Tower of Heaven

'However, because of this realm's mechanisms, we still must absorb it.'

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Atlas could feel that the small amount of energy inside of him was trying to act as a compass. It was "pointing" at something in the distance, most likely a treasure.

'By coming closer to death, your performance in a realm of death improves.'

This was obvious enough.

'Then, the core concept of this realm is merely gambling.'

Everyone's body would have a different tolerance to the energy of death. Ingesting it was a complete gamble.

'To a point, you can sense when it is becoming too much.'

However, perhaps it was better to take the risk and ingest more if it meant finding better treasures.

Such was the conundrum that the Ascenders in this realm had to face. As Atlas had only killed a single beast thus far, he wasn't to the point where he was considering the risks. He only acknowledged them as something that existed.

Atlas was standing on a small shoreline that bordered a plain connected to the black forest in the distance. His goal was that way, so he crossed the plain despite seeing the beasts roaming it.

'Getting into battle too frequently is a bad idea. I must properly control when I absorb death energy.'

With that thought in mind, he didn't blatantly rush through the plain.

[Lightning Shadow Steps]

He turned into a blur that shot through the world like lightning. He moved fast enough to avoid the perception of most beasts, and those who saw him didn't give chase.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

He was able to create a situation where the only beasts he had to face were those in his path, and that left him with only three opponents, of which only one was truly notable.

The chain sickles came out of hiding, signaling the entrance of a reaper.

The first beast was something like a wolf, only three times larger. It had black fur that melded into the shadowy ground and bright red eyes. When it saw Atlas approaching, it immediately pounced without questioning a thing.

Bang!

Atlas ducked to the side and cut upward with his chain sickles as the beast passed over him. His blades were able to cut into its body, but the cuts were shallow and barely drew blood.

Nevertheless, Atlas knew enough. If he was able to make cuts with such a casual attack, he would not have a hard time with this beast.

It skidded across the ground once it landed and growled at him with menacing eyes. It took two rapid steps forward and slashed its paw forward, four razor-sharp claws cutting towards Atlas' face.

Naturally, the human body had much more dexterity than that of a wolf. Atlas leaned back ever so slightly, feeling the pressure of the wind produced by the attack. Silently, the chains attached to his wrists extended.

[Roaring Dragon, Fading Serpent]

From such close range, the attack was unavoidable. One chain sickle slammed directly into the wolf's face with the butt of the blade, causing it to shake its head furiously. At the same time, the other chain sickle crept under its belly and cut into it like it had a life of its own.

It tore through the bottom of the wolf's body and came out near its hind legs. A great heap of blood spilled out of the wolf as it howled in pain.

Atlas didn't waste the opportunity he created for himself. He withdrew his qi and snatched the chain sickles back into his hands. Water qi covered his body, and in the next moment…

[Flow Like Silk]

…he was already behind the wolf.

A sharp blue line drew itself in the air. Blood spurted into the environment as several cuts appeared on the wolf's body. It collapsed under its own weight as the damage compounded, but before it could experience any suffering, Atlas stuck a blade in its neck and twisted it, ending its life.

When the death energy entered his body, he became certain that the wolf was truly dead.

Without looking at its corpse a second time, Atlas moved on. The next beast was also something similar. It looked like some species of large cat that was somewhat smaller than an ordinary tiger.

The whole time while he fought the wolf, it had been circling them and stalking its prey. The moment the battle ended, it struck when it thought Atlas was most vulnerable.

However, the vulnerability he showed was only a facade.

He turned to face it when it was directly above him with qi concentrated in his fists.

When it came time to choose a technique to use at this moment, Atlas' mind normally would have defaulted to [Dominating Fist]. It was powerful enough and would push the beast away so he could strike it with a proper attack.

The flow of his qi did not form into the pathways that manifested as [Dominating Fist]. The qi in his body did something entirely different.

His fist shot out and made contact with the hard yet soft body of the beast. The impact sent ripples reverberating through the beast's skin, and Atlas' qi manifested into a technique.

[Eight Calamities: Fist of the Mountain King]

It was a bit overkill, but that was just how it happened.

The impact that Atlas saw when Alaric first showcased this technique was just a portion of his power. He used just a small piece of his power because he did not want to destroy Vanatos. He only wanted to destroy the battle arena.

The power Atlas used was nowhere near even that, but the First Calamity was the First Calamity.

A massive eruption appeared in the world. The roaring winds tormented the entire plain. The beasts who were watching these battles rampaged and crashed into each other as they immediately ran away.

Their reaction was purely instinctual. The habits and senses they'd developed through years of evolution that they needed to get as far away from that impact as they could.

And they were correct.

The wind pressure alone shredded the beast Atlas was facing to shreds. The qi turned its mutilated corpse into nothingness. The beast died within the first second, and the environment was forced to handle the rest of the impact.

In a triangular shape that reached a peak at his feet, the black ground was torn up and thrown away. A trench was dug in the previously flat land that was several feet deep, and the air quaked under the pressure of that fist.

Atlas looked at his own hand in surprise.

'That was…unexpected.'

It used quite a bit more qi than he needed and caused a huge scene. He didn't really understand why his body instinctually moved to manifest the First Calamity, but that was reality.

'Maybe…this realm of death is a good place for the power of that skill to show itself.'

Perhaps his body sensed that it would be able to improve if he used it.

Shaking his head, Atlas looked back at the field.

The third beast that was standing in his path, a large reptilian creature that looked like a wingless dragon, was still present.

Only, when he looked in its direction and met its eyes, it quickly scurried away.

'In that sense, it was worth something.'

Thinking as such, Atlas safely crossed the plain and continued on his way.

Never once did he think of the eyes that could have possibly been watching his every move.