Joshua was a terrifying sight to behold, tearing through the creatures in a blur of motion. His new Spirit Unity form held a load of untapped potential, and he was only beginning to understand it. I watched as the once formidable Mycoknights, Crescent Fangs, and Nightstalkers burst into flames as the parasite practiced his new abilities on them.

  We had ventured deep into the Moonwake Jungle, in search of powerful creatures to hunt for Exp and Loot. Lunarius explained that after we left, he had lifted whatever spell turned his former territory into a dungeon, and therefore, there were no longer restrictions on his control. After reacquiring his dominion powers, he was then able to lift the six-day cooldown that was applied to the World Dungeon, meaning we could come and go as we saw fit.

  But I saw no reason to venture outside just yet, as the Jungle was an untapped treasure trove of rewards.

  After just a few days of hunting, I had reached level sixteen, and my companions were all gradually getting stronger as well. With my two new level-ups, I decided to use them on upgrading Blood Lance once, as well as upgrading a skill I had been holding off on.

  I wasn’t quite sure whether it was wise to upgrade Signeir when I first completed the evolution requirement, considering how the first time he had been rather hostile, but I was no longer willing to play it safe. If there were a chance to get stronger, I would take it.

  [Blood Lance has evolved into Lesser Blood Lance]

  It just gave me a small life-steal effect. Not too bad, I guess.

  [Summon Lesser Named Fire Spirit has evolved into Summon Greater Named Fire Spirit!]

  My body began to glow with power, and it felt as if my entire body were on fire. My companions, all of whom had joined me in our hunting party, stopped to stare in wonder.

  “Brother?” Azazel asked, looking at me with wide eyes. He was in his human form, fighting alongside Joshua, who was also glowing with power.

  “Are you guys okay?” Kril called out.

  Viressa, Zorrack, and Cedric all looked at each other, approaching slowly in case I needed help.

  Suddenly, the glowing stopped, and two blue panels appeared, detailing a pair of rather complicated quests.

  Jeez, that's not happening any time soon. And what's a Demon Inquisitor? Is it the next evolution of Demon Duke? Or maybe even higher?

  A second quest appeared, detailing the steps I would have to take to become eligible to upgrade the summoning skill on top of completing the Transcend quest.

  A whole bunch of things I can’t do yet. This will have to wait.

  I clenched and unclenched my hands a few times, feeling like I could conquer the world.

  Let’s see what's changed.

  [Summon Greater Named Fire Spirit]

  A ferocious shockwave resounded throughout the forest, and I could see my companions each recoiling in shock. Viressa and Cedric ran behind Zorrack, who attempted to shield them with his muscled frame. Fang hugged tightly against the demon, whimpering in fear. Lioren stood, seemingly unbothered, but staring intently at the flaming inferno before me.

  Kril and Azazel inched closer, whispering in my ear.

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  “What are you summoning, a god?” Kril asked.

  Azazel narrowed his eyes, then began to speak. “Brother, this feels dangerous.”

  I steeled my will, not knowing what would happen next.

  Finally, the fire subsided, and its burning wake was the fire spirit.

  His orbs seemed brighter, spinning around his neck in the same way they had been, but the biggest difference was in his weaponry and…

  Extra limbs?

  “General grievous? Is that you?” I joked. Behind the spirit were two glowing, golden arms, made of pure energy. Rather than having a single blade like before, he was armed with two katanas at his side, as well as two attached to his back, forming a cross.

  “I feel… different,” The spirit commented.

  Suddenly, Joshua’s eyes began to glow, and he turned to face me and my summon.

  “How impressive! In just a few days, you have already evolved into a Greater Named Spirit!” Joshua, now possessed by Ignatius, called out. “And it seems my blessing has worked out! Please, I would love to see you again when you unlock your final evolution, young one.”

  He seems like a rather jolly guy. I wonder what it's like out there in the Spirit Realm.

  “You have my gratitude, Lord Ignatius. I will not disappoint,” Signeir bowed.

  Joshua snapped back to normal, seeming angry over having his body taken over. “I need to find a way to stop that,” He muttered under his breath.

  A silver bolt of energy began to tear through the jungle, headed straight for me.

  I raised an arm, ready to block the strike, although I knew from experience that it would be rather painful.

  A flash of motion intercepted the attack before I could even move, and the blast hurtled into the nearby foliage, exploding in a massive cloud of dirt and debris.

  “I feel…” Signeir began unsteadily, then he disappeared again.

  [Hellfire Draw]

  This time, the flames from his skill burned blue, blending in with the colorful atmosphere.

  I watched the Nightstalker burst into flames, falling to the ground after a single blow. Signeir resheathed four blades at once, twirling the two held by his extra arms before sliding them onto his back.

  “He’s incredible,” Viressa said in awe.

  I spent the next handful of minutes inspecting my companions' fighting styles, abilities, and tendencies. I was no combat expert, so I had Signeir assist me in the appraisal.

  “That one is impressive!” Signeir exclaimed, leaning back and holding his head with two golden arms. Kril was flitting through the battlefield, pitchfork in hand.

  While I had made grand leaps in power, my companions did not lag behind in the slightest. Even without activating Assault Mode, Kril was a force of nature, blowing apart creatures with blasts of dark energy from his chaos skills. He let his pitchfork fly through the air, autonomously attacking, while he clad his fists in Chaos Gauntlets, beating a Mycoknight into submission.

