After the coup, the world changed forever. A new rule took root.
the strong preyed on the weak.
Because of dungeon breaks, more and more Awakened appeared. Some were too powerful, destined for greatness. Others… too weak. There were those who couldn't even survive a Tier 1 dungeon stepping inside meant instant death. Instead, they took on smaller jobs: construction work, dungeon research, or mundane tasks better suited to unawakened humans.
Dungeons became a business. They were bought and owned by guilds, private corporations, industries, and of course, the military. Naturally, most fell under the control of the Nine Supremes, the most powerful guilds in existence:
Vanguard, Chaos, Brotherhood, Nexus, Aether Blade, Covenant, Inferno, Golden Dawn, and the most feared of them all—Axion.
Each guild had Transcendents so mighty they could shatter mountains with a punch. Even the weakest among their members were at least Ascended.
The Supremes, alongside the military, developed technology that reshaped civilization. Within fifty years, humanity had achieved interstellar exploration. Space portals, starships that crossed solar systems in seconds, planetary conquests
the future had arrived. Planets were divided into high, mid, and lower tiers.
And on one such lower-tier planet, New Eden, a boy named Ethan Sylvester was born.
Ethan wasn't remarkable at first glance. Average in height, with long silver hair and piercing blue eyes, he had just turned fifteen. Like every youth of age, he stood at the threshold of awakening: a trial by dungeon.
On his first raid, he nearly died. Goblins swarmed him too fast, too savage. He wasn't ready for the slaughter. Most would have given up. Ethan didn't. Even as the others laughed at his failures, he returned again and again.
It wasn't until his fifteenth attempt inside a Tier 1 dungeon that he finally awakened.
But his joy soured quickly. His aspect was Water Control. The weakest.
Even worse, he was too poor to afford a single skill book from the Saint Market Hall. For most, that would have been the end.
Not for Ethan.
By sheer fate or perhaps destiny he stumbled into a forbidden zone and discovered an abandoned laboratory. Hidden within a vault was a Transcendent-level Water Skill. With it, Ethan clawed his way up, earning a place among the Vanguard Guild. He rose to the rank of Major, respected not for talent but for relentless will.
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Then came the mission that changed everything.
Ethan and his squad, along with several powerful Ascended, were assigned to suppress a Tier 3 dungeon said to hold a Sacred Beast. But the moment they entered everything changed.
The portal behind them turned black and snapped shut.
Outside, panic erupted. Only once before in recorded history had such a phenomenon occurred. A dungeon of Tier 5. The kind that housed Heavenly or even Hellish beasts.
"W-What happened!?" one of the Ascended shouted, fear gripping his voice.
"I think… we entered a Tier 5 dungeon," Ethan said. His voice was calm, unnervingly calm, though the others' faces paled.
Veterans though they were, every Awakened knew the truth: once you stepped into a dungeon, you had already gambled with death. Perhaps today was the day their luck ran out.
Still they were awakened .They were not weaklings. Every single one had long accepted the price of their power.
Ethan's aspect once dismissed had evolved into an A+ Grade. He was only a step away from Apex. His stats the last time he checked:
Strength: 150, Agility: 120, Stamina: 170, Speed: 180 ,Mana: 145
To reach Apex, all had to surpass 200.
"Calm down. We have Brother Sony here." one Ascended said, rallying hope.
Sony stepped forward—a giant of a man, six feet tall, dark-haired, clad in Sacred Beast armor, axe in hand. The weapon and armor radiated the same jade light—both forged from the soul of the same beast. He was Apex, their commander, their anchor.
"Stay focused. No need to panic," Sony's voice boomed with steady authority. "The portal hasn't disappeared—it's been transferred. All we need to do is find it. And if luck isn't with us… then it will be in the boss room."
The squad tightened formation. Shadows pressed closer. A Tier 5 dungeon awaited.
And deep within it… their fates began to unravel.