Episode 159

Zeke studied the simulation results with a serious expression.

“Why were the points allocated so heavily to fully developed passive skills? The areas that actually needed improvement, like skill proficiency and summon growth, didn’t receive any at all.”

Defeating magical monsters or beasts grants Karma Points.

Up until now, the Karma Points Zeke had received were rewards from the system.

Upon closer inspection, he realized that the experience points necessary for ability growth were set to distribute automatically.

This was due to the emergency rollback he initiated, which activated a temporary administrator mode.

“At least I figured it out now, but it’s a shame about all the points I’ve wasted.”

Zeke ran the distribution simulation again, setting the points to be allocated in the most effective way.

Among other settings, there was an option to convert system reward points into experience points, or vice versa.

While sacrificing experience points could yield more Karma Points, useful for unlocking new skills or using the shop, it wouldn’t enhance the proficiency of already unlocked skills.

Thus, Zeke decided to leave the reward points as they were and only adjust the ratio of experience points.

The area he prioritized for growth was none other than “Spiritual Power.”

“So, raising the soul’s caliber meant increasing this stat.”

Spiritual Power, simply put, seemed to refer to the strength of the soul.

The Soul Technique Zeke used drew upon the power of the soul to manifest his will into reality.

In other words, the stronger his Spiritual Power, the more potent his Soul Techniques would become.

Moreover, there was another reason to enhance his Spiritual Power, something he had just discovered.

“The dragon skills operate on Spiritual Power?”

Until now, he had assumed dragon skills functioned like active skills, powered by mana from the core.

However, the manual revealed that the potency of dragon skills was more closely tied to the Spiritual Power stat.

Zeke recalled how the dragon’s claw had inflicted an incurable wound on a demon.

It seemed that because the technique operated on the power of the soul, it could damage the very soul of a demon.

With the Abyssal forces allied with Abel continuously summoning demons and beasts through contracts, boosting the Spiritual Power stat, which could directly impact souls, became a top priority.

Zeke finished setting the point distribution and moved on to the summon management settings.

The screen displayed holographic images of the summons Zeke had registered.

By swiping his hand, he could view the next summon.

“System, show me the full list of summons.”

In response, the entire roster of Zeke’s summons appeared before him.

Bucephalus, Gurav, Nahuel, Richmond, the Dragon Knights, and even the dormant Guardians were displayed in 3D.

Zeke selected Nahuel to review the management list.

As he browsed, he found the feature he was looking for.

“Here it is. Summon growth and evolution.”

While experience could be automatically allocated to summons, it was also possible to use Karma Points to enhance their rank or skills.

Zeke checked Nahuel’s growth experience.

To evolve into a divine beast, more Karma Points, skill proficiency, and Spiritual Power were required.

“So, it’s not just about giving Karma Points to trigger evolution.”

The same applied to the other summons, with one exception: Richmond.

“Richmond can grow by absorbing necromancer items or the power of undead dragon-type monsters.”

Richmond was a unique undead monster that had become Zeke’s summon after mixing with the bones of a lowly dragon type, so its growth method differed from typical summons.

After finishing the summon management settings, Zeke reviewed his equipment list.

He focused on the Bahamut, Teia’s Hersion, the Orichalcum Sword, and the Unsteel Sword that sealed Arataso.

When Zeke selected the Orichalcum Sword, a message window appeared.

[You can register and manage equipment by assigning a name.]

“Assign a name?”

Except for Bahamut, he hadn’t named any of his weapons.

“Since I’m the only one who can use this sword right now… and the princess did mention it, I might as well name it and use it.”

Zeke pondered for a moment before a name came to him.

“Roland, the Holy Knight.”

When the Luvern Dynasty rose to become the Holy Empire, Roland Durandal, who led the twelve Arch Paladins and commanded the Holy Knights, was the one who contributed the most.

Known widely through the epic “The Song of Roland,” he was considered the most knightly knight since the dragon slayer Terracan Draker.

Zeke named the Orichalcum Sword, imbued with the power of the Arch Paladins, after Roland Durandal.

[Registering the equipment as ‘Roland.’]

As the message appeared, the Orichalcum Sword materialized before Zeke, glowing brightly and floating in the air.

Zeke grasped the radiant holy sword, Roland.

Simultaneously, another message window popped up.

[Roland has been registered as equipment.]

[Roland’s durability is at 82%.]

[It is advisable to repair it if the durability falls below 60%.]

[Roland’s stats can be enhanced through ‘Reinforcement.’]

[Check the list of materials needed for equipment enhancement and upgrade to a higher-grade weapon.]

“Upgrade to a higher grade?”

Zeke was surprised but pleased as he checked the list of materials.

“Unsteel, mithril, blessed holy water? Why do I need gold and jewels?”

There were several other minor materials required as well.

At this rate, it seemed the sword would become incredibly ornate.

Imagining himself wielding such a dazzling weapon, Zeke shook his head.

“Hmm, I’ll need to visit Atlas to gather these materials.”

While some materials could be purchased from the shop using Karma Points, he intended to save points and gather what he could on his own.

Next, Zeke examined the Unsteel Sword.

[The current equipment is in a sealed state.]

With the demon Arataso sealed inside using soul-binding techniques, the sword’s information was not active.

Then another message appeared.

[The stats of sealed equipment can be enhanced through ‘Reinforcement.’]

“Enhance the stats of sealed equipment?”

Like with Roland, Zeke checked the enhancement list for the Unsteel Sword.

It required several rare materials, including fairy stones.

