The Corridor of the Forgotten
The Corridor of the Forgotten.
It was a space located at the very top of Ymir's Spine.
In the ever-reassembling underground of the tower, this was the only place that never changed.
The gate has opened.
The one-eyed giant muttered under his breath.
A sinister light leaked through the gap in his closed eyelids.
Balor—the chieftain of the Fomorians and master of the Evil Eye—had sensed the anomaly.
“Is it the Key of the Netherworld again?”
“Whenever the first Great Erosion occurs, there’s always one or two fools who crawl down here.”
Several Old Gods grumbled in discontent.
The Key of the Netherworld was not an item the Old Gods had intentionally created.
It was a byproduct born during the synchronization process between the tower and the world.
In programming terms, it was essentially a bug.
“There’s not even much to gain by coming here. Why do they keep crawling down?”
“Some of them are after treasures, aren’t they?”
“Most just leave in disappointment.”
The tower’s underground was never designed as a place to be cleared.
It was a prison where the defeated gods of the past—the Old Gods—had been stripped of all rights and cast down.
Neither warm sunlight nor rain that soaked the earth ever reached this place.
It was a world filled with barren desolation.
Though holy relics infused with the power of the Old Gods and powerful weapons were hidden throughout, obtaining them was as difficult as plucking stars from the sky.
“If that bastard starts stirring up trouble in the underground, the Watchers will go on a rampage too.”
“Damn those Constellations.”
“When will the day come when we can repay this humiliation?”
Cerberus.
The Duke Watcher.
Besides them, the eyes and ears of many Constellations monitored the tower’s underground.
They feared that the imprisoned Old Gods might plot to overthrow the society of the current gods.
The increased activity of the Watchers was also a great burden for the Old Gods.
The players who rampaged through the underground.
The society of gods that monitored them.
To the Old Gods, both were thorns in their eyes.
“That’s why I brought this.”
Thud! Thud!
A giant comparable in size to Balor stepped into the corridor.
A chilling cold emanated from his blue skin.
Utgarda-Loki, the King of the Frost Giants, held up a jet-black wooden sword in his palm.
A powerful wave rippled around the blade.
The faces of the Old Gods turned deathly pale.
“What is that ominous sword?”
“A blade that could even erase the starlight of the Constellations?”
“I-it’s Mistilteinn.”
“Where in the world did you obtain such a weapon, O King of Jotunheim!”
Utgarda-Loki grinned.
“Loki.”
The god of deception and fraud.
He shared the same name as the King of the Frost Giants.
“It truly contains a most sinister energy. But… what do you intend to use this sword for…?”
“I’m giving it to a player.”
“You mean one of the players who entered the underground?”
“Correct.”
The demonic sword of ruin, Mistilteinn.
It granted its wielder immense power, but it was a vicious cursed blade that corrupted the mind with madness, turning the user into a slave of the sword.
It was the very blade that had left Baldr—who was said to be Odin’s successor—on the brink of death.
Its whereabouts had been unknown ever since, but in truth, its original owner, Loki, had kept it all along.
“What do you plan to do by giving a demonic sword to a mortal?”
“What else? I’m going to add a simple ritual.”
Utgarda-Loki carved a rune into the blade.
The Rune of Subservience.
Anyone driven mad by Mistilteinn’s influence would unconsciously come to follow the Old Gods.
“Oh… on the day the boundary between the tower and the world collapses, they will become our limbs.”
“As expected of the King of Jotunheim. Your wisdom is truly remarkable.”
The Old Gods were impressed.
Rather than rejecting the players who entered the underground, this was a plan to turn them into pawns for the Old Gods.
It was an idea no one had thought of before.
“I’m looking forward to it. I wonder which player will end up wielding this sword.”
Utgarda-Loki let out a dry laugh.
[You have devoured the essence of the Death Knight.]
[Essence Absorption: 100%]
[Essence Grade: Ancient]
[You have perfectly absorbed the essence of one species.]
[Skill - Dark Fighting Spirit has been added.]
Dark Fighting Spirit
Grade: ★★★
Type: Active
Manifests dark mana into physical form according to the user’s will.
Crackle.
The Death Knight’s skull crumbled into dust.
It was the essence of a monster rarely seen on the surface.
Since I’d come all the way to the tower’s underground, it would’ve been a shame to leave empty-handed, right?
But.
The skill created after devouring the Death Knight’s essence far exceeded my expectations.
“Dark Fighting Spirit, huh.”
Black energy shimmered above my palm.
It was exactly the same dark fighting spirit the Death Knight I had just defeated had used.
This was a first.
I frowned.
Before my regression, I had never been able to devour the essence of an undead.
Therefore, this was also the first time I had extracted a skill from a Death Knight’s essence.
And yet, I had obtained Dark Fighting Spirit.
“Partner, is something wrong?”
“Hm, not so much a problem as… a boon, I’d say.”
Dark Fighting Spirit was a skill that materialized energy, similar to aura or sword energy.
No.
The more accurate term would be ‘enlightenment’ rather than skill.
To materialize energy, one needed enlightenment.
It was precisely why, in the current era, martial artists were considered one step below typical close-combat classes.
To maximize the power of martial arts, enlightenment was essential.
The same applied to Dark Fighting Spirit and aura.
Among close-combat players, those who reached the level known as ‘Aura Master’—considered equal to energy manifestation—had to obtain corresponding enlightenment before they could wield aura.
In short, it wasn’t a skill.
But.
“Dark Fighting Spirit just activates on its own.”
