Me? Julius wondered. “Are you the one that handles this entire realm?”
The armored giant nodded. “Yes, I am.” He pointed to Hu. “Like Hu, who manages Level One. I take care of Level Three.”
“You said something about the prophecy being true. What does that mean?”
“Throughout our planet’s history, a world-changing event occurs every half-century. Every time before it happens, a prophecy will be revealed, but—”
Hu stepped forward. “Wait, it’s time already? That can’t be…It’s too soon.”
“I was going to get into that,” the armored giant said, giving Hu an annoyed glare. He then coughed up blood, to his surprise. “It really is true.”
“Lord Hei.”
He raised his hand. “Today’s my last according to the prophecy. ‘The ailing giant will fall into the hands of the man who will be the disruptor of god’s play or all the Yinhai deities. In ten years, his journey to Level Three will be the first and last of its service.’ And that’s you, Julius.”
Julius, now arms crossed, grimaced. “That sounds so specific. If what you said was true, should that mean there were multiple prophecies because the Merit Universe Tower was only more recently to the public eye,” he said, then turning over to Hu. “Right?”
“You’re right. Besides the general prophecy, some of us got our own like him.”
“Did you get one?”
“No,” Hu said, then walking to the six rows of chairs. She sat down in the front row, and each row had ten seats. “You guys come on and sit down. It’s going to be a long conversation before we leave.”
Julius was reluctant to, but he went to a spare seat in the front row, a few spots from her. Empress Cai looked back up at the stairway’s entrance, sending a command for everyone above to stay put, rest, and do whatever to pass the time. The rest joined along, sitting in the empty seats.
Lord Hei continued, adding to Julius’ comment. “This prophecy specifically has only been told to me ten years ago. Another thing mentioned was there is a second part, which I got recently, and we are about to find out.” He levied his hand out, summoning an orb made of qi that manifested into a paper-like shape. More and more generated until the orb burst open, releasing a green ghost. It was an old man with a long goatee and long hair. He opened his eyes, viewing everyone present.
“I suppose you wanted to hear the other side…”
“Other side?”
“You were told that when this man came, it would be the last of this place and you, but the reason wasn’t said then.” The old man turned to Julius. “You are not who you think you are. In fact, your life only began the moment you stepped into this world. You will lead Planet Raal's people through an evolutionary change of humanity. The creators will fear you, and his power,” he said, pointing at Lord Hei, “will assist you in this new chapter.”
Julius looked at Lord Hei. “All of those mob spawn boxes and the five armored bosses. Were those your abilities?”
“Yes, it was. I set those up. Adding to that, Xavier betraying you was part of the plan, and I’m sorry it had to turn out this way for you two.”
“Why?” Julius asked. He wanted to know the truth of this. “I hope you weren’t laughing or looking sinister when that happened.”
Lord Hei raised both of his hands, shaking his head. “No. I would never. It was a simple decision to get him off track because he is an evil man inside trying to act like a nice guy…And you wonder why some are surprised to hear him be the one that trained you.”
“What do you mean? Like the worst kind?”
Empress Cai entered the conversation. “He’s a double-sided evil. Even our enemy, Kriegshan, despised him…He’s inhumane to his students, reckless, and kills anybody who interferes with his plans. Literally anybody, even his students.”
What the Yinhai! Julius’ eyes widened. Not much of an effect now, but he and Mother Elaine could have been fatally backstabbed during the early days was a disturbing thought. He silently gulped all of it down before continuing. “Well, at least he’s dead now.”
“We’re grateful,” Lord Hei said.
“The hard truth is when your house is destroyed, that hooded figure was him. A clone of him. That man who sat with you in that hospital room was hiding the fact he had sent his copy to cause chaos at your home, and that’s not the worst part.”
Oh, no.
“When you were attacked by those three runts, they looked possessed. All because of him.”
What in the actual Yinhai! That’s unbelievable. Julius thought while in a little denial. I guess those comments were true after all. What a fool of me to not recognize them as of concern. He gulped once again, nodding for the old man to continue.
“I’m sorry, but I hope you understand the layout of this situation.”
