Death Reaper

The original owner had come to this manor to find this Ancient Altar, then obtain that "S+ Grade" extraordinary talent through sacrifice.

Suren had, in a way, fulfilled the original owner's final wish.

The difference now was that he had awakened two talents.

With no point of reference, Suren had no idea whether they were good or bad, or whether this was normal.

He had figured out some of the All-Seeing Eye's abilities, but he had no clue what the Death Reaper did.

There was no additional information left on his retina. The only useful thing was probably that map.

At least he knew where the original owner had come from. He could follow the same route back and find the "starting point."

Suren also planned to leave this place and find a human settlement to learn more about this world.

After searching carefully, he found nothing else in the basement.

The five stone statues were all covered in spiderweb-like cracks, which had spread onto the altar as well. It seemed this Ancient Altar had completely lost its function.

Suren did not linger and walked out of the hidden passage.

Back in the ruined manor, Suren was already panting slightly.

The heavy blood loss made his head feel dizzy.

As for his belongings, Bald Ivan and the others had looted them before he transmigrated. He desperately needed food to fill his stomach and replenish his energy.

Otherwise, he knew he would never make it very far alive.

"I wonder what exactly Pestoya is, and where that special space is."

Suren looked at the shattered manor, feeling as though everything before him was a dream.

According to Marcus, more than a dozen members of Bald Ivan's group had died in the manor. No matter what, there should have been bodies.

Yet after wandering around, Suren did not see a single corpse. He could even tell from the cobwebs in the passageways that, aside from himself, no one had come here at all.

Suren found nothing in the house and stepped outside.

Once he entered the courtyard, he discovered that the sky was dim and gray, like a night sky hidden beneath dark clouds. Everything around him was hazy and indistinct.

The manor seemed to have been built halfway up a mountain. Enhanced Vision allowed Suren to barely make out the vague outlines of some massive buildings in the distance.

They looked like a dilapidated Ghost City.

There was no light anywhere in the city. It was shrouded in mist, and within the fog, he could faintly make out the shadows of enormous creatures moving about.

Seeing this, Suren's gaze gradually deepened. He muttered to himself, "The mysteries of this world are becoming more and more exciting."

It was like discovering an unexplored hidden map in a game. His powerful urge to explore stirred within him.

That was also one of the reasons he wanted to stay alive.

But if even a ruined manor was this strange and dangerous, then the distant cluster of ruins had to be full of peril.

Suren had no intention of investigating the city ruins now. He carefully examined the map on his retina and planned to first find the route the original owner had taken, then return the way he came.

That map was even stranger. The route ran from top to bottom.

That meant that, if the scale was marked correctly, Suren was currently at least a hundred kilometers deep underground.

Who would build such a huge city in an Underground Chamber this deep?

That was extremely strange.

And if this was underground, what was that faint light source in the sky?

This Underground Chamber was absurdly vast.

However, after witnessing extraordinary powers, Suren did not dwell on those questions.

No matter how strange this world was, it was already within his expectations.

Suren compared the directions and prepared to leave the manor.

But after taking only a few steps, he saw a blood-soaked figure lying in the manor's ruined garden.

That shiny bald head immediately put Suren on guard.

Clearly, this was the kidnapper leader from before—Ivan!

At that moment, the metal scales covering his body had faded away, and his skin was covered in torn, mangled wounds, as though he had been subjected to a thousand cuts.

"This guy is actually still alive?!"

Suren looked at Bald Ivan's faintly rising and falling chest, slightly surprised.

He had thought Pestoya could kill this man with ease.

"Was this also a gift she deliberately left for me? Or does Bald Ivan have some life-saving method that let him escape that special space?"

After pondering for a moment, Suren did not choose to flee. Instead, he opened the wooden box and took out the Rune Puppet.

Then, he slowly walked toward Bald Ivan.

He was desperately short of supplies to survive, and Bald Ivan had arrived at just the right time.

