When one undergoes a lesser reincarnation, one gains his levels back using specific conversation options.
I was wandering, if one absolutely must level up to the level he was before the reincarnation, or can he stop the leveling process earlier.

I believe, that the answer is 'yes, one must!', because it avoids the inconsistencies, that would naturally arise.
However, I'd like to be completely sure about it


On a related seemingly-unrelated note, why shouldn't one reincarnate while holding back a level (XP bar = blue)? I've read that the character can become bugged, yet I haven't found what kind of bug that actually is.