The talents of a Paragon could be measured in three distinct ways. The first category is what many have come to call "trash talent."
These Paragons are at the bottom of the hierarchy. Despite having access to the proper resources, they struggle to make significant progress in their evolution. Even with the right environment, they are often stagnant. Such individuals are usually discarded by the factions that once accommodated them. If not discarded, they are relegated to minor, menial tasks within the Faction—jobs no one else wants.
The second category is the talented. These Paragons progress in their evolution with ease, whether or not they have extra resources to help them along. They are the most common Paragons one might encounter. Their advancement comes naturally, and they steadily grow stronger with time.
Then, there is the last category, the anomaly. Some call them the "super talented." These individuals possess abilities that far exceed what is expected of someone at their level. Their talents can manifest in different ways. For example, a super-talented Paragon might have incredible strength or extraordinary speed—attributes that stand far above others of the same rank.
However, while their exceptional abilities in one area make them stand out, their other stats or abilities may remain average. This imbalance classifies them as anomalies.
At present, the Dragon Roar Faction—a group that prides itself on having an abundance of anomalies and super-talented individuals—believes they have stumbled upon something extraordinary. They feel they've discovered an anomaly among anomalies.
After Alex Haven lost consciousness, the Faction wasted no time. They carried him to the medical section of their base, where they performed a series of magical healings. The healers worked tirelessly, and after some time, every internal and external wound on Alex's body had healed completely.
Despite the healing, Alex remained asleep. His face, once tense and contorted in pain, now appeared peaceful. His breathing was steady, and a sense of calm seemed to envelop him.
Once the healers finished their work, there was nothing left to do. Gradually, everyone in the room returned to their usual activities, leaving Alex under the watchful eye of a few attendants.
Meanwhile, in his mind, Alex found himself standing in a place that felt strangely familiar. He was in the dark, empty space that always appeared before he received a vision. The air around him was thick, almost suffocating, yet familiar, as though he had been here many times before.
"Will I be shown another vision again? I wonder what it will be this time," Alex thought as he stood in the familiar dark space.
However, the vision he was expecting never appeared. The usual scene where the darkness would crack open and reveal something did not happen. Instead, something else caught Alex's attention—a faint presence far off in the distance, deep within the darkness.
Without even realizing it, Alex's body had already started moving toward this distant presence. Step by step, he ventured into the dark void, drawn by an invisible force. Before long, he found himself standing in front of three mysterious objects, each surrounded by a mist that constantly swirled around them.
"Wait... This must be my sea of consciousness. But what am I doing here?" Alex wondered, trying to make sense of the situation.
Suddenly, a familiar voice from the system echoed in his mind.
[Congratulations, the host has finally stepped into the first level of evolution. The host now has more access to his qi.]
As the system spoke, it answered part of Alex's question.
"So, during that fight, did I finally break through? Can I actually be considered a Paragon now?" Alex thought aloud, though the realization was still sinking in.
Yet, his attention quickly shifted back to the three objects before him. The orbs seemed even more intriguing now that he was aware of their significance. He could see that one of them was glowing faintly, emitting a soft light. The mist surrounding him appeared to be drawn mostly to that glowing orb, while the other two remained lifeless, with no light at all.
Curious, Alex moved closer to the first orb, the one that showed no signs of light. He reached out and placed his hands on it, feeling the cold, unresponsive surface beneath his fingers.
[Mana core: Error, the host's mana core is currently empty. The host is unable to perform any form of magic until the mana core is refilled and activated.]
"So, this is my mana core," Alex thought to himself. "It's disappointing that it's empty. I would love to be able to use magic." His desire to perform magic was strong, but he didn't have the time to dwell on it for too long.
Without hesitation, Alex moved to the next orb, which was emitting a faint light, though still too dim to be fully noticeable. He placed his hands on it, waiting for the system to provide him with more information.
[Bloodline core: Error, the host's bloodline powers are currently locked.]
Alex sighed, disappointed once again. This was the same issue he had encountered when he first gained the system. He was unable to access much of its power back then, and now, even as a Paragon, his abilities remained limited. However, he had hoped for a change—and to his surprise, one did occur.
[Quest:
1. Gain more knowledge about bloodline powers to unlock a small percentage of your bloodline abilities.
2. Find a member of your family with awakened bloodline powers to perform a ritual and fully awaken your bloodline powers.
Quest limit: No deadline.]
Alex was surprised. The Pendragon system was truly like the games he used to play. He could now be assigned quests, complete them, and earn rewards for his efforts.
As Alex quickly read through the quest, his expression changed. The quest had given him a way to unlock his bloodline power. One option was to gain knowledge about bloodline powers, but that would only unlock a tiny percentage of his abilities. To fully unlock the power, he had to find a family member with an already awakened bloodline.
The problem was that Alex had no idea where his family was. More specifically, he had no clue about his father's side of the family. Alex was certain the bloodline didn't come from his mother's side. He felt a strange irritation thinking about it, which made him even more convinced it came from his father's side.
The real issue was that Alex didn't even know who his father was. His mother had never shown him a picture of the man. After years of asking, his mother eventually told him that his father was believed to have died in an accident, but there were always extra, inconsistent stories added to it.
Although Alex felt like the stories never quite made sense, he hadn't pushed the matter much further.
However, right now, Alex is far more interested in his father and his family. Who were they? It was clear his father wasn't a normal human being to have such a powerful bloodline. Alex wanted to look into it, but the problem was he had no idea where to start.
"At least I know it's possible to unlock. Maybe one day I'll meet one of them, and then I can fully unlock my bloodline power," Alex thought, deciding to proceed to the next orb.
He already knew what this was. The only active orb at the moment—his qi core.
Placing his hands on it, a system message appeared.
[Active Qi core: Stage 1]
[The host is advised to learn more qi-related techniques and skills to progress further and faster in his evolution.]
The message was simple, and Alex already had a good understanding of it. However, what caught his attention now was something forming beside the qi core. The mist surrounding the area was suddenly shifting and condensing, forming another core.
Curious, Alex moved closer to inspect it.
[Peace Energy: Active. No knowledge of peace energy is available. Visit the faction's library for updates.]
Upon receiving this message, Alex thought about closing the system interface, but just then, another message popped up.
[A new piece of knowledge has been shared from Elder Rooney about peace energy.]
Seeing this, Alex smiled and quickly started going through the information. After a while, he was done and closed the system interface.
"I think I have a lot of practice ahead with this peace energy, but first, I need to get out of this space," Alex muttered to himself.
Almost immediately, Alex's vision started to fade. As the darkness around him disappeared, his eyes opened in a different place.
However, Alex quickly realized where he was—back in the medical room. But he wasn't alone. There were others with him, and what they were saying caught his attention.
"So, what do you guys think? Alex's peace energy vs our bloodline power?" Gwen asked the two others standing with her.