  The moon above was a deep blue, and Lunarius had called it the Cerulean variant. It would’ve roughly translated to a Legendary tier dungeon, and it was directly after the Amber Moon. On the two days following this moon, however, Lunarius warned us to stay near the fortress, as they would correspond to Mythic and Transcendent tier dungeons respectively, which we were not quite equipped to handle.

  We inspected Viressa next, who had made big improvements to the versatility of her magic. Before, she was more of a fire element specialist, but now she wielded several interesting powers.

  [Summon Greater Undead]

  A platoon of skeletal warriors propped up from the ground, each one armored in iron armor. One of the skeletons was clearly larger than the others, wielding a massive war axe. There were roughly fifteen in total, and I could see them charging forward with surgical precision, commanded by orders from Viressa. She then activated a second skill, joining the fray.

  [Mana Cloak]

  A blue veil clad her body, and she charged forward, using a combination of fire and wind magic to spell disaster for the jungle creatures.

  “She is fierce. Like a one-woman army,” Signeir commented.

  Next up was Zorrack and Fang, who fought in tandem. The large demon rode upon the Alpha Warg's back, blowing apart swaths of Crescent Fangs with sweeps of the Greatsword I had bestowed upon him, Stormcaller. He was glowing with power, having activated the class skill that allowed him to grow in strength and size, as well as improving his strength with the upgraded version of Greater Strength, Titan Force. An army of Wargs followed behind them, tearing apart any who survived the initial encounter with the duo.

  A bolt of thunder struck from the sky, crashing down onto the trees in front of the demon.

  “Die, you monsters!” He screamed in delight. Fang wagged his tail with joy, ripping a Mycoknight's leg off with his jaw.

  “He might be a little slow, but he has marvelous strength,” Signeir proclaimed. “I would like to fight that one!”

  “Let’s hold off on that idea,” I laughed.

  Cedric was a nimble assassin, much unlike the stomping brute beside him. He jumped up, leaping off Zorrack’s muscled frame and spinning through the creatures in front of him. Then, he activated a… familiar skill.

  [Phantom Step]

  He threw his dagger, impaling a creature on a tree.

  Then, he vanished, reappearing in the air in front of his dagger and whirling around to slit another’s throat.

  “Hey! That’s Minato’s ability!” I yelled, remembering the episodes of Naruto I would binge-watch from my depressing hospital bed.

  “Minato? Is this another one of your companions?” Signeir asked in confusion.

  Lioren was next, tearing through a Nightstalker with his powerful jaw. His skin was also clad in a tight, blue veil, similar to Viressa’s Mana Cloak, although his skill seemed slightly different in nature. I watched as the beast, gripped in his mouth, let loose a Lunar Blast, causing a huge explosion to ring out, forcing me to cover my face from the ensuing destruction.

  But Lioren was unbothered, breathing his golden flames across the creature and singing its colorful skin.

  [Golden Inferno]

  The flames coalesced, and Lioren used the skill to shoot out a blast of energy toward a group of Mycoknights, blowing them apart in a burst of fire. Lioren roared. A ferocious and regal sound that shook the ground beneath me. The creatures began to falter, and I was unsure if it was an effect of a skill or simply fear of the intimidating beast.

  “That one must be of a high level. He would likely fare well in a battle against any of the demons,” Signeir complimented.

  [Lesser Heal]

  Atea’s hands glowed green, casting her skill on the slightly damaged Ashmane. He nodded gratefully, then bounded off into the forest, searching for creatures to slay.

  “That one… she may prove useful… eventually,” Signeir said apprehensively.

  I watched as the Angel flew into the air, avoiding an attack from a Mycoknight's heavy arm. Then she began to dance, drawing attention from the surrounding creatures.

  Signeir was captivated, staring wide-eyed at the angel. “Never mind, she is the strongest.”

  I slapped him on the head, breaking him from his trance. His flaming head intensified, seemingly showing his embarrassment.

  My final companion was Azazel, who was nothing like the tiny lizard he first appeared as.

  Still in human form, he activated Dragon’s Will, forcing every creature in the forest to kneel in submission. Even I felt some effect from the skill, although it was not nearly as debilitating as when Thaleres or Lunarius activated their auras. Then, he clad himself in blue energy, the signature effect of his Dragon’s Rage skill.

  The dragon stared up into the sky, as if channeling some divine power, then his arm began to glow with violet flames.

  In the blink of an eye, the entire forest was engulfed in Willfire.

  Signeir didn’t even speak, simply enamored by the sight.

  “He might be even stronger than Kril now,” I commented, taking in the burning jungle. It had been quite a while since I had last seen my dragon brother in battle, and his improvements had taken me by surprise.

  [They might not be completely useless.] Joshua admitted.

  They aren’t, but is it enough?

  [It will have to be.] The parasite said with a tone of finality.

  I sat silently for a moment, contemplating our next course of action. Though we were making great progress with the vast number of powerful creatures in the Moonwake Jungle, without my Ruler’s Authority Dominion Power, I was missing out on a ton of bonus Exp and Gold.

  Let’s take back our home.

  [Agreed.] Joshua replied excitedly.