Twenty meters, ten meters.

After entering the ten-meter range, Suren finally relaxed.

Even if Bald Ivan still had the strength to fight back, the Rune Anomaly Puppet should be able to control him.

Apparently, Suren's caution had been unnecessary. Bald Ivan had already completely passed out.

Faced with the man who had nearly killed him earlier, Suren showed no mercy. He pulled out the dagger at Bald Ivan's waist and drove it into his heart.

The sharp dagger pierced precisely beneath his ribs, instantly ending Bald Ivan's life.

Only after seeing that Bald Ivan had stopped breathing did Suren finally let out a sigh of relief.

Then, something strange happened.

When Suren focused his eyes, he saw a gray, glowing mist-like substance appear above Bald Ivan's corpse.

He thought some sort of corpse transformation or evil spirit conversion had occurred. But before he could think further, he discovered an urgent desire in his heart, an unconscious urge to devour that Gray Mist.

It was the kind of craving one felt when starving and seeing food.

"Could this be... a soul?"

Suren suppressed that craving, suddenly realizing something. He cautiously reached out and touched the Gray Mist.

The next instant, a stream of images and information flooded into his mind.

"Obtained Ivan Adams's Memory Fragment."

"Your Basic Mechanical Knowledge has improved."

"You captured a piece of information: 'Oh! Sabina's tits are really huge.'"

"Combat Experience +5."

"Mental Power +0.1."

"This Gray Mist is actually Bald Ivan's Memory Fragment!"

Suren discovered that something had suddenly appeared in his mind.

It was like watching a movie. He saw Bald Ivan modifying and maintaining Mechanical Arms, and he saw him fighting others in brutal combat.

Yet after the light mass was devoured and fused with him, there was no trace of unfamiliarity. That memory felt like one of his own personal experiences.

As for that erotic image that had slipped into his mind, compared to the other pleasant gains, he naturally chose to ignore it. Though... they really were huge.

When he came back to his senses, Suren realized that he seemed to have mastered some of Bald Ivan's learned skills.

He looked at his status panel again.

Sure enough!

His Mental Power had increased by 0.1, and Beginner Mechanical Introduction had appeared in his skill list.

As for the increase of "Combat Experience +5," Suren estimated that even if he trained hard for three to five months, he might not achieve such a massive improvement.

Only then did he suddenly understand the use of this S+ Grade talent. "So the ability of S-004—Death Reaper—is to strip Memory Fragments from souls and make them my own."

After realizing this ability's potential, he found it hard to believe. "This ability is this overpowered?"

Although this talent did not directly increase combat strength, it was absolutely a godlike ability for growth and development!

It could strip memories from dead targets and thereby obtain part of their abilities. No wonder it was called Death Reaper!

The more Suren thought about it, the more amazed he became.

This meant that as long as he had enough Memory Fragments, he could easily master more skills and abilities.

Magic, Alchemy, Mechanical Knowledge, Combat Experience, marksmanship... and so on. Skills that others needed enormous amounts of time and experience to learn and accumulate—he could master them instantly.

His future potential was limitless!

It truly deserved to be called an S+ Grade talent!

But then Suren discovered another problem.

When Bald Ivan had still been alive, no Gray Mist had appeared on his body. It had only appeared after he was killed.

That meant the Death Reaper's ability seemingly could only strip the Souls of the Dead?

"But dead or alive, where am I supposed to find so many souls to reap?"

At that thought, Suren's eyebrows lifted slightly.

The next moment, he murmured again, as though speaking to someone. "Hey, hey, hey, don't get so excited, okay?"

At that moment, he still had not realized that he had come to a cruel world where human lives were as worthless as grass.

Here, death was like the wind, always accompanying everyone.

Thanks to Ye Jing for 1,500, Zhu Muyan Baba for 1,500, and Arctic Wolf Emperor. Thank you to all three for your support and donations!