Chapter 330: The Origin Fragment Doesn’t Recognize Luke?!

Luke took a deep breath before stepping several meters away from the ancient gate, giving himself enough room to build momentum and prepare properly.

Before he could begin, however, Peiro’s voice came from behind him.

"Kid, use your full strength. Before you, many Champions tried to open this gate, and every single one of them failed, including Iveron."

Luke’s expression immediately turned strange as he glanced back at him. "If even a god couldn’t open it, then how exactly am I supposed to do it as a D-Rank?"

Peiro shook his head. "That’s not how this gate works. It tests your strength according to the peak of your current realm."

He looked toward the towering ancient gate before continuing, "So, if you can produce strength equivalent to the strongest D-Rank of your species, the gate will open."

Hearing that, Luke finally understood and nodded slightly.

’Peak D-Rank Titan strength.’

Of course, his bloodline still hadn’t completely transformed into that of a true Firstborn Pure Titan, which meant he didn’t need to compare himself with the absolute peak among Titan bloodlines. At the very least, however, he would need to reach the Peak D-Rank physical standard of a Titan.

"Easy."

A confident smile appeared on Luke’s face because he already knew just how absurd Titan physiques became when compared with ordinary races. Even at D-Rank, a Titan could display physical strength capable of competing with humans far above the same realm, and although Luke didn’t know exactly how far a Peak D-Rank Titan could push that difference, he knew it would certainly be beyond anything his normal human body could achieve.

Without his Titan form, even after using everything available to him, his current body could only produce physical strength somewhere around Early C-Rank.

"Let’s do this."

Luke planted his feet firmly against the stone floor before calling upon the Titan that represented his greatest raw physical strength.

"Come forth!"

His voice echoed throughout the arena.

"Azrion! The Atlas Titan!"

RUMBLE—!

The instant those words left his mouth, the ancient gate suddenly released an overwhelming pressure, as though the entire structure had come alive and dropped its full weight directly onto Luke.

"What the—?!"

Luke’s body jerked backward as the pressure slammed into him, and for a brief moment, it genuinely felt as though an entire mountain had been placed against his chest.

’At least let my transformation finish, damn it!’

Luke groaned through clenched teeth as the muscles along his arms, shoulders, thighs, and back swelled violently under the sudden strain. His feet dug into the stone floor, cracking several tiles beneath him as the weight continued forcing his body backward.

For a moment, it looked as though the gate might simply crush him before Azrion’s transformation could even complete.

"NULLEX!"

Luke roared, and Nullex immediately responded.

White, mirror-like material spread over his body within an instant, wrapping around his limbs, chest, head, and back until his entire figure was enclosed within the armor. At the same time, four thick pillars formed from Nullex’s material and erupted from his back, extending backward in perfectly straight lines before slamming against the ground.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

All four pillars embedded themselves firmly into the stone, reinforcing Luke’s position and preventing his body from being pushed any farther.

With Nullex helping bear the pressure coming from the gate, Luke finally managed to stabilize himself.

’Thanks, Nullex.’

He released a strained breath just as Azrion’s transformation fully began.

His body expanded rapidly while Nullex continuously shifted along with him, metallic plates separating, enlarging, and locking back together around his growing frame.

CLICK—CLACK—CLANK!

Luke’s muscles thickened and reshaped themselves as the Atlas Titan physique emerged, every part of his body becoming proportionally larger and more powerful until, beneath Peiro’s calm gaze, a fifty-foot-tall Titan stood before the ancient gate, completely covered in Nullex’s almost mirror-white armor.

"HAH!"

Luke forced both hands forward and released his full physical strength.

Power surged from his legs, passed through his waist and shoulders, then gathered behind his arms as he pushed against the ancient gate with everything Azrion’s body could produce.

The tilted gate slowly began moving.

GRRRRRRNNNNN—!

Its ancient structure groaned under the force as Luke steadily pushed it back toward its original position, and the surrounding wall shifted along with it, extending behind the gate instead of exposing whatever lay beyond and forming something resembling a stone tunnel around its enormous frame.

Luke didn’t pay attention to any of that, because every bit of his concentration remained fixed on forcing the gate upright.

His feet continued grinding against the floor while his arms trembled beneath the weight, and only after nearly a full minute of continuous pressure did the ancient gate finally return to its original position.

Luke exhaled heavily.

"Now the real thing."

At his command, the four support pillars behind him withdrew and merged back into Nullex, while a layer of invisible Force spread across his Titan body, reinforcing his muscles and wrapping around his entire frame.

Luke tightened his grip against the gate.

"THIS GATE CAN’T STOP ME!"

With a roar, he drove everything forward at once.

BOOOOOOM—!

The thousand-foot-long ancient gate finally moved.

Its enormous structure swung inward under Luke’s strength before violently colliding with the interior wall.

BANG—!

The impact rolled through the chamber like thunder, while the opening behind it finally became visible.

"This..."

Luke’s eyes widened completely.

