The Seed of Chaos' final strike had failed, and it mocked itself with bitter laughter.
It had never crossed its mind that it would lose to these weaklings. Worse yet, the one who defeated it wasn't even a real living being but merely a copy of the Original World!
Venix sighed in relief, his tensed shoulders finally feeling lighter. His True Origin body returned to normal, free from the strange sensations that had plagued him.
Even though his body was back to normal, Venix remained on high alert. His gaze was fixed ahead, his focus locked on the battle within the sea of consciousness that was far from over. The Seed of Chaos' consciousness still roiled within him.
Slowly but surely, Venix regained control over his True Origin body, while the Seed of Chaos' consciousness dimmed, waiting to disappear entirely.
Future Venix worked tirelessly, bombarding the Seed of Chaos' consciousness faster, fearing it might retaliate with a final desperate act.
A minute later, Future Venix launched an attack on the Seed of Chaos' last fragment. His face displayed a faint smile, and his sharp eyes seemed to declare, "I’ve won."
As the Seed of Chaos faded, Venix felt something unsettling.
In the depths of his heart, a voice whispered, "I am not dead… I will wait for you in a darker future."
The next moment, the Seed of Chaos' consciousness vanished completely, leaving no trace behind.
At that moment, Venix experienced a profound shift, as if he had just surfaced from the depths of an ocean to take a breath of fresh air. For the first time in what felt like ages, he could fully control his body.
The Origin Blessing continued, though its effects were not as intense because the true victor had not yet emerged.
Once the Seed of Chaos' consciousness was entirely obliterated, the Origin Blessing unleashed its full power, bestowing its energy entirely upon Venix!
His True Origin body glowed golden, and his tiny bubble of consciousness, which had been reduced to just 5%, rapidly expanded and recovered under the blessing's influence.
At the same time, Grandmaster Orion felt a shift. His Soul Body was pushed out, leaving Venix's body entirely.
Grandmaster Orion’s soul returned to his own body, and he opened his eyes sharply.
“What’s the result?” asked Grandmaster Ardyn, his voice filled with anxious concern. His pale face betrayed his stress.
The others nearby also looked at Grandmaster Orion with bated breath, waiting for his assessment.
“Hold on!” Orion raised a hand, his tone firm. “Venix has just regained control of his body from the Seed of Chaos. We must wait until the Origin Blessing concludes to confirm if it is truly him.”
“Venix took back his body? How is that possible?” Grandmaster Ardyn asked, still in disbelief. He vividly recalled Venix’s dire state earlier and found it impossible that someone could recover from such a condition.
Grandmaster Orion shook his head, his gaze deeply fixed on Venix. “I don’t know.”
Meanwhile, Venix felt a surge of limitless power coursing through him.
At the same time, the three thrones of the Seed Origin began to merge and align, though faint lines indicated they were not yet fully fused.
Ordinarily, a Seed Origin would sacrifice itself to merge the three Seed Fragments into a complete Seed. This would result in the Seed Origin merging fully with the core power of an Awaken, granting greater strength and control.
However, Venix’s Seed Origin—his Seed of Vulture—had already fused entirely with his Astral Body, becoming his True Origin.
Supported by the Origin Blessing, which provided essential energy and assistance, Venix’s evolution bypassed the manual process of merging.
This was the same reason Awaken individuals in the real world became Seedbound so quickly. The Origin Blessing guided them, skipping steps that would otherwise take years.
And now, Venix was undergoing the same transformation.
His True Origin moved instinctively, as if driven by a natural impulse, guiding him through this unprecedented state.
The True Origin approached the nearly fused Seed and extended its hand, releasing an immense surge of energy to force the Seed’s complete unification!
Merging the Seed fully required vast amounts of energy and would typically take an incredibly long time.
Hence, the Astral Bond technique was created to bolster the Seed Origin during this final stage. Inspired by the Origin Blessing, this technique magnified the Seed Origin's power exponentially.
The energy within Venix’s True Origin drained rapidly, but with the continuous replenishment from the Origin Blessing, the power flow remained uninterrupted. It was funneled relentlessly into the Seed.
