Wandering around the Middle Layer.
I ate an eel and now my belly's full, so that whole thing about collapsing from hunger that I was worried about doesn't seem likely to happen.
At this rate, I don't think I need to go out of my way to hunt. I'll just take it nice and easy.
I'm in a good mood, and the heat of the Middle Layer is bearable for now.
Ah, nope — this heat is awful after all.
There are no Monsters in sight, so maybe I'll check on the Skill Points I've been curious about.
My Evolution last time shot my Points up to 500 all at once, so if I dig around, maybe I can find some good Skills.
Every Skill except Detection has been a jackpot so far. Here's hoping I can grab another good one with this windfall.
Pride hasn't really caused any real downsides either — my Taboo level went up, sure, but that's about it.
And Taboo doesn't seem like it'll turn into anything immediately catastrophic, so when you think about it, the effective downside is basically zero?
When you factor in how absurdly powerful the effects are, the positives far outweigh the negatives.
I still can't fathom why this Skill only cost 100 Points.
Just based on its effects alone, I wouldn't bat an eye if someone told me it was worth 1,000 Points.
Pride is a once-in-a-lifetime find, so I probably shouldn't get greedy and expect another one like it — but if I spot something good, I'll grab it without hesitation.
There's no point in hoarding Points forever, after all. These things are meant to be spent.
Saving up from here to wait for higher-tier Skills to unlock seems like it'd actually be worse in terms of efficiency.
So without further ado — Appraisal, do your thing!
I used double Appraisal on the Skill Point section.
I scanned through the list that came up.
Hmm.
Looking at it like this, there are still quite a few Skills available for 100 Points.
I never bothered buying any because none of them seemed necessary, but maybe next time I have some downtime I'll casually level up a few Proficiencies?
Then again, if I have that kind of free time, wouldn't it be better to farm Proficiency on more useful Skills?
Oh, but then again — maybe there's a Skill like Prediction where it Evolves and suddenly becomes usable out of nowhere.
Hmm.
I'm torn.
Right — more important than that, I need to look at the Skills above 200 Points that I couldn't see last time.
Hmm.
Sure enough, there's nothing on the level of Pride — no game-breaking Skills here.
I mean, I kinda had a tiny bit of hope, but…
Yeah, figured.
That's what I was about to say.
Wait — there was one.
A game-breaking Skill.
《Endurance (500): An n% of the power needed to reach Godhood. Expands the domain of divinity one possesses. As long as MP remains, survive any damage with 1 HP. Additionally, transcends the system of W and grants the right to interfere with the MA domain.》 Another one of those Mysterious Skills loaded with incomprehensible jargon…
And its absurd performance is very much intact.
So this activates by consuming MP and letting me tough it out?
I don't know how much MP it drains, but as long as I have some left, I can survive like a zombie?
I don't get it.
What kind of ridiculous ability is this?
Well — this time, there's no hesitation.
Click.
《Current held Skill Points: 500.
The Skill "Endurance" can be acquired for 500 Skill Points.
Acquire it?>》 Yesss.
《Acquired "Endurance." Remaining Skill Points: 0.》 The moment I took Pride, there was no turning back for me!
I'm getting every Skill in this vein!
Bring it on — Taboo or whatever else you've got!
《Proficiency has reached a certain level. Skill "Taboo LV5" has become "Taboo LV7.》 I'm sorry.
I really should have kept my mouth shut.
《Conditions met. Title "Endurance Dominator" has been acquired.》 《Due to the Title "Endurance Dominator," Skills "Heterodox Nullification" and "Condemnation" have been acquired.》 《"Heterodox Resistance LV4" has been consolidated into "Heterodox Nullification.》 Ugh — just as I predicted, Taboo went up again.
Two levels this time too.
Can't be helped.
More importantly, what really matters is the Title.
I can't just sit around — time to check the Title I just got!
《Endurance Dominator: Acquired Skills "Heterodox Nullification," "Condemnation." Acquisition Condition: Obtaining "Endurance." Effect: Increases Defense and Resistance stats. Unlocks Evil Eye-type Skills. Applies a bonus to Proficiency gain for Resistance-type Skills. Grants Dominator-class privileges. Description: A title bestowed upon one who has conquered endurance.》 Yep.
I knew it.
I just knew it would be a cheat-tier Title.
My Defense and Resistance went up!
Both increased by 100 — Defense is now 351, and Resistance hit 380.
Seriously, what even is this?
Isn't this a bit too broken?
The bonus to Resistance-type Skill Proficiency is huge too.
I'm a dodge-specialist, so I rarely get hit, which means my Resistance Skills have barely leveled up.
This shores up that weakness perfectly — I'm really happy about it.
The other thing I'm curious about is the Evil Eye-type Skill unlock.
I want that so badly.
If I got some kind of Evil Eye, I could say stuff like "Tch — my right eye is throbbing!" or "So this is what it means to kill."
Come on, that's exactly the kind of line that scratches that edgy-chuunibyou itch.
I want it, I want it — but I'm out of Points!
Ugh, I need to level up fast and start saving again.
Then there are the new Skills — Heterodox Nullification and Condemnation.
Heterodox Nullification seems to be the ultimate version of Heterodox Resistance.
Whereas Heterodox Resistance boosted Defense against attacks that directly assault the soul, Heterodox Nullification completely negates them.
So even if an enemy hits me with Heterodox Magic or something similar, I've got nothing to worry about now.
《Condemnation: Deals irresistible damage proportional to the accumulated System-intrinsic sins stored in the target's soul.》 Whoa.
So it's an attack that hits harder the more sinful the target is.
"Irresistible" — that's the scary part.
But this has the same vibe as Naraku.
Feels like it'd be useless in practice.
I tried it and, sure enough, couldn't use it.
It could just be because there was no valid target and it fizzled out, but I have this feeling it genuinely can't be activated.
Well, even without Condemnation, the net gain is still incredible.
Taboo went up, but at this point, it is what it is.
As long it doesn't instantly kill me at Taboo 10 or something equally game-over, I'll accept that trade-off.
That said — my Status shot through the roof, and my Skills are overflowing with options.
Am I, like… the strongest now?