Chapter 86 - The Power Of Black Holes, Devouring Souls

On the fifth level, rainbow-colored light shone onto Vincent. He looked around. It was as if he was in a fairyland.

The air was filled with a strong psionic aura. Vincent could feel the aura entering his body when he breathed.

The fifth level was different from the previous four levels. Not only was the space much bigger, but the layout was also very exquisite.

There were twelve silver-white pillars built evenly. There was also a rainbow-colored light that flashed on them from time to time.

In the middle of the twelve pillars laid a huge hexagram that was emitting a rainbow-colored light. Purple mist rose from it. One could vaguely see a transparent crystal coffin in the mist.

However, for some reason, Vincent could not see what was inside the crystal coffin.

The crystal coffin was five meters long and two meters wide. Countless precious ores and treasures were studded on the coffin. This included the monster's crystal cores.

Judging by the monster's crystal cores aura, there was not a single monster that was lower than overlord-level.

There were even three monsters that were stronger than the overlord-level!

"King Level Monster Cores!"

Vincent muttered to himself.

Shua!

The purple mist suddenly retracted and transformed into a middle-aged man.

However, the middle-aged man only had his upper body. The lower half of his body was a ball of purple fog that was connected to the crystal coffin.

The middle-aged man looked at Vincent with satisfaction.

"Little guy, we finally meet," said the middle-aged man.

The middle-aged man's voice was exactly the same as the voice that Vincent had heard in the previous levels.

Vincent quickly bowed.

"Senior!"

"Sit."

The middle-aged man waved his hand, and a chair appeared behind Vincent.

"Little guy, how do you feel so far?" asked the middle-aged man whilst smiling.

Vincent recalled everything that had happened since he stepped onto the Will Stone Stairs.

He then nodded slightly.

"I gained a lot, and I also understand the purpose of every test," said Vincent.

The middle-aged man nodded.

"Little guy, your talent is the best amongst everyone I know. I'm very happy to be able to make you my successor," said the man.

"Senior, you flatter me," said Vincent humbly.

The middle-aged man's tests seemed quite difficult at first. However, after careful analysis, Vincent realized that it was not actually as difficult as he thought it was.

The Will Stone Stairs tested willpower.

The first level tested courage.

The second level tested the state of mind.

The third level tested decision-making and state of mind.

The fourth level tested the thought process.

After considering everything, Vincent realized that these attributes were extremely essential to a powerful person.

At the same time, the middle-aged man was also using these tests to help Vincent strengthen his confidence.

The middle-aged man looked at Vincent's calm expression and nodded in satisfaction.

"Inherit my legacy. But first, you will need to know what kind of power you are about to receive."

"I am the common enemy of humanity. Although there is a reason for this, I am not worthy of being forgiven."

"Even after a hundred years, my power is still a taboo. Therefore, you will need to think very carefully on whether or not you should accept my power."

"My power mainly manifests in three aspects: superpowers, combat skills, and Black Hole power."

"You should be very clear about my superpowers and combat skills, so I won't say much about them."

"Black Hole power, this is the taboo power. It's the power that I have stolen from the Black Hole when the human race was going through a difficult time. It's extremely evil. When I use it at full power, even I, can't completely control it."

"There was one incident where the Monster Horde attacked the Forest Capital. I defended the city alone and killed three king-level monsters, fifteen overlord-level monsters, and countless monsters below the lord-level."

"All the humans in the Forest Capital died alongside them..."

It was obvious that the middle-aged man was blaming himself.

"Little guy, do you know about the 10,000 races of the Black Hole?"

Vincent looked at the middle-aged man. After a full three minutes, Vincent finally nodded.

"I didn't expect you to know about the 10,000 races of the Black Hole at such a young age! It seems like you are indeed one of the top human beings out there."

The middle-aged man was stunned. He then looked at Vincent with even more fondness.

"My power comes from the 10,000 races of the Black Hole..."

"Back then, one of the 10,000 races of the Black Hole, the Night Fox Clan, suddenly appeared in the Forest Capital. The weakest among them was at least a lord-class powerhouse. Due to the sudden attack, humans did not have the time to prepare a defense. Plus, there was also a huge difference in strength. The Forest Capital almost collapsed."

