《Evolving My Undead Legion In A Game-Like World》


 Chapter 1 Class Awakening

    "All of you, this is yourst awakening ceremony. If you still fail to awaken, prepare to live the rest of your life as an ordinary human and attend a normal university. You can also try to improve your cultivation in thesest few months to increase your chances of entering an Academy."


    The teacher''s voice echoed across the room as several students stood before him, listening attentively, their expressions a mix of anxiety and hope.


    Among these students was Michael.


    Michael was not from this world. He had arrived in this body just three weeks ago, a body that coincidentally shared his name.


    Unlike his original world, in this one, everyone between the ages of 16 and 18 had a chance to awaken a ss.


    More than two hundred years ago, the apocalypse descended upon this world, bringing spatial rifts that spawned countless monsters and unleashed chaos.


    Fortunately, following the apocalypse, the world became digitised for a select few who wouldter be known as Awakeners.


    Thanks to these Awakeners, whose sses granted them incredible powers, the apocalypse ended after decades, and humanity finally reimed theirnd.


    When peace returned, as expected, Awakeners became figures of importance, and it became a dream for young people aged 16 to 18 to be one.


    However, bing an Awakener was a privilege granted to only a few, and for this group of 18-year-old students, this was theirst chance.


    Michael was nervous too. Though he had only been in this world for three weeks, he understood the significance of this ceremony.


    While it wasn''t as though all hope would be lost if he failed to awaken, it was undeniable that no path held more promise than bing an Awakener.


    Under the nervous gaze of nearly a hundred students below the podium, the teacher picked up a file from the table in front of him and began to call out names.


    "Lilian Stone!"


    "Y-Yes, Sir!"


    The first student called was a young woman. Upon hearing her name, she immediately walked toward the podium, but perhaps due to her nervousness, she stumbled and fell.


    However, no oneughed or made fun of her. On any other asion, they might have, but today, they weren''t sure they would perform any better than the student who had fallen.


    The teacher, seemingly ustomed to such mishaps, waited patiently for her to get back on her feet and approach him.


    When she finally reached him, he wasted no time and gestured toward the transparent orb on the table.


    "This is your third time here, so you know what to do. Just ce your hand on the awakening orb. If there''s a reaction, it means you''ve sessfully awakened. If there isn''t¡­"


    The teacher left his sentence unfinished but it made the hearts of the students on the podium sink.


    Michael felt it too, though he handled it better than the others. Thanks to his mental age and the challenges he''d faced before he died from cancer in his previous life, he could keep hisposure.


    Michael''s eyes were drawn to the awakening orb on the table between the teacher and the female student.


    From what they had been taught in school, every Awakener, aside from gaining a ss that granted them supernatural powers, also had the ability to connect their consciousness to another world¡ªa world filled with treasures and could quickly enhance their prowess.


    It was said that this world really resembled a game, though, in many ways, it was not.


    The awakening orb itself originated from that mysterious world.


    Just as the teacher had said, the girl didn''t require any assistance. With a familiarity that made the corner of Michael''s eyes twitch slightly, she ced both hands on the awakening orb and waited.


    A few seconds passed, and just as the teacher was preparing to dismiss the disappointed girl¡ªwho looked like she might burst into tears at any moment¡ªa white light suddenly shone from the orb.


    Following that, a ''manifestation'' in the form of twin swords appeared on her back before disappearing.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Lilian Stone has sessfully awakened a ss, Martial Artist!" the teacher announced, his voice filled with surprise, and his previously expressionless face showing clear astonishment.


    For this group of 18-year-olds, he hadn''t expected any of them to awaken. But to think that the very first student called up would do so filled him with considerable surprise. It was well known that the best age to awaken a ss was 16, as that was when the chances were highest. The older one got, the less likely awakening became.


    When the students heard the teacher''s announcement, the previously quiet hall erupted with noise.


    "Wow, Lilian actually awakened?"


    "Firste, first served?"


    "Damn."


    "Tsk, to think the fourth to thest dumbest person in all of ss 3 would awaken."


    "You do know that awakening sessfully doesn''t necessarily have anything to do with intelligence, right?"


    "Shut up! Of course, I know! Can''t I just be bitter for a minute? What happened to my freedom to be negative?!"


    Like his fellow ssmates, Michael was pleasantly surprised that the first student to step onto the podium had awakened. It wasmon knowledge that their group had almost no hope of awakening, so seeing someone seed lifted everyone''s spirits and filled them with a renewed sense of hope.


    However, that newly lit hope was quickly shattered.


    "Mia Keem, awakening failed!"


    "Bruce Leen, awakening failed!"


    Then the fourth, the fifth, all the way up to the forty-eighth¡ªevery student who stepped up to the podium failed to awaken, except for the first female student.


    The entire hall felt as silent as a graveyard, save for the quiet sobs of those who had failed their awakening.

 Chapter 2 Cultivation

    Michael tried his best to ignore the cries of his fellow ssmates around him.


    Failing to awaken in this world was not like failing a college exam on Earth. In thetter case, you could keep trying, and many alternatives weren''t considered worse than attending college. But here, failing to awaken had no equivalent alternative.


    It was like a poor man, burdened with the responsibility of caring for his two chronically ill parents while also supporting a younger sibling through school, betting on three different games with a chance to win a million dors each¡ªand losing everything.


    In such a situation, breaking down and crying wouldn''t be unusual.


    The scene around Michael now was eerily simr.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Most of the students at Woodstone Public School No. 3 came from families living near or below the poverty line.


    For them, sessfully awakening was like having a hundred million dorsnd in theirp. But for these sobbing students, that distant hope of drastically changing their lives had slipped through their fingers three times in a row.


    It was no wonder that some of them broke down in tears immediately.


    Michael tried not to let the dark atmosphere surrounding him affect his mindset and attempted to stay positive.


    His situation wasn''t any better than those around him¡ªif not worse. In this world, the original owner of this body was an orphan living with his aunt, a widow with a child of her own to care for. Together, the family of three barely survived on the limited funds his aunt managed to earn.


    For Michael, sessfully awakening was the fastest way to change his family''s fate, but his chance of awakening was less than 1%.


    He couldn''t help but feel a twinge of bitterness. Though he was grateful for the chance to live again, especially in a healthy body, it would be painful to live a life of mediocrity. Yet, there was nothing he could do about his slim chance of awakening; all he could do was hope for the best.


    Michael continued to watch as more students stepped up to the podium, only to fail in their attempts to awaken.


    There were only a total of 86 students in the hall, so Michael''s turn was approaching quickly. Since the teacher hadn''t assigned a queue and called names at random, Michael could only wait for his turn.


    Just when the teacher in charge of the awakenings thought that this batch of students would only produce one Awakener, the awakening orb in front of him suddenly emitted light.


    The cause of the reaction was a male student standing before him. Just like the female student who had first awakened, a manifestation appeared¡ªstandard for new Awakeners.


    The male student''s body glowed red, and a staff made of fire appeared in his hands before promptly disappearing.


    "Brian Lian has sessfully awakened a ss, Fire Mage!" the teacher announced.


    As with the first awakening, an uproar erupted in the hall, but this time it was even more intense.


    "Damn! Brian actually awakened?! The heavens really aren''t fair!"


    "I know, right? He''s already one of the few students who managed to ignite their life seeds before the college exams¡ªsomething rare even in big cities¡ªand now he''s lucky enough to awaken too?!"


    "That''s not all. His knight breathing technique happens to align with the fire attribute, and now that he''s awakened as a Fire Mage, the two willplement each other perfectly!"


    "F*ck!"


    Like his ssmates, Michael also had an impression of Brian. At Woodstone Public High School No. 3, Brian Lian was one of the few outstanding students who could hold his own against those from private schools with better resources, despite his humble background. His reputation extended beyond the school¡ªhe was even somewhat known throughout Woodstone City.


    This fame wasn''t because of his academic achievements but rather due to his exceptional talent in cultivation.


    The awakening orb wasn''t the only piece of technology that Awakeners had brought back from the mysterious realm known as the Land of Origins. They introduced other technologies that significantly boosted the real world''s advancement.


    The Land of Origins wasn''t exclusive to humans¡ªmany other civilizations of various races existed there. In fact, humans here could be considered neers to that world.


    These civilizations had already used the Land of Origins to significantly advance their own societies. Using their methods, Awakeners managed to bring something back to this world: cultivation.


    Cultivation offered a method for ordinary people to gain supernatural powers, although they couldn''t progress as quickly as Awakeners, be as powerful as them, or enter the Land of Origins.


    Brian practised the breathing technique of the Knight cultivation system and had considerable talent in cultivation so even if he failed to awaken, he still had a bright future.


    Just as Awakeners were respected and needed in this world, Cultivators were too. One was just way too at the top to bepared to anything but the need of the two were equal.


    Well, ording to what has been told to Michael.


    The world changed when the apocalypse descended. It was no longer just a but a realm.


    Some of the cracks that brought monsters into the world remained, with new ones asionally appearing. Some were filled with monsters, while others served as passages to other realms.


    Awakeners were few in number, so Cultivators were needed to handle these realms. Awakeners advanced society, while Cultivators kept it safe. This was something that had been taught to Michael and other children from a young age.


    Bing an Awakener was more desirable, though. Cultivating required resources, and they weren''t cheap¡ªwith costs only increasing as one progressed. This alone had already cut off more than half of the poption''s ability to walk on this path.


    Generally, only the talented or the wealthy had a significant chance of achieving great sess in cultivation.


    The teacher, who hadn''t even smiled much when Lilian Stone awakened, now had a wide grin as he addressed Brian. "Come stand here and wait," he said, pointing to the spot beside him where Lilian Stone also stood. He was thrilled that a genius from the school had just be even more exceptional¡ªa super genius!


    After settling that, the teacher continued with the Awakening Ceremony, but he was met with disappointment as no other student managed to awaken, not even those with talent in cultivation.


    This wasn''t unexpected.


    Just because a student had talent in cultivation didn''t mean they would awaken a ss, especially not at the age of 18.


    However, the teacher remained quite pleased, as the school now had two more Awakeners to its name.


    The Awakening Ceremony continued, and soon it was time for the eightieth student to step up to the podium¡ªMichael.


    "Michael Norman!"


    "Yes, sir!"


    Hearing his name called, Michael nervously made his way up to the podium. Since the previous owner of this body didn''t have much presence at school, he didn''t have anyone cheering for him.


    Soon, Michael reached the podium, and under the teacher''s guidance, he ced his hands¡ªnow unknowingly sweating¡ªon the awakening orb, filled with anticipation.

 Chapter 3 Successful Awakening

    Seconds ticked by, and Michael could almost hear his own heartbeat pounding in his chest. Each student was allocated 30 seconds with the awakening orb; any more time was pointless, as it had been proven over the years.


    10 seconds passed.


    15 seconds.


    20 seconds.


    25 seconds...


    Just as the teacher prepared to dismiss Michael¡ªwhose heart had already sunk into bitterness¡ªthe awakening orb under Michael''s hands suddenly emitted a bright light.


    Instantly, Michael felt a warm sensation coursing through his body. His mind seemed to clear, and a surge of strength flowed through him. The manifestation that apanied every new Awakener soon appeared.


    A ck, gloomy energy swirled around Michael, coating his body, while a dark staff briefly materialised in his hand before everything vanished.


    Michael was momentarily stunned by the sudden turn of events, but the voice of the equally surprised teacher brought him back to reality.


    "Michael Norman has sessfully awakened a ss, Necromancer!" the teacher announced.


    "Another one?!"


    "Necromancer huh? That sounds powerful and maybe a little bit...¡­evil?"


    "Be more confident in your speech brother. It''s evil as fuck!"


    "Yeah, but as long as I can awaken a ss, I wouldn''t even mind if it involved selling my body!"


    "Just say you''re horny bro."


    As before, an uproar erupted in the hall, but it was more subdued than the previous two times. It couldn''t be helped¡ªunlike the excitement over Lilian Stone''s unexpected awakening or the amazement at Brian Lian''s transformation into a super-genius, Michael didn''t have much of a presence in the school.


    But that wasn''t the case anymore...


    Also, only a few of his ssmates from ss 3, Section N8, were in the hall, and he recognised even fewer of them. He didn''t personally know any of them.


    "Good, good, good," the teacher in charge of the ceremony said, repeating the word three times in delight. It wasn''t that he knew Michael personally, but rather because a ceremony he had expected to yield no Awakeners had surprisingly produced three.


    If none had awakened, he wouldn''t have been surprised¡ªsuch oues weremon.


    "Come stand beside me and wait," the teacher gestured for Michael to join the other two Awakeners.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    "Yes, teacher."


    Michael nodded, still in a daze, andpiled. Seeing a newrade, Lilian and Brian both gave him a nod of acknowledgement, which Michael returned.


    In truth, Michael''s attention was no longer fully on his surroundings. He could catch bits of what his ssmates whispered about him, but he was too preupied to care.


    His attention was on what had just appeared before his eyes.


    A blue, transparent panel floated in front of Michael:


    ---


    [Name: Michael Norman]


    [Race: Human]


    [ss: Necromancer Apprentice]


    [Level: 1]


    [EXP: 0/100]


    [Strength: 1.3]


    [Agility: 1.4]


    [Constitution: 1.2]


    [Intelligence: 4.5]


    [Attribute Points: 0]


    [Skills: Undead Summoning, Undead Revival]


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    [ss Skill: Contract Slot{0/2}]


    [Gift: Mark Of Origin]


    ¡ª


    Michael''s mind wasn''t focused on the details disyed on the panel. It was only now that he fully grasped what had just happened.


    He had awakened! He had really awakened!


    A surge of happiness rushed through him, and his tense shoulders finally rxed. While this was only the beginning, the most important thing was that he had awakened. No matter what came next, his future now held new possibilities.


    Michael let out a deep sigh of relief and turned his attention back to the rest of the Awakening Ceremony.


    Only six students remained, and in about four minutes, the ceremony would conclude. Each student would soon return home, left to ponder their future based on the oue of their awakening.


    Now that he no longer felt nervous, Michael''s mind was free to think of other things.


    The most important realisation was that he had awakened a ss¡ªthe Necromancer ss.


    In truth, Michael knew little about Awakeners and their sses beyond what he had learned in school and from hearsay. What he did know was that sses were generally categorised into three types: Combat, Support, and Lifestyle.


    His Necromancer ss seemed like a mix of both Combat and Support, but Michael wasn''t entirely sure. Aside from the Knight and Mage sses that were so influential in this world, he knew little about other sses.


    The school only taught general knowledge about Awakeners, without going into much depth. Perhaps the higher-ups felt that students who were unlikely to awaken didn''t need to know more and could better use their time studying or cultivating.


    It''s also said that if one cultivated before awakening and had talent in it, they could activate a secondary ss so cultivation was seen as a good thing overall.


    Michael wasn''t sure if limited information was unique to Woodstone Public High School No. 3, but he did know one thing for certain¡ªthere was no discrimination between sses.


    There was no such thing as an "overly weak" ss, as all sses theoretically had no limits. Power depended on the Awakeners themselves. ording to the teachers, this even applied to Lifestyle sses like Tailors.


    Michael wasn''t sure how true this was, but he figured he''d find out soon enough. After all, he was now an Awakener, someone who should be valued by the government.


    Just as Michael sorted out his thoughts and was about to check the panel that had appeared in his mind earlier, the voice of the teacher in charge of the Awakening ceremony caught his attention.


    "Okay, that''s it for today. For those of you who failed to awaken, remember that failing to be an Awakener doesn''t mean your futures are bleak. During the early days of the apocalypse, at least half of our ancestors who yed a crucial role in our survival and advancement were ordinary people. So what if you didn''t awaken?"


    The sad students below the podium heard this, and a wave of motivation surged through them.


    Even Michael couldn''t help but be impressed by the teacher''s words. However, he knew that once they left the hall, the harsh reality would soon catch up to them. Perhaps some of the students already understood this, but they needed something to make them feel better at the moment.


    One must know that while this world was technically more advanced than Michael''s previous one, it wasn''t all sunshine for the average person.


    For example, bankers had long be a thing of the past, along with many other jobs. Only a few establishments still employed people for tasks that machines could do¡ªeither because they were too poor or wanted to be "ssy," like some upscale hotels.


    Most people in this world live in poverty, barely scraping by with the few jobs avable to them.


    It was only after arriving in this world that Michael truly understood a saying from his old life: technology can be both a blessing and a curse.


    This desperation to escape their current circumstances was one of the reasons why these students so desperately wanted to be Awakeners.


    If Michael hadn''t awakened, he would have been on the receiving end of the teacher''s encouragement too. He knew he was truly lucky.


    Seeing that his words had resonated with the students, the teacher nodded slightly in satisfaction before speaking again.


    "The college exams for both regr colleges and cultivation academies are in three months, so make sure to prepare seriously during this time. Just because you don''t need toe to school again after today doesn''t mean you should ck off, okay?"


    "Yes, sir!" the students, including Michael and the two other new Awakeners, responded loudly.


    "Alright, you''re dismissed!"


    As the students made their way out of the hall, the teacher turned to Michael, Lilian, and Brian.


    With a smile, he said, "You three, follow me to the principal''s office."

 Chapter 4 Meeting The Principal

    The moment the teacher in charge of the awakening ceremony left the hall with Michael and the two other new Awakeners, they encountered two teachers¡ªa male and a female¡ªon their way to the principal''s office.


    Following the male teacher was a young girl, who seemed to be around 17 or 18 years old. Behind the female teacher were five younger-looking students: two boys and three girls.


    From the brief conversation between the three teachers, Michael learned that the students apanying them had sessfully awakened as well.


    The girl following the male teacher was also from ss three, though Michael didn''t recognize her. That wasn''t surprising; after all, Woodstone was a public school with over 600 students in ss three alone. There were nine sections in ss three, each with up to 100 students max per teacher.


    Although the sses rarely reached full capacity¡ªsince that would make even therge ssrooms feel cramped¡ªthere were usually no fewer than 60 students per ss.


    As for the five students behind the female teacher, they were from ss one. Michael had guessed this due to their younger appearance, but he was still shocked by the number of Awakeners in that ss. In fact, he was surprised by how many students had sessfully awakened this year in general.


    Including the students from ss three, a total of nine students had awakened. While this might seem smallpared to Woodstone''s overall student poption, it was actually significant.


    Even ss one, which consisted of 16-year-olds¡ªthe age group most likely to awaken¡ªrarely had this many(4) Awakeners in a single year.


    In all the years Michael had been in senior high, the total number of students who had sessfully awakened, from his time in ss one through ss three, including the older students, barely exceeded twelve. And most of those Awakeners had been from ss one. This year, not a single student from ss two, where most students were 17 years old, had awakened.


    Therefore, the number of Awakeners at Woodstone Public High School this year was unusually high, and ss three''s sess, in particr, was downright abnormal for reasons unknown.


    As Michael mused over his thoughts, they soon reached the principal''s office.


    Upon reaching the door, the only female teacher among them took the initiative to knock.


    "Principal?" she called out.


    "Come in," a voice responded from within the office.


    With permission granted, the female teacher took the lead and entered the room.


    Inside, a middle-aged man sat behind a desk. Michael recognized him¡ªhe was the principal of Woodstone Public High School No. 3, Mike Bill. It was rumoured that he was a powerful knight, though Michael wasn''t sure, as he had never seen the man in action.


    Setting aside the document he had been focused on, Principal Mike turned to smile at the neers.


    "Nine Awakeners this year¡ªheavens must really favour our school," the principal remarked, pleasantly surprised by the number of students in his office. It was customary for new Awakeners to meet with the principal alongside their teachers, so he was confident he hadn''t made a mistake. Seeing no one contradict his statement, he knew his assumption was correct.


    With this confirmation, the smile on Principal Mike''s face grew even brighter.


    "I believe your teachers have already informed you why you''re here, yes?" Principal Mike asked, ncing at Michael and the other students in his office.


    "Yes, sir!" they replied in unison.


    "Haha, there''s no need to be nervous. What I''m about to tell you is probably something you already know, but I''ll still say it," the principal said with a light chuckle.


    Michael and the other students subconsciously straightened their backs.


    The principal paid no mind to this and continued.


    "As you know, as Awakeners, your life and future are now different from those of ordinary people. Power and wealth are within your grasp¡ªif you''re wise enough to seize them."


    "If you had failed to awaken, you would be preparing to enter an ordinary university to further your education. If you had decent talent in cultivation, you''d try to enter a cultivation academy. But you all have sessfully awakened!


    So instead of attending a cultivation academy or an ordinary university, you''ll be going to an Awakened University, where you''ll learn everything you need to know about being an Awakener."


    "You might think that going to an academy is unnecessary since you could just enter the Land of Origin on your own, like our ancestors, and make things work. While that''s possible, anyone with good sense wouldn''t do that. Why make things harder for yourself?"


    "So, right now, aside from entering the Land of Origin, which you''ll soon have ess to, getting into an Awakener Academy should be your next main focus."


    "As for learning more about your new identity as an Awakener, you''ll need to visit the Supers Association to register after this. The association will provide you with better information that you currently need."


    The principal then went on to mention a few other points. Some of these, Michael and the others already knew, while others provided new insights.


    After saying what he needed to, Principal Mike dismissed the students and teachers, asking Brian to stay behind.


    After being dismissed from the principal''s office, the teacher responsible for overseeing Michael''s awakening spoke up.


    "As New Awakeners, you must register with the Supers Association within three days. Failing to do so is considered a crime. Though you have some time, I rmend you register immediately if you''re free today."


    "As the principal mentioned, you also need to take the uing college exams seriously. Just because you''re Awakeners doesn''t exempt you from academic testing. While it may not be as strict as for regr university students due to your status, it''s still important depending on the academy you n to attend.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Anyway, the Supers Association will have more details on this, so make sure you register quickly!"


    "For those who aren''t in their third year," the teacher addressed the students from ss 1, "you can also attempt the college exams if you think you''re up for it, as the Federation and most academies do not oppose it.


    However, most Awakeners who manage to awaken before their third year prefer to take home lessons while honing their skills as Awakeners, aiming for a higher score when they''re ready to enter the academy."


    After offering this advice, and with two other teachers sharing their own, they left the nine students and returned to the teachers'' office.


    There was no need to tter the new Awakeners. These were no longer the apocalyptic days. Although the teachers were softer with thempared to before, it wasn''t to the point of bowing at their feet, but they certainly didn''t want to offend them either.


    With the rise of cultivation, Awakeners were no longer the only powerful people in the world. Ordinary individuals could reach simr levels of strength, though Awakeners were a rarer breed.


    Veteran teachers like these knew that leaving a good impression was enough, as they had no hidden agendas.

 Chapter 5 Registering As An Awakener (1)

    The students felt a little lost after the teachers left, but not Michael. He already knew what he needed to do next. The most important task was to register at the Supers Association, and the second was to inform his aunt about his awakening.


    Michael was already familiar with the Supers Association. Even before he transmigrated into this world, the original owner of his body had a basic understanding of it. This wasmon knowledge among the natives.


    The Supers Association was an organisation under the Federation, the new government established after the apocalypse. The world now had only one ruling authority¡ªthe Federation¡ªunder which were countries, states, and cities.


    The Supers Association managed all supernatural beings in the Aurora Realm. Ordinary humans had to be a rank one Cultivator before they could register, whereas Awakeners were required to register immediately upon awakening, as they became supernatural beings the moment they awakened.


    The purpose of the Supers Association was to protect the general public, manage supernatural beings, and provide them with various benefits.


    Michael made his way out of the schoolpound. As soon as he stepped outside, he hailed an empty taxi that happened to be passing by.


    "To the Supers Association!" he said.


    "That''ll be a dor," the driver replied.


    "Okay."


    The Supers Association was a little far from Woodstone Public School. On foot, it would take Michael about thirty-five minutes, but by taxi, it would take no more than twenty.


    Settling into the passenger seat, Michael pulled his phone from his pocket. Normally, if the school were still in session, it would have been in his backpack, but with the college exams approaching and no real need to attend sses, everything aside from his school uniform was casual today.


    Every senior high student who came to school today did so primarily for the awakening ceremony. After today, the school would feel noticeably emptier.


    Though the technology in this world was more advanced than Earth''s, familiar technologies still existed. The rich used floating cars, while the less well-off relied on vehicles with wheels. The wealthy had watches that projected holographic disys as substitutes for phones, while others were content with traditional phones.


    The world was a mix of old and new technology, but somehow it all blended into a strange yet harmonious system that didn''t seem out of ce.


    Michael decided to text his aunt instead of calling her. She worked as a cook at a rtively upscale restaurant, so she was likely still busy.


    Michael sent a short message saying he had seeded in his awakening. Just as he was about to put his phone aside, an iing call shed on the screen¡ªit was his aunt.


    Michael immediately answered the call.


    "Aunt, aren''t you at work?" Michael immediately inquired. It was rare for his aunt to answer so quickly, even on her days off.


    "I''m still at work. I just happened to be on a short break when your message came in," his aunt, Aunt Mia, replied.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Michael believed her, as he could hear the noise in the background.


    "Mic," his aunt called out, her tone hesitant as if she wanted to say something but was unsure.


    "Ma?" Michael smiled, already guessing what was on her mind. He understood her disbelief¡ªmost parents were shocked when their children awakened on their first try, let alone Michael, who had even less of a chance.


    "Your message," Aunt Mia began slowly, pausing before continuing, "is it true?"


    "It is, Aunt Mia. Today''s my lucky day, haha," Michael chuckled in response.


    Aunt Mia let out a small squeak of joy, clearly trying to contain her excitement.


    Knowing she was still at work, Michael decided to end the conversation so she could get back to her duties. "I''m on my way to the Supers Association, Aunt. I''ll talk to you when you get home."


    "Okay, okay, okay! I''ll transfer some money to you now. Get yourself something to eat and save a little for Lily when she gets back from school. I might be home a littlete today."


    "Yes, Aunt."


    After exchanging a few more words, they ended the call.


    Michael let out a sigh as happiness surged through him. Though he was originally from Earth, he had fully embraced his role as Michael in this world and cared deeply for his family here. Perhaps it had something to do with losing his parents early in life back on Earth.


    In a way, both Michaels had experienced particrly difficult childhoods.


    After ending the call, Michael closed his eyes to rest, ignoring the driver''s gaze, who seemed like he had something to ask. Only now did he realise how tense he had been in the awakening hall, leaving his spirit weary.


    It had only been a few minutes since Michael decided to rest when he felt a nudge from the driver. "We''re here," the driver said.


    Michael weakly opened his eyes, still a bit dazed, but when he saw the two-story building not far from him, his mind cleared, and he quickly sat up.


    "Your code, please," Michael requested.


    "Here," the driverpiled, showing Michael a code on his phone, which Michael then scanned with his own phone, transferring the fare to the driver''s ount.


    "Thanks for the ride!" Michael said.


    "No problem! Congrattions on your awakening, by the way!"


    Watching the driver drive away and hearing hisst words, a smile appeared on Michael''s face. If the driver wasn''t certain when he overheard the conversation with Michael''s aunt earlier, he would be now, having seen how focused Michael was on the Supers Association branch as he got out of the car.


    Michael shook his head and refocused. Taking a deep breath, he made his way toward the entrance of the Supers Association.

 Chapter 6 Registering As An Awakener (2)

    The inside of the Supers Association branch was a bit noisy, which surprised Michael greatly. Outside, he hadn''t heard much sound, so he expected the building to be quiet, but it wasn''t. There were actually quite a lot of people, most of them appearing very young.


    Michael didn''t need to think much to realise that these people were probably new Awakeners, just like him. With only two Supers Association branches in Woodstone City, it wasn''t surprising to see many Awakeners despite their rarity.


    Since all schools nationwide had chosen today for the Awakening ceremony this year, most of the young people in the Supers Association building were likely the new Awakeners from Woodstone City.


    After today, the number of new Awakeners registering over the next two days should be low.


    Michael nced around, and a rough count suggested there were at least 30 students present. This was quite a number, considering they all came from the nine public and private schools in Woodstone City.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    As he took in his surroundings, Michael lined up behind one of the shorter queues leading to the reception table. He wasn''t sure what to expect when he reached the front, but seeing others his age¡ªlikely fellow New Awakeners¡ªgave him some idea.


    Fortunately, Michael didn''t have to wait long. Twenty-eight minutester, he was near the front, with only one person ahead of him. Behind him, more people had joined the line.


    As Michael waited, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw a new message:


    [$300 has been transferred to your ount 27******78, XXXX Bank International, from Mia Grace! Your current ount bnce is $461!]


    ''Three hundred dors? That''s quite a lot!''


    Michael felt a little ufortable seeing how much his aunt had sent. Aunt Mia''s monthly sry was only about $3,000, excluding asional bonuses, and she had just transferred a tenth of it. Considering it was mid-June and Mia''s sry typically arrived at the beginning of the month, this $300 could very well be a quarter of what she had left.


    Even back on Earth, $3,000 wasn''t much for a family to live on. The $161 bnce he had before was what remained from the $300 monthly allowance Aunt Mia gave him.


    Though Michael was concerned, he couldn''t help but feel a warm sensation in his chest. He was truly loved in this world¡ªsomething he had rarely felt back on Earth, where he had even faced his battle with cancer alone, with no one to care for him.


    As he thought of his family, Michael secretly clenched his fist, silently vowing once again to change their lives and take care of them.


    However, a wave of uncertainty washed over him.


    ''Is bing an Awakener truly life-changing for the average person?''


    To be honest, everyone had been raised to believe that bing an Awakener was a one-way ticket to the top. But beyond the power it brought, the exact reasons and ways it transformed a life remained a mystery to most.


    It wasmon knowledge that power brought wealth, though. Michael, who had barely lived his adult years, was well aware of this.


    As various thoughts shed through his mind, it was soon Michael''s turn at the reception table.


    "Good day, sir. What can I do for you?" thedy behind the counter asked. She seemed to be in herte twenties and wore a professional smile.


    Her calm demeanour eased Michael''s troubled mind a little, allowing him to reply calmly, "I''m here to register."


    "As?" thedy inquired, ncing down at his school uniform. Usually, there were only two types of students who came to register: new Awakeners or those talented enough to reach Rank One as Cultivators while still in school. Today was the National Awakening Ceremony day, but she didn''t want to jump to conclusions.


    "Yes, I''m here to register as an Awakener," Michael confirmed.


    "Oh, I see," thedy replied, not appearing surprised by his response.


