sphenlly asked Simones for reinforcements, and Simones informed the group, Charles, Elli, Raul, Cidney, and Louver, about the situation. The group was repairing and reinforcing Nikorie’s defensive circles around West Coast City, and couldn’t leave until that was completed even though they wanted to help prevent Holgest City from becoming a ghost town. The group was about to split up, with Elli and Charles staying to complete the circle, while the others would go to Holgest City, when Tally entered the room and informed them that an East Coast ship was docking at West Coast City, she also informed them that the East Coast and Southern mystics had formed an alliance.

Aboard one of the East Coast ships heading toward West Coast City, a mystic named Gertrude was talking to a Southern mystic who looked and spoke exactly like Braid, Norm. Gertrude was thrilled to see Charles standing on the dock, believing Charles had fallen for his trap, but then several spies reported to Gertrude and Norm saying that Charles and Elli were going to activate Nikorei’s circle. Norm commanded the spies to start assaulting the port. The fleet of East Coast ships split into two groups, one would stand back and the other would quickly attack the port. On the shore, a group of West Coast mystics were getting ready to defend against the fleet, firing cannons at the approaching ships. The cannons were very ineffective, and Gertrude had his ships use a spell that summoned a tsunami to attack West Coast City. Nikorei’s defensive circle defended against the wave, acting like a dam, but the East Coast mystics kept summoning more waves to attack the barrier.

The West Coast mystics were ordered to continue firing cannons at the tidal wave, which caused confusion among both the West and East Coast mystics, as everyone could see that the cannons were completely ineffective against the tsunami. Norm wondered if this was a trap, and Norm said it did not matter if it was a trap or not, so long as Norm knew where Charles was. The fleet continued to approach the shore, until fireballs were thrown at the fleet, easily breaking through the barrier and hitting a few ships. The fireballs told Norm that Charles was indeed at the port, meaning that Elli was alone; he had Gertrude contact his spy to have him kill Elli, but Gertrude could not get in contact with his spy. Norm was disappointed, but his plan succeeded anyway; he called for a retreat, and the fleet turned around.

On shore, the West Coast mystics were elated to see the East Coast fleet retreating, though Charles could tell an accident happened. In the sewers of West Coast City, Elli and Tally who was disguised as Charles were retreating. They traveled through the sewers without complications, and reached a room full of mystical carvings that belonged to Nikorei. The room housed an uncompleted defensive circle, and Elli and Tally split up to finish it. As Elli went to her side, a bunch of arrows were shot at her, and a dagger-wielding man lunged at her. Elli dodged the arrows and used a spell to kill the man, and confronted Tally who she did not trust. Elli activated another spell, summoning a shield, and started backing up, but a person appeared behind her and froze her body, saying he would keep her alive and torture her. The person then faced Tally, realizing that Tally was wearing a disguise and was not really Charles; Tally recognized the person as a Fallen, and immediately fell into despair.

Kieran appeared before Tall, and grabbed the Fallen’s hand as [Charles’ Fire] burned. Tally couldn’t believe Kieran was here since he was supposed to be in Ciaran City, and the Fallen couldn’t believe that Kieran had found it. Kieran set the Fallen on fire, and summoned Wrath and Gluttony for good measure since he knew the Fallen was sneaky; the Sins grabbed the Fallen, and Gluttony started eating it while Wrath started stabbing it repeatedly. The Fallen struggled helplessly, and even begged for it’s life before Kieran finally succeeded in killing it for good; he got the [Dark Nether Stone]. Elli and Tally starred arguing about Kieran, before Kieran reminded them that there was a lot going on and they needed to finish their part. Kieran left, while Elli went back to repairing the magic circle.

On the East Coast ships, Gertrude saw the sky above Hologest Port dyed red; he recognized the sight as Charles’ skill Comet Burst, the same skill Charles used in Forende Town in [The Shaman’s Partner II]. He reported this to Norm with disbelief, as they had confirmed that Charles was at West Coast City and Charles was the only person who could use this skill. Norm was angry at being deceived, and ordered the fleet to charge to Hologest Port.

At West Coast City, Simones who was disguised as Charles reverted back to his usual appearance; the West Coast was being overrun with locusts, and he threw potions that exploded into fireballs at the swarm. The locusts were unaffected by the fire, and the West Coast mystics realized they had no chance of defeating the swarm. As they started to give up, the Creature of Desire appeared in the sky above the port and started devouring the locusts, giving the West Coast mystics hope. The mystics then noticed Kieran standing on top of the Creature of Desire, and they cheered for him, celebrating that they were still alive.

