Stephan hissed as the familiar burn spread through his veins.
[Soulforged Will Activated]
[Souls Burned: 5]
[Total Expended: 15]
His ribs pulled tight as bone knitted; torn muscle wove itself together in painful, twitching spasms. Breath came easier, but his chest still felt like it was caught in a vice. The price was steep, fifteen souls reduced to ash inside him, gone forever. He had never consumed so much in one battle, not even in the Abyssal Realm where horror lurked in every shadow.
This was different. This fight had carved him raw. It was his greatest trial since clawing his way out of the Abyssal Realm .
He lowered his blade, eyes narrowing at the mountain of rubble that had once been his enemies. He had half-hoped to extract something from them, anything. Even fragments. But the moment he pressed his will into the broken stone, the truth hit him: they were hollow. Empty vessels. No souls, no essence, no reward. Just carved shells powered by borrowed runes.