Even I, before my regression, had only been able to materialize energy or release sword energy after gaining enlightenment.
I had never obtained a skill related to enlightenment through Devour.
The Death Knight’s Dark Fighting Spirit was a massive variable that broke that rule.
“How strange.”
“Right?”
“What I wish to point out is thy own thinking.”
“Why are you suddenly talking about my thoughts?”
“Why dost thou set limits on thyself when even thou dost not know the true extent of thy power?”
Because I’m a regressor, so of course I know.
I almost blurted out my inner thoughts.
“You have a point.”
I brushed Nyx off with a vague answer and set aside the doubts that had risen in my mind.
Now wasn’t the time.
The new possibility of Devour I had discovered after absorbing the Death Knight’s essence.
It was worth researching further once I left the underground.
Setting aside the new aspect of Devour I had uncovered.
Dark Fighting Spirit wasn’t particularly useful to me right now.
I had already reached the realm of Energy Projection.
Since I could already materialize energy, its role overlapped with Dark Fighting Spirit.
When I used Energy Projection, Dark Fighting Spirit wouldn’t even activate.
If I had to choose between the two, internal energy was obviously superior.
Its destructive power was one level higher.
And with the True Cintamani, I would almost never run out of internal energy.
Unless it was for defense, perhaps.
Dark Fighting Spirit
Crackle-crackle!
Dark Fighting Spirit covered the silver-gray armor.
“It does have its own advantages.”
Unlike Body Reinforcement, which could only be used in a limited defensive form, Dark Fighting Spirit could be shaped according to my will.
In terms of versatility, Dark Fighting Spirit was superior.
“Hmm, operating two energies of different natures at the same time must be difficult, no?”
“I’ll just have to train more.”
To use Dark Fighting Spirit, I had to convert mana into dark mana first.
If I wanted to deploy both the Metal Reflection Gloves and Dark Fighting Spirit simultaneously, I would need to operate mana and dark mana at the same time.
And that wasn’t all.
If I used martial arts in battle, I would also need to operate internal energy.
Handling three completely different types of energy perfectly in a high-pressure situation would require tremendous effort.
Even if a skill was added through Devour, it was still up to my will to activate it.
Another thing I had gained was a new application for Body of Darkness.
The increased range of essence theft.
The term ‘essence’ included the Devour ability itself.
It meant I could use Devour through the Polar Night I had assimilated with the Body of Darkness.
“Thanks to that, I don’t have to touch the corpses one by one anymore.”
If I could use Devour simultaneously on multiple targets, I could save time and use it strategically even in the middle of battle.
I had gained quite a lot from this trip to the tower’s underground.
In that case.
Shall I go fulfill Daphne’s request now?
Ymir’s Spine.
It was the pillar that supported the tower’s underground.
“Mister, put your hand here.”
“Like this?”
I placed my hand on the pillar as Coni instructed.
Thanks to having eaten the skin of an Old God, touching it wasn’t a problem.
“Next, think of a number in your head. For the third floor, think three.”
Three…
The moment I thought that, a bright light burst from Ymir’s Spine and enveloped my entire body.
It felt like riding a roller coaster.
Right after being swallowed by Ymir’s Spine, I moved at a speed so fast I couldn’t even twitch a finger.
It wasn’t spatial teleportation—it was pure physical movement.
If it had been an ordinary person, their entire body would have been crushed and pulverized during the process.
A moment later.
A powerful repulsive force pushed against my back.
I didn’t resist the force and took a step forward.
Tower Underground, Floor 3.
Just like the first floor, it was a bleak space wrapped in darkness.
“Kek!”
Coni vomited gastric juice.
When I used a healing spell to restore his energy, he looked at me as if I were a monster.
“Are you okay, Mister?”
“Other than my stomach feeling a bit queasy.”
“Ughhh, this is why I hate riding the spine.”
As soon as we reached the third floor, a green energy began swirling above the leaves.
The arrow-shaped energy pointed beyond the darkness.
“Coni, you can head back to the village now.”
“Why?”
“I can just follow the arrow for guidance. If it gets dangerous, I won’t be able to protect you too.”
Because of the mission Daphne had given me, I had skipped the second floor entirely.
If something happened to this guy, I wouldn’t have anyone to guide me anymore.
“Hehe. If that’s the reason, then I refuse.”
An unexpected answer.
I glanced at Coni with a questioning look.
“Following you around has been pretty fun.”
“Fine. But take care of your own safety.”
“Hehehe. I’m a resident of this place too. That’s basic common sense.”
Our group slowly moved in the direction the arrow pointed.
During the journey, we occasionally encountered Duke Watchers.
When there was only one, I crushed it head-on without hiding.
When there were multiple, I used Body of Darkness and Steps of Night simultaneously and took them down with a surprise attack.
But.
“I can’t beat that one.”
The watcher of the underworld.
When I spotted the three-headed dog, Cerberus, I moved while holding my breath.
A divine beast that transcended spiritual creatures.
It was a powerful monster on par with an S-rank Constellation.
Even Daphne, who had given me this mission, probably wouldn’t stand a chance against Cerberus.
After walking for some time.
A desert covered in sand appeared before us.
The arrow spun round and round in place.
This seemed to be the territory of ‘Apophis’ that Daphne had mentioned.
“Then let’s begin the snake hunt.”
The serpent that devours the sun.
In this underground expedition, I would be able to devour the essence of a monster I hadn’t even considered.
My eyes gleamed with greed.