NOVPUBPresent day - Fourteen months later
Alaric stood facing the Great Barrier, inspecting its flawless construction with his [True Vision] ability. Beyond the golden barrier loomed an ocean of darkness, silent and still - as if space and time ceased to exist beyond that point.
He had glimpsed some of the most closely guarded secrets of the system, but there were still many mysteries surrounding it - its origins, objective, and what it really represented.
For now, Alaric was content to let it remain a mystery. His intuition whispered that the system would disclose everything once he improved his reputation with it.
However, ever since he had discovered the boundary of the final zone, he had grown restless - more determined to find out the truth. It had become a ritual for him to visit the Great Barrier at least once a day, and try to infiltrate into the other side.
All the shortcut entry points that lead to the boundary were mapped inside his head with great success. But none of these locations revealed any hint of weakness that could be exploited.
When the system confirmed that the Grey Terminal was a direct replica of reality, he had been stunned.
Somewhere in this world - his new home - everything he witnessed in the final zone was real - the twisted remains of a civilization consumed by greed for knowledge and madness for power. All but dead except for the vile abominations that infested it.
He had a pretty good idea where it was - the Dark Continent. Possibly, the most mysterious region in the entire planet.
What truly chilled his spine was the fact that the difficulty level inside the Tutorial Rift was adjusted based on a cultivator’s strength. Although Alaric had grown quite strong, there was still a limit imposed on the power of the enemies.
According to his experience so far, the strongest enemies in the final zone were all at the peak of Tier 2. The bosses should undoubtedly cross into early Tier 3 in terms of power.
What would be the reflection of their strength in the real world - Alaric couldn't imagine, and that made him concerned.
The system had designated these monsters as its enemy, which didn’t paint a good picture. The last time he had encountered an enemy of the system, it had nearly managed to take over his previous world and kill him.
As an ‘Ally of the system, ’ he was bound to participate in this war to kill all the zombies and cyborgs. But Alaric was motivated by a desire far more intense - he had friends in this new world now.
Teachers, parents, mentors, and so many others who made his new life more meaningful. He wouldn't let anybody harm them until his last dying breath - be it vile abominations or ruthless killing machines.
For the past few months, Alaric had been driven by that sole thought, relentlessly culling the ranks of the zombies and cyborgs. No more Z variants remained. A few Deltas and Beta variants still roamed the streets.
Frustratingly, he hadn’t caught wind of Delta duos #987 and #764, nor Beta #91, even after searching every nook and cranny of this dilapidated city for all this time. It’s like they had vanished from this zone.
Something about the encounter with the trio made him feel they were uncommon variants. His gut assured him all of their paths would cross again. For now, he shelved that thought. The time limit to kill the boss was almost knocking on the door - only one month remained.
But he felt ready, confident enough to annihilate the rest of the enemies in the final zone.
Exhaling a sigh, he scanned the section of the region with his [True Vision]. A cluster of bright red dots caught his attention - just a few kilometers away - ending his search for the final group of Delta variants.
He sprinted towards his prey with a grin on his face. The cluster of Delta 100s snapped their heads at him, just as he arrived, clutching a condensed ball of mana glowing violet in his palms.
All of them sprang into action - some wielding long, sinewy arms tipped with sharp claws while others attempted to strike him with fists the size of his torso. Alaric effortlessly floated between each strike, before retaliating with his own strikes - a backhanded slap to the face, a jab to the neck, a kick to the shin, and so on.
Aside from having a little fun at their expense, Alaric was also studying them with his [True Vision]. He carefully noted the details of their reforged body - some with dense muscles and bones, while others bore tough skin and concentrated blood.
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A few had multiple organs reforged that functioned with an uncanny resemblance to a living being.
The reforged bodies of these abominations were infused with the corrupt energy that mimicked mana. As much as it churned his heart to inspect the changes that made them so inhumane, he was gaining insights at a staggering rate.
Reforging the body past the 90% mark grew exponentially tougher. Every percentage of improvement offered greater power but also demanded higher precision and the correct insight.
Even talented cultivators with plenty of resources hit a roadblock due to this reason. Alaric’s [True Vision] ability, coupled with the abundance of monsters with a variety of reforged bodies in this zone, negated that hurdle.
Once he was satisfied with the insights he gained, Alaric opened his palm, signaling the doom of all his enemies. The violent ball of terror fragmented into hundreds of light motes, raining a barrage of blasts on their bodies and shredding them to pieces.
It was a neat little trick he perfected over the months as his [Superior Mana Manipulation] ability leveled up - Mana Missiles. Within minutes, the streets were plastered with the remains of the zombies - not a single body part was whole or moving.
