Chapter 125: Settling the Title

"Gene unlock?"

In the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) system, a divine spark is the core of a deity. It is a crystallization of energy and laws, containing divine power, divinity, and divine fire.

The Black Death, even at its peak, was merely approaching godhood. It had formed a rudimentary divine spark but had yet to ignite its divine fire or elevate its energy to divine power. Naturally, being close to a deity meant it possessed a certain degree of divinity.

Gene unlocking materials can directly activate corresponding genes. According to the system’s explanation, using this divine spark offers two genetic paths.

The first option is the Psionic path: unlocking the "Black Death Psionic Upgrade Tree."
Evil Energy → Nether Energy → Sha Energy.

The Black Death’s original viral and plague-related abilities seemed to have been stripped away. As for these three types of psionic energy, Yan Luo hypothesized: Evil Energy was likely the power it possessed as an evil spirit; by spreading the Black Death in Europe, it acquired death energy: Nether Energy.

As for "Sha Energy," it was more obscure. Yan Luo recalled the fighting game *Street Fighter*, specifically the character Juri Han, whose left eye was equipped with a Feng Shui Engine to produce Feng Shui Sha Qi, a derivative of the "Satsui no Hado" (Surge of Murderous Intent). While Feng Shui Sha Qi is not considered very high-level, it also brought to mind the *World of Warcraft* boss, Y'Shaarj, the Old God. As the most powerful official Old God, the Sha energy it exhaled before dying polluted Pandaria, tore massive gashes in the surface of Azeroth, and bled the continent’s life force, eventually manifesting as the indestructible Sha. In terms of psionic potential, this was undoubtedly terrifying.

"Moreover, this 'Sha' energy feels somewhat Cthulhian..."

The second option is the more mysterious "Occultism" path: unlocking "Death Divinity."

It sounds highly prestigious, and its function is to grant immunity to instant-death attacks and resistance to most curse-based attacks. Furthermore, if one possesses death-type energy, this divinity enhances its power and increases the success rate of elevating that energy into transcendent divine power.

For instance, legendary lich spells like "Finger of Death" or the "Avada Kedavra" curse from *Harry Potter* would lose their effectiveness. Of course, a mere sliver of Death Divinity wouldn't stop something like a Six-Soul Banner or the Nail-Headed Seven Arrows Book. Similarly, a god-level lich using a Finger of Death fueled by transcendent divine power would be strong enough to breach such divine protection.

Regardless, this demi-divine spark provides invaluable genetic potential!

Choosing psionics requires abandoning divinity, and choosing divinity makes psionics inaccessible. This made Yan Luo hesitate. However, he didn't need to choose just yet. To unlock Evil Energy using the demi-divine spark, one must possess at least "Advanced Physique" genetic status to withstand it; otherwise, the energy would erupt within the body and desiccate him into a mummy.

As for Death Divinity, he wasn't currently in a magical world and didn't need to face enemies capable of instant-death attacks. Besides, "Finger of Death" is a 7th-level D&D spell, a level beyond the reach of ordinary beings. He wouldn't encounter that for now.

He decided to put it away and decide later.

*You have sensed strong emotions: Fear +1.*

Brenda was indeed still alive. Yan Luo walked over to look at the young woman. Her current appearance reminded him of a famous, shocking cinematic from *The Witcher 3*, where the vampire fought the White Wolf... they were both equally miserable.

"Kill... kill me..." the woman on the ground muttered.

Yan Luo stood by, watching her expressionlessly. Brenda struggled to lift her withered right hand, grabbing his ankle. "Please... you... kill... me..."

*You have sensed strong emotions: Sadness +1.*

He crouched down, raised his right hand, and delivered a hand-blade strike infused with vibrating force to the girl’s neck.

*Crack.*

With a crisp sound, the girl's cervical vertebrae snapped. After losing so much life essence, the bones of a revenant had become brittle.

"Thank you."

*You have sensed strong emotions: Gratitude +1.*

A single tear slid slowly from the red-haired girl's eye.

"Everyone is dead. It seems I am the only living person left in this tribe."

Back in the real world with time still remaining, Yan Luo began to clean up the battlefield. Brenda, the woman he had killed with his own hands, dropped nothing—though there was nothing to drop besides the revenant bloodline, and the drop rate for bloodline material was very low.

However, he discovered that the seven voodoo dolls had become items that could be brought out of the world—just a few days ago, they had been mere plot items. The Vampire and the Destroyer dolls were marked as "Damaged."

"Damaged" rather than "Destroyed" meant they could potentially be repaired. These seven voodoo dolls were likely of significant value; he wondered how many points of biological energy they would fetch in the newcomer zone.

"Mission complete. Proceeding with settlement."

"Level 1 Inner World Main Quest: 1,000 biological energy, 1 gene point. Detected that the modulator's actions caused the main quest to change and difficulty to increase, equivalent to a Level 2 Inner World... Main Quest reward adjusted to: 2,000 biological energy, 2 gene points."

"You uncovered one of the secret events hidden in history within this world, involving: Revenants, Voodoo Dolls, Evil Spirits, and the Black Death. You have been awarded 4 gene points."

"You eliminated one of the ultimate bosses of this world: The Black Death. Based on your actions, you have achieved the milestone: 'I Am the Boss.' The special title 'Boss' has been issued. Based on world difficulty and comprehensive evaluation, your title is: 'Mid-Boss'."

"Other additional bonuses: 3,000 biological energy."

The settlement finished, and Yan Luo returned from the Inner World to the real world—right back in the corridor where he had first entered.

"Huh?"

Wang Dongwei’s mouth fell open the moment he saw him.

*You have sensed strong emotions: Shock +1.*

"You're back? How so soon!"

Only a few minutes had passed since Yan Luo entered the Inner World. It was as if he had just popped into the restroom and returned. Wang Dongwei couldn't help but feel a sense of unreality. It was just too fast.

"I stayed in that world for two or three days," Yan Luo said. As he spoke, he removed the "I Am Legend" title he had equipped for hand-to-hand combat in the supernatural world and donned the new one. According to the description, "Boss" series titles were only awarded during settlement based on performance and provided a "Boss Template."

What were the bonuses for the Mid-Boss template?

*Having 'Boss' over my head isn't bad, but the 'Mid' prefix makes it feel like my status dropped quite a bit. It would be better without it... or maybe add 'Grand' to make it more impressive,* Yan Luo thought to himself.

Meanwhile, Wang Dongwei’s eyes were nearly popping out of his head. He had only been gone for a few minutes—and he had already become a boss? A Mid-Boss?

What exactly did he do in the Inner World!