Gradually, the thin cracks between the Seed fragments began to disappear, as if they had never existed.
Once the Seed was fully unified, an unexpected phenomenon occurred.
The Seed greedily absorbed Venix's energy, creating a void around itself as if trying to unlock something mysterious.
Seeing this void, Venix instinctively wanted to retreat. However, his body continued to adhere to the Seed, compelled by some unseen force.
Moments later, the situation shifted dramatically.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Boom!
The Seed exploded, and Venix's vision went black. Panic surged within him, fearing something had gone terribly wrong.
Five seconds later, Venix’s sight returned. He found himself standing on solid ground.
Looking around, Venix was stunned.
Somehow, he had arrived in a strange world, barren beneath his feet yet with a sky above that shimmered like a tranquil blue sea. It reminded him of his soul's ocean.
He stepped cautiously, realizing the ground beneath him was not ordinary earth. He stood on a small floating island suspended in the air, daring him to venture further.
Before him, Venix saw his dark Seed, now three times larger than his body in this realm.
The dark Seed descended toward the ground, which split open willingly to accept it.
Slowly, the Seed sank deep into the earth, and the surface sealed itself, leaving no trace of its passage.
Seconds later, Venix's True Origin body sat cross-legged atop the ground where the Seed had been planted.
Moments passed, and Venix felt his body forming a profound connection with the Seed buried beneath him. Energy flowed back and forth between them, enhancing both.
Suddenly, black smoke emerged from the ground, coalescing into a single point. Gradually, the smoke took the shape of a living being.
Venix watched the black smoke cautiously, his wariness heightened by the fear that the Seed of Chaos might reappear.
Fortunately, his fear proved unfounded. The smoke solidified into a form that Venix instantly recognized.
Vulture!
The living Vulture landed on the ground, staring at Venix seated above.
As he gazed at the creature, Venix felt an inexplicable warmth. It was as if he had reunited with a long-lost part of himself.
This was the consciousness of the Seed of Vulture, which had once been lost.
Now that Venix had reached the Seedbound level, the Vulture had been reborn, becoming the first living entity in this world.
It was also the symbol of the Seed itself, proof that it had been forged from the Seed of Vulture.
The Vulture let out a triumphant cry, its eyes gleaming with joy as it regarded Venix.
It flew over, landing on Venix's shoulder and nuzzling its head against his face.
Venix remained silent, his hand trembling as he touched the Vulture's body. In a soft, heartfelt voice, he whispered, "Thank you."
Venix lowered his head, his fists clenched tightly.
This success was the result of many interconnected factors. However, the starting point was undoubtedly the Vulture. If it had failed, there was no way the outcome would have been the same, even with the same process.
At this moment, the Origin Blessing had reached its final stage.
Venix felt a strange change within himself, as if something vast and powerful was slowly growing, ready to erupt.
"An exclusive ability from the Seed Origin?" Venix quickly guessed what was about to happen.
When someone reached the Seedbound level, their Seed Origin would awaken a unique, exclusive ability that the user could freely harness.
This unique ability was divided into two types: Active and Passive.
For instance, the legendary prophecy ability of Grandmaster Orion originated from his Seed Origin and fell into the Passive category.
Of course, there was the possibility that such abilities could evolve into Active abilities, though this would require a price for each use.
Venix's spirit burned with anticipation. His heart raced as he awaited the ability that would mark a turning point in his life.
Based on the records he had studied, Earth Awakened individuals would typically receive one or two unique abilities. Sky Awakened individuals would receive at least three, and it was extremely rare for them to gain four.
Meanwhile, Mythic Awakened individuals would receive a minimum of five unique abilities, and it wasn’t unheard of for them to gain up to seven!
As for Venix, after acquiring the Seed of Vulture and arriving in Numan City, Leoric had stated that his Seed of Vulture had reached the lowest Mythic quality.
Now, with his Astral Body and Seed Origin merging into a True Origin, its quality was bound to surpass even the Mythic grade!