“I’ll have to gather these while collecting materials for Roland’s enhancement.”

Since he might face more demons like Arataso in the future, crafting and enhancing sealed equipment was crucial.

After the Unsteel Sword, Zeke also checked the information on Bahamut and Teia’s Hersion.

Both were currently in a sealed state, so there was nothing to enhance or upgrade.

“I can allocate Karma Points, but I’m not sure how much growth that will yield.”

Teia’s Hersion also required an authentication code from Teia’s temple to unlock all its sealed functions.

Finally, Zeke reviewed his skill information.

The screen changed, displaying Zeke’s skills connected like a tree trunk.

“Wow, what is this?”

Zeke gaped at his skill tree.

Some skills were linked to titles, while others were standalone.

“The title ‘Dragon’s Chosen’ and dragon skills are linked.”

The title ‘Dragon’s Chosen,’ Dragon’s Eye, Dragon’s Majesty, and Dragon Scale Armor were interconnected.

Most dragon skills were grouped together, except for one skill that stood alone.

“Why is the Devour skill separate?”

The Devour skill was the only one without any linked skills, existing independently on the tree.

Though it was odd, Zeke didn’t fully understand the structure, and given the skill’s overpowered nature, he let it be.

Zeke examined the skills in the tree that weren’t fully connected yet.

“The newly acquired Solar Golden Swordsmanship and Infinite Chain Technique are linked.”

The Rooted Dragon Swordsmanship, Dragon Slayer Technique, and Gale Technique were also grouped together.

In the case of Rooted Dragon Swordsmanship, it was linked with the Dragon Slayer Technique and Gale Technique, affecting each other’s skill proficiency.

In other words, as the proficiency of Rooted Dragon Swordsmanship increased, so did the proficiency of the Dragon Slayer Technique and Gale Technique.

On the other hand, the Solar Golden Swordsmanship and Infinite Chain Technique were connected, but the Infinite Chain Technique wasn’t registered as a skill yet.

“It seems I haven’t fully mastered the Infinite Chain Technique yet.”

Similarly, the Rooted Dragon Swordsmanship was only registered after mastering all its forms and increasing proficiency, and the Soul Technique was registered as a skill only after successfully performing a double spell.

To officially register the Infinite Chain Technique as a skill, it seemed Zeke needed to train it to a certain level.

By examining the interconnected skill tree, Zeke could easily identify his areas of weakness.

“Soul Binding Technique can be linked with Soul Technique. I haven’t been using it properly because its proficiency is too low.”

Since he primarily focused on swordsmanship, he had mostly used the Soul Binding Technique as a supplementary tool to restrain demons.

However, since it was a technique left by Terracan Draker and related to his own Soul Technique, it seemed it could be more useful.

Zeke planned his future training while looking at the skill window.

Once he returned to Atlas, he intended to focus on filling in his gaps through rigorous training.

Having reviewed the skill window, Zeke decided it was too much to check all the other detailed functions here, so he closed the system window for now.

“The system’s structure is more complex than I thought. It’ll take quite some time to fully understand it.”

What still bothered him was that he had no idea what the true nature of this system was.

Understanding how he became the administrator of the Kabbalah System through the Elder Dragon’s relic was one thing, but the real mysteries remained unsolved.

He didn’t even know what the Kabbalah System truly was.

“Who created this system, and for what purpose? I can’t make heads or tails of it.”

The system’s capabilities were far too advanced to have been crafted by humans.

Yet, it seemed overly cumbersome for dragons to use directly.

Dragons were born as the mightiest beings. They had no need for systems or skills.

They could wield miraculous magic as easily as breathing, so why would they bother with such a complicated process?

Then, a thought struck Zeke.

“Did dragons create it for humans?”

Kaishir had once said that humans were the most beloved by dragons.

If the system was designed by dragons as a means for weaker humans to grow stronger, the cumbersome nature of it all made sense.

Zeke recalled a memory from the past.

“Terrakan could see the system interface too. He even used the secure archives.”

Based on the information Zeke had, the most plausible theory was that dragons granted system access to their human contractors.

If that were true, it would explain how Terrakan Draker could control defense bases or battle colossal beasts and dragons as an Immortal class.

In fact, Zeke had been forcibly transported here while searching for relics Terrakan had hidden, lending some credibility to the theory.

“And if the creator of this system was the ‘Elder Dragon’…”

Zeke had first acquired the system by obtaining the Elder Dragon’s relic.

Both Arthur Draker, who explored these ruins, and the Emperor of the Empire had gone to great lengths to find the ‘Elder Dragon’s relic.’

Though it didn’t grant immortality, if their goal was to gain the system administrator’s powers Zeke now possessed, it made some sense.

“When I first regressed, it was said that the Elder Dragon’s spirit merged with mine, activating the system.”

Piecing together the fragmented information, a clearer picture began to form.

Zeke nodded to himself and slowly rose from his seat.

“If my spiritual power increases and my soul’s rank rises, I might advance from a mid-level to a high-level administrator. Then I could uncover more information.”

Holding onto unsolved mysteries wasn’t particularly helpful for progress.

Zeke decided to focus on what he could do now and unravel the mysteries of the Kabbalah System gradually.

He discreetly checked the map to see if he could use a portal to leave the area.

“Oh, I can open a portal. Perfect.”

Spending 100 Karma Points to teleport near the Ice Mountains seemed wiser than risking detection by the Black Stage.

Zeke dismissed Bucephalus and promptly opened the portal.

With a resonant hum, Zeke vanished from the ruins.