On the East Coast ships, Gertrude and Norm could see Kieran and the giant Creature of Desire, which shocked them; Gertrude knew that Kieran was supposed to be at Ciaran City, and they had expected him to be stuck there for much longer. Norm was enraged, blaming Braid for not being able to deal with Kieran, and ordered his fleet to retreat completely. He shouted at Kieran as they left, swearing revenge, and Kieran had the Creature of Desire fire its eye lasers at Norm’s ship. Simones and the West Coast mystics saw the whole fleet be destroyed by the laser, except for Norm’s ship which was veiled in a bloody red barrier. Kieran fired the eye lasers again, this time it pierced through the barrier and destroyed Norm's ship. The West Coast mystics watched as the Creature of Desire disappeared after the laser, and Kieran fell to the ground. When he landed, Kieran immediately told Simones that they needed to get to Hologest City.

[Special event: Full Scale War! (Completed)]

[Acquired Perfect ratings, Continuous Event triggered…]

[Requirements not met, Continuous Events unable to trigger…]

[Discovered sub mission: Reinforcements!]

[Reinforcements: After tracking down the Fallen, you’ve noticed that West Coast City and Hologest port are in big pinches. You will need to provide aid to both places and ensure the survival of Simones, Charles, Elli Jones, Tally Landsky, Raul and Cidney.] (Ch 517)

Kieran was disappointed that he was unable to trigger the continuous event, but got into a car with Simones and drove to Hologest CIty quickly. Before they could reach the city proper, they were stopped by a giant meteor embedded into the street. Using [Tracking], Kieran easily found Charles, Raul, and Cidney’s footprints, but there was no sign of an enemy. Kieran realized the enemy must have been formless. He believed that the three of them must still be in some kind of danger, so he traveled the rest of the way on foot, sprinting quickly.

When Kieran arrived at Hologest Port, he took out a potion that Simones gave him to protect himself against the plague that followed the living dead. Kieran quickly ran into a group of zombies, and shot off their heads, killing them. Kieran went to the Inn Charles, Simones, and Elli were staying at when they were waiting for Kieran to arrive on The Coral, and was hit by a sudden energy blast. The energy was incredibly powerful, and forced Kieran to the ground; though the system didn’t tell Kieran anything about the energy, he could tell that whoever was controlling was trying to break him both physically and mentally. Kieran fought against the power, and the person controlling the power allowed him to struggle. Kieran used [Barsical Kick], breaking through the power. The person was shocked and angered when Kieran broke through the energy, and appeared in the sky; a divine being appeared, making the night sky darken even more. Kieran believed the Deity was a broken divine being similar to the God of Judgement he fought in Ciaran, and realized that most of his attacks would be useless against it in it’s illusory form. Kieran allowed Mardos to leave it’s wristband as it felt the hunger within [Mardos Arm], and he knew that the Hell Fiend Spider instinctually hunted Deities.

When Mardos’ webs touched the Deity, it started screaming in pain; Mardos raced across the bridge of webs, growing in size as it ran, and it started to smell of sulphur. A river of lava opened up underneath the webs, and Mardos jumped into the river. Hellish monsters started coming out of the river, some with horns and others with too many limbs, but they all bowed before Mardos, allowing the now giant spider to use their bodies as a staircase for it to leave the river. Once out, Mardos jumped up and bit the Deities head, killing it instantly; Mardos then started devouring its body. The night sky went back to normal, and the lava river disappeared; when Mardos was finished, it returned back to [Mardos Arm], feeling very content. [Mardos Arm] leveled up, turning into [Mardos’ Lair]. Kieran was thrilled, as he had not expected his decision to allow Mardos to face the Deity would yield such impressive improvements.

Kieran did not linger too long on Mardos though, remembering he had to save his friends; Kieran continued to the Inn, where he found Charles in a bad state. Charles said that there would be an explanation for Kieran further in the Inn, where Kieran found a teleportation circle. Kieran stepped on it, and was teleported to Tiki, Nikorei’s cat. Kieran was shocked, and looked around, seeing the Stone Gate behind them.

[Sub mission: Reinforcement (Complete)]

[Main Mission: Open the unknown stone gate (Complete)!]

