Chapter 38: You have Transcended the Realm of Mortality! Let the Second Wave… Begin! (Bonus - )

Chapter 38: You have Transcended the Realm of Mortality! Let the Second Wave... Begin! (Bonus Chapter)

Kaelen spawned around the same place he’d appeared the last time. Heaven’s Tower was no longer in view, but that didn’t mean there were no beasts around.

Using his [Sharp Senses] to sweep the forest, Kaelen noticed that not only was there no shortage of beasts in the surroundings, but they also seemed to be moving in groups. There was almost no lone beast in the area, which made Kaelen want to chuckle.

Even if they decided to move in the thousands, that still wouldn’t scare him away. But before the hunt began, he had unfinished business.

He didn’t know why he hadn’t thought of this before, but now he remembered the 99,999 World Authority Fragments in his possession and immediately activated one to seal the aura of the strange black fruit long enough to learn its origin and abilities.

Only then did he reach into his inventory to pull out the black fruit once more.

The aura was significantly stronger there, like it was reacting to the natural laws and mana of this world, but Kaelen didn’t let go of it and brought it up to his face.

The dark aura around it looked ominous and chilling, but the fruit was warm to the touch. He immediately inspected it.

[Seed of Infinite Evolution | Primordial Tier]

"Primordial Tier?" Kaelen was surprised to see an entirely new tier beyond Divine, which was praised as the pinnacle of all items.

He was also certain the Primordial Tier hadn’t just been created for the fruit alone and had probably existed for as long as Evolution Online and the other tiers, making it possible that the black fruit in his hand was the first of its kind ever found in the game.

He quickly lowered his eyes to read the description.

[Seed of Infinite Evolution | Primordial Tier]

Before there were stars, there was a single seed. Before there were gods, there was a single fruit. And before there was law... there was freedom.

When the fruit without color ripens beneath a sky without stars, the one who consumes it shall no longer walk the road prepared for mankind. Even Fate shall lose sight of his footsteps.

(Immediately unlocks the next two evolutionary realms and permanently destroys every future evolution restriction.)

Kaelen didn’t understand a single word of the lore and prophetic description, but the one thing he did understand was the last line.

Unlocking his next two evolutionary realms was like saving him a billion Evolution Points. If this fruit got out, every beast would fight to the death over it, and the guilds would wage war against themselves.

The Primordial Tier was truly life-changing.

But Kaelen was confused about what the last part meant.

"Permanently destroys every future evolution restriction?"

What was that even supposed to mean?

The only evolution restriction he knew of was Evolution Points, but that didn’t seem to be the case here.

He went back to read the description once more, falling into deep thought.

"...the one who consumes it shall no longer walk the road prepared for mankind..."

Kaelen was more intrigued than excited about the black fruit, but to truly know its purpose, there was only one way to find out.

He stared at the fruit for a moment before deliberately tossing it into his mouth. The warmth spread through his body, reaching his core and revitalizing him, but nothing major happened.

"Huh? Is this it—"

Bang—

One moment he was warm inside, and the next he was in intense pain, as if every fiber of his body was being torn apart.

Kaelen tried to clench his jaw, but realized he didn’t have one. And even if he did, he was certain his teeth would have shattered from the sheer pain he was going through. He screamed loudly as he began writhing around in the void of the World Authority Fragment.

It was smart of him not to do any of this in real life, as he might have passed out from the pain. And not doing it openly in the forest had also saved him from being attacked in this critical state.

Kaelen lost track of time and didn’t know how much had passed as the black fruit wrecked his being to the very core of his existence. Then suddenly, the pain vanished as quickly as it had started, and Kaelen was left panting in the empty void.

[Congratulations...]

[Ding! You have evolved into a Tier 8 Life Form]

[Ding! You have evolved into a Tier 9 Life Form]

[Every future evolution restriction has been permanently destroyed for your very being.]

[You have transcended the realm of mortality and have unlocked the Realm of a Thousand Planets.]

[GLOBAL ANNOUNCEMENT]:

[Kaelen Cross has become the first player to transcend the realm of mortality and unlock the Realm of a Thousand Planets .]

"W-What?"

While Kaelen was still trying to make sense of what was happening, the global announcement had caused a massive stir across the world.

***

In a grand mansion in Stronghold One, a seemingly middle-aged man with gray hair and gray beard that was almost white stood with his hands clasped behind his back and looked out the window, overlooking the prosperous city, when the door swung open behind him and an elegant woman walked in and immediately bowed her head.

"G-Greetings, Emperor..."

"What is it, Sarah? I made myself clear that I do not want to be disturbed—"

"A player has just transcended the realm of mortality."

The emperor visibly stiffened as soon as those words left his secretary’s lips. He immediately turned to face her with a frown.

"Who is it? Find them and recruit them immediately. And if they refuse..." the emperor trailed off, his intentions clear.

"I-I’m sorry, sir. We tried all we could but couldn’t find him."

"Him? What do you mean by that? Who is this man?" The emperor’s face turned ashen.

"I-It’s... Kaelen Cross."

***

In an undisclosed location in a faraway land, a strange scene was playing out.

Thousands of people gathered under a dying sun. From a distance, they looked human, but on closer inspection, one would notice a few distinctions, such as the strange runic symbols stretching from their necks down across their exposed skin, and facial features that transcended the beauty of mankind.

They were extremely loud, chattering amongst themselves like they’d witnessed the world ending. But the moment the priestess in black garments stepped out with several other people trailing behind her, they fell into pin-drop silence.

The priestess calmly stepped forward and threw back the black veil covering her face, revealing a beautiful visage marked with strange black symbols. But compared to everyone else there, hers were clearly hand-drawn, yet they still treated her with the respect due to a leader.

"People of Akkad, the prophecy has come to pass. Our messiah is here. It’s time to reclaim our lost lands."

"Yeahh!!"

"It’s time to reclaim our planet."

"Yeahhhh!!"

"It’s time to reclaim our world."

"Yeahhhhhh!!"

The priestess spread her arms before the multitude.

"Let the second wave... begin."