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    I woke feeling oddly refreshed. No pain, no exhaustion, if my memory wasn’t so good I might have forgotten how I fell asleep in the first place. This feeling of refreshment ended nearly instantly as I opened my eyes to see a hideous fish staring right into my eyes. I shrieked, hands going up to protect my face as I rolled, hitting the floor of the shack in a clatter of armor and curses.


    Leaping up, I spun, summoning my staff to find…Bethy, unconvincingly trying to hide a fishing rod behind her back. “Hey guys, he’s awake!” she called innocently as the rod disappeared in a flash, presumably into her ring.


    Callie pushed the door open, leaning inside to squint at her suspiciously. “Thank’s…” she said slowly.


    Chirping that it was no problem, Bethy turned into bats and blurred right past my wife, who turned to raise an eyebrow at me. “You ok? I thought I heard someone squeak,” her face was concerned but I could feel the amusement through our bond.


    “I didn’t make a sound,” I said blithely. “But I heard something too. Was more a manly bellow than a squeak.”


    She just laughed, stepping up to pull me into a tight hug. “I was a little worried for a second, but I figured out quick you were fine and just sleeping. Thank you for working on my technique for me. I feel so much…stronger,” she clenched a fist, seemingly erupting with fighting spirit at just the thought of what she could do.


    “I’m guessing you can use it instantly now?” I asked with a laugh.


    “Yeah, I can tap into the tome through the bond directly,” she responded eagerly. “It’s just so much different than having to do it all manually. I have so much more room for control and adjustment when I don’t have to juggle a dozen images in my head. It’s not like I’m using an automatic ability either, it’s more like…muscle memory.”


    I laughed, “It is pretty convenient. But don’t keep me in suspense, the new technique I made, how is it?”


    “It’s…strange,” she admitted. “It works great, burns away mental influence. Not just influence from outside either. We’re PRETTY sure it increases soul clarity. Not a lot, but it does SOMETHING. Bethy said it helps her focus through her bloodlust better. We had to adjust it to our Paths, obviously, but apparently you made it compatible with most people.”


    That made me smile. That had been intentional, and had actually massively increased the difficulty. The Promethean Fire Soul Body was…frankly it was beyond my understanding at the moment. The Wisdom of Solomon and Dantalion combined had allowed me to make something that I was pretty sure I shouldn’t have been able to create.


    Some of the alterations and changes I’d made, in retrospect, shouldn’t have worked. Marked for Death had been stretched well beyond its intended usage, as had Blood Curse, and the inversions and tweaks I’d applied should have made the skills flimsy and fragile. Not to mention the soul interaction aspect, which even beneficially I shouldn’t be able to manage at the moment.


    The only thing that explained it was the tree. The Ten Demons Tree’s simulations had let me essentially run the library like a computer, making the alterations within the reincarnation simulation repeatedly, essentially living out the story a thousand times in a second to stress test the technique over and over, slowly smoothing out the flaws.


    The deeper I’d gotten, the more entrenched Dantalion became. It was so effective I briefly wondered if it counted as a new domain, but according to my stat page it was just a power interaction with the tree.


    I almost immediately wanted to go back in and start deducing my forms to a deeper level. I was sure it had some sort of limit, but I was just as positive I could increase the power substantially, or at the very least make them easier to use so I could run them more easily and use more at once.


    Sadly, now wasn’t the time for sitting around meditating, so I just sighed and followed her outside to where everyone was practicing. Well, mostly everyone. Bethy was obviously done with her training, and Abel seemed to have finished.


    I wasn’t shocked, they were both geniuses, though I was still reeling that my technique could clarify the soul, even a little. Techniques were more effective for soul interaction than skills, since Paths heavily involved the soul, but I’d never heard of one that could do that. Soul clarity was hard to effect, and usually took dramatic and powerful means to improve.


    Even if the Promethean Fire Soul Body could only purify a thousandth of a percent per YEAR it would be a priceless technique. Feeling out the library, I was shocked to see that the staff seemed…tired.


    Apparently using the Wisdom of Solomon wasn’t without cost. Which made sense, if it could make techniques like that. It was a bit sad I couldn’t just spam it in the background with a parallel at all times, but even this one technique was already a huge benefit, and the staff would recover with time.


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    Soul clarification was the process I’d undergone in the falls, rather than the one I’d undergone in my rebirth. There were layers of soul, and clarification purified the upper reaches. Still very useful, but not the same level as the wreath or the rebirth.


    I needed to ask someone about that, I didn’t understand half of what was going on with my soul, and given that it was one of my biggest advantages, I really should.


    Speaking of advantages, I triggered the Promethean Fire Soul Body and Zagan, overlapping the two effects to see what it would do, and was blown away by how…clear I felt. It wasn’t a cold clarity, or a robotic calm. I felt like I’d ascended to a crystal heaven, where everything was clear and calm and smooth. I knew without a doubt that no mental technique below B-rank would even scratch my mind, and the purification aspects of Zagan seemed to be internally strengthened by the technique.


