Chapter 8: Spirit
Atlas kept his gaze on the first page of the Codex.
The page remained open before him, but its surface did not look completely stable. The letters and lines glitched at irregular intervals, flickering for a fraction of a second before returning to normal. At first, Atlas had thought the distortions were random, but after using the Codex several times, he no longer believed that.
Every reaction had a reason.
The page resisted when he pushed a number too high.
The stylus pulled blood when there was not enough ink.
The locked pages flickered when he tried to look beyond what he was allowed to understand.
That meant the Codex had rules, and if he wanted to survive the Eternal Ruin, he needed to learn those rules, and fast at that.
His eyes moved over the numbers he had already written.
Strength: 9 [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]
Stamina: 6 [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]
Agility: 5 [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]
Spirit: _ [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]
Those numbers had reshaped his body within minutes. Strength had given him enough force to crush the Hybrid Muxical’s spine with one desperate punch. Agility had allowed him to see more of the monster’s movement and avoid instant death. Stamina had stabilized his injuries and repaired his broken arm when raised. Each attribute had a different effect, and each effect followed a practical function.
Atlas exhaled slowly.
"...So to start with, it’s harder to write a big number in those blanks."
His fingers flexed as he remembered the resistance from forcing Strength to nine. The Codex had not completely rejected it, but the cost had almost ruined him. The page, the locked fields, and his body had all resisted the sudden jump.
"But if I gradually increase them..."
He paused.
"...then let’s see."
His right hand lifted toward the Sanguis Stylus. It responded at once, drifting into his grasp with the Hybrid Muxical’s dark blood still swirling inside it. The blood was thicker than his own, almost black in places, and it moved with a heavy rhythm inside the crystal body.
Atlas did not hesitate this time.
He brought the stylus to Agility first.
The number 5 remained stable on the page. The moment the crystal tip touched it, the number began to fade. It was not scratched out or erased by force. It simply dissolved, as if the stylus had authority over what had been written before.
The blank returned.
Atlas wrote.
Only one drop of Muxical blood moved to the tip and sank into the page.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Only a faint glitch passed over the line before disappearing.
The number settled.
Agility: 6 [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]
Atlas did not look at his body first.
He looked at the stylus.
The blood inside had barely decreased.
Then he looked at the number on the page.
It was not the same crimson shade as the numbers written with his own blood. It carried a darker tone, closer to the Hybrid Muxical’s blood inside the stylus.
Atlas’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"...So that matters too."
The conclusion formed naturally. His own blood had worked as ink. Monster blood worked as ink too, but it might not have the same quality, effect, or cost. The Codex accepted it, but the difference in color suggested the source was recorded in some way.
Then the change entered his body.
His heart slammed once.
Thump.
A quick surge ran through his veins, spreading into his legs, spine, nerves, and eyes. It was not as painful as forcing a sudden high number, but it was not comfortable either. His muscles tightened, released, and adjusted to the increase.
Atlas steadied his breathing and let the sensation pass.
"...Guess I was right."
His voice remained low.
"Gradually increasing it is easier than making a sudden jump."
His fingers curled around the stylus.
"And the Muxical’s blood helped quite a bit... even though only one drop was used."
There was no excitement in his tone.
Only observation.
He was no longer experimenting blindly. He was learning the Codex’s cost, reaction, and limits step by step.
His gaze shifted toward Stamina next.
The number 6 waited there.
Atlas moved the stylus again.
The number faded when the tip touched it. The blank returned. Another drop of Muxical blood formed at the tip.
He wrote.
The page glitched once.
Then the new value stabilized.
Stamina: 7 [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]
The change was easier to understand than Agility. Atlas’s breathing deepened first. His heartbeat became stronger but steadier. The lingering fatigue in his limbs reduced slightly, and his body felt more stable from within. It did not erase exhaustion completely, but it gave his body more capacity to endure it.
Atlas stood still for a moment and took in the result.
"...So Stamina stabilizes the body."
Strength gave force.
Agility improved movement and reaction.
Stamina improved endurance, recovery, and the body’s ability to keep functioning under damage.
That left only one blank.
Atlas’s gaze moved slowly.
