After Damian awakened his third talent, [Rumination Clarity], his speed in processing information skyrocketed to an entirely new level.
All it took was a single glance at a page, and he could memorize its contents as if capturing a photograph with his mind.
He could recall the information anytime he wanted as if his brain had transformed into a highly efficient computer.
Like his other talents, [Rumination Clarity] was a passive ability.
Its effectiveness depended on how much effort he put into using his mind.
The more he pushed his mental faculties, the more powerful the talent became.
However, there was a limit; overuse caused mental strain, leading to exhaustion.
Despite this limitation, the benefits far outweighed the drawbacks.
With this talent, he gained a real photographic memory and the ability to record everything he saw and heard with complete precision.
Within just a few hours, Damian had finished reviewing all the information about gates, gate monsters, corruptants, mutated beasts, and top-level Awakeners.
He didn't bother with low-level Awakeners, as they held little significance to him.
Additionally, he studied the major forces in the world, including organizations, Awakener associations, prominent Awakener families, and, of course, guilds.
He didn't stop there. Damian also delved into the [Knowledge of Qi] from a book he had obtained and learned three techniques looted from the United Swords Guild.
[You have learned the technique 'Serpentine Dual Flow.']
[You have learned the technique 'Wind Dance.']
[You have learned the technique 'Soundless Lotus Cuts.']
"Serpentine Dual Flow is a dual-sword technique, which isn't usable for me now since I use a single double-edged sword," Damian muttered.
"And Soundless Lotus Cuts is more suitable for katana users. That leaves me with the Wind Dance technique," he added with a click of his tongue in dissatisfaction.
"I'll need to acquire a katana and another double-edged sword and master them to the best of my abilities."
He also studied a cultivation method he had obtained.
[You have learned the low-level cultivation method, 'The Titan Body Refining Art.']
"Low-level cultivation method?" Damian muttered, his expression unimpressed.
It was one of the most basic methods available, but he had little choice for now.
Until he entered the First Tower Realm, where he could access higher-level cultivation methods, this would have to suffice.
"There are still two weeks until the Class Selection begins. Until then, I have to become as powerful as I can," Damian muttered.
"The best way to grow stronger right now is obviously Qi cultivation. It will significantly enhance my physical strength. To increase my magic, however, I need experience and enlightenment, which isn't possible at the moment."
To advance his magic and become a 2nd-circle mage, Damian didn't need to cultivate in the traditional sense.
He simply needed to gain a deeper knowledge of magic, which could only come through practice and experience.
Unfortunately, using magic openly would attract too much attention.
On top of that, the Unified Sword Guild was probably hunting him for revenge, which would be a hassle to deal with right now.
Thus, Qi cultivation remained his best option. It could enhance his physical attributes significantly, but the process was slower. Moreover, since he only had a low-level cultivation method, the efficiency of Qi absorption would be lower, even though his talent granted him a 30% increase in Qi absorption efficiency.
"Well, before that, I need to create spells," Damian mused with a smile, rubbing his chin thoughtfully as he left his current location and moved to another far-off place.
Eventually, he arrived at the heart of Rome.
Not far from his position was Vatican City, but that wasn't his destination.
Instead, he was heading toward the Colosseum, situated in the center of Rome.
Once a historic site where ancient Roman gladiator games were held, it had become just another tourist attraction in modern times—until everything changed on the Day of Awakening.
On that day, a Red Gate had opened directly inside the Colosseum.
From the gate, thousands of monstrous spiders had emerged, each the size of an elephant.
They spit poisonous saliva, and their webs were unnervingly tough.
The entire area around the Colosseum fell to the danger posed by these gate monsters.
It was declared a red zone and evacuated of all civilians.
The Vatican took responsibility for clearing out the monsters, and while they might have succeeded under normal circumstances, the sheer number of these creatures made it impossible.
The weakest spider monsters were level 25, while the strongest reached level 45, and there were hundreds of them.
In his current timeline, the Vatican lacked the strength to handle such a threat.
They had yet to become as powerful as Damian remembered them being before his regression.
"The Vatican is as arrogant and stubborn as ever," Damian clicked his tongue, recalling how they had attempted to resolve the spider monster situation before his regression.
Unlike now, the forces before his regression were not as rapidly developing, and the same applied to the Vatican.
At that time, the Vatican couldn't do much to clear the monsters from this Red Gate.
Within a year, the monsters had completely taken control of nearly 75% of Rome, growing increasingly powerful.
Fortunately, these monsters only absorbed energy from the air to grow and didn't actively hunt for food.
However, they would ferociously attack any intruders who entered their domain.
After a full year, following the day of awakening, When the Vatican had finally grown strong enough to handle these monsters, they launched a relentless assault led by the Saintess.
But this time was different. After his regression, many things were unfolding differently.
The Vatican had been developing much faster than before.
Even so, they still hadn't grown strong enough or gathered enough awakened individuals to clear the Red Gate.
Damian had sneakily entered the area and could sense hundreds of spider monsters not too far from him, clustered around the Colosseum.
"This should be a good place to test my power and level up as much as I can right now," Damian said, smiling as he grabbed his sword and leaped forward.
Within seconds, he had entered the spider monsters' domain, a grotesque realm woven entirely from spider webs.
Inside the domain, all the abandoned buildings and vehicles were covered in thick webs, giving the entire place a gloomy and ominous atmosphere.
A pungent, decaying smell assaulted Damian's nose, making him grimace.
Damian looked around, ensuring the monsters had not yet discovered him.
"Time to create spells," Damian muttered, extending his hand forward.
As a 1st Circle Mage, he could create spells within the boundaries of the 1st Circle.
The knowledge he had gained upon achieving this rank resurfaced in his mind, each detail clear and precise.
Simultaneously, his large mana pool began to flow outward.
Above his hand, a small spark of flame appeared, gradually growing until it reached the size of a football.
[You have created the spell 'Fireball (1st Circle)']
Damian threw the fireball like a baseball, the flaming orb arcing gracefully through the air before landing in the center of the Colosseum.
As soon as it touched the ground, the fireball erupted into a powerful explosion, incinerating everything within a ten-meter radius.
The explosion disrupted the eerie silence, awakening hundreds of spider-like monsters.
Their eyes glowed red in the shadows, and an ugly stretching noise echoed as they began to stir.
Damian's gaze swept across the darkness, where countless pairs of crimson eyes stared back at him.
A confident smile spread across his face.
"Time to level up."
...
[A/N: Come on, everyone! You've made it this far, so why not add my novel to your favorites? And if it's not too much trouble, please leave a review or drop some POWER STONES!]