Slash—
A flash of cold steel.
Blood splattered as a goblin collapsed into a pool of red.
Around the area were several other bloodstains. It was clear a battle had just taken place.
And the one responsible for it all was Cao Ye.
After obtaining Falna and awakening a skill, he couldn't resist coming to test his new power.
"My overall strength has increased a lot… not just that. My strength, speed, and reaction time have all improved. So this is what super-domain enhancement feels like."
Cao Ye couldn't help but sigh in amazement.
In the past, he had struggled desperately in the Dungeon just to gain small improvements.
But now…
Simply receiving Falna and awakening a skill had boosted his power dramatically.
The dual enhancement of soul and body, and at a super-domain level at that.
The improvement was enormous.
And on top of that—
He now had immunity to negative effects.
Meaning poison and similar conditions wouldn't affect him.
It was incredibly convenient.
But Cao Ye also discovered something interesting.
The Falna system and his original powers functioned like two separate status panels.
Both belonged to him, but they were independent systems.
It was like a game character with two separate character sheets, stacked on top of each other without interfering.
That was extremely good news.
Even if one day something happened to Freya, causing his Falna to disappear…
He wouldn't suddenly become weak.
Falna was powerful—it could unlock human potential and even create miracles like skills.
But it also had a major flaw.
Just like how Devil Fruit users fear seawater, Falna was a power granted by a god.
If that god was forced to return to heaven, the Falna would disappear too.
In this world, gods were immortal.
But they could still be sent back to the heavens if they suffered fatal injuries.
If that happened, their children would temporarily lose their Falna.
Another god could later unlock it again.
But what if enemies attacked during that period?
That would be disastrous.
Now, Cao Ye didn't have to worry about that.
Even without Falna, he still possessed strong power through his system abilities.
His future looked bright.
"Hm…"
Holding the magic stone he had just obtained, Cao Ye absorbed the magic inside.
The energy flowed into his body.
The sensation was so pleasant it felt almost like ascending to heaven.
A few seconds later, the process ended.
The magic stone had turned into a transparent crystal, its energy completely drained.
"Good thing Freya gave me that crystal card," Cao Ye muttered.
Money was necessary anywhere.
Magic stones were extremely valuable to him, so he couldn't exchange them for valis.
And monster drop materials didn't sell for much.
That was why he had previously lived in District Three, the slums.
His meals often consisted of black rye bread, whose taste he would never forget.
Crack… crack…
Suddenly, faint sounds came from the surrounding walls.
Cao Ye looked over.
Monsters were spawning.
In the Dungeon, all monsters were born from the Dungeon itself.
The Dungeon also repaired its own damage.
And around injured or weakened adventurers, monsters tended to appear more frequently.
Because of these phenomena, adventurers had come to suspect that the Dungeon might actually be alive.
The Dungeon hated humans and gods.
Any human entering it would be attacked relentlessly by monsters.
If a god entered the Dungeon…
The Dungeon would go into a frenzy and create powerful black monsters specifically to kill the god.
Right now, Cao Ye was on the 6th floor of the Dungeon.
The monsters here were no longer just goblins.
A dark creature appeared.
Its body looked like a living shadow, with a round face and glowing eyes like lamps.
Its limbs were thin and long, and its hands ended in sharp claws.
It looked like a standing shadow.
A War Shadow.
A monster that appeared in the upper floors of the Dungeon.
It was often called a "newbie killer."
Its incredible speed made it difficult for beginner adventurers to track.
Many inexperienced fighters died because they couldn't react fast enough.
Its claws could easily tear through armor, posing a deadly threat.
Another reason beginners died was overconfidence.
After easily defeating goblins on the earlier floors, many adventurers began to feel arrogant.
Then they encountered a War Shadow—
And died.
Whoosh—
The War Shadow suddenly attacked.
Cao Ye reacted a bit too slowly and was scratched.
Several claw marks appeared on his shoulder.
He glanced at the wound.
It hurt—but it wasn't serious.
Within his tolerance.
Even if he traded injuries with the monster, he could still win.
After all, he wasn't a normal human.
Clang—
The War Shadow attacked again.
This time Cao Ye was ready.
He thrust his sword forward.
The claws pierced his arm—
But his blade also pierced the War Shadow.
Boom.
The monster exploded into black smoke and vanished.
"Damn… that hurts."
Cao Ye shook his arm.
"I still don't know how to fight properly."
"My style is basically just street fighting… except now I'm stronger and faster."
He had never trained in combat before.
Half a month of survival in the Dungeon had only improved his instincts and reaction speed.
True combat techniques were still unfamiliar to him.
As he complained about the pain, the wounds on his body began healing rapidly.
Within moments, his arm returned to normal.
His rapid regeneration was terrifying.
Even severed limbs could regrow if he had enough magic power.
He knew that from experience.
On his first day in the Dungeon, he had actually lost an arm.
Yes.
Because he underestimated goblins, one of them had bitten his arm clean off.
At that moment he thought he would bleed to death.
But then something unbelievable happened.
New flesh began growing from the stump.
Within half an hour, new tissue had formed.
By the next morning, his arm had completely regenerated.
It was horrifying.
That experience became the foundation for his reckless fighting style.
Trading injuries for victory.
Without that regeneration ability, only a fool would fight like that.
But with it—
Cao Ye could afford to be fearless.