35 Gruesome Experience, Generous Rewards

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Meanwhile, as Apollo's eyes fell on the item, a string of notification flowed within his view. In particular, he was shocked by the amount of experience received and how many levels it amounted to.

〈System: An enormous source of experience located.〉

〈System: Congratulations, the hidden multiplier Enormous Feat activated. However, the usage of means have demoted it to the lesser version, Special Feat.〉

〈System: Multiplier applied. [Reward(s): +200% Kill Experience, 3 Spirit Shards, and 5 Demonic Essence Pellets.〉

〈System: 25,200 [4,200+4,200+16,800] Experience gained.〉x2

〈System: Congratulations, you have reached...〉

〈System: Congratulations, you have reached...〉

Eventually, Apollo read the last notification, laying eyes upon a shocking number.

〈System: Congratulations, you have reached Level 55.〉

In light of the temptation of the item, Apollo dragged his injured body towards the crimson root. Eventually reaching the item, Apollo's legs lost all their strength, falling to his knees.

The earlier battle had truly taken everything out of him, it was a miracle he was even moving right now. Unfortunately, if he idled too long, the aura keeping any of the nearby beasts from approaching his position would dissipate. Should that happen, his situation could go from bad to worse in an instant.

"Agh… dammit," Apollo groaned through grit teeth as he clutched the Blood Tempering Ginseng attempting to yank it from its roots. However, it was rooted deep and with his currently exhausted strength, it wouldn't budge.

[Wait! Don't retrieve it that way. Work smarter, not harder, lad. If you don't have the required strength, leverage what you can utilize, for example, that Dark Cutter. Capitalize on its sharpness to help you get the job done. Plus, the way you're doing it might rupture its delicate parts and ruined the experience conversion process.] 

"Right," Apollo utterly weakly as he struggled with shaky hands to stab the knife into the ground. Ultimately, he managed to do draw a circle surrounding the crimson object, but its curves were rough and jagged. Without even inspecting it, Apollo pried it from the ground and tossed it in the pouch received from Irauk,

[There should be an uninhabited place in the distance suitable for you to heal. Head there and seek shelter.]

Apollo looked around, finding a place void of any type of signature. Compared to the other areas, this seemed to be the only safe direction. Thus, Apollo listened to Azridan's suggestion and traveling deeper in that direction.

Surprisingly, the location was on the brink of the inner region. However, thankfully he possessed Azridan, who was capable of navigating away from any possible danger, avoiding all contact with Spirit Beasts in the process.

Soon enough, they came to a murky cave. While its aura seemed unsettling, Azridan was certain nothing existed inside. Hence, Apollo's nerves calmed and proceeded forth unabatedly.

Shockingly, rather than being confronted by impairing darkness upon entry, he was capable of seeing small outlines of the cave walls.

[You must be surprised that you're able to see correct? Your body is slowly changing and your eyes have already completed the process. In other words, you possess the ability to see through the darkness to a certain extent; a special trait of Demons. Naturally, yours isn't mature which is the reason why you can only trace outlines. But it should give you an advantage during the night.]

"That's convenient. Are there any other abilities I possess?" Apollo asked while taking a seat against the cold wall of the cave. His back tingled from the foreign sensation, yet it also felt comfortable to an extent.

[At the moment, no. For now, just focus on trying to heal up. Focus on the acceleration provided by your level-ups. Once that happens, we'll move onto absorbing the item you just picked up.

"Yeah, in fact. But, now would be a good time to check its effects as well as the thorough contents of that pouch," Apollo commented as he withdrew the Minor Spatial Pouch from his hip.

Three types of pills, one vial, and the crimson root fell into his lap after searching through the information. Instantly, their information appeared before him. One of which he was familiar with was the Natural Warrior Revitalization Pill.

「Item Name: Essence Gathering Pill

Rank: Rank 1 Pill

Grade: High

Effect: Produces a temporary state of sensitivity. Experience absorption rate is increased by 30% for 3 minutes in your case.

«High-Grade»- Increases the rate to 50% and the time is extended to 5 minutes.」

「Item Name: Foundation Forging Pill

Rank: Rank 1 Pill

Grade: Flawless

Effect: Rewards 0.5 Strength and Agility as well as 1,000 Experience upon ingestion.

«Flawless Bonus» - Increases the effects by 100%」

「Item Name: Purple Mercury Blood Elixir

Rank: Rank 1 Elixir

Grade: Superior

Effect: Indirect absorption allows you to gain both Strength and Vitality. 1 drop = 0.3 increase in Strength and Vitality.

«Superior Grade» - Listed effects increased to .5.

Usages: 12/12.」

'Hmm, these would be top-notch tools for a cultivator, but it seems the system has tailored their uses in my case. Now that my level is higher, and my body is stronger. I should be able to absorb them all. However, I believe the process with items is a bit different from receiving experience from kills,' Apollo thought to himself.

[Correct. In that case, it's an extraction of experience. So, for a brief moment, the initial effects of the item will assault your body until the system converts it. Thus, it isn't advised for you to rush. After all, the system isn't disappearing anywhere, it's yours.]

"I understand," Apollo nodded. Afterward, Azridan gave him a reminder to check the crimson root, to which he did. 

「Item Name: Blood Tempering Ginseng

Type: Spiritual Herb

Grade: Mature Superior Earth-Grade

Information: A special herb that usually needs to be refined. However, due to its reaching maturity, that isn't the case. It possesses the ability to elevate the strength hidden in one's body. After all, the best weapons are forged through sweltering flames.

Effect: Produces a Premature Liberation, lowering the requirements for you to wield even more strength.

«Mature Superior Bonus» - The Premature Liberation evolved into Absolute Liberation, but the experience will match the increased reward.」

[It's more than worth it! The higher your level becomes, the more stringent it will be for you to level up. Especially so after receiving that generous source just now. However, this item will equalize your level to whatever it changes. In other words, it'll essentially eliminate some of your struggles in exchange for extreme amounts of pain!]

"Um...Azridan, why do you sound so excited," Apollo uttered with both a worried and bitter smile. Perhaps the ginseng in his grasp wasn't as pleasant as he surmised.

[No, you misinterpret. Hurry and recuperate slightly and then ingest the ginseng. Wait… I have an even better idea, but it'll hurt more!]

'Oh God...help me,' Apollo thought as he shook his head painfully.

[We're Demons, what god could we worship? We survive through ourselves!]