“No, I understand. I’m a fool for not realizing the concerns sooner…Ignore my thoughts, it’ll go away.”
The old man gave Julius a break and brought revelations to the rest of the group. Some were shocked upon revealing. Mainly, Mother Elaine, who turned out to have a bigger role in an uncertain future. Empress Cai would have a personal conflict with another individual, and the old man wouldn’t describe who or what this person looked like. She took it confidently, leaving with a sluggish smile. Nobody in the room resulted in zero revelations. Everyone has a degree in a role they’ll take in the upcoming days, months, or even years once they depart Level Three.
It has been more than an hour since the old man's spirit was summoned. Julius thought it was done, only to be confronted with one more piece of information. Bizarrely, he was told about his future personal life, but he was told to follow the old man and Lord Hei into a separate space where no one else would hear about it. They headed in the direction Lord Hei originally came out from behind the throne. Only a wall until Lord Hei touched it, triggering a dissipating void, and a hallway appeared. The three walked in and strolled into an open space near the entrance. The entryway closed, and the old man started talking. “I don’t want them to hear and cause a commotion because your future has been vaguely written.”
“Is this bad news or not?” Julius asked.
“More like good news for you, but bad for your close female comrades, depending on how they interpret it.”
Lord Hei sighed. “Listen, this journey, whatever your goals are…You’ll be chased for your loyalty and succession. Despite what you have been through so far and in this realm, I hope you are mentally prepared for what comes next,” he said and paused, waiting for Julius’ answer.
“Listen, if it wasn’t for the time put through on the Zenith Skydome, I wouldn’t be fine right now and being put down so low that I would’ve been crippled.” Julius gestured to continue. “…So, please tell me what I need to know.”
He looked at the old man, who faded a little. “Lord Hei saying you’ll be chased is no question certain. Men and women over this planet’s history are innately competitive in whatever opportunity is given. Not to forget, the burden you will bear of having to deal with women’s relationships, even if it wasn’t your decision.”
Great…Just great!!! Julius’ brain screamed. “I hope that was all.”
“I’m not finished…Your true partner will come soon, and the stakes of committing to her will have some world consequences that will decide all the living beings on this planet. However, you’ll have no choice, as the bond between you two becomes unbreakable.”
Julius raised both heads, pleading to stop. “Is this all that you are going to tell me? Or is there something more worth knowing before we get out of here?” His tone escalated halfway through, about to be dreaded, probably contradicting his earlier response to Lord Hei’s warning a moment ago.
Lord Hei crossed his arms with a little head tilt. “Told you…Anyway, yeah. I think we are done with that. Now about me, I’m passing my role and knowledge to you.”
The weak pungent smell came from his arms, and Julius noticed he was decaying, meaning his time was plummeting. “Ok, give it to me.”
“The five armored giants you have fought earlier are real, and only a slight demonstration of what it can do. When I pass this on, you are granted the ability to not only don a gigantic armor similar to theirs but also grant it to your fellow friends or comrades. The catch is they have to train with it to get full potential. Same with you, but yours is a little different.”
Hmm. Julius then looked at this Skoltor System, displaying Lord Hei’s name above his health bar. Every second, he loses half a percentage point. Also, a name edit took effect, adding “Lich Emperor” in parentheses.
“Anything else because I see your health is going down, and you are decaying,” Julius said, then looking at the old man, who was fading away. “You too, anything you want to say?”
The old man, now more dimmed, shook his head. “I think we should go now. I want to see heading out.”
Lord Hei looked at the former. “Can you hold for a few minutes? I have one last wish.”
“A last wish?”
----------------------------------------
Everyone convened on the ridden chamber’s floors. Julius hadn’t told them the premise of what was going on. He stood with Lord Hei near the center of the arena, facing each other. Julius looked at his right hand, now gloved in black metallic and armored material, and it was stronger than the metal coating he received during eye injection. It was more comfortable despite the more robust structure. He then looked at Lord Hei with his health bar shown to have dropped to barely fifty percent. “Are you ready?”
Lord Hei nodded. “Yes, Lich Emperor.” He took a few steps back and gave a farewell glare to the old man, who had dimmed to a faint mist. The old man gave his best effort for a wave before fading away.