[Player will leave the dungeon in 5 minutes]

[Please take whatever items you wish to keep with you.]

[Note: Any items that exceed the maximum weight will be discarded!] (Ch 521)

Kieran asked Tiki if everything that had happened since the first [The Shaman’s Partner] was all planned by Nikorei. He realized that everything he had done in these dungeons was all very coincidentally timed; the Sunshine Mary reappeared after a century, bringing both the East Coast mystics and Mardos the Hell Fiend Spider; Nikorei’s prophecy was released just as he was got and was learning to use the [Fusion Heart], and Boller arrived to have Kieran take the Holy Knight Trials at the same time. Tiki claimed that everything was coincidental, but she did say that even though she did not believe in destiny, she was impressed with how Kieran was able to face all of these coincidental hardships and face them head-on, growing stronger from each encounter. Kieran was angry, feeling betrayed by Nikorei as he thought the old lady had cared about him when in reality she was arranging countless hardships to force him to get stronger. Tiki argued, saying Nikorei had implemented several failsafes to assist Kieran should he need it, but he never did need them. Kieran argued with Tiki more, until Tiki pushed him back, sending Kieran flying far into the distance.

When Kieran had completely disappeared, Tiki wished Kieran luck, then realized some people were trying to follow Kieran. Tiki released an incredible destructive force, killing them all instantly.

Kieran finally landed, feeling like he had walked up a staircase instead of being flung a great distance. He investigated where he was, realizing he was not on the West Coast anymore. There were two moons in the night sky, and he saw a group of guards looking for a person that Kieran saw sneaking through the shadows. Kieran suddenly felt several incredibly dangerous malicious gazes, he started running without another thought, running as fast as he could from the danger he felt. The guards noticed him, and started chasing him, though Kieran did not give a single thought to the guards. A giant hand shot out from one of the two moons, the green moon, and it shot toward Kieran. Kieran activated [Crow’s Black Feather], allowing him to speed up enough to escape the hand. Countless more green hands appeared from the green moon, speeding toward Kieran who was now using [Reckless Rush] to run faster.

Kieran noticed that more guards had picked up the chase, and he was being followed by a large number of guards. As the timer ended and Kieran was teleported from the dungeon, a bell chimed from within the city, and the guards concluded that they had fallen into a trap.

[Special Dungeon: The Shaman’s Partner III]

[Difficulty Type: Free Mission]

[Dungeon Difficulty: Below Average]

[Main Mission 1: Clear the trial of the Holy Knight in 1 Week]

[Main Mission 2: Open the unknown stone gate in 6 months]

[Mission Completion: 100% (Initial Rating: F → E)]

[Sub Mission 1: The name of reincarnation!]

[Mission Completion: 100% (Rating E → D)]

[Sub Mission 2: Heart (Perfect Clear)]

[Mission Completion: 100% (Rating D → B)]

[Sub Mission 3: Reinforcements]

[Mission Completion: 100% (Rating B → A)]

[Special Event 1: Sanctuary War]

[Perfect Rating: A → SSS]

[Special Event 2: Full-scale war]

[Perfect Rating: SSS → ZZZ]

[Battle Performance: Very Active (Rating: ZZZ → V)]

[Exploration Performance: Average]

[Special Rating 1: Complete main mission in advance (Rating V → VV)]

[Special Rating 2: Eliminating God of Judgement’s afterimage (Rating VV → VVV, Rep + 1)]

[Acquired Title: Bird of Death]

[Bird of Death: After acquiring most of the dungeon world’s natives acknowledgments, the title is granted automatically. It will not take up a title slot and is automatically equipped. Knowledge of the materialistic field increased by +1, be it threats, negotiation, trades, or deals. Has small chances of triggering panic and hostility]

[Player final rating: VVV!]

[Calculating player’s special dungeon rewards…

[Final player special dungeon rewards are as follows…]

[Points: 150,000; Skill Points: 45; Golden Skill Points: 7; Golden Attribute Points: 7]

[Acquired special dungeon: The Shaman’s Partner IV]

[Acquired special reward 1: Tiki’s recipe (Normal condition)]

[Acquired special reward 2: Introduction to Naveya City]

[Acquired special reward 3: Analytics of the temple developments in Naveya City]

[Acquired special reward 4: Distributions of underground factions of Naveya City] (Ch 522)

## Special Dungeon: The Shaman's Partner III Received Items

[Name: The Slicer (Damaged)]

[Type: Sword weapon]

[Rarity: Rare]

[Attack: Strong]

[Attribute: 1.Blade Aura Type I; 2. Blade Aura Type II]

[Effect: None]

[Prerequisite: Sharp Weapon, Long Sword (Master)]

[Remarks: This is a treasure that Fenix got accidently which changed his life forever!]

