"At least within this range, I don't see anything capable of threatening me."
"Over the next few days... I'll raise all of my levels, and while I'm at it, clean out these eighth-tier monsters as well."
Kanzaki Rei stored the corpse before him inside his storage pouch.
The Myriad Skin Bag, which he had not used in quite some time, was as useful as ever.
Within the detection range of his Mana Sea, the number of eighth-tier monsters had already risen to 308.
The farther they were from Moonwatch Territory, the fewer there were.
It seemed these monsters were paying extremely close attention to Moonwatch Territory.
Among those 308 eighth-tier monsters, more than twenty wore masks like the one he had just killed.
These were known as Legion Commanders.
They possessed the authority to command entire monster armies.
The Abyss. Monsters.
The information he had obtained from Lothdan was limited.
As far as humans were concerned, the monsters had revealed almost nothing of real importance.
If he wanted the enemy's secrets, he would have to extract them from the enemy itself.
Kanzaki Rei turned.
With a single thought, he crossed ten billion kilometers.
Another instant later, he stood twenty billion kilometers away.
Absolute Mana Sea.
If it continued expanding at this pace, it might one day engulf the entire world.
Of course, the expansion speed of the Mana Sea was directly related to the rate at which he generated mana.
Ordinary mana-enhancement techniques would never allow Absolute Mana Sea to grow so quickly.
When Kanzaki Rei changed his position, the expansion pattern of the Mana Sea changed as well.
The Mana Sea always expanded outward with Kanzaki Rei at its center.
But that did not mean the Mana Sea moved with him.
Any area already transformed into Mana Sea would remain Mana Sea forever.
If Kanzaki Rei arrived at a location that had not yet been infused, then the process began from zero there, converting that new region into another Mana Sea.
It was not that the Mana Sea followed him wherever he went.
However, because the expansion speed was so fast—
This was actually an advantage.
"This distance..."
The moment he reached the edge of the Mana Sea, the untouched region before him was rapidly flooded by a new Mana Sea extending several million kilometers.
Hummm...
Kanzaki Rei instantly opened a Phase Traverse passage.
Using Phase Traverse, he traveled to an even more distant location.
When he looked back, exactly as expected, there was a discontinuity between the two Mana Seas.
And centered on himself, a new Mana Sea began forming at the destination, creating another eternal ocean of mana that would never disappear.
At the same time, Kanzaki Rei could still feel that—
Although the two Mana Seas were not physically connected—
He could still control the mana in the first sea.
His senses could still extend there as well.
And...
Whoosh!
In another instant, Kanzaki Rei returned.
There was no obstruction whatsoever.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Once again, he reached the edge of the Mana Sea and used Phase Traverse repeatedly, leaping over and over into untouched regions.
However, the speed at which he spread mana was so absurdly fast that—
If he moved even slightly too slowly, the Mana Sea's expansion would outpace his spatial jumps.
From advancing to a Level 6 Mage...
To casually eliminating an eighth-tier monster...
Less than twenty minutes had passed.
Then, over the course of two to three hours—
Kanzaki Rei spread his mana to every region of the Moon Sea.
He did not limit himself to the two-hundred-billion-kilometer radius around Moonwatch Territory.
Instead, he traveled much farther.
Leaving a little here.
A little there.
No matter what happened, he made sure to preserve escape routes.
He even...
[Seventh-Tier Phase-Space Magic: Phase Transposition]
With a single thought, he returned to the Secret Sea.
Now, however, the Secret Sea was nothing but gray-white.
Its color resembled the pale ash left behind after burning paper offerings during the Festival of the Dead—whitish, with scattered flecks of black mixed within.
Since returning to this world, Kanzaki Rei had repeatedly used Future Simulation to revisit the Secret Sea through the Phase Transposition coordinates.
Yet every single time—
The scenery remained exactly the same.
Absolute silence.
Absolute stillness.
The lingering aftereffects of total destruction.
No life.
No change.
This was what remained of a place destroyed by White.
Upon arriving this time—
Kanzaki Rei left behind a Mana Sea here as well.
He now possessed more than enough escape methods.
With the time-stop granted by the Transcendent Ascension Realm, combined with phase-space magic—
There were few places in the world he could not go.
And he no longer feared pursuit from anyone.
Still, having one more contingency was never a mistake.
After completing all of this, Kanzaki Rei finally returned to Moonwatch Territory.
At this very moment, Moonwatch Territory was still being ravaged by monsters.
Powerful monsters continuously assaulted the city's crumbling walls and defenses.
Sweat streamed down the foreheads of every class-advanced professional.
Each day, the monsters seemed more ferocious.
Each day, it felt as though today might be their last.
"...Sigh."
"If I hadn't come back..."
"Moonwatch Territory's fate would have been total destruction."
He could see the approaching deaths of every single person.
Even Lothdan himself had only a few days left to live.
But...
Because he had returned, they would survive.
Kanzaki Rei looked toward Lothdan again.
He had already investigated him thoroughly.
Lothdan was merely a Level 6 Mage.
He was not even a Source Mage.
That was right...
The former king of the Magic Empire had never comprehended the Source.
Among Level 6 mages, he belonged to the weakest tier.
There was nothing particularly special about him.
He had survived until now entirely through luck.
If possible, Kanzaki Rei would not have wanted to help him.
He wanted to see what fate awaited Lothdan without his intervention.
But at least this time, he could not.
He had done some regrettable things in the past.
Killed innocent people.
And he had made a promise to Iz.
He could not stand by and watch Moonwatch Territory perish.
At the very least, as a human being, he could not calmly watch these people die.
Kanzaki Rei returned to the estate.
He modified the advancement ritual beneath his feet.
The next class to advance would be Warrior Level 6.
Although his martial techniques were not as widespread or refined as his magic, they had already met the necessary requirements.
And the battles he had experienced were more than sufficient to justify his promotion.
No matter what—
Even if the accomplishments he had achieved within illusions and trials were discounted—
The two eighth-tier monsters he had just killed were indisputably slain in reality.
There was absolutely nothing lacking.
BOOM!
The ritual ignited.
The sky split apart.
This time, what appeared was a greatsword raised toward the heavens, blazing with surging blood and battle aura.
This was the Warrior Origin!
Kanzaki Rei felt a fierce battle intent rising within him.
That overwhelming fighting spirit seemed to be issuing a direct challenge to him!
The sky erupted into another extraordinary phenomenon.
The residents of Moonwatch Territory were thrown into an uproar once more.
"First a Mage, and now a Warrior?"
"Is some supreme expert about to emerge in Moonwatch Territory?"
"Only a peerless powerhouse could trigger a phenomenon like this!"
"Maybe... maybe Moonwatch Territory is really going to be saved!"