Awakening：The Infinite Evolution of My Talent as a Low-Level Awakener

Sterl looked down at the two disheveled figures in front of him with a cold, disdainful gaze.

Of course, they could never understand the immense power generated by a soul level of 90.

It should be known that when his soul level was just above sixty, even with the Fire of Ten Thousand Souls refining the souls of divine beings, the soul experience he gained was starting to become unsustainable.

Had it not been for the Soul Devourer Sphere, he wouldn't have been able to elevate his soul level to its current level. The time and resources required to reach this point were beyond imagination.

Such a massive amount of resources was almost inconceivable for beings of the Higher Divine Authority level, and the cost was extraordinarily high. But the rewards were naturally immense.

Previously, Sterl couldn't fully appreciate the power, but now, with his soul level at 90, a transformation had taken place. The strength of his soul intervention had become progressively more powerful. So, it was hardly surprising that it had such an effect now.

Without speaking further to the two of them—after all, in his eyes, they were already dead—Sterl never bothered to explain himself to the deceased.

He then focused his thoughts and immediately activated the Soul Absorption ability within Soul Prison's Eerie Eyes.

[Soul Absorption: Generates countless Ghostly Eye Soul Threads that absorb the soul of any living being. The absorbed soul will gradually lose its skills, combat techniques, memories, and knowledge. Simultaneously, the absorber gains the knowledge, skills, combat experience, and even memories of the absorbed being. The absorption rate ranges from 0.1% to 100% per second (depending on the relative soul strength of both parties).]

This ability wasn't particularly useful in combat, as battles at their level could end in an instant. If they encountered an opponent, they would have the means to instantly obliterate them, and the fight could very likely be over in the blink of an eye.

However, this was an excellent auxiliary ability. It allowed him to freely absorb everything his opponent knew. This was undoubtedly a divine skill!

Of course, Sterl rarely used this ability because, to him, the beings whose souls he absorbed with Soul Absorption were all defeated foes. He didn't care for their skills at all.

But when it came to gathering intelligence or uncovering secrets, it was incredibly useful. Moreover, having many skills doesn't weigh you down, and he didn't mind acquiring more abilities. Who knew when one of them might come in handy?

Immediately, countless barely perceptible soul threads delved deep into the souls of the two gods. The God of Speed and the God of Ice and Frost trembled, feeling as though something indescribable had entered the deepest recesses of their souls.

It was as though a large net had been cast, or like the roots of some kind of plant, greedily absorbing everything contained within their souls.

"No... please... spare us... we didn't..."

The God of Ice and Frost opened his mouth, trying to beg for mercy from Sterl, but alas, the gap in soul strength between them was too vast. Furthermore, with his soul heavily injured, the Soul Absorption process was now accelerating to 10% per second.

Before he could even finish his plea, his soul lost control over his body, and the words he wanted to speak were swallowed back down.

Sterl stood silently in midair, greedily absorbing the various knowledge and information contained within the souls of the God of Ice and Frost and the God of Speed.

This absorption wasn't about directly injecting their memories into his mind; it was more like watching a film. He could choose to absorb valuable information into his own soul, without having to worry about being overwhelmed by a flood of unrelated memories.

With his current soul strength, even if he absorbed all their memories, it wouldn't be a problem. A level 90 soul was far stronger than he had imagined, and many abilities still awaited development.

Time ticked by, and with the memories stored within their souls, Sterl gained a great deal of information about the Upper Realms, including why these forces were so eager to enter the Lower Realm.

"This is..."

Suddenly, Sterl paused, as if he had discovered something shocking within their souls' memories.

The secret was hidden in a corner of the soul, veiled with various taboos.

Just as he was about to accelerate his absorption, the two souls seemed to reach some kind of limit, and with a tremendous explosion, their souls erupted, interrupting the Soul Absorption.

In front of Sterl, the two Higher Divine Authorities, trapped in place by the power of Soul Absorption, shuddered, their bodies disintegrating into countless light points before slowly vanishing.

Feeling the complete disappearance of their physical forms and souls, Sterl's expression darkened.

"It seems... there's a rather significant secret hidden here."

Sterl looked up at the sky, a cold, sharp glint flashing in his eyes. Just now, it seemed he had glimpsed the truth of the Transcendence world.

Although it was merely the tip of the iceberg, the information was unprecedented, and it clearly touched upon some deep secret. Even the souls of the Higher Divine Authorities had exploded and vanished in an instant.

All the secrets, along with the perishing divine souls, sank back into silence, no longer accessible for further probing.

