CHAPTER 390: CHAPTER390-BEFORE THE WAR

Malkar had joined the human race.

But his inclusion did not bring about any earth-shaking impact.

After all, even though Malkar’s strength placed him among the top tier, when set against the backdrop of humanity as a whole, he was merely one of many.

Strong, yes, but humanity had no shortage of top-tier powerhouses.

At this moment, two hours had passed since Daniel had completed the trial of becoming Human Emperor.

And in these two hours, not a single piece of news about him had surfaced.

It was as though His Majesty Daniel had evaporated into thin air.

His absence made many feel uneasy, uncertain how to adapt.

But despite the silence surrounding him, the footsteps of humanity’s advance did not falter.

The march toward power never slowed.

Under the protection and blessing of the Human Guardian, humanity’s awakeners grew stronger at an astonishing pace.

Even when their levels had not increased, the sheer boost of the blessings multiplied their combat strength several times over.

This meant that tasks once thought insurmountable now felt almost trivial.

Enemies that had seemed overwhelmingly powerful before...

in actual battle, they turned out to be nothing more than obstacles to be swept aside.

And with the endless rain of Exp Drops, awakeners no longer worried about grinding for experience.

That was no longer a bottleneck, not until the 200th level.

After level 200, Exp Drop effectiveness diminished, becoming less of a direct boost.

But until then, new awakeners shot up in level like rockets, their progress explosive and unstoppable.

In just these short two hours, less than one percent of humanity’s awakeners remained below level 200.

The overwhelming majority had already broken past that threshold.

During this period, world announcements had been flashing across the skies ceaselessly.

[Thunder Mountain has been cleared. Participants...]

[Kuangbai Abyss has been cleared. Participants...]

Dungeons that had once left humanity helpless, labyrinths that had demanded elite teams and grueling effort—now they were being cleared with ease.

Not by legendary parties or record-hunting squads, but by ordinary groups stumbling in while on other tasks.

Time and again, these casual teams discovered something shocking.

The monsters inside the labyrinths, once thought nearly impossible to handle, now fell with absurd ease.

Even the end bosses, once feared, were cut down almost by accident.

And to make matters stranger, these unintentional clears often set new records.

...

Such scenes played out across every corner of the continent.

Awakeners pushed into forbidden mountains, searching unexplored labyrinths to claim rewards.

Each dungeon cleared meant riches, equipment, and recognition.

The whole of humanity surged with vigor and enthusiasm.

It was an age of unprecedented growth, where records were broken almost casually.

Each new announcement meant yet another reward flowing into eager hands.

In this flourishing climate, the collective strength of humanity soared to yet another height.

And in the midst of this storm of progress, something Daniel himself had not expected occurred.

The second-generation Human Emperor displayed shocking talent.

Moments ago, he had become the first awakener in human history to reach level 300.

The achievement sent ripples through humanity.

Cries of celebration rang out in every settlement, cheers echoing across the lands.

But amidst the jubilation, someone suddenly noticed something strange.

They froze.

Then, slowly, they raised their eyes to the heavens.

"What the hell is that?"

One voice cut through the noise.

All around, people followed his gaze.

And what they saw left them pale with awe.

A figure, small yet terrifying, was striking at the blood moon itself.

The scene was apocalyptic.

Explosions burst like fire across the moon’s surface, flames clawing outward, shaking the heavens.

The blood moon shuddered, its light dimming beneath the relentless assault.

Then, slowly, it began to fall.

Its descent angled toward the Storm Sea, its brilliance bleeding away.

The strangeness of the scene pulled every eye.

Awakeners gifted with perception stretched their senses wide.

And when they saw the truth, disbelief carved itself onto their faces.

It couldn’t be.

The one hammering the blood moon... was His Majesty Daniel?

Impossible.

Outrageous.

How could such a thing be?

That was the blood moon itself!

And yet, before their eyes, Daniel’s figure battered it mercilessly.

Could his strength already rival that of a stellar body?

Could he destroy stars?

News spread like wildfire.

Awakeners across the land gasped, their expressions filled with awe and terror.

None of them knew the deeper truth—

that Daniel had already begun acting against the stellar bodies.

That even the fall of the sun Apollo was intimately tied to him.

...

In the minds of awakeners everywhere, one truth was carved in stone.

His Majesty Daniel was not a man who could sit idle.

If he was not stirring trouble, he was on his way to stir it.

There was never peace around him.

And perhaps... perhaps that was why he grew so swiftly.

...

Above, in the burning sky, Daniel roared.

The sound split the heavens.

Shadows surged to his call, blades forming around him in every direction.

Their sharpness cut through space, their aura so fierce that even awakeners thousands of miles away felt their scalps tingle and their hearts seize.

Daniel’s might was terrifying beyond words.

...

Far away, another figure stirred.

Odin stepped out from ancient ruins at last.

He had obtained a divine seat.

A godhood—bestowed with Daniel’s personal care.

His position was enviable.

Unlike the others who had become Human Emperors, Odin had been granted a domain chosen for its strength and suitability.

The others... they had not been so fortunate.

They received whatever divine thrones were empty.

Whether or not those domains fit them, whether they could wield that power effectively, was another matter entirely.

But Odin, thanks to Daniel’s intervention, had been favored.

He now stood as one of humanity’s divine pillars.

Unnoticed, humanity had already changed.

They had grown strong enough to face the threats that once overwhelmed them—the Angels of Gold and Silver, emissaries of the Divine Realm.

Now, humanity’s probability of producing Demigod Rank powerhouses rivaled that of the Angels.

And in raw strength, they had already surpassed them.

For the blessings of past Human Emperors had multiplied humanity’s foundation.

Their natural attributes were now far superior.

Most races, after ages, would see their emperors fade into dust, leaving no legacy.

But not humanity.

Daniel had changed the pattern.

Because of him, every past Human Emperor had returned.

Resurrected.

Alive once more.

And not only alive—their powers soared by the day.

Each Emperor’s growth fueled the entire race, for their blessings were not static but dynamic.

As they advanced, so too did the collective attributes of all humanity.

Now, humanity’s strength exceeded even the fabled Angel race.

Their attributes dwarfed what the Angels had once claimed as unmatched.

And as the past Emperors all broke into Demigod Rank, the abyss stirred.

Change was coming.