    After confirming his purpose, she began asking Michael a few questions. Most were about his personal details, like his name, age, and address. She even asked for his bank ount number for some reason, which Michael provided without hesitation. Thankfully, the process was quick and surprisingly straightforward.


    "Aren''t you going to ask about my ss?" Michael asked, curious.


    "There''s no need for that, Mr. Michael. Your school will provide that information to us," thedy replied in her signature smile.


    "Ah, I see," Michael said, understanding now. ''I thought she might have forgotten to ask, but it makes sense. Even if the Supers Association had a way to verify one''s ss, doing it for every new registrant would take too much time.''


    After pressing his fingerprint on a tool thedy provided and signing his name on a freshly printed document, she addressed him again, this time in a more formal tone.


    "Congrattions on your awakening, Mr. Michael."


    "As of today, you are now a proud warrior of the Federation, the people, and the Aurora Realm. As a new Awakener of the Federation, a set of military cultivation techniques and martial techniques will be sent to your email. A link to a specially designed tform for supernaturals will also be provided.


    The password is your full name written in all caps, followed by this year''s number, ''228,'' with no spaces in between.


    "Also, as a new Awakener, you are eligible for a monthly payment of $15,000. This amount will be reduced by half if you fail to reach Rank One within six months and will be revoked if you fail to be a Rank Two Awakener within a year. Of course, the monthly payment will also increase alongside your advancement."


    Michael was a little overwhelmed by the sudden information dump, but one thing immediately caught his attention: money!


    It wasn''t just the money; other benefits came with it too!


    Though the conditions seemed strict, it didn''t change the fact that he was soon going to have a significant ie.


    Michael''s heart quickened a little, but before he could sink deeper into his thoughts, thedy behind the counter spoke again.


    "Is there anything else you''d like to ask about, Mr. Michael?"


    He was about to reflexively say ''no,'' since he had grasped most of what she said when he remembered something. Feeling suddenly bashful, with a red face, he inquired in a low tone, "When will the monthly benefit arrive, miss?"


    "Ah," thedy was visibly taken aback, but after regaining herposure, her smile grew even brighter, and it seemed she was struggling to hold back augh. Her reaction made Michael feel even more embarrassed, but thankfully, she didn''t dwell on it.


    "It should arrive within an hour at most, sir," she replied.


    Michael nodded slightly, thanking the woman behind the counter before quickly making his way out of the Supers Association building. Though he didn''t regret asking about the money, he couldn''t help but feel a little self-conscious, worried it might havee across as if he cared more about the money than anything else¡ªthough, in truth, he kind of did.


    ''Anyway, with this, the house shouldn''t be low on funds in a few months. Aunt won''t have to work so hard anymore, and she and Lily can take better care of themselves now.''


    Michael was filled with joy, but he didn''t let his happiness blind him. He knew nothing came free in this world. Even as an Awakener, the Federation wouldn''t just hand out money without expecting something in return.


    ''Though it seemsplicated, ording to thatdy, all I have to do to retain the benefits¡ªand even improve them¡ªis to get stronger.''


    Michael had a clear goal now: to increase his strength quickly and make life better for himself and his family. Sessfully awakening was just the beginning.


    But before anything else, he needed to get home and study more about Awakeners once the Supers Association sent him the information.

 Chapter 7 Information About Awakeners And The Land Of Origin (1)

    The journey back home required Michael to take another taxi, which he didn''t hesitate to pay for. Though he felt his body had gotten stronger since his awakening, it didn''t mean he had to push himself unnecessarily. His home was nowhere close to the Supers Association.


    From his school to his house was a 30-minute walk, and with the Supers Association''s location added in, it would take him at least an hour and a half to get home.


    Now that he had money in his ount and was soon going to receive much more, Michael didn''t see any reason to be frugal.


    While in the taxi, he sent his aunt a message letting her know he was done registering at the Supers Association and was on his way home. It was also around this time that a bank notification arrived, informing him that $15,000 had been transferred to his ount.


    ''I''m rich! I''m rich!''


    Though Michael had seenrger sums in his previous life, it was easy to forget that he was currently ying the role of an 18-year-old¡ªsomething he had fully embraced.


    Unlike earlier, when Aunt Mia had responded immediately, there was no quick reply this time, which didn''t surprise Michael.


    He had considered sending Aunt Mia a portion of the money he received, but knowing her, she would probably panic and it might affect her work. Since there was no need to rush, he decided to wait until she got back home.


    Michael didn''t have the taxi drop him directly at his house but rather at a mall near themunity where his house was located.


    He hadn''t forgotten his aunt''s request to buy something for himself and his cousin, though he decided to use the money he received from the government instead of the amount she had given him. When his aunt returnedter in the evening, he nned to return her money, along with extra.


    By the time Michael left the mall, he was carrying several bags. This round of shopping had cost him about $500. It might seem excessive to spend money like this, but Michael didn''t regret it. For now, it was time for his family to enjoy life a little more. After all, what was the point of having money if not to spend it on oneself and loved ones?


    Of course, Michael had a limit to how much he would spend. He didn''t know much yet, but he suspected that the government didn''t provide benefits to new Awakeners purely out of goodwill. He had a feeling that part of the money was meant to be a resource for growth.


    ''There''s no need to overthink it. I''ll understand better once I check the emails from the Supers Association.''


    By the time Michael finally got home, the sun had already set. The Awakening ceremony had been held at 12:30 in the afternoon, and now it was a little past 4 p.m.


    ''Lily will be back from school soon. Let me use this time to get things in order.''


    And Michael did just that. He put the food products in their respective ces and organised the rest of his purchases ordingly.


    ''Ah, I''m so tired!''


    By the time Michael was done, he was famished. He had only had a light breakfast that morning, so he decided to cook something for himself using some of the ingredients he had bought from the mall. Meat was on the menu, too!


    Thanks to living with an aunt who was a chef, Michael''s cooking skills weren''t bad at all. He made rice and fried meat, and just as he finished, his cousin, Lily, arrived home.


    Lily, like her mom, had ck hair blue eyes, and a short stature. Michael, on the other hand, stood out in their family with his blonde hair, green eyes, and tall build. It wasn''t surprising to the family of three, as they knew he wasn''t an immediate rtive, but it often puzzled outsiders who assumed they were directly rted¡ªat least until they heard their different surnames.


    "Good evening, Brother Michael!" Lily greeted as she poked her head through the kitchen door.


    "What are you cooking? Is that meat? It smells so good!" Watching his cousin drool, Michael smiled helplessly.


    "Go wash up first before you think of eating. I''ll serve you a te in the meantime."


    "Okay, Brother Michael!" The foodie immediately turned to leave without saying anything else. However, she came back a few secondster and stared at Michael hesitantly.


    "What happened?" Michael asked, confused.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "Brother Michael," Lily began, her hands behind her back and her head lowered, "how was the Awakening ceremony?"


    "Oh, so that''s what this is about."


    Michael sighed at how simr the mother-daughter duo was. They didn''t want to hurt his feelings, yet they didn''t pretend to ignore them.


    Lily heard Michael sigh and thought it was because he had failed to awaken.


    "Don''t be too sad, Brother Michael. Even if you fail to awaken, it''s not like the world has ended. I believe you can also be a powerful Cultivator and enter those mysterious realms, even if you can''t ess the Land of Origin! The future is still bright!"


    Michael was speechless when he heard this.


    ''When did I say I failed to awaken? What''s going on in this 15-year-old''s mind?''


    However, soon Michael burst intoughter, clearly amused.


    Lily was stunned when she saw Michaelugh until tears formed in his eyes. She wondered if he had gone mad from sadness. Maybe that exined why he had been so unusually calm earlier.


    Michael couldn''t bear to see the increasingly worried look on his cousin''s face, so he addressed her.


    "Who said I failed to awaken, silly? Why do you think we''re having meat if there wasn''t a special asion?"


    "Huh?"


    Michael then gave her a brief summary of the events that happened that afternoon. He didn''t go into much detail about the Supers Association but did mention the money.


    "Wow! Brother Michael, you''re rich!"


    "What are you thinking? Stop looking at me like that!"


    "Brother Michael~"


    "Hey, hey, hey!"


    "Give me some money~"


    Michael spent some time getting his sister''s focus off his ount bnce with a few promises. Watching her hum and skip away in happiness, a gentle smile appeared on his face.


    Though it seemed like she was more excited about the money, he knew she was genuinely happy about his sessful awakening.


    Michael took a deep breath and steeled himself before carrying a te of food to his room.


    He had dyed for long enough; it was time to finally learn more about this Awakening business.

 Chapter 8 Information About Awakeners And The Land Of Origin (2)

    Michael''s family lived in a rented two-bedroom apartment on the second floor of a six-story building, with four apartments on each floor.


    The living conditions and environment could be described as passable. Michael figured that once he had more money in the future, he would move his family to a better ce.


    The young man was filled with dreams and ns for the future!


    Among the two bedrooms, one belonged to Michael, while the other was shared by his cousin and aunt. Michael always felt guilty about this arrangement, and this feeling carried over after his transmigration. Regardless of whatever ties they shared, it didn''t change the fact that he wasn''t their immediate family member.


    But perhaps it was like a saying he had heard on Earth: family isn''t decided by blood.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    After entering his rtively empty room, Michael sat on a chair next to a desk filled with books and ced his te on the table. Taking a mouthful of rice with his spoon, he brought out his phone and opened his email.


    There, he found several messages from the Supers Association.


    The first message he saw was a congrattory note on his Awakening, with a file containing the set of military-standard Cultivation techniques that thedy at the counter had mentioned.


    The file contained a breathing technique that had no specific attribute and a meditative technique that was purely aimed at increasing his mana pool, also without any elemental attribute.


    Michael knew what breathing and meditative techniques were. After all, he had also practised the free-breathing technique provided by the federation to its citizens, though he had no noticeable talent for Cultivation. However, this was where his confusion began.


    Though Michael had not yet taken the time to study the panel in his mind, he knew he wasn''t mistaken when he saw a level-up system there. One piece of information he knew about Awakeners was that they could level up in the Land of Origin. This was why Awakeners grew stronger more quickly, and the Land of Origin was often said to resemble a game.


    So this begged the question: since he could level up, why bother cultivating? Though there were rumours that cultivation could grant someone a second ss, none of the teachers in school dared to confirm it.


    Thankfully, there was a note in the file that soon cleared up Michael''s confusion.


    ''So that''s what it is!''


    After reading the note in the file, Michael realised that just because Awakeners could level up¡ªwhich in turn made them stronger¡ªdidn''t mean that cultivating was useless to them.


    What happens when one can''t level up in the short term and still wants to grow stronger? Cultivation could help fill that gap. It turned out that, aside from levelling up, Awakeners could actively enhance their strength through other means.


    The two techniques sent by the Supers Association belonged to the Knight Cultivation system and the Mage Cultivation system, respectively. Michael was more familiar with the former than thetter.


    It was said that the Cultivation systems and methods originated from the Land of Origin. For the Knight Cultivation system, one had to push their human body to its theoretical limit and light up a "Life Seed" within them to step onto the path of the supernatural¡ªbut this was no easy task.


    The theoretical limit of a human body was twice the strength and capabilities of an average human. Even good athletes were typically only about half as strong as this threshold.


    To be a rank one knight, a person needed to push their body to twice the capabilities of an average human. This was very difficult to achieve under normal circumstances, but with a breathing technique, one could use it as a catalyst to reach their human limit.


    After lighting up a Life Seed, they would gain a new upper limit and could continue to polish their Life Seed, thereby continually increasing their body''s limits and bing stronger.


    This method was primarily for ordinary humans, but Awakeners could also use breathing techniques to enhance their physical strength. The difference, however, was that they couldn''t light up a Life Seed since, as Awakeners, they no longer had limits.


    However, the note in the file revealed something that surprised Michael: the existence of dual sses.


    ording to the note, if one could light up a Life Seed before they awakened, as long as there was no conflict with the ss they eventually awakened into and it wasn''t the same, there was a high chance of acquiring a secondary ss.


    This potential applied specifically to the Knight Cultivation system, which could awaken a secondary ss¡ªthe Knight ss. Michael didn''t know much about the Mage system, and the note didn''t borate on it.


    ''No wonder the principal and teachers kept mentioning that after registering with the Supers Association, we''d eventually learn what we needed to know. And this isn''t even the only email I received¡ªthere''s still that mysterious supernatural tform.''


    Michael suddenly felt enlightened. Things that had been unclear to him before now made much more sense. The note that came with the techniques was really helpful. Unfortunately, he hadn''t managed to be a Knight before awakening, so he missed out on the chance for a dual ss.


    ''Hmmm. Is this why the principal specifically told Brian to stay back? I don''t know much about dual sses, but if one ss can make someone stronger, it makes sense that having two would be even better. If that''s the case, then Brian is indeed special. Even among Awakeners.''


    Michael didn''t feel envious of this, though. He wasn''t inpetition with anyone. He was already happy just to have been fortunate enough to awaken.


    Michael continued to read through the note, and once he finished, he closed it. There was no need to rush into cultivation¡ªhe still had something else to do.


    Feeling excited, Michael turned to the other email sent by the Supers Association. This email contained a link, which, ording to thedy who attended to him at the Supers Association, was his ess to a tform made for all registered supernatural beings within the federation.


    Without hesitation, Michael tapped the link, which led him to a browser page with a simple design.

 Chapter 9 Information About Awakeners And The Land Of Origin (3)

    The page was simple, with a white background, the Supers Association''s logo, and two empty bars for inputting an email and password.


    There wasn''t anything particrly interesting to observe on this page, so Michael quickly entered his email and password ording to the instructions given by thedy at the Supers Association.


    He felt a sense of anticipation. After all, this was a tform exclusively for supernatural beings, something he never could have imagined essing in both his lives.


    ''Somehow, it feels like I''ve been invited into a secret organisation.''


    After inputting his details, Michael signed in. Soon, he was taken to a new page.


    Unlike the somewhat nd appearance of the login page, this one was more vibrant and lively.


    It looked like a forum. A lot seemed to be happening, but unfortunately, there wasn''t any instruction manual. Not that one was needed¡ªat first nce, the Supers Association forum didn''t seem too different from a regr forum, aside from its content.


    ---


    [Does anyone know the weakness of a swamp wyvern?]


    - Oi! Seems like we have a big shot in the house!


    - Fr! If I recall correctly, Wyverns are usually above level 30, right?


    - That''s a teenage Wyvern, not exactly strong.


    - It''s the nonchnce of subtly calling a wyvern weak for me.


    - Newbie Cultivator here, how strong is a wyvern for us Cultivators?


    - A level 30 should be amander-rank beast for you guys, so yeah, you''ll need a knightmander or magemander to take on a Wyvern.


    - Dude, just say a rank three Cultivator.


    - It''s not my fault, brother. Awakeners and Cultivators'' power systems can be confusing at times.


    ---


    That was the kind of content in the forum. Michael could only read in awe, unable to fully grasp most of it.


    Once again, the Supers Association delivered essential information right to his fingertips¡ªnot in the form of step-by-step guidance, but through an interactive tform. Since it was a forum, Michael could search for whatever information he needed or ask directly, which he did without hesitation.


    Though some of the posts on the homepage had intriguing titles, Michael stayed focused. Reading random posts wouldn''t help him; he couldn''t even understand much of what they discussed yet.


    Michael dove into a spree of information-seeking, and the gaps in his understanding slowly began to fill. By the time he was done, it had already grown dark outside, but he hardly noticed.


    Reading through various posts on the forum had opened Michael''s eyes wide. What shocked him most was the sheer power hidden within this world.


    ''We''ve always heard about Cultivators and Awakeners, but aside from a few basics about Cultivators, like life seeds and the ranks that follow, everything else is shrouded in mystery. Information about Awakeners is even more elusive.''


    Michael felt a mix of shock, enlightenment, and excitement.


    ''It''s my fault for underestimating the people of this world.''


    In fact, it wasn''t just Michael who had these misconceptions; even the original citizens of this world felt simrly. After all, it had only been a little over 200 years since Aurora first came into contact with mana. How advanced could their civilization have be in such a short time?


    However, they were all wrong¡ªvery wrong. The truly powerful beings of this world were astonishingly strong.


    For example, Michael finally learned more about the power system of Cultivators. There were seven ranks in total, from Rank One to Seven, known respectively as Apprentice, Elite, Commander, Master, King, Emperor, and Demigod.


    Yes!


    Demigod!


    At first, Michael thought he had misread, but after checking three times and even watching a video of a Demigod effortlessly defeating a 100-metre-tall monster with a casual p, he was left speechless.


    He didn''t know exactly how strong that monster was, but he was certain that a mere sneeze from it would have been enough to end his life.


    Even if such powerful beings were rare, they should not be few. If they were, the federation and the Supers Association would likely have kept information about them under tight wraps.


    The Supers Association forum truly expanded Michael''s perspective, and he found himself exhrated by what he had learned.


    ''Power, power! I must have it!''


    If before, bing an Awakener was mainly about improving his and his family''s life, with living a fulfilling life as a secondary goal, now Michael''s heart burned with a fierce desire for power.


    It took a while for Michael to calm down from the surge of excitement.


    He had also learned a lot about Awakeners, particrly regarding the mysterious Land of Origin.


    The Land of Origin was a mystical realm that only Awakeners could ess. It was said to resemble a game world,plete with levels, quests, and more. But one should never mistake it for a game, or they woulde to regret it deeply.


    What linked the Land of Origin to an Awakener was the Mark of Origin.


    Michael nced down at the back of his right hand, where a flower-like tattooy.


    This hadn''t been there before¡ªMichael had never gotten a tattoo. It only appeared after his Awakening, this mysterious "tattoo" following him ever since.


    The Mark would only show if he wanted it to.


    ---


    [Name: Michael Norman]


    [Race: Human]


    [ss: Necromancer Apprentice]


    [Level: 1]


    [EXP: 0/100]


    [Strength: 1.3]n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    [Agility: 1.4]


    [Constitution: 1.2]


    [Intelligence: 4.5]


    [Attribute Points: 0]


    [Skills: Undead Summoning, Undead Revival]


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    [ss Skill: Contract Slot{0/2}]


    [Gift: Mark Of Origin]


    ¡ª


    The Mark of Origin had two primary functions. First, it served as a key to connect an Awakener''s consciousness with the Land of Origin. Second, it acted as a miniature spatial space.


    Yes, like a spatial storage ring.


    Michael had already checked off one of the "must-haves" on any transmigrator''s list with this discovery.


    However, Michael was curious about what a "gift" meant, as his Mark of Origin wasbelled as one. Yet, he couldn''t find any information about it in the forum.


    This seemed imusible¡ªsurely, all the Awakeners in the Supers Association would be interested in this topic. So, there could only be one exnation: the information was restricted. It likely meant he wasn''t yet authorised to ess such knowledge.


    Michael felt he was on the right track with his guess, especially since, right next to the profile they created for him, "Level 1 Member" was clearly disyed in bold.


    This only made Michael more curious about what a "gift" was. If information about Demigods could be essed by a Level 1 member like him¡ªeven if it wasn''t particrly in-depth¡ªthen the fact that details about gifts were hidden suggested that this subject was considered more important than even a Demigod. Perhaps it held the same weight as matters concerning a god?


    Though the forum didn''t have any direct mentions of "gods," Michael couldn''t help but suspect that they might exist in this world. It was only after exploring the forum that he realized just how deep the mysteries of this world ran.


    Fortunately, he could still investigate other information about the panel in his head, turning his attention to the next most intriguing aspect: his talent.


    ording to what he found on the forum, talents could be seen as innate skills that could be used without the need for mana. They were akin to high-level skills, except that they were rare¡ªeven among Awakeners. There were two ways Awakeners could obtain a talent: one was through pure luck during the Awakening ceremony, and the other was by seizing certain opportunities in the Land of Origin.


    It was clear that something extraordinary hadnded in Michael''sp. However, he felt that his talent was a bit... peculiar.


    ¡ª


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    Evolution points: 1 (16hrs: 09 mins: 23 secs)


    ¡ª


    Aside from the fact that something called "evolution points" would appear and umte every 24 hours, this talent seemed to be currently useless.


    Despite this, Michael was still pleased to have a talent. Even though he didn''t understand its use yet, he was confident it would prove valuable in the future.


    From its name, Infinite Evolution, he held high expectations for what it might be.


    *****


    Author''s Note: Phew! It''s finally time to kick the story into high gear. In the next chapter, we''ll be stepping into the mysterious Land of Origin! Please don''t forget to support this book¡ªI''d appreciate it immensely!

 Chapter 10 Preparations

    Michael also read a few things about sses and races, and he had something to say to his teacher who had imed, There''s no discrimination between sses.


    ''Bullshit!''


    In reality, there wasn''t any outright discrimination against sses from what Michael could see. However, unlike how his teacher had portrayed it, there was indeed a clear division between sses.


    There are no weak sses, only weak Awakeners was a phrase Michael frequently encountered in the forum during his searches. But from what he had just read, it was undeniable that some sses held certain advantages over others.


    At least the school got one thing right: the ssification of sses intobat, support, and lifestyle roles.


    Now, thanks to the Supers Association forum, Michael also discovered that there were actually five types of sses: General ss, Rare ss, Special ss, Hidden ss, and Unique ss.


    General sses are the mostmonly seen sses among Awakeners. Arge percentage of Awakeners possess these sses, which is why they are considered mon." These sses are also easily recognizable, as they provide only 2 attribute points per level up.


    Rare sses are a step above General sses, offering 4 attribute points per level up. These sses can utilize magic or other special abilities. However, a ss does not necessarily need to focus on magic to be categorized as rare¡ªlike the Berserker ss, for example.


    Special sses are somewhat unique and unconventional, which makes them difficult to categorise strictly as either general or rare. For instance, the Chef ss provides 3 attribute points per level up, while a Barb ss might only grant 2 attribute points, despite both being special sses. The term "special" refers more to their unconventional nature and niche focus.


    These sses can be considered rarer than Rare sses, but their unique nature makes them versatile in how they are grouped.


    Hidden sses are inheritance-type sses that very few people can have simultaneously. Simr to Special sses, they are rare, but they have an addedyer of exclusivity. Hidden sses can not be naturally awakened but can only be obtained through special means, which makes them particrly elusive.


    Unique sses are the rarest of all, with only one person able to possess a particr Unique ss at any given time.


    There wasn''t much information about Unique sses on the forum, but Michael didn''t think that was actually the case. He read somewhere that the number of Awakeners in Aurora was a bit more than 70,000, and he found it hard to believe that no one had any information about Unique sses. If they truly knew nothing, it wouldn''t even be recognized as a legitimate ss type.


    Michael believed it wasn''t that information about Unique sses didn''t exist on the forum; rather, it was that his authority level wasn''t high enough to ess such information.


    ''It seems authority level isn''t just for show. I should try my best to raise it,'' Michael thought with a subtle smile on his face. Even though it felt like his head might explode from all this new information, it was as if a fascinating new world had opened up to him, and he couldn''t get enough of it.


    ''This world¡­ These worlds are truly interesting with a lot to offer.''


    Something else that surprised Michael was that even one''s race could influence the benefits they received when levelling up.


    This revtion opened another world to Michael.


    From what he read, each level-up as a human race granted 0.2 in all stats, 0.5 in intelligence, and 2 attribute points. Michael wasn''t sure if this was low or not, but it seemed significant.


    ''Since they say the Land of Origin is like a game world, I wonder if it''s possible to change races,'' Michael mused. Out of curiosity, he tried searching for information on the possibility in the forum, but like in the cases of gifts and Unique sses, he found nothing.


    As before, this either meant the information didn''t exist or his authority level wasn''t high enough. Michael, already used to this, decided to move on.


    He also read about his ss, the Necromancer, which¡ªpleasantly surprising¡ªturned out to be a Rare ss.


    Races weren''t the only things that provided benefits as one levelled up¡ªsses did too. Aside from the attribute points they provided based on their grade, certain stats would be boosted depending on the ss''s specialty. The Necromancer ss, for instance, granted 0.1 points to strength and constitution, 0.3 in agility, and 0.5 in intelligence, along with 4 attribute points.


    ''Necromancers are basically paper defences. A punch from a simr-level warrior ss could probably take out more than half my health,'' Michael thought immediately.


    He also began to understand why people in the forum kept emphasising that power ultimately depended on the Awakener themselves.


    sses, race, cultivation, resources that could raise stats, stats themselves, and attribute points¡ªif one utilised these things wisely, even an Awakener with a tailor ss could be deadly.


    The more Michael read, the more excited he became about the future. He couldn''t wait to enter the Land of Origin, but he knew he couldn''t rush in without making proper preparations.


    Yes, preparations.


    As an Awakener, he was naturally bound to enter the Land of Origin, but ording to the forum, it wasn''t all sunshine and rainbows there¡ªespecially for new Awakeners.


    In a "Tips for Newbies" forum post, which was even starred by the Supers Association, Michael learned that when an Awakener entered the Land of Origin for the first time, their initial location was random. It could be near an active volcano, a frozen wastnd, or even in a monster''s nest.


    However, there was a bnce: ording to the post, it would be something a new Awakener should be able to handle theoretically, and Michael didn''t like the sound of that¡ªhence his need to prepare.


    Even the experiencedmenters in the post emphasised the importance of preparation.


    Thanks to the post, Michael also understood why the Supers Association provided such generous funds. It was indeed meant for resources!


    In the Supers Association tform, aside from the main forum, there was also a store section.


    Michael saw a myriad of goods there that left him in awe.


    ***


    [Refined Iron Dagger¡­]


    [Price: $230]


    ...


    [Refined Iron Spear¡­]


    [Price: $285]


    ...


    [Health Potion¡­]


    [Price: $500]


    ...


    [Leather Pants¡­]


    ...


    [Leather Shoes¡­]


    ...


    [Leather Upper Body Armor¡­]


    ...


    Michael searched for items rmended for newbies and picked the ones he liked.


    The store had two delivery methods: picking up at the Supers Association or opting for home delivery.


    Michael decisively chose thetter. If he could avoid leaving home, why should he move? Plus,pared to the total cost of the items he bought, the delivery fee was ''cheaper.''


    Including the delivery fee, Michael spent a total of $4,328. Just like that, a third of the $15,000 the Supers Association had given him was gone.


    ''The Supers Association is really scummy!'' Michael pouted in pain as he connected his ount to the Supers Association tform and watched his money disappear.


    Michael did not regret buying the items, though.


    Even though death in the Land of Origin wasn''t real death, if he could prevent it, why shouldn''t he? The penalty for dying was harsh: losing 10% of all stats permanently for each death. The ''dead'' Awakener would also be unable to re-enter the Land of Origin for a while.


    Perhaps this penalty wouldn''t be as severe for new Awakeners, but it was a big deal for the real powerhouses. Imagine having 100 points in all stats and watching 10 permanently disappear. It was a pretty harsh punishment for the top-tier Awakeners.


    After all, the stronger one was, the harder it was to increase a stat. It wasn''t just numbers at that point¡ªa 1-point stat increase for a level 100 Awakener could very well be the equivalent of 10 points for Michael.


    After cing his order, the Supers Association tform confirmed that his items would be delivered before noon the next day, which Michael was quite satisfied with.


    ''It''s not toote to enter the Land of Origin tomorrow anyway. It''s even better. I''m too exhausted to do anything now.''


    Michael was also very hungry. He had learned a lot of information, which significantly filled the gaps in his understanding. Anything else he needed to know could be searched for slowly in the future. For now, Michael just wanted to sleep and wait for the new day to arrive before entering the Land of Origin.


    He was excited, but he had his priorities straight.


    Michael put aside his phone and was just about to carry the te he''d used earlier when a knock came at his door.


    "Come in," he said reflexively.


    When he saw who was on the other side, he was surprised.


    "Aunt?"


    Yes, it was indeed Aunt Mia. Michael had been so engrossed in the Supers Association forum that he hadn''t noticed anyone entering the house.


    "Seems like our new Awakener has been busy," Aunt Mia teased as she made her way to Michael''s bed and made herselffortable.


    "Aunt Mia," Michael said, a little embarrassed by the title, but a happy smile bloomed on his face. He could see a smile on Aunt Mia''s face, too, one that was threatening to widen¡ªand hidden within, he could also see that she was proud of him.


    One must know that both Michaels, from Earth and Aurora, had only experienced true parental love from one person, and that was Aunt Mia. Both had be orphans at a very young age, and Aunt Mia was a mother figure to them¡ªespecially to the Michael originally from this world. Though Aunt Mia had a short stature, her blue eyes held the gaze of a mother looking at her child.


    Michael greeted her respectfully, and he was happy that she was happy.


    Before he could speak, Aunt Mia beat him to it.


    "Lily told me about your little adventure today."


    Michael silently clicked his tongue in annoyance. Perhaps he shouldn''t have told Lily anything at all; now the news he should have delivered himself hade through someone else. But, since it was all family, it didn''t really matter.


    "The amount of money the Association gave you is really big, but be careful with it, Michael," Aunt Mia said anxiously. In her eyes, Michael was still a young boy. She had no interest in his money, but she was worried about his spending habits. Though Michael''s past record of handling money reassured her, this time the amount was so muchrger, and she couldn''t help but worry that he might waste it.


    "And don''t mind your silly cousin. There''s no need¡­"


    "Aunt Mia," Michael called out, his tone serious, cutting her off before she could continue. He already knew what she wanted to say, but he didn''t want to hear it.


    His family was his motivation, his drive. Now that he could finally provide for them, how could she refuse? Michael felt dissatisfied.


    "Aunt Mia, the money the Association gave me¡ªwell, a big chunk of it is for my well-being, so you don''t have to worry about anything."


    As he spoke, Michael had already pulled out his phone, ready to transfer a portion of the funds to her.


    "Michael!" Aunt Mia eximed anxiously. She didn''t entirely believe his words and feared he was going to inconvenience himself for her.


    In fact, she was right. But did Michael care? No, he didn''t. This was likely a stupid decision but for once, at least one, Michael wanted to satisfy his selfish desire.


    And also, If he ended up broke, he could wait for more funds toe in next month, all the while working hard in other areas.


    Michael wasn''t afraid of hard work. Ironically, hard work was what had killed the Michael in this world.


    The hopeful fool had seen a rumour online that if one trained hard enough toe close to bing a knight, the chance of Awakening would be higher.


    The original Michael knew this was nonsense, but feeling unlucky and with many "responsibilities" on his shoulders, he pushed himself too hard. In the end, he died, allowing Michael from Earth to take his ce.


