Soaring above São Paulo, Klaus felt his heart tighten as he witnessed what remained of the city after just two days of apocalypse.
The Avenida Paulista, once a symbol of prosperity, was now a field of rubble, littered with charred cars and half-collapsed skyscrapers.
Smoke rose from distant fires, and the air echoed with the groans of the undead mixed with the desperate cries of survivors.
From above, he saw scattered pockets of human resistance:
a family barricaded inside an abandoned store,
a man wielding a makeshift spear defending a woman and child,
and a small camp near Ibirapuera Park, where trembling lanterns flickered like tiny beacons of hope in the encroaching dark.
The metropolis that once held millions now resembled a graveyard of shadows.
The Municipal Market, with its historic arches, was overrun by black vines pulsing with an eerie life — a clear sign that a dungeon was forming there.
From the direction of Pacaembu Stadium, the monstrous roars of mutated beasts echoed through the night.
Klaus's golden, slit-pupiled eyes hardened.
"People are still fighting," he murmured, lowering his altitude to avoid detection.
Across the skyline, new portals continued to open — each one vomiting forth stronger creatures: ogres of level 20, hydras of level 25.
The apocalypse, he realized, was only just revealing its true face.
After fifteen minutes of flight, he landed atop his apartment building — now cracked, weathered, and blanketed in debris.
Deactivating his wings, he descended the broken stairwell to his floor.
Inside, the room was exactly as he'd left it: messy, scattered with piles of manga and web novels, the silent TV glowing with static.
He locked the door, exhaling.
His body ached from exhaustion, but divine power still burned hot in his chest like a star refusing to die.
Sitting cross-legged on the dusty floor, Klaus closed his eyes, seeking calm amid the storm within and without.
His mind wandered back to the days before the apocalypse — to the stories he used to devour, where protagonists strengthened themselves through meditation, mana control, and spiritual refinement.
"They always started like this," he thought, remembering the iconic scenes — heroes in lotus position, sensing energy, guiding it through their bodies to temper flesh, mind, and soul.
"If they could do it, so can I."
He inhaled deeply, feeling the faint celestial energy his draconic blood emitted.
Then, slowly, he focused inward — trying to sense the Divine Power flowing through his body.
At first, it was like trying to grasp mist — formless and evasive — but patience paid off.
Soon, he felt it: a golden river, warm and vibrant, coursing through his veins.
For half an hour, he guided the current deliberately — to his heart, lungs, and liver, cleansing fatigue;
to his brain, sharpening clarity;
to his eyes, widening perception;
and finally through his bones, reinforcing them with divine rigidity.
The process was draining but exhilarating — until at last, a soft chime echoed in his mind.
[New Abilities Acquired:]
[Divine Mana Control (Rank C)]
Allows manipulation of Divine Power throughout the body, improving combat efficiency and regeneration.
Effect: +10 % Divine Power regeneration; basic energy-flow control.
[Divine Circuit (Rank C)]
Forms an internal circuit of celestial energy, amplifying all abilities.
Effects: +15 % ability damage, –10 % Divine Power cost, +10 % casting speed.
[Organic Fortification (Rank C)]
Enhances organ function through Divine Power infusion.
Effects: –15 % fatigue accumulation; +10 % Vitality recovery per minute.
[Sensory Expansion (Rank C)]
Channels energy into brain and eyes, heightening perception and mental defense.
Effects: +20 % focus and awareness; +15 % resistance to illusions.
Klaus opened his eyes — their golden glow flaring brighter than before.
Every cell in his body felt reforged in a divine furnace.
He could now see and feel the flow of his own power.
The Divine Circuit thrummed with light, while Organic Fortification soothed the fatigue that had plagued him.
Sensory Expansion let him perceive movement even through the apartment's walls.
Testing his newfound control, he summoned Threads of Death.
Silver threads coiled from his hands, their conjuration faster, smoother, their cost lighter.
They lashed out across the room, slicing the air — efficient, precise, divine.
"This changes everything," he whispered.
The whispers of the Curse of Desire still lingered at the edges of his thoughts, but he silenced them.
Now was not the time for temptation.
Now was the time to master control.
As dawn's first light crept through the broken windows, Klaus stood.
São Paulo — shattered but not yet dead — waited below.
More dungeons would appear, more horrors to face.
But he, the Celestial Dragon and Weaver of Death, was ready to rise again — to turn chaos into his crucible, and redemption into his next evolution.