I Spread my Genes to Level Up in the Apocalypse

Ray's pupils glowed with a brilliant crimson in one eye and a radiant gold in the other, their combined light freezing the creature in its tracks.

At this moment, Ray unleashed all the power stored within his eyes, directing it straight at the tree-like being.

Thanks to his enhanced mental strength, the power of his pupils had grown exponentially. What was once incapable of slowing down a Peak Planetary being could now immobilize even a Universal being, albeit briefly.

But a few seconds were all Ray needed.

The tree-like being's expression twisted into horror as countless swords, forged from the darkness of the Realm of the Dead, rained down upon it. They descended like an overwhelming tidal wave, drowning the creature in a sea of destruction.

It was a terrifying and devastating sight. Countless black tendrils, darker than even the oppressive shadows of the Realm of the Dead, coiled tightly around the being, completely encapsulating it in an abyssal prison.

Ray cautiously backtracked, his sharp eyes fixed on the motionless figure. Another volley of swords formed behind him, their jagged edges gleaming with a menacing aura, ready to unleash a relentless assault the moment the being stirred.

His muscles remained taut, primed for immediate action.

Gradually, the tendrils began to dissipate, revealing the being's completely intact body, frozen in place.

"Is... it... dead?" The Grim Reaper's voice trembled, its skeletal frame shaking from disbelief.

Ray's eyes flared with blinding light as he struck again, channeling some of his recovered pupil power. This time, he infused the attack with soul manipulation, aiming to overwhelm the creature entirely.

At the same time, the swords forged from the darkness of the Realm of the Dead rained down again, relentlessly striking the immobilized being.

"Not enough!" Ray roared, his voice a mix of desperation and fury that echoed through the collapsing void. Crimson blood streamed from his glowing eyes, carving vivid trails down his pale cheeks like rivers of torment. His muscular frame trembling under the strain as if every ounce of power was being drained from him.

At this moment, Ray poured everything he had into his attacks, unleashing his full arsenal against the unyielding enemy.

But even so...

"It's not dying."

He cursed under his breath, his mind racing with countless thoughts as he scanned his surroundings, desperate for a solution.

"I got it," he muttered, his voice low.

Focusing his willpower, he reached out to the dormant planetary beings buried within the shadows, compelling it to awaken and answer his call.

*Rumble!*

The entire Realm of the Dead quaked as all the dormant, colossal beings opened their eyes simultaneously. The space itself began to collapse under the weight of their awakening, cracks forming like fractures in reality.

Their massive eyes, glowing with an eerie light, fixed on Ray.

"Obey my command," Ray commanded, his tone calm yet carrying an undeniable authority.

"No... you... cannot... obey... his... command," the Grim Reaper stammered, extending its skeletal hand in a desperate attempt to intervene.

Ray's lips curled into a faint chuckle as he turned to the panicking figure. "Remember our agreement, Grim Reaper?"

The bony hand froze mid-air…

"Although I cannot harm you," Grim Reaper continued, his voice carrying a razor-sharp edge, "I can very well obstruct you."

"Go right ahead then," Ray snickered.

Focusing all his willpower, he pushed himself to the very limits. His Mental Power surged, rippling through the Realm of the Dead as he maximized his control, enforcing his command.

There was slight resistance, but it was insignificant—like a feeble dam trying to hold back a ferocious, unstoppable river.

In mere seconds, Ray had seized full control of all the planetary beings, effortlessly brushing aside the Grim Reaper's interference.

"How...!?" A crack appeared in the Grim Reaper's skeletal frame.

"Nothing is impossible, bone guy," Ray replied, a smirk tugging at his lips.

"Even... with... this... beating... him... is... impossible..." the Grim Reaper rasped.

"We'll see," Ray responded with a casual shrug. He was too bound by the contract, unable to directly harm the Grim Reaper no matter how much he wanted to. For now, his priority was clear: restrain his fury and focus on the task ahead.

"Oh, there should be Kikyo as well," he muttered to himself.

Without hesitation, Ray extended his will and summoned Kikyo.

"Why did you call me, *nya*?" Kikyo demanded, her tiny paws planted firmly on her waist. "I was busy ordering those dogs around."

"Really?" Ray replied, his brows twitching in irritation. "Anyway, help me." His tone shifted, turning serious.

"What happened, nya? Who dared to harm my servant? I shall destroy them!"

Ray blinked, looking at her in disbelief. "Who is your servant?"

Kikyo puffed up her chest confidently.

"Forget it," Ray muttered, shaking his head in exaggeration. "I'll deal with her after this."

He quickly gave her a set of instructions, placing her on standby, then turned his full attention to the Awakened Beings under his control.

"What... are... you... going... to... do... with... them?" the Grim Reaper asked, its voice laced with unease.

Ray ignored the question entirely, his mind fully focused.

"I wonder if this will work," Ray muttered as he closed his eyes, focusing his thoughts. He began channeling the principle of the Necromancer skill, *Link*, and seamlessly combined it with the *Connect* principle from his Devouring Body Skill.

He was already in complete control of the beings with his *Will*, but now, with the addition of two more core principles, he pushed the boundaries of his capabilities.

"This better work," he murmured, determination etched on his face.

Taking a long, deliberate breath, Ray began the next phase. Slowly, he attempted to share his skills—Sword Grandmaster, Soul Manipulation, and, most crucially, True Eyes—with the planetary beings under his command.