    "It''s okay, Aunt Mia. You don''t know this, but the Supers Association is still going to give me more resources soon," Michael said, lying with a straight face.


    It was, of course, impossible. The Association wasn''t going to do more for him; they weren''t his family, and even some families couldn''t always provide that much.


    "A-Are you lying to me?" Aunt Mia asked, a little uncertain.


    "You know I''d never lie to you, Aunt Mia," he said, delivering another lie with an innocent face. This time, he felt a slight pang of guilt but didn''t let it show.


    Aunt Mia looked conflicted, her expression reflecting her mixed feelings.


    Michael noticed her hesitation and knew he had to strike while the iron was hot.


    "Also, since bing an Awakener, I can feel my appetite slowly increasing. We''ll need more food at home, Aunt Mia." Michael spoke with a feigned look of seriousness, but just in time, his stomach rumbled, adding authenticity to his words.


    This convinced Aunt Mia a little. What made her trust his words even more was his status as an Awakener.


    As an Awakener, he should be valued by the Federation, right? she thought. Like most adults, she knew of the Federation''s admiration for Awakeners, though she didn''t know that while they valued Awakeners, they weren''t exactly looking to pamper them.


    Finally, Aunt Mia chose to believe Michael.


    "Okay," she agreed.


    Happy, Michael immediately transferred some money to her.


    "Feel free to use it as you like, Aunt Mia. And please, get a few things that Lily enjoys too," he added with confidence, like a rich man.


    Just then, Aunt Mia''s phone buzzed, showing a bank notification of a $5,000 credit.


    Aunt Mia was speechless and was about to scold Michael when he spoke again.


    "Trust me, Aunt Mia. This money is nothing to me now. Didn''t Lily mention that I''ll be getting money every month?"


    Aunt Mia nodded reluctantly. If he was telling the truth, her little Michael could indeed afford to spend money like this.


    However, she decided that, while she''d use some of the money for the family''s well-being, she''d save the rest until she could confirm his words.


    Seeing that he''d sessfully convinced his aunt, Michael secretly sighed in relief as a smile appeared on his face.


    "You''re hungry, right? I brought some cake and snacks on my way back. Want some?" Aunt Mia asked, remembering the "thunder" that had erupted from his stomach earlier.


    "Yes, I''d love some, Aunt Mia."


    After confirming, Aunt Mia took the te Michael had nned to carry out earlier and left the room, returning shortly with some snacks. They shared a few more words before Aunt Mia left, and Michael''s room finally fell quiet.


    Soon, the soft sound of his snores filled the room.


    Michael slept with a smile on his face that night.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Today had been the best day of his life, even if it was just as stressful.

 Chapter 11 Land Of Origin

    The next morning, Michael woke up feeling refreshed. Although his mind felt clearer after his Awakening, the mental exhaustion wasn''t so easy to shake off.


    Fortunately, a good night''s sleep was the perfect remedy.


    Michael didn''t immediately get up from his bed but sat on the edge, reminiscing about the events of the previous day.


    ''It''s amazing how quickly life can change,'' Michael thought happily. He couldn''t have asked for a better turn of events.


    And the best part was still yet toe.


    ''Today''s the day I enter the Land of Origin! I wonder what I''ll encounter!'' Michael''s excitement grew as he thought about the new day ahead.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    After shaking off the lingering drowsiness from waking up, Michael stood up and opened the shades of his windows, letting the morning light flood into his room.


    ''It''s quite bright. What time is it now?''


    He walked over to his desk, picked up his phone, and saw that it was just past 8 in the morning.


    He really had gotten a good night''s sleep.


    ''Aunt Mia should have gone to work by now. Lily should also be in school.''


    With that thought, Michael left his room to check if anyone else was still in the house, but as he had expected, it was empty except for him.


    Although it was still a while until noon when his delivery from the Supers Association was due to arrive, Michael decided to freshen up and wait. After all, the delivery was supposed to arrive before noon, which meant there was a chance it coulde earlier. And he didn''t want to leave the apartment without bathing.


    Besides, once he received his order, he nned to enter the Land of Origin immediately. He really couldn''t wait any longer.


    Since he had some time, Michael decided to clean up the house.


    ''My ssmates would probably never believe that even an Awakener still has to clean,'' Michael mused.


    Awakeners were like celebrities here, even though little was known about them except for a few clips of them in action. Just like celebrities back on Earth, there were some overzealous fans who probably couldn''t imagine their favourite person doing something as mundane as using the toilet.


    As a few mischievous thoughts crossed his mind, a smile appeared on Michael''s face as he happily cleaned up whatever he could around the house.


    After finishing his chores, Michael brushed his teeth, took a bath, and got dressed. Since the delivery still hadn''t arrived, he served himself some leftover rice from the previous day and browsed the Supers Association forum on his phone while eating.


    Never in either of Michael''s lives had he been so interested in studying. It was understandable though¡ªwhile the information was important and somewhatplicated, it felt like it had been pulled straight out of a fantasy novel, making it far more immersive than academic subjects.


    Time passed like this, and a little past 11 in the morning, Michael received a phone call from an unknown number.


    Curious and a bit wary, Michael picked up the call.


    "Is this Mr. Norman?" a voice came through the phone. Hearing the question, Michael immediately guessed who was on the other end.


    "Yes, I am," Michael replied as he stood up.


    "That''s great. Mr. Norman, I''m here with your delivery. I''m currently in front of your apartment building, but I don''t know which floor you live on."


    "Don''t worry, I''ll meet you there. Please wait for me," Michael said, already stepping outside his apartment and closing the door behind him.


    Perhaps because the apartment building was old, or maybe because the owner was too cheap, there was no elevator¡ªresidents had to use the stairs to reach their floors. It was probably for the best, since if there was an elevator, the rent would likely be higher, and many residents wouldn''t be able to afford living here.


    Luckily, Michael''s apartment was on the second floor, so it didn''t take long for him to meet up with the delivery man who had brought his goods from the Supers Association.


    When Michael saw the appearance of the delivery man, he was a little taken aback.


    The man seemed to be in histe 30s and had a huge physique, but that wasn''t what caught Michael''s attention. What drew his eye was the mechanical limb the man had in ce of his right hand.


    This world was advanced enough that losing a limb wasn''t considered a serious issue anymore. One could easily get a mechanical recement that functioned almost like the real thing, except forcking a sense of touch¡ªand, of course, being expensive.


    However, most people with mechanical limbs also purchased artificial skin to cover them, which was both realistic and far cheaper than the limb itself.


    There were generally only two types of people who went without artificial skin on their mechanical limbs: those who couldn''t afford it and those with a particr sense of style.


    Seeing as the delivery man wore clothing that deliberately exposed his mechanical arm, he was probably thetter.


    However, Michael couldn''t deny that the man looked quite cool with the exposed mechanical arm¡ªalmost heroic, even.


    "Are you Mr. Norman?" the delivery man politely asked as he saw Michael approaching.


    "Yes, I am. I assume you have my order?" Michael replied, nodding in response to the greeting from the delivery man''s partner, who was still in the van.


    After confirming Michael''s identity, the delivery man quickly began offloading Michael''s order from the van. There were quite a few items, and even with his improved stats from awakening, Michael knew he''d be left sweating after transporting everything to his apartment. Thankfully, the delivery man with the mechanical limb offered to help, which Michael greatly appreciated.


    Back in the living room of his apartment, Michael stared at the packages on the ground in front of him, feeling a twinge of pain.


    "Four thousand dors! Four thousand dors!" Every time he repeated it, it felt like a knife stabbing into his heart, even as his hands eagerly opened the boxes.


    Michael hadn''t gone overboard just because he had some money in his ount when he ordered from the Supers Association store. He had simply followed the rmended list of items for entering the Land of Origin for the first time and selected those he liked.


    Half an hourter, Michael had opened all his deliveries and ced their contents into the storage space within his Mark of Origin.


    New Awakeners usually didn''t haverge spatial spaces in their marks, but it was more than enough for Michael''s current needs.


    He didn''t change into any of the leather armour he bought or equip himself with any weapons because, ording to the forum, nothing on the Awakener follows them into the Land of Origin. Only items stored in the Mark of Origin could be brought in, so everything Michael thought he needed was already stored there.


    Taking several deep breaths, Michael made his way into his room, feeling anticipation, excitement, and a bit of nervousness. ording to the forum, connecting one''s consciousness with the Land of Origin meant leaving it behind in the real world, so his body had to be ced in a suitable position before leaving.


    Michael decided to lie down on his bed.


    ''Let''s do this!''


    He concentrated on the mark on his hand, trying to connect his consciousness with the Land of Origin. Since it was his first time, it wasn''t easy, but thankfully, the Land of Origin was an innate part of every Awakener. It didn''t take long for him to finally seed.


    Michael''s right hand, which was raised in the real world, slowly fell as his body began to softly snore.

 Chapter 12 Reality Different From Expection

    [New Chosen detected!]


    [Chosen Identity confirmed!]


    [You have gained a new skill {Detect}!]


    ****


    After reading more about the Land of Origin, Michael often wondered where his initial location would be.


    Would it be in the middle of a forest? An open in? Or maybe dangerously close to a monster nest?


    There were endless possibilities, and Michael''s imagination ran wild. He hoped that as long as it wasn''t anywhere near monsters, he''d be fine.


    But when Michael opened his eyes, he found himself in a dark room with ck brick walls covered in moss. If not for the holes in the roof allowing in some sunlight, the room would have been pitch ck.


    A foul odour filled the air, making Michael gag in disgust.


    "What is this smell? Rotting garbage? Or¡­ worse?"


    ''No, that''s not important right now! Where on earth am I?''


    If he hadn''t registered with the Supers Association and gained ess to information about the Land of Origin, he might have panicked. However, though Michael knew each Awakener''s initial location was random, he wasn''t exactly thrilled. The problem wasn''t the location itself but the disgusting smell.


    Though he wanted to leave immediately, Michael resisted the urge to move.


    His current location wasn''t the worst; at least there were no monsters or erupting volcanoes nearby. But he knew it was better to proceed with caution until he learned more about his surroundings. This wasn''t just his own hunch¡ªexperienced Awakeners had emphasised caution multiple times in the "Tips for New Awakeners" forum post.


    ''First step, observe your surroundings.''


    Michael turned to inspect the wall beside him.


    [Wall]


    A wall made of old, weathered bricks.


    ''Figures,'' Michael thought sarcastically as he read the description. He wasn''t surprised by its sudden appearance, having expected it.


    This information was thanks to a new skill he had gained¡ªactually, one that every Awakener received upon entering the Land of Origin for the first time: {Detect}.


    Much like in games, the {Detect} skill allowed the user to gather information about specific objects they focused on. It was an essential skill for both new and experienced Awakeners alike.


    However, {Detect} had its limitations. For one, it couldn''t reveal information about living beings significantly stronger than the user. If the target was more than 20 levels above the user, {Detect} simply wouldn''t work. Conversely, the skill provided more detailed information when the user''s level was significantly higher than that of the target.


    {Detect} could also improve over time, providing more details as the user''s knowledge grew.


    Shifting his focus away from the room''s wall, Michael took a moment to observe his own ''body'' in this world.


    As expected, nothing from Aurora had followed him¡ªnot even his clothes. Thankfully, he wasn''t naked; he was dressed in simple clothing simr to whatmoners wore in the mediaeval ages on Earth.


    Aside from the clothing, there was nothing else of note on him.


    Now that he had a basic understanding of his surroundings, Michael decided it was time to explore. But before leaving the room, he decided to arm himself, just in case.


    There was no sign of monsters outside, but it was better to be safe than sorry. Michael had read plenty of stories on the forum about the unfortunate fates of new Awakeners, and he had no intention of dying on his first day.


    The first thing Michael retrieved from his storage space was the leather armour he had bought from the Association. While better armour existed, those options were either too expensive or impractical for him at this stage.


    Enduring the urge to gag from the foul smell around him, Michael quickly but quietly donned his leather armour.


    ''Time to arm myself.''


    Michael had purchased three types of weapons from the Association: two melee weapons and one firearm. He had been surprised he could get thetter without anyplications¡ªapparently, his status as an Awakener was all the "licence" he needed.


    Guns were effective in the Land of Origin, so he decided to bring one along. Compared to the spear and dagger he''d purchased, he felt much safer with a firearm. Though he''d never held a gun in either of his lives, let alone fired one, it offered a few clear advantages over melee weapons. For one, he could attack from a distance, and even if he missed, he could fire additional shots quickly.


    Of course, guns also had their drawbacks. For instance, the noise could attract unwanted attention, like nearby monsters. Michael had considered this and even read about it on the forum, so he also bought a silencer for his gun.


    ''Guns are one of the best tools to have in the early stages, but they quickly be obsolete as one grows stronger. Like the experienced Awakeners in the forum said, personal strength is still the most important thing here.''


    After loading his gun and removing the safety, he rxed his tense shoulders and made his way out of the dark room.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Even if his first impression of the Land of Origin wasn''t what he had expected, Michael''s excitement about this new world remained undiminished.

 Chapter 13 First Kill

    ''Besides civilizations like Aurora, which are connected to the Land of Origin through Awakeners, there are also native civilizations. This building seems to be a remnant of the past, now abandoned,'' Michael observed.


    After leaving the dark room where he first appeared, he found himself in a wide corridor that was dimly lit, saved only by holes in the distant ceiling.


    If the roof weren''t so far out of reach, he would''ve tried breaking out rather than wandering around as he was now.


    Thanks to the venttion provided by the holes in the ceiling, Michael''s movements did not cause an echo.


    As he moved further, Michael also identified the source of the foul odour filling the air.


    ''Slimes.''


    These magical creatures looked like harmless, solidified liquid, but they were far from it, secreting acid with a stench just as terrible. Slimes moved by "crawling" and could "hop" to attack.


    The foul smell he''d encountered came from a slime trail left outside the room he''d started in.


    Michael wasn''t sure if the same slime was nearby, but after a while of exploring this vast, seemingly empty building, he encountered one.


    [Acid Slime Lv. 4]


    [Rank: Common¡ï¡ï]


    A harmless-looking slime that shoots acid.


    ''Devious enough,'' he thought.


    Slimes happened to be one of the creatures Michael had read about in a forum post titled ''Common Monsters in the Land of Origin'' while waiting for his delivery. Interestingly, the post''s author was the same person behind ''Tips for New Awakeners'' ¡ªa Level 5 member of the Supers Association.


    Michael wasn''t sure what being a Level 5 member meant, but he thought it sounded impressive.


    In ''Common Monsters in the Land of Origin,'' creatures like slimes and goblins were described with pictures attached, so even before using {Detect} on the Acid Slime, Michael already knew what it was. What he hadn''t expected was for something like the Acid Slime to exist.


    It looked vastly different from the cute, blue slime he''d seen in the post, but since the Awakener had mentioned there were many slime variants, he wasn''t too surprised in the end.


    ''A two-starmon-rank monster. Guess that says a lot about its freakish nature.''


    Michael didn''t know if it was the Acid Slime''s slightly grotesque appearance, the terrible stench, or its ability to shoot acid that bothered him most.


    In the Land of Origin, there were seven known ranks for monsters, from low to high: Common, Rare, Extraordinary, Epic, Legendary, Mythical, and Demigod. Each rank had three mini-grades called stars¡ªlike one-star Common, two-star Common, two-star Rare, and so on.


    Both monsters and items followed this ranking system. For items, the stars indicated efficiency and quality, while for monsters, they represented potential. Every star in a monster''s rank allowed up to seven levels, so a two-starmon-rank Acid Slime, like the one in front of Michael, could potentially reach level 14.


    ''A rank 1, level 4 slime that shoots acid. Sure enough, this slime is too freakish. Whatever happened to being just cute, huh?''


    Though Michael''s thoughts seemed scattered, he was actually weighing whether to confront the Acid Slime or retreat. Although the slime was over three levels above him, slimes were considered some of the weakest monsters, making them rtively easy to kill if one prepared well.


    Michael hadn''t forgotten his main goal, shared by all Awakeners entering the Land of Origin¡ªto get stronger, and the quickest way to do that was levelling up.


    And as a necromancer, he''d eventually need undead summons, so he would have to kill something, or he''d be a "fake" necromancer at the end of the day.


    Levelling up allowed for custom stat allocation, which meant Michael could technically build himself like a warrior, but ignoring his ss''s strengths would make him mediocre. There was no reset button for Awakeners who carelessly wasted their potential.


    ''Too bad slimes don''t leave a body behind, or I could''ve finally used my ss skills to revive something.''


    Of course, he wasn''t entirely serious; even if the slime did leave a body, he wouldn''t be eager to contract such a smelly creature unless he was desperate.


    In a way, encountering a slime first wasn''t bad news. Any other monster might have been a significant challenge, while slimes, especially Acid Slimes, were known for their slow movement. Still, he couldn''t let his guard down¡ªa leather armour alone wouldn''t be enough to protect him from an acid shot.


    After a moment''s thought, Michael finally decided to see if he could turn this Acid Slime into experience points¡ªor end up as its food.


    ''Let''s do this!''


    Suppressing the urge to take a deep breath to steady his nerves, he rushed out from his hiding spot and began firing at the football-sized green monster about 10 metres away.


    Ptui!


    Bang!


    Ptui!


    Bang!


    Ptui!


    Bang!


    "¡­."


    Three shots, and he missed every one.


    The Acid Slime finally seemed to notice him, "turning" to "look" at him, vibrating in a way that seemed almost angry¡ªor so Michael thought.


    He hadn''t expected his aim to be this poor, even at a distance of 10 metres. Sure, the slime''s small size made it a tricky target, but why were his bullets missing entirely? Michael wanted to me the recoil, but his enhanced Awakener body made that excuse weak.


    ''My aim is truly terrible,'' he thought, frowning. He readied himself to shoot again, but before he could, the slime fired a jet of acid straight at him.


    "Shit!" Michael dodged hurriedly, but a drop of acid managed to hit his unarmored arm.


    "Ahhh!" He stifled a scream as a burning pain shot through him. In that moment, he realised he''d heavily underestimated the Acid Slime.


    But there was no time to dwell on the pain. The slimeunched another acid shot, which Michael dodged sessfully this time¡ªbut his confidence was wavering.


    Sweat dripped down his forehead as he struggled to ignore the searing pain in his arm, his left hand now useless as he aimed with just his right. The second attack had finally angered him. uracy be damned¡ªhe started shooting wildly in the slime''s direction.


    Ptui!


    Bang!


    Ptui!


    Bang!


    Ptui!


    Ptui!


    Ptui!


    Most shots missed, but his burst of frustration began to inflict some damage, even if only a little.


    Soon, all thirty bullets in Michael''s gun were exhausted.


    As he fled from the acid slime, now slightly smaller but still hopping after him, he followed the marks he''d made with his dagger on several walls to avoid getting lost in the vast, abandoned building. He tried to reload, but the pain in his left arm made it difficult, causing him to drop several clips.


    The worst part was that the slime''s hopping speed was only slightly slower than his own, keeping him within its attack range. Though his leather armour protected his back and legs, he could still feel the heat closing in.


    After several failed attempts, Michael finally managed to reload and resumed a frantic shooting spree at the slime. This process repeated a few more times until, with a lucky shot, he damaged the core inside the slime, finally killing it.


    ---


    [You killed a Common¡ï¡ï LV 4 Acid Slime]


    [You''ve gained 45 Experience Points]


    [You killed a monster three levels higher than your own, earning a 4x experience multiplier]


    [You''ve gained 180 Experience Points]


    [Level Up!]


    [You have levelled up to Level 2!]


    [You have learned the skill {Basic Shot}!]


    ---


    "Ahhh!"


    On his first day in the Land of Origin, Michael had almost been taken down by one of the weakest monsters¡ªa slime.N?v(el)B\\jnn

 Chapter 14 New Skill

    ---


    [You''ve levelled up to Level 2 Human!]


    [You''ve gained 0.2 stat points in Strength, Agility, and Constitution. You''ve gained 0.5 stat points in Intelligence.]


    [You have gained 2 Attribute points!]


    [You''ve levelled up to Level 2 Necromancer Apprentice!]


    [You''ve gained 0.1 stat points in Strength and Constitution, 0.3 stat points in Agility, and 0.5 stat points in Intelligence.]


    [You have gained 4 Attribute points!]


    ---


    Michael hardly registered the notifications. It felt like he was about to die, his whole body burning as if it were engulfed in mes. A section of his left arm looked mutted, horrifying to even nce at.


    Suppressing the urge to scream, Michael took out one of the health potions he''d bought from the Supers Association store. He hadn''t imagined he''d need it less than two hours after first stepping into the Land of Origin.


    Despite the warnings about not treating the Land of Origin like a game, part of him still had. It fueled his excitement, filling him with visions of levelling up like the protagonist in some cheap novel, rising to the peak of this world and beyond.


    Perhaps it was his ''teenage'' optimism that kept him hopeful, or maybe he was unconsciously slipping into the role of an 18-year-old despite already being an adult back on Earth.


    With shaky hands, Michael poured half of the health potion over his injured arm and drank the rest. Gradually, the pain began to fade.


    The potion worked like magic, and Michael watched in awe as new flesh formed over his wounds. A scar remained, likely due to the potion''s grade, but he didn''t care. As long as the terrible pain was gone, he could deal with the restter.


    ''I almost died,'' Michael thought. Death in the Land of Origin wasn''t permanent, but he''d undeniablye close¡ªagainst one of the weakest monsters here, no less.


    ''I''m pathetic. Too naive, too inexperienced, too reckless. If I''d just kept my distance from that acid slime, I wouldn''t be in this mess.''


    What Michael didn''t realise was that his performance, while far from perfect, would have impressed most veteran Awakeners. He had not only seeded in killing a monster on his first encounter but had also taken down an opponent several levels higher than him. Despite being "just" a slime, it was still superior to him.


    Michael also misunderstood that, though slimes were among the weakest monsters in the Land of Origin, that reputation applied only from a certain perspective. The writer of the post calling slimes weak was already a powerful being qualified to look down on slimes. For many, especially new Awakeners, slimes were no joke, and underestimating them had been Michael''s first mistake.


    Both the Michael from Earth and the one from Aurora shared a tendency to be unrelenting with themselves. Growing up as an orphan had forced him to mature quickly and shoulder responsibilities, leaving him with little patience for his own mistakes. This same trait made him feel little sense of aplishment at defeating the slime he subconsciously disdained as "weak."


    After sitting in silence for a long while, Michael''s messy emotions finally calmed, and he began to focus on other things.


    ''This scar won''t follow me to the real world, right?'' Michael nced uncertainly at the ugly scar on his left arm.


    Something remarkable about the bodies of Awakeners in the Land of Origin was how closely they mirrored those in the real world. They could be considered perfect "clones" in sync with their counterparts. This replication was soplete that even pain was experienced just as intensely here as in reality.


    Recalling his recent encounter with the acid slime sent a shiver down Michael''s spine.


    ''I hope I don''t develop PTSD over slimes. That would be too pathetic.''


    After examining the scar a bit longer, Michael decided it was unlikely to follow him back to reality. The primary function of this body was to synchronise any strength he gained here with his real body. However, it seemed he''d have to bear the scar here until he "died."


    ording to posts on the Supers Association forum, an Awakener''s body in the Land of Origin functioned much like a real one¡ªindependent from the original, requiring food and other sustenance. It wasn''t just data like in a game. This was also why "death" here only counted if the entire body or major organs were destroyed. Losing a limb wouldn''t kill him, but it would leave him crippled in this world.


    To regain a fully functional body, his current one would have to be destroyed so a new one could "reconstruct" the next time his consciousness entered the Land of Origin.


    To put it simply, one could reconstruct a body they didn''t like by "killing" themselves. However, aside from the fact that many were not sick enough to consider this, even seasoned Awakeners would rather be crippled than end their own lives. This was because death in this world, while not permanent, still resulted in a 10 percent permanent reduction in all stats. Not many could afford that loss.


    So, even though death wasn''t truly final here, most Awakeners took their "lives" seriously.


    By now, Michael had recovered from his "life-and-death" battle with the acid slime and could finally focus on something he''d been putting off.


    ''I levelled up!''


    Though his performance against the acid slime left much to be desired, Michael wouldn''t turn down the experience points. He had a problem with the slime, not with its generous experience reward.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    ''Status''


    ---


    [Name: Michael Norman]


    [ss: Necromancer Apprentice]


    [Level: 2(1^)]


    [EXP: 80/250]


    [Strength: 1.6(0.3^)]


    [Agility: 1.9(0.5^)]


    [Constitution: 1.4(0.3^)]


    [Intelligence: 5.5(1.0^)]


    [Attribute Points: 6]


    [Skills: Undead Summoning, Undead Revival, Detect, Basic Shot(NEW!)]


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    [ss Skill: Contract Slot{0/4}]


    [Gift: Mark Of Origin]


    ¡ª


    Compared to how it looked when he first awakened, Michael''s status screen now appeared significantly different.


    The first thing he noticed wasn''t the change in his level or stats but his skills section. Aside from the two ss skills he''d had since awakening, entering the Land of Origin had granted him two more, which stood out.


    Michael already knew the function of his first three skills: {Undead Summoning}, a primary skill that allowed him to summon and dismiss undead at will; {Undead Revival}, his true core skill, enabling him to create undead summons in the first ce; and {Detect}, a basic scouting skill used for gathering information.


    Now, there was a new addition.


    [{Basic Shot} (Basic Mastery) Proficiency: 0.6%]


    Fires a single, urate shot at the target with standard damage.


    ''Hmm, seems like something that belongs to the Archer ss,'' Michael thought.


    Michael was, in fact, correct. {Basic Shot} wasn''t just any ordinary skill for the Archer ss; it was one of its core skills, akin to how {Undead Revival} was for him.


    But since this was an Archer ss skill, how¡ªand why¡ªcould Michael learn it?


    ss skills were called "ss skills" not because only one ss could learn them but because specific sses could maximise their potential.


    For example, {Undead Revival} was a skill other sses could technically learn, but non-necromancers couldn''t make full use of it. Even if another Awakener learned {Undead Revival} and {Undead Summoning}, the number of undead summons they could control would be limited, unlike necromancers like Michael, who unlocked extra slots with each level up.


    Interestingly, contract slots were also used to gauge talent for sses like necromancers and beast tamers. Just because two individuals awakened the same ss didn''t mean they were on equal footing¡ªespecially when it came to contract slots. For instance, Michael had two starting contract slots, gaining two more with each level.


    However, there were rare individuals with five starting slots, meaning that by level 10, while Michael would have 20 slots, they would have 50. This was one way sses reliant on contracts were graded.


    Returning to ss skills: ss skills weren''t exclusive to specific sses but were optimised by them. When non-necromancer sses learned {Undead Revival}, they would start at {Basic Mastery}, and raising proficiency would be challenging. In contrast, necromancers like Michael would start at {Intermediate Mastery} for skills like {Undead Revival} or any necromancer-centric ability.


    This applied to other ss systems as well.


    Michael sessfully learned {Basic Shot}, but his mastery began at {Basic Mastery}, whereas Archers would automatically start at {Intermediate Mastery} for this skill, whether they received it at awakening or learned itter.


    ''This skill should make up for my terrible shooting a bit,'' Michael thought happily. He had no intention of avoiding more monsters just because of his experience with the acid slime. Though he didn''t enjoy pain¡ªwho would?¡ªhe wasn''t a coward.


    Shifting his focus away from his new skill, Michael began to examine the changes that had urred after levelling up.

 Chapter 15 Killing More Slimes

    ---


    [Name: Michael Norman]


    [ss: Necromancer Apprentice]


    [Level: 2(1^)]


    [EXP: 80/250]


    [Strength: 1.6(0.3^)]


    [Agility: 1.9(0.5^)]


    [Constitution: 1.4(0.3^)]


    [Intelligence: 5.5(1.0^)]


    [Attribute Points: 6]


    [Skills: Undead Summoning, Undead Revival, Detect, Basic Shot(NEW!)]


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    [ss Skill: Contract Slot{0/4}]


    [Gift: Mark Of Origin]


    ¡ª


    "My stats have increased," was the first thing Michael noticed. He hadn''t felt anything earlier, which made sense, as pain had been all-consuming.


    But after seeing the digital representation of his stat increase, Michael paid attention to his body and finally noticed it. He stood up and tried a few movements to gauge how much his stats had risen.


    ''So this is what it means to level up,'' he thought in awe.


    Since his Awakening, this was only the second time Michael felt his body was "different." He figured it would only be more pronounced as he levelled up. Now he was only level 2, but what about when he reached levels like 50? By then, even his less relevant stats for his ss, like strength and constitution, would likely reach superhuman levels.


    Among his stats, Michael noticed that intelligence had increased the most. However, it was currently useless, as he had no way to use mana yet.


    The intelligence stat didn''t make one smarter; it simply represented an Awakener''s total mana and their ability to learn things quickly, like spells.


    Thanks to his human race and necromancer ss, which each provided 0.5 stat points in intelligence, Michael now had almost six times the average intelligence of a typical human.


    The stat system for Awakeners factored in their race to determine their strengths. Even before Awakening, Michael had known races like elves existed in the Land of Origin¡ªand some of these elves weren''t native but from civilizations like Aurora, where Awakeners also resided.


    For example, an elf with a strength stat of "one" would have it scaled ording to their natural physique. So, if elves were naturally stronger than humans, a single point increase in their strength stat might equate to what would be two points for humans. This system reminded Michael of the ss system, where some sses had inherent advantages over others.


    However, all these differences were meaningless to him now, as he was still lost in the middle of nowhere.


    The next biggest boost went to his agility stat, with the mage-type necromancer ss surprisingly contributing the most points.


    Agility affect movement speed, reaction time, dodge ability, and attack speed.


    Michael wondered what a mage ss like necromancer would benefit from agility, but he made a note to research itter.


    After intelligence and agility, strength and constitution received the lowest enhancements.


    Strength impacted physical power, melee attack damage, carrying capacity, and physical feats.


    Constitution affected health, endurance, resistance to physical and elemental damage, and environmental factors.


    Michael knew these stats would have been even lower without the boosts from levelling up as a human. If his stats depended solely on his necromancer ss, his mana pool might be vast, but even a lower-level physical ss could probably take him down with a single punch.


    Despite the seemingly small gains, he felt his overall performance had improved by at least 30%.


    ''And this is only from one level up¡­ I need more experience!''


