After acquiring this new sub-talent, Leon didn't hesitate for even a second.
He immediately pulled out the remaining scrolls from his storage space and stared at them.
Five more [Darkness Control] sub-talent scrolls floated before him, each one pulsing faintly with dark energy.
If he could fuse them successfully, his strength would rise again.
Sub-talents were different from skills and equipment. They didn't have levels. They didn't grow naturally over time. The only way to improve them was through fusion, and fusion was never guaranteed.
Leon already knew the risk.
Still, he raised the first scroll and poured his mana into it, guiding it toward his newly acquired sub-talent.
Beep!
[Fusion failed.]
The scroll shattered into nothingness, its darkness dispersing into the air.
Leon didn't react much. He had expected this. He picked up the second scroll and tried again.
Beep!
[Fusion failed.]
The third one followed shortly after.
Beep!
[Fusion failed.]
"…Wow, okay."
Leon exhaled slowly, rubbing his forehead.
He wasn't surprised, but three failures in a row still stung a little.
The higher the rank, the lower the success rate. A failure meant the material was gone forever.
Still, stopping now made no sense.
He focused his mind again and activated the fourth scroll.
This time, the darkness didn't disperse immediately. Instead, it twisted, merged, and sank into his body.
Ding!
[Fusion successful.]
[You have evolved "Darkness Control (D-Level)" to "Darkness Manipulation (C-Level).]
Leon felt it instantly.
The darkness around him didn't feel foreign anymore. It no longer pressed against his skin like an external force. Instead, it flowed naturally, as if it acknowledged his presence.
[Darkness Manipulation (C-Level): The darkness blends with your being, darkness-based attacks deal much less damage to you, and you may learn skills related to it.]
"Hm."
Leon examined the description calmly.
Element-type sub-talents were terrifying when used correctly. They could define entire builds and allow people to dominate specific environments or opponents.
But this wasn't something Leon had planned for.
He wasn't specializing in darkness, and he didn't particularly favor it either. For now, its usefulness was limited.
Still, it wasn't completely useless. His gaze shifted to the [Sword of Darkness].
The requirement made it impossible for anyone without a darkness-related skill/sub-talent.
But now? Leon summoned the sword and gripped its hilt.
The darkness wrapped around his hand obediently.
"That's something, at least."
He didn't waste time. He pulled out two of the swords and initiated fusion.
Ding!
[You have consumed two identical equipment… enhancement successful!]
Leon blinked, then smiled faintly.
"Nice. I really thought my bad luck was going to continue."
[Sword of Darkness +2 (Epic): +500 Attack, +300 Strength. Requirement: At least one darkness related skill/sub-talent.]
This sword was undeniably stronger than his current weapon.
For a brief moment, Leon felt a bit of regret. He had spent seven Enhancement Stones upgrading his old sword, and now it was already being replaced.
But regret didn't linger. He could always sell it later. Or give it to someone he trusted.
Good equipment was rare. Most people never even had the chance to hold something like this constantly.
Eleonore, David, Aaron, Alice and more.
Leon knew that people like them had absurd potential. With the right opportunities, they could easily rival elites from high-level worlds.
Someday, the strongest of all races would be thrown together onto a single massive domain, overflowing with danger and opportunity.
Until that day came, Leon's only priority was growth.
He equipped the [Sword of Darkness +2]. Shadows flowed along its blade, faint but alive. Then he moved.
Leon sprinted forward across the Origin Plains, his figure cutting through the dim grass like a streak of light.
More [Soldiers of Darkness] emerged from the ground as he advanced, their dark armor and hollow gazes locking onto him.
They didn't last long. One after another, they fell beneath spells and sword strikes.
Powerful Fireball tore through groups. Lightning Strike stunned those who tried to flank him.
Crescent Slash erased anything that got too close. Leon didn't slow down.
By the time he stopped to check his storage again, seven additional pages had already been collected. Nearly a third of the total.
Each time he obtained new sub-talent scrolls, he tried to fuse them again. Every attempt failed.
Even when he tried fusing them into a [Darkness Manipulation] scroll and then merging that into his own sub-talent, it still didn't work.
Leon wasn't bothered. He had already gained enough.
The sword, on the other hand, continued to improve.
Through careful fusion, he upgraded it twice more, pushing it to its limit.
[Sword of Darkness +4 (Epic): +800 Attack, +400 Strength. Requirement: At least one darkness related skill/sub-talent.]
At this point, it was far beyond most weapons available at his level.
Satisfied, Leon pressed on. Eventually, the plain ended.
The mountain loomed before him, massive and oppressive. The glow at its peak was even stronger now, pulsing like a heartbeat.
As Leon stepped closer, something blocked his path.
A figure nearly twice the size of the soldiers stood there, its body forged from darkness and steel. Its arms and legs were twisted into long, razor-sharp blades.
---
[Name: Darkness Envoy]
[Level: 10]
[Combat Power: 8,500]
[Details: A "Soldier of Darkness" that has trained into becoming stronger.]
---
The moment Leon finished reading, the envoy attacked. It didn't hesitate.
It lunged forward, blade-arms slicing through the air.
Clang!
Leon met the attack head-on, blocking effortlessly.
The envoy struck again. And again. Each blow was deflected.
Leon's combat power was higher. His strength was overwhelming. No matter how many times the envoy attacked, it couldn't push him back even a single step.
After nearly thirty seconds, the monster hesitated.
Confusion flickered in its movements. That moment was enough.
Leon stepped forward and swung. The blade flashed. The envoy's head fell.
Ding!
[You have killed "Darkness Envoy"]
[100% Drop Rate has triggered, items have been automatically placed in your storage space.]
Unlike the soldiers, this one dropped two [Legacy Fragment Pages].
"Good," Leon said with a grin. "I'll finish even faster at this rate."
He didn't stop. Leon charged up the mountain, actively searching for more envoys.
When two attempted to ambush him, he simply split his focus. A spell distracted one while his sword erased the other.
In roughly thirty minutes, he gathered fourteen more pages.
Then, the mountain fell silent. No more enemies appeared.
Leon climbed higher, step by step, until he finally reached the peak.
"I guess you managed to come this far."
Leon stopped. He looked up.
At the very top stood a half-destroyed monument, ancient and worn. In its center was a figure clad in dark robes.
Behind it was a pedestal, glowing with the same power Leon had seen from below.
"But unfortunately," the figure continued calmly, "your journey ends here."
Leon activated [Appraisal] instantly.
---
[Darkness Shaman]
[Level: 10]
[Talent: Darkness Manipulation (C-Level)]
[Combat Power: 10,000]
[Details: A shaman that was tasked to protect this place and stop anyone unworthy from completing the "Book of Inheritance"]
---
The shaman raised his dark scepter and pointed it at Leon.
"I'll give you a few seconds to prepare, human," he said coldly. "For we all know you won't be able to—"
Powerful Fireball!
"—Hah?!"