A/N: Sorry for the slow uploads lately—real life got hectic, and I had to be on the move for a while. But I’m back now, so expect more chapters soon! Thank you for your support!
********
“So weak.”
Michael wasn’t concerned about the lives he had just taken—something the pre-Awakening him would’ve hesitated over, even if they were just insects.
Instead, his attention was fixed on the experience points, or lack thereof, he’d gained from the insects.
Nothing.
They were so weak they didn’t even provide a single experience point, despite being rated one star in the Common rank.
Michael felt the rating might only exist because there was no lower category than Common.
Even if there were, he doubted these insects would qualify.
“Or maybe it’s not that they’re too weak, but that I’m too strong to gain any experience from them,” he muttered, suspicion creeping in.
He hadn’t come across this in the forums, nor had any post explicitly addressed it, aside from the fact that leveling up required fighting stronger or similar levelled monsters.
Weaker monsters supposedly offered no benefits at a certain level.
“Could it be that just as fighting higher-leveled monsters grants more experience, fighting significantly weaker ones results in less to none?”
Michael wasn’t sure, as he had no firsthand experience to confirm this.
“No, it’s probably just the natural weakness of these insects—they’re not even worth a single point.”
He recalled his first knowledge about the existence of demonic supernaturals a few days ago.
Much of their power came from sacrificing human lives, with stronger demonic cultivators requiring larger sacrifices. This implied that human life still held significant value.
But in his current situation, Michael doubted sacrificing even a million of these insects would make a difference.
“Whatever. At least now I can take them into the Land of Origin.” Experience exclusive tales on empire
Excitement crept in as Michael considered the possibilities.
He was far more intrigued by the thought of raising these insects as undead and testing his talent on them.
Ants that could carry dozens of something the weight as them, if such a trait could be kept even after evolution, wasn’t that a terrifying potential?
Michael was also excited about the prospects of the other insects.
Placing the jars of now-dead creatures into his Mark of Origin, Michael went to his bed and lay down, preparing to enter the Land of Origin.
What Michael didn’t know was that as he began connecting his consciousness to his other body, the hotel was no longer calm.
While summoning his mana earlier, his novice control, though commendable for his level, wasn’t perfect.
With mana over 100 times that of an average human, the disturbance it caused wasn’t minor.
For nearly a minute, everyone in the building felt the suffocating pressure.
The air grew simultaneously stiflingly hot and chillingly cold.
Though it wasn’t unbearable, the discomfort was undeniable.
Then, as suddenly as it came, the sensation vanished without a trace, leaving behind confusion and unease.
Though no one could explain what had happened, murmurs and noise slowly started appearing throughout the hotel.
In a room near Michael, two middle-aged men with rough, weathered faces sat in tense silence.
If Michael had been closer to them—even as a novice Necromancer—he would have sensed the faint aura of death and necromantic energy lingering around their bodies, something he was gradually becoming familiar with.
“What was that?” one of the men asked, his face grave.
The room these two occupied just happened to be in the direction where Michael had outstretched his hand earlier, causing them to bear the brunt of the pressure.
“I don’t know, but the aura felt a lot like the man the higher-ups assigned to us. Do you think it’s him?” the other man replied, his tone laced with anxiety.
“I’m not sure,” the first man muttered. “But seeing as no one has come for us, it could very well be him. Maybe he’s signaling us to hurry up.”
“You’re right, but damn it, the higher-ups are treating us like cannon fodder! We’re literally neighbors with a branch of the Supers Association!”
“That’s because that’s exactly what we are,” the first man snapped.
“Stop complaining. We’re the last node in the grand plan. If we succeed, we’ll get enough resources to finally advance to Rank 3.”
His serious tone seemed to steady his companion, who nodded, their shared resolve reflected in their hardened expressions.
After a brief pause, the first man continued, “Let’s finish everything by tomorrow morning. Last night’s work, with help from our brothers at the other nodes, brought us much closer to our goal.”
Then, a twisted grin spread across his face as excitement bubbled within him.
“In a place like Woodstone City, there aren’t many strong people. This is the day the world will finally recognize us—the superior beings! We were never equal! Never!”
His voice dripped with madness, his eyes gleaming with unrestrained ambition.
Meanwhile, Michael remained oblivious to the danger brewing around him.
To him, the hotel was no longer of any concern.
He was back in the Land of Origin.
Unlike the real world, where night had begun to fall, the Land of Origin remained bright, the sun still high in the sky.
“The air here really does feel fresher. Or maybe it’s just because I’ve been in the forest for days now,” Michael mused aloud, taking in his surroundings.
Nearby, his undead stood silently, while the organized bodies of monster corpses lay ready to serve as material for creating more undead to fill his remaining contract slots.
‘Status’
[Name: Michael Norman]
[Class: Adept Necromancer]
[Level: 15]
[EXP: 1094/17,718]
[Strength: 30.42]
[Agility: 41.16]
[Constitution: 31.72]
[Intelligence: 110.1]
[Attribute Points: 30]
[Skills: Undead Summoning, Undead Revival, Detect, Basic Shot, Share Senses, Spearmanship, Acid Shot, Bone Spear, Slow Curse, Bone Armour, Corpse Explosion]
[Talent: Infinite Evolution]
[Class Skill: Contract Slot {20/40}]
[Gift: Mark of Origin]
Indeed, compared to a few days ago, the Michael of now had grown stronger—and he would only continue to grow.
