Reborn as an Extra Chapter 551: There are infinite possibilities! Part-1.
Previously on Reborn as an Extra...
Guided by the instructions from the cube of possibilities, Rio traversed a desolate wasteland riddled with tainted terrain and pools of viscous miasma, all under the relentless downpour of miasmic rain.
The concentration of miasma in this region was incredibly intense, rendering mana nearly absent.
This condition helped Rio grasp why even Raji, an SS-ranker, had declined to venture here, and why dragging others along would prove disastrous.
’Such an overwhelming amount of miasma... it seems even thicker here than in the demon continent itself!’
Rio had glimpsed the demon continent through Alverto’s recollections, yet that realm paled in comparison to the sheer dreadfulness and antagonism of the spirit realm.
As he proceeded at a leisurely stride, Rio gazed ahead and spotted an enormous mountain blocking his route.
’Could that truly be a mountain, or yet another colossal abomination?’
Rio had already encountered a turtle the size of a mountain, and he had zero desire to tangle with an SS-rank entity, so he attempted to veer off and skirt around the peak.
However, the cube of possibilities persistently directed him toward the mountain, leaving Rio with little option but to venture closer despite the danger.
’I truly hope it’s not that eccentric figure showing up again...’
Rio wished to steer clear of Raika entirely, avoiding any unnecessary complications.
As Rio drew nearer and nearer to the mountain, he began to pick up on the sounds of someone sobbing hysterically and howling with full force.
Those sobs and howls brimmed with such profound grief that even Rio found them unsettling to listen to.
Every sob and howl unleashed a tremendously potent surge of mental corruption, psychic assaults, and soul strikes radiating outward in every direction.
This time, the psychic assault surges were so formidable that they disrupted the very flow of miasma, while mighty shockwaves propagated endlessly in all directions!
Rio remained untouched by the psychic and soul strikes, and through his sword intent, he effortlessly countered all the shockwaves as well.
Nevertheless, a scowl formed on his features as he advanced toward the origin of the psychic barrages.
’An S-ranker? Perhaps a peak S-rank evil spirit?’
To Rio, the majority of S-rankers came across as feeble and breakable, whether human or evil spirit; unless they reached SS-rank, Rio could dispatch them without effort.
’It’s strange, though; what reason could an evil spirit have for weeping?...’
With a furrowed brow, Rio withstood the onslaught of countless psychic waves as he pressed on to the heart of the disturbance.
"Ahhh!! Ahhhh!!! Sob! My child!! My child!! Ahhhh!!! Help!!! Ahhh!!!"
At the base of the colossal mountain stood an evil spirit shaped like a humanoid figure.
The evil spirit’s form consisted of densely packed miasma; it appeared grotesquely warped beyond any semblance of normality.
Its volatile frame trembled and shuddered with each psychic outburst as it fixed its gaze on the towering mountain ahead.
Devoid of any face or mouth, the evil spirit somehow generated those sounds, enabling it to sob and wail incessantly at full volume!
Rio moved ahead and positioned himself next to it; he observed both the evil spirit and the vast mountain, puzzled by the unfolding scene.
’This mountain... contrary to my assumptions, it appears ordinary; only a handful of evil spirits and beasts inhabit it. Otherwise, it’s rather unremarkable...’
’Yet what’s with this peculiar evil spirit? It’s S-rank, and it hasn’t detected me right beside it, even though I’m not employing any stealth at the moment...’
Rio struggled to find the right words initially but eventually chose to question the evil spirit,
"What’s happening? Why the intense crying like that? Can you hear me?"
As though Rio’s question meant nothing to it, the evil spirit intensified its cries and responded,
"My child!! My child!!! Those beasts took her!!! They killed her!!! Ahhh!!! My child!!! Those beasts!!! Those abominable beasts of the mountains!!!"
"Ahhhh!!! Ahhh!!! Sob!"
The evil spirit continued fixating on the mountain while slumped on the ground in a contorted stance.
One leg of its humanoid form was absent, and its upper body had been rotated a full 360 degrees, as if some force had wrung the evil spirit’s body like a soaked rag to squeeze out moisture!
Despite this mangled configuration and warped state, the evil spirit persisted in mourning and lamenting the death of its offspring.
’A recreation of a bygone memory?’
Rio had studied the nature and beginnings of evil spirits in the academy’s tomes.
The bulk of them stem from souls of the deceased burdened by regrets or dark feelings, which then succumb to miasmic taint.
However, a far less common occurrence exists as well.
Much like how dungeons occasionally mirror actual worldly locations from history or the now, certain past incidents can manifest as evil spirits.
Observing the evil spirit’s nonstop weeping and its total disregard for Rio’s nearness, he deduced it was probably a recreation of some historical moment.
In some era and location, a tragic parent’s child had likely fallen to the mountain-dwelling monsters, with the parent’s anguish and bitter sentiments echoed through this eerie replication.
Miasma feeds on sorrowful feelings and recollections; it delights in ridiculing individuals’ painful histories or grim remembrances.
’But then why did the cube guide me specifically to this evil spirit?’
’Might this remnant from the past hold clues about the shadow dragons?’
Rio approached and placed a hand on the evil spirit’s shoulder before inquiring,
"It’s truly tragic that your child suffered such a fate. What would you like to do... to grant her soul peace?"
Upon hearing Rio’s statement, the evil spirit at last responded.
It ceased its howling and turned toward Rio, allowing him to sense the turbulent soul energies within its form.
The evil spirit displayed a mix of bewilderment and optimism; after a momentary pause, it voiced a plea brimming with resolve and venom.
The venom within the evil spirit ran so profoundly that it was eroding its very essence from within.
"Who are you?... No, it doesn’t matter... If you’re able, assist me in slaying those horrors dwelling in that mountain!"
"They murdered my child! I despise them all! Please! I implore you!"
In that instant, Rio realized the evil spirit hailed from an ordinary soul of an indeterminate past; its thoughts remained trapped in that era.
It failed to acknowledge its current status as a formidable S-rank evil spirit; it still viewed itself as frail and powerless before the mountain’s so-called beasts.
Rio offered a grin in response to the evil spirit’s desperate entreaty and gestured toward the wooden stick lying before it on the ground.
"You seek vengeance against those monsters... why not claim it on your own?"
"Rather than endless tears and screams, wouldn’t confronting the culprits serve better? Why not take that path?"
The evil spirit grew flustered by Rio’s suggestion and stammered back,
"B-but I am... I am just an ordinary person... h-how can I face those mighty beasts!... I-I am too weak!! I-I can’t..."
"Th-this... can I even accomplish anything with this wooden stick?"