Beyond the gate wasn’t another ordinary chamber or hallway.

An entire world stretched before him.

Mountains rose across the distant land while vast seas reflected the strange light hanging above them, creating a landscape far too large to possibly exist behind the gate he had just opened.

Yet Luke barely paid attention to either.

His gaze had already locked onto the figure floating in the center of that world.

A one-thousand-foot-tall crystalline body stood upright in midair, completely motionless.

Peiro’s voice came from behind him.

"Impressive. You actually managed to open it."

Luke remained focused on the distant crystal figure while Peiro continued, and for once, there was clear satisfaction in the ancient spirit’s voice.

"That makes you the first person who has successfully opened this gate."

A faint smile appeared on Peiro’s face as he looked toward Luke, seemingly believing that this time, someone might finally complete the Origin Fragment’s trial.

"Now go and complete the trials. If you succeed, you may obtain the strength that even the forgotten desire."

The moment those words ended, Peiro’s body disappeared.

Before Luke could respond, an invisible force pulled him through the opening and into the world beyond.

The ancient gate immediately began closing behind him.

BAAAANG—!

Its thunderous impact echoed across the mountains and seas, but Luke barely reacted because his attention was still fixed on the gigantic figure floating in the distance.

"Earlier, it was a stone body... and this time, it’s crystal."

Luke narrowed his eyes and carefully observed the new Origin Titan manifestation.

Its entire thousand-foot frame was almost transparent, while faint white lines flowed beneath its surface and spread throughout its limbs, torso, and head like veins of light trapped inside crystal. Its exterior remained mostly smooth, although several sections naturally extended into sharp geometric formations, making the body resemble a single colossal crystal that had somehow been carved into the shape of a Titan.

Luke continued studying it.

The First Origin Fragment he had encountered represented Strength, and its Stone Body had perfectly reflected that Aspect, which made him increasingly curious about what this crystalline body represented.

At that moment, Sevaroth materialized beside him and began floating through the air while looking around at the mountains, distant seas, and finally the thousand-foot crystalline Titan.

"Is this the Origin Titan you told me about?"

"Only a fragment," Luke corrected him.

Even after hearing that, Sevaroth’s attention remained fixed on the crystalline figure because, just like Nyx and the others, he had heard stories concerning the Origin Titan long before meeting Luke.

Among the oldest Titan legends, there were whispers that before even the Firstborn Titans appeared within the universe, another existence had already been present—the Origin Titan.

Very little reliable information remained about it, and most Titans had eventually treated the story as little more than an ancient legend, because no one had ever found the Origin Titan itself. The only consistent claim surviving across those stories was that the Origin Titan possessed the power to control all forces and elements.

While Sevaroth continued observing the figure, the crystal Titan’s eyes suddenly opened.

Its gaze immediately fell upon Luke.

Luke noticed it at the same instant, because his attention had never left the body in the first place.

The Origin Fragment stared at him for several moments before finally speaking.

"Another Hero."

"Hello."

Luke greeted it in his usual casual manner, which seemed to draw a faint trace of curiosity from the Origin Fragment.

"It seems you have either encountered another fragment of mine or already heard about me."

The crystalline figure paused before carefully observing Luke’s body, but even after nearly a minute, the confusion surrounding its gaze didn’t disappear.

"You don’t possess an Origin Fragment."

It looked at Luke more carefully.

"Did you lose against my other self?"

Luke initially became confused by the question before quickly realizing what had happened.

’Right. The System absorbed that Fragment when it evolved my Origin Skill.’

The previous Origin Fragment no longer existed separately inside him, so naturally this one couldn’t sense it.

"Yeah."

Luke answered nonchalantly.

The Origin Fragment showed no noticeable reaction, although Luke wasn’t sure whether it actually could, considering its entire face was made from solid crystal. It possessed visible eyes and a mouth, but no other facial features capable of displaying normal expressions.

During their conversation, Luke had already returned to his ordinary human form, while Nullex had also disappeared from his body. Strangely, despite losing his Titan form and armor, he remained suspended in midair without needing to actively maintain himself there.

After a brief silence, the Origin Fragment finally continued.

"Well, whether you failed before doesn’t matter. The fact that you successfully opened this gate means you possess enough potential to attempt my trial."

Luke’s expression became more attentive at those words, because he wanted to finish whatever trial awaited him as quickly as possible, especially while the System’s earlier warning still lingered in the back of his mind.

The gigantic crystalline figure looked directly at him.

"I am an Origin Fragment of the Origin Titan, and the Aspect held within me is—Adaptation."

Its voice spread across the open world before it paused and asked,

"What Aspect did the Fragment you encountered before possess?"

"Strength," Luke replied calmly.

The Origin Fragment gave a slow nod.

"Strength... yes, that Fragment was always powerful. To overcome its trial, you would have needed to surpass the strength it placed before you."

Luke didn’t respond and simply remained silent, waiting for the Origin Fragment to explain what kind of trial awaited him this time.