"…Fusion?"
Yes. The four demi spirits were fusing. Their magical signature was rising—fast. In just a few seconds, the power level soared past Level 7.
Leon's gaze sharpened. He wasn't the type to let an enemy power up in peace. Without hesitation, he shot forward.
But before he could close the distance, something moved. The golden light shuddered. From within it, a blur shot out—so fast that even Leon couldn't react in time.
Gone.
But his light veins had already locked on.
A few dozen meters away, the merged demi spirit re-emerged as the golden haze began to fade. Its appearance had drastically changed.
Gone was the grotesque mass of fused plant-like bodies. What stood in its place was something terrifyingly elegant.
A humanoid figure—its body a vibrant shade of green, draped in feathers that shimmered with an unnatural spectrum of colors. Its eyes were still blank and pupil-less, but now glowed with sentience. And its smile, curved and slow, was pure malice incarnate.
At this moment, the demi spirit that stood before Leon no longer looked like a parasite-contaminated monster. No, this one had a complete, humanoid form.
It was no longer a vessel. It was a true avatar. A full embodiment of something far more sinister.
"You… carry the scent of Aria!"
Leon's thoughts halted for a moment as the newly-formed, humanoid demi spirit spoke. Its voice echoed eerily from dozens of meters away, sharp and laden with obsession.
Leon didn't react with surprise. He had long known that demi spirits possessed the ability to speak. But this one was different.
The previous demi spirits he had encountered all spoke as if driven by some lingering fixation—a fragmented, maddened will fueled by an overwhelming desire to find Ais.
They weren't truly intelligent, they were just haunted. This one… wasn't like that. This one spoke clearly and purposefully.
Leon could feel it. The consciousness inhabiting this body wasn't that of a fragmented obsession, it was the will of the true corrupted spirit, the real one buried deep beneath the Dungeon. Somehow, its essence had descended into this avatar.
A chill brushed Leon's spine.
"Fallen creature… why have you surfaced?" Leon asked coldly, his eyes narrowing. "Why not remain in the depths where you belong?"
Neither of them spared Asterius or the white wolf demi spirit another glance. Their brutal clash continued nearby, but the battlefield between Leon and the corrupted spirit had become a separate world—one that existed beyond distractions.
"Where is Aria?"
"Why has her scent vanished?"
"Why do you bear her aura upon your body?!"
The corrupted spirit didn't answer Leon's question. Instead, it demanded answers of its own.
Leon's frown deepened. He sighed inwardly.
So it really is about Ais...
He had suspected it for some time—that the sudden agitation of the corrupted spirit was connected to Ais' transformation.
When he had helped her reincarnate as an angel, the spirit blood that once stained her soul had been cleansed. That change must have echoed through the Dungeon.
Now, after seeing this demi spirit, after hearing it speak, he was nearly certain. Nine out of ten, his theory was correct.
"Aria?" Leon murmured. Then his expression turned calm. "No comment."
FWOOOSH!
The next instant, Leon's figure vanished. The corrupted spirit disappeared as well.
The moment they reappeared, the sky above the 21st floor trembled from the impact of their collision.
BOOOOM!
Leon's blade connected with the corrupted spirit's torso but to his surprise, there was no blood, no damage. The corrupted spirit's body was wreathed in a shroud of violet-black lightning, its arcane energy distorting space. That defense was on par with his own divine-level energy.
Leon's eyes narrowed. 'This strength... it's almost equal to mine…'
He hadn't held back. That slash had been intended to kill and it did nothing. His blood began to heat up. But instead of fear, he felt exhilaration.
Perfect.
Without hesitation, Leon launched another assault, and the corrupted spirit met him blow for blow.
Unlike most demi spirits, who typically relied on magic to fight, the corrupted spirit displayed masterful close-combat technique.
Leon grimaced slightly as he parried a strike. This wasn't just magical instinct, this was trained skill.
It must have devoured more than just Great Spirits. Somewhere in the depths, it had consumed powerful warriors, heroes who had braved the Dungeon and fallen, their strength stolen and imitated. But not just any heroes.
Leon could guess. The corrupted spirit must have absorbed the techniques of champions from an ancient era, perhaps from the time when spirits still roamed freely.
The present-day peak adventurers, the children of Zeus and Hera's familias, had never encountered demi spirits like these. They'd fallen battling the one-eyed black dragon long before such threats rose from the depths.
So the only possibility...
These skills came from heroes of a thousand years past.
But that no longer mattered. None of it did. Because for the first time in a long time, Leon had found a worthy challenge.
After reaching Level 5, his growth had slowed. Even sparring with Ais, Tione, or Tiona no longer brought meaningful improvement.
But this?
This corrupted spirit?
It was exactly what he needed. And so, the battle between the two surged on, a duel of titans, shaking the entirety of the 21st floor. The shockwaves from their clash were terrifying.
Even though the two fought mid-air, their blows cratered the landscape below. Every swing of the blade, every blast of magic, tore apart vines, shattered ancient trees, and carved wastelands into the forest.
The radius of destruction was immense, over 400 kilometers of terrain was reduced to scorched earth in mere minutes.
Even Asterius and the white wolf demi spirit, locked in their own brutal fight nearby, dared not approach the storm of chaos.
The space around Leon and the corrupted spirit had become a vacuum and the battle refused to remain in one place. They clashed through the air, colliding and separating again and again.
Leon, having the upper hand in speed and power, frequently sent the corrupted spirit flying with bone-shattering kicks, then chased it down like a predator.
Their battlegrounds kept shifting. Trees collapsed. Ground fractured. The entire 21st floor was in ruin. The devastation wasn't contained. Even the upper and lower floors began to tremble.
On the 18th floor, where Xenos and adventurers were still cleaning the ruins of Rivira, the earth itself quaked violently.
BOOM!!!
The rumbling thundered through the stone dome above. Debris began to fall. Cracks formed in the ceiling.
Adventurers and Xenos paused, glancing upward in worry.
"What in the—? The tremors reached here?!" Bors exclaimed, his eyes widening.
Feeling the powerful vibrations beneath his feet, he couldn't help but mutter.
Lyd stepped beside him, voice steady. "Don't worry. Leon's there. And Asterius too. With those two… we'll be fine."
But the fear wasn't easy to shake. Many adventurers exchanged anxious looks, gripping their weapons tightly as if expecting another demi spirit to burst from the ceiling.
And far above them, on the surface, within the sealed underground altar of the Guild…
Ouranos sat in silence. His divine perception stretched into the depths and he too felt it.
The clash of two overwhelming forces. One radiant, one corrupted.
His brow furrowed. The ancient god's heart stirred with unease.
"If this continues…" He whispered, voice low.
"…the Dungeon itself will no longer remain passive."