Arkas and I stood in my room.
I was back in my uniform, my staff, now in its shrunk form, secured to my belt.
"Are you sure?" he asked.
I nodded, my expression serious.
Without another word, the world blurred around me.
In the next instant, I found myself standing inside the Mission Hub. The teleportation circle in the corner still pulsed with faint light, and beside it stood Vice Commander June, her arms crossed as she waited.
Arkas walked toward the circle, and I followed.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
His tone was serious.
"The Lost Continents."
My eyes widened.
I hadn't expected that. Sure, my request had been a little extreme, but I thought he'd arrange something inside the training compound.
But this?
This was on a completely different scale.
I took a slow breath, narrowing my eyes.
If Arkas thought this was necessary, then I needed to be completely serious about what was coming.
We stopped near the teleportation circle, and June stepped forward, handing me a mask.
"Wear it at all times while you're there," she instructed.
I looked down at it. Plain. Black. Two eye holes. Nothing fancy.
Both of them watched me, waiting. I exhaled, then fitted the mask onto my face, snapping the strap behind my head.
Then, she handed me a small black ring marked with 02.
"Your storage ring. It has some food and another pair of uniform."
I slipped the black ring onto my finger and focused. A faint pulse of Essence responded, revealing the space inside, compact but useful. Roughly two cubic meters. Enough for essentials.
Normally, people buy one after hitting level 100 since it requires using Essence to access.
I nodded at June.
She extended her hand.
I stared at it. "What?"
"Your phone," she said. "It won't work there."
I blinked.
"Ah… umm, okay."
Reluctantly, I handed it over. And with it, my hopes of talking to North.
June smirked slightly, and I knew she knew exactly what I was thinking.
Instead of commenting, she pulled out a black communicator and passed it to me.
"Use this," she said. "It has some contacts preloaded."
I took it and pocketed it without reacting.
Arkas spoke.
"Let's go."
I nodded to June.
"Thanks."
We stepped onto the glowing circle, and Arkas activated it.
Essence swirled around us, but there was something else mixed in. A force I couldn't quite place.
Before I could analyze it, the light swallowed us whole and we were gone.
****
I looked around, taking in my surroundings.
We were inside a stone-walled chamber, the air thick with the scent of stone, dirt, and faint traces of smoke.
"Commander Arkas!"
Two soldiers stood at attention, saluting as we stepped forward. Both wore similar armor over their uniforms, their posture rigid and disciplined. One had a sword strapped to his back, the hilt worn from use.
Arkas gave a curt nod and walked ahead.
I followed.
The soldiers watched us as we passed, their gazes sharp.
We stepped out of the chamber, and I got my first real look at the area.
The ground was cracked and scorched, marked by intense battles or relentless training drills. Rows of single-roof barracks stretched across the compound, identical to the chamber we had just exited.
A massive metal wall enclosed the entire perimeter, at least thirty feet high, its surface reinforced with glowing rune-like engravings.
The compound was alive with activity. Dozens of soldiers moved across the area, their voices filling the air with the murmur of conversation, the clash of weapons, and the occasional barked command.
I counted at least fifty to sixty of them within sight.
I scanned them, but my interface only returned ???, meaning none of them were below level 100.
We kept walking, and every soldier we passed saluted Arkas. He didn't break stride, merely acknowledging them with a slight nod.
Soon, we reached the outer wall. The structure loomed over us, its reinforced plating humming faintly with stored energy shields.
A small, ten-foot gate stood at its center.
I raised my head, scanning the top of the wall, where several soldiers were stationed. Beside them, were few defensive weapons installed, their sleek designs glowing faintly with power.
A soldier stationed at the entrance gave a quick salute before pulling a heavy lever.
The gate hissed, then slid open with a deep mechanical groan.
We stepped through, and the moment we crossed the threshold, the gate slammed shut behind us, sealing the compound with a heavy, echoing thud.
Arkas glanced at me before speaking.
"This place is one of the many shattered pieces of land left behind after we lost the continent to the Abomination invasion. It's not too big, you could call it a small island. Right now, there are about 200 soldiers stationed here."
He paused for a moment, scanning the surroundings before continuing.
"There are plenty of these broken landmasses, remnants from both continents we lost.
We've repurposed some as secret bases or training grounds, while others remain under Abomination control. The bigger ones are the real battlegrounds. We fight there every day, trying to push them back, but you already know we're losing ground."
His voice hardened.
"We're fighting on three fronts. The Abominations and Phantoms invading our world, the battles at the frontlines, and the people taking advantage of the chaos. We're stretched thin."
He exhaled heavily, shaking his head.
"But I won't bore you with a lecture. Let's head to the place we set up for you."
Before I could respond, he placed a hand on my shoulder.
Lightning crackled across his body, arcs of it also flickered around me. I watched as the energy danced over my skin, bright and alive, yet it never touched me directly.
Then, with a sudden boom, the ground disappeared beneath my feet.
The next thing I knew, I was soaring through the air at impossible speed. My vision blurred, wind roared past my ears, and before I could fully process the movement—boom—I was standing on solid ground again.
I blinked.
In front of me, a massive dome of lightning flickered, the energy pulsing like a living thing.
I turned to Arkas, who watched me with his usual unreadable expression.
"Well," he said, crossing his arms. "You wanted energy, and you wanted a fight. You'll get both inside this dome."
I narrowed my eyes at the structure. The air around it crackled with power.
"Every element you can think of exists inside, in overwhelming abundance.
If I had to name it, I'd call it the Elemental Convergence. It was one of the battlefields where we fought against the invasion. We won, but the cost was too high."
His gaze darkened slightly before he shook it off.
"I've sealed this area. There are Abominations inside. The deeper you go, the stronger they get. It's a nest of a single type but they have adopted to this environment, so study them well. If you need to rest or leave, just step out of the dome."
I took a deep breath, this was exactly what I had asked for.
Arkas patted my shoulder.
"I'm trusting you to know what you're doing. I expect good results from this."
With that, he nodded, and with a whoosh, his body vanished from my sight.
I stood silently for a moment, staring at the flickering dome.
This plan came to my mind after analyzing the defensive skill of the man from the vision.
But before acting on it, I focused on training my other skills first, completing what Arkas had assigned me.
I had focused on mastering the staff's basics along with the skill associated with it.
On top of that, I had to refine [Seismic Burst] as a movement skill.
Throughout it all, I kept my Generator Core active as much as possible, using it to steadily increase my attributes.
Reaching 150 in Psynapse was what gave me the confidence to execute this plan.
When I hit 150, I felt my brain restructure itself once again. The process was agonizing, stretching over two grueling hours, but the rewards were worth it. One of them was that all my innate skills leveled up by one, since each of them, in some way, involved Essence control and Essence control was related to Psynapse and now my class too.
I pulled up my status, checking the outcome of my nonstop training.
[Status]
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Name : Billion Ironhart
Race : Human
Class : Essence Noblesse
Laws : N/A
Rank: Mortal
Level : 25
Talent :
- Generator 4
- Essence : 35/35
Attributes :
- Strength: 110
- Constitution: 110
- Dexterity: 110
- Psynapse : 150
Unused Stats: 0
Skills:
- Essence Shaping (Innate) Level 3 (+1)
- Psynapse Boost (Innate) Level 6 (+1)
- Essence Shift (Innate) Level 4 (+1)
- Seismic Burst Level 4 (+2)
- Blazing Sfera Level 1
- Blitz Hakai Level 2 (New)
Abilities:
- Apex Body – I (Passive)
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