Chapter 337

Chapter 337
Chapter 337

—

Metamorphosis.

Or perhaps, a swap.

That was how I had categorized it until this moment, but I realized I had only grasped a fraction of the utility provided by the gear.

The Gauntlets of Calamity and Ash possessed the intrinsic quality of mutual resonance.

Because I was tethered to the conjured creature via ‘Sense Sharing’, the fundamental capability of the ‘Gauntlets of Calamity and Ash’ eventually began to manifest.

The Link.

Merging with the Spirit—a state of total Union where the creature became an extension of me, and I an extension of it.

With every progressive step of its growth, I transitioned into the essence of the ‘Soul’ itself.

To put it plainly, we fused.

This synergy was the reason I could hunt targets of a far higher tier, which in turn accelerated the pace of development.

It was a logical outcome, considering I was the one directing the combat.

By that same logic, the Nameless Eagle’s ability to reshape itself into a ‘helmet’ for me to wear was a direct byproduct of the gauntlets’ power.

‘The authentic application of a Soul…’

A moment of clarity washed over me.

Perhaps this was the intended purpose of a ‘Soul’.

It wasn’t merely about summoning a companion or fostering its growth; it was about internalizing the core of that Soul and integrating it into my own being.

In that instant, notifications flared.

【You have unlocked the grand feat ‘The Meaning of a Soul’.】

【You have unlocked the grand feat ‘Union’.】

【You have unlocked the grand feat ‘Infinite Evolution’.】

【You have unlocked the grand feat ‘Old One’.】

【You have unlocked the grand feat ‘The One Who Has Achieved Numerous Feats Alone’.】

…

The accolades poured in without pause.

Yet, these were only the milestones I had reached through my own independent actions.

【The ‘Knight Order of the Golden Rule’ has successfully finalized ‘54’ grand feats.】

【Dungeon grand feat advancement: 118/370】

Before I had even realized it, more than fifty milestones had been reached.

This figure represented nearly half of the total objective for the entire floor.

Even within a framework where seven distinct orders were vying for supremacy, this was a staggering lead.

It served as undeniable evidence that my subordinates were pushing themselves just as hard as I was.

‘We will break seventy before we leave this floor.’

Setting a target of seventy or more felt well within reach.

My plan was to elevate my dignity to its peak and then make an attempt at ‘acquisition of divinity’.

‘Dignity at 400, 500, and even higher…’

Absorbing the soul of a single misplaced knight granted 5 dignity.

If I could collect eighty of them to hit the 400 mark, an incredible passive bonus—‘raise the level cap of the entire knight order by 1’—would be activated.

I had been under the impression that the level ceiling could only be breached within the ‘Tower of Rupture’.

But there was more.

Upon reaching 500, I would attain ‘divinity’, a prize far too valuable to ignore.

To achieve this, total victory was non-negotiable.

I needed to dominate every possible grand feat.

However, the presence of the White King and the ‘Forgotten God’ remained a significant hurdle.

The White King likely possessed traits tailored for rapid cultivation, and since the ‘Forgotten God’ had designed this specific challenge, they undoubtedly held a massive home-field advantage.

…Was that the source of my lingering doubt?

A small seed of worry troubled me.

‘What if the Crow of Ruin has completely consumed the Soul’s individual consciousness?’

I stared deeply into the creature’s eyes.

I, of all people, understood the burning resentment of being manipulated or controlled.

Up until now, it had been manageable because it retained the temperament of the Baby Hydragon, but if the ‘Crow of Ruin’ had truly supplanted its mind…

Kiaaak!

Suddenly, the ‘Nameless Eagle’ let out a sharp screech and nuzzled its head against my face.

…I felt a wave of silent relief.

It appeared the Crow of Ruin hadn’t managed to erase the Soul’s inherent personality.

But how was that possible?

As the primary servant, the Crow of Ruin should have possessed more than enough power to take over.

‘The enigmatic strength of the Star Lord.’

I reviewed my character traits, zeroing in on that specific line.

Star Lord was the title of my unique class.

It was a transformation of the ‘Star Successor’ that occurred when my path diverged from Randolph’s.

The description noted that the servant of the Other Ruin was tethered in a unique configuration due to the mysterious influence of the ‘Star Lord’.

That implied a startling truth.

‘Is the Star Lord… actually a rank that rivals the Other Ruin?’

While the holy power of the ‘Forgotten Holy Heaven, the Twelve Heavenly Sons’ likely played a role, it seemed the ‘Star Lord’ class itself carried a massive amount of weight.

It suggested that the ‘Star Lord’ was in no way subordinate to the ‘Other Ruin’.

‘I still haven’t fully grasped the true potential of the Star Lord.’