Spirit: _ [ LOCKED ] [ LOCKED ]
For the first time since taking the stylus again, he hesitated.
It was not the same hesitation as fear. Pain no longer mattered as much as it should have. He had already been pierced, bitten, crushed, and forced through several unnatural changes. This hesitation came from uncertainty.
Strength, Agility, and Stamina were physical. He could understand their effect because he could feel them directly. Spirit was different.
"...Spirit."
The word left his lips quietly.
Fragments of knowledge surfaced in his mind. Most of it came from rumors, overheard conversations, slum gossip, drunk guards, and explorer stories. Spirit was not something commoners touched casually. It was the attribute that separated ordinary fighters from true powerhouses. Some said it amplified overall strength by at least tenfold once properly awakened. Some said only rare relics in the world could grant it, and even then, only to a handful of users.
Atlas looked at the blank again.
"And this relic is outright asking me to write this stat on my own, huh?"
A faint breath left him.
"This is utterly..."
He paused.
"...ridiculous."
If the Codex could grant Spirit through writing, then its value had already exceeded anything Atlas understood about relics. Nobles would not negotiate for something like this. Royal Families would not purchase it. They would start wars, massacre cities, and erase bloodlines to own it.
Atlas’s grip tightened around the Sanguis Stylus.
The Codex had to remain hidden.
No exception.
The page glitched again.
This time, the distortion was sharper.
Atlas noticed it immediately.
"...You react when Spirit is mentioned?"
Only the faint crimson glow of the page and the silence of the lower ruin.
But Atlas no longer believed the Codex was lifeless. It moved when needed. It reacted to intent. It had hidden inside his chest. It had given him the word Originate without him knowing where it came from. A relic that behaved like this was not just a tool.
Still, he had no time to dwell on that.
His eyes lowered to the blank beside Spirit.
"If Strength at nine almost crushed me..."
He spoke quietly, arranging the logic step by step.
"Then doing something reckless with Spirit would probably kill me instantly."
That was the safe conclusion.
Spirit was unknown, and unknown attributes had higher risk. If he wrote too high, the backlash might not remain in flesh and muscle. It could damage his core, nerves, mind, or something he did not even know he had.
Atlas crouched near the dried remains of the Hybrid Muxical.
Only a drained corpse remained now. The Sanguis Stylus had taken nearly everything useful from it. That alone proved another point.
The stronger the blood source, the better the ink might be.
"It consumes blood as fuel..."
His eyes flickered thoughtfully.
"Then stronger blood probably allows stronger alterations."
The idea was simple, but the implication was not. If monster blood could help alter his attributes, then high-ranked monster blood could become a resource more valuable than gold, relics, or noble medicines. The Codex had changed the meaning of every creature inside the ruin.
A dry laugh slipped from Atlas’s throat.
"Heh..."
The nobles outside worshipped relics that could strengthen a few selected people after years of effort. The Codex allowed its user to write power directly into existence, if the price could be paid.
"No wonder Eternal Ruins are called calamities."
The moment he said that, the Codex pulsed.
Atlas’s expression changed.
A deep crimson glow spread across the first page for a fraction of a second before fading. Immediately after, the ground beneath him trembled faintly.
Atlas stood at once.
His enhanced body reacted faster than before, and his gaze snapped toward the darkness beyond the Codex’s light. The lower ruin had gone silent again, but this silence did not feel empty. It felt like something had started moving outside the range of his sight.
He slowed his breathing and listened.
Then a growl echoed from far away.
"Grrrrrr..."
Atlas’s pupils contracted.
It was not the same as the Hybrid Muxical.
Then another growl came from a different direction.
Then another.
And another.
Atlas tightened his grip around the stylus.
"...You’ve got to be kidding me."
The Codex’s dim crimson light suddenly felt too small against the darkness around him.
A pair of glowing eyes opened in the distance.
Then another pair.
Then more.
Red lights appeared one after another inside the lower ruin, all fixed in his direction.
Atlas stared at them silently.
Cold sweat slid down the side of his face.
"...Spirit, hah..."
A faint laugh escaped him, but this time it sounded strained.
"...Looks like I don’t really have the luxury to hesitate anymore."