Five light spheres surrounded Julius, giving off loud clicking noises. Then the spheres faded, and a large beam of black aura launched from where he stood, levitating all the debris. It swirled around him like a funnel, blowing heavy chilly winds around the vicinity. His white silhouette flashed from within the dark beam.
Lord Hei smiled in his power demonstration. After putting on his helmet, he grunted and clenched both of his fists, letting out a roar and raising both of his arms up high. All of his qi exerted in a berserk-like manner, causing trouble around the scene. Everyone who was watching received protection from Celeste and Mother Elaine. Their shields covered the entire army present, and they watched as Lord Hei’s aura glowed black but with a yellow outline, going on a beam standoff with Julius’. The two beams dissipated, revealing two armored giants.
“Woah,” Julius muttered, hearing his own echo from within his helmet. His legs felt heavy and the joints around his ankle felt clamped. At least he could lift it but imagine having a hundred pounds worth of weight consistently laid on top of your feet. That wouldn’t be pretty at all. He was given information about the drawbacks of wielding this armor. Unfortunately, there was no time to prepare for dealing with the ailments because of Lord Hei’s buying time. Julius has one promise to ensure. He summoned a longsword out of the palm of his hand, one of the few abilities he gained. Afterward, both hands gripped on the lengthy hilt. The blade was as long as his greatsword, Licht, but that was the only similarity. He twirled his grip around the hilt, triggering a heat reaction and filling the engraving patterns with white, shiny light. The reflective steel then turned charcoal black, and its hilt turned bloody red. Because the blade’s structure was irregular and shaped like flames, the qi exerted at the blade’s multiple tipping points. Now, he took his first deep breath while in this armor, emitting a hissing smoke through his helmet.
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Lord Hei hasn’t changed after dispersing other than he gained a cloak, and his entire body was covered in yellow, black qi. He wielded a gigantic black sword, doubling his height. It was his last duel ever, so he wanted to make it the fullest and most satisfying sendoff.
Insane way to go all out. Alright then, let's see how you fare out. Julius bent his knees and went into a long point stance. Lord Hei did the same. Both held a targeted aim, prepared to inflict. Julius saw the former’s eye flashing yellow, erupting a magnitude of power where he felt his feet rumbling. In retaliation, he exerted his own darkness, followed by his ordinary sky-blue qi, counteracting the added pressure on his feet. The discomfort turned painful as his own aura increased the armor’s total weight. Fuck, it’s clamping my feet! The bones were stressed, and he couldn’t ignore it any longer and launched from his spot. Lord Hei dashed forward.
Clash!
Julius landed and kneeled on the floor. He quickly dispersed his armor, unburdening his feet. A sudden relief overwhelmed him from the pain. He involuntarily breathed like he had a rigorous workout and a high thirst. Once he was relaxed, he gripped hard on the hilt, lifting himself up from the floor, and turned to Lord Hei. Julius saw him collapse in the same manner. He’s decaying. Plumes of smoke exerted from his back laceration. Looking at his blade and at the wound, he noticed how dangerously wide it inflicted, like an open mouth. Because Lord Hei was in a state of decay, the wound hemorrhaged minuscule amounts of yellow blood. It’s over.
“Lord Hei?”
He limped up from the floor, struggling to stand upright without holding his longsword’s hilt. Lord Hei gripped the sword and pierced it into the ground. He got up and rested his hands on the pommel, anchoring him to stand upright. “I wished I could join you and Hu on this epic journey outside of this realm.”
“Like what you and the old man told me, I’m sure there should have been another way.”
“If there was, it would’ve been too late, and I wouldn’t be asking you for my last wish.”
Julius nodded. “Yeah, I know, but you lived and ruled for so long that I understood this might be the best solution for you.”
“Correct…At least now…you got my knowledge and powers, so…you can do whatever you want with it. The great thing about all of us is that our powers and qi can have the same beginnings, but we could change it into something new…”
“That settled my question. I already thought of how to manage this power,” Julius said and lifted his new longsword to view the blade.