The ‘War God’ class, for example, had powers that were very straightforward.

But the ‘Star Lord’ remained a mystery to me.

‘…I need to investigate this more thoroughly.’

The impact was far greater than I had anticipated.

I gave a small nod and turned my attention back to the ‘Nameless Eagle’.

A sudden thought crossed my mind.

If I were to give the Nameless Eagle a proper name, would its status change to a named entity?

Kiaaak?

“No. Let’s focus on utilizing the time we have left.”

I gave a small laugh and began to move.

I wasn’t about to waste even a single minute of the sixty seconds remaining.

Shwaaaak!

Instantly, the Nameless Eagle shifted its form into the helmet once more.

“…”

The sight left me momentarily breathless again.

【The preparation period has concluded.】

【The ‘Battle of Souls’ is set to commence.】

【The ‘Knight Order of the Forgotten God’, the ‘Knight Order of the White King’, and the ‘Knight Order of the Golden Rule’ will engage in combat. The victor shall claim every ‘grand feat’ earned on the 3rd floor.】

【The ‘Knight Order of the White King’ has secured ‘17’ grand feats on the 3rd floor.】

The setting shifted into a massive colosseum as the clock hit zero.

Standing there, the White King surveyed his followers with a confident grin.

“Decent work.”

He had hand-picked the finest beasts for his ranks, so it wasn’t surprising that their ‘Soul’ development was impressive.

Besides, this trial was perfectly suited to their natural strengths.

’17.’

That count was significantly higher than what they had managed on the previous two floors.

In his mind, it meant the Knight Order of the White King was virtually invincible here.

Even if the numbers had been lower, he wouldn’t have worried.

‘Mok.’

The crowning achievement of the White Tiger Clan—the one hailed as the King of Ruin, or the Demon King—stood right beside him.

Mok was a force of nature capable of crushing any opposition single-handedly.

Who could possibly stand against him?

Right then.

Shuuuuuung!

【The ‘Knight Order of the Forgotten God’ has arrived.】

The Forgotten God finally made an appearance.

The White King watched with a slight tilt of his head.

‘Wait…?’

The lineup consisted of creatures he had never encountered in his entire existence.

Still, the idea of losing didn’t even cross his mind.

Then.

Shuuung!

【The ‘Knight Order of the Golden Rule’ has arrived.】

The White King maintained his arrogant smile as he turned to look at the Knight Order of the Golden Rule.

However, that smile vanished the moment the next notification appeared.

【The ‘Knight Order of the Golden Rule’ has secured ‘40’ grand feats on the 3rd floor.】

He blinked, wondering if he had misread the text.

’40?’

Were there even forty grand feats available on this floor?

Since these achievements were unique and couldn’t be farmed repeatedly, the number was staggering.

But forty?

‘However, looking at the quality…’

The White King quickly regained his poise.

Despite the high number of achievements, the actual evolution level of their ‘Souls’ looked underwhelming.

Most of them appeared entirely unremarkable.

There was only one who truly mattered.

The most dangerous variable.

‘The Druid of the Golden Rule.’

At that same moment.

As the White King laid eyes on him, his brow furrowed in confusion.

‘…What on earth is that supposed to be?’

I suppose luck is on my side.

This location, the World Tree’s dungeon, was a manifestation of things lost to time and existence.

The ‘Monster Souls’ followed that same principle.

The core of the battle was to iterate through growth and evolution to resurrect ‘ancient entities’ that no longer walked the world.

It was a race to see whose Monster Soul could reach the heights of folklore, myth, or legend.

‘The Forgotten God is playing exactly by the rules.’

The Forgotten God had guided her Monster Souls toward that specific goal.

While the creatures were unfamiliar, they carried an aura of things whispered about in old stories.

It was like seeing the primal, uncorrupted forms of prehistoric monsters.

But what about the Druid of the Golden Rule?

“It’s a rare find, but hardly impressive.”

Grizzly remarked, his gaze fixed on the Druid of the Golden Rule.

Grizzly was a massive bear with blood-red fur.

Many who overheard him couldn’t help but nod in silent agreement.

They had assumed that the deity of the Druids—the one who had unlocked this dungeon—would bring something earth-shattering.

Yet, the ‘Monster Soul’ he had brought to the field didn’t live up to the hype.

“A Dianax…”

“A common mine centipede?”

“Well, it’s not common, but… still.”

“Heh. It looks like he has no knack for this sort of thing.”

They shook their heads in mockery, laughing at what they perceived as a failure.

This was why even the White King was baffled.

Just a Dianax?

The species was technically extinct, but only because humans had hunted them to near-extinction for the rare metals in their carapaces.

The ‘Orichalcum’ that made up a Dianax’s body was prized for making durable gear.