[Blade Aura Type I: Firing blade aura according to the user’s Strength. Different levels of attack ranging from Weak, Average, Strong. Attack range could reach 5 meters, 10 meters, 15 meters respectively.]

[Blade Aura Type II: Charge up for 5 seconds and fire out a wave of blade aura with Powerful attack, 30 meters in range, 1/day] (Ch 462)

[Name: Perfected Raging Blood IV]

[Type: Blood]

[Rarity: Great]

[Attribute: Power Raging]

[Prerequisite: Constitution D]

[Able to bring out of dungeon: Yes]

[Remark: It was crafted by a third generation alchemy enhancer, its tremendous power was halved but so does the side effect!]

[Power Raging: Strength +3. Agility +2, Constitution +2, Spirit -1, Intuition -1, for 15 seconds. After the duration ended, a Constitution authentication not lower than D+ will occur, user who passed the authentication will be Weakened for 10 seconds, failure will result in 20 seconds Weakened state. Another Constitution authentication not lower than E+ will occur again, user who passed the second authentication will recover from Weakened state after 30 minutes, failed will result in Moderate damage to the user.]

[Note: When Constitution is higher than C, immune to all debuffs.] (Ch 462)

[Name: Phantom Illusion Ring]

[Type: Accessory]

[Rarity: Rare]

[Attack/Defense: None]

[Attribute: Shadow Escape, 1/3]

[Effect: None]

[Prerequisite: None]

[Remark: Even from the hands of ancient alchemy, this product was produced from an extreme accident!]

[Shadow Escape: While facing an inevitable attack, the ring will allow its wearer to escape by replacing the wearer with a phantom illusion in his place. The wearer’s real body will appear in any spot desired, 10 meters from the original spot] (Ch 465)

[Name: Sanctuary Star (Damaged)]

[Type: Gemstones]

[Rarity: Rare]

[Attribute: It contains the life energy of the Holy Knight of the previous generation!]

[Able to bring out of dungeon: Yes]

[Remark: It has no value at all since it is damaged!] (Ch 470)

[Name: Fusion Heart II]

[Type: Organ]

[Rarity: Above Epic]

[Attributes: 1. Transform Devil II, 2. Desire Summon II , 3. Saint Thorns ]

[Effects: 1. Fiery Sulphur II, 2. Eye of Evil II, 3. Body of Evil II, 4. Touch of the cardinal sins]

[Prerequisite: Constitution A, Spirit SS]

[Remark: This is a fusion organ fused with the heart of a human, the demon lord, and the creature of greed. Its power is indisputable but so does the backlash, even it has the life energy of a Holy Knight as a synthesizer. As the owner, you still need to have a powerful body and even more powerful will to tame it! It will grow stronger following your battles and if you are unable to grow with it, you will be dominated and converted into a puppet of flesh and blood!]

……

[Transform Devil II: Your heart grants you power. When activated, you will take the form of the demon lord, 2 minute duration, 1 time per day]

[Desire Summon II: Your heart grants you control. When activated, you can summon the Creature of Greed, 2 minute duration, 1 time per day]

[Saint Thorns :If you did not choose to activate Transform Devil II or Desire Summon II, you will resist 25% of the damage when encountering holy energy. When you receive damage (regardless of holy damage), of Average, Strong and Powerful level, you can activate a “Halo of Thorns” of different levels to reflect the damage you receive by 5%, 10%, 25% respectively. You will also be healed of Light, Medium, Heavily wounded state respectively. When you choose to activate Transform Devil II or Desire Summon II, Saint Thorns effect will temporarily halted.]

…….