"Interesting."

Sterl sneered, feeling slightly displeased but not in a hurry to investigate. As his strength continued to grow, many secrets would eventually reveal themselves on their own, so he only needed to wait patiently.
Find adventures at My Virtual Library Empire

What did bother him, however, was the loss of two High Divine Authority-level souls—each worth a whole thousand points of advanced soul power.

But after a moment's thought, he realized that a mere thousand points of advanced soul power wasn't much at all. With the terrifying production capacity of his Maternal Puppet, he could easily produce that amount in less than half a day. It hardly mattered.

Thinking this, Sterl couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret—this was his current foundation, so deep and unimaginable in its strength.

He then surveyed the battlefield. Apart from the nine remaining High Divine Authority figures, who were still struggling under the attacks of the eight Lords, the rest had either been slaughtered or had already knelt in submission, with no force left to resist.

Seeing this, a satisfied smile curled on Sterl's face.

While he was confident that, with his overwhelming power, he could easily sweep through the Orichalcum Kingdom and the Ashen Temple to complete this final legendary tale, he hadn't expected to make his appearance in such a way. It truly was a case of "you must pay the price for what you gain."

Had he not dared to join the Orichalcum Kingdom's faction from the start, he would never have gained the Soul Devourer Sphere, this Soul Treasure. If not for his constant struggle through crises in Hell, he would never have experienced such a tremendous rise in power.

"Those who follow me shall prosper; those who oppose me shall perish!"

"I give you ten seconds. Life or death, the choice is yours!"

Sterl's deep voice echoed around the battlefield like a thunderous shockwave, causing the remaining nine High Divine Authorities to shudder in their very souls.

As gods of the Upper Realms, these High Divine Authorities had never imagined finding themselves in such a dire situation.

Resistance? The eight Lords alone were more than enough to beat them into submission. And on top of that, there was Sterl—an overwhelmingly powerful monster that left them feeling utterly hopeless.

The tragic fate of the God of Ice and Frost and his companions was engraved deeply in their minds. After considering their options, they realized that resistance was nothing but a death sentence.

As for submitting—though it would still likely lead to death—there was a difference between dying immediately and perhaps surviving for a little while longer.

Moreover, if they surrendered, perhaps when the great powers of the Upper Realms descended, they could use reason and emotion to convince them to spare their lives. It was still a slim chance, but it was all they had left.

Thinking this, all the High Divine Authorities turned their gaze to Sterl, their eyes flashing with deep helplessness and fear. Especially the two who had been violently beaten by Kun—under Kun's strange ability to control evil spirits, they were covered in wounds, barely clinging to life. If the assault continued, death seemed inevitable.

So, after just a brief hesitation, the remaining nine High Divine Authorities all chose to submit.

This was the advice paid for with the blood and souls of the God of Ice and Frost, the God of Speed, and the God of Rocks.

As Sterl watched the group of High Divine Authorities kneel before him on one knee, a faint smile curled at the corner of his lips, and he couldn't help but let out a wild laugh. A surge of uncontrollable ambition rose in his heart.

"Good! Very good!"

Since these individuals knew how to recognize the situation, he saw no reason not to spare their lives.

As for the secrets hidden in the memories of these gods from the Upper Realms, Sterl suspected that even they didn't fully understand them, and he had no intention of probing them right now.

The great calamity was soon to descend. After the Upper Realms merged with the Lower Realm, it would become a unified whole—or rather, it always had been one. This was a clue Sterl had gathered from the sealed divine soul memories of the God of Ice and Frost.

But why had the Lower Realm been separated in the first place, and why was it now about to be merged? What secrets lay hidden in this process? Sterl didn't know.

However, he suspected that the answers were closely tied to the impending catastrophe.

He believed that it wouldn't be long before the truth would be revealed.

Shortly after, under Sterl's command, all the gods and demigods were brought before him.

Faced with the threat of death, none of them resisted. They obediently opened their minds and allowed Sterl to implant the followers mark.

"Victory belongs to the king, defeat to the bandits. This is the truth of the world." Although they vaguely understood that this was some sort of restrictive method, none dared to oppose it.

"Last one."

Soon, the last High Divine Authority had the followers mark branded onto them. Due to their high rank, the followers mark couldn't be fully activated instantly.

However, this ability was clearly tied to Sterl's own strength—the stronger he became, the more powerful this ability would be.

In just a few days, even the High Divine Authorities would begin to gradually distort under the influence of the followers mark and become loyal servants, one of his followers.