    The surge in power was addicting. Despite the ordeal with the slime, Michael had no intention of shying away. Ever since seeing that video of a Demigod Cultivator in action, he''d vowed to reach a simr level of strength. A single, bad encounter with a slime wasn''t going to change that.


    However, the experience had taught him to be more cautious. If he were to face slimes again, he''d either have to use his brains or suppress them with power.


    He didn''t consider himself dumb, but he wouldn''t exactly call himself smart either. After all, an intelligent person wouldn''t have just attacked a level 4 monster, regardless of its species, with the desperation of an experience-hungry dog¡ªand he''d been just that.


    But if he wanted to use power to suppress any slimes he encountered...¡­ Michael''s gaze drifted to his attribute points on the panel.


    Maybe, just maybe, they could help him...


    [Attribute Points: 6]n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om

 Chapter 16 Increasing Strength

    Michael wouldn''t im to know much about his new reality just because he spent a few hours on the Supers Association forum. But thanks to those hours of studying, he could say he knew much more about Awakeners now than before.


    Aside from a few other things, there was one thing all Awakeners wanted regardless of race.


    Attribute points.


    With each point representing the entire power of an average individual of their respective race¡ªan instant boost.


    And right now.


    Michael had six of these points he could use to instantly strengthen himself.


    ''Which stat would maximise these points and help me most right now?'' Michael wondered. At this moment, he needed something to boost his survivability and strength, and apart from external items, only these Attribute Points could help.


    Michael examined his stats, considering which of the four would best support him in his current situation.


    [Strength: 1.6]


    [Agility: 1.9]


    [Constitution: 1.4]


    [Intelligence: 5.5]


    [Attribute Points: 6]


    Michael''s initial location could be described as odd. At first nce, it didn''t seem particrly dangerous, but it also couldn''t be called safe.


    It might be a stretch tobel it dangerous because of a single slime, but that slime¡ªa genuine monster¡ª also made this ce questionable.


    What if there were more monsters? And what if they weren''t slimes?


    Michael didn''t like slimes, but he felt they were probably the best kind of monster he could currently handle solo.


    If the acid slime had a stat system, it would likely have allocated 90% of its stats to intelligence, 8% to agility, and the remaining 2% split between strength and constitution¡ªjust enough to live.


    This is rough estimation, but it was obvious that, despite being an "acid" slime, its constitution was minimal. Even with gun and bullet technology refined over 200 years, it shouldn''t have been able to kill the slime by destroying its core embedded within its acidic body.


    It was only now, as Michael had time to think, that he realised just how incredibly lucky he''d been.


    If he had encountered any other monster¡ªlike a wolf, with 90% of its stats in agility¡ªhe''d probably be at home right now, cooking something for his cousin.


    Monsters were supernatural beings, so even a wolf''s speed would be terrifying. A normal wolf is already faster than an average human, so a wolf monster would be a nightmare to escape.


    A slime, in contrast, was manageable. With a long-range weapon, it could be defeated without risking close contact. But without one, getting close enough to kill an acid slime was almost suicidal. Just one wrong step could lead to excruciating pain, a worse deterrent than even the consequences of death.


    ''I really hope there''s no monster other than slimes in this building,'' Michael thought. As for hoping for no monsters at all¡ªthat wasn''t his wish; he was greedy for the experience points.


    "Okay, it''s decided. I''ll choose Agility and Constitution."


    For a necromancer to choose these stats seemed wasteful, but Michael had no choice. Right now, he was a "fake" necromancer without a single undead summon or spell to cast. Although Intelligence was his most important stat, it felt useless at the moment. Ironically, investing in it felt like a waste.


    As for why he chose Agility and Constitution, the reasoning was simple: thetter to boost his health and endurance so he could survive longer, and the former so he could run from anything he couldn''t defeat¡ªor at least stay out of reach. He nned to put more points into Agility between the two.


    "I''m really a disgrace to necromancers."


    After a moment''s thought, Michael stopped hesitating and began to increase his stats.


    He first ced two points into Constitution.


    [Constitution: 3.4]


    After increasing his Constitution by two points, Michael immediately felt different.


    A warm sensation spread through his body, leaving him with a subtle sense of increased health. The change was hard to pinpoint, but the most noticeable effect was on his mutted left arm.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Now, with three times the Constitution of an average human, the scar there seemed to fade slightly¡ªnot disappearing, but looking older, as though it had been healing for years. This implied that future scars wouldn''t vanish either; increasing Constitution would only make them appear "healed."


    ''Even though I haven''t ascended to Rank 1 yet, with three times the Constitution of an average human, my lifespan should be pretty long, right?'' Michael wondered. He was uncertain but felt he was on the right track.


    Awakeners had incredibly long lifespans. Rank 1 Awakeners could live up to 200 years¡ªso what about the higher ranks?


    Beyond offering great power, the Land of Origin presented another alluring gift: immortality.


    Michael suspected that for many, immortality was the real prize; power was just a desirable convenience.


    After adjusting to his enhanced Constitution, Michael then allocated points to his Agility stat.


    [Agility: 4.9]


    Compared to Constitution, the effects of increasing Agility were immediate.


    When Michael tried to move his hands, the newfound flexibility and speed made him stumble and almost flip himself over.


    "Amazing!"


    Though in an awkward position, his heart was filled with excitement. Boosting his Agility felt like breaking free from invisible chains that had weighed him down.


    ''Four times the average human speed. I''m practically a mini superhuman in the eyes of ordinary people now. And this is just Level 2! When I advance to the first rank, the stat increase will be even more impressive!''


    Michael was thrilled with his growth, eager to get even stronger. Now, he didn''t fear acid slimes hurting him¡ªhe feared not finding any to fight!


    Before diving into exploring the abandoned building, though, he took a few minutes to adjust to his newfound Agility. After testing his movement, he was stunned.


    "The average human speed is about 100 metres in 10 seconds. I just tried running, and I''m hitting around 80 metres per second! And I think it''s only this fast because I still need better control of my body!"


    "This is just the strength of an unranked Awakener at Level 2?"


    No wonder only a few cultivators dared challenge the arrogant Awakeners in the forums. But more than anything, Michael was overjoyed. He was lucky to have awakened!


    Like Cultivators, before truly stepping into the supernatural path, Awakeners below Rank 1 were also referred to as apprentices, which even showed on their status panel.


    But considering his current strength, even a new Rank 1 knight might not necessarily be as strong as he was now, right?


    ''Are Cultivators really that weak?''


    "No! I can''t think like that!" Michael quickly scolded himself, sensing a hint of arrogance. That wasn''t a good path, lest he be conceited.


    "The waters of this world run deep. I''m not qualified to look down on anything yet."


    After calming down, Michael also recognized that his distribution of attribute points as a necromancer was clearly off. It was better to excel in one thing than to be mediocre in everything.


    But the issue was¡­ he didn''t have a choice.


    Right now, strength mattered most for levelling up¡ªand more importantly, survival. As for necromancy, since he''d need to kill a monster first to have an undead summon, he could only hope that, if he did encounter one, it wouldn''t be too strong.


    "There''s nothing I can do about it now. I''ll leave it to fate."


    "First, let''s see if the slime dropped anything valuable!"


    Excited, Michael made his way over to the "corpse" of the acid slime.


    As for thest attribute point, he decided to keep it in reserve for emergencies.

 Chapter 17 Spirit Crystal

    Just like loot in games, the Land of Origin had its own version.


    The difference was that you couldn''t simply touch a monster''s corpse, shout "loot," and watch materials burst out.


    While asionally a monster corpse might burst out some loot, most of the time, the corpse itself was the loot, and you had to manually dismantle it to get what you wanted.


    However, there was onemon type of loot that usually appeared from dead monsters.


    [Unranked Spirit Crystal]


    "I actually got a Spirit Crystal on my first kill! So lucky!"


    Michael picked up the transparent crystal, which contained a bright, solidified liquid.


    Spirit crystals, said to be superior to mana crystals, the advanced version of mana stones, were highly valuable. They were materials that could only be found in abundance in the Land of Origin.


    Mana stones were cultivation resources that both Cultivators and Awakeners could use for their growth.


    A mana stone could increase cultivation speed by up to three times.


    This meant that using a mana stone for one month of cultivation was equivalent to three months of normal cultivation.


    The value of a mana stone was clear.


    Then there was the advanced version: the magic crystal, which could boost cultivation speed by up to five times.


    Five times the cultivation speed meant that one month of cultivating with a mana crystal was equivalent to five months of normal cultivation.


    Given how valuable mana crystals were, just imagine the value of spirit crystals, which were ced above them.


    The two could hardly bepared.


    A spirit crystal could boost cultivation speed by up to ten times!


    Ten times meant that one month of cultivation with a spirit crystal was almost a full year of normal cultivation.


    However, something as valuable as a spirit crystal was rare and in short supply.


    But what really excited Michael about the appearance of this spirit crystal wasn''t because of its cultivation benefits.


    Like most Awakeners, Michael wasn''t too focused on the strength brought from cultivation.


    The real reason he was thrilled about the spirit crystal was its value.


    For someone like Michael, red-eyed with poverty, the money-making potential of being an Awakener was a big motivation. One way he nned to make a profit was by selling loot to the Supers Association.


    As amon loot dropping from every three to four kills¡ªor sometimes even less out of every 10 kills¡ªMichael paid close attention after learning of its existence.


    In the Supers Association store, a mana stone was priced at $1,000, while a mana crystal sold for $5,000 due to its rarity and ease of absorption. Outside the association, these prices were even higher.


    A spirit crystal, thanks to its rarity and the pure, easily absorbed mana it contained, was valued at a whopping $20,000.


    Twenty thousand dors!


    Though the selling price would differ from the store price, Michael estimated he could still get over $15,000 for it.


    It was clear why he was so thrilled with this find.


    "To think I''d make my monthly allowance from the Supers Association on my first outing! Truly, being an Awakener was a fast track to riches!"


    Michael was pleased, but he grew a bit conflicted upon remembering another use for the spirit crystal.


    Aside from boosting cultivation speed, mana stones, mana crystals, and spirit crystals could also help recover exhausted mana, though this was often seen as wasteful.


    However, certain energies, like soul energy, couldn''t be replenished by mana stones or crystals.


    He had seen some posts on the Supers Association forum mentioning souls, but the topic felt distant andplex.


    Michael figured such topics would be covered in an Awakener Academy, if he ever managed to get into one.


    Though Michael didn''t think much about the topic of souls, he knew soul energy was tied to something he possessed¡ªa talent. Talents were considered an advanced form of spells but were more powerful, as most skills couldn''t match their capabilities.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Talents didn''t require mana to use; instead, they needed soul energy, a resource no Awakener could ever have enough of, making talents a sort of pseudo trump card.


    Since soul energy wasn''t the same as mana, it couldn''t be restored by mana stones or crystals. If an Awakener didn''t want to wait for soul energy to recover slowly on its own, a spirit crystal could be used to replenish it. This made spirit crystals especially valuable to Supernaturals who relied on soul energy, not just Awakeners or talent holders.


    Michael had a talent, which was why he felt conflicted about using the spirit crystal¡ªeven though he''d never actually used his talent.


    Talents were powerful abilities, and though Michael tried not to be bothered by his current inability to ess his, he couldn''t shake a sense of difort.


    ''Would I be able to finally use my talent if I absorbed this spirit crystal?''


    Michael was uncertain. This hesitation made him take a while to decide.


    ''Michael, look at the bigger picture. Money is good, but strength is better! If I can get one spirit crystal, I can get another. It''s better to use this spirit crystal if there''s even a chance of using my talent. With more strength, I''ll be able to hunt more monsters and earn more spirit crystals!''


    Gritting his teeth, Michael finally chose to absorb the spirit crystal.


    ****


    Author''s Note:


    Apprentice Cultivators can only passively absorb mana through breathing or meditation techniques, with the amount depending on their innate talents. They are unable to actively draw mana from resources like mana stones until they advance to official Cultivator status.


    This limitation makes resources that elerate cultivation for Apprentice Cultivators, with little to no side effects, highly valuable. However, mana stones, mana crystals, and spirit crystals are excluded from this category, as Apprentice Cultivatorsck the ability to ess the mana contained within them.


    Also, even after advancing to official Cultivator status, apprentice Cultivators are still referred to as apprentices¡ªthough now in a more formal capacity. Interestingly, those in the pre-advancement stage were originally called trainees, but this term has fallen out of use over time.

 Chapter 18 Suspicions

    After absorbing the spirit crystal, Michael didn''t feel any immediate changes.


    It was when he checked his status to see his talent, he was finally able to see one.


    ¡ª


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    Evolution Points: 3


    ¡ªn/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    ''The Evolution points increased?'' Michael''s eyebrows raised slightly in surprise.


    There was still a bit more than an hour left since his Awakening yesterday, meaning the daily evolution points would arrive soon, bringing his total to four.


    ''Though I guess it''s a good thing that the evolution points are increasing, but why haven''t I felt any changes yet? Do these points need to umte to a certain level before I can use my talent?'' Michael spected.


    He also had another suspicion about his talent.


    ''Maybe my talent is linked to my ss for activation. From what I read on the forum, that''s amon issue. Perhaps I need an undead summon first before I can use my talent''.


    Michael sighed as he thought about it.


    He wanted an undead summon too.


    But unless he encountered another easy monster like the slime in this building¡ªwhich he didn''t think was likely¡ªhe couldn''t do much.


    For now, he would just have to go with the flow.


    ''Maybe the Supers Association forum has a solution. I''ll make sure to research it after I''m done here.''


    Even though he had used the precious spirit crystal and still couldn''t use his talent, Michael tried not to feel bad about it.


    At least he had gained something in return, even if it wasn''t usable yet.


    Shifting his focus away from his talent, Michael turned to the other "loot" from the acid slime''s "corpse."


    It was the slime''s core.


    The core was scattered a bit on the ground, likely from the shot that killed it.


    ''I don''t know if this is worth anything, but I''ll take it just in case.''


    Not willing to throw anything potentially valuable away, Michael gathered the acid slime''s core, which was about the size of a ping pong ball, and ced it into his Mark of Origin.


    Afterward, he retraced his steps back to where he first encountered the slime, following the trail it had left behind.


    Michael did this to gather the bullet casings he had dropped while trying to distance himself from the slime''s acid shots.


    Unfortunately, some bullets had been destroyed by the acid slime during the chase, though a few managed to survive intact.


    Of course, just because the casings were damaged didn''t mean Michael was letting go of the intact bullets inside.


    Every bullet was worth money, and he wasn''t about to be generous and leave them to nature.


    After gathering all the casings he had dropped, Michael returned to scanning his surroundings.


    ''At first, I wasn''t sure, but after so many turns, I think this ce might be a dormitory or at least a ce where arge number of people once lived, judging by therge rooms and structure of the building.''


    Michael was still unsure, as he had only explored a small part of the building and couldn''t make an urate guess yet.


    ''Let''s keep exploring and see if there are any more monsters in this building. Hopefully, they''ll be slimes¡ªpreferably nothing too freakish.''


    It wasn''t that Michael was afraid of other types of monsters.


    His experience told him that slimes were the only creatures he could handle in his current state. Only rabbits coulde close.


    Had he been closer to civilization, he might have even received a quest to hunt such creatures, however, his starting point was far from any vige or town, unlike some new Awakeners.


    As for why he felt sure about only being able to handle slimes now was because of hisbat prowess.


    There was a reason guns became useless to Awakeners after a while.


    The forums didn''t exin it clearly, only hinting that monster skin grew thicker or that they developed skills making projectiles like bullets ineffective.


    However, after raising some of his stats, particrly his constitution, Michael started to understand a little.


    [Strength: 1.6]


    [Agility: 4.9]


    [Constitution: 3.4]


    [Intelligence: 5.5]


    [Attribute Points: 1]


    With nearly four times the constitution of an average human, Michael''s enhanced constitution affected his health, endurance, and resistance to both physical and elemental damage, as well as environmental factors.


    He suspected that even a bullet shot at him might not cause serious harm.


    He might not even bleed due to the increased toughness of his skin.


    Just as a lighter wouldn''t harm an average person, with his constitution now three times that of a typical human, Michael had reason to believe he''d be much harder to kill with ordinary weapons.


    If this was true for him, then what about monsters?


    Though attribute points gave Awakeners a substantial, almost "unfair" advantage, just like a cheat , making them stronger than most monsters at the same level, there were still higher-level monsters that demanded caution.


    Some of these could have a constitution equal to or even greater than his, depending on their species, monster rank, and number of stars.


    Compared to those stronger monsters, creatures with rtively weak bodies¡ªlike acid slimes¡ªwere indeed the safer opponents for a newbie like him.


    Michael didn''t dwell on these thoughts for long.


    Shortly after moving through therge building he suspected had once been a residential area, he encountered his second monster.


    However, he was conflicted by the sight in front of him.


    ''Should I be happy or not?''


    [Acid Slime Lv. 7]


    [Rank: Common¡ï¡ï]


    A harmless-looking slime that shoots acid.

 Chapter 19 Clearing The Space (1)

    Just as Michael had hoped, he encountered another monster.


    It was another slime, just as he wished.


    However, this slime had a higher level than him.


    While Awakeners shouldn''t be judged solely by their level, thanks to attribute points, there''s a reason the saying "fight ording to your level" exists.


    Although a level 7 acid slime didn''t necessarily mean it would be much harder to kill due to a slime''s naturally weak constitution, its acid would likely be more potent than the previous one.


    However¡­


    "With my current constitution and speed, could I actually take on this slime head-on?" Michael wondered.


    Monsters didn''t have attribute points like Awakeners, so any increase they got as they leveled up was purely based on their race.


    If Michael relied solely on the stat increases his human race naturally provided¡ª0.2 in all stats and 0.5 in Intelligence per level¡ªhe''d only gain 1.8 in Strength, Agility, and Constitution and 4.5 in Intelligence by level 10. He''d be stronger than other humans, but nowhere near as powerful as he was now with his attribute points.


    This was why attribute points felt like cheats.


    With attribute points, even a level 7 monster shouldn''t be too tough for Michael if he nned well. For the acid slime, avoiding its acid shots would lower the danger significantly.


    Of course, Michael only considered this. Until his gun proved ineffective, he preferred long-rangebat with monsters.


    It wasn''t that hecked closebat skills; by the time students left high school in the real world, most had basicbat training, due to thebat-oriented nature of Awakener and Cultivator professions they could potentially have in the future.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Though he wasn''t the top in his ss, Michael had learned some closebat skills. But knowing how to fight didn''t mean he could automatically apply it well in a real encounter.


    Michael stared at the acid slime, about 20 metres away and slowly crawling further.


    If it had been farther, his {Detect} skill wouldn''t have worked, as unranked Awakeners could only use it within such a limited range.


    ''I wonder if {Basic Shot} will be effective at this distance,'' Michael thought, uncertain.


    Unlike {Detect}, which was arguably unique, other skills¡ªeven ss skills¡ªhad clear limitations and mastery levels.


    {Detect} had its own limitations, but notably, it didn''t have a mastery level. Unlike other skills, which started from {Basic Mastery} or ss skills from {Intermediate Mastery}, {Detect} had no {Mastery} rank.


    One unique feature was that, like a talent, it didn''t use mana, yet unlike talents, it also didn''t require soul energy


    The only valuable information he found in his research was that {Detect} could be considered a passive skill¡ªa rare type that required no mana to activate and functioned constantly. Active skills, in contrast, needed to be manually activated using energy.


    Yet, despite this ssification, {Detect} still didn''t quite feel like a typical passive skill.


    Michael was intrigued by the nature of the {Detect} skill, but when he searched the forums, he found only basic information, with no mention of its unique properties.


    His first thought was that this was due to his authority level in the Supers Association, which was only Level 1. If {Detect} required a higher authority to learn more about, it confirmed its unique nature.


    Perhaps, he thought, it might even have something to do with the uniqueness of the Land of Origin itself, rather than just the skill''s effects.


    Other skills, however, were generally more straightforward once one became familiar with them.


    Most skills didn''t mean immediate effect upon activation.


    Just because an Awakener had the {Fireball} skill, for instance, didn''t mean a fireball would instantly appear upon activation.


    Instead, activating a skill provided the caster with knowledge and an instinctual feel for its workings, making it easier to use.


    The higher the skill''s {Mastery}, the deeper the knowledge and ease of use.


    Take {Basic Shot}, the skill Michael acquired. Activating it wouldn''t immediately fire a bullet; instead, it would instinctively guide him on how to hold the gun, aim, and shoot¡ªan improvement over his earlier, more random attempts.


    As his {Mastery} improves, the more the skill would feel like second nature to him.

 Chapter 20 Clearing The Space (2)

    As thoughts raced through Michael''s mind, he raised his gun, aiming at the distant acid slime.


    Michael quietly activated his skill.


    "{Basic Shot}."


    Immediately, he felt an instinctive awareness¡ªhis grip was wrong, his aim was off, his posture needed adjusting.


    Step by step, Michael made each correction, guided by the skill''s influence, while keeping his focus on the unaware slime in the distance.


    Despite the skill''s assistance, it took Michael about 20 seconds to make these adjustments. He could still ''sense'' more room for improvement¡ªa result of his low {Mastery} of {Basic Shot}. With higher {Mastery}, aiming and shooting would feel like second nature; he''d be faster, more precise, without needing to think.


    The miraculous effect of his skill left Michael speechless. For the first time, handling a gun felt natural.


    ''Though the skill hints I could improve even further, this is already leagues beyond my earlier fumbling. All I need is to raise my skill''s proficiency and {Mastery}!''


    ''No wonder the Federation wants Awakeners. We really are like cheats¡ªquick power-ups, instantly mastering skills that should take years to learn. As a Necromancer, if I were an Archer, wouldn''t I already be a sharpshooter? How can ordinary peoplepete with this?''


    ''Sure, both are powerful, but the teachers were really wrong to say Awakeners and Cultivators were equal. It''s not surprising, though, since the world barely understands these two professions in the first ce.''


    ''Is this a deliberate concealment by the Federation, or is there a bigger picture here?''


    Despite the whirlwind of thoughts, Michael''s focus never wavered from the acid slime.


    As soon as he locked onto the monster with a steady aim, he pulled the trigger without hesitation.


    Bang!


    A soft sound echoed through the long hall.


    The gunshot wasn''t loud, thanks to the silencer.


    Pui!


    Unlike his first encounter with an acid slime, where he missed every shot, this time Michael''s first bullet struck true. It didn''t kill the slime, but the hole close to its core showed it was a near hit.


    ''{Basic Shot} is so powerful!'' Michael praised in his mind as he began to retreat.


    Though close, the shot hadn''t reached the core, and now the slime was aware of him.


    ''No eyes or ears, yet it still senses¡­ truly a freak of nature,'' Michael thought, revealing his dislike for slimes.


    ''But it''s slow.''


    Even though monsters didn''t have attribute points, Michael expected the level 7 acid slime to be stronger. However, aside from the intensity and range of its acid attacks, its speed was barely different from thest one.


    ''If it''s this slow, then there''s nothing to fear.''


    This didn''t mean Michael would be reckless.


    Despite his increasing confidence, Michael knew little about slimes and their potential abilities.


    However, seeing the slime''s slow pace, Michael figuredhe could potentially finish it off with his refined spear from the Supers Association store.


    But Michael decided against it.


    For now, the slime couldn''t reach him, while he could stillnd shots from a safe distance.


    With this strategy, he could continue levelling up until his bullets ran out or his gun became ineffective. Then, he''d consider closebat.


    After circling around, following his previous path back to the room he''d first arrived in¡ªavoiding unexplored areas to prevent running into more monsters¡ªMichael finally managed to bring down the acid slime.


    [You killed a Common¡ï¡ï LV 7 Acid Slime]


    [You''ve gained 103 Experience Points]


    [You killed a monster five levels higher than your own, earning a 6x experience multiplier]N?v(el)B\\jnn


    [You''ve gained 618 Experience Points]


    [Level Up!]


    [You have levelled up to Level 3!]


    [Level Up!]


    [You have levelled up to Level 4!]


    ---


    [You''ve levelled up to Level 4 Human!]


    [You''ve gained 0.4 stat points in Strength, Agility, and Constitution. You''ve gained 1.0 stat points in Intelligence.]


    [You have gained 4 Attribute points!]


    [You''ve levelled up to Level 4 Necromancer Apprentice!]


    [You''ve gained 0.2 stat points in Strength and Constitution, 0.6 stat points in Agility, and 1.0 stat points in Intelligence.]


    [You have gained 8 Attribute points!]

 Chapter 21 Clearing The Space (3)

    After the acid slime died, Michael felt a surge of power flood through him.


    His mind sharpened, his strength increased, his defense tightened, and his speed quickened.


    ''I levelled up!''


    Michael thought happily.


    Unlike the previous level-up, where he only felt pain, this time he could clearly sense the changes that came with leveling up.


    And since he leveled up twice in a row, the boost in strength was even more pronounced.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Excited, Michael immediately checked his status to see the results.


    ''Status''


    ---


    [Name: Michael Norman]


    [ss: Necromancer Apprentice]


    [Level: 4(2^)]


    [EXP: 48/600]


    [Strength: 2.2(0.6^)]


    [Agility: 5.9(1.0^)]


    [Constitution: 4.0(0.6^)]


    [Intelligence: 7.5(2.0^)]


    [Attribute Points: 13]


    [Skills: Undead Summoning, Undead Revival, Detect, Basic Shot]


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    [ss Skill: Contract Slot{0/8}]


    [Gift: Mark Of Origin]


    ¡ª


    Seeing his newly updated status, Michael felt a surge of emotion.


    In just a little over an hour in the Land of Origin, he had transformed into someone monstrous by human standards.


    What thrilled Michael most was the increase in his attribute points, the foundation of his power. The sight of 13 attribute points filled him with joy.


    ''13 attribute points. Including the one I saved from my previous level-up, I gained six from levelling up to level 3 and another six from reaching level 4.''


    ''Should I use them now?''


    Michael was a bit conflicted, like having a sudden windfall without knowing where to spend it, even though the possibilities were endless.


    Considering how he might leverage these points for another power boost, Michael paid attention to his stats.


    ''My strength is now twice that of an average human. Even though it''s my weakest stat, it''s still very strong. For now, I don''t need to increase it since I haven''t felt the need.''


    Strength wasn''t a priority for a necromancer, but without any undead under hismand, Michael was still essentially operating as a fake one.


    Then, there was his agility.


    ''It increased by an entire point, bringing my agility to nearly six times that of an average human. I''m probably not inferior in speed to most level 8-10 monsters, unless they''re specialised in agility.''


    Michael felt confident in his assessment. Since monsterscked attribute points and relied solely on their race for stat boosts, even a level 5 monster specialised in speed might barely edge him out in agility¡ªif at all.


    ''For one, I haven''t seen any monsters other than slimes in this building. For now, I don''t need to increase my speed since it''s already sufficient,'' Michael thought, moving on to the next stat¡ªhis constitution.


    Without hesitation, he added one point to his constitution, raising it to five times that of an average human.


    The reasoning was simple: more vitality meant he''d be harder to kill. Plus, seeing his attribute points at even numbers was visually satisfying.


    There wasn''t much to say about his intelligence stat. For now, it remainedrgely useless.


    One intriguing aspect of stats was that, when a stat rted to one''s ss reached increments of 20 points, there was a 50% chance of gaining a new skill.


    Sometimes, one could even gain skills rted to other, unrted stats for every 20-point increase.


    However, a 50% chance didn''t guarantee a skill every 40 points.


    One could potentially umte 100 points in a stat without receiving any skill.


    With his 13 attribute points, Michael could have invested in intelligence to try unlocking a skill, but it would be a risky gamble. If he failed, there''d be no undoing it.


    "Even though necromancer Awakeners are rare, I doubt I''m the first whose starting location has made it inconvenient to have an undead. There should be a solution on the Supers Association forum¡ªI''ll check it out once I''m back."


    Ultimately, Michael decided to save his attribute points forter when he''d truly need them. His current strength was already sufficient.


    Closing his panel, he approached the ''corpse'' of the acid slime. Unfortunately, the only loot he found was the acid slime core¡ªno spirit crystal this time.


    Michael wasn''t too disappointed; he''d anticipated it. If spirit crystals weremon, they wouldn''t be so precious.


    Stashing the acid slime core in his Mark of Origin, Michael set off in search of more monsters.

 Chapter 22 Clearing The Space (4)

    Two hourster.


    After thoroughly searching the abandoned building, Michael managed to kill 13 more slimes and levelled up.


    Unfortunately, even with this number, the experience he gained wasn''t enough to raise his level by more than one.


    As his level increased, it began to match that of the slimes in the building. The extra bonus experience points he earned from defeating higher-level monsters had little impact, as the strongest slime he encountered was only level 7.


    Most of the slimes Michael fought ranged from level 4 to level 5.


    Still, Michael wasn''t discouraged.


    At least he wasn''t in significant danger while levelling up. It was well known that as one''s level increased, it became progressively harder to advance.


    There were two main reasons for this.


    One, the risk factor.


    Fighting stronger monsters carried greater risks.


    Most Awakeners avoided recklessly endangering their lives and instead preferred steady, gradual growth. After all, they had time and no inherent bottlenecks. Sooner orter, their umted experience would lead to levelling up.


    Two, scaling challenges.


    As Awakeners grew stronger, so did the monsters. The advantage provided by attribute points diminished over time.


    For instance,mon-grade monsters could only reach a maximum of level 21 with three stars. Any monster that could reach above level 21 was a rare-grade monster species, and the difficulty only escted as their levels increased.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    While attribute points could allow Awakeners topete with rare-grade monsters, they became insufficient against higher-grade foes.


    Of course, none of this had much relevance to Michael at the moment.


    He was satisfied that he had managed to reach level 5. The slimes also provided him with 4 spirit crystals and a good haul of slime cores.


    But these weren''t his greatest gains.


    After killing the final slime, Michael finally discovered the exit to the building he was trapped in!


    The exit was wide open, revealing more abandoned buildings in the distance.


    Some of these structures had partially crumbled into dust, while others were overgrown with thick grass. Roots sprouted from the walls, simr to the building Michael was currently in.


    It was clear these buildings had been abandoned for a long time.


    Despite the temptation to leave, Michael didn''t take a single step toward the exit.


    No, he didn''t even dare approach it.


    Outside the exit was a staircase, and at the base of it stood a statue that blended seamlessly with the environment.