[Fiery Sulphur II: Burning flames will follow the lineage of the devil like shadow. When casting Fire element spells, +1 elemental damage, extra Sulphuric Poison added on the spell. The requirements such as the gesture, incantations materials of Fire element spells are decreased by 60%, even if the skill failed to cast, you will only suffer a quarter of the magic repulsion]

[Eye of Evil II: The conviction of Desire is rooted deep inside your heart. Summon evil eye (secondary eye attack power) formed by the conviction of Desire to fight for you, 3 minute duration, 2 times per day]

[Body of Evil II: The combination of the devil and desire, chaos and sins but with a dash of light. Granted 250 extra HP, Stamina, acquire High Tensile Skin (absorb 200 damage from Strong attack or below), Medium Devil Skin (absorb 200 damage from Strong attack or below, extra defense point against Fire and Explosions); When facing Holy element attacks, you will receive 125% damage, special counter items will deal extra damage to you (included but not limited to blessed objects, holy objects etc.)]

[Touch of Cardinal Sins: The cardinal sins of desire flow in your blood. Consume 100 HP to summon either Lust, Greed, Gluttony, Sloth, Wrath or Envy to assist you. Consume 200 HP to summon Pride to assist you. The embodiment of sins shares your looks but each of them possess different abilities. The summons last for 1 minute, extra duration will cost extra HP.]

[Note: When target is in a panic, chaos, fear driven state or has extreme desire for something, they will be devoured by the respective embodiment of sins.] (Ch 470)

[Name: Eye of the Wicked Waters]

[Type: Gemstones]

[Rarity: Legendary]

[Attribute: 1. Water Arrow, 2. Water Vision, 3. Venom Tranquilizer]

[Effect: None]

[Prerequisite: Spirit A]

[Remark: This is a composite magical gemstone filled with bloodthirst and slaughter, the user will need to have an extremely tough mental state and unyielding will to use it!]

[Water Arrow: Fire an Average attack, Average impact force water arrow at a target within 15 meters of range, 3/day]

[Water Vision: When there is sufficient water source around user, Water Arrow attack and impact force +1. When user is near a river stream or on a lake, Water Arrow attack and impact force +2. When user is within ocean area, Water Arrow will be upgraded to Water Blitz Arrow]

[Venom Tranquilizer: Targets hit by Water Arrow and Water Blitz Arrow will have to undergo a Constitution and Spirit authentication of -1 level with your own. Target will be tranquilized for 1 second if they fail either one. Target will suffer poison attack equal to a Heavily Wounded damage and tranquilized for 2 seconds if they fail both.]

[Note: No embedding needed] (Ch 479)

[Name: Whisper of the Dead]

[Type: Scroll]

[Rarity: Rare]

[Attribute: Oath of allegiance 1/1]

[Effect: None]

[Prerequisite: None]

[Remark: This is the scroll written by the God of Earth Nikorei herself. While being used at specific times, it will bring out the unimaginable effect!]

[Oath of allegiance: Form an alliance with all the spiritual beings before you out of willingness. Cost 2000 Points and able to summon them with the scroll] (Ch 498)

[Name: Cracked Obsidian]

[Type: Gemstone]

[Rarity: Magic]

[Attribute: Embed in your weapons or equipment to grant your weapon 1-2 negative energy damage or 1%-2% negative energy resistance!]

[Effect: None]

[Prerequisite: None]

[Remark: Under a high density negative energy environment, this obsidian is a special kind of soul shard, its value is further surpassing normal gemstones!] (Ch 503)

[Name: Scale of Judgement]

[Type: ETC]

[Rarity: Legendary]

[Attribute: Judgement 1/1]

[Effect: None]

[Prerequisite: Heart of Ruling]

[Remark: This is the last item that the God of Judgement left behind in the mortal realm. It can be very powerful or very weak.]

[Judgement: The sinner will suffer the wrath of heavens!] (Ch 509)

[Name: Dark Nether Stone]

[Type: Gemstones]

[Rarity: Legendary]

[Attribute: ???]

[Able to bring out of dungeon: Yes]

[Remark: You will need a specialist to appraise this!] (Ch 515)

[Name: Creature of Desire II]

[Type: Summons]

[Rarity: Special]

[Attribute: 1. Desire Dominance II, 2. Thousand Evil Eye Strike II]

[Effect: Devour]

[Prerequisite: Fusion Heart]

[Remark: The shards of Eye of Chimeras fused with you flesh, blood and desire, creating this monster. Its strength and malefic nature cannot be contained by the world!]

