Zael didn't move.
Didn't blink.
Didn't even breathe properly for a second.
"…What?"
His panel hovered in front of him, steady and cold like always—
But everything inside it felt wrong.
Not broken.
Not glitched.
Just… changed.
His stats—
They had gone up.
Not by a little.
Not by what he'd expect from surviving a phase.
They had jumped.
Across the board.
Strength. Endurance. Spirit.
All higher than before.
Way higher.
Zael swallowed.
"…I don't remember doing this."
That alone was enough to bother him.
But it wasn't the stats that held his attention.
It was—
The talent.
His eyes locked onto it instantly.
> [Supreme Blessing] → [Primordial Blessing]
Zael's pupils shrank slightly.
"…No."
He read it again.
Slower this time.
Carefully.
Like the words might change if he looked too fast.
They didn't.
The name had changed.
Upgraded.
Evolved.
Whatever word fit—
It wasn't the same anymore.
"…When did this happen?"
He didn't remember triggering it.
Didn't remember using it.
Didn't remember earning it.
And yet—
There it was.
He focused.
The description unfolded.
> [Primordial Blessing]
An ancient echo beyond origin. A fragment of authority that predates limitation itself.
Effects:
Gain the blessings of the primordial. Randomly enhances one of the following: comprehension, physique, bloodline, skills, talents (non-innate), or equipment.
Minimum multiplier: ×100,000
Maximum multiplier: ∞
All enhancements are permanent.
Granted entities receive the mark: Primordial Blessing, allowing temporary amplification beyond their current limits.
Limit: One activation every 10 levels.
Note: Can break through world limit.
Zael froze.
Completely.
"…What?"
His eyes went back to the top.
Then down again.
Then back to the middle.
"…No, no—hold on."
He had used Supreme Blessing enough times to understand it.
It was strong.
Broken, even.
But it had rules.
Limits.
A ceiling.
He knew that ceiling.
×10,000.
That was the highest he had ever seen.
And even then—
Some things couldn't be upgraded at all.
They just… rejected it.
Too complex.
Too high-grade.
Too… beyond.
But this—
Zael's gaze hardened.
"…There's no cap."
Not just higher.
No limit.
At all.
His grip tightened slightly.
"…A hundred thousand minimum?"
That wasn't an upgrade.
That was absurd.
And the worst part—
It didn't stop there.
"…Infinity?"
He actually let out a small, disbelieving breath.
"…Yeah, sure."
A dry laugh escaped him.
"…Why not."
But it wasn't funny.
Not really.
Because the system wasn't joking.
It never did.
Zael's eyes shifted lower.
To the new addition.
The trait.
> [Trait: Primordial Blessing]
"…So it's not just the talent."
He focused on it.
Reading carefully.
Breaking it down.
This one—
Was different.
Not passive.
Not constant.
Conditional.
Limited.
But what it did—
Was worse.
"…Once every ten levels…"
That part made sense.
Something like this needed a restriction.
Otherwise it'd just break everything instantly.
But the effect—
"…Random enhancement…"
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"…Of anything."
Comprehension.
Physique.
Bloodline.
Skills.
Talents.
Items.
Everything.
No restriction.
No filtering.
Just—
Pick something.
And make it absurd.
Zael exhaled slowly.
"…That's dangerous."
Not weak.
Not unpredictable.
Dangerous.
Because randomness at that level—
Could either make him unstoppable—
Or completely waste the opportunity.
Then—
His eyes caught the last line.
And this time—
He actually stopped breathing.
"…Wait."
He leaned in slightly.
Like getting closer would somehow change what he was reading.
It didn't.
> Note: Can break through world limit
Zael's heart skipped.
"…What?"
He read it again.
Slower.
Word by word.
"…Break through… world limit?"
That wasn't vague.
That wasn't unclear.
That was—
Direct.
His mind raced.
World limit.
Level caps.
Skill caps.
Evolution ceilings.
Every world had one.
Even if it wasn't visible—
It existed.
There was always a point where something stopped growing.
Stopped evolving.
Stopped becoming more.
That was the rule.
That was the structure.
And this—
"…Breaks it?"
His voice was barely above a whisper.
He stared at the panel.
Long.
Hard.
Trying to find something—
Anything—
That said this was a mistake.
A bug.
A misread.
There was nothing.
Zael leaned back slightly.
His thoughts spinning.
"…So if this triggers…"
His eyes sharpened.
"…there's nothing stopping it."
No ceiling.
No restriction.
No system correction.
Just—
Growth.
Unchecked.
Unrestricted.
Absolute.
A slow breath left him.
"…This's more than just a blessing."
A pause.
"…It's a rule breaker ."
Because something like that—
Didn't just make you stronger.
It put you outside the rules entirely.
And things that existed outside the rules—
Didn't stay unnoticed.
Zael's gaze flickered briefly.
Up.
Into the mist.
Then back to the panel.
"…And I don't even remember getting it."
That part bothered him the most.
Not the power.
Not the scale.
The gap.
Something happened.
Something big enough to change his talent—
And he had no memory of it.
At all.
Zael closed the panel slowly.
His expression no longer confused.
No longer shocked.
Just—
Focused.
"…Fine."
A quiet exhale.
"…I'll figure it out later."
Because right now—
The trial wasn't over.
And whatever Phase Five was—
It wasn't going to wait for him to understand anything.
He looked ahead.
At the structure.
At the path.
At whatever was waiting for him at the end of all this.
Then—
He took a step forward.
But this time—
It wasn't uncertainty driving him.
It wasn't instinct.
It wasn't survival.
It was something else.
A quiet realization.
"…Something changed."
Not just his power.
Not just his talent.
Something deeper.
Something he couldn't name yet.
But could feel.
And as he walked toward the final phase—
There was only one thought sitting quietly at the back of his mind.
Not loud.
Not urgent.
But persistent.
What exactly did I become while I was gone…?
To be continued…