    If not for his caution and curiosity prompting him to use {Detect} on the statue, Michael might have overlooked its peculiarity.


    No¡ªmore likely, he would have died.


    [Gargoyle Lv. 21]


    [Rank: Rare¡ï¡ï¡ï]


    An old gargoyle, weakened after years of neglect.


    A gargoyle. A creature once thought to exist only in fiction back in his previous world now stood just 20 metres away from him.


    However, this one was wingless, but that was the least of Michael''s concerns.


    "I''m cooked," he thought bitterly.


    His experience in the Land of Origin seemed cursed enough to rank among the top 100 most unfortunate starts for new Awakeners this year.


    First, he nearly died to a slime. And now, it turned out the slimes were merely appetisers for the main course.


    Trapped in what he assumed was an abandoned dormitory, Michael''s options were limited.


    He considered making the holes in the roof bigger and climbing his way out. With his current strength, he could likely jump high enough to reach the roof.


    But this n had its risks.


    For one, the noise could attract attention. Perhaps the gargoyle outside had noticed him but refrained from attacking because he was already inside the building it guarded.


    Even if he escaped unnoticed, what guarantee did he have that there weren''t other monsters¡ªpossibly even stronger ones¡ªlurking nearby?


    A rank 1, level 11 monster like the gargoyle was already far beyond him. Adding more threats to the mix wasn''t a gamble he wanted to take.


    "I want my slimes back!"


    Michael wanted to scream in frustration but held back, mindful of the gargoyle outside the building.


    Though he suspected the gargoyle might note after him¡ªhe''d been in this building for hours, asionally making noise¡ªit wasn''t a risk worth taking.


    Despite the dire situation, Michael wasn''t inplete despair. At least he was still alive, and as long as that remained true, he could devise a way out.


    As thoughts raced through his mind, Michael made his way back to the spot where he''d first appeared. For some reason, this location always gave him a faint sense offort and security.


    "Time to go back home."


    After several hours of running around, even though he was much stronger now, Michael was both physically and mentally drained.


    He carefully scanned his surroundings, ensuring no threats lurked nearby that could ambush his defenceless body. Only then did he sit down in a corner, taking out an energy nutrient from the Supers Association store.


    "Ugh. Tastes awful. But at least you won''t starve buddy," he muttered, patting himself as he swallowed the bitter liquid.


    "Time to go back and look for solutions to my unwanted problems."


    Once ready, Michael disconnected his consciousness from the Land of Origin.


    Back in Aurora, his eyes slowly opened.


    "¡­.."


    ''F*ck.''


    *****


    Author''s Note


    Good day, beautiful readers¡ªyes, I''m talking to you! Hehe. This marks the end of Volume One for Evolving My Undead Legion in a Game-Like World. Over the past twenty chapters, I''ve worked hard to establish a solid foundation for both worlds, the mechanics, and the main character.


    Starting from Volume Two, the story picks up pace as we dive deeper into the main plotlines. Michael will gain explosive strength and finally gets to use his talent while preparing for the Awakeners Academy exams.


    Thank you so much for making it this far! I hope you''ll continue this journey with me¡ªI have so much in store for all of us!


    Also, please share your thoughts about Volume One¡ªwhat could have been done better, what you liked or disliked, and what you''re looking forward to in Volume Two.

 Chapter 23 Posting On The Forum

    Michael felt conflicted about his first day in the Land of Origin.


    On one hand, it had been exciting¡ªhe had narrowly survived being killed by a slime, escaping disfigurement by sheer luck.


    On the other hand, it was downright terrible. His first battle had been a life-and-death struggle against one of the weakest species, a slime, and just as things seemed to improve, he encountered an even bigger boss.


    "Is this what they mean by being at the gate of heaven yet unable to enter?" he muttered, still lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling in silence.


    But despite the chaos, Michael couldn''t deny one thing.


    "However¡­ it wasn''t like there weren''t any gains."


    Though his first experience in the other world left much to be desired, it gave him what he sought¡ªstrength.


    ''Status''


    ---


    [Name: Michael Norman]


    [ss: Necromancer Apprentice]


    [Level: 5(4^]


    [EXP: 114/800]


    [Strength: 2.5(1.2^)]N?v(el)B\\jnn


    [Agility: 6.4(5.0^)]


    [Constitution: 4.3(3.1^)]


    [Intelligence: 8.5(4.0^)]


    [Attribute Points: 18]


    [Skills: Undead Summoning, Undead Revival, Detect{NEW!}, Basic Shot{NEW!}]


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    [ss Skill: Contract Slot{0/10}]


    [Gift: Mark Of Origin]


    ¡ª


    Michael had only been in the Land of Origin for about three hours, yetpared to yesterday, when he first Awakened, his growth was astonishing.


    "Those seniors on the forum were so right. The Land of Origin is no game, even though it looks like one, but it''s truly an amazing ce," he muttered in awe.


    A secondter, his mood dipped into depression.


    "Yet, even with all this growth, I still don''t have any undead as a necromancer. My supposed highest stat, Intelligence, is about to be overtaken by Agility. Am I really a necromancer, or am I bing an assassin instead?"


    Pausing, he chuckled bitterly. "No, scratch that. I should be an archer. My only working skill is {Basic Shot}, and it doesn''t even use mana¡ªit''s a physical skill fueled by stamina."


    Michael mockingly shook his head in helplessness as he stood and stretched his stiff muscles. Afterward, he grabbed his phone from the desk.


    "3:07," he read. "That''s roughly three hours spent in the Land of Origin. I left here a little after noon, and it was approaching noon there before I left. Aurora''s time is probably three to four hours ahead."


    Of course, the timezones of Aurora and the Land of Origin were unrted, beingpletely different worlds. Still, Michael used the time difference as an estimate.


    With that thought lingering, Michael sat in the chair by his desk and logged into the Supers Association forum on his phone.


    This time, he wasn''t just searching for answers. He nned to ask directly.


    Michael had too many uncertainties, and searching blindly for solutions without even knowing the right terms felt like trying to find a rumoured treasure in the middle of an ocean.


    [Conflicting First Day in the Land of Origin]


    Michael began by detailing his experiences: his initial location, the eerie ruins, and how, as a necromancer, his environment didn''t offer any way to have an undead. He also exined the challenge posed by the Rank 1 monster blocking his path and sought advice on what to do next.


    The Supers Association reportedly had over 70,000 Awakeners. Though Michael wasn''t sure how many were online, the forum currently showed 10,000 active users. Surely, among them, someone¡ªAwakener or even Cultivator¡ªwould have advice for his predicament.


    As Michael waited for his post to be verified, he browsed the forum to pass the time. He had barely reached the homepage when a trending topic caught his attention.


    [Changes in the Federation]


    "Huh? What''s this?" Michael muttered, intrigued.


    "Changes in the Federation?" he repeated thoughtfully, recalling something he had pondered back in the Land of Origin.


    The Federation''s focus on Awakeners had always seemed odd to him. Most people, especially younger generations, only knew that the Federation valued Awakeners. The exact reasons remained unclear. They were also made to believe that Cultivators wereparable to Awakeners, with the primary distinction being cultivation speed.


    However, as a new Awakener, Michael already knew this was inurate.


    He didn''t im to be an expert on Cultivators, but ess to the forum had expanded his understanding. For instance, a Rank 2 Knight Elite¡ªsupposedly ten times stronger than the average human¡ªcould easily be matched by a Level 5 Awakener who hadn''t even advanced yet.


    In his view, Cultivators were barelyparable to Awakeners if they refrained from using attribute points. This was an undeniable gap, yet the public was deliberately led to believe otherwise.


    Michael suspected this misinformation served a purpose. Perhaps it was to prevent despair among those who failed to awaken, or maybe it aimed to avoid creating an intense social divide between Awakeners and Cultivators.


    This social divide was evident on the forum, but in the real world, most people likely saw Awakeners and Cultivators as only slightly different¡ªboth possessing great powers but nothing vastly superior.


    All of this seemed suspicious, and Michael felt certain only the Federation knew the truth.


    Now, staring at the trending topic, curiosity got the better of him. He tapped the post.


    *****


    A/N: Please read the author''s note added to the previous chapter and tell me your thoughts on the past volume and what you expect in this new volume and so on. Thanks for reading!

 Chapter 24 Thoughts

    The post''s author was a Level 2 member of the Supers Association, one rank above Michael.


    It had also been published just a day ago, taking that time to gain enough traction to trend on the forum.


    [Changes in the Federation]


    Name: Billy Stormman


    Level: 2


    Date Published: Thursday, 18th of the seventh month, Year 228 of the New Era (1 day ago)


    I''m a Mage Commander studying at the Moonstone Cultivation Academy. A week ago, I returned home for vacation. Normally, when the academy grants a break to prepare for iing college exams, we older students usually choose one of two options: spend some time with our families before resuming training or head straight to the Dimensional Cracks for training.


    However, this post isn''t about that.


    Since I have three months of vacation, I decided to spend some of it with my family, given I missed the opportunityst year. But to my surprise, when I got home, I noticed something strange.


    Whenever Ie back, my younger siblings typically ask me ignorant questions about Awakeners and Cultivators. This time, however, they seemed to know more than I did before entering the academy. At first, I worried they had been dabbling in illegal channels to ess ssified information. But I quickly learned that their school had started teaching them this new knowledge.


    Curious, I asked some of my schoolmates who also went home for the break. They reported simr changes in their siblings'' schools, though it seemed this was happening mainly in big cities¡ªfor now.


    I''m confused. Wasn''t the Federation the one restricting information about supernatural professions, especially for children? Why are they suddenly releasing it now?


    If you check AyTube, you''ll find videos containing information we couldn''t ess in high school.


    I''m not personally affected, but I''m curious¡ªdoes anyone know what''s going on?


    After reading the post, Michael''s heart grew slightly heavy.


    The content of the post touched on something he had considered before.


    Seeing that others seemed to share his suspicions, or at least that his doubts were partially validated, left Michael deep in thought.


    Even the mention of the Moonstone Cultivation Academy¡ªthe first time he had encountered the name of a supernatural institute¡ªfailed to hold much of Michael''s attention.


    In a way, this highlighted how severely information about the supernatural had been suppressed in this world.


    For students who began cultivating at a young age to remain unaware of the names of colleges they could potentially attend was telling.


    ''This kind of reminds me of those cultivation novels I read back on Earth,'' Michael thought.


    ''In those worlds, ''mortals'' knew of the existence of ''immortals,'' but anything beyond that was treated as forbidden or rare knowledge. The Federation has been suppressing information about Awakeners and Cultivators for so long¡ªso why are they changing now?''


    As a transmigrator, Michael had spent some time reflecting on the nature of this world, despite having been here for just over three weeks.


    Since his awakening, Michael had often wondered: Awakeners and Cultivators were supposedly respected members of society, yet strangely little was known about them or their way of life.


    asionally, there were glimpses¡ªvideos, for instance¡ªbut even those were superficial.


    From Michael''s current perspective, they appeared designed to mislead the public rather than inform them.


    The information taught in schools about Awakeners and Cultivators was even morecking than he initially imagined.


    What was provided was the barest minimum, and while it might have seemed like a lot to the former Michael, the awakened Michael now saw how insignificant it truly was.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    If Michael had transmigrated as an adult without memories of this world, he might have initially thought it was simply a technologically advanced version of Earth. This realization underscored how, despite being a driving force in society, Awakeners and Cultivators were almost invisible.


    Perhaps this felt normal to most people in this world since it had always been this way for them.


    However, as a transmigrator, Michael''s perspective was different.


    Initially, he hadn''t bothered much about the situation since he wasn''t even sure if he''d be able to awaken a ss.


    If he had failed to awaken, and the federation continued the way it did, the Federation''s suppression of information would have ensured he remained ignorant about the supernatural¡ªjust like the majority of citizens.


    This was why the post he had just read struck Michael so deeply.


    He had two pressing questions.


    One, why had information about Awakeners and Cultivators been suppressed for so long?


    Two, why was information being released now?


    "What is happening in the Federation?"

 Chapter 25 Truth of the World

    As several thoughts shed through Michael''s mind, he scrolled to thement section under the post.


    -I knew something like this was going to happen sooner orter. Though I get the Federation''s point of view due to the tragic events of the past, they need to remember that they''re raising humans¡ªpeople, not animals in a cage! Those dogs have been in power for so long that it''s gone to their heads.


    -I agree with senior''s words, though I wouldn''t dare to be as blunt¡ªhaha.


    -New cultivator here. What were the tragic events that happened in the past? Are they the reason the Federation suppresses news about us?


    One particrment caught Michael''s attention.


    First, it was the audacity of the writer that stood out, though Michael decided to wisely ignore it, as it came from a Level 5 member.


    Second, it was the content that truly intrigued him.


    "Tragic events? What events could have possibly made the Federation so determined to suppress news about us?"


    Curious, Michael continued reading the thread with heightened focus.


    After the new cultivator asked for guidance, another Level 5 member stepped in to reply.


    -Before I answer, let me ask you this: What happens when you put poor and rich people together in the same space?


    -A social structure forms, senior.


    -And this social structure, who does it benefit?


    -The rich, senior.


    -Exactly. To put it simply, the rich oppress the poor, directly or indirectly, and this is for something as mundane as wealth. Now, what do you think happens when you put people with supernatural powers alongside ordinary humans who depend on them to survive?


    Back in the Dark Ages, a year after the Dimensional Cracks appeared and unleashed monsters, humanity''s poption plummeted to just 100 million. This and a few other things are what the kids nowadays are aware of. In truth they know nothing at all.


    It was at the point of close extinction hope came. The arrival of Awakeners gave humanity a fighting chance, and yearster, the Cultivators followed. This was the turning point when humans began to fight back.During those desperate times, survival was the priority, and there was little concern for status.


    However, as the situation improved, things changed. Ordinary humans idolised the Supernaturals, and the Supernaturals began to see themselves as superior. This mindset grew stronger as humanity stabilised. Awakeners and Cultivators began treating ordinary humans as lesser beings, and ordinary humans, in turn, epted this dynamic.


    It wasn''t umon back then for a Cultivator to kill an ordinary human out of anger, and both sides would see it as normal.


    Over time, things worsened. Some Supernaturals turned into demonic beings¡ªdemonic Cultivators or Awakeners. One powerful mage once sacrificed a million lives, and that was among the lesser tragedies. Othersmitted far worse atrocities.


    Oh, you might curse those demonic Supernaturals, but remember, before they fell to darkness, they were once humans too. Even you can''t deny that, with your powers, you''ve started to see yourself as superior to others.


    Reading this made Michael''s heart heavy. The senior was right. Slowly but surely, he had begun to see himself as superior¡ªnot to humans but to Cultivators. Yet, if he viewed himself as above Cultivators, who were already higher than ordinary humans, wasn''t he essentially agreeing that ordinary people were beneath him?


    With a heavy heart, Michael continued reading. He now knew what the previous level 5 member meant by tragic events of the past. Yet, this still didn''t fully exin why the Federation suppressed knowledge about Awakeners and Cultivators.


    -When demonic Cultivators grew more rampant, the powerful figures in the government stepped in to suppress them. But here''s the brutal truth: we are indeed superior to ordinary humans. Denying this would be hypocrisy. And because of this superiority, the Federation decided to prevent another crisis by isting ordinary humans from Supernatural matters while creating a separate space for us.


    They suppressed news about Supernaturals'' powers so ordinary people wouldn''t realise the vast difference between them and subconsciously consider themselves inferior¡ªjust as in the Dark Ages. At the same time, they worked to redirect Supernaturals'' focus away from meddling in ordinary people''s lives.


    This led to the creation of two worlds: one for Supernaturals and another for ordinary humans.


    Even Cultivator trainees below college level are taught only how to cultivate, with martial discipline imposed on them much like ordinary humans. This created a sense of equality and the method worked for decades, preventing the rise of demonic Supernaturals.


    But s, it also made us weaker as a whole.


    -Billy Stormman: Thanks for answering, seniors. We were taught about this in school, but I''m still confused. How does suppressing information about us make us weaker overall? And what does this have to do with the Federation releasing bits of information now?


    After reading the ''senior'' Level 5 member''s words, Michael fell into deep thought.


    It was only after a while that he snapped out of it.


    "Demonic Awakeners and Cultivators, the Dark Age, and the Federation''s actions¡­ I''m truly ignorant of the world I''m in."


    Michael''s heart felt heavy. The senior''s words revealed that he was surrounded by a fog of ignorance.


    Fortunately, as an Awakener, he could slowly clear this fog and learn more about the truth of the world.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Turning his attention back to thements, Michael couldn''t help but reflect.


    "Though we were taught about the Dark Age in school, it was definitely not as revealing as this. The saying that history is written by the victors is true. Who knows how much of what we were taught as ''history'' is actually the truth?"


    The more he discovered about the public''s ignorance of the world they lived in, the heavier his heart grew.


    To some extent, he could rte to the senior''s frustration. While he understood the Federation''s desire to avoid creating an obvious social structure between Supernaturals and ordinary humans, it also felt like they were treating humans like livestock.


    This realisation left Michael conflicted. The Federation, which once seemed like the "good guys," now felt much more ambiguous.


    "Demonic Cultivators¡­ The senior said they were suppressed, not eradicated. Could they still exist somewhere in this world?"


    The sense of security Michael once felt in the real world began to crumble.


    "The waters of this world are indeed too deep."


    Aside from this revtion, Michael felt an even greater need to be stronger.


    "My greatest strength is my ss, so I can''t leave the matter of undead unattended for long. My levelling speed is still too slow. And then there''s the college exams to prepare for.


    Though I question the authenticity of these institutions after learning about the Federation''s actions, Billy''sment under the senior''s post shows there''s still much to learn from them.


    Butpared to my peers who awakened two years ago, and even those who awakenedst year, I''m far behind. With only three months of preparation, there''s little to no time."


    Michael clenched his fists, determination welling up within him.


    "I must get stronger!"


    As several thoughts shed through Michael''s mind, he turned his attention back to thement section. There was something the senior had said that left him confused.


    "We''re weaker overall?"


    Thankfully, Billy, the author of the post, had asked the same question, and another individual, though not a Level 5 member this time but a Level 3, responded.


    -By saying we''re weak overall, what the senior meant is that the public no longer has a strong drive for strength. You might think they do, but they don''t. What happens in a world where the poor don''t feel much different from the rich? Will they strive for wealth as a goal, or simply for convenience?


    I''ve visited the Martial Arts Cultivator world before, and themoners there are deeply oppressed by those in power. Butpared to people in our world, those so-calledmoners hunger for power with an intensity that moved me. Unlike here, where an 18-year-old who has failed their Awakening will give up on gaining strength and settle for getting by in society.


    I agree with the senior. If the public truly knew the extent of Awakeners'' and Cultivators'' power, and felt it, they''d hunger for it. That hunger would, in turn, boost our national strength. But in recent years, the number of new Cultivators has been steadily declining.


    Perhaps the Federation can no longer ignore this and is being forced to take action¡ªreminding the public of the supernatural elements avable in their world.


    Our world is not as safe as the public believes. You, as a student of an Academy, should know this better than anyone. Use every moment to grow stronger, for yourself, your loved ones, and our people. May the will of Aurora prevail for a million years.


    -Billy Stormman: Thank you for your advice. May the will of Aurora prevail for a million years.

 Chapter 26 New Understanding

    "May the will of Aurora prevail for a million years."


    The sentence felt like a slogan, stirring something deep within Michael.


    Even the revtion of the Level 3 member travelling to another world didn''t catch much of his attention.


    In school, they were taught that some Dimensional Cracks from the dark age still remained. While most led to ces filled with monsters, a few opened gateways to other realms like Aurora.


    They had also been told that these monsters were a significant reason why Cultivators and Awakeners were vital to society. Yet, the seriousness of it all had eluded him back then, as the topic was presented in a light, almost casual manner.


    Evenbat sses felt more like physical education than actual preparation for life-threatening situations.


    Reading thement section under Billy''s post, however, shattered that illusion. Michael realised that reality was far harsher than what they were taught.


    Aurora wasn''t safe.


    Whether the threat came from monsters, demonic supernaturals, or something else entirely, he didn''t know. But one thing was clear¡ªhe needed strength.


    Whatever the Federation''s motives were for gradually unveiling the truth to the public, Michael understood that he had to be ready for whatever followed.


    He tried to dig deeper into thements, hoping to find more insights about the Federation''s actions, but nothing else was as informative as thements from the seniors.


    Most were either empty spections or cheap imitations of what had already been said.


    Realising he wouldn''t find anything more useful, Michael dismissed the post.


    Curious about the truth of the world he lived in, Michael began searching for topics he had never considered before.


    His first search focused on the dark age, but the information avable mirrored what he had been taught in school. However, when he searched for "demonic supernaturals," he discovered new insights. Thankfully, his Level 1 membership granted him ess to this information.


    For one, his suspicion that demonic supernaturals still existed was confirmed.


    Michael learned that both the Federation and students from Cultivation and Awakener Academies asionally hunted them. However, details about their recent actions orrger operations remained inessible to him.


    Still, knowing they were still a threat made his heart grow heavier.


    Next, Michael delved into Dimensional Cracks.


    Beyond the simplified descriptions given in school¡ªwhere they were portrayed as harmless as neighbouring countries¡ªhe discovered that the reality was much grimmer.


    It wasn''t the monster-filled cracks that posed the greatest danger to Aurora but those leading to other realms.


    These cracks introduced him to a new term.


    "Invader Invasions."


    Michael learned that some civilizations on the other side of these cracks sought to expand their control over Aurora, resulting in ongoing wars.


    This revtion shocked him.


    Despite the end of the dark age, Aurora was far from safe. The public''s ignorance was protected by the sacrifices of others, who fought wars that few could properly appreciate.


    Unfortunately, Michael''s low authority level once again restricted his ess to more information. Still, he gleaned enough to know that Academy students like himself were regarded as reserve soldiers for the Federation, tasked with defending Aurora from both internal and external threats alongside the military.


    Having frequently encountered references to supernatural academies in his searches, Michael made them his next research topic.


    In a few minutes, he learned more about his world than he had in all his years at school.


    "This world isn''t safe. I need strength to protect myself and my family."


    "The Federation seems to have reached a dead end. I can only rely on myself. In the end, it alles down to strength. With strength, the road ahead will be clearer. But even now, there are things I can and must do."


    Michael listed his priorities.


    "First, I need to start fully utilizing my ss advantages. Necromancers are known for having one of the fastest leveling speeds, as they earn a percentage of the experience from enemies killed by their summons. My ss is also one of the strongest, capable of functioning as a one-man army, much like a Beast Tamer in theter stages. Wasting this potential would be foolish.


    Having an undead could also be the turning point for me to finally make use of my talent. I really hope it is."


    "Then there''s the college exam. With my current strength, getting into a top Awakener Academy is a pipe dream. Only Cultivation Academies might ept me due to my identity as an Awakener. But since this directly impacts my growth and ess to information, I have to take it seriously."


    "Lastly, I need to find a solution for the ruins I''m trapped in within the Land of Origin. If I don''t, my growth will be even slower."


    After setting these goals, Michael finally turned his attention to his present situation.


    The Super Association system had notified him minutes ago that his post was approved, but he had been too engrossed in his research to check it. He hadn''t expected immediate responses anyway and decided to wait.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Returning to his post, Michael was shocked to find it had garnered over 30ments and a surprising amount of traction¡ªmore than 30,000 views in just half an hour.


    The unexpected poprity stunned him.


    "I hope I can find something useful," Michael muttered as he opened thements section, only to be taken aback again.


    To his surprise, nearly no one seemed concerned about his struggles as a Necromancer. Instead, the majority were fixated on his initial location, ignoring the topic of his post entirely.


    "I don''t know if I should call you lucky or unlucky. Lucky because you somehow stumbled into a ruin every Awakener prays for, and unlucky because you''re too weak to explore it¡ªstopped by a mere level 21 monster."


    ''A level 21 monster, weak? Oi! That''s a Rank 1 monster close to the limit!'' Michael thought, feeling both attacked and embarrassed.


    Despite the sting, thement made him pause.


    Ruins.


    Michael had read novels back on earth where such ces brimmed with treasures. But back in the Land of Origin, he hadn''t been thinking about ruins. His focus had been on scouring dorm rooms for missed slimes, not the ancient significance of his surroundings.


    Curious, Michael continued reading otherments.


    "Gargoyles are artificially created monsters, so it''s almost certain you''re in a ruin. As three-star Rare-grade monsters, their weakest are usually around level 20. Given your description of the ruin, it''s clearly very old. Gargoyles don''t lose levels even after 50 years, so the ruin you''re in is at least 200 years old. The older the ruin, the more valuable its treasures. I''d say you''re lucky, kid. Just don''t die there before enhancing your strength by levelling up in real life."


    Thisment, far more informative, caught Michael''s attention.


    Checking thementer''s profile, he saw they were a Level 4 member.


    Michael''s curiosity deepened. He had recently searched for the meaning behind the Super Association''s member levels and now understood their significance.


    ?	Level 1 members: Unranked to Rank 1 Awakeners, and Rank 1-2 Cultivators (Apprentice and Elite).


    ?	Level 2 members: Rank 2 Awakeners, and Rank 3-4 Cultivators (Commander and Master).


    ?	Level 3 members: Rank 3 Awakeners, and Rank 5 Cultivators (King level).


    ?	Level 4 members: Rank 4 Awakeners, and Rank 6 Cultivators (Emperor level).


    ?	Level 5 members: Rank 5 Awakeners, and Rank 7 Cultivators (Demigod level).


    Realising this, Michael felt a newfound respect for the "seniors" in the forum. Those Level 5 members were akin to Demigods in strength¡ªthey truly deserved to be addressed with such reverence.


    With his current power, Michael couldn''t even begin to fathom the strength of a being addressed as a Demigod.


    He also noticed a distinct pattern: starting from Rank 5 in the Cultivation power system (King level), the gap between Awakeners and Cultivators began to narrow.


    An Awakener rank was no longerparable to two Cultivator ranks, at least on the surface.


    Perhaps Cultivators experienced a significant boost at King level, but Michael wasn''t worried.


    Awakeners wouldn''t stagnate either; they grew stronger with each rank advancement.


    Of course, a King-level Cultivator was still far beyond Michael''s reach and deserving of respect.


    The Awakener who responded to his post was a Level 4 member, making themparable to an Emperor-level Cultivator, just below the Demigod rank.


    As an Awakener, they might even stand a chance against a Demigod.


    It was clear this Level 4 member was a "senior" as well.


    Michael hurriedly gave his thanks.


    "Fortunately, I wasn''t desperate enough to do something reckless. I might have missed this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," Michael thought.


    Dying in the Land of Origin came with heavy consequences: not only did one lose 10% of their stats permanently, but their location also changed.


    If Michael died in the ruin, he could kiss it goodbye.


    The senior''s advice also reminded him of something he''d read earlier about Dimensional cracks. These cracks were under Federation supervision, and gaining ess required either Supers Association membership or academy enrollment. While Michael wasn''t an academy student, his Supers Association membership granted him ess to cracks within his member level''s limit.


    This realisation gave him hope.


    Now that he had rity on his location, Michael shifted focus to the next issue.


    "Fortunately, someone among these ruin-obsessed Awakeners remembered I''m a necromancer in distress."

 Chapter 27 Solution

    -Hey bro, fellow undead user here, haha. Funny thing is, I ended up in a situation just like yours¡ªstuck in a location where I couldn''t even get an undead. It was near the outskirts of a kingdom''s capital, right where the headquarters of a massive religion and their pope reside. I''d have been deader than dead if I tried summoning an undead there.


    Honestly, your situation isn''t that bad. Just head to the Supers Association and buy a monster corpse. It''s not even that expensive¡ªthe cheapest ones go for about 3,000 at least, so it''s pretty affordable. Since I had the funds, I bought several Level 10 monster corpses, haha. You can also check out the monster breeding centers in your area, but they usually sell corpses for way more than the Supers Association does.


    Michael checked the name of thementer.


    Leovanni Lorenzio.


    ''Hmm¡­''


    The name was quite fancy.


    Leovanni was also a Level 1 member, just like Michael.


    From the tone and first sentence of Leovanni''sment, Michael deduced this "bro" was likely a peer¡ªa fellow new Awakener.


    Whether this "bro" was 16, 17, or perhaps even his exact age was unknown to Michael, though he couldn''t care less.


    What mattered most was thement''s helpfulness.


    "Why didn''t I think of this?" Michael muttered, tapping his forehead. "Of course, the Supers Association would be a good solution for getting an undead!" He shook his head, feeling helpless that such an obvious solution hadn''t urred to him before.


    While Michael didn''t know that the Supers Association sold corpses¡ªas it wasn''t something listed in their forum store¡ªthey could undoubtedly grant him ess to ces where acquiring a monster corpse wouldn''t be an issue, such as Dimensional Cracks.


    With their ess to Dimensional cracks, It also made sense that the Association would have ess to monster corpses.


    As for breeding centers, though unfamiliar with them, Michael wasn''t surprised by their existence.


    Almost every teenager under 18 aspired to either be an Awakener or a Cultivator. However, most were realistic enough to understand that Awakening was left to fate, making Cultivation the hot choice. As a result, nearly all students practiced some form of Cultivation.


    Though the Federation suppressed information about Awakeners and Cultivators, a few videos still leaked.


    While they didn''t reveal the full extent of their powers, the fact that the strongest unofficial Cultivation apprentices were twice as strong as the average human was enough to inspire young people.


    ''Maybe if they knew there were strong Cultivators who could crush monsters a hundred feet tall, they''d take Cultivation more seriously,'' Michael thought.


    But with the Federation now releasing more information about supernaturals, perhaps more students would grow interested in Cultivation and take it seriously under the allure of supreme power.


    Returning to the topic of breeding centers, Michael wasn''t shocked by their existence.


    In city malls, beast meat¡ªa cultivation resource for apprentices¡ªwas openly sold, clearly sourced from monsters.


    If such products were avable, it stood to reason that breeding centers for monsters existed too.


    Still, Michael was more familiar with the Supers Association than breeding centers.


    Until now, he hadn''t even been aware breeding centers existed.


    Like most people, he had assumed beast meat came from dead monsters, not ones bred like livestock.


    After all, to the general public, monsters were nothing more than enemies.


    "Are monster corpses really this expensive?" Michael muttered, his eyes twitching slightly.


    At $3000 per corpse, he questioned whether the $15,000 monthly benefit he received would even be enough to buy five.


