Ohm!
Souta sensed several presences approaching him at high speed. He anticipated this development. These individuals wouldn't miss the chance to seize the coveted position of Rank 11 Sovereign.
This was precisely why Souta hadn't unleashed his full power during his battle with Dargan. If he had effortlessly defeated Dargan, these sovereigns might have been wary of challenging him. But now, they likely believed him to be weakened after the intense battle.
Little did they know...
A wicked grin spread across Souta's face. Those who harbored ill intentions toward him would soon face the consequences. He would eradicate them without mercy, leaving no trace behind.
'They are here, Souta. Stop imagining some evil things,' Saya's voice resonated in his mind.
"Oh?" Souta's eyebrows lifted as he spotted several monsters.
One, two, three... Ah, six! Six sovereigns. Rank 27, Rank 36, Rank 39, Rank 44, Rank 45, and Rank 51.
Weak!
Souta pressed his hand down, and his energy surged forth like a raging tide.
[Serpent Dominance]!!
"All creatures beneath me shall bow!"
Before the six sovereigns could react, they were forced to the ground. Caught in Souta's trap, they had no chance to escape.
Souta raised his sword, and blood-colored lightning crackled above him. With a swift motion, he brought the sword down.
Boom!!
It was simple. Their fate was sealed the moment they entered the Mare Region. They shouldn't have dared to challenge Souta, for it had become their graveyard. Had they known that Souta was concealing his true strength from the beginning, they would have fled long ago.
The [Serpent Dominance] sapped seventy percent of their stats and resistance, leaving them powerless.
Souta's blade swiftly dispatched the six sovereigns.
Today, a total of seven sovereigns had fallen.
Souta closed his eyes and sensed the changes in his resonance. Compared to before, it was much better now that he was the Rank 11 Sovereign of the Mare Region. The nourishment his Dream Power received from the core of Vanko was simply amazing.
This would enable him to increase his Dream Power faster.
"Next time, I'll let Kessa join so she can claim a higher position than me," Souta muttered.
Beyond Rank 11 was like an entirely different world. Ranks 10 to 1 were all monsters at the fifth stage. He'd bring Kessa along next time he came here to pluck them down.
He could try it alone, but he wasn't sure if he could win the battle. Souta was strong, and he was confident he could exchange blows with a fifth-stage monster, but winning was an entirely different matter. He wasn't confident he could defeat even the weakest fifth-stage monster.
For now, he should focus on his goal.
Souta looked into the distance. He launched himself and traveled several dozen kilometers.
Soon, he arrived at the place where Dargan was living: an underwater cave. This cave was filled with all kinds of things and protections.
"I'll help you contain it," Saya said, standing beside him and raising both of her hands to assist.
Glancing at him, she added, "I'll focus on protecting the magic circles! You have dozens of them, so if one collapses, it could trigger a chain reaction. Focus your attention on that enormous energy!"
"Got it!" Souta nodded, gritting his teeth in determination.
The two elemental seeds rotated faster and faster, releasing a tremendous amount of elemental energy. The entire inner consciousness shook as darkness and light erupted.
Some sort of energy formed around the three seeds, attempting to contain them. It was the Divine Might that he acquired from the mythical-grade fruit.
Unbeknownst to him, the whole area outside of his inner consciousness started shaking as his energy spread throughout the entire region.
The Mare Region felt the intensity.
At that moment, sovereigns all over the land of Vanko were shocked. They all sensed the disappearance of seven sovereigns. This was significant, considering six sovereigns had fallen a few days ago, and one sovereign fell a month ago.
In this short amount of time, a total of fourteen sovereigns had perished. This had never happened before. The whole of Vanko was becoming restless and chaotic. Various monsters from the regions whose sovereigns had perished started to rampage.
Initially, it was only the lower-ranking regions that felt the chaotic situation, but now even the middle-ranking regions were growing restless. The situation would worsen once they discovered that one of the seven sovereigns who fell today held the Rank 11 position. So far, only the sovereigns near the Mare Region knew that Dargan had perished.
A few hours later, Souta was on the floor, breathing heavily.
"Are you okay, Souta?" Saya asked.
"I'm fine. Thanks for helping me," Souta smiled.
"It's nothing. Anyway, I'm gonna sleep for a while, so don't bother me," Saya said.
"I know," Souta replied, sensing the fatigue in her voice. After all, she had helped him protect all the magic circles in his inner consciousness. The two of them had managed to avert disaster, but Souta hadn't escaped unscathed. He had been badly damaged.
He glanced at the system. The changes that had just occurred were immense, beyond his imagination.
[Your Inner Consciousness was damaged!]
[Your level had dropped to level 70!]
[Your passive skill Divine Might had disappeared!]
[Your Elemental Energy had disappeared!]
[Your Dream Power had disappeared!]
[You've gained a new stat Douion!]
Souta felt strong, but he couldn't exert himself too much due to the damage in his inner consciousness. He knew his body. It felt as if his level hadn't decreased at all.
As for his new stat called Douion, this was the fusion of elemental energy and dream power. The Divine Might became the shell of the two, mixing them together.
[Douion I]
"I want to test my strength, but unfortunately, my inner consciousness is damaged. The parasite couldn't heal this type of injury," Souta muttered as he observed the flow of energy in his body.
The source of Douion was in his inner consciousness, so using it would be a terrible idea. Also, his monster orb had an imaginary thread attached to his inner consciousness, silently supplying it with energy. So he had to be careful even when using best feram.
"I don't know how long it will take to recover from this. Douion... I want to test this as soon as possible. Is it worth it or not?"
Souta massaged his temples. He couldn't continue his plan with his current condition. He needed to go back to the Ming Region to find Alice and the rest.