The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - Chapter 18

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Chapter 18. Possibility
The possibility that Ian had not returned to the past.
It was a possibility I had considered since the moment I realized I had returned to the past.
But it was a possibility I quickly dismissed.
I could be certain that Ian had returned to the past.
It was due to the mechanism related to my ability—Predation [S+].
Predation [S+] is an ability that allows me to devour the heart of a living being and obtain that creature’s abilities.
And I had devoured Ian’s heart and obtained his abilities.
But whether that constituted an ‘absorption’ of abilities.
Or a ‘replication’ of abilities remained unclear.
In other words, whether I was stripping the abilities from the individual whose heart I devoured.
Or simply replicating that individual’s abilities and claiming them as my own.
If it were absorption, the individual’s abilities would vanish.
If it were replication, the individual’s abilities would remain.
Yet there was no way to verify this.
A question I had never resolved even during my time as a Predator in the Allied Forces.
No living being could survive without a heart, and there was no way to confirm whether the individual whose heart I devoured retained their abilities.
If.
My predation were ‘ability absorption’, then I would have stripped Ian’s abilities from him.
Conversely, if it were ‘ability replication’, then both Ian and I would possess the abilities.
But regardless of which it was.
“Ian definitely returned to the past.”
The fact that Ian had returned to the past remained unchanged.
The abilities of Ian that I currently knew of.
There were three in total.
Solo Leveling [EX].
Player’s Will [EX].
And Regression.
By devouring Ian’s heart, I was able to obtain ‘Solo Leveling [EX]’ and ‘Player’s Will [EX]’.
But I could not obtain the ‘Regression’ ability.
Whether my predation was absorption or replication made no difference.
Either way, if I had absorbed or replicated the regression ability, I should have possessed a skill in the format of Regression [EX].
But I did not.
I possessed only Solo Leveling [EX] and Player’s Will [EX].
No ability or skill related to regression existed within me.
Which meant.
“I could not absorb the regression ability.”
That ability remained with Ian.
Whether my predation was absorption or replication.
The fact that I possessed no ability related to regression meant it remained with Ian.
This ability to consume was possible because predation didn’t grant me every power of the consumed individual.
At minimum, I needed to consume them several times.
At maximum, hundreds of times.
Only by devouring the target’s heart could I fully absorb their abilities.
I had not completely absorbed or replicated all of Ian’s powers.
Therefore, Ian absolutely must still possess his regression ability.
Ian had definitely returned to the past.
Above all else.
==[Find the Hero!]==
[Objective] – Find the Hero
[Reward] – ???
[Failure] – The End of the Continent
The main quest itself proved that Ian existed somewhere on this Continent.
Yet the fact that he hadn’t revealed himself even after seventeen days passed was puzzling…
“Let’s wait a bit longer.”
That didn’t mean I would sit idle and do nothing.
◆You have consumed additional genetic factors from Icetroll!
◆Skill ‘Regeneration [C+]’ has been enhanced to ‘Regeneration [B-]’!
Translucent text materialized before my eyes, signaling the completion of the predation process.
“It actually got stronger?”
I had hoped for it, but hope was all it was.
I never expected an ability to actually strengthen from a single predation.
Such a thing was rare—practically nonexistent.
Previously, Nutrient Synthesis [C] only evolved after I hunted eight Alakrons.
“Let me see how it’s been enhanced.”
Before I could finish speaking, translucent text regarding regeneration materialized instantly before my eyes.
◆Regeneration [B-]
: Consumes accumulated nutrients within your body to restore damaged flesh. The type and quantity of nutrients consumed varies depending on which body part is damaged and the severity of the injury.
+Can temporarily degenerate sensory nerves to block pain sensation.
【The ability will be further enhanced upon absorbing additional genetic factors.】
As Regeneration strengthened to [B-], a new element was added.
“Painlessness.”
The inability to feel pain seemed like a beneficial ability at first glance, but in truth it was not.
Pain is a survival defense mechanism.
All living creatures have a strong instinct to avoid pain, and through this instinct, they detect and evade danger.
The instinct to avoid suffering is the most reliable defense mechanism that preserves life.
But what if one cannot feel pain?
One fails to detect and avoid danger.
One cannot know whether they are injured.
Even a wound that spills blood becomes something one cannot sense.
Thus, the inability to feel pain was akin to a grave ‘disease’ for any living creature.
But what if one possessed the ability to regenerate?
Pain became utterly useless.
If I was injured, I could simply recover immediately.
“This is fine, isn’t it?”
More than fine—it was exceptional.
Even with regeneration, the agony of bones shattering and flesh being crushed remained intact.