“You…are already starting something new…What an unbelievable being you are. Maybe this world isn’t ready for what you’ll bring,” Lord Hei muttered before violently coughing up blood. His hand was filled and yellow blood dripped to the floor, expanding the prior puddle. “I guess my time is up.”
The plume of smoke violently punched out from the giant-sized wound. Lord Hei grunted, trying to make as minimal noise as possible. Julius was surprised because it appeared very painful to force a fatal release right after a cough. Lord Hei looked back at him, leaving with a closed smile. His face decayed and faded away, followed by the rest of his body. Nothing was left. The blood disintegrated and evaporated into the air. Nobody will go through this realm again. You are all at peace. Julius reflected on Lord Hei and the many deceased cultivators.
He then observed the longsword. The blade’s shape reminded him of a video game he played years ago, so it was surreal to have something similar within his grip. Compared to his greatsword, Licht, the longsword was heavier throughout. Julius didn’t know how it was possible, but the hilt was so solid that he tried wielding it with his left hand, resulting in a swollen red.
Empress Cai and everyone gathered up, wondering what was next. Before Julius could say, a new pop-up came from his Skoltor System.
--
The Tower of Merit Universe Level Three Completed!
Leveling calculating…
Checking for system updates…
…
Level Up!
Flames of Wrath (愤怒) Level: 4 → 5
+ 37% to Qi; + 22% to Power.
Cultivation Level 35 → 40
Total % Base Stats Buff: 35% → 40%
Base Stats w/o adjustments
Stamina (LV 48 → 50)
HP (LV 48 → 50)
36,716 → 49,405
11,024,007 → 15,874,570
Endurance (LV 48 → 50)
4,917 → 5,735
Durability (LV 48 → 50)
10,099 → 12,220
Power (LV 48 → 50)
Attack (LV 48 → 50)
54,663 → 69,799
43,244 → 52,326
Qi (LV 48 → 50)
848,700 → 1,064,610
Total Score
12,023,246 → 17,128,645
100% Ash Damage Reduction (20/20)
65% Carbon Damage Reduction (20/20)
Breathing Strength Level 15/20
--
Good enough. Julius felt satisfied with his results. Now, he has a new title to withhold. Lich Emperor. He understood the role but was not sure what he needed to do. It was like getting a sudden job without time to prepare for it. Adding on, Julius might have gotten information about how to control this ability, but only vague history. How he will move forward would be a free-for-all basis with no linear guidelines to pull it off. His momentous doubts turned into optimism when a new mission popped up in his Skoltor System, directing him back to the center of the arena. The center spot where the floor opened into the void down to Lord Hei's throne was now sealed. A grand red curtain summoned out of nowhere above, dropping to the spot. A golden rope that was wrapped around the curtains began untangling itself. Everybody stood still, watching it open.
Once the rope untangled, the two curtains opened, revealing a bright light from inside the portal. Gusts rushed out of the void until it was time to depart. Julius wanted to leave immediately, while everyone else shared the same sentiment. Hence, all stepped forward right when he moved. The Level Three journey has been completed, and probably, they will never step inside again to progress to Level Four in a long time.
The usual flash of light charged right to his face and was back on the hill in a blink. From the view of Longyue from the hill, it didn’t look like any chaos had ensued or erupted. Julius strolled further away from the Tower of Merit Universe’s grand gate, and he was met by President Yang, Hong, Daiyu, and the Doctor. It was a little amusing seeing them again even though to the four it was only an hour passed, and a few more inches taller this time made the appearance differences so significant.
The Doctor looked at Julius for a few seconds, appearing confused. “Julius?”
“Yes…Oh, right. My face.” No voice change was enough for them to recognize him.
“Yinhai…You’ve changed…and be careful going around now with that handsome look.”
“I’ve been warned…let’s go to the hospital to do the checkups. I don’t want to hold back the army line behind us.”
“Follow me,” the doctor directed. “You guys too.”
----------------------------------------
2 Hours Later → Afternoon
(Y1010年 06月 27日)
“I was never told we were doing blood tests!” Míngyuè ranted, expressing her disdain for medical checkups.
