ℭ𝔥𝔞𝔭𝔱𝔢𝔯 𝟙𝟙𝟘: ℑ𝔫𝔫𝔞𝔱𝔢 𝔗𝔞𝔩𝔢𝔫𝔱 ℭ𝔬𝔫𝔳𝔢𝔯𝔤𝔢𝔫𝔠𝔢 ⓇⒺⓋⒶⓂⓅⒺⒹ

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As the Day-8 rest period began, all Alpha Chosen were teleported from the Trial World to their respective planets. Despite their absence, MJ’s corpse-integrated monsters continued their relentless rampage, clearing the remaining monsters in the Trial Zones. At their current rate, the last 10 of the 30 zones would be cleared before Day-9 began.

Back on Earth, Jay arrived at his house at 6 a.m. Wasting no time, he took a quick bath and made his way to the Spirit Energy-reinforced training room in the basement. Standing in the center of the room, he called out to MJ, “MJ, let’s begin with converging the Grade-3║Fire Innate Talent║and Grade-4║Lightning Innate Talent║.”

MJ’s voice responded in his mind, “As you wish, Master.”

With those words, a change stirred within Jay’s Spirit Space. Qew’s║INFINITE CONVERGENCE║, orbiting on the 10th circular orbit around║LOOT║, emitted a beam of light. The beam struck the red-colored sphere in the 3rd circular orbit and the purple-colored sphere in the 4th orbit, both representing the respective innate talents Jay had chosen.

The spheres reacted immediately. The red sphere representing the║Fire Innate Talent║began moving toward the purple sphere of║Lightning Innate Talent║. As the two orbs converged, they started to merge, their colors blending in a mesmerizing swirl of red and purple.

The entire process was seamless and efficient, taking less than a minute. When the fusion completed, a new sphere formed—a vibrant mix of red and purple, pulsating with power and balance.

A stream of notifications appeared in Jay’s vision:

╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮

﴾ You have successfully converged Grade-3║Fire Innate Talent║with Grade-4║Lightning Innate Talent║, forming a Grade-4║Dual-Elemental Innate Talent║. ﴿

﴾ Congratulations! You are the 1st Tier-2 Existence in the entire Universe to merge two elements into one, creating the Dual-Element, Lightning Fire in the first 10 days of the Trial Program. ﴿

* Due to causing a Universe Level Achievement, You will receive a random grade reward that will be most useful to you at the present moment. The Grade of the reward depends on your Luck Attribute.

* Due to a pending request, the Universe Level Achievement you earned will be converted into 100 Universe Points and pooled until it meets the exchange value for the weapon you requested.

﴾ Current Universe Points: 7600 ﴿

╰── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╯

To Jay's astonishment, Qew's Innate Talent flawlessly merged the two innate talents, producing not just a combination of their properties but an entirely new higher element. Typically, a higher element merely infused an additional property into a primary element, but this was different. In this case, the Fire and Lightning elements equally contributed to the creation of the new element, forming a perfect synergy.

Curious, Jay examined the description of his newly acquired innate talent in his STATUS:

╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮

║Dual-Elemental Innate Talent║

⧼Grade-4⧽ ⧼Fire & Lightning⧽ ⧼Elemental Category⧽﴿

* Gives Host the ability to comprehend the 'Lightning Fire' Element without losing the ability to individually manipulate Fire and Lightning elements and their respective skills.

* Increases its comprehension speed by four-fold.

╰── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╯

A sigh of relief escaped Jay as he read the description. The ability to manipulate Fire and Lightning elements separately, alongside the new Lightning Fire element, was a significant advantage. His concerns about losing the distinct functionality of the original elements were unfounded.

He then noted another critical aspect: the merged talents retained the higher grade between the two originals. When the Grade-3║Fire Innate Talent║merged with the Grade-4║Lightning Innate Talent║, the resulting Grade-4 talent matched the higher of the two.

The implications were clear. If he later converged the Grade-5║Water Innate Talent║with the Grade-4║Dual-Elemental Innate Talent║, the result would yield a Grade-5 Tri-Elemental Innate Talent. The prospect was thrilling, and Jay felt a spark of anticipation for the next 24-hour cooldown to pass.

To test his newfound talent, Jay willed it into action. A vibrant flame ignited over his right palm, its core glowing a rich, deep purple, while brilliant red sparks danced and flickered across its surface.

The dual element burned with an intensity that reflected its dual nature, blending destructive heat with crackling speed.

As Jay observed the mesmerizing Lightning Fire, another set of notifications appeared:

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╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮

﴾ Congratulations! You have acquired Lv.1║Minor Lightning Fire Mastery║⧼Stage-1⧽ ﴿

* Lv.1 Lightning Fire-element training methods are being transmitted into your mind. These advanced techniques will refine your control, amplify your power, and deepen your mastery, unlocking the potential for more devastating elemental combat maneuvers.

﴾ Your Lv.30║Minor Fire Mastery║is compatible with Lv.1║Minor Lightning Fire Mastery║. Do you want to merge them? ﴿

╰── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╯

Since it was already confirmed that he wouldn’t lose control over the fire element or his Mastery of it, Jay agreed to proceed with merging the two.

╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮

Lv.30║Minor Fire Mastery║

+

Lv.1║Minor Lightning Fire Mastery║

⤋

Lv.15║Minor Lightning Fire Mastery║

﴾ Congratulations! You have acquired Lv.15║Minor Lightning Fire Mastery║⧼Stage-2⧽ ﴿

* Lv.15 Lightning Fire-element training methods are being transmitted into your mind. These advanced techniques will refine your control, amplify your power, and deepen your mastery, unlocking the potential for more devastating elemental combat maneuvers.

╰── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╯

Rather than training║Minor Lightning Fire Mastery║the conventional way, Jay chose to merge them, instantly advancing to Lv.15 and saving valuable time that would have otherwise been spent in training.

Despite this efficiency, reaching Lv.30, the peak of Stage-3 with this Grade-4 talent would still require a considerable investment of effort.

On the bright side, even at its Minor Mastery level, the 'Lightning Fire' element demonstrated power rivaling elements at Major Mastery. Typically, fire attacks were hindered by their relatively slow movement, while lightning lacked the raw destructive force of fire at equivalent levels.

But the Lightning Fire element effectively combined the strengths of its parent elements: the fire element’s high attack power and the lightning element’s incredible speed.

This balance of traits made it a formidable hybrid, and it significantly enhanced Jay’s combat capabilities. With this new element, Jay estimated he could now hold his ground against a Tier-4 Low-Phase monster. Defeating such a foe might still be a daunting challenge, but the improvement in his overall power was undeniable, leaving him satisfied with the progress.

After testing the element, Jay allowed himself a brief rest, sleeping for three hours. Thanks to his high Endurance and Vitality attributes, he felt only mild fatigue despite not sleeping for the past day. The short nap was enough to fully revitalize his mental state.

Jay knew that as his tier increased, the need for sleep would diminish until it would no longer be required at all. But that milestone lay far in the future.

Refreshed, Jay left his house and headed for the Nav-Yuga Enterprise Headquarters. He traveled in his advanced S.E.E.D model car, a sleek and efficient vehicle created by MJ using Spirit Energy Engineering Device ⧼S.E.E.D⧽ technology.

Jay’s car blended seamlessly with its surroundings, thanks to its chassis camouflage feature, which masked its high-tech design by mimicking the appearance of a regular vehicle. However, his arrival didn’t go unnoticed. Employees entering the towering 30-story Nav-Yuga Enterprise Headquarters couldn’t help but glance his way, causing a small commotion among the staff.

A curious young female employee nudged her two colleagues, asking, “Hey, what’s going on? Why are you both staring at that guy? Is he a new employee? I don’t remember seeing him before.”

One of her colleagues grinned knowingly. “You don’t know him? Oh, right, you’re from accounting, so it makes sense. Here’s a hint—you can figure it out yourself. He’s the President’s eldest son.”

The young woman’s eyes widened in surprise. “That’s him? The newly appointed chief of security, Jay?”

Her colleague gave a triumphant nod. “Bingo! Yup, that’s him. He’s the one who caught several espionage spies from rival companies. Since there were no spies in your department, you probably never saw him in action.”

Another employee chimed in with a grin. “Let me tell you something interesting about him. Rumor has it, he used to work as a model.”

The comment was quickly countered by another colleague, who shook her head. “Where did you hear that nonsense? That’s not true. He was a Mixed Martial Arts trainer. My cousin trained under him a few years ago, and I saw him at the gym a few times.”

The first employee, caught out, stuck her tongue out playfully. “Fine, fine, I must’ve fallen for some fake gossip. But honestly, can you blame me? Look at him—his chiselled jawline, perfectly symmetrical face, and that physique! Even in those gold-and-black suit, you can tell he’s in incredible shape. Anyone who didn’t know better would believe he was a model.”

The woman who claimed to know Jay subtly bumped her shoulder into her colleague’s. “Alright, alright, stop drooling. Let me save you the trouble—Jay has a cold personality. Even my cousin, who trained under him for over a year, said he never saw him laugh. He barely interacts with anyone outside of work.”

Flustered, the first employee waved her hands defensively. “Wh-what drooling? I was just stating the facts. Anyway, I’m more interested in his younger brother, Kay. He’s so friendly, charismatic, and charming. I hope he talks to me one day.”

Her colleague smirked, crossing her arms. “Heh, dream on. Kay has a massive fanbase in the Enterprise—myself included. You’ll have to wait your turn, sweetheart.”

Unbeknownst to the chattering employees, none of this escaped Jay’s sharp senses. Their hushed whispers and lingering gazes were nothing new to him, nor was the chatter about his younger brother Kay’s popularity within the company.

Jay ignored their comments, though he couldn’t help but feel a little bemused by the "model" rumor. While he used to be above average in appearance, the two evolutionary stages he had undergone had further enhanced his features, creating symmetry and a vibrancy that now fit the human standard of "handsome" perfectly.

Without acknowledging the attention, Jay strode into the headquarters, maintaining his usual composed demeanor. As the chief of security, he took his responsibilities seriously and wasn’t about to let idle gossip distract him from his duties.

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