'After you!' Nyx shouted.

Leo took a deep breath and rushed forward, kicking up the dirt as he went. A sharp wave of shadows trailed behind him, cutting a gash in the ground and growing stronger with each step. Ruination made the technique unstable and heavy, but he pushed on, dragging the mass of energy with him.

The moment he came within a few feet of the pillar, he jumped high with all his power. On the other side, he saw Nyx do the same. They met on the opposite sides of their target—the Basilisk's head—and flung their techniques at the beast as they passed each other.

Two arcs of shadows, both tempered by experience and unmatched control, struck the Basilisk at the same time. Thanks to the addition of Ruination, Leo's attack cut through the flesh faster, obliterating it. Yet, Nyx's technique wasn't far behind, and soon, they collided in an explosion that rocked the entire valley.

The Voidling fell limp to the ground, headless. Part of its body remained coiled around the pillar, but now it wouldn't be moving anywhere.

Caged Frostwraith Basilisk (LVL: 77) slain | Experience awarded | 363 Ether gained

Leo smiled as his feet touched the ground again. Even if this thing was a higher level than him, it was still just a weak beast. In comparison to the Greater Infernal Goliath from the last layer, this was nothing.

And now we take the spoils, he thought, gazing at the Supercluster core and activating Identify. Got anything for me?

Supercluster Core:

The operating core of a D rank Supercluster located on planet Earth in Universe no. 237. Destroy it to stop its continuous growth in strength and free the planet from its corruption. Some say there are other uses for an active core like this. Take care.

What? Leo frowned at the last two sentences in the description. Either the System was trying to play a joke on him, or it was something it really couldn't reveal.

If its restrictions are really that bad, it may be the case…

He shook his head and dismissed the System. He had better things to worry about. Like for example, how to destroy this core safely? Was he supposed to just shatter it like a nest core, or maybe there was more to it than that?

"We can just hit it and find out," Nyx chimed in once they regrouped at the base of the pillar. "Are you expecting trouble?"

"With the Void?" He quirked an eyebrow. "Always. Also…” He touched the cool surface of the core, shivering as its wild energy washed over him. "I wonder if I can somehow use Devour on this thing."

"That… doesn't sound like a good idea. Draining a Wasteland is one thing, but this? You would probably explode from within."

"Maybe, maybe not," Leo said, stepping away from the pillar. "It might be a good time to make a call. No reason to risk it."

"Right…" Nyx scrunched her brow. "I forgot about the merchant for a moment. Good idea."

With that said, he fished out the transmitter out of his soul while the feline stood watch. With the explosion they caused, it was a surprise that no more Frostwraiths had arrived yet.

"All right… Naz'Tor… there we go."

The signal for the call went out, but unlike with Lily, it took a bit for it to connect. However, when it did, the merchant's jovial tone erupted from the device.

"Leo! You're still alive. Wonderful!"

"What? Was I supposed to die?" he asked in partial disbelief. "You sure sounded like you believed I would succeed the last time we talked."

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"No, no! Of course not! Why would I want my most promising customer to die?" Naz'Tor exclaimed. "I just… Well, when you've lived as long as I did, you're prepared for every outcome. Don't take it the wrong way, but I had quite a few clients die on missions much easier than yours."

Leo hesitated for a moment. "All right, fair, I guess."

"Exactly! I will always believe in you, kid, but I'm still a realist… Now tell me what you need? It couldn't be long since you entered the Rift. Did you get stuck? Need a weapon to deal with a particularly annoying and powerful monster?"

"No, none of that." He shook his head lightly. "I'm currently in the third and last layer of this Rift with the Supercluster core standing next to me. I wan—"

"Wait, wait!" Naz'Tor interrupted. "Rewind a bit. What did you just say, kid?"

Leo sighed. "I'm in the third and last layer of this Rift, and I have the Supercluster core next to me."

"Oh…" the merchant muttered. "So I heard you right. How? According to my calculations, it had only been a few hours since you left."

"I think you have lost me. What do you mean how?"

"Ah, forgive me," Naz'Tor quickly backtracked. "What I mean is how in the Old Ones' name have you already progressed this far? D rank Rifts aren't that dangerous or long, but on your power level, it should have taken you far more time than this. Did the System make a mistake in ranking that place? It has happened before."

Huh… Who would have thought. Leo chuckled before addressing the merchant again. "No, no. No mistakes. At least I don’t think there is one. Hell, I probably already killed more Nightmares here than on Earth."

This time, it was Naz'Tor who took a while to respond. "You will need to elaborate because now it's you who have lost me…"

And so, Leo did just that, not really minding telling his short story one more time. The merchant never interrupted, and at times, he wondered if the call had disconnected. It didn't, he checked.

By the end of his monologue, a deep, exasperated sigh was the only sound that came from the other side of the call. He had to ask Naz'Tor if everything was all right to get a different response.

"Don't mind me," the alien said. "I just had to reevaluate my entire file on you… over twenty levels in a few hours… Dear Void, the potential of your soul must be through the roof. You Primes really… that’s just unfair…"

Leo frowned. "What does my soul have to do with how many levels I gained?"

Naz'Tor tsked loudly. “Of course you don’t know… I forgot you have yet to learn about those things. Allow me to explain. It won't take long."

"You see, the soul is undeniably the most important of the three pillars," he continued, echoing the words of a certain dead Prime. "And that's not only because our Essence comes from it. No, there are several other reasons, but only one of them is important now."

"The potential, or as some call it, the processing power. Simply put, each time you gain experience from the System, your soul must first process that power. The final result of this process decides how fast a being can progress. Some souls have low potential and thus waste a lot of the experience given to them. Then there are those—"

"Like me," Leo took over. "So what you're saying is that I level faster because my soul uses the resources the System gives me better than others."

"Exactly," Naz'Tor exclaimed. "There are a few more nuances to that, but that's the gist of it. In the lower levels, it's less noticeable, but once you get to the three digits, you will see how other survivors around you slow down. According to some research, a good portion of survivors and Voidlings reach their peak sometime before or after the stage five evolution. Yes, they can still progress, but it's slow, and not even dropping more points in the Soul attribute can help. That one only decides your soul's strength, not its potential."

"Wait. It affects the Voidlings, too?"

The merchant chuckled. "They also have a soul, so the answer is yes."

Leo didn't respond right away. When he called, he didn't expect to be given a lesson on the inner workings of the soul but was thankful nonetheless. It put some things into perspective. Like for example, how he was supposed to ever reach the power of beings that had centuries, if not more, to grow stronger.

Well, now he knew. The knowledge that Voidlings were also affected was quite nice, too. Still, there was one question bugging him out.

"Is there a way to improve the soul's potential?"

"Of course there is!" Naz'Tor exclaimed. "There isn't much that isn't possible with the System and the Void. Although, I will admit, even someone with my resources and contacts can't just enhance their potential without a lot of work."

Good to know, but I want more.

"So what? Items?" he prodded.

"Among other things," the merchant answered, pretty much avoiding the question. "With how fast you progress, that's not something you will have to worry about for a long, long time. Trust me on that, kid."

Leo sighed and, for a moment, considered trying to fish for more information. However, after a glance at Nyx and the tall, glowing pillar next to him, he decided otherwise. Soul's potential could wait; he had more important stuff to ask about.

"Fine then... Tell me, how do I go about destroying a big-ass Supercluster core? Without dying, that is."