Kent lay back, a smile playing on his lips as he replayed the video in his mind.
The look on his face throughout the process was etched into his memory as he recalled how domineering he had been—the intense energy he felt, the arrogance, the power, and the finesse with which he carried himself.
It all came rushing back to him, and for a moment, he felt invincible. However, he knew it was just the euphoria.
There was no way in hell he could compare his current self to the persona he saw in the video. He might be stronger than the average human at the moment, but he was nothing compared to the domineering version of himself in that vision.
Strangely, the aura he exuded in the video was that of a Root Grandmaster, yet it was several times thicker than the aura of a peak Root Sage.
And if that wasn’t shocking enough, he had emanated Sword Will—the stage beyond sword intent, achieved only after mastering all nine levels of it.
The scene was overwhelming, and Kent craved that power. He wanted to feel it in his bones.
[The master should stop daydreaming and focus on what he can handle now.] The tower, however, seemed displeased with Kent’s behaviour.
“Fine. But once I claim that power, I’ll make sure to cause some chaos of my own,” Kent said with a smirk, deciding to put the matter aside for now.
It was time to start preparing for his trip to the Realm of Hatred and Resentment—the god realm where Vexthra resided.
After receiving the three wishes from the enchantress, Kent’s first wish was for a way to travel the universe without significant restrictions.
Of course, he wasn’t a fool. He understood that venturing into unknown places could be perilous, so his wish was carefully tailored toward accessing the one place he currently desired—the god realm.
Specifically, the Realm of Hatred and Resentment.
Kent retrieved the [Starbound Compass] and appraised it once more.
***
Starbound Compass
— A mystical compass with a needle made of stardust, pointing unerringly toward the desired destination when activated. The compass projects a portal for travel.
Activation Requirements:
– Spirit Stones: 10,000,000,000 (Max)
– Soul Essence: 100,000 (Max)
Cooldown Time:
– Once requirements are met, the orb needs 96 hours to activate.
– Once used, the orb goes into a 60-day cooldown.
Limitations:
– You will be forcefully returned after 72 hours.
– The portal can be closed using the portal, but if the user doesn’t return within 72 hours, they will be forcefully pulled back.
– The user can return any item provided they can be stored in their soul. Space rings are not allowed.
[Note: Before using any of the three items, you must know where you want to go.]
***
The price was pretty high, but it wasn’t a problem for him. However, the main issue was knowledge—he must know where he wants to go before he opens the portal.
For him, he had been there before, but only when he died.
He wasn’t sure if that would count. Of course, he’d find out once the compass finished charging.
For now, all he knew was that ten billion spirit stones were the maximum one needed to pay to activate the compass.
This meant that even if he knew a location at the far end of the universe, he would only be required to pay ten billion spirit stones.
This also meant that if he travelled a shorter distance, the chances of paying less were quite high. Essentially, after the tower performed a few diagnostics, it determined that soul essence and spirit stones served merely as fuel.
He wouldn’t need to pay again if the fuel were still burning within it.
“Tower, feed ten billion spirit stones to the compass,” Kent instructed. The spirit stones were securely absorbed into the compass in the next second.
He then retrieved the next item, the soul bead. The moment it appeared, a dense soul essence flooded the space.
From the video, he had seen how the bead was made, yet nothing seemed to surface in his mind, no matter how hard he tried to recall what went into its creation. In the end, he could only continue with what he had.
***
[Extreme Soul Bead (Forbidden Pill)]
[Grade: Tier 7]
[Soul Essence: 502,001/502,004]
— This bead has been condensed from a human’s soul and life force. It has also been amplified using forbidden dark magic, making it 3000 times more potent.
— But although the bead is forbidden, it contains the purest form of soul energy.
— Absorbing this bead will enhance one’s soul in many ways. It also nurtures the soul and makes it very rich in concentration.
— It is said that if a soul cultivator absorbs a soul bead, their chances of forming a soul body are very high. It also improves the spirit root to a certain degree.
“How I wish I could create this myself,” Kent muttered, staring intently at the bead in his hand. If he could absorb all the soul essence within it, he could elevate his soul cultivation to Tier 7.
His current level was only Tier 2, comparable to a Root Blossom Expert. However, he wasn’t about to waste time.
“Tower, you know what to do,” Kent said.
The tower extracted 100,000 essences from the bead to fuel the compass. Once everything was completed, Kent activated the compass. He channelled his soul energy into it and dropped a single drop of blood onto it to make it his soul item.
It would take 92 hours—nearly four days—to fully activate.
During that time, the compass would register all the major places Kent had ever visited and the locations it could access. He could open a portal to any of these places with just a single tap.
With the activation underway, Kent decided to focus on something else while waiting for the 92 hours to reach.
He had already given the skills they had purchased to the ladies on their way home. While he would have loved to spend time with them during the wait, he knew they would be very busy.
Of course, he was well aware that the moment he entered the god realm, he and Vexthra would have a rather long three-day marathon. He was looking forward to that.
Once everything was set, Kent placed the bead down and began absorbing the essence to boost his soul cultivation while waiting for the compass to activate.
Right now, he was driven by the desire to grow stronger. Part of this stemmed from the scene he had seen in the video—he wanted that strength.
For someone destined to go against a god, Kent knew that, with or without memories of his past self, he would soon become a monster.
Fortunately, he had the tower, which held everything he needed to become who he was meant to be. Without even realizing it, Kent had already begun walking the path.
With Spiritual Qi and Soul Cultivation already underway, the next step would be tempering his body and embarking on Body Cultivation.
His path was set, and a new Chaos Lord would soon be born.