Unlimited Power - The Arcane Path

"Not yet… this isn't enough. If I can use this energy freely, then…"

Leon decided to refer to the afterlife as the void, and if in the void where the place where souls would eventually crumble away and disappear, perhaps he could find some souls there. Just like his own soul had memories, the others would have as well, and he would use them. The creator of the system slaughtered billions of monsters and peoples after summoning them to the final battle, so it was obvious that they should have arrived at the same time, if not a little earlier than Leon.

Expanding his energy, Leon began to look for those souls. Yet, even though his energy could expand quite a lot, it had a limit, and within that limit, Leon didn't find anything. The void was the place beyond the physical realm, so it was only obvious that it was infinite. Even if billions of monsters and people were forced to go there after death, it doesn't mean that finding them would be easy.

"Let's see if I can move myself here now that I have energy… if I can feel things, then that should be possible."

Using his knowledge and experience in using mana, Leon tried to control his body and move to the side. Even a little bit was enough. Little progress was progress in the end. Yet… he failed. Leon couldn't apply the logic of the physical realm in the void.

"What a massive pain the ass… I don't have time for this."

Despite his anger, Leon still managed to focus on the task ahead of him. If he couldn't apply the physical realm's logic in the void, he could always try something new. If he managed to obtain a new type of energy, then something like that should be possible for Leon as well. At least in theory…

"Why the path in front of me is always so complicated… I know I'm trying to do something insane here, but man… give me a break."

After a lot of struggle, Leon realized that there was only so much he could in the void. Thinking, controlling his energy, avoid losing more memories, and constantly using the memories of his time in the void to increase his energy. However, after a while, he had an idea. Instead of expanding his energy around him in a perfect circle, he decided to create a single and very thin line… a line that would keep advancing toward the ends of the void… at least that was a general idea.

Although it was hard to make his energy turn into a stupidly long needle due to the concentration required, Leon's efforts soon were paid off. Amidst the darkness of the void, he felt the presence of something. It wasn't clear as himself, but he could that it was a soul.

"Hey, can you hear me? If you can understand my words, react in some sort of way."

That presence was the very thing, so thin that Leon couldn't pinpoint if it belonged to a monster or a sapient creature. Leon was sure that he could pass his feelings through his energy, but he didn't feel anything despite all that. Considering the nature of his energy, that soul was supposed to react in some sort of way when Leon's energy touched it. Yet, there was no response. That soul was thin for a reason. It was because it was about to disappear.

"No luck on the first try, huh. Well, it doesn't matter… if you lost your sense of self, then I'm sure that you won't be bothered if I take your remaining memories."

Leon couldn't forcefully take the memories of a soul in the void, not yet she didn't have the necessary proficiency. However, the very moment a new piece of that soul begun to crumble away; it was the moment Leon used his energy to forcefully absorbed these fragments. However, he didn't have time to wait for the soul to disappear slowly. So, he enveloped it with his energy, and forcefully pulled it toward him.

"So, I can do this much with weaker souls, huh. Maybe my proficiency with his energy increased, or perhaps there is another factor that I'm unaware of…"

Strangely enough, when Leon tried to mix his soul with the other one, he didn't feel anything repelling each other. In fact, they mixed quite well and easily, to the point where Leon could see the new memories as if those had been his from the very beginning.

The memories of a Gremlin… Leon didn't expect that he would absorb the memories of an annoying monster like that so soon. Yet, there was much to witness there. Leon only saw himself in the body of the monster burning everything and anything to the ground. Those were the sole memories that the monster had. Weirdly enough, even though Leon received ten years' worth of memories, he didn't feel anything when he experimented all that in a single moment.

"My energy increased a little bit since those memories are quite intense. I see now… the more troublesome the soul, the more energy I will obtain."

Even if the soul was about to disappear, even if it belongs to a relatively weak monster, the power within couldn't be measured by mana alone. Leon confirmed that his plan perhaps wasn't as insane as he thought. He still had a long way ahead of him, but Leon would never stop, and he would accomplish his goal, no matter the cost.