Shocking stats

'I can't believe it...she regressed in level,' Alex thought, dumbstruck.

Peak level 3, this was Amelia's current level. Alex couldn't even begin to wonder how something like that was possible. This was something unheard of and, quite frankly, something that shouldn't be possible.

The others watching Amelia beside him all wore similarly incredulous expressions, but what no one noticed was the brightness with which Freya's eyes gleamed as she watched Amelia right now.

A few moments ago, she had been about to order her guards to intervene and save Amelia if she was in danger, but she stopped dead in her tracks when the incredulous sight before her unfolded.

'Perhaps, perhaps with her help, I can hopefully be free of this curse,' she thought in a mix of desperation and hope, gripping her hands tightly as she stared at Amelia.

A person who had never begun to walk the path of ascension would never understand it, but those who had could only gape in silent awe at the significance of what Amelia had accomplished.

At some point in one's life, increasing one's strength would only become increasingly difficult. There were usually two causes for that. The first one was the most straightforward—talent. Some people simply didn't have the necessary potential to keep growing stronger. The other cause was the lack of solid foundations for their strength. Without a stable base, further progress became fragile and ultimately led to stagnation.

There were hardly any high-level individuals who didn't regret not having built truly solid foundations. Unfortunately, that was no longer an option—they couldn't wind time back nor return to the start of their journey to ascension. However, right now, that was exactly what Amelia was doing.

The mana density around her increased once again, and Amelia's own mana level dropped.

From peak level 3, she fell to high level 3 and then mid level 3.

As the mana concentration continued to grow stronger, taking on a vivid gray hue, the surroundings around Amelia became even more devastated. New cracks formed with each passing second, lengthening the already dense spiderweb of destruction that spread through the area.

'How come the fact that she is losing her level is causing so much destruction?' Alex suddenly wondered.

It was a well-known fact that the higher one's level, the more destruction was caused when leveling up—especially if one had a destructive ability and happened to lose control during the breakthrough. But there was no mention of destruction occurring due to level regression.

'On another hand, it's not like there are records of people regressing back to previous levels,' Alex reasoned.

Anyway, Amelia's level only kept on decreasing as time went on, and very soon, a small yet violent explosion rocked the inside of the library as she stepped down to peak level 2.

'How far does she intend to regress?' Alex thought, a hint of worry creeping into his mind as he watched the seemingly endless decline of her power.

Going down in terms of level to consolidate one's foundations was a good thing—an excellent one, even—but it wasn't without its drawbacks.

Amelia wasn't like him who could absorb monster cores to level up without worrying about exploding in the process. She had spent a little more than three dozen years constantly training and absorbing mana through monster cores to reach level 4. Now that she was losing all her levels, it would take a similar amount of time to recover, or even more, if she truly intended to create formidable foundations for herself. To return to her previous level, it might even take her more years than before.

This was the reason why, even though most higher-level individuals regretted not having spent more time consolidating their level, very few would actually agree to return to a lower level—even if given the chance. Some had spent hundreds of years to achieve the strength they had today and simply couldn't bring themselves to begin that long and arduous journey again.

Besides, there were other factors to consider. After living so long, they were bound to have accumulated enemies. Those enemies wouldn't hesitate for a second to deal with them once word spread that they had lost their strength. Moreover, they could lose the respect of others and, in some cases, even their nobility if they had earned it through strength rather than inheritance.

All of that was to say that while having the chance to regress and build-up solid foundations was an invaluable opportunity, it was also a double-edged sword that could very well lead to one's downfall. Amelia knew this, and yet, she still decided to proceed without a hint of hesitation. This was a testament to her unyielding determination to become stronger.

As this thought entered his mind, Alex felt his manhood stiffen. He had never more wanted to impregnate Amelia than right now. Surely the children such a woman would bear him would all be incredible.

A swift pink glow flashed in his irises and Alex instantly felt himself becoming subjected to his lustful desires, his body heating up while his member hardened even further.

