All beings that once entered the Forbidden Area, today rise once more from their graves to see the light of day. Various races and ethnicities draw their corroded weapons, the skills they acquired in life multiplied by the level increase in death.

  In life, they might have been dazzling talents, today they proudly are rankers.

  "Damn it!"

  Lawrence views this situation with hatred and disdain. "We used practically half of our mana annihilating those beasts, to use the same attack would eventually be our end!"

  Their preparations cover many scenarios, but not even in their wildest dreams did they consider the dead returning to life. If this were a case of evil magic, then Lawrence would smile once more, but it is not.

  They are spirits! These spirits somehow took on the form of the deceased, something impossible to replicate outside. Spirits are small beings that only spiritists can see and interact with, existing in different elements, but none like these!

  "This is the worst, they've inherited their abilities in life. Fighting them will be no different from a war on the Divine Plane."

  Serene Will bites her lips, her innate ability reflects different descriptions depending on the spirit she is observing. She cannot see their techniques and talents, but can infer it through the information she gathers from them.

  "Let's decrease their numbers while they're not fully awake yet."

  The small plants around them gather very different information than what Serene Will can obtain with her ability. Thanks to this, Sky Petal senses that nothing good will come from continuing to wait or escaping the area.

  Bet it all on one attack and deal with the survivors, or try to uncover the mystery of the Forbidden Area and cross their fingers that there is an exit near it.

  "In this world, nothing is exempt from death, we may have leveled up by defeating so many beasts, but it's different with the ones before us."

  Serene Will surprises everyone with her words.

  "Aren't we going to level up?"

  "We will indeed, but don't have high expectations."

  Leveling up implies acquiring the life of defeated opponents, them being dead means they will level up through a different cycle. But which one? Does it have to do with those babblings he has been saying?

  Every hunter has a fate, unfortunately, Lawrence is not bound to any of them. Because if it weren't for the evil sect, he would already be dead.

  Lawrence clenches his teeth and watches the thousands of enemies rising from the ground. He quickly gives his consent and performs the same magic with which they defeated the hundreds of demonic beasts.

  "What's happening? Didn't I die?"

  "If I am alive then my brother... Brother! Where are you?"

  Slowly their empty eyes begin to come to life and remember what led them to be in this place. Many discover the oddity in the situation, unlike the others, they know they are dead.

  "So, what is my purpose?"

  Among them, some look up to the sky and notice the three hunters in the air.

  "I see, so that was it."

  The next instant, a beam of light annihilates hundreds of hunters without giving them time to retaliate. Their last memory is being touched by an aura as sharp as a sword, the nostalgic smell of their home, and also the warmth of sacred magic.

  As the shockwave from their attack arises, the three of them consume more than 8 medicinal pills and speed toward the surviving spirits.

  The first to lead the counterattack is Sky Petal.

  "Whoever bound their spirits to this earthly plane does not deserve such a right."

  Plants shouldn't inhabit this place, but with her words, dozens of them emerge from the ground and from them, special flowers begin to bloom.

  "Let me release your bindings."

  There were some hunters who wanted to defend themselves, belatedly discovering the scarcity of mana around them. The flowers voraciously absorb all the surrounding mana, giving rise to the creation of new vines that emerge from the ground.

  A variety of plants are born, the hunters die unable to stop their advance.

  "You should be dead."

  Serene Will reveals the truth to those spirits unwilling to face it. "You are here only to stop us. After our departure, you will disappear again."

  "You lie!"

  While some deny her words, others begin to delirium. "There is no explanation that someone can bring the dead to life. These must be my inner demons, by killing you I can return to reality!"

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  She wanted to grant them a merciful death, but they refuse to accept reality. Serene Will sighs and grips her sword tighter than ever.

  "Words are useless, then, let us fight. That has always been the answer."

  A field of swords rises with her at its center, illusory swords emerge in all their splendor. A single thought is enough for the swords to head towards her enemies, all of them unable to react to the unexpected attack.

  Immediately a bloody battle ensues. All of them are experienced hunters, so despite the level difference, she sees blood emerge from her own body.

  "A user of sacred magic fighting? You can laugh."

  On Lawrence's side, the situation is even more complex. His level gives him an advantage over his enemies, but he is the one who receives the most damage with each exchange.

  Sacred lightning falls from the sky, while a giant hand tries to crush the hunters with its finger. Hundreds of golden chains interfere in their movements, but despite all this, on more than one occasion Lawrence has to fight his enemies head-on.

  "What?!"

  One of them manages to pierce Lawrence's stomach, but his joy quickly turns to astonishment.

  "Bastard..."

  No blood comes from his wound. After falling to the ground, he watches as the wound on Lawrence's stomach heals rapidly.

  "Tsk, compared to them, I'm the weakest."

  By this time both Serene Will and Sky Petal have claimed the lives of dozens of hunters, he can't even come close to their tally.

  "The greatest value of sacred magic is healing... At least I won't die easily."

  If there were a difference between him and other sacred magic hunters, it's that Lawrence was born with extraordinary talent, enough to bear the weight of creating a gap between planes and crossing between them easily.

