That night, Seifer did nothing but plan. He spent the entire night on the armchair in front of the fireplace, thinking about his next move. He intended to take full advantage of his knowledge of the future.

Time flew by, before he knew it, the sky was light and he was finally done planning. Before Seifer reversed time, he had done thorough research about all the opportunities and dangers that he ought to be aware of.

However, he hadn’t been sure exactly how far back in time he would be sent. In truth, he had intended to reverse time to a point that was several decades after this but he had long foreseen that he could end up in a time that was earlier or later than his first choice.

Anyway, since I ended up all the way here there is only one right course of action he thought. At the edge of the vast forests that surrounded the Veruvian Mountains was a city called Ceres.

It was the closest large city to the Nox city, there was even a portal between Nox city and Ceres. Having spent a long time there in his last life, Seifer had a deep understanding of Ceres. It would be the perfect place to grow his strength.

But I am far too weak now, before I do anything serious, I must reach the upper stage of the second step he thought.

The ritual had awakened his spirit gate and turned him into a Transcendent, one who had taken the first step on the path to power. First step Transcendents simply took in ether to strengthen their souls and physiques.

The only thing separating Transcendents in the first step from ordinary mortals was their powerful bodies. They couldn’t control their Ether to fly or do anything else because they possessed such miniscule amounts of it.

Only once they accumulated a large amount of Ether would they gain the ability to control it. At this point, they would be considered Second Step Transcendents and from here on out, the various steps on the path to power were divided into the Upper and Lower stages.

Seifer was no longer a demon, right now he was heavily restricted by Karma. Only once he reached the Upper Stage of Second step could he make use of the various methods of negating Karma.

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The House of Nox possessed many resources that could help him reach the required level of power but they wouldn’t be handed out just like that. As soon as he became a Transcendent, his Trial of Solitude began.

The family wanted each generation to be capable and independent and so, every new Transcendent would have a period of 300 days where they were not allowed to interact with any other Nox.

During the trial, it was forbidden for anyone to help the young scions, they had to find their own path. This rule ensured that the next generation would grow the power and influence of the family rather than squander their resources.

As such, severe punishments were dished out if one was caught in the act. Even Seifer’s aunt, one of highest ranking family Elders couldn’t get away with it, as much as she would have liked to spoil him.

Seifer’s first opportunity to receive the family’s gifts was right around the corner. In less than two months, the winter tournament would be held and a great performance in the tournament would be followed by great rewards.

Right now, all he needed to do was get strong enough to perform well in the tournament. He walked into his office and found a pitch black ring resting on the desk.

This was all he owned now, his wealth and resources had been confiscated for the trial. Seifer ran his fingers over the ring, feeling the cracks and crevices on its surface. This may look like an ordinary metallic ring but it was far from it. This ring was made from the scales of a Tulak snake.

It was connected to a space of five cubic meters, granting him a storage space that was entirely weightless and fit right on his finger. This ample space contained nothing but a metallic white card, the lowest ranking bank card of the esteemed Noctus Bank.

On the back of the card, was the number 1000 printed in black letters. A thousand credits, this was all that was left of his once vast wealth. Although, much of that wealth would have been useless now.

The Kingdom of Altara where Nox City was located used a currency called Keter. Transcendents, however, had no use for mortal currencies. Instead, each important city had its own Trade Hall where all sorts of precious resources were sold, and the various Trade Halls had their own currencies.

It was only the Noctus Bank’s currency, Noctus Credits, more commonly referred to as just credits, that every Trade Hall could convert into their own currency.

Look at what the Lord Scourge has become, a pauper in the first step with only a thousand credits to his name thought Seifer in amusement. But he could not be more happy. There was nothing he enjoyed more than the pursuit of power, he couldn't wait to see how quickly he would reach the top with 700,000 years of experience.