CHAPTER 149: NEW POWER SYSTEM, INCREASED SKILLS AND AWAKENER RANKS

[Proceed.]

Sam now stood in the [Upper Realm].

More precisely, he was inside the [Forsaken] Kingdom, the very first place he would see in this realm, and the only safe zone for those who had accepted the offer to ascend here.

All around him, the other awakeners from the seven races filled the massive plaza.

Every single one of them had chosen to step into the unknown.

None of them could leave anymore.

That meant this kingdom was now their permanent home.

Sam took a moment to study the place.

The plaza alone was enormous, wide enough to fit hundreds of thousands of people without anyone feeling crowded.

If this was only one plaza, then the entire kingdom must have been colossal.

Big enough for millions, perhaps tens of millions.

From the scale alone, it was obvious that space would not be a problem here.

But space was never the real concern. Danger was.

The [Lower Realm] had been dangerous enough, yet he knew instinctively that the [Upper Realm] would be on an entirely different level.

Still, there was no use worrying about what was outside, not yet.

For now, everyone focused on the same thing.

Ding!

A new panel shimmered into existence before their eyes.

Sam’s gaze sharpened as the glowing words appeared.

[Outside of the kingdom, only death awaits those foolish enough to stay there for too long.]

[But if you want to reach the end of your journey, and become strong enough to become a god... then you have no choice.]

Fwish! BOOM!

The sound of a sudden explosion tore through the atmosphere, followed by a crushing wave of pressure that rolled over the plaza.

Every awakener stiffened under its weight.

Even the strongest figures, beings whose strength could rival or even surpass Varkhaz, reacted with caution.

The panel shifted again.

[In the "Lower" realm, you only knew about one half of the "power system."]

Sam’s eyes narrowed.

’I knew it.’

Back when he had received the [Time] affinity’s ability choice reward, one of the options had been [Skill Evolution], the power to evolve a skill into its next form.

At the time, he hadn’t understood the true meaning of that choice.

He had only guessed that the system was hiding something, and that the truth would be revealed later. Now, it was.

This wasn’t just a small addition, it was a fundamental expansion of the entire power system.

"Wait, so you’re telling us there’s ranks above [Forsaken]?"

"I guess that’s what it meant when they said we’d grow much stronger..."

"Heh, I like this! Let’s do this!"

Boom!

A second wave of pressure slammed down, cutting off all conversation.

More panels appeared, this time filled with precise information.

Sam read each line carefully.

[Until now, your skills and items were divided into 6 ranks, while your awakener ranks into 7.]

[From there on, this list will grow.]

Fwish! Ding!

A glowing list formed in front of Sam.

[Common → Uncommon → Rare → Epic → Legendary → Forsaken → ??? → ??? → ??? → ???]

His eyes widened.

[Your items and skills can now go all the way up to ten ranks.]

[A skill that is fully maxed out is so devastating even demigods may not be able to handle it, but at the same time, getting them to this level is pretty much impossible.]

[The skills are divided into two categories: Tier 1 and Tier 2.]

[From "Common" all the way to "Forsaken", the skills are part of Tier 1.]

[It is only upon pushing your skills to Tier 2, which is impossible even with "evolution skills" or "forsaken items", that you will be able to access the new ranks.]

’I see... so that’s why [Primordial Evolution] won’t work directly,’ Sam thought, ’I really will need that [Skill Evolution] ability if I want to push one of my skills into Tier 2.’

He could already imagine it.

Once one of his abilities reached Tier 2, he would be able to evolve it fully.

The power that would come from that... would be terrifying.

A slow, confident smile spread across his face. The panels continued.

[And, of course, the second part of your awakener ranks will also be revealed.]

[Novice → Apprentice → Adept → Expert → Master → Ascendant → Forsaken → ??? → ??? → ???]

[Three new ranks have been unlocked, and it works the same as always: level up and complete your advancement task to increase your rank.]

The entire plaza seemed to hold its breath.

The idea of advancing beyond [Forsaken] was intoxicating, especially for those who had already reached the peak.

If they were strong now, how much stronger could they become?

[Oh, and since these are the current final ranks, the rate of improvement at that stage will be phenomenal.]

[A single level may make the entire difference from now on.]

[Though of course, we will not reveal any of the ranks, or any information about what happens from there.]

Sam could sense it, the excitement, the greed, the hunger for growth spreading among the awakeners.

For decades, they had operated under the same system.

Now, in a single moment, it had been turned on its head.

Not only had they learned they were in the weakest of three realms, but that their abilities and ranks were far from their true potential.

’More chances to grow stronger... but also more danger,’ Sam thought.

That last part lingered in his mind.

If the new limit was ten ranks, then the strongest monsters might be level one hundred... or beyond.

Beings like that could destroy worlds.

The thought didn’t scare him, but it did make him curious.

[You have an extremely bad feeling about this.]

That single line felt heavier than all the others. This was still only the second realm.

The [Upper Realm] would be more dangerous and more challenging than anything before, but the rewards would match the risk.

Even so, there was still one more realm beyond it.

The ten beings who brought them here had already admitted they didn’t expect anyone to clear the [Upper Realm].

That fact alone spoke volumes.

But for Sam, it didn’t matter. He was the Primordial.

His [Determination] would not break, no matter what awaited him.

[That is pretty much all for now, more will be introduced later.]

The panels flickered out.

For a brief moment, the plaza was filled with silence.

Then— Ding!

Sam looked up.

This time, a golden panel hung in the air above them all.

[It’s time to dive into that "mission" of yours now, after all, the way this realm works still hasn’t been explained.]

[I think it would be far better for you lot to understand directly via experience.]

The golden panel dissolved into light, and another one replaced it.

This time, the words were larger and heavier.

[Mission #1: Conquer the Seventh Layer.]

"Oh."