Eyes opened little by little; the first thing he saw was the Divinity. He closed them again, his mind racing with questions. After a while, he opened his eyes once more, and this time, he saw multiple Divinities. "Why are there multiple Divinities?" he thought, his voice barely audible. He closed his eyes once more, the image of the Divinities etched in his mind. Time passed, but Gobni couldn't measure it. He opened his eyes again, and this time, he was vividly awake. A bright white light shone, making him wink as his eyes adjusted. After a few seconds, his eyes adapted, and he took in his surroundings. He was in a closed space, and a green light scanned through him. Gobni tried to move his arm, but it didn't budge. He tried to wiggle his fingers, but they remained still. Panic set in as he realized he wasn't in control of his body. He was in an ethereal form, like a spirit, and his thoughts raced with the implications. As he looked around, he saw goblins of his kind and multiple other races of monsters, like slimes, wolves, and ogres - the creatures he would see in fantasy. Looking at the window connected to space, he saw multiple sands of different colors moving in a straight line; it was beautiful and, at the same time, ugly, encompassing everything, including feelings, time, place, life, and death. It gave Gobni the feeling of all existence. The monsters he saw were motionless, frozen in place like statues. The slimes were suspended in mid-ooze, their tendrils paused in mid-air. The wolves were stuck in a perpetual growl, their teeth bared. The ogres were fixed in a stoic silence, their massive arms crossed. The goblins, including Gobni's own kind, were similarly still, their eyes glassy and unblinking. Gobni's mind raced with questions, but he couldn't express his feelings and thoughts. He looked at the Divinities, trying to grasp the situation, but couldn't make sense of it. A considerable amount of time passed, but it felt like time hadn't passed at all, except for the sand outside the window moving and the multiple Divinities at work; nothing else moved. Gobni saw that the equipment the Divinities used was left in the air without moving an inch, as if time had forgotten them. After a while, the liquid seemed to be done, and the Divinities started fusing it into the soul of all the monsters present. Upon reaching his turn, they immersed him into this liquid. At that moment, he felt all the emotions any living being could feel, all at the same time - pain, pleasure, anxiety, and more. To the extent, he almost went crazy, but after some time, it decreased, and he fell into a deep slumber once more. In the dark space, he opened his eyes to find himself without a physical form. He was the darkness itself, gazing upon his surroundings. His attention fell upon the book he had consumed for safekeeping. As he focused on it, the first chapter opened, and a single phrase shone with piercing brightness: "THE MARTIAL KING WAS BORN." This radiant word threatened to consume his very existence as darkness. He felt an intense pain, as if his non-corporeal form was being torn apart. He tried to raise a non-existent hand to shield himself from the light, but it only grew brighter. The emotional overload he had experienced when gazing at the sand returned, and he was engulfed by the sensation once more. Everything went blank. Gasp... gasp... gasp... He woke up once more, this time finding himself lying on the cold floor of a leafy hut. As he scanned his surroundings, he realized his body had grown slightly, but he was still a weak, green goblin. "Gobni... Gobni..." The familiar voice sent him into a state of shock. "Th... th... that voice!" He stumbled out of the hut, following the sound to find his middle-aged mother. Overwhelmed, he gazed at her intensely, then burst into tears and ran towards her with an air hug, sobbing like a baby. Gobni Mother: "Why are you crying, Gobni? What's wrong?" Gobni: "I missed you, Mother!" he sobbed. Gobni Mother: "Did you eat something weird before sleeping yesterday or what?" Gobni: "Mother, I kept the book... the Martial King's book." Gobni Mother: "What book? Are you crazy? I told you I hate books, and I can't even read! What nonsense are you talking about?" Gobni: "But... but I thought you said you couldn't read?" Gobni Mother: "I don't have time for your nonsense, Gobni. Go hunt!" Gobni: "Weird, why is my mother saying she can't read? Maybe it's all a joke. I'll just go hunt." He ventured into the forest, searching for food. After a while, he spotted a horned rabbit and lay low, watching it calmly. When the rabbit was fully engaged, Gobni pounced, attacking with his club and killing it in one swift hit. "Huh, did I really get faster?" he wondered. "Or was the horned rabbit just too slow?" He hunted repeatedly, straying farther from home. As he turned to head back, he heard a rustle in the forest. Fear gripped him, and he stood motionless, unsure why but sensing familiarity. Then, he heard footsteps and turned to see five humans emerging from the trees. Gobni's expression transformed from happy to horrified as memories of his past trauma and experimentation flooded back. Gobni: "Ah... ah... it can't be... the humans... they're the ones who..." His mind raced with fragmented memories, and his body trembled with fear. The humans approached him, their eyes cold and calculating. Gobni's instincts screamed at him to run, but his legs felt heavy, as if rooted to the spot. The humans surrounded him, their hands reaching out like claws. Gobni's vision blurred, and he felt himself being dragged back into the darkness, back into the nightmare he thought he had escaped.