"At that time, I was the Mayor of the Forest Capital. I have overlord-class strength. I led the exploration team to fight against the Night Fox Clan. Although I defeated the Night Fox Clan in the end, the exploration team did not survive, and I too was heavily injured."

"From that moment on, I knew that humans might still have the strength to fight against monsters. However, they did not stand a chance against the 10,000 races of the Black Hole."

"Humans need more strength and a faster way to grow."

"I then thought of the power of the Black Hole!"

"The power of the Black Hole is extremely overbearing and destructive. It is not a power that humans can withstand. It was only natural for humans to not allow anyone to touch such power."

"In order to achieve my final goal, I started on a secret experiment to extract the power of the Black Hole from the bodies of the Night Fox Clan. After twenty years of research, I finally grasped it. However, this costed the lives of tens of thousands of people."

"The power of the Black Hole made me lose my mind. I began to yearn for stronger power, so I went through the Black Hole alone and started killing the 10,000 races of the Black Hole. I then absorbed the power of the Black Hole from their bodies."

"During that time, I broke through the conspiracy of the 10,000 races of the Black Hole and was hunted down. At the same time, the Jungle Capital welcomed the largest Monster Horde in history!"

"It was not easy for me to get rid of the 10,000 races of the Black Hole and return to Jungle Capital. However, the Jungle Capital was about to collapse. I had no choice but to drag my injured body into battle."

"I slowly stabilized myself and began to launch a counterattack against the Monster Horde. However, as I had absorbed too much power from the Black Hole, my power was not pure. It was very complicated, and I did not have full control over it. At the same time, I was also besieged by three king-level monsters. I was in a very dangerous situation."

"During that time, I thought that even if I died, I would still drag the three king-level monsters down with me. I wanted to self-destruct."

"However, the power of the Black Hole did not allow me to completely self-destruct. It erupted from my body and devoured the souls of all the human beings in Jungle Capital. It also took the souls of the three king-level monsters."

"After the Monster Horde, I was constantly being judged by the human race. They wanted to kill me for using the power of the Black Hole and causing the deaths of countless people in the Jungle Capital."

"However, during that time, I was being controlled by the power of the Black Hole. I killed the guards and escaped."

"In addition to my injuries that had not been treated, coupled with the erosion of the power of the Black Hole, I was at the end of my rope. Before I could escape the defensive mountain range, I died."

"Before I died, I used the last of my strength to kill an overlord-level monster. I used its fur to create a paradise and was waiting for the right person to come by."

"Over the years, there were a total of eighteen people that had come by, but the best they could do was the third level. Most of them had died on the Will Stone Stairs."

The middle-aged man took a deep breath and looked at Vincent with a serious gaze.

"So, have you decided? Do you want to accept all of my inheritance?"

Vincent could tell from the middle-aged man's expression that the Black Hole's power was extremely terrifying. It was impossible for him not to be moved by such a powerful force.

However, he did not want to become like the middle age man because of this power.

Plus, with the help of the system, it was only a matter of time before he became as powerful as the middle-aged man. He might be even stronger than the middle-aged man.

"Senior, may I ask, what exactly do you mean by the power of Black Hole?"

Vincent decided to ask more questions in order to have a clearer idea.

"The power of Black Hole is ever-changing. It is different for each race."

"The power that I have is called Soul Devouring. If used correctly, not only can I devour souls to strengthen myself, but I can also enslave souls."

"Soul devouring? Enslave souls?"

Vincent's eyes widened in shock.

He had never imagined the world to have such a terrifying and abnormal power.

"My superpower is S-Class elemental Purgatory Purification. It has the ability to purify everything, especially souls. If I wanted to, I could convince a person to die unknowingly."

"My superpower is very compatible with the power of the Black Hole. This is also the main reason why I was not discovered when I was researching the power of the Black Hole."

The middle-aged man continued explaining to Vincent.

"The power of the Black Hole is a taboo for humans. If you choose to inherit it, then you must be prepared to become the public enemy of humanity."

"When the time comes, the 10,000 races of the Black Hole will also come after you. Humanity will also come after you. There will be no place for you on Earth. You will need to hide your identity for the rest of your life and become a loner."

The middle-aged man then stopped talking and waited quietly for Vincent's answer.