The metallic veins spread through the facility like a living plague.
Countless silver nanites crawled across walls, ceilings, cables, and shattered glass chambers, devouring everything in their path before replicating into even greater numbers. The deeper the assimilation spread, the more the ancient facility awakened from its centuries of silence.
Raqin walked through the dim metallic corridors with narrowed eyes.
Every few seconds, red lights flickered overhead.
The entire underground structure felt less like a laboratory and more like a slumbering beast slowly opening its eyes.
"Assimilation progress?"
/5%/
The moment the number appeared before him, several blast doors that had previously remained sealed suddenly unlocked with a loud hiss.
Raqin's gaze sharpened.
"So I gain authority as assimilation increases…"
Without hesitation, he stepped through the newly opened corridor.
Cold air immediately struck his face.
Frost covered the walls.
Rows upon rows of frozen capsules filled the gigantic chamber ahead.
Raqin slowly stopped walking.
His expression darkened.
Inside every capsule was a corpse.
No…
Not corpses.
Experiments.
Children fused with metallic limbs.
Old men with beast eyes stitched into their skulls.
Women whose spines had been replaced with mechanical vertebrae.
Some had scales.
Some had additional arms.
Some no longer even resembled humans.
The deeper he walked into the storage unit, the more grotesque the experiments became.
Raqin clenched his fists tightly.
"How could someone do this…"
Even in his previous life, where wars had consumed entire nations, this level of cruelty was monstrous.
The air itself felt cursed.
As if the dead still whispered within the frozen darkness.
Then—
He stopped.
At the very end of the chamber stood a black altar.
Ancient.
Massive.
Covered in strange silver inscriptions.
And resting atop it…
…was a gigantic book nearly the size of a car.
The moment Raqin looked at it, his instincts screamed danger.
The air around the book distorted unnaturally.
As though reality itself feared its existence.
He slowly stepped closer.
/Host… be careful./
Raqin's eyes narrowed.
"That thing?"
/A Chaos Canon./
"What's that supposed to mean?"
For once, the system became silent for several seconds before replying.
/Knowledge from the First Era./
Raqin frowned.
"The First Era?"
/The age before modern cultivation systems existed. Before sects. Before kingdoms. Before spiritual energy was divided into paths./
Raqin stared at the massive tome.
"So why the warning?"
/Any living being that touches the canon without sufficient soul strength will have their soul dissolved. Their consciousness will collapse and they will become mindless husks./
Raqin immediately stopped moving.
"…That dangerous?"
/Yes./
"But there has to be some benefit."
The system responded instantly this time.
/Anyone capable of reading the canon and speaking its language can use Words of Chaos./
"Words of Chaos?"
/A language capable of influencing reality itself./
Raqin blinked.
"So basically magic?"
/No./
The reply came colder than before.
/Magic imitates reality. This language commands it./
The silver inscriptions on the giant book suddenly pulsed faintly.
The surrounding air twisted violently.
Raqin immediately felt a stabbing pain in his head and stepped back.
"…What exactly is written in there?"
/The language of the Chaos Gods./
"…Runes?"
/Yes, Host./
"You mean like the runes from Norse mythology in my previous life?"
/Those are merely fragments derived from this origin./
Raqin's heartbeat quickened slightly.
A language capable of affecting reality itself…
This was no ordinary inheritance.
This was forbidden knowledge.
"Can I learn it?"
/Your current soul strength is insufficient./
"What happens if I force it?"
/Your life force will be consumed until death./
Raqin cursed internally.
"What's the minimum requirement?"
/Qi Gathering Realm./
"So the next major realm after Mortal Refinement…"
/Yes./
Raqin stared at the Chaos Canon silently.
Then suddenly—
"Can we take it with us somehow?"
A brief pause.
Then—
/Yes. But there is a condition./
"A backlash?"
/Host will enter a comatose state while the canon is copied into the system database. The knowledge must then be sealed completely until your soul reaches the minimum requirement./
Raqin exhaled slowly.
"…And the backlash?"
/Temporary soul exhaustion. Memory instability. Hallucinations. None fatal./
"Fair enough."
