The moment he started searching in the internet, there was thousands of urgent reports.
"What happened?" Eryke frowned and casually opened one of the reports—only to be shocked by what he read.
"No, I need to confirm this."
He dug deeper to verify it's authenticity, searching and verifying, after an hour, he heavily slumped to the chair with a heavy, exhausted sigh escaping his lips.
Half a billion people have suddenly disappeared from the world just like when the apocalypse had arrived. The media had already named the event as the "Second Awakening."
"Sigh." Eryke rubbed his sore head, feeling a headache mounting his head.
Although people disappeared every day, it was usually in small numbers. This, however, was the largest mass disappearance yet.
The world's population had already shrunk significantly, and losing half a billion more was staggering…
"Forget it."
Eryke could already imagine the chaos outside, but it had nothing to do with him.
Besides, he was America's third SSS-rank Awakener. The privileges that came with his rank were beyond imagination—he only had to reveal his status.
Clenching his fist, he refocused and turned back to his computer.
The Internet was a vast sea of knowledge, a tool that could either empower or destroy those who used it.
Finally, his gaze landed on a particular piece of information, and he dug deeper into it.
The first title that caught his eye was "Dragons and the Telekinetic World."
Eryke was almost in a trance as he searched for more details. After hours of reading, he slumped into his chair, exhaustion written all over his face.
This was a world filled with many races, but Dragons and Humans were the two dominant forces, constantly competing for supremacy.
Humans were born with Telekinetic abilities, granted by their unique bloodlines. Meanwhile, Dragons were colossal beings capable of spewing fire, ice, water, and more—living embodiments of natural disasters.
Creatures that could wield magic.
However, what was even more terrifying was the cult hidden among humans. These corrupted beings worshiped the Dragons, willing to do anything for them.
They were no longer fully human—they had been infected.
And what was even scarier was that Awakened Humans were actively hunted down. They had human blood but lacked the natural telekinetic power of the natives, which made them far more susceptible to corruption.
Somehow, they were even more compatible with the infection, and an army of corrupted Awakeners had already been transformed into mindless death soldiers.
The difficulty rating of this world was: SSS-CLASS!
Only a single person had ever returned from this world, and it was through their testimony that this information became public.
Eryke delved deeper into the background and took another deep breath. The human forces were already incredibly complicated, divided into factions with conflicting interests. As for the dragons, their side remained a complete mystery.
"Should I really give up on the clone?" His eyes narrowed.
He ordered a pizza that cost him a hundred dollars, with almost seventy dollars going solely to delivery. Traveling was dangerous, and with it came outrageous prices that could make one vomit blood.
After eating the pepperoni pizza, he finally calmed down and resumed training his body. He could feel it—every single second, his strength improved bit by bit.
This feeling was simply too addictive…
Back in the Telekinetic World,
Eryke the First was bound in chains, his eyes covered by a blindfold.
He was inside a capsule filled to the brim with green liquid—it was a wonder how he could even breathe in there.
Outside the capsule, people in white coats moved constantly, walking back and forth.
One of the women wearing glasses walked up to his capsule and placed a label on it that read "T-9066." Then, she pressed the red button on the side.
"He should be ready for the incorporation of the bloodline now," she mumbled before walking away as blackish energy began pouring into the capsule.
Eryke the First's muscles swelled like a balloon, inflating to the point of nearly bursting and completely filling the capsule with a bang.
However, everyone remained unfazed by the sound, continuing their work as if nothing had happened.
Meanwhile, the black energy slowly integrated, merging with his flesh and organs.
Bit by bit, the grotesquely expanded muscles began to coil back, reshaping into a human form once more.
However, this human was stranger than ever, with two small horns the size of lollipops and tiny wings sprouting from his back.
Bang!
The glass shattered, and Eryke the First stepped out, his crimson eyes glittering with malice.
Finally, the woman with glasses turned toward him and shook her head, her eyes filled with utter disappointment.
"It looks like it was a failure."