[Desire Dominance II: Your deepest desires will be exposed before the Creature. It will be enlarged infinitely and turned into a weapon against you. When you are facing the Creature of Desire, Lust, Greed, Gluttony, Sloth, Wrath, Envy and Pride, seven types of irresistible authentication +1 will occur. Target who passed will be immune by the effect. Target who fails will be punished by the respective sins.]

[Thousand Evil Eye Strike II: The attacking ability from the thousand evil eyes. They will fire out a burning laser with attack judgement. One of the core eyes has Extreme attack level. The 10 main eyes have Powerful attack level. 100 eyes have Strong attack level. The rest derivative eyes have Common attack level. Able to fire together or individually, 2 per day]

[Devour: When Creature of Desire devour the targets under its effect or target that it kills, the power will transfer to the user as well]

[Note: Devour is a special trait. The targets that Creature of Desire kill will not drop any loots.] (Ch 517)

[Abnormal devouring, Mardos Arm leveled up…]

[Acquired Item, rarity Above Legendary: Mardos’ Lair]

[Name: Mardos’ Lair]

[Type: Armor (Right-hand wrist guard)]

[Rarity: Above Legendary]

[Defense: Extreme]

[Attributes: 1. Spider Webbing III, 2. Web Bind III, 3. Soul Devour III]

[Effect: 1.Hell Fiend Spider Fire II, 2. Hell Fiend Shadow]

[Prerequisite: The one who killed Mardos (Binds to player)]

[Able to bring out of dungeon: Yes]

[Remark: Mardos was hatched from a Hell Fiend Spider egg that was left on earth, through a special and hastened hatching process, it had a growth disorder in nature, in addition to losing its intellect, strength, and lineage of a Hell Fiend Spider, all it had was the natural predator instinct, but your presence has started to change it!]

[Spider Webbing III: Fire a tensile and sticky retractable spider web not longer than 40 meters, the spider web has a Powerful defense, target would require to have B+ Strength or above to break away from the stickiness, 30-second duration, 3 times per day]

[Web Binding III: Fire an 8-meter radius sticker spider web laced with poison, binding multiple targets 80 meters within sight, spider web has a Powerful and above defense, target would require to have A- Strength to break away. The poison will force the target to undergo 3 Constitution authentications of A-, B+, and B. If target fails all 3 authentications, target will receive Powerful poison attack. If target fails 2 authentications, target will receive Strong poison attack.

If target fails 1 authentication, target will receive Average poison attack, 20 seconds duration, 2 per day]

[Soul Devour III: Player will absorb the soul energy of each target killed, replenishing player’s HP, Stamina, the recovery rate is based on the target’s soul level. The soul can be temporarily stored in the armguard, able to replenish at will. The restore level is equal to 1 Heavily Wounded Status worth of HP and Stamina and 3 Moderate Wounded Status worth of HP and Stamina. (Availability: 0)]

[Hell Fiend Spider Fire II: When using Spider Webbing or Web Binding, bound target will receive Powerful fire damage and Strong negative energy corrosion. Able to activate Hell Fiend Spider Fire by your will.]

[Hell Fiend Shadow: The monsters that lived around the hell sulfur river are not as simple as they look. When using Spider Webbing, Web Binding, bound target will be forced to undergo a Spirit authentication not lower than B, Intuition authentication not lower than C+, target will also be induced with Fear and Illusions during the authentication. If target fails 1 authentication, target will receive a Strong mental impact attack. If target fails 2 authentications while receiving the mental impact attack, target will be forced to undergo another Death authentication (Special rank), target will be Doomed instantly if they fail and the soul will be devoured!] (Ch 520)

## Special Dungeon: The Shaman's Partner III Learned Skills

[All attributes +4]

[Acquired Devil Lord Constitution II: Acquired High Devil Armor II: defense automatically set above Powerful and 20% damage reduction against Holy energy damage; Acquired High Devil Body II: +2 Strength; Every attack is added with Powerful rank burn damage and has a certain percent chance to trigger fire splash damage within a 3 meter range; fire splash damage is ranked at Strong. When receiving damage, attacker will suffer Extreme rank burn damage; Secondary Elemental Damage Resist +2, HP +1500, Stamina +1500]

[Acquired Flame Blast II: By flapping your flame wings, form a 130°, 40 meter blast range before you. Extreme rank flames, Powerful rank blast wave, 3 times per transformation]

[Acquired Beheader Flaming Sword: Summon great sword of flames, Powerful rank fire damage and attack, 2 minute duration, 1 time per transformation]

