Chapter 452: Ascension of the Sword God

Sky Rift Radiance!

Buzz!

Soaring into mid-air like a soaring blade, Yenir’s gaze turned cold. In the blink of an eye, he activated his skill, unleashing a nearly transparent, silver-white sword flow.

Amidst the labyrinthine ruins, a Middle-Aged Man was frantically fleeing in sheer panic.

His right leg had been brutally severed, yet it did nothing to slow him down.

From above, he looked like a tripod sprawled on the ground, dashing away with gecko-like speed that defied human limits.

Straining every nerve, he was on the verge of disappearing into the rubble of a collapsed building.

Whoosh!

The sword wind cut through the air.

In an instant, the seemingly pitiful Middle-Aged Man, glancing back in terror, froze on the spot.

After a brief moment.

Accompanied by a faint spray of blood, his body—struck by Sky Rift Radiance—was cleaved open like a sliced steak, spilling innards all over the ground.

A single strike ended his life.

With Yenir unleashing an SSS-Level Sword Technique, escape was out of the question.

Di: Killed Third-Stage Beginner Otherworldly Ghost. Obtained core fragment.

Meanwhile, upon hearing the kill confirmation, Yenir—still suspended in mid-air—finally exhaled in relief and drifted down like a falling leaf.

That’s sorted!

All remaining fragments have been collected!

While dispatching ten Otherworldly Ghosts wasn’t difficult, tracking these crafty monsters—capable of disguising themselves as ordinary humans—was a real headache! Had he not feigned weakness and separated from Liang Lie, Yenir knew he’d never have gathered them so swiftly!

“Uncle Liang! You can come back now!”

After quickly sending a message to Liang Lie, Yenir raced excitedly toward the body.

Uncle Liang’s power was immense. Although his concealed aura made it hard for the ghosts to gauge his strength, Yenir sensed that once he teamed up with Liang Lie, the Otherworldly Ghosts wouldn’t dare act rashly.

The final Otherworldly Ghost was the very one he had feigned to be heavily injured while wandering on the Thirteenth Floor.

Unlike the ghosts from earlier levels, those here had a stronger urge to attack humans. Lured by the promise of flesh and blood, this ghost tried to impersonate a Ghost Hunter to rescue him—only to find it was the one that had been baited.

Ignoring the blood still spurting from the corpse, Yenir charged forward and grabbed it without hesitation.

In the blink of an eye, a fragment of broken skin suddenly floated into his hand.

Di: Obtained Otherworldly Ghost core fragment.

Di: Detected sufficient fragments for synthesis. Fuse them into a complete Otherworldly Ghost Core?

The cold, yet strangely pleasing prompt echoed, and without hesitation, Yenir hit confirm.

Once confirmed, the remaining nine fragments in his Storage Ring burst forth. After a brief flash of light, a brand-new item resembling a metallic sphere emerged.

Di: Obtained complete Otherworldly Ghost Core!

Di: Material Name: Otherworldly Ghost Core (Complete, Special)

Di: Effect: Increases Will by 4 points and grants a small boost to mental resistance.

Di: Note: This material can replace the heart. After replacement, there’s a chance to transform into an Otherworldly Ghost—enhancing power to Third-Stage Beginner while losing fertility and gaining cannibalistic tendencies.

…

Di: Detected all materials for the Sword God System upgrade. Initiate upgrade? Materials will vanish after upgrade. Proceed with caution.

Momentarily stunned, Yenir watched as four materials drifted out of his Storage Ring, leaving him dumbfounded.

Glancing over the Otherworldly Ghost Core’s description, he didn’t immediately opt to upgrade the system.

What the heck? Why does the Otherworldly Ghost Core’s description differ so much from the other materials?

With a peculiar expression, as he surveyed the four types of materials he’d painstakingly collected, a strange glint flashed in his eyes.

It wasn’t the attribute boost that shocked him—it was the unusual effect.

While the other three materials offered a modest attribute bonus, they had no extra special properties; at best, they could be crafted into weapons or armor, or used for research.

He hadn’t expected that as the final material, the Otherworldly Ghost Core’s unique collection method would be matched by an even stranger fusion effect.

Staring at the Otherworldly Ghost Core—which looked eerily artificial—Yenir suddenly realized that among these four materials, it was truly the core piece, as its name implied.

“Materials vanish after upgrade?”

“Doesn’t matter… that small attribute boost is nothing compared to a system upgrade.”

“As for turning into an Otherworldly Ghost…”

With a dismissive snort, Yenir couldn’t help but recall the adorable Zhang Ke and Anya—the sight of their bare lower halves had truly been an eye-opener.

“Forget it, no point in overthinking.”

“There might be some secret behind this item, but it’s probably nothing.”

With a determined glint in his eyes and less than a second’s hesitation, Yenir opted for the upgrade.

Yes—he recalled intel once relayed by Blood Nightingale, which mentioned a catastrophic event spoken of by Yinglong. These four special mutants must be tied to that massive disaster—maybe even a hidden quest.

But for him, secrets didn’t matter; he was solely focused on upgrading the Sword God System!

Suppressing his excitement, he confirmed the upgrade. Instantly, the four materials before him merged into his chest as if devoured, and an eerie, unfamiliar power surged forth.