He sat down directly in front of the black altar.
"Do it."
The moment the words left his mouth—
The gigantic Chaos Canon trembled.
BOOM.
An invisible pressure exploded outward.
The silver inscriptions across the book lit up like stars.
Then black mist began leaking from the pages.
Raqin's vision instantly blurred.
He collapsed onto the freezing floor unconscious.
But just before darkness swallowed him completely—
He heard something.
A whisper.
Ancient.
Distorted.
Hungry.
"Successor…"
________________________________________
Fifteen days later.
Raqin's eyes snapped open violently.
He inhaled sharply.
His head throbbed like thousands of needles were piercing his brain.
The frozen storage chamber remained exactly as before.
Except now…
The gigantic Chaos Canon had vanished.
Raqin slowly stood up.
"Is it done?"
/Yes, Host./
He rubbed his forehead painfully.
"…What's the assimilation progress?"
/75%./
Raqin nodded slightly.
Then the system continued.
/The facility has initiated countermeasures./
His expression changed instantly.
"What kind of countermeasures?"
/Self-destruction protocol activated./
"…What?"
/Estimated detonation time: forty-seven hours and sixteen minutes./
Raqin froze.
Then—
"FUCK!"
His voice echoed throughout the frozen chamber.
He immediately forced himself to calm down.
"What options do we have?"
/Two./
"Talk."
/Option one: breakthrough into the Fourth Mortal Realm and forcibly escape the facility before destruction./
Raqin frowned.
"That sounds dangerous."
/High probability of damaging your cultivation foundation due to rushed advancement./
"…Second option?"
/Hack and overwrite the facility AI./
"What are our chances?"
/Current success rate: 38.7%./
Raqin's expression darkened.
"That's terrible."
/However… I have another proposal./
Raqin narrowed his eyes.
"What now?"
/The nanites have assimilated enough technology for me to access the central mainframe directly./
"…Meaning?"
/With your permission, I can split and rewrite my source code to create a second living AI capable of fighting the facility intelligence from within./
Raqin's eyes widened slightly.
"You can create another AI?"
/Correct./
"What are my survival chances then?"
/100%./
Raqin immediately frowned.
"That makes no sense. You literally said the other options were risky."
/Because I require Host authorization before altering my core programming./
Raqin stared blankly for a second.
Then he laughed bitterly.
"We're basically one existence already."
His gaze sharpened.
"You no longer need permission when it concerns our survival."
A brief silence.
Then—
/Authorization accepted./
Instantly—
The entire facility began humming violently.
Silver nanites spread across every wall like living circuitry.
Countless streams of data flooded through the underground structure.
Then something horrifying happened.
The facility AI noticed.
WARNING.
WARNING.
UNAUTHORIZED CORE DUPLICATION DETECTED.
The underground mountain began shaking violently.
Massive cracks spread through the metallic ceiling.
"What's happening?!"
/The facility AI is attempting forced self-destruction./
Deep beneath the mountain…
Two artificial intelligences were devouring each other alive.
One born from ancient forbidden technology.
The other born from soul energy, nanites, and a reincarnated human consciousness.
An unholy fusion of cultivation and machine intelligence.
"Ivan…"
Raqin gritted his teeth.
"What the hell did you create down here?"
/Assimilation progress: 99.9%./
"Good."
BOOOOOOM!!
The entire facility shook again.
Warning sirens screamed endlessly.
Then suddenly—
/Assimilation complete./
Raqin exhaled in relief.
Only for the system to continue.
/Structural collapse imminent./
"…You've got to be kidding me."
The metallic walls around him began collapsing inward.
Entire corridors folded into themselves.
The facility was literally imploding.
"I thought you said I had a 100% survival rate!"
/Correct./
"THEN WHY AM I ABOUT TO DIE?!"
/Host, proceed to the rear sector immediately./
Raqin sprinted instantly.
The collapsing facility roared behind him like a dying titan.
Within seconds, he reached the rear chamber.
"What now?!"
Immediately—
Every nanite inside the facility detached simultaneously.
