[Skill Stone x10]
[Enhancement Stone x7]
With this many stones, Leon didn't even need to hesitate.
This wasn't a small gain anymore, this was a real power spike. Enough to push his skills and equipment far beyond what any normal novice player should be capable of.
And Leon had no intention of saving them. He immediately began using the stones.
First came the skills. He took five [Skill Stones] and focused them on his newest spell: lightning Strike.
Ding!
[Congratulations, you have upgraded "Lightning Strike (Level 1)" to "Lightning Strike (Level 2)"]
A surge of power flowed through him, and Leon could immediately feel the difference. The lightning he summoned felt denser, sharper, more obedient.
Next, he used three more stones on his main spell: Strong Fireball.
Ding!
[Congratulations, you have upgraded "Strong Fireball (Level 3)" to "Strong Fireball (Level 4)"]
The heat in his core intensified. His fire had always been reliable, but now it felt heavier, like it carried real destructive intent instead of just raw flames.
Finally, he used the last two [Skill Stones] on a utility skill that had saved him more times than he could count: Vision Enhancement.
Ding!
[Congratulations, you have upgraded "Vision Enhancement (Level 2)" to "Vision Enhancement (Level 3)"]
Leon opened the description immediately.
[Vision Enhancement (Level 3): Consume a certain amount of Spirit to enhance one's dynamic vision for 60 seconds, 2-minutes cooldown.]
"Perfect."
A full minute. That meant longer fights, clearer tracking, and far more room for error correction.
In fast-paced combat, especially against stronger monsters or skilled opponents, that extra time was priceless.
Leon closed the panel and shifted his attention to the remaining stones.
Seven [Enhancement Stones]. He didn't even consider spreading them around.
"All in on [Sage's Chain]."
An epic-rank item was on a completely different level compared to the rest of his equipment. Upgrading it would give returns that no uncommon or rare item could match.
Leon crushed the stones one by one, focusing all the enhancement energy into the chain around his neck.
Ding!
[You have successfully enhanced your "Sage's Chain"]
[Sage's Chain +2 (Epic): +200 Spirit, -20% Cooldown Reduction.]
Leon inhaled sharply.
"Nice."
The increase was massive. His Spirit surged again, flooding his body with a calm, controlled power.
Even better, the cooldown reduction improved further, letting him use his spells more freely in extended battles.
Upgrading it again would take ten enhancement stones, a ridiculous amount, but even at +2, the chain was already absurdly strong.
Leon felt no regret about his choice. He checked his combat power next.
[Combat Power: 1,036 (+740)]
"…Damn."
He let out a quiet laugh.
At level 6, this number was completely unreasonable. Most players at this stage barely scratched a few hundred combat power.
And Leon? He was already nearing what some level 10 players had in his past life.
"I should be able to go even deeper now."
Leon looked ahead, toward the heart of the [Wild Forest].
Normally, players avoided that area entirely. Once someone reached level 10, they were forced to advance to the next stage of [Eternal Ascension], meaning there was very little incentive to risk death by pushing too far early.
But Leon wasn't normal. And more importantly, this was his second life.
He knew what waited ahead. He knew the races, the factions, the enemies.
And he knew what would happen if he let them grow unchecked.
'Since I'm stronger now,' Leon thought as he began moving again, 'I can kill them before they become a problem.'
In his past life, many beings from other races allied themselves with gods or higher existences. That single choice allowed them to skyrocket in power, and eventually, they turned that power against everything.
Leon wouldn't let that happen again.
If he wanted to survive, and protect the few people he actually cared about, then this was necessary.
He pushed forward without slowing down.
Soon, the forest changed.
The air grew heavier. The trees thickened, their trunks darker, their shadows deeper.
Leon had entered the level 8 area.
And the moment he stepped forward—
BOOM!
A spell slammed into him.
Leon was pushed back half a step as a barrier flared around his body, the defensive skill of the [Purple Jade Necklace] activating automatically.
He immediately turned toward the source. An [Elemental Bear].
"…?"
The bear stared at him, clearly shocked that its attack hadn't killed the human instantly.
Leon raised an eyebrow.
The bear growled and began gathering energy again.
Leon smiled.
"Perfect timing."
Lightning Strike!
He pointed his arm forward.
In an instant, lightning condensed around his hand, forming a sharp, crackling bolt before launching forward.
Zap!
The lightning struck the bear squarely, electricity coursing through its massive body.
The bear froze mid-motion. Stunned.
Slash!
Leon closed the distance in a blink and cleanly decapitated it before the stun even wore off.
"…Yeah," Leon nodded, satisfied. "This spell's good."
Ding!
[You have killed "Elemental Bear" and gained 70 experience points.]
[100% Drop Rate has triggered, items have been automatically placed in your storage space.]
Leon noticed the experience gain immediately. Lower than before.
When he had killed these bears at level 5, he earned more.
That was how the system worked.
The stronger you became, the less value weaker monsters provided. [Eternal Ascension] didn't reward stagnation, it forced growth.
If you wanted to level efficiently, you had to fight monsters at or above your level.
Leon didn't dislike that. It made sense.
At level 6, he now needed 2,000 experience points to level up. A massive increase compared to before.
He consumed the [Elemental Bear Essence] and continued forward.
On his way deeper into the forest, Leon encountered new monsters.
Among them were level 8 [Dark Turtles].
Thick shells. Slow movement. Extremely high defense.
His fireballs hit them, and did almost nothing.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
Leon clicked his tongue.
Magic was nearly useless against them. Thankfully, his strength wasn't.
He focused his body instead of his spells and stepped in.
Slash!
His blade scraped against the shell at first, but repeated strikes began to crack it.
Slash! Slash!
After a few clean hits, the turtle finally collapsed. The others followed soon after.
Ding!
[You have killed x6 "Dark Turtles" and gained 720 experience points.]
They dropped [Dark Turtle Essence], increasing Constitution by 4, along with several [Dark Shell Shields].
Leon collected them all. After obtaining four shields, he decided to try fusing them.
The first enhancement succeeded. The second failed.
[Dark Shell Shield +2 (Uncommon): +100 Defense, +90 Attack Resistance.]
"Tch."
Leon shrugged. He didn't use shields anyway. Aaron would probably be happy to buy it later.
After that, Leon kept moving.
The forest grew darker. The pressure increased.
And eventually—
He stepped into a massive clearing. The ground was torn apart, trees broken and scorched.
At the center of it all stood a massive figure. A boss.
Leon slowly lifted his gaze, a grin forming on his face.