The mental exhaustion consumed by such trauma was staggering.
Of course, I possessed the Player’s Will [EX], but that merely prevented my mind from fracturing.
It did not erase the pain itself.
But if I could temporarily suppress the sensation of pain?
“Then I could regenerate recklessly without restraint.”
I would become a true ‘regeneration monster’.
I had obtained the most essential and most valuable element for regeneration.
All the reckless gambles to perfectly hunt that heart had been worthwhile.
“No wonder The Emperor arrested them all indiscriminately.”
But now, having returned to the past.
Monsters with rare abilities comparable to Icetroll were abundantly available in the wild.
So before The Emperor began his full activities, before the Imperial Army exterminated all flora and fauna across The Continent, I had to acquire all of these abilities.
First.
The abilities obtainable from the Northern Snowfield.
“Shall I return?”
I turned my steps toward the higher reaches of the Frozen Peak.
* * *
Time passed swiftly—another week had elapsed.
Two weeks had already passed since I entered the Frozen Peak.
Throughout those two weeks, I had not descended even once.
There was neither time nor necessity to leave.
I could sustain myself by consuming the monsters I hunted.
Water could be obtained by burning calories through Nutrient Synthesis [C].
The only genuine problem was restful sleep.
The cold of the Frozen Peak was murderous.
It was unsuitable for sleeping outdoors.
But by excavating snow caves, I could manage adequately enough.
◆Toughened Skin [D] resists the bitter, freezing cold!
To be precise, I could endure sufficiently thanks to Toughened Skin [D].
Yet the environment remained harsh regardless.
But compared to my days in the Special Task Force, it was trivial.
Sleeping outdoors during missions had been relatively comfortable.
There were missions where I could not sleep for days, and times when I had to endure an entire day crammed inside a cesspit.
On the other hand, now there was plenty to eat, and I could carve out a place to rest in the snow.
“It’s paradise.”
It truly was no different from paradise, so I focused on hunting while conserving my sleep.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t hunt many creatures.
The Frozen Peak had a relatively sparse population of life due to its harsh environment.
As a result, here’s what I managed to hunt over two weeks.
Dermexus: 2.
Alacron: 14.
Icetroll: 1.
And.
“I barely managed to catch one Rex.”
I was able to hunt a single monster called Rex.
Rex, characterized by its short hind legs and vicious jaws.
Despite its appearance matching its ferocious bite force, it was surprisingly an herbivorous monster.
Not all monsters were carnivorous.
However, even herbivorous monsters, unable to control their madness, would charge at humans on sight.
All species belonging to the monster category were creatures that posed a threat to humanity.
In any case, I could only manage to catch one Rex.
This creature was also a monster that inhabited only the Northern Snowfield, and it was one of the monsters I absolutely had to consume.
The reason being that the strategy this creature adopted to survive the cold was ‘endocrine system development’.
It adopted a survival strategy of generating heat by burning greater quantities of calories.
However, one cannot create something from nothing, so it had to increase its metabolic rate accordingly.
But the Frozen Peak’s environment lacked the flora necessary to sustain such a metabolic rate.
Thus, this creature adopted a method of extremely atrophying its muscle mass.
By severely degenerating its muscles—the largest organ consuming calories—it balanced its metabolic rate.
In other words, in exchange for sacrificing muscle strength, it gained swift movement, exceptional recovery, and body heat.
By consuming the heart of such a Rex, the ability I obtained was this.
◆Promote Metabolism [E+]
: When the skill is activated, the player’s endocrine system is stimulated and metabolic rate increases significantly. In exchange for the player’s Strength decreasing by [-25%], the player’s Agility and Stamina increase by [+10%].
【This skill can be toggled [On/Off].】
【Absorbing additional genetic factors will strengthen this ability.】
Looking at the overall stats, I gained [+20%] at the cost of [-25%], resulting in a [-5%] loss overall.
However, it was an [On/Off] skill that could be toggled only when necessary.
Since I could use it separately only in situations demanding swift movement, it was quite a useful ability and skill.
“If I keep strengthening this, the efficiency will become far superior.”
If I continued enhancing it like this, it wouldn’t just be useful—the word ‘broken’ would naturally come to mind.
“So all the abilities I’ve consumed so far….”
Before I could even finish my thought, a translucent message flickered before my eyes.
==「Acquired Skills」==
◆Solo Leveling [EX]
: Players can accumulate experience points to increase their level. Each level gain grants one ability point.
◆Player’s Will [EX]
: Grants immunity to all effects exceeding the player’s mental fortitude—curses, illusions, brainwashing, hypnosis, suggestions, and the like.