"Will I gain ten unique abilities? No, I mustn't be greedy. Eight would still be incredible!" Venix muttered excitedly.
Moments later, his unique ability fully awakened! Knowledge about it was instantly transmitted directly into his mind.
With great enthusiasm, Venix began to explore his new ability.
"The first ability: Essence Assimilation... It sounds incredibly powerful!" Venix thought about it for a moment, processing the information flowing into his mind.
"Essence Assimilation," he repeated slowly, feeling the immense strength behind the name.
But as he studied the ability further, Venix grew puzzled. Why was there only one unique ability?
Opening his eyes, his breath caught. He tried to reassure himself, "This ability must be too powerful. Perhaps I need to wait... Maybe it will evolve."
Venix still felt the Origin Blessing connected to him, empowering him.
Yet, seconds later, the connection abruptly severed, and the skies of Numan World returned to normal, showing no trace of the Origin Blessing.
"Don’t tell me... Is it really just one?" Venix spoke in a restrained voice, disbelief etched into his face.
How could he only have one unique ability?!
\[ Origin Blessing has ended. ]
\[ Congratulations to the Host for successfully reaching the Seedbound level! ]
The system notification appeared just in time, confirming Venix's doubts.
"Just... one?" The corners of Venix's mouth twitched as he fought against the frustration welling up within him. His once-soaring hopes now crumbled, reduced to dust.
Taking a deep breath, Venix tried to calm himself. "This must be an incredibly powerful ability! What if it combines the strengths of ten abilities into one?"
Venix quickly closed his eyes, diving into the knowledge of his ability stored in his mind.
Time passed slowly, and Venix's expression grew darker and darker.
Moments later, he opened his eyes, his face still clouded with gloom.
"Essence Assimilation... It’s a Passive ability, and every technique or power I use will perfectly align with my Seed Origin, forcibly altering the essence of the technique or power itself." Venix took a deep breath. It was a strong and incredibly unique ability.
However, the more he understood this Passive ability, the more he felt that it... actually weakened him!
"If I learned the Flame Phoenix Technique, what would happen? The technique would transform into Flame Vulture..." Venix pressed his chest, feeling a wave of frustration. "Flame Vulture is clearly weaker than Flame Phoenix... This means that even though the technique becomes perfectly attuned to me, it doesn’t necessarily make it stronger."
Every technique had a powerful essence to reach its peak strength. However, Venix’s Passive ability forcibly altered that essence into the essence of the Vulture, thereby weakening the technique itself!
Venix gently shook his head. No matter what, he was still grateful to have survived this day.
With the help of the Virtual Ascension System, Venix believed he could grow rapidly, surpassing even the people of the real world.
If his techniques were weak, it didn’t matter! With a high enough level, his fists alone would be strong enough to defeat enemies in a single strike!
After calming himself, Venix remembered the people of Numan World.
Venix knew that this was a Virtual World created by the system, and the people living in it weren’t real beings.
Yet, his success today, and all the progress he had achieved, came from the Numan World!
Whether it was Luna, Ardyn, Orion, or the entire research team, they had all helped Venix grow bit by bit.
Even Venix, who had once tried hard to impose strict rules on himself to avoid emotional attachment to this Virtual World, now felt slightly conflicted because the help he had received felt so real.
Venix wasn’t someone with a strong personality or extraordinary intelligence. He was just an ordinary human who had suddenly gained the Virtual Ascension System.
His character couldn’t ignore the massive contributions he had received from the people of Numan World.
Closing his eyes, Venix’s consciousness exited his soul sea and returned to his body.
At this moment, Venix’s body was still bound by the sealing chains prepared by Grandmaster Orion.
Opening his eyes slowly, Venix saw the figure of Grandmaster Orion gazing deeply at him and the pale face of Grandmaster Ardyn.
Aside from these two important figures, there were nearly ten others Venix didn’t recognize.
Looking at Grandmaster Orion and Grandmaster Ardyn, Venix offered a stiff smile. "Thank you."
Venix’s voice was soft as tears began to fall down his cheeks, dripping onto the floor.