It was incredibly hard, yes, but not particularly powerful in a fight.

It was a poor choice for a combat trial.

It didn’t stand a chance against anyone in the Knight Order of the White King.

‘How boring.’

The White King clicked his tongue.

It didn’t look like there would be a worthy opponent to showcase the true terror of Mok, the King of Ruin.

Furthermore, while they hadn’t matched his pace, most of his order members had produced solid results.

Given that they were all individuals who had refined their own souls through constant evolution, cultivating a ‘Monster Soul’ was second nature to them.

‘Maybe Albino will offer some sport?’

The most notable member of the Knight Order of the Golden Rule was, predictably, Albino.

The ‘Monster Soul’ brought by the legendary Druid was at least somewhat interesting to behold.

‘A white rhinoceros beetle. Unique.’

It was a massive, snowy-white beetle of incredible proportions.

It clearly belonged to an ancient lineage.

Regardless, it was still just an insect.

《The combat will follow a ‘tournament’ structure.》

《The knight order of the final champion will seize all rewards.》

《The victor will earn the ‘Symbol of the Forgotten God’.》

《Should the ‘Forgotten God’ emerge as the champion, both opposing orders will forfeit half of their ‘souls of the forgotten knights’.》

《Direct intervention by a summoner will result in immediate disqualification.》

《Summoners are, however, permitted to bestow buff-style enchantments upon their ‘Monster Soul’.》

《Loss is determined by being forced out of the arena or if the ‘Monster Soul’ reaches zero HP and vanishes.》

The rules manifested in the air.

A tournament.

A bracket system where you fought random foes and only the winners moved forward.

‘I’d prefer to face someone strong early on.’

Establishing dominance was crucial in a setting like this.

To crush someone so thoroughly that the rest of the field lost their nerve.

With that in mind, the White King glanced at the ‘Forgotten God’.

Despite being called a Knight Order, she had only brought thirteen monsters.

‘A peculiar one.’

She had a translucent, ethereal form.

She hovered slightly above the ground, appearing as a woman with both human and feline features.

It was strange to think of a rabbit-eared human as the Forgotten God.

She ignored the other groups entirely, focusing only on gently petting each of her thirteen creatures.

《The bracket has been finalized.》

《The competition begins now.》

《One participant, selected at random from the thirty-nine contenders, will face the tournament gatekeeper: the ‘Under Knight (Grade 80, HP 3,000,000)’.》

《Round of 40: White King (Mok, the King of Ruin) VS Serengeti (Ancient Teddy Bear)》

Serengeti.

The human woman whom the Druid of the Golden Rule had recruited.

While Serengeti was formidable in her own right, her ‘Soul’ was merely an ancient teddy bear.

“…”

The White King looked at the bracket with a look of pure boredom.

A simple teddy bear wouldn’t even force Mok to use a fraction of his power.

“Hahaha! It seems the goddess of fortune is smiling on me! Excellent!”

Nearby, Grizzly let out a booming laugh.

His eyes gleamed with sadistic delight.

He usually maintained a façade of calm.

In truth, he was the ruler of a massive mountain range, better known as the ‘Grizzly of Madness’.

That manic laughter was the sound he made when he cornered a tasty meal or found a new toy to break.

Having spent decades as the apex predator of his territory, his combat prowess was beyond question.

True to form, his ‘Monster Soul’ was a mirror image of his own ferocity.

But… lucky?

Was he referring to being pitted against the Under Knight?

Or something else?

‘…I see.’

The White King soon realized the situation.

He watched intently.

This was going to be a very illuminating match.

I reviewed the regulations and the bracket, nodding to myself.

《Round of 40: Druid of the Golden Rule (Dianax) VS Tyrant Grizzly (Salamander of Madness)》

…I had confirmed that even the system itself couldn’t identify the true nature of the Nameless Eagle’s current state.

The Nameless Eagle had the ability to store and replicate any form it had previously evolved into.

I had chosen the Dianax specifically because I saw no benefit in revealing my hand this early.

‘It’s a tactical error to show your full power in the opening round.’

If you have the ability to shapeshift, you should exploit every strategic edge it provides.

That edge might come from an opponent’s overconfidence or the ability to strike from an angle they aren’t prepared for.

There were too many benefits to ignore; fighting as the ‘Nameless Eagle’ right away would be foolish when I still didn’t know what my enemies were truly capable of.

‘Even in this form, I’m just utilizing its attributes.’

I looked down at my Dianax appearance.

It would have been ideal if I could have continued to grow and farm while in this state, but that wasn’t how the skill worked.

Unlike a true evolution into a Dianax, this was more of a cosmetic and functional mimicry of its traits.