Solace stood at the edge of his floating empire, looking down at the sprawling kingdom beneath him. The sight of his creation—a blend of architectural marvel and cultivation paradise—was a reminder of how far he had come. Yet, there was no time for idle pride. His mind was fixed on the next step. The next challenge. The next trial that would bring him even closer to his true potential.
His echoes had spread the tokens to the kingdoms across the continent, bearing the mark of his growing empire: the black tokens with the silver infinity symbol. The word was out. The gathering was set, and the kings and queens of the human kingdoms would soon convene to face him.
But for now, the blacksmithing business was booming. His mana stones had accumulated into the millions, and his name was known on every continent. He had the world at his feet. But Solace knew that what he had achieved so far was just the beginning. To become the ultimate—he needed to break through, to transcend his limitations, and for that, he would need to test himself in ways that no one had before.
"Aetheria," he said calmly, his voice steady, as he looked out over the kingdom, "How difficult are the Absolute Gacha trials?"
Aetheria, standing at his side, gave him a smile, her eyes gleaming with a mixture of affection and wariness.
"Very," she replied, her tone even but tinged with caution. "The trials will challenge everything you know. You're an Ascendant Core cultivator now, but these trials are designed for someone who can go beyond that, someone who has no limits. They will push you to your breaking point, and death is very much a possibility. True death. The stakes are high, but..."
She paused, leaning in slightly as her voice became more reassuring.
"On the bright side, you will get two items out of six if you succeed. Not bad considering the rewards."
Solace's smile curled at the corners of his lips, but his eyes showed a brief flicker of uncertainty at the mention of true death. Still, the promise of power was undeniable. His curiosity and drive far outweighed any doubts. No challenge was too great for him.
"Alright, let's see what I can do," Solace muttered, more to himself than anyone else.
The Absolute Gacha was unlike any challenge he had ever faced before. It was a trial of true mastery—not just of his cultivation but of his will, his mind, and his soul
As Solace stood on the precipice of his new empire, the air around him shifted. Aetheria stepped back, her gaze filled with quiet anticipation.
In the distance, a massive gate formed—a swirling vortex of energy and light, filled with twisting cosmic energies. It pulsed with an ancient power, drawing Solace's attention as if it were calling him forward. He stepped toward it without hesitation, and the moment his foot touched the ground, the world around him began to fracture. Reality bent, twisted, and distorted until everything faded into darkness.
For a moment, there was nothing. No ground beneath his feet. No sound. Just an oppressive void surrounding him.
And then, the light returned. But this time, it was different.
Solace stood at the entrance of a strange realm—a place where the laws of reality were not merely twisted but entirely broken. The air was heavy with mana, the very ground beneath his feet pulsing with an ancient energy he had never felt before. It was a realm that seemed frozen in time, abandoned long ago by its creators.
In the distance, he saw figures—immense beings, towering over mountains and rivers. They looked like ancient cultivators, their forms clothed in golden armor, their faces obscured by time. Their aura radiated power, a level of cultivation far beyond anything Solace had ever encountered. Primordial cultivators.
He wasn't just in another realm—he had been transported to a time before the very concept of cultivation had been shaped. This was primal, a time when the first beings walked the infinite realms. This was the Primordial Realm of Beginning.
A voice echoed in the air, cold and commanding.
"Only those who can face the strongest of the strongest will pass. Defeat the Primordial Champions and claim your prize. Fail, and you will cease to exist."
Solace's eyes narrowed, his heart pounding with anticipation. He was no stranger to challenges, but this... This was something else entirely. To face the Primordial Champions, to test his strength against beings that had shaped the foundations of the world—it would be a test like none other.
He took a deep breath, his hand instinctively going to his katana, and prepared himself for what was to come.
The first champion appeared before him—a massive figure, radiating an overwhelming aura. The champion's skin was cracked stone, veins of glowing lava pulsing beneath the surface. His eyes burned with the intensity of a thousand suns, and his body was a towering colossus, wielding a giant Warhammer forged from what seemed like the core of a dying star.
The moment he appeared; the air seemed to grow thick with the pressure of his cosmic energy. Solace could feel it—the weight of this being's existence. He wasn't just a cultivator. He was the embodiment of an age where power was absolute.
"You are the first to challenge us in millennia. You will not survive, mortal." The champion's voice boomed, shaking the very fabric of reality.
The battle began with a massive shockwave as the champion swung his Warhammer, tearing through the air toward Solace. The sheer force of the strike sent tremors through the void, and the space itself bent under the weight of his power.
Solace reacted instantly, his body disappearing in an instant as he used his Law of Space to dodge the attack. He reappeared several meters away, his Abyssal Eyes glowing as he analyzed the champion's movements. This wasn't just a fight of raw strength—it was a battle of wits.
"You're fast, but can you dodge forever?" The champion grinned, his voice deep with the satisfaction of impending victory.
Solace smiled beneath his mask, his mind already working to adapt. He had faced countless opponents before, but none like this. He needed more than speed—he needed to reshape his potential. His strength needed to exceed the limits of the present. With a thought, he changed the potential of his space manipulation, stretching the limits of his Divine Sense.
In the blink of an eye, he expanded his Divine Sense far beyond its normal reach, his mind extending like a ripple in the fabric of the universe. He could feel the tension in the air—the ripple effect of the champion's next move before it happened. Solace struck first, displacing the space around him and launching a flurry of strikes at the champion's exposed back.
But the champion, reacting with ancient instinct, spun with impossible speed, deflecting the blows with his Warhammer. Each strike sent out shockwaves that shattered the very air around them.
Solace gritted his teeth, realizing the difference in power. His strength wasn't enough to overcome this opponent head-on. He needed to reshape his abilities.
With a deep breath, he focused. His Law of Time flared to life. The flow of time slowed around him, and the world around him seemed to stretch out. He moved faster, dodging the Warhammer strikes with ease, while simultaneously redefining his physical abilities. His body became stronger, faster—his strikes hit with more force.
The fight continued for a while more before Solace was able to come out on top.
The next champion appeared as the first one fell. This time, it was a tall, slender figure, with flowing, watery tendrils that wrapped around its body like armor. His aura was cold, like an eternal ocean—deep and endless. His eyes glimmered like frozen lakes, and his voice rang out like a raging tide.
"I am the Water Warden, and your power is nothing compared to the depths of the ocean."
Solace grinned, already changing his approach. This was a fight of fluidity, and he could feel the champion's control over the Law of Water.
Without hesitation, Solace shifted the potential of his fire affinity. Fire clashed with water, but rather than be destroyed, the flames he conjured danced and swirled, rising like a storm of fire that moved in unpredictable patterns. He combined his Law of Fire and Law of Space, distorting the flow of his flames and creating pockets of explosive energy.
The Water Warden struck first, creating torrents of water that surged toward Solace, trying to engulf him. But Solace's flames burned hotter, evaporating the water around him in moments, creating a steam cloud that masked his presence.
"You think you can escape the depths?" The Water Warden taunted, his voice laced with cold amusement.
Solace's eyes narrowed. The Warden was strong, but he was still a primal cultivator—bound by the restrictions of his own laws. Solace, on the other hand, had no such limitations.
He flared his Law of Time, speeding up his strikes as his Abyssal sword sliced through the steam cloud. The Water Warden tried to counterattack, but the flames from Solace's sword cut through him, leaving a trail of burning water in their wake.
The fight became a battle of elemental manipulation, Solace's fire clashing with the water in ever-shifting patterns. In the end, Solace used his space manipulation to compress the space around the Warden, crushing him into a small sphere of frozen water before delivering the final blow.
"Two down" Solace muttered.