Mark immediately noticed the playful tone that Sozin was using while talking, and he knew that Sozin was being sarcastic right now!
Sozin wasn't the sort of god that denies his own nature! Sozin was the God of Games and he would do anything he wanted for his own entertainment without caring about whether Mrk liked it or not!
Hold on! Did Sozin just read my mind!?
Mark's eyes suddenly widened in shock as he thought about this and he looked towards Sozin quickly with an expression of surprise on his face! Sozin immediately started to laugh even louder!
"You're only noticing now!? I've been reading your mind from the very start! How else do you think I chose you to be my champion without having to talk to you at all!? I chose you because of your mentality! You have the zeal that I am looking for in my champion! The zeal to be the strongest in the world! Do you really think that you are normal!?
"If it were anyone else, they would have given up the moment they realized that they no longer had their blessing. But you didn't give up! Instead, you went to train your regular body, and you started fighting against monsters even without having anything to protect you. You're nothing like normal people, Mark. You're a battle freak with enough sense to go the distance! You love the rush of battle and you crave strength! That is exactly what I want in my champion! You have to be the strongest in every world so I can brag to the other gods that my champion is the best!"
Mark could only nod in silent acceptance of what Sozin said. Mark was a little put off by the fact that Sozin was reading all of his thoughts like an open book, but that wasn't the worst thing in the world when he really thought about it. Sozin was a god, and Mark was sure that there was a lot more that Sozin could do than what he was telling Mark! Mark would just have to learn to live with the fact that Sozin could read his mind.
Mark already had the intention of being the strongest in the world whether Sozin said anything about it or not. Mark was miserable these past few years because he knew that he was just one step away from power, and he had to give up most of it four years ago for the sake of saving the world, so this time Mark would not waste even a moment!
"How are you going to use the first gifts?"
Sozin floated around as he asked this, and Mark looked at the Gift that his system gave him and wondered how he should distribute it.
"The skills that I have are pretty basic, but I can tell that they are strong. I was able to fight against an Armageddon class with only the maximum level of the [Soldier Ant Constitution], so there is no way that it will be weak. I just need to build it up and then evolve it. But I think it will be more sensible to give the stat points to the Mana stat since it is so low and give the skill points to the Mana circulation skill so I can improve my overall stats. The Mana stat and Mana circulation skill work together to improve my stats, so if I improve them, then I can have some extra power."
Sozin hummed from his place in the sky as he floated around Mark with his legs crossed and his hands held behind his head. He heard everything that Mark just said, as well as Mark's thoughts, and it wasn't a bad deduction. Giving the skill and stat points to mana-based abilities would definitely help him improve all his other stats. But what was that nonsense he was saying about the Soldier Ant Constitution!? Does he not know that the Soldier Ant constitution is only the weakest constitution out of all the constitutions that he could have?
"You know, I don't think you understand the extent of the power that you have right now. What I gave you before to fight against the Armageddon class was only the tip of the iceberg. It was all the power that I could give you at that time due to your weak body, but don't think that it is your limit. You have power beyond mortal understanding, Mark! Don't underestimate how far you can go!"
Sozin hated the fact that Mark was looking down on the system that he had! Does Mark think that the system was only strong enough to fight off one Armageddon!? Or does he think that because he fought off one Armageddon he has already seen the extent of power that the system can produce!? That was foolish thinking!
There was a reason why the god of games chose Mark as his champion. Mark was going to be fighting against beings of godly power in the future, and without enough strength, Mark would be crushed like a bug! Sozin was not going to lose face with the other gods because he had a weak champion! Mark was going to become the strongest in the world whether he liked it or not!
"Are you trying to tell me that the Armageddon I fought against before was weak? I fought against that monster for three nights and four days and we destroyed half of the North American continent! Can something like that even be called weak!? Or are you trying to say that there are monsters even stronger out there!?"
Mark couldn't even wrap his head around Sozin's statement. How can a monster like that Armageddon be called weak!? Mark almost lost his life many times in the few days that he fought against the Armageddon, and if not for the endless mana that Mark's system gave him, then he would have definitely lost!
"You need to broaden your mind more, Mark Vanitas. The reason why you fought against that monster for so long wasn't because it was strong! It's because you were weak as shit! There are monsters beyond your imagination in this world! Do you think that Armageddon was strong? Wait till the next one comes..."
Mark felt his throat dry up as he heard this. The image of another Armageddon arriving on Earth was enough to bring back a lot of bad memories about the last battle! Mark just shook his head and turned back to the system as he began to distribute his points. He would try not to think about that for now and he would just focus on gaining power as quickly as possible!
[Does the User wish to transfer 20 Stat points to Mana? Yes/No]
Mark chose yes, and he felt a surge of energy fill his entire body as something began to flow from his chest toward every limb! Was this mana? It was exhilarating!
Mark quickly went to send the other points to the skill he wanted to improve.
[Does the user wish to transfer 10 skill points to Mana Circulation? Yes/No]
Mark chose yes again, and the surge of mana that was flowing erratically through his body suddenly became far more controlled! He could see that it was now more efficient, and there was less wasted movement as it flowed from his chest through the rest of his body!
Once Mark sent the points to the stats, he saw another new prompt come up.
[Stats improvement Due to Application of Mana]
Strength: +4%
Stamina: +4%
As the mana surged through Mark's body, he could feel a slight increase in those two stats, and he was glad that he chose to add the points here as his entire body felt rejuvenated from the mana he gained. This will help him in the fight that he is going to go back into. At least, he was now sure that his strength would not lose against the strength of that Calamity Class!
Mark knew that his skills and stats were organized in a way that would make fighting with fists very easy. Mark didn't know if the God of Games did this on purpose or if it was just a coincidence, but Mark didn't mind at all because he knew that he enjoyed fighting with his fists more than using a weapon. Mark was a brawler by nature!