Seeing Helen approach, Lay’mel stumbled backward. His foot caught on a protruding stone and he fell on his ass. “Wha… what?!?! No! You d-don’t understand! I have plenty more information! P-p-plenty! Without me identifying the various Pinnacle Seekers, there is a significant chance of biting off more than you can chew!”

“Didn’t you just say that many of them are reclusive and they kill to protect their own? How is it possible that you have information on which individuals are powerful when they hide themselves so well?” Randidly waved his hand airily. “Better to rely on my own instincts. But thank you very much for your previous assistance, Lay’mel. The primer was useful.”

“B-b-b-b-b-b-but…” Lay’mel began to squeak as Helen flicked her wrist and produced a gleaming spear. Even when she didn’t activate her Domain, the air around Helen’s spear darkened to scarlet. Although Randidly would have previously claimed that it was impossible, Lay’mel grew even paler.

Meanwhile, Kerwin crept over toward Randidly and spoke in a low whisper. “Uh… sir, am I still supposed to protect this man… if you are the one attacking him?”

Randidly’s mouth twitched. Still, he now possessed an evolved Control Stat; he was just barely able to keep his face stern in the face of Kerwin’s innocent comment. Nearby, his mount attempted to chew on a stone and spat it out in disgust. Randidly kept his eyes frosty as he looked over toward Lay’mel. Seeing that Lay’mel’s arrogance had once again been dispelled, Randidly nodded to Helen. Snorting, she spun the spear and put it away as Randidly turned to look at the nearby wall.

Honestly, Randidly was torn over whether to proceed deeper into this maze of isolated space. On the one hand, the Nether King and Commandant Wick were only the tip of the iceberg of powerful individuals who would also be heading toward the core area to involve themselves. These Pinnacle Seekers were undoubtedly rushing there in droves. Plus, the deeper Randidly proceeded, the more likely it was that he would need to reveal his true ability to survive. Not that he was adamant about luring the Swacc Family to waste its manpower in a trap, but it had been one of his goals.

On the other hand, there was his promise to Raymund to investigate Techetadore. Plus, Shal had appeared and was somewhere within these folden boxes of space. Then there was the possibility that proceeding would provide him with understanding regarding the mysterious Pinnacle and the esoteric elements that could take an individual there.

And also…

Randidly’s hands itched. Something aggressive and primal drove him forward, beyond the cerebral motivations. With all this new power, after having to completely shed his previous cells to handle the amount of energy he now wielded, even he wasn’t sure about his limits. He wanted to test himself.

“Well, I suppose at the very least you’ll be useful for identifying the NLC forces,” Randidly said coldly while Lay’mel shivered. Then he turned away. “Alright, no more playing around. Let’s get going.”

The group of six, Randidly, DiOrtho, Raymund, Helen, Kerwin, and Lay’mel (once Kerwin helped him to his feet), rapidly moved to the edge of the isolated space. The strange combination of incompatible Aether and Nether sizzled and burned as it was forced into a flat plane. Still fascinated by the construction, Randidly paused for a brief time and examined the barrier before he pressed his hand up against it.

With his Grim Intuition, Randidly found the bridge that led deeper into the maze. But before he pressed forward, he paused and examined himself. Deep within his Soulspace, the Grim Chimera was gradually digesting all of the Skills that it had devoured. In the process of refinement, the shards of images were gradually being incorporated into the Grim Chimera. They spread throughout its body, forming a strange sort of natural array.

Randidly was rather surprised to discover that the array within the Grim Chimera was reminiscent of a Nether Core. The image wasn’t actually making a Nether Core, but rather it was incorporating the efficient flow of energy through a Nether Core into its body. The process was slow, but already thin threads of life force were running through it, quite like blood.

However, Randidly couldn’t help but be slightly disappointed as he looked at the energy flows. This will definitely make the Grim Chimera stronger… and soon it will finish with the digestion and the combat capabilities will be restored. But… it appears that the Skillset won’t be able to immediately evolve into a higher Rarity. The seeds were planted and the fertilizer is abundant, but I’ll still need a spark of necessity to take that next step…

Randidly shook his head to settle himself. Honestly, it was quite greedy to both hope to revolutionize his Status screen and also evolve one of his images. After all, his images were the culmination of years of labor within the System. Although he wasn’t yet able to take that next step, he was at least building up momentum. Accumulation would eventually carry him where he wanted to go.

And Randidly didn’t doubt that he would encounter enough foes as he investigated this maze to give him a push in the right direction. His metal hand clenched into a fist. In the next instant, he manipulated the Aether and Nether in front of him and his group appeared in the next isolated space.