    Worse still, with {Intermediate Mastery} of {Undead Revival} only offering a 50% sess rate, there was a significant chance that arge chunk of his money could be wasted.


    "This is a bit too rich for me," he sighed.


    For someone born and raised in poverty, Leovanni was wealthy in Michael''s eyes.


    A Level 10 monster corpse wasn''t going to be cheap, yet this "rich guy" had bought ten at once and called it "affordable."


    It was clear that this "bro" was some sort of young master.


    Even so, Michael was grateful for Leovanni''s advice.


    Thement had helped him clear his thoughts significantly.


    Leovanni was also the only person, aside from the senior who had advised him about the ruins, to offer practical help.


    After sending his thanks to Leovanni, Michael logged out of the Supers Association forum and leaned back in his chair.


    ''Somehow, I feel like I forgot something,'' Michael thought, though he dismissed the feeling after a few seconds.


    If it was important, it woulde back to himter.


    His head was still buzzing from everything he had learned on the forum, leaving no room for minor distractions.


    Michael rested for about ten minutes before getting up. It was close to 4:00 PM, a perfect time to still head out.


    Now that he knew how to solve his undead summoning issue, he felt impatient.


    Deciding to freshen up to wash away some of the mental exhaustion from the Land of Origin, Michael prepared to visit the local Supers Association branch.


    "I should  sell some of my loot while I''m there. I''m broke."


    "So broke."


    After leaving his apartment, Michael was fortunate to find a cab quickly to take him to the Supers Association.


    While waiting briefly for transportation, he had an impulsive thought: to run to the Association at full speed and y superhero, recreating The sh in this world.


    However,ziness won out in the end.


    That, and the very real possibility of injuring someone along the way.


    Michael didn''t want the Federation breathing down his neck. Perhaps that was why other Awakeners also kept a low profile¡ªas there were no reports of anyone openly showing off their powers in public.


    Still, he wondered if things might change once the Federation released more information about Awakeners and Cultivators. Perhaps they might have their rights improved, and maybe he could even use a mount-type undead in broad daylight one day.


    *****n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    A/N: First VIP chapter! Quick question: do y''all prefer longer chapters?

 Chapter 28 Buying Monster Corpses (1)

    The journey to the Supers Association was uneventful.


    However, Michael found himself growing paranoid due to his newfound knowledge of demonic supernaturals. Before entering the cab, he even used {Detect} on the driver.


    The result was almost the same as with every other person he scanned along the way.


    [Level 1 Human]


    It was unsurprising, as non-Awakenerscked attribute points and were likely judged solely by their race.


    Michael recalled that a human level-up granted +0.2 to all stats and +0.5 to Intelligence. By level 11, a human''s average stats would match those of a new official knight Cultivator, roughly twice as strong as the average person.


    Coincidentally, this corresponded with the first rank in the knight Cultivator system.


    However, Michael wasn''t entirely certain about the level representation of non-Awakeners when using {Detect}. It was possible that a [Level 10 Human] was more than just a human leveling up nine times. Until confirmed, it wouldn''t be wise to assume someone''s prowess solely based on the level disyed.


    Michael was also lucky to even encounter a middle-aged man in histe thirties¡ªthe only [Level 11 Human] he met during the trip.


    He remembered reading on the forum when he read about member''s level that only Awakeners and official Cultivators under the age of 20, with rare exceptions above that age, had ess to the Supers Association forum. It was noted in bold that individuals in their thirties rarely had ess.


    It was evident that thosecking cultivation talent were left to live average lives. The Federation likely saw no benefit in sharing core supernatural knowledge with them, avoiding unnecessary risks.


    From this perspective, Michael found himself agreeing with the Federation''s approach.


    He could easily imagine how panicked his aunt¡ªwho had lived her entire life in ignorance¡ªwould feel upon learning the truth about the world at her age.


    Would it be the crushing realization of herck of talent that devastated her? Or the fear that her children might be entangled in dangerous circumstances if they awakened or proved talented in cultivation?


    Michael''s vivid imagination even suggested that such despair could be exploited by demonic cultivators to recruit fresh blood.


    Humans, after all, wereplex beings capable ofpromising their morals to fulfill their desires.


    Yet, Michael also recognized another side to the issue.


    If people like his aunt had been exposed to these truths earlier in life¡ªwhile still young enough to adapt¡ªthey might have grown ustomed to it, just as those who lived through the Dark Age had learned to endure suppression under the Supernaturals.


    Slowly, Michael began to understand the seniors who sighed at Aurora''s current state.


    It was bing increasingly clear that over 90% of its residents were delicate greenhorns, fragile enough to crumble under the slightest pressure.


    In this regard, Earth had an edge over Aurora.


    Back on Earth, even young children were aware of the world''s harsh realities.


    In emergencies, widespread panic was less likely to erupt among Earth''s poption. But Michael wasn''t as confident about Aurora.


    If the truth was revealed or a crisis arose, it might lead to an increase in demonic supernaturals instead.


    It wasn''t impossible.


    While some people might be inspired to work harder after witnessing part of the full extent of a cultivator''s power¡ªpotentially increasing the nation''s strength and reducing pressure on the front lines, which was likely the federation''s goal¡ªothers, especially the less talented, could sumb to desperation.


    Demonic cultivators might exploit this desperation, offering forbidden methods to gain strength and seducing the vulnerable into their ranks.


    It wasn''t impossible.


    How many people back on Earth hadmitted terrible acts due to poverty?


    If the absence of wealth could drive such actions, theck of supernatural power could potentially lead to even worse oues.


    Anyway, the future was currently none of Michael''s business.


    With his strength, he wasn''t qualified to worry about it.


    If the sky fell, there were stronger people than him to hold it up.


    "Thanks for the ride," Michael said, paying his fare after scanning the payment code.


    "You''re wee," the driver replied politely.


    Without looking back, Michael made his way into the Supers Association.


    This was his second time personally entering the building.


    Just like yesterday, the exterior appeared quiet, but the interior was bustling with activity.


    ''Is it soundproofing magic or something?'' Michael wondered.


    Also, like yesterday, he noticed several young faces, likely new Awakeners who hade to register today.


    As expected, there were fewer than yesterday.


    The notable difference was that most were casually dressed, unlike Michael and the others who had shown up in their uniforms the previous day.


    As he observed his surroundings, Michael lined up at the same queue leading to the receptionist who had assisted him during registration.


    Though they weren''t particrly familiar, Michael preferred speaking with a familiar face about his matters.


    The queue wasn''t long, so in about 20 minutes, he reached the receptionist.


    "Good evening," Michael greeted as they made eye contact.


    "Good evening, Sir. How may I assist you today?" thedy replied with a professional yet slightly more genuine smile, indicating she recognized him.


    Michael didn''t waste time and went straight to the point.


    "Are there any monster corpses avable at the Association? Also, I''d like to sell something," he said.


    While purchases could be made directly from the store in the forum, items were often avable for immediate pickup at the Association itself. However, selling could only be done in person at the Association.


    "We do have monster corpses here, sir, but this isn''t the right spot to inquire about them," the receptionist replied calmly, her expression showing no sign of surprise at the question.


    "Ah, I see. My apologies. Where should I go?" Michael asked softly, feeling a bit embarrassed for wasting her time.


    With a sweet smile, the receptionist pointed in a specific direction and provided clear instructions. "You''ll find a counter with a sign that says ''Trade Centre.'' That''s where you can buy and sell whatever you need."


    "Thank you," Michael said sincerely.


    The receptionist nodded in acknowledgment, and Michael immediately headed toward the Trade Centre.


    The Supers Association branch building was quiterge, but it wasn''t difficult to locate the area.


    The Trade Centre resembled a shop, with a wide window counter behind which sat a middle-aged man reading a book.


    The man''s face bore a long, hideous scar, instantly sparking Michael''s curiosity.


    Subconsciously, Michael activated {Detect} as soon as he came within 10 meters¡ªhalf of the skill''s current range limit.


    [Level ??? Human]


    "Huh?" Michael froze in surprise.


    As if sensing something, the scarred man suddenly looked up and locked eyes with him.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    For reasons he couldn''t quite exin, Michael''s heart trembled.

 Chapter 29 Buying Monster Corpses (2)

    ''Who is this?''


    ''Did he notice I used {Detect} on him?''


    Michael''s heart pounded in shock, but he forced himself to remain calm as he continued toward the Trade Centre.


    He couldn''t be sure if the scarred man had sensed his use of {Detect}, but one thing was clear: this man was no ordinary individual.


    It wasn''t just a matter of being twenty levels stronger. Even a Rank Two Cultivator shouldn''t evoke such an overwhelming reaction from him.


    Michael hadn''t yet encountered a Rank Two Cultivator face-to-face, but he doubted they could instill this level of unease.


    Another realization struck him¡ª{Detect}''s limitations seemed to extend to Cultivators as well.


    ''Okay, okay, maybe I''m getting too cocky. Twenty levels above me is still twenty levels above me.''


    As Michael reached the counter and opened his mouth to speak, the scarred man beat him to it.


    "It''s quite rude to spy on others, youngd," the man said calmly, his piercing gaze fixed on Michael. "I don''t mind, but others with a shorter temper might''ve taught you a lesson by now."


    Michael''s heart jolted again.


    ''So he did sense it!''


    Michael''s emotions were anything but calm.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    He had suspected the man might''ve noticed, but hearing it confirmed sent chills down his spine.


    "I''m sorry, sir," Michael said sincerely, bowing slightly. He didn''t feel wronged or insulted by the reprimand¡ªit was indeed rude to spy on others.


    This interaction also raised questions. Just how strong was this man?


    {Detect} didn''t rely on any form of energy, so it shouldn''t have been easy to notice.


    ''Truly, even without the same potential as Awakeners, Cultivators are strong beings,'' Michael thought, silently chastising himself.


    He recalled using {Detect} on nearly everyone he encountered this evening, and cold sweat broke out on his back.


    Had he used it on someone with malicious intent who noticed him, he could''vended himself in serious trouble.


    Awakeners might possess great potential, but without actual strength, potential alone meant little. At level 5, Michael was still far too weak.


    "It''s okay, just be careful," the man said, waving dismissively. Then, in a businesslike tone, he added, "So, what do you want?"


    Michael felt relief at the man''s indifference and quicklyplied, eager to move on.


    "I''d like a monster corpse, please, and I have something to sell as well," Michael said, reaching into his storage space and producing a spirit crystal.


    After purchasing items from the Supers Association store and giving his aunt $5000, Michael had less than $5000 left in his ount.


    If he bought a monster corpse at $3000 as Leovanni suggested, he could only afford one.


    Had he not given his aunt the money, he could have bought at least two.


    Still, Michael didn''t regret helping Aunt Mia.


    After all, there was no guarantee that the money spent on an extra corpse would yield an undead.


    His {Undead Revival}, at {Intermediate Mastery}, only provided a 50% sess rate, with up to three attempts per corpse.


    Even then, sess wasn''t assured.


    Perhaps this reasoning was a way to justify his decision, but it wasn''t entirely false.


    "Oh? You''re an Awakener? No wonder, only your type spies like thieves," the middle-aged man said expressionlessly.


    ''Actually holding a grudge, huh?'' Michael thought, his eyelid twitching.


    He chose not to respond.


    The man''s words revealed ack of respect for Awakeners, unlike the admiration they often received on the forum.


    This suggested two possibilities: either he despised them, or he was incredibly powerful.


    Either way, Michael decided it wasn''t his concern.


    "Unranked Spirit Crystal?" The man examined the crystal briefly before adding, "This one''s a bit stronger than usual. I''ll offer you $17,500 for it. What do you think?"


    "Yes, please!" Michael replied instantly.


    He was surprised by the man''s ability to discern the crystal''s energy level so easily. It hade from a Level 7 slime, making it superior to lower-level crystals in the same rank.


    Michael had singled it out on a hunch, hoping to get a higher price¡ªand his gamble paid off.


    "Okay. Should I transfer the money to your ount, or do you want to use it now to buy monster corpses?" the man asked as he ced the crystal into a box from beneath the counter.


    "I''ll use it all," Michael replied without hesitation. Buying one corpse wasn''t going to be enough.... except it was special.


    Despite parting with the money again, Michael felt satisfied with the straightforward transaction and the unexpected profit.


    "Alright. Go through that entrance," the man said, pointing to an open doorway beside the shop.


    Michael had noticed the entrance earlier but assumed it led somewhere unrted to the Trade Centre.


    However, being within the Supers Association, Michael wasn''t too concerned and followed the man''s instructions.


    Apparently, the Trade Centre had an exit leading to the corridor the doorway entrance led into, as Michael found himself following the scarred man after stepping through the doorway and walking forward a bit.


    After closing the Trade Centre door, the man said nothing and simply led Michael further down the corridor.


    Michael wondered why the man wasn''t concerned about leaving the Trade Centre unattended, considering the goods like potions stored there.


    Soon, he dismissed the thought.


    Anyone brazen enough to steal within the Association''s territory deserved some respect.


    The corridor had several doors leading to unknown areas, likely storage rooms for other items.


    Eventually, they stopped in front of a door exuding a cold chill, reminiscent of a cold storage facility.


    The scarred man pressed his thumb against the doorknob, unlocking it.


    Inside was indeed a cold room with smallerpartments branching off.


    Breaking the silence since leaving the Trade Centre, the scarred man finally spoke.


    "Woodstone City only has three dimensional cracks¡ªtwo Level 1 cracks and one Level 2 crack¡ªso we only stock Level 1 and Level 2 monster corpses. Which do you want?"


    "What Level 1 monsters do you have?" Michael asked.


    Thanks to the Supers Association forum and his search this evening, Michael was a little knowledgeable about Dimensional cracks now.


    He recalled that Level 1 dimensional cracks only produced monsters at most equivalent to a peak Rank 1 Cultivator, while Level 2 cracks produced monsters up to peak Rank 2. Given his limited funds, Michael opted for the more affordable Level 1 corpses.


    "For Level 1, we have forest wolves at $4000 each and goblins at $1000 each."


    "Why are goblins so cheap?"


    "Goblins are weak, trash monsters with little value," the scarred man replied bluntly.


    "¡­"


    Michael refrained frommenting, already growing ustomed to the man''s bluntness.


    "Can I choose the bodies myself?" Michael asked, hoping to select corpses with higher star ratings, which meant higher level limits.


    Fortunately, the scarred man nodded in agreement.


    "What monster do you want to start with?"


    "Let''s start with the forest wolves."

 Chapter 30 Creating An Undead

    Though the storage room was cold, Michael''s constitution allowed him to endure it without much difort.


    The scarred man led Michael to apartment containing the corpses of forest wolves.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    They were stored on bunked shelves, two bodies per shelf, with six rows in total¡ª12 corpses altogether.


    Michael wasn''t sure if this was arge or small number, but it felt like thetter.


    He briefly wondered why the Association kept monster corpses in the firstce, but the scarred man''s cold demeanor dissuaded him from asking.


    Eager to finally get his hands on material for creating his undead, Michael began using {Detect} on the forest wolf corpses.


    [Forest Wolf Lv. 2]


    [Rank: Common¡ï]


    Dead


    [Forest Wolf Lv. 4]


    [Rank: Common¡ï]


    Dead


    [Forest Wolf Lv. 5]


    [Rank: Common¡ï¡ï]


    Dead


    [Forest Wolf Lv. 2]


    [Rank: Common¡ï¡ï]


    Dead


    Michael''s requirements weren''t high¡ªhe simply needed a monster above one star.


    A one-starmon-rank monster had a maximum level of 7, which was too weak, offering little advantage over his current strength.


    A two-starmon-rank monster could reach Rank 1 Level 4 (Level 14), which was barely eptable in his eyes.


    Michael hoped to find a three-star corpse.


    However, while it would allow for growth to Level 21, he knew that a Level 21mon-rank monster would be inferior to a three-star rare-rank monster of the same level like the Gargoyle back in the Land Of Origin .


    Rank wasn''t just about potential but also reflected racial superiority. Even within the same species, bloodlines could vary in nobility and strength.


    This was evident in the difference between harmless one-star slimes and two-star acid slimes.


    Michael didn''t need a powerful three-star rare-grade monster like the gargoyle that had halted his exploration in the Land of Origin.


    Not to mention his inability to kill one¡ªrare-grade monsters were rarely unranked, and even if they were, they were said to rival Awakeners, even factoring in the advantage of attribute points. He doubted he could even afford one if the option existed.


    In his opinion, a few one-star rare-grade monsters at the peak of Rank One (Level 25) or in Rank Two (above Level 25), paired with several three-starmon-grade undead at Level 21 (Rank One, Level 11), should be enough to overwhelm the gargoyle, provided he nned well.


    Unfortunately, no three-star forest wolf corpses were avable, and even the two-star corpses he found didn''t exceed three.


    In the end, Michael purchased the three two-star forest wolf corpses and stored them in his Mark of Origin.


    As for the goblins, Michael didn''t even bother.


    ording to a post that mentioned slimes, goblins were grouped in the same category. Goblins were barely better than slimes, excelling only in reproduction.


    Michael had no interest in wasting money on such weak monsters.


    What he didn''t expect, however, was how his opinion about goblins¡ªor any so-called ''weak'' species¡ªwas about to change.


    After leaving the storage room, Michael provided his ount details to collect the remaining $5500, which would raise his bnce back above $10,000 once transferred.


    He decided not to sell the other three spirit crystals he had.


    They might prove useful after creating an undead, assuming his talent demonstrates something, or for replenishing mana during the revival process, which consumes a significant amount.


    Spirit crystals were a better option for recovery than waiting for natural regeneration or relying on mana stones, crystals, or potions.


    Michael also remembered the slime cores he''d collected and decided to check if they could be sold.


    Surprisingly, the Association epted them.


    While slime cores weren''t particrly valuable¡ªselling for $100 each¡ªMichael managed to earn $1500 by selling 15 cores.


    As for why he hadn''t sold them earlier alongside the spirit crystal, the reason was simple: he''d forgotten.


    The earlier event caused by him using {Detect} on the scarred man, followed by their rapid exchange, had shifted his focus.


    Unlike spirit crystals, he never considered slime cores important.


    After exchanging farewells¡ªthough the scarred man only responded with a nod¡ªMichael quickly exited the Association building and hailed a cab home.


    This time, unlike his earlier trip, Michael refrained from using {Detect} on everyone he encountered, now more cautious about his actions.


    Nearly an hourter, with no traffic, Michael arrived home faster than expected.


    After paying the cab fare, he hurried to his apartment, eager to enter the Land of Origin and finally summon an undead.


    Inside, he noticed his cousin Lily was back from school. She gave him a bewildered look as he greeted her in passing, clearly in a rush.


    Michael offered no exnation and quickly retreated to his room.


    Lying on his bed, he connected his consciousness to the Land of Origin.


    A momentter, a pair of eyes opened.


    "I''m back."


    An hour had passed since Michael left the Land of Origin, and the surroundings seemed a little brighter.


    "It''s probably approaching noon," he thought, standing up.


    Cautiously, he stepped out of the room. Only after scanning his surroundings and confirming there was no danger did he rx.


    The Land of Origin was the only ce Michael felt safe enough to create an undead. Attempting such a thing at home felt unwise, and he remained wary of anything supernatural in the real world.


    Here, he could afford to take risks since there was no true death, unlike in reality. This was why he hadn''t dared to enter dimensional cracks himself to hunt monsters and instead opted to buy their corpses.


    Michael felt his current strength wasn''t enough for such risks.


    Finding a wide, clear space in the abandoned dorms, Michael took a deep breath and released a forest wolf corpse from his storage space.


    For the first time since his Awakening, he was one step closer to creating an undead.


    "I hope my luck isn''t too bad."


    With his {Undead Revival} at {Intermediate Mastery}, Michael had only nine chances¡ªthree attempts per corpse¡ªto create an undead.


    He would be lying if he said he wasn''t nervous.


    ****


    A/N: At least two chapters will be uploaded every day. Please show your support¡ªit''s a huge motivation!

 Chapter 31 Change In Talent!

    The effect of {Undead Revival} was straightforward.


    It revived a corpse as an undead.


    However, reviving a corpse could fail in three scenarios.


    First was the mastery of the skill.


    The sess rate of {Undead Revival} depended heavily on its mastery level.


    {Basic Mastery} was 20% sess rate.


    {Intermediate Mastery} was 50% sess rate.


    {Advanced Mastery} was 80% sess rate.


    {Perfect Mastery} rarely fails.


    At {Perfect Mastery}, effects of a skill were said to evolve, but Michael was far from that level.


    With his {Intermediate Mastery}, Michael''s chances of sess were only 50%.


    Second was the strength difference.


    Reviving a corpse also depended on the difference in strength between the necromancer and the corpse.


    The {Mastery} level of {Undead Revival} wasn''t everything.


    If the strength difference was too great, reviving a corpse was likely to fail.


    Forcing the process could even result in a bacsh against the necromancer, as creating a contract with an undead required sacrificing a part of their soul.


    This sacrificed fragment served as the link between the necromancer and the undead if the revival seeded.n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    That fragment was represented as a contract slot on the Awakener panel.


    The contract slot was essentially a representation of the necromancer''s soul''s strength.


    As a necromancer grew stronger, their soul also became more powerful, creating additional contract slots.


    A necromancer capable of gaining five extra slots per level had an exceptionally strong soul, which was a testament to their talent.


    However, it wasn''t as though individuals from other ssescked strong souls. They did, which allowed them to create undead as well. But this was where the uniqueness of sses came into y.


    Everyone could cook, but a non-chef could rarely match the skills of a master chef whose life revolved around cooking.


    Or, as people said on Earth, it came down to a "skill issue."


    The third factor was mana, which was directly tied to the strength of the corpse being used to create an undead.


    Reviving a lion would require far more mana than reviving a rabbit, where the consumption might be barely noticeable.


    Without sufficient mana, even the highest skill level would result in failure.


    The stronger the corpse, the higher the mana consumption.


    This was one of the reasons Necromancers were an intelligence-based ss, alongside their role as a variant of mages.


    This was why Michael always referred to himself as a fake necromancer.


    Of course, the most important factor at the end of the day was thepleteness of the corpse.


    You couldn''t create an effective undead from just the torso or fragmented remains. Attempting to do so would result in a defective undead.


    Fortunately, the corpses Michael obtained from the Association were all intact, bearing only the scars of the battles that had brought them down.


    Michael stared at the first forest wolf corpse in front of him.


    Its green body was massive, even for its level. At only level 2, it stood almost a meter tall if upright.


    Michael had brought three forest wolf corpses, allmon rank two stars, with the highest being level 7. That one looked like it could stand as tall as him¡ªMichael being quite tall at 5''9".


    Fortunately, it wasn''t an irond rule that stronger monsters always hadrger bodies.


    If unranked monsters were already his height, Michael couldn''t imagine the size of higher-ranked ones.


    Of course, this didn''t mean there were no colossal strong monsters.


    Michael remembered logging into the Supers Association forum for the first time and watching a Demigod Cultivator take down a hundred-meter-tall beast.


    Michael cleared all distracting thoughts from his mind and took a deep breath to steady his nerves.


    Once ready, he fixed his gaze on the forest wolf corpse before him and spoke in a firm, steady voice.


    "{Undead Revival}"


    Just like whenever he used {Basic Shot}, Michael immediately felt an instinctive awareness after casting {Undead Revival}, and both his hands began to move in mid-air.


    Mana gathered at the tip of his fingers, forming a greenish-ck light.


    This was Michael''s mana signature.


    While mana itself was colorless, everyone had a unique signature that appeared when they used it.


    Michael''s was the eerie greenish-ck light emitting from his fingertips.


    Though surprised by the sight, as this was his first time casting a magic skill¡ªwhich was, in fact, a spell¡ªhe focused on the awareness that apanied {Undead Revival} and followed the movements it guided him to.


    His hands moved swiftly in mid-air, and a greenish magic circle, filled with strange symbols, formed in front of him.


    As the circle nearedpletion, Michael could feel his mana draining, but it remained manageable for now, as he hadn''t reached the main part of the ritual yet.


    Suddenly, the magic circle shrunk and shot into the body of the forest wolf.


    A greenish-ck gas started to emit from its corpse.


    Immediately, Michael felt his mana draining rapidly.


    The consumption only stopped after about 30% of his mana was used up.


    However¡­


    "I failed."


    Reviving the forest wolf corpse as an undead had failed.


    Though disappointed, Michael wasn''t too downhearted.


    He had expected this oue, which was why he had started with the level 2 forest wolf corpse.


    While necromancers could level up their undead, if he had started with the level 7 forest wolf and failed three times, reviving the level 2 one would take more time to reach the same level.


    Of course, simply cing the level 7 corpsest wouldn''t guarantee sess.


    But now that he had cast the skill for the first time, Michael had gained experience.


    He didn''t check his skill panel, but he was sure his proficiency level had improved slightly.


    "I still have mana, so let''s continue. But {Undead Revival} really drains mana, and this is only for a level 2 corpse."


    Michael silently decided that after this, he''d raise his Intelligence stat.


    He had 18 attribute points now, so it should be enough.


    After resting for a while, Michael continued.


    "{Undead Revival}"


    A whileter¡­


    Michael finally seeded.


    Though he was panting slightly from mana exhaustion, Michael gazed at the standing forest wolf in front of him with an excited smile.


    Its eyes werepletely white, and its once green fur was now a pale, sickly grayish-green.


    Feeling the connection with the undead, Michaelmanded it to perform basic actions.


    As he did so, he called up his panel in his mind.


    ''Status''


    ---


    [Name: Michael Norman]


    [ss: Necromancer Apprentice]


    [Level: 5]


    [EXP: 114/800]


    [Strength: 2.5]


    [Agility: 6.4]


    [Constitution: 4.3]


    [Intelligence: 8.5]


    [Attribute Points: 18]


    [Skills: Undead Summoning, Undead Revival, Detect, Basic Shot]


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    [ss Skill: Contract Slot{1/10}]


    [Gift: Mark Of Origin]


    ¡ª


    Sure enough, a contract slot was now taken.


    "I finally have an undead!" Michael eximed, a wide grin spreading across his face. "Bye-bye, fake old me!"


    Michael was gleeful. Fortunately, it only took him two tries to create an undead, and he hadn''t wasted $4000.


    But not even a few secondster, Michael calmed down, his eyes drawn to another section in his panel.


    "I wonder if there''s a change now," Michael muttered as he turned his focus to view his Talent.


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    Evolution Points: 4


    Evolvable:


    Undead Forest Wolf Lv. 2 (Sufficient evolution points, Can be evolved)


    "Huh?" It took a second for Michael to fully react.


    "It really did need me to have an undead before it works!" Michael roared inughter, excited as he examined what his talent could do.


    Talents were said to be incredibly useful, and Michael was especially hopeful considering the dominating name of his own.


    "Undead Forest Wolf level 2? Isn''t this my undead?" Michael confirmed, turning to look at the Forest Wolf in front of him.


    [Undead Forest Wolf Lv. 2]


    [Rank: Common¡ï¡ï]


    "As expected," Michael muttered before returning his focus to the panel.


    "Sufficient evolution points to evolve my undead? What does this mean?"


    As soon as Michael thought about it, the content on the panel shifted.


    [Undead Forest Wolf Lv. 2]


    [Rank: Common¡ï¡ï]


    [Evolve to Common¡ï¡ï¡ï for 1 Evolution point?]


    "Wait, hold up?!"

 Chapter 32 Evolution of the forest Wolf, Rare Rank Undead

    Michael could almost hear his own heartbeat pounding in excitement as he stared at the content on the panel before him.


    He didn''t dare believe it at first.


    "My talent can enhance the potential of my undead?"


    It sounded almost impossible. Perhaps there were methods to do this elsewhere, but Michael had never heard of them¡ªand frankly, he couldn''t care at the moment.


    Trembling with excitement, Michael decided to test his talent immediately.


    "Evolve!"


    He practically shouted, his voice echoing in the empty space.


    As soon as themand was given, Michael saw his umted points reduce to 3.


    Immediately, the undead Forest Wolf''s body began to emit a grey light, and it howled¡ªa sound that sent a shiver down Michael''s spine.


    Despite being undead, its body still retained certain traits from when it was alive.


    An undead, after all, is a creature reanimated through supernatural or magical means.


    While itcks biological functions, it is sustained by necromantic energy or other unnatural forces.


    Undead beings are alive, but only in the sense of being animated by supernatural power, not true life.


    The wolf''s howls seemed filled with pain as its body started to change, slowly expanding in size.


    An undead feeling pain wasn''t something that made sense but so was the sense in front of Michael.


    Michael watched the transformation intently, his eyes glued to every detail.


    Momentster, the grey light faded, and the wolf''s form became fully visible.


    Its appearance hadn''t changed much, aside from growing slightlyrger, now almost as tall as Michaelparable to the level 7 corpse he had purchased.


    But Michael''s focus wasn''t on its size.


    [Undead Forest Wolf Lv. 3]


    [Rank: Common¡ï¡ï¡ï]


    The wolf''s potential had increased to three stars, and it had even levelled up!


    "Haha!" Michael roared withughter¡ªuntil he abruptly choked, his excitement momentarily overwhelming him.


    But this didn''t dampen his mood at all.


    His talent was incredibly powerful!


    Though it was called Infinite Evolution, Michael hadn''t dared to imagine it would be anything like this.


    Still, there was one more thing he needed to confirm¡ªto truly test the extent of his ability.


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    Evolution Points: 3


    Evolvable:


    Undead Forest Wolf Lv. 3 (Insufficient evolution points, Can''t be evolved)


    "It can still be evolved?!"


    Michael''s hands shook with excitement.


    Though the panel didn''t state it outright, it hinted that he could enhance the potential of his undead again¡ªprovided he had sufficient points.


    Without hesitation, Michael retrieved a spirit crystal from his Mark of Origin and began absorbing its energy.


    A short whileter, his evolution points increased.


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    Evolution Points: 6


    Evolvable:


    Undead Forest Wolf Lv. 3 (Sufficient evolution points, Can be evolved)


    The spirit crystal had given him 3 Evolution Points, but that wasn''t Michael''s focus.


    Just as he had suspected, the only thing hecked to evolve his undead further was more Evolution Points.


    However¡­


    "The forest wolf is currently a three-star Common-rank monster. Above this¡­" Michael''s voice trembled.


    "It will be a Rare-rank monster!"


    His body shook at the thought.


    "Can my talent really be so heaven-defying?"