    I was so lost in the sensation it took me a minute to notice that I’d inadvertently created another domain. I had to organize my mind for a minute to properly categorize it, but finally I settled on a name.


    Sixth circle of hell: Leviathan. Named after the invincible beast who couldn’t be stopped. Granted, it wasn’t a PLACE, but neither was retribution, and I thought confining my circles to specific place names was a limitation I didn’t need. Leviathan was supposed to be a colossal monster, so being an entire circle of hell only seemed right.


    “Shane,” Callie said, obviously repeating herself. My head snapped up, so distracted I’d almost missed her comment. “You have that look. You just get a new power?”


    I just laughed. “You know me well. But more like combined ones I already had. Regardless, it’s a pretty cool one, I’ll tell you about it later. Bethy and Abel already perfected their versions of it, huh?”


    “Not exactly,” said my mentor from where he leaned against the wall of the shack, eyes closed. “I’m trying to integrate it into my Ragam Blood Body. It’s a useful effect, and I think it could qualitatively raise the level of my combat effectiveness. But it’s kind of an abstruse technique, and I’m having trouble.”


    I nodded in sympathy. I’d developed that technique to its limits. On the surface it seemed simple and easy to master, and it was compatible with almost any Path, but the mechanics were so refined that any small alteration would ruin the structure. It reminded me a lot of the wish ability in that sense, though I had to admit that even with my staff it wasn’t a millionth the complexity of something my ancestor could make.


    Dropping down next to him, I decided to try to help if I could. Since he wasn’t soul bonded to me, he couldn’t access the library, but I could ask him questions and offer advice. “Well, how exactly does your Ragam Blood Body work? I can tell you got a lot stronger, but I’m not sure HOW exactly. It seems almost more quantitative than qualitative. Like your spatial energy isn’t really any more refined, and your Path doesn’t seem deeper.”


    “Because it’s not,” he said bluntly. "Not all of us are freaks of nature who can refine and perfect a Path in real time. It takes most people decades to even REACH Solid Path, nevermind go past it. I don’t think you got how abnormal you are.”


    Laughing, I just shrugged. “Maybe, but then how did you get stronger? What kind of training did you do with Lark?”


    “Not training,” he corrected. “Killing. You know that my Path is the Infinite Blood Sea. By definition the more beings I kill, the stronger I get. The blood sea increases in depth and scope, expanding as I fill it with the blood of my enemies, and it has no limit.”


    “Ok, but that’s just an aura, right?” I asked bluntly. “Like I know it makes you scarier, but how do you weaponize that?”


    He snorted. “Lark is one of the most powerful blood Path users in the entire universe. He found a way. By manifesting the Infinite Blood Sea with my Ragam Manifestation, I’m able to essentially solidify the sacrificial energy. The more of it there is, the denser it becomes, and the more sturdy my defense when I condense it down with my spatial lubrication. That’s the principal behind the Ragam Blood Body. An infinite ocean as a physical form.”


    I just gaped at him. That was…that was BRILLIANT. I wouldn’t have even conceived of something like that. Lark had taken a few disparate pieces of relatively useful skillsets and forged a top tier form beyond anything I’d ever dreamed of.


    I’d been sure that with Sammael, I was stronger than Abel could possibly be, but the Vampire had just casually slapped together a few Skills and abilities and made something that could most likely compete with my entire combat system all on its own. It was, without a doubt, a stark reminder of just how far I had to go.


    But that didn’t mean I couldn’t improve it. I frowned at him. “Manifest your Blood Body.”


    He didn’t question why, just did it, his form instantly replaced by a rippling humanoid sculpture of shimmering blood. I triggered Dantalion, making sure Sammael was active, and then condensed the whole thing down to a few feet, making sure Abel was covered. Then I told him to continue his attempts, narrating them for me as he went.


    Without the Wisdom of Solomon I couldn’t run instances, but I was still a genius with access to the library. I retreated to my inner domain, sitting down at a table with a book and leaving a parallel to parse his speech as I started to write. I couldn’t deduce a whole technique down to a tome with just Dantalion, no matter how long I sat there, but I COULD use it as a framework and have him fill in the details.


    I asked questions, poked and prodded, and just generally dissected his technique as best as I could manage. Story, stat construction, anything I could piece together. Then I started experimenting with the Promethean Fire Soul Body, slowly trying to integrate the two together.


    Abel hadn’t said it, but I knew why he wanted to do this. Not just for the power, I’d seen Abel in the grips of his Path before. Fully leaning into the blood, and it made him…colder. He’d been different since he got back, clearly unsettled by something he’d been made to do, and I suspected it had to do with all the killing.


    The quick power up had obviously taken a toll, and integrating the Promethean Fire Soul Body and the Ragam Blood Body into one form would hopefully help erase some of the aftereffects. I didn’t notice how wide I was smiling until about two hours later. I guess there was time for some sitting around doing research.