Aware that it wasn't the time nor place for such thoughts, Alex shoved his lustful feelings aside, focusing on more important matters.

'Hey, system, show me Amelia's status,' he ordered in his mind.

A second later, a pale blue translucent floating screen appeared before his eyes. When he focused on it, he couldn't help but feel shocked.

He rarely glanced at Amelia's status screen—mainly because there hadn't been any significant changes in her for the last few weeks. Even if there had been a change, she was always with him, so he would have noticed. That was why he knew exactly what her stats looked like when she was at mid level 4, and why he was now so taken aback by what he saw on her status screen.

[Name: Amelia Eswal

Age: 55

Level: 2 (▼)

Strength: 60 (▼)

Agility: 65 (▼)

Stamina: 65 (▼)

Defense: 30 (▼)

Mana Points: 20 (▼)

Abilities: Plant manipulation; Cell master; Residual Blast]

There wasn't a huge difference between Amelia's previous stats and her current ones, except for her defense and mana points. This was actually what surprised Alex the most.

Amelia's stats were decreasing, as indicated by the system with an (▼) next to her stats, but they weren't decreasing as much as they should have.

For instance, here's what Amelia's stats had looked like before she began her level regression:

[Name: Amelia Eswald

Age: 55

Level: 4

Strength: 70

Agility: 80

Stamina: 80

Defense: 65

Mana Points: 70

Abilities: Plant manipulation; Cell master; Residual Blast]

One's strength, agility, stamina, and defense weren't necessarily tied down to one's level. There were people with incredible physical stats, one of them was Alex's first wife, Lilia, who, despite being mundane, had stats that were higher than even a level 4 Amelia. Well, Lilia isn't really the best example to take, considering the fact that she use a very different energy than mana, notably Zid.

Alex knew his sister though. It's true that she had been trained by their mother for several years, but Amelia wasn't someone like Lilia, who spent her time in a gym, training physically. She was more someone who dedicated herself to training and mastering her abilities. Thus, much of her current physical stats came from being level 4. This was why it didn't make sense for Alex that she had only lost a fifth of her strength while she was now two levels below level 4.

Something distracted Alex from his thoughts, and when he focused on Amelia again, he noticed that the mana concentration around her had increased severalfold. Not just that, it seemed the whole process was finally coming to an end.

Amelia was now at the very bottom, a mere low-level 1.

Yet, when she opened her eyes, a blinding white light erupted, filling the whole library and forcing everyone to close their eyes in instinctive reflex.

When they reopened them, they were surprised to find that peace had returned. Even the mini mana storm around Amelia had abruptly disappeared, leaving only the remnants of destruction as proof something had happened.

Amelia, on the other hand, sat there in front of them with a deathly pale face, disheveled hair, and a tired expression that was worsened by the dark bags under her eyes. Even her cheeks lacked their usual rosiness, appearing slightly sunken. She looked utterly exhausted, but the shine in her gray eyes had not diminished in the slightest.

Before anyone could question her about what the hell had just happened, she slowly touched her space ring and took out several items, her movements sharp despite her exhaustion.

Alex's eyes narrowed in realization seeing what she brought out.

Monster cores—level 1 monster cores and around two hundred of them.

Amelia took a deep breath, and in the next instant, under another round of incredulous gazes, all the mana inside the monster cores was swiftly siphoned into her body. The small shining cores crumbled like broken glass, their previous luster gone. Amelia, on the other hand, began to regain some color. At the same time, the aura she emitted grew several times heavier, more oppressive than it had ever been.

Confusion still clear in his eyes, Alex hastily ordered the system to show him Amelia's status again and when the translucent blue screen appeared before him, the words he had been about to utter caught in his throat.

[Name: Amelia Eswald

Age: 55

Level: 2 (▲)

Strength: 140 (▲)

Agility: 160 (▲)

Stamina: 160 (▲)

Defense: 130 (▲)

Mana Points: 140 (▲)

Abilities: Plant manipulation; Cell master; Residual Blast]