With his Nether Sensation, Randidly had already realized that the next location was a dense forest that was lightly populated with Nether Beasts. He glanced over his shoulder at the others and gestured sharply. “We proceed directly forward; no playing around. Kerwin, try your best to keep up.”

The Lancer nodded. Randidly stood still for a second after he turned to look forward. Partially it was to allow his Skill Ripple of Amenonuhoko to activate and create the trademark wiggling lines in the air in front of him, but the other part was to take full advantage of the secondary ability of Dreadful Alacrity. After a period of stillness, his acceleration would receive a frightful boost for a short amount of time.

Meanwhile, Randidly adjusted his mentality. Right now… I am the spear. And… heh, what a throwback… and a spear always advances.

Congratulations! Your Skill Conviction of the Celestial Cataclysm (T) has grown to Level 393!

Randidly’s emerald eyes glowed. For a split second, his aura flickered and morphed. For a split second, he took a step toward fooling the universe around him. He wavered between his humanity and the cold implacability of an instrument of war. He stepped forward, immediately accelerating to a speed that blasted the surrounding area with a sonic boom. He had chosen his moment perfectly, so the wiggling line of his Skill briefly aligned into a straight path. Randidly cleaved perfectly along that line as he raced forward.

But only after a few steps, Randidly planted his foot with enough force to crack the ground and gradually slowed. While his first movement had carried him across twenty meters, his deceleration was finished in only three meters. Yet after Randidly stopped himself, the phenomenon he had initiated continued rapidly forward.

RUMMMMMBLLLLLEEEEEE!

Congratulations! Your Skill Ripple of Amenonuhoko (M) has grown to Level 337!

Congratulations! Your Skill Ripple of Amenonuhoko (M) has grown to Level 338!

Congratulations! Your Skill Ripple of Amenonuhoko (M) has grown to Level 339!

While Randidly now stood calmly in place, the ground in front of him ruptured and cracked. For a brief instant, he had been a spear and activated his new spearmanship that could control the natural forces of the environment. The ground in front of him was obliterated and cleared as though he had unleashed a freight train and strapped a bulldozer to the front of it.

Trees were smashed to kindling as the attack raced forward. Friction from the immense speed ignited the broken shards of wood as they were sent tumbling through the air so that the attack seemed to be riding a wave of fire. No sooner had the unfortunate Nether Beasts in the attack’s path noticed the approaching destruction than they had been ground up and obliterated by the constant churn of debris.

Over the next several seconds, the attack rushed forward and crossed the entirety of the isolated space. The destruction only ceased when the attack finally reached the other side and crashed helplessly against the barrier of Aether and Nether. In its wake, a smoldering but cleared path now existed.

Despite the powerful display, only Lay’mel was left slack-jawed. The others just accepted Randidly’s capability as something normal and followed quickly after Randidly down the cleared avenue. Even Kerwin seemed unaffected.

His goal had been accomplished, but Randidly viewed the demonstration rather sourly. With his Grim Intuition, everything within the isolated space was within his view. Which was why he could easily determine the exact parameters of the clearing he had created. Although the path was almost exactly five meters across for the entire isolated space...

Damnit, why the hell did the attack lean slightly to the left?!? Randidly scowled at the ground as they rushed forward. After crossing a kilometer, the final result was only half a meter to the side, but still… I was sure the moving line was completely straight…

Fuck, is 2392 Fidelity of the Ascendant Moirae still not enough…? Bah, the stronger I get, the more I realize how crazy powerful people in the Nexus can get. Most probably aren’t anywhere close to my Stats, but with how long they’ve been alive, just how high has their Skill Levels climbed…?

Still, his frustration vanished as soon as the group reached the other side. With the huge display of power, even the typically aggressive Nether Beasts had left them alone. Randidly pressed his hand up against the barrier and closed his eyes to sense the situation on the other side. Humming to himself, Randidly opened his eyes back up and looked behind him.

“Looks like there are two paths forward from this point. One will require us to cut through additional spaces… but the other travels through a space that has been dominated by Nether forces. Hard to say which is faster.” Randidly paused and tapped his finger against the spatial wall, sending pulsing waves through the material. “Any opinions?”

Helen snorted. DiOrtho’s eyes briefly glowed. Raymund cracked his knuckles.

After looking around carefully, Lay’mel said. “Ah… perhaps the more roundabout route-”

“Seems you’ve been outvoted,” Randidly said with a devilish grin. Again, he activated the energy in front of them and teleported them to the next area.

Congratulations! Your Skill Left Hand of the Nether Oracle (M) has grown to Level 246!

Congratulations! Your Skill Lesser Aether Inoculation (M) has grown to Level 185!