Buzz!

“System upgrading—establishing new transport channel…”

For a moment, as he lost control of his body, Yenir listened in disbelief to the system prompts. Amidst sudden, intense pain, his face went pale as if his brain had exploded.

In an instant, amidst a barrage of indecipherable mechanical commands, waves of powerful mental energy surged into his mind.

It felt as if his brain would shatter under the assault. Yenir groaned as a metallic taste filled his nostrils and two streaks of bright red blood began to flow.

It…hurts…too much…

This damn system upgrade felt like it was performing brain surgery on him!

………….

“Yenir?!”

“Swish”

Having just returned nearby after receiving Yenir’s message, Liang Lie’s expression darkened as he noticed Yenir’s odd state, and he dashed over in a rush.

No wonder he was so anxious.

Although there were clearly no enemies around, Yenir’s demeanor suggested he was under an intense, covert psychic assault!

Three minutes later.

Drenched in sweat, droplets the size of soybeans rolled off his forehead.

Straining to stand, Yenir—pale-faced—refused Uncle Liang’s help. It felt as if he’d just fought a major battle and the headache still lingered.

Yet at that moment, his eyes shone with uncontrollable joy.

“Uncle Liang, I’m alright…”

“Please keep watch, okay?”

Forcing an awkward smile, Yenir calmed his racing heart and, after speaking, focused entirely on his upgraded Sword God System.

Ignoring Liang Lie’s astonished glance, he was determined to test his new abilities!

Di: Sword God System upgrade complete!

Di: Mission complete. Gained an extra 1000 Spirit Energy.

Di: All Sword Techniques’ power increased; current might will be amplified based on the host’s actual combat strength!

Di: Sword Technique cooldown reduced to 12 hours.

Di: Skill Fusion unlocked. Current fusions available: 1 (Fuse any two skills into one, with a rank upgrade).

….

Feeling rejuvenated.

Sensing the sudden surge of Spirit Energy within him, Yenir couldn’t help but feel a burst of joy.

Although 1000 Spirit Energy wasn’t much, it perfectly bridged his shortfall. Originally, he could unleash Sword Techniques only three times—but now he could do it four. That boost alone raised his combat power by around 30%.

Every extra Sword Technique usage was a transformative upgrade for him.

And his eagerly awaited surge in skill power did not disappoint.

“But…”

“Have I been misunderstanding the Sword God System’s enhancement function all along?”

Deep in thought, Yenir studied the Sword Techniques on his skill panel. Though little had visibly changed, he could roughly gauge their current might.

“If the original power level barely bridged the gap between Third-Stage Beginner and Mid-level—with most of the killing potential stemming from the skills’ own traits…

Then with the bonus attributes and Spirit Energy surge, it’s as if an entirely new tier has emerged.”

“With a single unleash of Sword Breath Torrent, he could wipe out a wave of Third-Stage Mid-level foes. Even Third-Stage Advanced ones wouldn’t escape unscathed.”

“A barrage in one go might even take down Lu Tianming in seconds!?”

He nodded to himself, his heart brimming with excitement.

He’d once estimated it would take at least three months to down Lu Tianming—yet now, he could do it in merely one week.

The pace of his power increase was so staggering that even he was left in awe.

“The Sword God System elevates skills to SSS-Level not by turning their inherent power into SSS-Level, but by enabling even a mediocre skill to exhibit SSS-Level effects.”

“It’s like an ordinary person going SSS-Level—not by becoming Third- or Fourth-Stage, but by honing their combat prowess to the pinnacle, rivaling high-level Awakeners!”

“Now, it’s still the same—only this time the ordinary baseline has been replaced with my own.”

“So…”

With a gleam in his eye, after reinterpreting his system, Yenir suddenly realized that his earlier hunch was correct.

The higher a skill’s level before enhancement, the stronger its post-enhancement power!

Though they were all SSS-Level, Divine Rage and Sword Breath Torrent clearly differed greatly in strength.

In summary, each has its own merits in specific situations—but regardless, he’d definitely opt for higher-level skills in the future!

“That being the case, all the skills I learned before were a waste… wasted skill slots.”

A twinge of regret stirred within him as he sighed quietly.

But it was only a minor concern.

He knew full well that if he had stubbornly avoided learning skills—hoping to later obtain high-level ones for enhancement—he’d probably still be at First-Stage, battling alongside Tianfeng and zombies.

Trading off a higher cap for more time was simply unavoidable.

Given the choice, he’d still do it.

“But…”

“It might not even offset the cap!”

“The newly introduced Skill Fusion clearly seems designed to cover this shortfall!”

“Fusing two skills into one means I could get an enhanced version while freeing up a skill slot, right?!”

Fixated on the new fusion option, Yenir held his breath, imagining the potential effects of a fused skill.

“I only get one chance. Which two should I fuse?!”

“Will the fused skill have dual effects, or will it transform into an entirely new, more powerful ability?!”

“Sky Rift Radiance + Sword Breath Storm? Or Dimensional Slash + Fallen Heaven?!”

“What does the first even do? Unleash thousands of Sky Rift Radiance strikes in an instant? And the second, teleporting to decimate an area in one go?!”