Julius walked out of the clinic room. “I mean, we were inside for at least half a year, so I don’t expect anybody to remember.” He rolled down his right sleeve. “I requested a whole physical checkup for everyone. I don’t want any health issues down the line when we get the Moon Empire back into a world war against the Renos, Kriegshan, and all its allies.”
Míngyuè groaned because she was next. “Can I skip this blood test?”
“No, you can’t. It’s quick, so you’ll be fine. I used to hate them in my youth,” Julius said, denying her claim. “Now I don’t care about it.” He gestured her into the clinic room.
“Ok…” She sighed, entering the clinic room, and Julius headed to sit down on a big couch, joining the rest of the group.
This was the first time he even heard about a head doctor’s lounge in this hospital. It was on the highest floor of the building, giving a complete view of Longyue and the surroundings. Every time he turned to the window, a moment of happiness and relief overwhelmed his body and mind. The same could be said for others who sat nearby or hanging out in the lounge.
Solomon, already back to work, leaned up from the armchair’s comfort. “So…What’s next?”
“Once Míngyuè finishes her bloodwork, we should get our physical results soon. Afterward, there’s a celebration event happening tonight in the first district. I guess you guys love of having celebrations before a risky war, which is strange and unheard of to me…but the benefits are high…so I’ll take it.”
“Your world could use some of our influence,” Empress Cai said.
Julius chuckled with a headshake. “I don’t think they will, and you are saying as if we are going back.”
“Are we?”
“I think we are. Xavier is dead now, and he won’t attack me or,” he said and looked at Mother Elaine, “her…You guys definitely know her story, right?”
A few nods from the ones listening, and they moved to a different topic.
“Are you ready?” Father Kang asked.
“I think so, yes.” Julius nodded. “Despite the risks, this is our chance. I have my own reasons. All of you have your own reasons. The people here have their own reasons, and the history of this continent has its own reasons too. I’m ready to take all of it and put it all on their land…no question.”
Daiyu was reading her notes while walking to the couch area. “Tomorrow we will start an organization process to get us ready for an invasion into Renos.”
“How are the states?”
“Twenty out of thirty signed the alliance.”
Julius shook his head. “Damn those ten then,” he muttered, then turned to Empress Cai and Father Kang. “Have a few of your soldiers divided to go into the ten states.”
“Anything else?” Empress Cai asked.
Daiyu pointed to her a few lines of notes. “Well, for you, I think you have to deal with new recruits again…Same with Father Kang. Each is about to have an extra two thousand soldiers entering at least around this week.” She closed her journal. “And that is it. The rest has already been talked about during our time hanging out in the lounge. Now, I’m starving, and I can’t wait for her to finish the blood test, so we can head out of here.”
Solomon turned to the kitchen cabinets area, finding the bowls were empty. “Did you eat all the fruits?”
“I can only hold for so long.”
“Darn, so much for knowing those to sate down our hunger.”
Míngyuè came out of the clinic room with a small bandage on her arm. Julius saw her facial cheek was a little wet. Oh, my goodness. She really hates syringes. He stood up from the couch, readjusting his new fit. Solomon looked at him as if he had something. “Do you need a new overcoat?”
“Can you make it adaptable to sudden physical changes?”
Solomon paused briefly. “Uh, I've never done that before.”
“With weapons, you did. Can that be possible for clothing?”
“I could try.”
“Worth the risk to try. If we can heal ourselves and what we wear before it gets severely damaged, I think it is possible. And take your time, as it is not urgent.”
The doctor came out of the clinic room, standing next to Míngyuè. She showed a stack of papers in her right hand, gripped hard to make a crease. “Luckily, you all are healthy and checked out. If you want your data, I can hand it out now.”
Everyone gathered near the doctor as she handed out stapled packets of papers to them one by one. Julius remained at his spot, waiting for them to get theirs first. While so, he thought about everything invented or technologically innovated on Earth, wondering if it would be possible to push it further here. Not only to benefit the empire but also to win this conflict while under a war economy. Tomorrow will be a busy day for him after the celebration. Hopefully, his body’s overall health will be eased from hidden stress before going back to business.
After a moment, the doctor walked up to him and handed him his physical report. He took it and started reading the data.