◆Predation [S+]
: Devour the heart of a living creature to absorb its abilities and convert them into skills. However, this consumes mental fortitude.
◆Regeneration [B-]
◆Toughened Skin [D]
◆Nutrient Synthesis [C+]
◆Promote Metabolism [E+]
Fortunately, the abilities I’d gained through Predation appeared in simplified form.
Had they not been simplified, the skill descriptions alone would have blinded me with their sheer volume.
At least there was that mercy.
“Let me see…”
Aside from acquiring Promote Metabolism [E+] as an additional skill, there were no major changes to my abilities.
Thanks largely to hunting Alacron most frequently, I managed to upgrade Nutrient Synthesis from [C] to [C+], advancing it by one tier.
This slightly increased my caloric conversion efficiency, and I gained the ability to synthesize additional minerals essential to the body—sodium, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, and so forth.
One thing, though.
“I didn’t acquire Keratin Enhancement.”
The number of monsters possessing the Keratin Enhancement ability was simply too sparse.
Moreover, there existed monsters in the Frozen Peak that I dared not disturb, so I couldn’t hunt indiscriminately.
For that reason, I also couldn’t locate any monsters with ESP abilities.
“It’s a shame…”
Still, the expedition wasn’t entirely fruitless.
I’d managed to devour abilities I couldn’t have predated in my past life.
Most importantly.
“My level should have risen considerably.”
At that thought, a translucent window flickered and shifted before my eyes.
==「Player Information」==
[Name] = Adrian Whitewolf
[Level] = 13
[HP] = 1,600
[MP] = 0
[Ability Stats] = Strength: 22 Agility: 8 Endurance: 15 Mana: 1
[Experience] = 53.2%
“When I first entered the Frozen Peak, I was level 8…”
I’d climbed five levels in the Frozen Peak alone.
Beyond leveling up, I’d also gained additional ability points.
Through constant combat and pursuit, my strength and endurance had naturally developed.
As a result, my ability stats were higher than my level would suggest.
“But raising Agility is never easy.”
In that sense, I invested all the additional stat points gained from leveling up into agility.
That’s why Metabolic Acceleration [E+] was all the more necessary.
Agility was already a scarce stat, and it was difficult to raise in the first place.
“From now on, I should invest most of the stat points I gain from leveling up into agility.”
Instead, I needed to train strength and stamina far more intensively.
Fortunately, I had strengthened my Regeneration [B-] ability, and I had even gained a synergy skill called Nutrient Synthesis [C+].
Through physical training alone, I could grow my strength and stamina sufficiently and rapidly.
“Now then, I suppose it’s time to head back.”
Of course, it was quite regrettable that I hadn’t been able to devour the Keratin ability.
But I was exhausted.
I could endure the cold of the Snowy Mountain, but that was all it was—mere endurance.
Two weeks of forced marching had left me considerably fatigued, both physically and mentally.
Above all else.
“Has Ian arrived yet?”
By now, Ian might very well have come searching for me.
After all, I spent ten days on physical training and fourteen days hunting on the Snowy Mountain.
A total of twenty-four days—nearly a month.
No matter how distant the Whitewolf Territory was, Ian would have had more than enough time to arrive.
The likelihood that Ian had already come was very, very high.
Perhaps.
Ian might have already killed Seraphia and Kai.
“Let’s go back.”
With that resolve, I turned my steps downward from the Snowy Mountain.
And it was right then.
An inexplicable sense of wrongness.
It seized my entire body in an instant.
The reason… I couldn’t discern.
The survival instinct.
That primal instinct screamed at me alone.
…I’m going to die!
Instinctively, I activated Metabolic Acceleration [E+]. In a heartbeat, my endocrine system became hyperactive and my nervous system operated at lightning speed.
Before my brain could even process a decision, my nervous system moved my body first—
BOOM—!!
The spot where I had been standing just moments before exploded.
Snow from the Snowy Mountain scattered in all directions.
A thick blizzard swept across my vision.
…I had nearly died.
What if I hadn’t raised my agility?
What if I hadn’t gained the Metabolic Acceleration [E+] ability?
Without a doubt, I would have died just now.
A gulp—saliva sliding down my throat.
Tension coiled taut within me, and my body trembled uncontrollably despite my will.
Primal fear had rendered me rigid.
The blizzard gradually subsided.
My obscured vision slowly cleared—
My heart began to thunder wildly in my chest.
A cascade of dread filled my mind—surely not, surely not.
Even in that moment, my instincts screamed relentlessly.
Flee now, they shrieked, threatening death itself.
And then.
When my vision finally cleared completely—
I found myself face to face with something I should never have encountered on the Frozen Peak.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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