    If his suspicions were correct, Michael''s path to power would be far smoother than that of any ordinary necromancer.


    The Necromancer ss thrived on numbers, but stronger monsters were incredibly powerful and difficult to kill.


    This often forced even high-level necromancers to rely on a few elite undead, with the rest of their armies made up of weaker, cannon-fodder creatures.


    But with Infinite Evolution, Michael envisioned a terrifying future.


    While others would risk their lives or pay exorbitant prices to strengthen their undead armies, Michael''s talent seemed to erase those limitations entirely.


    High rank monsters weren''t just defined by their strength¡ªthey were also defined by their rarity.


    Most necromancers, even at level 100, wouldn''tmand many undead with high rank as there weren''t a lot as one would imagine in the first ce.


    But what about Michael?


    If his talent truly lived up to its name¡ªInfinite Evolution¡ªand allowed him to endlessly evolve his undead, wasn''t it possible for all of his creatures to one day reach the Demigod rank?


    [There were seven known ranks for monsters, from low to high: Common, Rare, Extraordinary, Epic, Legendary, Mythical, and Demigod. Each rank had three mini-grades called stars¡ªlike one-star Common, two-star Common, two-star Rare, and so on.]


    The mere thought made Michael feel like he was dreaming, his hopes soaring dangerously high.


    But there was only one way to confirm it.


    And that was to continue evolving.


    "Come on, Infinite Evolution! Show me your limit!"


    [Undead Forest Wolf Lv. 3]N?v(el)B\\jnn


    [Rank: Common¡ï¡ï¡ï]


    [Evolve to Rare¡ï for 5 Evolution point?]


    "Yes!"


    The undead Forest Wolf''s body shone with a brilliant grey light, so intense that Michael had to squint.


    Despite the brightness, his determination to witness the changes kept his gaze fixed on the evolving creature.


    Like before, the undead wolf howled in pain, its cries echoing through the quiet surroundings.


    Its body grewrger andrger, eventually towering half a meter above Michael.


    But this time, the changes went far beyond mere size.


    Beneath the glowing grey light, Michael noticed moss and vines sprouting across the wolf''s greyish-green skin.


    Thick vines burst from the ground beneath its feet, writhing as if they had a life of their own.


    The undead wolf was transforming into something entirely new.


    Its aura grew so powerful that Michael struggled to breathe, the oppressive energy pressing down on him.


    Minutester, the blinding grey light faded, and the transformation stopped.


    Before Michael could fully process the visual changes in his undead, several notification panels popped up before him.


    [Your Common¡ï¡ï¡ï Undead Forest Wolf has evolved to Rare¡ï Undead Verdant Wolf.]


    [Your undead Verdant Wolf has advanced to Rank 1, Level 1 (Level 11).]


    [Your undead Verdant Wolf has gained the skill {nt Control}.]


    [You have received feedback from your undead Verdant Wolf''s Rank Advancement.]


    [Your Strength stat has increased significantly!]


    [Your Agility stat has increased significantly!]


    [Your Constitution stat has increased significantly!]


    [Your Intelligence stat has increased significantly!]


    Immediately, Michael felt a powerful surge of energy coursing through his body.


    *****


    Happy New Month and Merry Christmas in Advance!!!

 Chapter 33 Another Change

    For sses like Beast Tamers and Necromancers, the advantage wasn''t just the contract slots allowing them tomand minions as part of their strength.


    Another noticeable benefit of these sses was the feedback they received as their minions grew stronger.


    For Beast Tamers, although they had fewer contract slots than Necromancers¡ªgaining only additional slots every five levels¡ªtheir main advantagey in the feedback.


    As their tamed beasts grew stronger, the tamers themselves received boosts, not just from rank advancements but also from level-ups.


    Necromancers, on the other hand, didn''t receive feedback for each level-up of their undead but only from rank advancements.


    However, theypensated with a significantlyrger number of contract slots.


    This meant that, while the feedback per level up didn''t exist, the overall feedback from numerous rank advancements often surpassed that of Beast Tamers.


    Of course, there was a bnce.


    The stronger the tamer or Necromancer, the weaker the feedback they received from their minions.


    Conversely, weaker tamers or Necromancers gained more noticeable feedback from their growing minions.


    Though Michael had learned this through various forum posts¡ªwhich, in all honesty, werepletely random¡ªhe was still stunned by the surge of power he felt from evolving his undead.


    No, what shocked him even more was that evolving his undead also caused it to rank up.


    He knew it was rare to find Rare-rank monsters below Rank 1, as adult forms were typically Rank 2 and far stronger than Rank 1 creatures.


    Yet, the fact that this applied to his undead took himpletely by surprise.


    After all, his talent was anything but conventional.


    "The race has changed too."


    Michael observed.


    After some consideration, he didn''t find this surprising.


    Rank and stars weren''t just about determining the limit of a creature.


    They were, in a sense, tied to its very identity.


    Most Forest Wolves could only ever reach Level 7 at best, with a rare few surpassing that and stepping into Rank 1.


    Even this was considered the extreme limit of their race.


    Anything beyond that would already exceed the natural capacity of their species.


    ''Perhaps this is the true meaning of evolution¡ªto break free from the limits imposed on the self.''


    Michael mused, reflecting on his talent.


    From what he''d seen so far, his talent wasn''t merely about raising the level cap of his undead.


    It seemed far more profound than that.


    Michael briefly entertained the possibility that his talent could affect more than just his undead.


    But with his limited knowledge, this thought remained just that¡ªa fleeting idea Michael couldn''t fully explore yet.


    The next major change Michael noticed was in his own body.


    Feeling the newfound strength coursing through him, his eyes lit up with pure delight.


    ''Status!''


    ---


    [Name: Michael Norman]


    [ss: Necromancer Apprentice]


    [Level: 5]


    [EXP: 114/800]


    [Strength: 4.5]


    [Agility: 9.4]


    [Constitution: 6.3]


    [Intelligence: 10.5]


    [Attribute Points: 18]


    [Skills: Undead Summoning, Undead Revival, Detect, Basic Shot]


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    [ss Skill: Contract Slot{1/10}]


    [Gift: Mark Of Origin]


    All his stats, aside from agility, increased by two points, while agility increased by three!


    A total gain of nine stat points!


    This incredible boost was entirely due to the feedback from his undead''s rank advancement.


    Still.


    "Isn''t this increase a bit too much?"


    Michael reasoned that his weakness likely amplified the feedback, but the effect beingparable to a level-up felt excessive.


    "Is it because it''s a rare-rank species?"


    Michael suspected this was the primary cause.


    Rare-rank creatures were known to rival Awakeners in strength, even with attribute points ounted for.


    In contrast,mon-rank monsters couldn''t measure up, so it made sense that a stronger creature would naturally yield a stronger feedback.


    Also, perhaps due to the wolf''s nature, agility received the highest boost.


    Once again, Agility was catching up to Michael''s Intelligence stat for the top spot


    As for the newly gained skill, nt Control, it seemed less shockingpared to the race change and rank advancement, making it easier for Michael to process.


    [Verdant Wolf Lv. 11]


    [Name: None.]


    [EXP: 0/2500]


    [Rank: Rare¡ï]


    [Skills: Bite, nt Control {NEW!}]


    [Master: Michael Norman]


    This was the information panel of his undead, something Michael, as its master, normally had ess to.


    Though the newly gained skill didn''t shock him as much as the other surprises, Michael''s curiosity was piqued.


    [{nt Control} (Basic Mastery) Proficiency: 0.2%]


    A racial ability of the Verdant Wolf species, nt Control allows them to manipte nts within their surroundings and use mana to influence growth or movement.


    At its current mastery, the skill had a range of ten meters.


    "A racial skill," Michael muttered.


    This wasn''t something he had anticipated.


    Initially, he thought the skill was a result of evolution, but realizing it was tied to the species itself opened new possibilities.


    "If I evolve the other two forest wolf corpses in my storage, they''ll likely gain the same skill."


    But before creating more undead, Michael had a pressing question.


    "Can the Verdant Wolf still be evolved?"


    Without hesitation, he focused on his talent panel to find out.


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    Evolution Points: 1


    Evolvable:


    Undead Verdant Wolf Lv. 11 (Insufficient evolution points, Can''t be evolved)


    "It can still be evolved?!"


    Another surge of excitement rushed through Michael.


    However, a momentter, his mood soured slightly.


    "My evolution points are still too few."


    At the moment, Michael only knew of two ways to gain Evolution points.


    Daily refresh and by absorbing spirit crystals.


    Thetter was far too expensive, while the former was too slow.


    Unranked spirit crystals also seemed to offer very little in terms of Evolution points.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    As Michael dwelled on hisck of points, his gaze subconsciously shifted to his panel, and he was immediately taken aback by a change he hadn''t noticed before.


    Somehow, at some point, his talent that was supposed to grant only 1 Evolution point per day had changed to 2.


    "What happened?" Michael frowned.


    Had this been before he discovered his talent''s ability, he might not have thought much of it, but things were different now.


    His talent was likely going to be the cornerstone of his strength in both the Land of Origin and Aurora, so anything rted to it had to be taken seriously.


    After thinking for a moment, a suspicion he couldn''t shake came to mind.


    "Is it because of my undead?"

 Chapter 34 New Skill

    The Supers Association forum didn''t provide much information on talents, leaving Michael with few spections.


    However, there was something he could do to confirm his earlier suspicion.


    Create more undead.


    Sending out the Rank 1 Verdant Wolf, which he named ''Lucky''¡ªpartially due to it being his first undead and the reason for discovering the ability of his talent¡ªhe instructed it to guard the room while he made space.


    Michael then brought another Forest Wolf corpse from his Mark of Origin, ready to test his theory.


    Thanks to the feedback from Lucky''s advancement, Michael''s exhausted mana was partially replenished.


    As one''s stats improved, the changes became qualitative rather than additive¡ªlike 1 + 1 equaling 3 instead of 2.


    Though the two-point increase in Intelligence didn''t fully restore his mana, it at least kept him from panting like before.


    With his experience from reviving Lucky, Michael rested briefly to reach an optimal state before attempting {Undead Revival} on the second Forest Wolf corpse.


    The first attempt.


    Failed.


    The second attempt.


    Also failed.


    After two consecutive failures, Michael didn''t immediately try again.


    Each corpse allowed only three revival attempts, and failure on the third would result in losing $4000 and an undead that could potentially give him evolution points.


    Previously, losing $4000 would''ve made his heart ache, but now, evolution points were far more valuable¡ªworth more than $40,000 in his eyes.


    Resting wouldn''t guarantee sess in the next attempt, but it was wise to recover since his mana had dropped significantly.


    As he rested, Michael opened his status screen, gazing at his stats with a thoughtful expression.


    [Strength: 4.5]


    [Agility: 9.4]


    [Constitution: 6.3]


    [Intelligence: 10.5]


    [Attribute Points: 18]N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Unlike before, when the Intelligence stat was nearly useless to Michael, the situation had shifted.


    As he grew stronger, the corpses required to create undead would also increase in strength, demanding more mana.


    This meant Michael had to ept the reality of the typical Necromancer''s ss-cannon physique.


    Yet, he didn''t feel disappointed.


    Was brute strength better thanmanding several Demigod-level undead minions? Absolutely not.


    One was a brute, and the other was a boss.


    That said, Michael wouldn''t be physically weak.


    Being a Rare-ss Necromancer, he would grow stronger through feedback from his undead as they advanced between ranks.


    While he couldn''t match pure physical sses, he could certainly dominate pure mages.


    With these thoughts in mind, Michael nced at his umted attribute points.


    Now at level 5, he hadn''t used any attribute points since levelling to 2 to handle the slimes in this ce.


    Earning 6 attribute points per level¡ª4 from his ss and 2 from his race¡ªhe had saved a total of 18 points.


    It was a considerable number, capable of providing an instant boost to his stats.


    Thanks to his talent, Michael was now willing tomit to the pure Necromancer path.


    "If I''m going to be a proper mage, I might as well go all out!"


    Necromancers were variant mages, making Intelligence their primary stat.


    Michael remembered that for every 20 points in a key stat, there was a chance to gain a skill rted to that stat and ss.


    His Intelligence stat was currently at 10.5.


    With the 10 attribute points, he could push it to 20 points.


    Though there was no guarantee he''d gain a skill upon reaching 20 Intelligence, it wouldn''t be a loss.


    More mana was invaluable for any mage, and Intelligence also increased learning speed, making it easier to master spells.


    While Intelligence didn''t make someone smarter or wiser, it provided a significant edge in areas like spellcraft, which would prove invaluable once he joined an academy.


    Although Awakeners'' Academies had strict requirements which he wasn''t sure of entering, Michael was confident he could at least enter a Cultivation Academy from what he had read in the forum.


    While thetter wasn''t ideal for someone like him, it was a backup option.


    The more he thought about it, the more he feltpelled to invest in Intelligence.


    After a moment''s consideration, Michael finally decided to let loose on this stat for the first time.


    "Intelligence! Show me your limit!"


    [Strength: 4.5]


    [Agility: 9.4]


    [Constitution: 6.3]


    [Intelligence: 20.5]


    [Attribute Points: 8]


    Immediately after allocating the attribute points to Intelligence, Michael felt his mind clear as if a fog had been lifted.


    His senses became sharper, though this wasn''t like the perceptual boost from agility points.


    This time, he started to pick up on something entirely different.


    Mana.


    It was all around him, invisible yet palpable.


    Having encountered it briefly before, it didn''t take long for Michael to recognize the sensation.


    But just as he was about to immerse himself in this newfound awareness, a notification appeared before him:


    [Your mana is overflowing.]


    [You have gained the skill {Share Senses}.]


    [{Share Senses} (Basic Mastery) Proficiency: 0.0%]


    Share senses with your undead. Current mastery allows linking with 2 undead at a time. Current range is 100 meters. The skill can be used in different ways based on personal understanding.


    "I lucked out!" Michael eximed, his excitement clear.


    Although he had told himself he wouldn''t be upset if he didn''t awaken a skill, he had secretly hoped he would.


    Now, not only had his wishe true, but the skill was incredibly useful.


    Currently, his connection to his undead relied on the soul link via the contract slot, which allowedmands and telepathy within a limited range.


    With {Share Senses}, his options expanded significantly.


    For starters, Michael could now have his undead scout dangerous areas while he monitored from a safe distance¡ªa crucial advantage for someone as cautious as him.


    Beyond scouting, the skill also opened up new ways to better utilize his undead, which pleased Michael immensely.


    But he couldn''t dwell on it for too long.


    With his mana now fully replenished¡ªand even greater than before¡ªMichael decided it was time to attempt another revival.


    ****


    A/N: Maybe it''s because it''s a new month but I''m pumped! Three chapters for y''all today! I hope you enjoy your reading.

 Chapter 35 More Evolution Points

    Thanks to his previous experiences in using {Undead Revival}, Michael finally understood the importance of agility for a Necromancer.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    He had always wondered why agility received the second-highest increase whenever he leveled up.


    At first nce, it seemed counterintuitive for a ss focused on magic and intelligence.


    However, his casting experience shed light on the matter.


    Higher agility meant better flexibility and faster movement speed, both of which yed a crucial role in spellcasting.


    For a Necromancer, agility wasn''t about physical speed but casting speed.


    If one''s movements during spellcasting were too slow, it could lead to critical issues, such as spell failure or vulnerability to enemy attacks.


    Of course Michael also liked as agility was also a prioritised stat for Necromancers.


    At least he could run away fast at the first nce of danger.


    Though Michael''s improved agility didn''t significantly increase the sess rate of {Undead Revival}, it did enhance his casting process, which may or may not have contributed to Michael''s sess in creating his second undead.


    Despite his curiosity about whether having undead affected the rate at which he gained Evolution Points, Michael didn''t pause to investigate.


    With only one corpse remaining, he decided to try creating another undead in one go.


    This time, luck was on his side, and he seeded in reviving the third undead on his first attempt.


    [Undead Forest Wolf Lv. 7]


    [Rank: Common¡ï¡ï]


    [Undead Forest Wolf Lv. 5]


    [Rank: Common¡ï¡ï]


    Out of the three corpses he had brought from the association, Michael was fortunate enough to create an undead from each one.


    Happy with the growing number of his undead, Michael eagerly turned to his talent to check the rate at which he earned Evolution Points daily.


    To his delight, he saw it had increased to four.


    "So having undead really does give me more points?!"


    The discovery filled him with excitement but also sparked a train of thought.


    While it was good news that his Evolution Points were increasing, it was a bit frustrating not knowing why.


    Michael spected that this phenomenon might have something to do with the contract¡ªor rather, the soul link¡ªbetween him and his undead.


    Talents didn''t rely on mana; they typically used soul energy. Yet, unlike other talents that actively drew soul energy when used, Michael felt nothing, even when evolving Lucky.


    This led him to a theory.


    Perhaps his talent wasn''t an active type but a passive one.


    Instead of actively consuming soul energy, it passively absorbed it, umting until it reached a threshold and formed an "Evolution Point."


    If his theory was correct, then it made sense why having more undead increased his Evolution Points.


    Maybe his talent treated the soul link between him and his undead as an extension of his own soul and drew energy from them as well.


    After all, the undead created by {Undead Revival} had their own souls, which sustained their existence.


    While undead creatures weren''t truly alive, this magically artificial soul acted as their life and energy reserve.


    Michael wasn''t currently concerned about the energy reserves of his undead.


    His focus was on the connection between their souls and the increase in his Evolution Points.


    "If that''s the case," Michael concluded, "then the n is simple. I need to level up to unlock more contract slots and fill them with undead. That should increase my Evolution Points even further."


    Unlike other Necromancers who had to carefully consider how they filled their contract slots¡ªsince canceling a contract caused bacsh¡ªMichael didn''t share this concern.


    While others worried about the potential of their undead, it wasn''t an issue for him.


    If a creature''s potential was too low, he could simply evolve it.


    Michael''s cautious nature made him even prefer weaker creatures if they came from the real world for safety reasons.


    After all, in the real world, one only had a single life.


    Some might see his caution as cowardice, but that wasn''t entirely true.


    If he were a true coward, he wouldn''t have had the guts to confront the acid slime after being mutted by its attack and enduring excruciating pain.


    Most people would have given up in his situation orcked the willpower to survive such an ordeal.


    While it was true that being in the Land of Origin gave him more guts, it didn''t diminish the fact that many other Awakeners wouldn''t havested in his shoes.


    After reflecting on his talent, Michael concluded that whether or not more undead truly increased the rate of Evolution points, it was undeniably good news for him.


    If his spection was correct, filling his remaining seven contract slots would allow him to gain 11 Evolution points every 24 hours¡ªenough to evolve two three-starmon undead into rare rank each day.


    Reaching the Demigod rank for all his undead was a distant goal, but achieving rare rank for them seemed well within reach.


    Rare rank undead would also begin at Rank 1, ensuring they wouldn''t be too weak, even initially.


    The more Michael thought about it, the more he craved additional undeads.


    Though cautious by nature, even the most risk-averse person would be tempted by the promise of greater power, and Michael was no exception.


    What was a little riskpared to the potential for more strength?


    However, despite his growing eagerness to explore the Dimensional Cracks he had previously avoided, Michael knew there were still a few matters to address in the Land of Origin first.


    One, starting with evolving another undead.


    Currently back to square one with only a single Evolution point, Michael decided to absorb the two Spirit Crystals he had left.


    The first gave him two points, and the second added three more.


    Combined with the one Evolution point he already had, he now had six.


    Just enough to evolve another undead to rare rank.


    [Talent: Infinite Evolution]


    Evolution Points: 6


    Evolvable:


    Undead Verdant Wolf Lv. 11 (Insufficient evolution points, Can''t be evolved)


    Undead Forest Wolf Lv. 7 (Sufficient evolution points, Can be evolved)


    Undead Forest Wolf Lv. 5 (Sufficient evolution points, Can be evolved)

 Chapter 36 Second Rare Rank Undead

    As expected, Lucky couldn''t be evolved again.


    Michael wondered how many Evolution Points would be required for Lucky''s next evolution.


    At themon rank, evolving had only cost 1 point, but advancing to the next rank required five times the previous amount.


    Michael still knew little about his talent and its Evolution Point distribution.


    To uncover the full pattern, he needed more undead under hismand.


    "Evolving Lucky is off the table, but these two are still viable. The question is: do I raise both to their peak potential in themon rank or concentrate all my Evolution Points on one and evolve it to rare rank?"


    This was Michael''s current dilemma.


    If he focused all his points on one undead, it would require all six Evolution Points to achieve rare rank.


    Alternatively, evolving both to three-starmon rank would only cost 2 points per undead.


    However, after a moment of reflection, Michael felt foolish.


    "Why am I even debating this? A rank 1 rare rank undead is leagues above a three-starmon rank undead. It''s not even aparison."


    To Michael, what he needed most now were strong undead to ensure his ns for both the Land of Origin and the real world proceeded smoothly¡ªand, most importantly, safely.


    Michael had already resolved to fill his contract slots using the real world due to his situation in the Land of Origin and level up before his talent showed its ability.


    But now that it did, he was filled with even more enthusiasm.


    A rank 1 rare rank monster, equivalent in strength to what most Awakeners could only match with heavy use of Attribute Points, was immensely powerful.


    With two such undead, Michael would gain an unprecedented advantage.


    Dimensional cracks in the real world were categorized based on the Cultivation power system.


    With his current Attribute Points, Michael could already boost himself to the strength of an all rounder peak rank 1 Knight.


    If he hadn''t invested in Intelligence earlier, he might not match a peak rank 2 Cultivator, but he would still be stronger than a new rank 2 Knight.


    If Michael was this capable, what about a rank 1 rare rank undead?


    Surely, it could fight against peak rank 2 Cultivators without much difficulty.


    The highest-rated dimensional crack in Woodstone City only reached level 2.


    With two rank 1 rare rank undead, Michael could dominate such a crack with ease.


    That said, he wasn''t nning to rush into a level 2 crack immediately.


    Michael''s strategy was simple.


    Develop steadily.


    He would start with weak monsters, turn them into undead, and use the Evolution Points gained from them to strengthen his forces.


    With this cycle, Michael envisioned himself creating an army of rank 1 rare rank undead monsters, ensuring his future growth was both stable and unstoppable.


    Even though Michael was naturally cautious, the power he wielded now was enough to embolden him.


    Of course, this newfound confidence hinged on whether he had the strength to back it up.


    Michael didn''t feel that just one rank 1 undead could sustain his boldness.


    Two were barely enough.


    For now, one of the undead would have to wait untilter to evolve.


    It wouldn''t be long, though.


    Michael nned to visit a dimensional crack soon, though he hadn''t decided which one yet.


    With more undead at hismand, the Forest Wolf would be able to evolve, and this applied to all the undead that would follow.


    After making a decision, Michael stared at the level 7 undead Forest Wolf in front of him.


    It was thest undead he had revived, so it was currently the only one in the room with him.


    The other undead was outside guarding with Lucky.


    Since evolving wasn''t like casting a skill, Michael immediately got to work.


    First, he spent an evolution point to evolve the undead Forest Wolf to a three-starmon rank undead.


    After waiting a few seconds after the change, he immediately spent thest five points to evolve the three-starmon rank Forest Wolf to a rank 1 rare rank undead.


    Like Lucky, its body changed.


    It grew moss and vines on its greyish-green body.


    Its aura strengthened as it advanced to rank 1 as a one-star rare rank level 1 Verdant Wolf, making Michael very happy.


    However, it was half a head shorter than Lucky, which made Michael aware that even within the same rank, there were differences.


    A few secondster, the feedback Michael had been waiting for arrived.


    The feedback from his undead ranking up.


    [Your Common¡ï¡ï¡ï Undead Forest Wolf has evolved to Rare¡ï Undead Verdant Wolf.]


    [Your undead Verdant Wolf has advanced to Rank 1, Level 1 (Level 11).]


    [Your undead Verdant Wolf has gained the skill {nt Control}.]


    [You have received feedback from your undead Verdant Wolf''s Rank Advancement.]


    [Your Strength stat has increased significantly!]


    [Your Agility stat has increased significantly!]


    [Your Constitution stat has increased significantly!]


    [Your Intelligence stat has increased significantly!]


    Ignoring the familiar notification after a brief nce, Michael turned to inspect his increase in power through his stat panel.


    ''Status''


    [Strength: 6.1(1.6^)]


    [Agility: 11.1(1.7^)]


    [Constitution: 7.7(1.4^)]


    [Intelligence: 22.3(1.8^)]


    [Attribute Points: 8]


    Michael''s stats received another significant boost from his undead''s advancement.


    However it was slightly less than what Lucky had granted him.


    Michael wondered if it was due to his own body being stronger now, or if this undead''s personal talent was weaker than Lucky''s. It could be both.


    What surprised Michael the most was that his intelligence still saw a significant increase.


    Intelligence was now his highest stat, so he wouldn''t have been surprised if it hadn''t increased.


    But it actually went up by nearly two points, just like Lucky''s.


    It seemed that all Verdant Wolves had a natural talent for magic.


    Rare-grade monsters were truly something.


    Michael dismissed the panel and turned to gaze at his transformed undead, now radiating an intimidating aura.


    "Since you''re my second evolved undead, I''ll give you a name too," he said.


    "Let''s call you¡­ Prince."


    "Though you''re second in my team, you''re royalty now¡ªan infinitely evolvable being."n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om

 Chapter 37 Mistake

    Michael cringed a little at his words but found no fault in them.


    With his talent, all his undead were indeed special.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Calling them privileged was no exaggeration.


    He also didn''t see anything wrong with naming his undead.


    The stronger an undead became, the more developed its consciousness would be.


    Though the extent depended on its innate talent or the necromancer''s efforts.


    Thanks to his talent, Michael was certain his undead would eventually surpass normal limits, awakening full consciousness sooner orter.


    In fact, it might not take long at all since his undead weren''t going to be ordinary.


    Prince, still a newly created undead, hadn''t shown signs yet, but Lucky was already exhibiting early traces of awareness.


    Michael had caught the Verdant Wolf chewing moss off a wall, only to spit it out and tilt its head in clear confusion.


    It likely couldn''t taste anything.


    As for why a wolf would eat something nt-rted¡­


    Perhaps it was a lingering habit from its previous consciousness.


    Lucky, like all undead creatures, would retain faint traces of its former self despite the transformation.


    While its memories and personality were erased, certain instincts and habits could persist.


    Or maybe Lucky might be innately stupid.


    Michael hoped not.


    Then again, perhaps it had something to do with the nature of Verdant Wolves themselves.


    Perhaps Verdant Wolves were omnivores.


    Either way, the behavior confirmed that Lucky''s consciousness had begun to awaken, and it was stronger than Michael had expected.


    If this was due to its rank, then all his undead would gain awareness eventually, making naming them more meaningful.


    However, Michael knew naming every undead wasn''t practical. By level 10, he''d have at least 20 undead, and by level 100, potentially 200 or more.


    He wasn''t good with names and would likely resort to numbering if he tried naming them all.


    So, Michael decided.


    Only the first two undead from each race would receive names. Any others would be exceptions, named only if they were special in some way.


    Of course, his undead still needed to be identified in some way, but that was a problem for another time.


    For now¡­


    "Once I''m done here, I should figure out how to ess the dimensional cracks in Woodstone City. That shouldn''t be an issue," Michael muttered to himself.


    Despite his eagerness to leave the Land of Origin, there was still one thing left to do.


    Using his second ss skill, {Undead Summoning}.


    Unless Michael wanted to carry his undead everywhere in the cramped space of his Mark of Origin, {Undead Summoning} was essential.


    The skill functioned simrly to {Undead Revival}, with its sess rate tied to {Mastery} level except it had no attempt limits.


    However, it consumed far more mana.


    The cost reduced only after the skill seeded.


    At its current {Intermediate Mastery}, Michael had a 50% sess rate.


    But what exactly did sess mean?


    {Undead Summoning} allowed Michael to summon contracted undead anywhere and dismiss them at will.


    This required forming a contract between the undead and a subspace known as the Netherworld¡ªthe home of the dead.


    By channeling his mana, Michael attempted to take his undead to the Netherworld, enabling them to inhabit it when not summoned.


    The Netherworld was an excellent environment for undead, but it came with an annoying drawback: its resistance.


    Every failed attempt to send an undead to the Netherworld increased the retry cost by 50%.


    Thispounding penalty reflected the Netherworld''s growing rejection of non-native creatures.


    The situation was even worse for stronger undead, as they required more mana to be contracted initially¡ªand exponentially more if retries were necessary.


    This was why the Necromancer ss relied heavily on intelligence: mana was truly their lifeline.


    Currently, Michael still has an abundant mana pool, bolstered by his recent stat increases.


    Without dy, he activated {Undead Summoning} and began the process.


    Prince stood before him, ready to be the first test subject for {Undead Summoning}.


    The casting process felt simr to {Undead Revival}, but with a crucial difference: two additional magic circles formed during the spell.


    Instead of shrinking and merging into the undead''s body as with revival, these circles expanded outward, pulling more mana from Michael as they enveloped Prince.


    They emitted a greenish-ck light as they slid beneath him, causing Prince''s body to glow faintly.


    Michael''s mana rapidly drained.


    Unfortunately, despite consuming 15% of his total mana, the spell failed.


    A frown appeared on Michael''s face.


    "The mana consumption is a bit too much.".


    The implications dawned on him quickly.


    At Rank 1, Prince''s strength likely demanded significantly more mana to form the contract with the Netherworld.


    If 15% of his mana failed on the first attempt, the second attempt would cost roughly 22%, and subsequent retries would only worsen the situation.


    "This is too much!"


    Michael''s expression further darkened.


    In his rush to evolve his undead, he had overlooked a crucial detail.


    The stronger an undead was, the higher the initial mana cost to contract it with the Netherworld.


    He didn''t know this initially but he should have thought of it after evolving Lucky.


    By evolving Prince to Rare Grade before attempting the summoning ritual, Michael had unintentionally made the process much harder for himself.


    If he''d prioritized sending his undead into the Netherworld while they were still Common Grade, it would have been far more efficient.


    Now, his undead''s strength¡ªan extension of his strength¡ªhad temporarily be a frustrating obstacle.


    "I''ll have to be more careful about how I evolve my undead in the future," Michael muttered.


    This realization brought another insight.


    Perhaps the reason powerful necromancers didn''t always fill their contract slots wasn''t just because they sought undead with better potential.


