Death's Disciple [Sys Apoc, OP Villain MC, LitRPG] Chapter 54: 1.54 Enemy Side

Read chapter 54 of Death's Disciple [Sys Apoc, OP Villain MC, LitRPG] by TTReynolds on NovelPedia.

1.54 Enemy Side Chapter 54 The grass crunched underneath the sole of my shoe as I stepped out of the dungeon rift and back on to Earth. I activated my [Shade Stealth] as soon I re-entered, and the few eyes that shot my way quickly glazed over my location and wandered elsewhere. Bean still clung inside the bare shadows of my hood with [Dark Meld] active. So the two of us went completely unnoticed as I walked back to my car and got in. My foot slammed on the accelerator and shot down the road back towards the city as fast as possible. I was slightly late already, despite trying to clear the dungeon quickly. I simply underestimated how many ants would try to attack me in the egg room. Eventually, I managed to destroy the queen, the unhatched royal egg, and almost every other egg in the chamber before stepping through the portal to exit. The returns I got were rather good. I had earned another level, taking me to level seventeen. Free points got put into dexterity, of course. Beyond that, my stats were still creeping slowly upward. It was a shame to see the equipment bonuses to my intelligence and willpower slashed by the bracelet. The buff from the mask was applied, and only then was the debuff added, meaning I only got the small overflow after the minus five applied. Still, things were looking good. [Name: Adam Pierce Class: Death’s Disciple Level: 17 Titles: Pioneer III, True Prodigy, Death Harbinger, Heir to Death, True Defender, Horde Breaker Stats: Strength: 45 (49) Dexterity: 127 (139) Vitality: 81 (89) Intelligence: 61 (62) Willpower: 74 (76) Skills: Inspect [Max], Shade Stealth - Lvl 9 - Beginner, Marked to Die - Lvl 9 - Beginner, Aura Mastery - Lvl 9 - Beginner, Mana Shaping* - Lvl 10 – Novice, Soul Strike - Lvl 2 - Beginner, Blood Manipulation - Lvl 10 – Novice, Lightning Synapses* - Lvl 1 - Beginner Skill Slots: 3/10 Abilities: Soul Usher (E) Essence to next ability rank: 8981/10,000 Essence Available: 9385] It was slightly aggravating to see so many of my skills right on the cusp of being pushed to novice rank. I knew that it was the Netherite Band holding me back on those, which made things more infuriating. But I also knew it meant once I did push through, my actual capability and understanding of the skills would be higher than any typical Rift Hunter. So I stuck to my sponsor’s training regimen and refused to take the item off. Lastly was just how close I was to upgrading my Class Ability to the next grade. Only just over a thousand soul essence to go. While one could look at it and say I was finally back to square one from when the ability was at F-Grade, needing a thousand essence. It wasn’t the best way to look at it. I was stronger now, already, with more skills and much better equipped to do what my sponsor liked best, sending her souls. And my ability’s absorption rate was higher since it was already in E-Grade. So I was much better positioned than I was in the beginning. That wasn’t even mentioning that I had Bean. The little akhekh looked to give a slight bonus for my soul essence absorption as long as I had the companion close by when I made a kill. And since Bean loved hiding in the shadows of my clothes, that was almost every kill I performed. Things were looking up. My communication amulet buzzed and I answered it mentally through my inventory. “Deputy-Head Adam Pierce,” I sent through the connection with a slight smile. “Hello Deputy-Head, this is Natalya.” A voice responded back to me. I had partially been expecting Barry to be the one calling, but he must have been busy getting other teams prepared. But Natalya wasn’t an assistant; her role was far more tied to asset acquisition and reconnaissance, so I didn’t know exactly why she was the one calling. Still, it wasn’t that important anyway. “Hello Natalya, what can I do for you today?” “Guild-Head Schilling is trying to confirm you will be at the Dungeon Rift for this morning.” I looked at the GPS indicator in my car, which I knew I would have to wi