  On all three battlefields, blood flows everywhere.

  Sky Petal may have the fewest wounds, but the mental load of maintaining hundreds of plants under her control exhausts her at giant steps. She has managed to stay standing solely due to the medicinal pills she takes each time she's about to lose consciousness, but increasingly needs more to achieve the same effect.

  Who has the most wounds on her body is Serene Will, but anyone who despises her will suffer the consequences. Unlike the Divine Plane, she can currently read the thoughts of all the hunters. She may have blood falling from her body, but so far she has not needed any medicinal pill to heal her wounds! And she is the one who has reduced the enemy numbers the most!

  "Get her for me!"

  At some point, Lawrence hears a familiar voice.

  "Hahaha! I don't know if I'm alive or this is hell, but nothing will stop me from doing what I want! Now go, move trash!"

  "I remember, he is..."

  The original owner of the heavenly treasure.

  "But they are spirits, how is that possible...?"

  Before his skepticism, Lawrence sees how one of the general's men touches the forehead of a woman and she loses all resistance. The general licks his lips as the woman approaches him submissively.

  "Damn, how did I not think of this before?!"

  Lawrence smiles cheerfully and touches the forehead of one of the men trying to kill him. The Memory and Emotion Rewriting magic activates in full, his only thoughts when manipulating his mind are loyalty and submission.

  "Attack them!"

  At Lawrence's shout, the man looks at him like he's stupid.

  "Have you gone mad?! Die!"

  Lawrence can't help but remain silent. 'Why didn't it work for me and for him it did? Favoritism?'

  Despite the failure, he didn't give up and tried it on various targets. In each of them, the magic entered empty objects, he felt it indistinctly.

  His mind is false, these hunters are not the same as in life.

  "I must kill that general as soon as possible."

  Sooner or later that general will be a thorn in his side. Having the ability to manipulate the minds of hunters and make them work as one, nothing good will come from leaving him alive.

  "I've never seen a woman as beautiful as you, come with me."

  There is a bloody war around him, but the general has his own priorities. His army will defend him against any threat, so why not enjoy the view with a beauty by his side?

  When he was about to touch her soft behind, she moves away from him completely enraging him.

  "What do you think you're doin--?!"

  It is then that he feels the blood dripping down his face, and only now does he understand that the same woman he was about to touch has just saved his life.

  The man, whose sword pierced the woman's chest, looks at him arrogantly.

  "Now only you are left."

  "Kill him! Kill him even if you have to sacrifice yourselves!"

  Immediately his royal knights appear at the place and from them emanates an aura of self-destruction. Lawrence clicks his tongue and steps back, not before attacking the general with a sword straight to his heart.

  "Tsk, damn puppets."

  But the same guard who was about to explode voluntarily receives the sword in his body. The next moment he explodes, generating a cloud of blood.

  Lawrence shouts: "Damn it, don't hide! Come out of there!"

  The general moves away as his men sacrifice their lives for him. Minutes later Lawrence loses all trace of him.

  "Serene Will! The previous owner of the heavenly treasure is alive, ask that book for his location!"

  Greatly surprised, Serene Will pulls out the book from her storage ring. There was no need to ask, because suddenly from the cover a joyful eye emerges.

  "Go find him, and don't forget who your current master is."

  The eye respectfully blinks at Serene Will's words.

  A reddish aura circulates through its pages and the book begins to fly.

  "What? You're here too?!"

  The general is delighted to see the heavenly treasure return to his hand, belatedly discovering that the book no longer holds the same respect for him.

  "Die."

  "Eh…?"

  Without warning, a sword pierces his chest. It seems this is not enough for that man, as electricity flows through his weapon, destroying his internal organs and causing him immense pain before granting him death.

  On the ground, the heavenly treasure seems very happy, bathing in the blood of its previous master. After a few seconds, it returns to the hands of its current master, its eye looking very satisfied.

  The battle continues for long hours and fear manifests in the hunters. At the beginning of the war, they thought their numbers would be sufficient to bridge the level gap, what a big mistake they made.

  Death, death, death.

  From the start, they have not achieved any victories against their adversaries.

  "Ahhh!"

  "My body! What's happening to me?"

  Those hunters who gave up fighting see their bodies turning to dust.

  "No! I am willing to fight! Why then?!"

  While others, for unknown reasons, disappear into the desert sands.

  "Instability and fear."

  Lawrence, Serene Will, and Sky Petal gather after seeing that the remaining hunters begin to turn into dust one by one.

  "Their fragile minds could not withstand how someone snatched their hope away once more."

  Even those who did not belong to any of these two categories, the disappearances of others slowly influenced them, vanishing just like the rest.

  "We won."

  In the vast desert, only the three of them remain standing.

  They overcame the battle against the demonic beasts and the war against the hunters who returned to life. Their current condition is the worst, if there really were any more enemies, this would be the best moment to attack.

  ...They really wish they had been wrong.

  Lawrence clenches his fists. "How much more must we overcome for you to be satisfied, Forbidden Area?!"

  On the horizon, a sandstorm approaches. A new enemy is on its way.