Almost immediately, a sharp sting radiated from his glowing eyes, and his Mutation Energy drained at an alarming rate. Despite the strain, a triumphant smile spread across his face.

"It's working," he whispered, unable to hide his excitement.

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The sound of a heartbeat suddenly filled the air, faint at first but rapidly growing louder and more intense. It reverberated like a drum, shaking the realm with its terrifying resonance.

Ray froze, his entire body trembling uncontrollably.

"What is happening?" he muttered, his voice barely audible, overwhelmed by the deafening resonance of the heartbeat that seemed to pulse through the very fabric of the realm.

The spear embedded in his chest began to shift, trembling slightly as if responding to an unseen force. It moved slowly, almost deliberately, as though being drawn by an irresistible attraction.

That's right—the spear was still lodged in his chest.

"Where do you think you're going?" Ray sneered inwardly.

With both hands, he gripped the hilt of the seemingly simple spear, his muscles tightening and cramping under the immense strain. His chest convulsed as he forced his body to resist the spear's pull, locking it in place.

Crack!

The spear's pull intensified, the force so vast and incomprehensible that even Ray, with all his power, struggled to fully grasp its magnitude. His muscles burned, and his veins bulged as he fought against the overwhelming attraction.

Before Ray could react further, the spear wrenched itself free from his hands and hurtled toward the being, still engulfed in the relentless barrage of swords.

"You're not getting away that easily," Ray growled fiercely. Letting such a powerful weapon fall into the enemy's hands would be a fool's mistake. A weapon capable of piercing a black hole in two was anything but ordinary.

"Gravity."

Ray uttered the word, and the restrictions on his body began to lift. Instantly, the space around him distorted. Fragments of reality, shards of shattered time, and even the remnants of the collapsing realm warped and twisted, all bending toward him.

It was as if everything had a will of its own, drawn irresistibly toward him—but the truth was far simpler. This was the pull of an immense gravitational force, one that Ray controlled entirely.

The spear froze mid-air, caught in the grip of his power. It trembled, resisting the force, but Ray's gravity from his sheer body hold it in place.

"Now!"

Ray's roar reverberated through the crumbling realm, fierce and unrelenting. His already bleeding eyes began to dim, the once-vivid glow of his pupils slowly fading.

Bang!

All hell broke loose. Countless swords, forged from the pure darkness of the Realm of the Dead, materialized in a chaotic storm, descending on the being with unrelenting ferocity.

Ray poured every ounce of power into the attack. His Soul Manipulation reached its peak, and his True Eyes flared, amplifying the potency of each strike. The relentless drain on his pupil power and Mutation Energy pushed him to the brink, but he didn't falter.

It didn't matter how incredible a skill was; its effectiveness depended entirely on the wielder. If he gave this power to his ordinary undead, the most they could manage would be a feeble output, barely scratching celestial-level strength. But these weren't ordinary undead—they were Planetary beings, and some among them were even at the peak of the Planetary tier.

Their combined power was simply terrifying.

Under Ray's precise coordination, every attack converged on a single weak point: the soul of the being. The concentrated assault unleashed an unimaginable level of devastation, each strike targeting the very essence of its existence.

Soul was the core of every being, whether Planetary or even Universal. It was the very essence of life itself, an ethereal force. Unlike the body, which could be repaired or replaced, the soul was a far more elusive thing—difficult to defend and even harder to shield from harm.

For higher-level beings, their physical bodies were no longer a true threat. Even if their limbs or heads were severed, death was far less certain. Their true vulnerability lay in the soul itself.

Ray's unrelenting barrage of attacks continued for what seemed like an eternity, flooding the Realm of the Dead with darkness and fury. Each strike, every slash, every surge of power, focused relentlessly on the creature's soul.

The destructive storm tore through the realm, annihilating everything in its path until there was nothing left but emptiness.

Finally, when Ray's energy had been drained to its absolute limit, the storm of attacks came to a halt.

"Is it dead?"

Ray muttered the question to himself, his voice barely audible as he looked ahead, his pupils now completely gone. His body was in an almost shattered state—exhausted, drained, and covered in wounds from head to toe. His power had been spent, and he stood on the precipice of collapse.

Slowly, the chaos began to subside, the distorted scene clearing, revealing the devastation left behind. At the epicenter of it all stood the tree-like being, completely frozen in place, its form suspended in a state of eerie stillness.

Ray's weary gaze flicked toward the figure, but he didn't have the energy…

"Forget it," he muttered to himself, already turning away.

He wasn't in the mood to check whether the being was truly dead or not. With exhaustion weighing heavily on him, he drifted toward one of the walls of the Realm of the Dead, his body barely holding together.

"Luckily, the damage caused a small hole to appear," he mused, relief flooding him as he spotted the crack in the realm's boundary. With a heavy sigh, Ray moved through the hole, entering the void of nothingness with weariness.

His journey through the emptiness was silent and somber, each moment draining more of his strength as he slowly traveled.

The Grim Reaper, still observing from the distance, turned its gaze toward the suspended figure, now frozen in place. It watched Ray disappear into the distance before speaking softly.

"You… have… become… weak… Verdantor…"

The voice was almost a whisper. The suspended figure in the nothingness stirred slightly, the air around it rippling as the entire Realm of the Dead quivered in response.

"I have become weak?" Verdantor roared. "I should be asking you the question: how much time has passed? How have I become such a weakling?"

"What about Mother? Has she really abandoned me?"

"You… might… have… been… freed… if… you… had… managed… to… kill… Ray… but… now… there… is… no… chance…"