    It might also be because they couldn''t find weak ones with enough potential.


    Sure, a necromancer could forego {Undead Summoning} and keep powerful undead roaming in the real world, but Michael doubted that was practical in most situations.


    The Netherworld provided a far more efficient solution for housing his undead.


    "I really didn''t think this through," he admitted, frustrated.


    Fortunately, his current undead weren''t toorge to fit in his Mark of Origin storage space.


    While the storage couldn''t amodate living beings, undead were technically not alive, making it a temporary workaround.


    However, this wasn''t a permanent solution.


    For now, Michael decided to leave that problem for his future self to handle.


    To be safe, Michael dismissed Prince outside the room and called Lucky back in.


    Between the two, Lucky seemed the stronger choice to gamble on for {Undead Summoning} sess.


    Michael resolved to bet everything on Lucky.


    Determined, he used all his umted attribute points on Intelligence, pushing the stat to 30.


    "Lucky, you better hope your name brings you actual luck!" Michael muttered nervously.


    With no time to waste, he began casting {Undead Summoning} on Lucky.


    For now, he could still use his storage space to transport his undead to the real world, but what would happen if they grew bigger as they became stronger?


    Or as their numbers grew?


    The way things were looking now, it seems his overall power was going to be divided in both worlds making him significantly weaker as he grew stronger.


    "It seems that, for now, I need monsters weaker than Level 5 if I want to avoid shooting myself in the foot with the disgusting Netherworld system and that scam of a {Undead Summoning} skill," Michael grumbled.


    Unfortunately, weaker monsters didn''t guarantee sess either.


    Once again, the worries of the future piled higher.


    Of course, this didn''t mean Michael wouldn''t try to fill his contract slots and evolve his undead.


    The process could be dyed but neverpromised.


    At worst, he would keep most of his undead situated in the Land of Origin, focusing more on those he could summon and dismiss at will.


    These select undead would be his main ones, and he would prioritize their growth and evolution.


    Also, he didn''t believe other Necromancers hasn''t thought about the disgusting nature of the Netherworld and {Undead Summoning} to not think of something.

 Chapter 38 Truly Lucky

    [Author''s Note]


    It''s been brought to my attention that the story''s progress might feel a bit too slow, even for a slow-paced novel for some of you. I''d love to know if that''s generally the case or if I just need to pick up the pace slightly. Either way, our boy Michael is about to be on some demon time soon, hehe.


    If the story does feel too slow, I apologize. I''m just a bit too used to setting down solid foundations for my novels (I''m a bit of an old author, haha). The advantage, though, is that once the groundwork is set, that''s it. I also pride myself on being a good nner, so rest assured, everything has a purpose.


    A lot of novels like this lose their integrity too quickly due to rushed power-ups, and that''s something I want to avoid. That doesn''t mean our boy won''t have his power-up moments¡ªhe absolutely will, and plenty of them, and soon at that. However, he''ll have to earn them.


    I''m not making him overpowered just because he''s the MC. He''ll be overpowered because he''s a deserving MC.


    Thanks for bearing with the slower pace, and thank you for reading! Two more chapters are on the way!


    Also the story switches to a good level of fast pace after chapter 44. Readers there can confirm this. No more info drops and just pure story since everything that needs to be currently stated already is.


    *****


    Michael stared at Lucky in front of him, a faint smile ying on his lips, tinged with a hint of resentment.


    He steadied his heavy breathing before speaking.


    "Lucky, we might have to change your name soon. You''re a scam, buddy."


    With 30 points in Intelligence¡ª30 times the amount of an average human¡ªMichael had expected far better results.


    Yet, it had taken all his mana to barely send Lucky to the Netherworld.


    The Lucky before him now was the one he had just summoned back after some rest.


    Michael had to admit, the effects of {Undead Summoning} were impressive.


    Once the contract was set, he could summon any number of undead instantly, as long as his mana could sustain it.


    However, the cost of activating the skill weighed heavily on him.


    Thirty points in Intelligence weren''t a simple linear boost. The qualitative change was immense, yet it had taken more than two attempts to send Lucky to the Netherworld, depleting his mana reserves.


    It sounded little but it wasn''t.


    Lucky was indeed stronger than Prince.


    The first attempt to send him to the Netherworld consumed 20% of Michael''s total mana reserve, assuming it had been full.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The next attempt drained 30%, and the one after that took a staggering 45%. This was on top of the 15% consumed by his initial attempt with Prince.


    If Michael hadn''t rested for nearly an hour¡ªa forced sleep brought on by sheer exhaustion¡ªhe wouldn''t have had enough mana to make the final attempt.


    Michael had really gone all out.


    Through some quick calctions, Michael realized that, under ideal conditions, his current mana could allow him to revive close to twenty undead sessfully¡ªif he seeded on the first attempt every time.


    However, the repeated casting of {Undead Summoning} was far more exhausting than {Undead Revival} due to its steep mana consumption.


    Even so, the benefits of the skill couldn''t be ignored.


    With his current storage space, Michael could barely fit four undead the size of Lucky, while the rest would have to remain in the Land of Origin. This limitation significantly weakened hisbat strength in the real world.


    If only {Undead Summoning} weren''t such a scam.


    With his undead connected to the Netherworld, Michael could theoretically summon all of them simultaneously in both the Land of Origin and Aurora¡ªif his mana reserves allowed it.


    Though dissatisfied, Michael was still happy he had seeded in the end.


    As long as his undead could enter and leave the Netherworld at will, the situation wouldn''t change, even if he continued to evolve them. This was because the contract with the Netherworld was tied to the souls of the undead, not their race or physical bodies.


    Perhaps evolution also strengthen their souls, but the foundation remained the same¡ªand that was what truly mattered.


    If Michael could summon and dismiss at least ten monsters from the Netherworld, even if his forces were divided, it wouldn''t be a bad situation.


    Those ten undead, capable of traversing the Netherworld, would be the focus of his efforts to evolve them.


    Even with just ten, a force of ten rare-rank undead would be formidable, wouldn''t it?


    And if rare rank wasn''t enough, then what about ten extraordinary-rank undead?


    If even that failed, what about ten epic-rank undead?


    Moreover, it wasn''t as if he wouldn''t try {Undead Summoning} on his other undead. If he managed to expand his roster beyond ten, so much the better.


    Even if he couldn''t, he''d still have divided undead from his forces in Aurora he could also evolve to serve as his back up.


    "I''ll need to check the forumster to see if there''s anything useful for this," Michael muttered.


    He paused, deep in thought.


    "It looks like I''ll need to revise the naming system as well. Only special undead should be given names to distinguish them, with priority for those that have ess to the Netherworld."


    Several ns began to form in his mind as he dismissed Lucky back to the Netherworld.


    He ced Prince in his storage space while leaving thest undead, his still-unevolved undead to guard him.


    After consuming another energy supplement, Michael disconnected his consciousness from the Land of Origin.


    "I''m back."


    Michael sank into the soft embrace of his bed, the lingering headache from mana exhaustion easing slightly as if melting away.


    "Let me rest for a bit," Michael murmured, closing his eyes.


    But he didn''t fully realize just how drained he was.


    While his body had grown much stronger than before, mental exhaustion couldn''t be soothed as easily, even with an increase in his stats.


    Ever since he first entered the Land of Origin at noon, he had been on the move, from one task to another.


    Even after returning to Aurora, he barely had time to catch his breath before heading to the Association to buy corpses and returning to the Land of Origin to revive undead.


    In between, he had undertaken taxing tasks, so it wasn''t surprising that exhaustion had caught up with him.


    Michael was so worn out that barely a minute after closing his eyes, he slipped into sleep. Soon, soft snores filled the room.


    Today marked the second day since Michael had be an Awakener.


    While it hadn''t been what he''d imagined¡ªobstacles seeming to rise wherever he looked¡ªdeep down, Michael felt a sense of happiness.


    Whether it was his past life on Earth or the original owner of this body, this was the first time in both lives that Michael felt truly alive.


    And it was all thanks to his awakening.


    He was, truly, lucky.

 Chapter 39 Preparation To Enter A Dimensional Crack (1)

    A loud, thunderous growl from Michael''s stomach woke him up.


    "Ugh," he groaned, cing a hand over his stomach as he sat up slowly, using his other hand for support.


    "What time is it? Why is it so bright?"


    Michael muttered in confusion, only for realization to hit him.


    "I overslept?!"


    He nced around the room, noticing the curtains were drawn back to let in sunlight.


    The lights which he always left on were now off. Someone had also covered him with a nket.


    It could only have been Aunt Mia or Lily.


    After surveying the room and recalling yesterday''s events, Michael reluctantly epted he had fallen asleep. It made sense after everything he had been through.


    Thankfully, though he had slept stressed, Michael woke up fully refreshed. Evidently, his strong body yed a role in helping him recover so quickly.


    After stretching on the bed, Michael got up and grabbed his phone from his desk to check the time.


    Noticing it was plugged in, he figured someone had been in the room while he slept.


    "9:32 AM?"


    Michael was surprised.


    Though the sunlight suggested it waste, Michael hadn''t expected it to be thiste.


    Michael retraced his steps from the previous day.


    After returning from the Land of Origin, he went to the Association to buy monster corpses. By the time he arrived home, it had been past 5 or 6 PM. He remembered meeting Lily, with the evening sky already darkening.


    In the Land of Origin, which was 3 to 4 hours behind Aurora''s time zone, it had been evening when he arrived back.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    From reviving his undead to attempting to send them to the Netherworld, Michael estimated another two hours had passed.


    "I probably returned from Aurora by 9 PM¡­ so I slept 12 hours?"


    That was a long time, but it hadn''t caused any problems.


    "Even better," Michael concluded. "Since I was nning to visit the Dimensional Cracks, I can go early and still get back at a decent time."


    ns were already forming in Michael''s head.


    But Michael''s thoughts were interrupted by the thunderous growl of his stomach, reminding him he hadn''t eaten.


    "Now that I think about it, I didn''t eat anything yesterday, did I?"


    Michael was stunned.


    Had he been so preupied with bing an Awakener that he forgot something as basic as eating?


    Perhaps it was because his stronger body could endure hunger for longer, or maybe it was the nutrients he consumed in the Land of Origin with his other body that made him subconsciously believe he had eaten.


    It wasn''t impossible.


    After all, whenever he switched between the Land of Origin and Aurora, it was only his body that changed¡ªnot his consciousness.


    "This is serious. If I''m not careful, I might develop an identity crisis."


    Before Michael could sink further into his thoughts, a knock at his door interrupted him.


    "Brother Michael," a soft voice called out.


    It wasn''t loud, but with his enhanced senses, Michael heard it loud and clear.


    It was his cousin, Lily.


    In fact, he realized he had already been hearing faint noises outside his door but subconsciously ignored them since they weren''t chaotic or attention-grabbing enough to warrant his focus.


    "Come in," Michael replied calmly.


    The door opened, and Lily stepped inside.


    "You''re awake," she said with a smile before greeting him properly. "Good morning, Brother Michael."


    "Good morning to you too, Lily," Michael replied. Then, remembering the time, he asked, confused, "Aren''t you going to school today?"


    To his surprise, Lilyughed, leaving him even more confused.


    Suspicious, Michael unlocked his phone to check the date.


    "Oh, it''s the weekend," he muttered, his eyelids twitching.


    The day before yesterday had been Thursday¡ªhis awakening day¡ªand yesterday was Friday.


    However, ever since bing an Awakener, Michael''s sense of time had be skewed.


    With his mind constantly upied, every day felt the same.


    The fact that he no longer had to worry about school only made it worse.


    "Yes, it''s the weekend, Brother Michael," Lily said, still amused, before getting to the point.


    "Mom told me to check if you were awake. She''s preparing to head to the mall to buy groceries and wanted to know if you needed anything. She just stepped out a while ago to grab something nearby, so she''s not home right now."


    For some reason, Lily''s eyes sparkled with expectation as she spoke.


    How could Michael not know what this little sister of his wanted after spending years with her?


    "What do you want?" Michael asked with a chuckle, setting his phone aside.


    "Beast meat," Lily said hesitantly, her voice soft but hopeful. "It''s been so long since we''ve had it. Since we have a bit of money now, I was wondering¡­ but it''s okay if we can''t."


    Hearing this, a look of realization appeared on Michael''s face.


    Beast meat was a cultivation resource prized by Cultivator apprentices. It activated the body''s growth potential, making cultivation more effective.


    Even for ordinary people, consistent consumption brought physical benefits.


    Most importantly, it was delicious.


    However, the price of beast meat made it a luxury.


    A palm-sized piece of the cheapest beast meat cost about $400¡ªtoo expensive for most middle-ss families, let alone those below.


    Still, Lily''s request made Michael tempted to taste it again.


    He thought it over.


    Now that he had money and the ability to earn more through his newfound powers, they could afford to indulge. Besides, beast meat would provide the nutrients his body needed. Normal food wasn''t enough.


    Michael he''d need five portions of a regr meal just to feel satisfied.


    It would also be good for Lily to have more ess to cultivation resources, even if her talent wasn''t great just like his.


    Almost non existent.


    "Okay," Michael finally said.


    "Tell Aunt Mia when she gets back that I''d love to have beast meat in my food. She should make plenty since my appetite''s huge now. I''ll send her $1,000 to buy and stock up on it¡ªI want it in every meal from now on. Also, if I''m not here when she''s back, let her know I have some business with the Supers Association."


    "Okay, Brother Michael!" Lily replied cheerfully before skipping out of the room, forgetting to close the door behind her.


    Shaking his head in amusement, Michael took a deep breath.


    He reached out mentally, focusing on his connection with Lucky.


    Michael could faintly sense the undead''s presence and knew he could summon Lucky to the real world immediately if he wanted.


    Unfortunately it was inconvenient to do so in his current location.


    Reluctantly, he pushed the thought aside and shifted his focus to Prince, who remained motionless in his storage space.


    One disadvantage of cing undead in storage was the severed connection.


    While it didn''t destroy the contract, Michael couldn''t feel anything from them until they were brought out. And with time frozen inside the space, they stayed in stasis indefinitely.


    Looking at his Rank 1 Rare undead filled Michael with anticipation.


    He didn''t know why, but he had a strong feeling today would be a great day.


    Taking another deep breath, Michael began preparing to head out.

 Chapter 40 Preparation to Enter A Dimensional Crack (2)

    Michael didn''t bathe immediately after brushing his teeth¡ªhis stomach wouldn''t allow it.


    Aunt Mia seemed to have cooked a huge mealst night, likely remembering his words about his appetite.


    Unfortunately, he''d been too far gone to enjoy it fresh.


    Still, food was food.


    With his hungry stomach growling, Michael wouldn''t even  care if it was a day old as long as it was edible. He devoured half the pot of rice, leaving Lily staring at him, stunned, as though he had a wormhole in his stomach. Only then did Michael feel half full.


    After satisfying himself, he finally went to bathe.


    Unfortunately, by the time he finished, Aunt Mia still hadn''t returned. Michael had to leave without speaking to her.


    He could have waited, but there was no time.


    The day before, when Michael discovered that having more undead increased his daily Evolution Points, he realized he needed to contract more before 2 p.m., when the points refreshed.


    Missing that window would mean waiting another day.


    It was a little after 10 a.m. now, leaving him roughly four hours.


    With transportation to the Association taking an hour, Michael had only three hours left¡ªand that didn''t include the distance to the Dimensional Cracks in Woodstone City.


    Unfortunately, Michael had no information about their exact locations or the necessary permissions to ess them. Otherwise, he''d have gone straight there instead of to the Association.


    He briefly considered riding Prince to the Association. The idea was thrilling, but he didn''t have the guts to try it.


    "Maybe once the Federation releases more information about Supernaturals and it''s widely epted, using powers in public will be fine," Michael mused, watching the taxi he was in drive past buildings.


    Knowing he still had some time before reaching the Association, Michael rxed in the back seat and pulled out his phone.


    It was the perfect time to log in to the forums and scout for more information.


    Nothing concerned Michael more right now than the issue of his undead.


    The thought of having his forces divided between the Land of Origin and reality, without the ability to summon or dismiss them at will, left him deeply unsettled.


    "How do other Necromancers deal with this?" Michael wondered.


    For the next 30 minutes, he absorbed another dose of knowledge.


    As he suspected, other Necromancers faced simr challenges, but the situation wasn''t as dire as he initially thought.


    If anything, it seemed Michael was the greedy one for wanting all his undead stored conveniently in the Netherworld.


    But could anyone me him?


    He was human¡ªgreed was part of the package.


    Just as the real world was crucial to Awakeners, the Land of Origin held even greater importance to many.


    However, Michael, having faced nothing but obstacles there with no opportunities gained yet, didn''t fully share this sentiment.


    ording to forum posts, Necromancers and Beast Tamers¡ªwho, like Michael, struggled to store their undead or tamed beasts¡ªcould use a ritual to grant ess to a subspace for theirpanions.


    Rituals were simr to casting spells, but instead of relying solely on one''s internal energy, they required the use of external materials.


    Unfortunately, the methods for such rituals weren''t easily avable.


    ess required connections and resources, typically found in two ces.


    Awakener Academies and Guilds.


    Yes, Guilds.


    Due to the game-like nature of the Land of Origin and the world of Awakeners, terms like guilds were standard.


    These groups united individuals withmon goals, pooling resources and knowledge.


    But Michael wasn''t part of either. He hadn''t been epted into an Awakener Academy, and this was the first time he''d even heard of Guilds.


    The posts were direct.


    Having the right connections and resources, which weren''t cheap, could easily resolve his issue of cing undead in the Netherworld.


    However, these resources were tightly controlled by influential groups, requiring one to join them first.


    There was good news¡ªMichael now had a potential solution.


    The bad news?


    He wasn''t even qualified to approach the gates of an Awakener Academy.


    Though specific names of Awakener Academies weren''t revealed on the forum, it was clear from the posts that the minimum requirement to be a student of an Awakener Academy was to be a Rank 2 Awakener.


    Had this been a year or two ago when he was 16 and had Awakened, this wouldn''t have been as much of an issue for Michael.


    The principal of his school truly didn''t know what he was saying when he imed that 16-year-old Awakeners could easily prepare for an Awakener Academy in just three months.


    It was like how an Awakener had imed in the first post Michael read: a rank three Cultivator could handle a rank two rare-rank Wyvern.


    Michael suspected that particr Awakener held a grudge against Cultivators and was simply trolling them.


    Sure, Awakeners could grow stronger quickly by leveling up, but it wasn''t as simple as it sounded.


    For one, leveling became progressively harder as one grew stronger, and so did the monsters.


    However, this wasn''t Michael''s immediate issue; as long as there were monsters he could kill, he could handle that.


    The real obstacle was the time limit: three months to reach rank two.


    While Michael was confident about reaching rank one, rank two was an entirely different matter.


    He''d also read about special recruitment for students with exceptional talent, but unless he was willing to expose his talent, he could forget about such an opportunity.


    "Whatever, I''ll just do what I can."


    Even if he didn''t manage to enter an Awakener Academy, Michael didn''t believe he''d be any worse than those who did, not with his talent.


    At most, he''d follow the path described in the forum posts, like most Necromancers: dividing his forces between both worlds to maintain a bnce of power without crippling hisbat prowess.


    It seemed like as long as it was in a space where Supernaturals lived, it wasn''t rare to have his undead out.


    Michael didn''t know why the Federation or the Supers Association weren''t mentioned as potential sources of knowledge or resources for rituals, but he figured there was a reason.


    He just wasn''t qualified to know yet.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Since there was still time before he reached the Association, Michael continued reading the forum posts, steadily increasing his understanding of the supernatural world he had stepped into.

 Chapter 41 Preparation To Enter A Dimensional Crack (3)

    Still intrigued by the topic of Necromancers, Michael continued reading about them.


    He learned more about their limitations, their strengths, and how they rted to him.


    Michael also realized a significant issue with his current knowledge of the Supernaturals in this world.


    While the Supers Association forum had expanded his understanding considerably over the past two days¡ªmore than he had in the previous 18 years¡ªhis knowledge was scattered and unorganized.


    Without a structured foundation, there were gaps everywhere, making him prone to mixing things up.


    This realization only strengthened his resolve to enter an academy, if possible.


    For example, Michael had initially thought that the inability to ce an undead inside the Netherworld would cripple Necromancers, considering it a serious issue.


    However, he learned that it was more nuanced.


    The problem wasn''t as dire as he''d imagined.


    Necromancers with connections didn''t suffer the same limitations. They could ce most of their undead¡ªor even all of them¡ªinside the Netherworld, depending on their capabilities.


    This meant that only weaker Necromancers were forced to divide their forces between the Land of Origin and the Netherworld, the truly powerful ones likely didn''t face this restriction.


    Dividing their forces was a choice to them.


    It wasn''t the Necromancer''s true limitation but rather a challenge for the less capable.


    After scraping together what he could about the ritual for cing undead into the Netherworld, Michael couldn''t help but agree with what he''d read.


    The ritual involved using materials imbued with negative energies and a strong connection to thend of the dead.


    As long as one wasn''t overly unlucky, they could sessfully summon and dismiss their undead after performing the ritual. The effect of the ritual wasparable to the {Advanced Mastery} of {Undead Summoning}.


    With this newfound understanding, the problem didn''t seem as difficult anymore.


    Michael''s heart rxed slightly, but it was also filled with a renewed determination to rank up so he could enter an academy.


    At least now, he no longer felt burdened about evolving his undead. Their evolution was part of his strength¡ª the stronger they were, the stronger he became.


    Fueled by the same intense drive he''d felt when trying to ce Lucky in the Netherworld the day before, Michael decided to go all out.


    Three months.


    If he spent every day fighting monsters, especially those above his level to maximize his experience points with the multiplier he''d get, he didn''t believe it would be impossible to get close to his goal.


    If the real world couldn''t offer him enough monsters, he''d head into the Land of Origin and smash that damn Gargoyle to dust!


    For power, even the normally cautious Michael couldn''t help but feel a trace of madness.


    Time was too short. He had to go all out.


    The Land of Origin was incredibly important to Awakeners because it offered resources and opportunities that the real world could never match.


    Although Michael hadn''t yet reached the point where real-world resources were insufficient, and didn''t fully share the sentiment, he still understood it.


    For example, the ruins he had found himself in upon his initial arrival were a significant opportunity for Awakeners¡ªone that could not exist in the real world.


    This made sense when considering the difference in histories.


    The civilisation history of thend of origin was hundreds, if not thousands, of years old, while Aurora, the real world, barely had 300 years of history since the start of the Dark Age.


    When you really thought about it, it was easy to see why the Land of Origin was so cherished.


    Michael suspected that if Awakeners couldn''t die in the real world, they would likely care little for it and fully embrace their other identity in the Land of Origin.


    It was also the Land of Origin that exined why, contrary to his initial thoughts, Necromancers weren''t unsettled by the need to divide their forces between both worlds.


    While not stated directly, Michael noticed that most Awakeners preferred to develop themselves in the Land of Origin, and for Necromancers, {Undead Summoning} was primarily a convenience. It was annoying not to have it at their disposal, but it wasn''t as crippling.


    Of course this depended heavily on the type of Necromancer.


    Yes.


    There were actually different types of Necromancers, just as there were various types of Beast Tamers, their mostparable ss.


    Michael could only find three types of Necromancers that weremonly discussed.


    Commander Necromancers, Horde Necromancers, and Specialist Necromancers.


    Commander Necromancers focus onmanding a smaller group of high-tier undead, valuing the strength and potential of each individual. This group prioritizes quality over quantity.


    For example, at rank one, the highest number of undead they would contract would not exceed 10, with each undead being at least three stars,mon rank.


    As they advance to rank two, the same approach applies, but with rare-ranked monsters.


    The cycle continues, with the undead growing stronger.


    Although their standards slightly loosen, especially for lower-rank undead as they grow in strength, this group remains focused on quality.


    Michael suspected that the truly capable Commander Necromancers¡ªif not all¡ªcould summon all their undead from the Netherworld, thanks to their low numbers and steady strength increase.


    Horde Necromancers, on the other hand, are a group specialized in overwhelming enemies with sheer numbers¡ªtypical bullies.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    They focus onmanding vast swarms of undead, using all their contract slots as soon as possible, with the quality of their undead only improving as their rank increases.


    This was a group Michael wanted to show he was part of, except he wasn''t the type to bully with low-rank undead, but with demigods!


    Of course, it was a future thing, but the potential was there!


    Also, Michael figured this group would likely struggle the most with the Netherworld, as they relied on having a vast number of undead at their disposal.


    However, if they could summon and dismiss all their undead at will from the Netherworld, they would be a terrifying force¡ªtruly the representative group for Necromancers, to be called a one-man army.


    Thest was the Specialist Necromancers, who focused on specific types of undead, such as mages, tanks, or assassins, to create powerful synergies within their forces.


    This type emphasized specialization and tactical advantages over brute strength or sheer numbers.


    Michael read with interest, and before he knew it, he arrived at the Association.

 Chapter 42 Preparation To Enter A Dimensional Crack (4)

    Looking at the beautiful receptionist in front of him, who could barely maintain her professional smile, Michael couldn''t help but smile bitterly.


    "I''m not really good with new faces, so I prefer to talk with familiar people," Michael tried to exin.


    "I understand," the receptionist replied, then added with a teasing tone, "I''m just a little taken aback to see you three days in a row, sir." She emphasized three days in a row.


    Michael could only continue to smile bitterly.


    The receptionist was the same one he had interacted with over the past three days. He knew she was subtly teasing him.


    Perhaps if she weren''t older than him and he hadn''te strictly for business, women with imaginative minds might have spun some quality taboo novels from their interactions.


    Of course, in reality, the receptionist was just surprised.


    As a professional, she wasn''t supposed to be overly casual with clients, but their brief exchanges had made her a bit more familiar with Michael. From her observations, she knew he wouldn''t mind.


    "May I ask what your purpose foring here today is, sir?" she asked, resuming her professional tone.


    Michael got back to business as well.


    "I''d like to know if there are any avable cracks I can enter right now," he said seriously.


    Maintaining herposure, the receptionist responded, "Since it''s only been a few days since you''ve awakened, I believe you''re still a level 1 member, correct?"


    "Yes."


    "Then, as a level 1 member, you only have ess to level 1 and level 2 dimensional cracks, which coincidentally are the only ones we have here in Woodstone City. All which are also corrupted cracks"


    "Can I ask which one is closest?" Michael inquired, his main concern showing.


    He only had about three hours left before his daily Evolution Points refreshed.


    If he wanted to umte more than four a day without waiting another day, he needed to contract more undead within this time frame.


    As long as the closest crack wasn''t the level 2 dimensional crack he''d heard about¡ªwhich still bore a certain risk¡ªhe would prefer to avoid unnecessary risks, even with Lucky and Prince by his side.


    "The closest Dimensional Crack to the Association is the Goblin World, a corrupted-type crack located about a thirty-minute drive from here at Sun Park," the receptionist informed him. "It seems to have been reserved¡­ Oh, it looks like the party won''t being after all. That means you don''t need to apply for their team slot. Would you like to enter the crack alone, or would you prefer to wait while I try to arrange a team for you from other parties that have reserved the crackter today?"


    "No need. I''ll go in myself."


    "Okay. Please wait a moment, sir, while I upload your application to the database so the other side is aware of your entry. Once it''s done, you''ll just need to confirm your identity with your fingerprint there."


    "Thank you."


    Michael was quite satisfied with the results he''d received.


    Beforeing to the Association, he already understood how dimensional cracks were managed.


    Simr to booking a hotel, entering a crack required an application.


    Monsters within the Association''s jurisdiction were considered renewable resources, but they didn''t respawn instantly like in games.


    Well, they did, but the process was moreplex than games depicted.


    There were two types of dimensional cracks.


    Realm-type and Corrupted-type.


    Realm-type cracks were where other civilisations resided. It was a realm with its own natives like Aurora.


    Corrupted-type cracks, on the other hand, were formed when chaotic mana gathered in areas rich with negative emotions.


    These cracks didn''t form in empty ces but instead thrived near poptions, using absorbed negativity to generate chaotic creatures¡ªthe monsters.


    The reason corrupted cracks were considered renewable was their ability to continuously spawn monsters.


    But how could creatures appear from nothing?


    The answer was simple.


    Negative energy.


    Humans, no matter how optimistic, couldn''t entirely avoid negativity. It was an inherent part of their existence.


    What about isting people from corrupted cracks to stop their growth?


    First, the absorption range of corrupted cracks was vast. If it were small, a city like Woodstone city with at least two million people would have far more than three corrupted cracks.


    Second, relocating everyone would lead to disasters, making such a move impractical.


    Lastly, corrupted cracks weren''t without benefits.


    The monsters they produced¡ªand more importantly, their corpses¡ªwere invaluable resources.


    Since he was visiting the Association because of a crack, Michael hadn''t limited his research to Necromancers; he had also looked into cracks.


    Monster bodies were treasures, useful for potions, equipment, and more.


    With such renewable resources, it was no wonder the Federation didn''t shy away from corrupted cracks but instead embraced them.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    This realization also exined why the Association stored monster corpses.


    In hindsight, Michael admitted he''d been slow to connect the dots¡ªthis should have been obvious.


    As for the limited number of corpses in the storage facility the scarred man had shown him, Michael concluded it must have been the publicly avable stock, not the Association''s entire reserve.


    After all, they had their own uses for the corpses¡ªwhere else would potions and equipmente from?


    It also exined why the Association bought monster corpses from Awakeners and Cultivators or gave them ess to hunt in corrupted cracks. They were essentially hiring hunters indirectly.


    But there was more to corrupted cracks than just this.


    Why did entering require an application?


    Was it just a formality?


    Partly, but the primary reason was scheduling. Applications ensured Awakeners and Cultivators could enter cracks at designated times, leaving other periods for monster respawns.


    But did monsters really respawn that quickly?


    In fact, they did¡ªand it was due to a unique property of dimensional cracks: time dtion.


    The smaller the crack''s space, the faster time flowed inside.


    Corrupted cracks usually had limited spatial dimensions, so time moved much faster.


    An hour in the real world could equal ten hours inside the crack, allowing monsters to respawn rapidly.


    When Michael first learned about this, he was stunned.


    Wasn''t this a pocket dimension?


    As several thoughts shed through his mind, he watched the receptionist work on herputer, asionally asking him a few questions.


    After several minutes, the questioning stopped, and the receptionist handed Michael a freshly printed piece of paper.


    *****


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