[Ding! Mission established. Initiating scan!] The Chip faithfully executed Lei Lin's command.
Soon, the latest results were transmitted: [Compared to previous data, target physique +0.01, strength +0.02, Spiritual Power +0.005. No significant adverse rejection reactions!]
"The flesh and blood of an advanced-class professional really is quite the tonic for ordinary people…"
Lei Lin nodded. He was well aware that these numbers carried a fair bit of inflation. If it were him getting the boost, the strength increase would probably be less than 0.00001 — that was simply the difference made by varying physical stats.
"Aaaah… you're a devil! You're a servant of the devils!"
At that moment, Mank, sprawled on the ground, screamed. Though Cyric, the God of Murder, already had a thoroughly tarnished reputation, compared to demons and devils, the deity still seemed like a kindly gentleman by contrast.
To now learn that the mage who had captured him was a devotee of the devils filled Mank's heart with utter despair.
As one who dwelled in the world of darkness, he knew full well that those devil worshippers loved nothing more than sacrificing flesh and the souls of the gods' faithful to earn their devil masters' rewards.
"Kill me! Kill me now! Don't profane my soul, or the gods will never let you go!" Mank shrieked hysterically, though his parched throat produced sounds like a broken bellows — sounds that couldn't even carry out of the dungeon cell.
"Noisy!" Lei Lin's brow furrowed. He delivered a sharp kick, and Mank promptly lost consciousness.
"Now for the most crucial step — alignment detection!"
A sphere of white light in Lei Lin's hand swept directly over Howard.
Soon, a trace of delight surfaced on Lei Lin's face: "Lawful Neutral! It seems that as long as I don't profane the soul, and with Beelzebub taking the fall for any karmic consequences, this ability to grow by devouring flesh and blood has real potential…"
Of course, Lei Lin was also well aware that the most energy-rich part of any living being was its soul — the energy gained from devouring flesh alone probably couldn't even reach half of that.
But once the soul was profaned, he would inevitably be tagged as Chaotic Evil. So Lei Lin had no choice but to reluctantly set that option aside.
"That's enough. You're dismissed! Once you leave this cell, you'll forget everything that just happened!"
Lei Lin gave an indifferent nod, retrieved the devil's blood dagger, and issued his orders to Howard.
"Yes, sir!" Howard staggered out, leaving Lei Lin alone in the dungeon cell, deep in thought.
"The energy from flesh and blood must be converted into Spiritual Power — that's another significant drain. And I should add one final safeguard: erasing the last stretch of memories from the target's soul!"
Countless possibilities flickered through Lei Lin's mind, giving him even more ideas for the devil's blood dagger.
Originally, he had considered traveling abroad and using the devil's blood dagger to hunt continuously, growing stronger at a rapid pace — but the need to lay low had forced him to restrain himself.
But now? The situation was entirely different. Having been pushed to the wall, Lei Lin desperately needed powerful strength — otherwise the entire Faolan family could be wiped out, just like Isabel's clan!
Of course, there was one key difference: Isabel had to pray to devils and demons for power, while Lei Lin only had to rely on himself!
"This little modification — I can complete it right here. Mr. Mank… the time has finally come for you to truly be of use…"
A blood-red glow flickered from the devil's dagger, reflecting Lei Lin's expressionless face, while he looked down at Mank on the ground as though regarding a dead man—or rather, a pig or dog awaiting slaughter.
The sensation of devouring power was incredibly intoxicating, but Lei Lin, who had already mastered the Rules of Devouring, controlled the feeling with utter mastery.
An unending stream of heat flowed through the dagger in his right hand and spread throughout his entire body.
A warm, comforting sensation stimulated his Spiritual Power to break through continuously, even beginning to charge toward a higher layer of the Magic Web.
At this moment, the Chip's mechanical voice also rang out ceaselessly in Lei Lin's ear: "Ding! Host data change detected — Constitution increased by 0.2, Spiritual Power increased by 0.05!"
Numerous notifications refreshed one after another, causing all of Lei Lin's stats to begin surging, and his Spiritual Power, which had long since reached the peak of the Sixth-Circle, finally achieved a breakthrough with the aid of this power.
Crack! A faint sound from some ethereal realm seemed to transmit directly from his soul, and Lei Lin then felt his Spiritual Power touch upon a far more terrifying layer of the Magic Web.
"The Third-Level Magic Web! I've made contact with the Third-Level Magic Web — I've officially advanced to Seventh-Circle Mage!"
Enlightenment dawned in Lei Lin's heart.