Bro, I'm not an Undead!

Yes indeed!

Skullius had used the ring he had given to Red Rage to store the many Enriching gems that he had collected in the Clusters that he, Stylla, Fore and Bron had cleared.

The three didn't have much use for them as they were no longer effective on their bodies.

While they did have commercial value, Bron had told Skullius that special animal parts and dead cores had more value to them.

Thus, the Discount Human had walked away with over 800 purple Enriching gems.

This amount seemed inflated but with the fact that he got hog all the gems from different Clusters, most of which that housed weak Cluster beasts, it was truly not much of an achievement.

Of course, he had also managed to steal some of the different ones on Mount Sagemore which had a mix of red to them.

These made him excited.

He had 35 of them, ripe for absorption.

He couldn't wait to see what changes they would cause within him.

So far, Skullius knew that Enriching gems shaped his flesh and made him...stronger. Apparently, this change was a boost in constitution as he had read from the many books he stole. However, this didn't reflect in his stats but he did find himself being able to exert much more force.

Him soloing a Sage Monkey before was partly as a result of that fact.

"I should have asked Bron how Enriching gems actually help me," Skullius said regretfully.

According to his sources (Bron), after the thousandth gem, there wouldn't be anymore effects that gems would show. Or rather gems of the lower tiers like purple ones.

"Let's get to it," the Discount Human said as he took out two purple gems and started absorbing the essence within.

He felt the soothing energy that trickled into his cosmetic flesh once more, working on a fine level to make him feel stronger.

[Your flesh and bones are augmented. A factor of 0.1 applies]

[Your flesh and bones are augmented. A factor of 0.1 applies]

'Good!'

With that Skullius began absorbing the essence nonstop, replacing the emptied gems with new ones within seconds.

Skullius had absorbed a little over 200 gems last time and he hoped there was something he could gain at the end.

This was merely the mind of a desperate man seeking to reach new heights.

Surely, something happened after he had spent a few hours absorbing all the energy within the gems.

[Your flesh and bones are augmented. A cumulative factor of 100 has been applied to your body]

[Strength increases by 10]

[Agility increases by 10]

[Endurance increases by 10]

[Health increases by 10]

[Mana increases by 10]

"Ohhh...!" Skullius gawked at the sight of all the stats he had received and an explosive energy shot from within him because of the stats!

In his body, his fake muscles screamed of power and the limits he had just a few hours ago were removed as he ascended to a greater height!

Not only this, but Skullius' exterior changed massively unlike last time!

His body which still looked lean and closer to thin as hell even after the first absorption spree, became a bit bulky, glimpses of well toned chest pads and abs showing under his armour, his figure becoming more masculine!

His arm muscles became more defined and so did his cheeks and jaws, giving him a distinct and kind of handsome appearance that was void before.

Such a change!

It was only muddled by the hanging flesh on his side.

Skullius excitedly looked at himself with a grin.

10 points in stats!

It was a shame that intelligence didn't get a boost but he appreciated the gain nonetheless.

It made sense to Skullius now why even with a single point gained after advancing a level to all other beings except those chosen by the Voice of Worlds, he would at times see vast stats figures on his opponents' statuses.

It was all because of these Enriching gems!

With this newfound strength he could...

Not do much actually.

He was still quite lacking, but it was still huge improvement.

As if to defy his atrocious luck, another piece of good news struck Skullius, completely unexpected this time.

When he was absorbing the thousandth gem...

['Flesh It Like You Mean It' levelled up!]

"Huh?!" Skullius was shocked.

How on earth did that skill level up?!

Come to think of it, there were many skills he wondered how to improve. A prime example was [Apostle Summon] and [Flesh It Like You Mean It] was also another.

Now, he knew how to level up one of them!

It made sense.

Enriching gems boosted constitution and even altered his appearance to a degree. Naturally, they could forcefully level up [Flesh It Like You Mean It] which did the same thing.

Until now, Skullius had begun to think that Null Life skills could only level up when he evolved like what had happened last time, but he was glad he was wrong.

Skullius took another Enriching gem and tried to absorb more essence but was not surprised when the energy flowing into him as a result, reluctantly one might add, dissipated without achieving anything.

He had effectively absorbed a thousand gems and now, as Bron (the sources) said, he couldn't gain anything more from them.

"Can the other gems enhance my constitution more?" Skullius wondered.

He also wondered how he would fare with [Crude World Projection] now. How long would it last?

Abusing that power was in his near plans.

He took one out to sample how much it improved his body, cradling its sparkling mass in his hand which became tinted in the purple-red light.

Skullius then pulled on the essence stored within and felt it travel within him.

"Hmmm..."

It was more robust, thicker with a refreshing yet empowering feel.

This was easily better than the purple ones, which made Skullius breathe out as he received another notification.

[Your flesh and bones are augmented. A factor of 0.5 applies]

"Interesting," Skullius remarked as he went on to absorb all 35 gems while relishing in the feeling he derived.

It was magnificent.

At the end, his auburn hair grew a few inches and his eyes gained a vivid sparkle about their satin grey tint which began edging towards sparkling silver.

His face became distinct with a liveliness about it that screamed the name Festos, his muscles becoming visible under his torn armour!

Yet, the Discount Human was oblivious to this.

He didn't care much for appearance at the moment.

He looked at himself in wonder and excitement.

"That's more like it," he said.

With all this taken care of, Skullius was ready for the main event.

It was time to bring the golden boy back!