D-Block was one of the largest block of Ravenstone Prison facility. A large five storied building, each floor floor having enough space to house hundreds of prisoners.
"The safest way out of this hellhole are the stairs at the end of the corridor. Using the lift would just be plain stupid…" Xavier eyes flashed as he thought of all the escape route, weighing his options as he analyzed from what he remembered of his surroundings.
For security purposes, whenever inmates were moved from their cells, their eyes were always covered with dark cloth. It ensured no prisoner remembered the facility's layout. But Xavier had spent weeks observing subtle details and using others' movement to piece together what important information that he could. Even before this sudden crazy event, he had already made up his mind--there was now way he was going to rot in this place while the monsters who ruined his family roamed freely outside. Monsters… that was what those greedy piece of bastards were in his eyes, not humans.
Each corridor was hundred feet long. Xavier's cell was located at the very end, so it took him some time reach the other end, where the stairs were located.
"Fast…" His eyes turned back as he looked back at the distance he had manage to cover in a single breath. Covering such vast distance so quickly would have been impossible for him just a few moments ago.
But before he could continue thinking, a middle-aged man with a long scar cutting horizontally running across his face appeared, eyeing Xavier sneakily, the man rapidly closed the distance between them.
Seeing him, Xavier's eyes narrowed, the entire muscle in his body tightened.
Jack "The Butcher." One of the most cruel and dangerous criminal on the fifth floor.
When the man noticed Xavier's looking back at him, he chuckled darkly.
"Little brother, I saw what you did back there. That tiger was mind bendingly strong, but as soon as it got close to you, it dropped dead without any reason. And I also saw you pick up a certain book afterward…" His lips twisted into a sinister grin. "I want it."
With every word, he inched closer, until less than a few meters separated them.
Xavier said nothing. He simply stared, the coldness in his eyes deepening with each approaching step.
When the distance between them closed to two meters—sizzle! The faint hum of something slicing the air sounded. Out of nowhere, a golden beam of orange light shaped like a spear with pointed edge appeared in Xavier's hand.
"Move one more step forward… and die."
Though spoken indifferently, the words froze Jack in place. For a moment, even he looked unsure. Finally, he forced a smile.
"No need to go that far little brother. I was just curious how you killed that tiger so easily. I'm sure everyone present here are also curious about it, right?"
Hearing his words, Xavier's gaze moved to the side to scan the prisoners slowly gathering around him. Indeed, he could sense multiple gazes locked on his body--eyes filled with greed, jealousy, and naked killing intent.
None of the prisoners here were fools. The way Xavier had felled that monstrous tiger without breaking a sweat… there was something unnatural about it. And in a place where strength was survival, a secret like that could change everything.
Maybe there was even an unspoken agreement among D-Block's upper-floor inmates. While Xavier indifferently watched, the prisoners slowly began to close in, greed and desperation mixing into mind chilling killing intent.
It wasn't clear who was the first to speak, but soon a voice came from the back.
"If I can snatch the glowing thing from his hands, my chances of survival will definatley inscrease!"
"...without a doubt its a precious weapon."
They all though the same, Xavier was slender looking man, how could he kill the tiger, surely it must be the weapon in his hands. The world had changed—they all sensed it. And now, only power mattered.
"Hmph! Bunch of lowlifes trying to take advantage of the situation…" Jack snorted, though his eyes gleamed with the same intent.
Within moments, Xavier found himself completely surrounded. More than ten prisoners had surrounded him, giving no room to escape. The eyes of every single emitted chilling ferocity that could make normal citizens shake in fear. Xavier only escape route--the stairs leading upward--was also blocked.
At that point, Jack spoke again.
"No hard feelings, brat. Just hand over whatever treasure that 'Infinite Record' gave you, and we'll let you live."
Hearing those words, Xavier finally couldn't stop himself--Wild and uncontrollable laughter burst from his mouth.
"You think you can stop me? What guts… how dare your pitiful minds even entertain such thoughts?"
Rage surged coursed though his veins, wild and all consuming. At that moment, he wanted nothing more than to completely erase Jack from existence, no matter what the cost. However the little sanity that he had left stopped him from using the soul skill. He knew from the earlier message that he only had two uses left, and each activation might be his last resort in truly dire moments.
But before any decision could be made, the prisoners lost their patience. Ignoring the zombies drawn by the noise, they charged forward.
"Kill him! Whatever he's hiding will be ours!"
The fragile unity they had collapsed instantly. Everyone rushed at Xavier, desperate to be the first.
They remembered how easily the tiger had fallen—and assumed whatever item Xavier had gained would drop again when he died.
There was still some distance between him and the prisoners. Xavier exhaled once, focusing his mana. The manasaber in his hand pulsed with fierce light as he poured more energy into it, following intuition drawn from the skill book.
Terrifying waves of heat rippled outward. The saber's length increased slightly—from one meter to nearly one and a half.
Without hesitation, Xavier swung.
Caught off guard, the nearest prisoner's neck was cleanly sliced open. Xavier felt almost no resistance. Before the others could even react, he sidestepped and slashed again, killing two more in succession.
[You have absorbed the soul power of Level 1 humans ×3]
Jack and the other inmates could only watch in horror as Xavier cut them down like vegetables. Realizing how dire things had become, Jack turned without a word and ran toward the stairs—deciding facing zombies was safer than facing Xavier.
"Not so fast. None of you are escaping."
If it were before, Xavier might have let them go. But not now. Anyone who had seen him fight the tiger had to die—not just the prisoners, but anything that could move on this fifth floor.
Without hesitation, Xavier dumped ten mana points into the saber. It flared blinding gold, its length doubling instantly.
Jack had barely managed to a few steps forward when he felt a heat at his back. Before he could turn back, the burning orange flash pierced through his chest.
The reality finally caught up to the remaining prisoners.
"Run! Scatter! That's our only chance!"
They bolted in every direction, but Xavier only snorted. His body moved faster now—his agility honed by workouts, amplified further through leveling up.
The orange sword in his hand shimmered and transformed into a more flexible, whip-like extension of mana. Using another ten points, he enlarged the blade and swung it in a wide circle.
The blade acted like a whip slicing through the air with clean precision. Those who were too close were instantly cut in half. Only one lucky man managed to reach the stairs—but with the zombies swarming below, he chose the only path left.
He jumped.
"Arghhh!" His scream echoed before a sickening crash silenced him.
[You have absorbed the soul power of Level 1 human.]
[You have absorbed the soul power of Level 1 human.]
[You have leveled up to Level 3. You gain 2 status points to distribute freely.]
Xavier had killed nine prisoners in total, including Jack. Although the experience wasn't as rich as the tiger's, the accumulation still pushed him to the next level.