Although Kiri was anxious to return and help her teammates, she undoubtedly didn't want Li Ke to die inexplicably in this world.
If she and Lux left, what would happen to Li Ke?
What if that Devil woman killed Li Ke? What if other troubles arose during the Blood Moon?
Kiri wanted to consider all of these.
Although considering Rias's Demonstrated power it would be pointless, she still had to think about it.
Kiri didn't want Li Ke to die suddenly after she left.
"You don't need to worry about my safety."
Li Ke knew Kiri didn't know he could travel between worlds. If the energy points required for travel weren't too high, he could easily leave instead of waiting for the Blood Moon to descend.
"That's easy for you to say. I just don't want to see you become a stranger."
Kiri sighed.
Lux, standing to the side, gripped her staff nervously. She knew Kiri meant for her to stay a while longer.
This was a trolley problem for her, as either choice seemed wrong, but Li Ke didn't let her continue to struggle with it.
"But it seems there's no other way. The Blood Moon is on the fifth day. You might not even be able to leave then. Don't talk nonsense."
Li Ke stood up.
"So, Miss Lux and Miss Rias, you both should at least be level 50 by now, right?"
Li Ke looked at the two ladies, and they nodded.
With so many zombie birds, they had naturally reached level 50. Rias even stated her current level.
"I'm level 78 now. What's the use of this level? And, do skill points really increase our strength?"
She was very curious about this.
"It does increase stamina. I now have ten times the stamina and recovery speed of a normal human, but this power is more like a percentage boost, not a direct increase in your strength."
Li Ke felt this clearly because of his weakness.
"I see. I'll try it."
Rias tapped something in the air, and the red-haired beauty's expression changed instantly.
"I've indeed become stronger, but... just as you said, it doesn't directly affect the body, but rather a conceptual enhancement."
Rias sensed her body. She understood power better, so she understood the current situation better than Li Ke.
She was using one unit of strength, but only half the power was coming from her arm, yet the feeling was that she was using her full strength as before.
It was a very strange feeling; this power seemed not to come from herself, but from the world.
Rias then tried tapping her stamina. The next moment, she felt her magic power and stamina recovery speed, as well as her body's self-healing ability, double.
"Interesting."
She extended her finger and ignited a fireball. She used only half her magic power, yet it took on the complete form of a fireball.
Under the watchful eyes of the others, Rias threw the fireball.
The next moment, she witnessed the fireball explode.
"The power has doubled… and the source of that power also appeared out of thin air, as if I were the master of this world…"
With a sigh of admiration, Rias looked at Li Ke.
"This skill point is a bit too powerful, but facing the troubles of this world, such power seems justified."
Li Ke looked at the massive destructive spot and couldn't help but nod. He guessed what Rias had done, but clearly, although he had also added skill points, the effect was significantly less than Rias's.
"I quite like this world."
Rias chuckled, investing all her points into Power. The next moment, she smiled and conjured another massive fireball, which she then hurled into the distance.
The next instant, her fireball, using only regular magic power, unleashed twenty times the power of her previous one!
A violent shockwave instantly appeared.
Not only that, but she was also recovering her magic power and stamina at twice the previous rate!
This was different from Li Ke.
Although Li Ke had invested in Endurance, he could still feel himself wielding tools with half the strength he used to, but his strength was limited.
But for someone with special energy, it was different.
Half the energy consumption meant double the output and endurance.
Plus, with a point in Power, the destructive power and output doubled...
Rias had only invested two points, and her theoretical combat power had instantly quadrupled!
"This world is truly fascinating. In other words, if I can max out my Strength and Endurance, and the power of one of my spells is 10, then the final power will be 10 x 11 x 11, a whopping 1210 times! Such a massive increase!"
At that point, a single, powerful fireball spell could obliterate this entire land!
Even using the power of destruction, destroying a continent wouldn't be a problem!
Such an increase would be enough to propel her to the same level of power as her brother! And it seems incredibly simple! Just keep killing zombies and doing some easy tasks!
"Huh?"
Li Ke had no idea how exaggeratedly the addition of a magic power variable would boost Rias's strength. He was still that unfortunate kid with only 11 times the strength of a normal office worker.
In fact, if it weren't for Rias saying so, he always believed he had ten times the strength of a normal person…
After all, at the very end, the difference wasn't very noticeable.
Honestly, Rias is way too overpowered here.
"However..."
Rias clenched her fist, the joy on her face vanishing.
"This power comes at a price."
She looked at her palm. Because of her familiarity with contracts, she felt a contract forming around her after adding points.
"The more I use the power of this world, the less my original world's imprint will remain. If the imprint of my homeland completely disappears, I will become an entity of this world, unable to return to my own world, and..."
Rias closed her eyes, sensing something Li Ke couldn't perceive.
Because she was a Devil familiar with contracts, she clearly sensed the contents of the contract.
"This world is damaged, causing it to become the distorted place it is now. So it's begging for help, begging for a New Lord to restore its balance. But unfortunately, this world is at its end. Countless acts of malice permeate it. The power it originally intended to use to help humanity overcome its difficulties has all vanished because of that damage. What we use are merely remnants of that power… And this power is useless once it leaves this world. It's truly a wasted effort."
After Rias finished speaking, Li Ke and Kiri exchanged a glance, because neither of them felt the same way.
Li Ke thought it was probably because Rias had become the strongest Dimensional Lord, but as he thought about it carefully, he hadn't experienced this feeling when he became a Dimensional Lord himself.
"Is it because of her level?"
Li Ke wasn't sure, but he felt it was because Rias was currently the strongest.
"So I'm not interested in skill points anymore. Once I fully accept the power of this world, I'll have to stay here forever. But I can do missions with you guys; it's better to be prepared."
Rias smiled and spoke. Li Ke, not wanting to think about such troublesome matters, stopped pondering the issue and led the three to the shop to accept and share missions.
The mission was incredibly simple, so simple that Li Ke didn't even have to lift a finger. The zombies were easily wiped out by the energetic Rias and Kiri, while he and Lux ransacked the room.
Then…
"Hahahaha!! Three unlucky devils!!"
Kiri, watching her three companions—one holding duct tape, one a magazine, and one a first-aid kit—she clutched her rocket launcher and laughed wildly.