Ray, who was walking towards his base, paused in his tracks.
"What happened, Ray?" Elsha asked with a worried expression.
"Nothing, the fish has been caught," Ray replied, a strange smile appearing on his face as his eyes glinted.
"You act like an idiot sometimes," Elsha said with a chuckle.
"Cough, cough." Ray lightly cleared his throat, then turned towards Ana. "Did I act strange, Ana?"
"No, you didn't," Ana immediately shook her head, her eyes brightening. "You looked handsome."
"Ana is the best," Ray said, rubbing her silky hair with a smile.
"Hehehe," Ana giggled, her eyes filled with fascination.
"This girl..." Elsha's brows twitched as she rolled her eyes. "She's already become Ray's fangirl."
Ray turned towards the old couple with a smile. "Grandpa and Grandma, are you tired?"
"It's fine, Ray, we can still walk," the grandpa replied, though sweat dripped down his head.
"Wakey," Ray muttered under his breath, and immediately an eerie darkness spread around them. A level two Undead Raven appeared, shrouded in the same darkness.
The moment it appeared, the Raven looked at Ray with tender eyes and lowered its head. Ray patted its head, making the Raven flutter with joy.
"You can sit on this Raven for the trip," Ray offered to the couple, who looked a little nervous. "It's fine, it won't hurt you. Will you?"
The Raven immediately felt a chill in its heart as it looked at its master with wisdom in its dark eye, fervently nodding its head in agreement.
"Good, good," Ray murmured as he guided the elderly couple onto the Raven's back. The Raven took off, carrying them safely as they continued on their journey.
Meanwhile, although Kikyo seemed to have erased Argos's soul, that wasn't entirely true.
A sliver of his soul remained, rapidly regenerating.
Souls, in their essence, are immortal and cannot perish in the physical world. Only the darkness from the realm of the dead could truly wither a soul.
This meant that Ray's summon form was essentially immortal, bound to Ray's will. However, if Ray were to die, the soul would be sent back to the shadow realm, where it would be slowly drained by the eerie darkness.
"I wonder how those creatures could survive there..." Ray muttered, a chill running down his spine as he contemplated the unspeakable dread of the shadow realm.
As they continued, the group soon spotted a giant wall in the distance, with countless people entering through it one by one.
They reached the paved road, and a car suddenly appeared in front of them.
A beautiful woman in a professional suit stepped out, her eyes widening slightly in surprise as she noticed the Raven flying at a low altitude and the two women behind her.
However, she quickly composed herself, bowing respectfully before opening the car door for Ray.
"Eh?" Ana looked at the open door with a confused expression.
"Get in," Ray said, tapping her forehead with an amused smile before stepping into the car first.
"Woah, do you own this car?" Ana asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.
"No, I don't own it, but it's mine now," Ray replied casually before stepping inside.
Ana followed, still a bit confused, while Elsha hesitated, glancing back at the Raven carrying the elderly couple.
"Don't worry," Ray reassured her. "My summon will guide them to the foster home in my base. They'll have some light work to do, but they'll live comfortably with plenty to eat."
"Really?" Elsha's eyes brightened with relief. In this Apocalypse living and getting food itself was really difficult.
"I am 19. How am I too young?" Ana said vigorously.
"Still too young," Vanessa shook her head.
"Well, you guys talk among yourselves. I'll go to my training ground." Ray sighed and left without giving the other girls a chance to talk.
As a man, he always felt a headache dealing with these girls, especially since they were pregnant; their mood swings were faster than you could scroll through shorts.
Ray walked into a spacious grand room filled with equipment.
"Let's see," he muttered.
He didn't even glance at the equipment as Ray muttered in his heart.
"Status."
The red panel flickered as it appeared in front of him.
—--
[Name: Ray Crownwell]
[Status: Awakened (A-class)]
[Skill: Body Strengthening (Awakening IV), Necromancer (Awakening III), Analyser (Awakening I), Weapon Master (Awakening I), Fire Magic (Awakening II), Lightning Arts (Awakening II), Healer (Awakening III), Ice Magic (Awakening I), Mechanic (Awakening I), Genetic Synchronisation (Awakening I), Overlord of the Sky (Awakening I)]
—--
Ray directly opted out of all the skills and focused on his two highest skills: Genetic Synchronisation and Overlord of the Sky.
He particularly examined Overlord of the Sky. This skill directly increased his physique, but the question was whether it could further enhance his physique as he advanced it and if it could truly help him break through his strength limits.
"Advance," Ray said to the system without hesitation.
—
-Mutation energy: 4526
—
—
-Mutation energy: 4426 (-100)
—
The moment his mutation energy depleted by a hundred, a warm energy flowed through his veins, removing all impurities from his organs and strengthening his bones with an all-encompassing enhancement of his entire body.
Ray tightened his fist. Although the power felt the same, he could definitely sense a difference in his muscles.
There was also a vast reserve of information in his mind, but he decided to ignore it for now.
"Status."
—--
-Physique and Vitality: 30 original
-Mutation energy: 4426
Unique ability- Rejuvenation
—--
"It increased by 4." Ray's eyes lit up.