Silver streams surged toward Raqin like a metallic tsunami.
Before he could react—
They wrapped around him completely.
His vision vanished.
He felt himself encased inside an enormous sphere of living metal.
Then—
The world collapsed.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!
Raqin felt the metal sphere falling endlessly through darkness as the entire facility caved in above him.
Then—
Impact.
The metal sphere slammed into solid ground with terrifying force.
Several seconds passed.
Then the nanites slowly peeled away from his body.
Raqin stepped out coughing heavily.
The countless nanites condensed rapidly until they became a small silver orb the size of a tennis ball.
Floating quietly above his palm.
Raqin stared at it silently.
Then smirked.
"Take the form of a watch."
The silver orb instantly reshaped itself around his wrist.
Raqin's eyes lit up slightly.
"…Useful."
He looked around carefully.
Pitch-black darkness surrounded him.
Yet strangely—
He could still vaguely see.
"Where are we?"
/Below the facility./
"I can't see shit."
/There is an unknown frequency ahead./
Raqin immediately became alert.
"A signal?"
/Correct./
He began walking deeper into the darkness.
Minutes later—
He found it.
A broken wooden token.
One side depicted a black sun.
The other, a silver moon.
The moment Raqin touched it—
The token vibrated violently.
A flood of information entered his mind.
Raqin's pupils contracted.
"…A tomb?"
/May I ask a question, Host?/
"Yes."
/Did the token reveal what lies beneath this place?/
Raqin stared into the darkness ahead.
"It did."
His voice lowered slightly.
"…The Tomb of the Hollow Saint."
The deeper he walked, the brighter the darkness became.
Until eventually—
An enormous black temple emerged before him.
Raqin stopped breathing for a moment.
The temple looked ancient beyond comprehension.
Like something abandoned by time itself.
And at its center…
…stood a gigantic golden gate.
Covered in endless inscriptions.
The closer Raqin got, the more uneasy he felt.
The inscriptions were moving.
Not physically—
But like living creatures crawling beneath the metal surface.
Then he noticed it.
A broken section embedded into the gate.
Its shape perfectly matched the token in his hand.
Raqin hesitated briefly.
Then placed the broken token into the empty slot.
CLICK.
Silence.
Then—
The golden gate slowly opened inward.
Not outward.
Inward.
As though countless unseen hands from the other side were dragging it open.
A deep growl echoed from within the darkness.
Then black mist exploded outward.
But strangely—
The mist avoided Raqin completely.
It flowed around him like fearful water.
The moment the mist escaped—
The entire Black Mountain Range changed.
Deep underground tunnels connected to the temple ruptured open.
Black mist flooded through countless hidden pathways beneath the mountains.
Then—
CRACK.
Space itself split apart.
One spatial crack.
Then ten.
Then hundreds.
And from every crack—
Undead creatures began crawling out.
Mutated wolves with exposed ribs.
Headless giants stitched together with chains.
Winged corpses screaming with human voices.
Ancient cultivators whose bodies had fused with black crystals.
The apocalypse had begun.
Yet Raqin remained completely unaware.
________________________________________
Far away from the Black Mountain Range—
Inside a luxurious chamber—
A man with golden hair slowly opened his eyes.
His golden pupils narrowed sharply.
"…The seal broke."
He immediately opened a hidden compartment beside him and retrieved a communication device.
"Gather every capable warrior."
His calm voice carried unquestionable authority.
"Head toward the Black Mountain Range immediately."
A pause.
Then—
"Await further instructions upon arrival."
The voice on the other side answered instantly.
"Yes, sire."
________________________________________
Far beyond the Mortal Continent—
An old gaunt man sat alone beneath a dead tree.
Playing chess against himself.
Right as he moved the final piece—
He suddenly paused.
Then smiled.
A cold smile.
"Interesting…"
His cloudy eyes slowly turned toward the distant heavens.
"Another cage has opened."
The old man chuckled softly.
Then crushed a chess piece between his fingers.
"Grow stronger, little one."
His smile widened unnaturally.
"For one day…"
"…you shall become the nourishment I need to step into the Nascent Soul Realm."