A few sparks of electricity later - he detected the burning yellow presence of a new enemy group - Beta 20s. Without acknowledging their approach, he settled down and immersed himself in the insight he gained.
A purple shimmer materialized around his position as the enemies attempted to incapacitate him. The shield withstood the blows of metal fists, swords, grenades, and even full-on body slams.
But all their efforts were futile - there wasn’t a single scratch on the shield, not a single hair on his body moved.
Alaric was immersed in the bliss of unraveling new body-reforging insights. His mind, honed by the power of countless meditation sessions, dissected the intricacies of the various insights within moments.
Sometimes, it took little adjustments in how he circulated mana into his muscles, bones, and other organs. Other times, he had to descend into a deep meditative state and probe through every organ layer by layer, identifying sections that required more mana infusion.
Within five minutes, he had consolidated all his insights and checked his progress.
Body Reforging Status:
Average Reforging Progress - 96%Average Mana Infusion Potency - 97%Alaric chuckled. He could practically taste his next advancement level.
In fact, his body was brimming with so much power, he could trigger the completion of his body reforging - achieving a peak-grade reforged body - and ascend to Tier 2.
But his goal wasn’t to be good, it was to be the best. Not too long now. Alaric eyed the cluster of Beta 20s relentlessly trying to break through his shield to no avail.
“Alright, folks,” he said, while rising to his feet. “I’ll entertain you now.” Dispelling his shield, he flew through the crowd, clutching the head of one cyborg and hurling it into the golden barrier. It dropped like a broken toy, its head smashed into pieces.
The other cyborgs snarled and lunged at him. Too slow. Alaric effortlessly weaved through their strikes, rupturing their bodies with empowered fists. A few cyborgs erupted into crackles of electricity,y but it harmlessly dissipated through Alaric’s body.
Witnessing their shocked expressions, Alaric only smiled. He became a reaper of death, dismantling the cyborgs with ease. One shot, one kill.
A single figure twitched - among the rubble of metal junk mixed with flesh - attempting to rise on its one remaining leg. Alaric allowed Beta #10 the courtesy of rising one last time before its final fall.
Reaching it in a flash, he drove an uppercut into its chin with a silent chant - Disruptive Pulse. A mini-shockwave ravaged the skull of the cyborg, before it disintegrated into nothingness.
He flexed his arms a bit to get rid of the building fatigue. With the exception of the three uncommon variants, he had eradicated all the lesser variants. Now, the final battle was about to begin and he had to remain in his top shape.
The encounters with the Alphas were rare - he had only faced those powerhouses thrice during the months. Each encounter ended with a loss. Now, he was ready to bring the battle to them.
Flooding mana into his eyes, he scoured every inch of the zone in search of any entity hiding from him. A few pinpricks of bright orange flared in his vision - he had located his final targets.
Now, let’s see how far I’ve come. With that thought in mind, Alaric sprinted toward the massive, dome-shaped buildings in the distance.
***
Alaric was inside a climate-controlled biodome laboratory with self-contained mutated flora. The research facility that had undoubtedly birthed most of the abominations and cyborgs now lay in ruins.
Seven presences - seven Alphas from #2 to #9 emerged from around the corners, each a precision-crafted killing machine. Interestingly, not all of them were humanoid.
Alpha #2 through #5 were animal cyborgs - Sabertooth, Gorilla, Crocodile, and a T-Rex - each more menacing than the last.
According to his knowledge, some of these animal variants had gone extinct long ago. The researchers must’ve sourced their DNA and artificially cultivated their tissues.
What intrigued him more was that the higher Alphas were designed to match cultivators with over 90% mana potency. But that wasn’t even the part that excited him.
In his true vision, Alaric perceived each of them powered by a potent battery cell, concealing numerous lethal weapon systems ready to launch devastation.
A smile spread across his face. He was itching to demolish these bastards. Looking around, he couldn’t spot Alpha #1 - presumably the boss of the final zone.
Hah…the leader will show up when I crumble his lackeys. He activated [Zen Flow] and empowered his body with mana.
Alpha #9 stepped forward, clad in his red armor, and cocked its head. Just like their first encounter, it seemed to be analyzing Alaric, judging his potential.
“You have grown strong, Alaric. We are pleased with your efforts,” it said in the same chilling, mechanical voice. “Still, a lot depends on whether you can completely clear this zone. As an ally of the system, you have to prove your mettle.”
Alaric lunged at Alpha #9, but his fist barely scratched its cheek before the cyborg vanished. He clicked his tongue. The cyborg was gone from this fight for good - it was also an uncommon variant.
The next moment, all hell broke loose.
