I Was Reborn in Another World, But I Awoke Inside a Corpse

Chapter 134: Doubt in the Echo

The silence after Beelzebub's death was deeper than Isaac expected. Not just absence—but echo.

"Devouring Loop – Rank EX+."

The skill pulsed in his soul like a brand. It was powerful. Too powerful. A blessing and a curse tied into one loop of hunger.

"Absorbs 20% of every base stat (including Luck) from any enemy that dies or any corpse you touch—regardless of who dealt the killing blow. Absorption bypasses ownership, proximity restrictions, and claim mechanics."

It was the kind of ability that could break balance, rewrite hierarchies, and corrupt entire battlefields.

So why hadn't Beelzebub been stronger?

Isaac sat alone beneath the still-healing roots of Yggdrasil, his back against ancient bark, staring into the faint light of a burning lantern.

Beelzebub had possessed this skill for who knew how long—thousands of years, perhaps tens of thousands. A Sin of Gluttony, born from endless hunger, and yet…

"If he truly had this skill… why did he stop where he was?"

Isaac's mind turned over the numbers. Beelzebub had higher stats than most divine entities—but still within the thousands. Isaac was approaching ten thousand in multiple attributes. After one kill, after one fight. Was that the limit?

Then a line from his own status echoed in his thoughts.

"[System Override – Rank EX+] … Removes the level and all stats cap, allowing infinite leveling."

That one sentence.

One quiet truth.

"There is a cap for everyone else."

Even Beelzebub.

He could kill endlessly, feed endlessly—but if the system had enforced a limit on how far that feeding could go, it explained everything. The other Sins were bound by it. Gods. Demons. Ancients.

But Isaac?

He had no ceiling.

A cold realization settled in.

"I don't just have the same skill. I have the same hunger. But without the leash."

That scared him more than he admitted. Not because he feared power—but because he feared what that power would ask of him. Would he be able to stop if there was no limit? What was restraint in a world that begged to be devoured?

Sylvalen's words came back to him—soft, grounding.

"You are not a god, Isaac. But you might be the one who teaches them fear."

And Lira's voice too.

"You're just stubborn and overpowered."

He exhaled slowly, forcing the unease to burn out with his breath.

"Then I'll be both," he whispered. "But I'll also be me."

He brought up the skill window again, eyes narrowing on [Devouring Loop – Rank EX+]. The power was immense—but it had failed to make a god out of Beelzebub.

Because Beelzebub had never broken free of the chain.

Isaac had.

He would turn the hunger into a forge—not a prison.

He would go beyond even the Sins.

And in that stillness, he made his decision.

"It's time to take this one step further."