Reincarnated With The Degenerate System-Chapter 205: CH:

"I’m putting everything into this one attack," she declared. "I hope you do your best to stop me."

"You’ll have to make me." I gestured for her to come.

"I will try my best, Master."

She didn’t move immediately, unlike her usual style. Instead, she entered into a deep focus, her grip tightening around the dagger.

Looking closer, I saw she had incorporated my teachings, her breathing following the rhythm I had drilled into her.

But soon, it shifted, taking on a style uniquely her own. I said nothing and let her continue; her aura told me she was growing stronger by the second.

ZZZZ

The air around the blade was vibrating—not just from her grip, but from something else.

She was concentrating all her strength into a single strike, letting the energy build. I counted the seconds in my head—ten... twenty... forty. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

The attack was taking nearly a minute to cast. It was already a huge flaw in her technique; in real combat, such a long cast could be disastrous.

Yet, I let her try anyway, curious to see how far she could push herself.

Then I noticed it: the tip of her dagger started to crack. Not the metal itself, but the space around it, twisting and fracturing like glass.

She gritted her teeth, muscles trembling, sweat sliding down her temple.

"Shattering strike!" She uttered, and all the sound in the room vanished for a split second.

My instincts screamed at me to move, but before I could react...

She split. Not one, but dozens of her rushed toward me from every angle. The space itself turned into a mirror-like scene.

"Well played." Adrenaline flooded my veins as the world slowed down, giving me time to summon my spear.

"Moon Cycling Rotation!" I roared, sweeping the spear in a wide arc to strike all of them at once.

BOOM!

They cracked apart, fragments breaking midair. Then another set appeared, and I was forced onto the defensive.

"Moon Raging Strike!"

My weapon lashed out, striking at anything I could see, blocking, parrying, shifting with every instinct.

Only when the last phantom dissipated was I able to step back and let out a long sigh of relief.

Alexa was back in her original position, but her breathing was ragged, and her legs wobbled until they finally gave out.

"I... I lost," she admitted, her voice tinged with disappointment.

I shook my head slightly, letting a small smile slip.

"No. You didn’t lose. You made me draw my spear. That alone proves your strength,"

"But..." she clenched her fist. "It took me a full minute to use that power. In a real fight, you would’ve killed me before I finished."

She was right, and two choices stood before me. I could soften my words or be brutally honest and help her grow stronger.

Her progress had been fast. In the guild, only mine surpassed it. That alone showed how much effort she had poured into her training.

"You’re completely right. You stayed rooted in place and put everything into your new ability. It’s strong, but it drains a lot of energy. If the enemy survives, you would be left completely exposed."

I stepped closer. "On top of that, an enemy wouldn’t just wait. They would rush you, break your focus, or force you to react. The moment that happens, your skill falls apart."

She nodded, fully acknowledging her flaws.

I kept my eyes on her hands. "You also rely too much on numbers. That’s not a main issue, but your phantoms mimic every move. That makes them easy to predict. Anyone quick enough could dodge or block them without much trouble."

"Reduce the number of phantoms and vary your attack patterns. That would be far more effective."

"Master." She raised her hand. "I understand the logic, and it’s true that I have some control over my phantoms in that state. But it’s too hard. I’m not used to controlling multiple bodies at once."

I raised my pointing finger. "That’s why you need to train your mind through multitasking drills. Alexa, the mind is powerful. If you train it seriously, it will start to rewire itself to handle what you demand."

Truth be told that idea came from what I read online in my past life. Still, it made sense. Enough that it could be real.

"Thank you, Master." She bowed her head.

All the training I had given her had earned her respect. It also helped that she was already under my influence.

I went on, pointing out what she could still improve. When I finished, it was my turn to ask.

"By the way. How did you get this ability?"

From what I knew, when a Seeker got promoted, they had a chance to gain additional abilities. I said "chance" because it wasn’t guaranteed.

For example, Alexa only reached S rank because her physique and energy output had increased enough to meet the threshold.

She would have told me about this long ago if she gained it that way.

Not just that—the ability itself has so many flaws, and she even struggled to use it.

"It’s an original ability. I just learned it, but it’s different from the others."

"Different? How?"

She took a deep breath and sat up straight on the floor. "Unlike my other skills, which I just automatically knew how to use, this one came after a... strange dream."

My eyes narrowed with interest. "Go on. Tell me more."

"It started a week ago. I kept having the same dream," she said. "I was inside a prison. While I was there, I saw a woman with blackened skin, as if darkness was devouring her body."

"Did you see her face clearly?" I cut in.

She shook her head. "No. She didn’t speak. She just came at me, using the same attack over and over. It kept going until I wake up."

"Did you notice anything else?"

Yes." She nodded. "After I learned the ability, I was given time to walk around the prison. I reached the gate, and from there I saw a throne in the center. A woman dressed in red stood there and spoke to me."

I leaned closer. "What did she say?"

"Tell your master to hurry up. I’m waiting for his promise."

Damn it. So that demon lady still remembered our contract. And here I was thinking I could pretend it never happened.

But how did she know Alexa was connected to me?

I hesitated, weighing my guesses. Could she really see into this world, or had she sensed Alexa’s connection to me through my influence?

The second seemed more likely... but I couldn’t be entirely sure.

"Did she say anything else?"

"Yes. She told me that humans were finally starting to move beyond just relying on her blessings."

So, it meant her trained body had allowed her to connect directly to the source of her power. If she kept cultivating, she would gain more abilities and reach a level no normal S rank could ever reach.

This was huge. News like this could shake the world. It meant my cultivation method was the key to unlocking a new stage for Seekers.

The human ranking system was flawed, so to avoid confusion, I decided to use my own.

For now, I decided to call it the True Rankings. Each rank was divided into four tiers: Lower, Middle, Upper, and Peak.

Based on this true ranking, Alexa was already a True S Rank (Lower). She stood at the same level as Hai‑Yen without a celestial weapon, or very close to it.

Kyle, on the other hand, was only a de facto S rank. Without his Celestial Weapon, he was nothing.

Bruno stood near True S Rank (Middle). I doubted Alexa could defeat that monster yet.

As for me, I was probably a Peak S Rank on my own. With my spear, I would be an SS Rank—Lower. It might sound like just one rank higher, but at my level, each step was astronomically stronger.

"Do you know the meaning of my dream?" Alexa’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

"Not really. I was only curious about your story. By the way, don’t tell anyone about this. Okay?"

Her eyes flashed as she accepted my command.

"Yes, Master."

She tried to stand, but her legs wobbled and refused to hold her weight. I moved closer, and she hesitated, cheeks flushing.

"Master... I can manage," she mumbled, trying to straighten up.

"You’re exhausted. Let me help," I said gently.

She bit her lip, embarrassed, but after a moment, she nodded reluctantly.

I lifted her carefully. As we stepped toward the door, Rhea appeared, eyes wide.

"What are you two doing?" she asked with surprised look.

"We did some training," I explained. "She overexerted herself. I’ll carry her to her room."

"NO!" Rhea suddenly raised her voice, realizing it too late. "I mean... Master, it won’t look good if you carry her so openly. You have a reputation to uphold. I’ll take care of her."

She tried to sound casual, but I could sense her jealousy from a mile away.

This was exactly why I didn’t want to add more women to my list yet—too many would be hard to manage, especially now with so many other things demanding my attention.

I could use my ability to keep them in line, but I hated being overly manipulative. Doing so could affect them in the long run, making them lose their sense of individuality—and that would be awful.

After all, I wanted my lovers to express themselves with minimal control.

"Very well. You can take her."