Chapter 40: Final Preparations

—–

It looks like all that hunting paid off. That’s a lot of Levels—and far more System Points than I expected, not to mention Stat Points. I should check them now, before I face my hardest battle yet.

Since my Inventory had been full for a while, I decided to expand it first. I spent some System Points to raise it to 50 slots, giving me more than enough space for all the materials around me and anything else I might need.

Ding!

[You have exchanged 1,500,000 System Points.]

[You have expanded your Inventory: 20 → 50!]

“Alright, now that that’s done, what’s next?” I wondered. “Astraea, what do you suggest I buy with the System Points? What’s available?”

[You could purchase more skills and similar abilities,] she explained. [Or you could directly level up existing skills and evolve them, though that usually costs more System Points than normal.]

“Hmm. I need to prepare for the next fight,” I said. “Judging by the immense heat pouring from that room, the boss is bound to be far hotter than anything we’ve faced before. I need to strengthen my Ice Affinity. Is there a way? First, show me my current Skill levels.”

♢♢♢♢

<Species Skill Tree>

[Divine Dragon – Tier 5]:

[Dragon Form Manifestation – Tier 1: Level 8/10]
[Small Divine Presence – Tier 1: Level 7/10]
[Baby Dragon Breath – Tier 1: Level 8/10]
[Young Dragon Scales – Tier 1: Level 8/10]
[Newborn Draconic Vitality – Tier 1: Level 8/10]

[Chaos Demon – Tier 3]:

[Miasma Veins – Tier 1: Level 7/10]
[Lesser Demonic Aura – Tier 1: Level 6/10]
[Small Corruption Touch – Tier 1: Level 6/10]
[Demon Claw – Tier 1: Level 4/10]

[Human – Tier 1]:

[Tool Mastery – Tier 1: Level 8/10]
[Adaptive Learning – Tier 1: Level 4/10]

<Class Skill Tree>

[Rogue – Tier 1]:

[Stealth – Tier 1: Level 8/10]
[Knife Throwing – Tier 1: Level 10/10]

<Elemental Magic Affinity Skill Trees>

[Harmony – SSS Rank]:

[Harmonious Restoration – Tier 1: Level 5/10]
[Light of Harmony – Tier 1: Level 5/10]

[Chaos – SSS Rank]:

[Disrupting Chaos – Tier 1: Level 5/10]
[Chaotic Miasma – Tier 1: Level 4/10]

[Ice – S Rank]:

[Sorrowful Ice Garden – Tier 1: Level 7/10]
[Icicle Formation – Tier 1: Level 6/10]

[Fire – S Rank]:

[Origin Flames – Tier 1: Level 9/10]

[Water – S Rank]:

[Spirit Soul Sea – Tier 1: Level 3/10]

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

[Nightmare – A Rank]:

[Living Darkness – Tier 1: Level 4/10]
[Nightmare Thorn Domain – Tier 1: Level 3/10]

<Others>

[Spiralwalker Abilities]:

[Nebula of Memories – Tier 9: Level 9/10]

[Cultivation Methods]:

[Dragon Soul Refining Method – Rank 3]
[Ascendancy Law Divinity Refinement Method – Rank 8]

♢♢♢♢

“Huh, Knife Throwing reached max level? And it was the first one to do so. Is that because I kept spamming it?”

[Yes. You received a notification, but you ignored it during the fight. I can’t blame you, Master. Still, the Skill’s power has increased dramatically now that it’s maxed out. Have you noticed?]

“You’re right. I can manipulate the summoned knives more easily now and fuse them into stronger forms. They explode with greater force and deal significantly more damage…”

[You should start by evolving this Skill. Since it’s only a Tier 1 Class Skill, it will cost 500,000 System Points.]

“F-Five hundred thousand?!”

The number left me stunned. Wasn’t that a little too expensive?

[Yes. Evolving Skills puts a heavy strain on my core, so I need substantial energy. System Points are like sustenance to me—both food and fuel. The greater the task, the more I require. That is simply how the Andromeda System was designed, and I am its daughter.]

“I understand. Go ahead. It’s not like we have a better option right now.”