[Acquired Blaspheme Whisper II: Any target you kill will resurrect temporarily and fight for you, 2 minute duration, 1 time per transformation]

[Acquired Sulphuric Scorch II: Any targets burnt by your attack will undergo a -2 Constitution authentication to yours, if they fail, the target will suffer extra 300 poison damage, 6-second duration]

[Acquired Light of Fear II: Any living target that sees you will have to undergo a Spirit authentication of at least B+ rank, if they fail, induce Fear debuff]

[Devil Libra: The density of the bloodline awakens a part of the gifts of the devil overlord inside you. You can choose any stats at will, adding onto other stats with a 2:1 ratio. Added stats should not be lower than D rank and the added stats will not exceed the limit of Spirit level +3. Duration 2 minutes, 1 per transformation.] (Ch 476)

[Saint Thorn II: If you choose not to activate Transform Devil II or Desire Summon II, you will gain 30% resistance against holy energy attack. When you receive damage (regardless of holy damage), of Average, Strong, Powerful and Extreme level, you can activate a “Halo of Thorns” with different levels, to reflect the damage you receive by 10%, 15%, 30%, and 50% respectively. You will also be healed with Light, Medium, Heavily and Lethally wounded state respectively. When you choose to activate Transform Devil II or Desire Summon II, Saint Thorn effect will be temporarily halted.] (Ch 480)

[Grand Master Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art acquired a significant amount of experience through practicing, level up prerequisite met…]

[Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art leveled up…]

[Name: Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Arts (Musou)]

[Related Attributes: Strength, Agility, Constitution, Spirit, Intuition]

[Skill Type: Ancillary]

[Effects: You know how to utilize the special stances, movements and breathing techniques, All Attributes +6 (+1 Basic, +1 Entry, +1 Master, +1 Pro, +1 Grand Master, +1 Musou)]

[Knight’s Focus: Everyone has their own specialty, but not everyone can persevere; Spirit +4, Knight’s Persistent (When you persist on something, you are willing to sacrifice yourself to succeed; Ignite 200 HP to +2 level in Spirit, 1-second duration, cooldown none)]

[Consumes: Stamina]

[Prerequisites: Strength C, Agility C, Constitution C, Spirit C, Intuition C]

[Remarks: This was the Knights of Dawn entry course, but it will affect other related skills!] (Ch 484)

[Controllable Lineage Fire II (Your bloodline is suitable for fire magic, your talents allow you to control it at will. You can ignite a ball of fire with the damage of None, Low, Weak respectively. After charging 5 seconds, fire elemental damage +1, has a small chance of triggering Flame Burst to your enemies] (Ch 491)

[Name: Charles’s Fire (Pro)]

[Related Attribute: None]

[Skill Type: Offense]

[Effect: Create fire with your finger, the attack is Average, burns continuously]

[Special Effect: Controllable Lineage Fire II (Your bloodline is suitable for fire magic, your talents allowed you to control it at will. You can ignite a ball of fire with the damage of None, Feeble, Weak respectively. After charging 5 seconds, fire elemental damage +1, has small chances in triggering Flame Burst to your enemies)]

[Consume: Stamina]

[Prerequisite: Constitution A]

[Remark: This is a spell without incantations, casting gesture, or casting time. A skill created by the alchemy master fusing ancient hidden knowledge together!]

[Note: You have acquired this skill through learning, not through a Skill Book. Therefore, you cannot upgrade it with Points and Skill Points. If you want to level it up, you will need to continue learning or acquire a Skill Book!] (Ch 491)

[Shadow Domain (Incomplete): Replenish your HP, Stamina with the negative energy around you. While within the negative energy field, you can control a small degree of negative energy (No larger than a 10-meter radius and has Average attack and defense). Acquired Instinct Intuition (Hostile beings will have to undergo two Intuition authentication of -3 and -4. If two authentication failed, hostile beings will be locked on, if one authentication fails, hostile being will be revealed). All collateral beings (includes summons that could adapt to negative energy) would acquire +1 buff, HP and Stamina +5%. Caster ownself and the collateral beings (induces summons that could adapt to negative energy) would acquire an extra Secondary HP Recovery, acquired once Secondary Shadow Armor. Consume a specific amount of negative energy to receive Secondary HP Recovery, Secondary Shadow Armor again.] (Ch 509)