Venix moved swiftly, his feet landing gracefully as if the trees themselves were natural footholds that never faltered beneath him.

  Every leap showcased the rhythm of his trained body, while the wind howled fiercely in response to his ever-increasing speed.

  Blood trickled slowly from the wounds on his left shoulder, soaking through his already torn clothes.

  A few drops fell to the ground, creating crimson stains that stood out starkly against the dark forest floor.

  From his system inventory, Venix retrieved something: a bright green healing pill. With trembling fingers, he held it between both hands. In one swift motion, he swallowed it, feeling the pill cool his burning throat.

  "Without the Acceleration Pill, I would've died at their hands," Venix muttered, his voice almost drowned out by the wind. His gaze remained sharp—no hesitation, no fear—only sheer determination gleaming in his eyes.

  With the Acceleration Pill coursing through him, Venix's body seemed to glide faster than the wind itself. Each movement felt lighter, as if even gravity adjusted to accommodate his breakneck pace.

  Seedbound in the real world were indeed strong, but without Origin Techniques, their power remained raw and unrefined.

  In his mind, Venix envisioned a world yet to come.

  "The Survival Realm hasn't manifested in the real world yet..." he thought, picturing the looming darkness that would engulf it.

  "But once it does, the power of Seedbound here will explode." Venix's face tensed slightly, revealing a flicker of anxiety beneath his otherwise unwavering confidence.

  The Survival Realm was knowledge Venix had obtained from Numan World.

  It was said that a portal would appear, leading to another world.

  That world was teeming with monsters and unique beasts, along with various Origin Plants found within it.

  Essentially, the world beyond the portal was filled with dangerous creatures, requiring caution in its exploration.

  It was not only a world of peril but also a land of hope.

  An abundance of Origin resources lay hidden within ancient ruins left behind. These locations, brimming with secrets and techniques capable of transforming one's power, awaited discovery by those brave enough to seek them.

  Numan World did not create Origin Techniques from scratch but perfected those they retrieved from the Survival Realm, refining them with their own strength.

  Venix gazed up at the clear sky, his eyes fixed on the auroras dancing above.

  The colorful lights exuded an almost unreachable beauty, as if offering hope amidst the chaos he faced.

  "Origin Blessing..." Venix whispered, his voice nearly lost in the wind. His thoughts lingered on uncertain hope, a mix of anticipation and unease over the challenges ahead.

  The reason he had returned to the real world was to obtain an Origin Blessing from it.

  When he had died, the system had informed him that the Seed of Chaos had been forcibly awakened due to his death, enabling his resurrection.

  With the birth of the Seed of Chaos in his body in the real world, his Virtual World form underwent the same evolution, mirroring the increase in his real-world strength.

  With this, Venix dared to pursue the Origin Blessing to further empower his Seed of Vulture.

  Beforehand, Venix had directly consulted Grandmaster Orion regarding his plan.

  If an Awaken received an Origin Blessing, would all their Seed Origins be strengthened?

  If the Origin Blessing also enhanced the Seed of Chaos, it would pose a fatal risk.

  Fortunately, Grandmaster Orion's response reassured Venix.

  Grandmaster Orion explained that, in his observation, the Seed of Chaos was an entity of far greater value and should not even exist in a low-level world like Numan World.

  The Origin Era merely awakened the Origin Fragment Realm hidden within human souls, paving the way for someone to become Awakened.

  The Origin Blessing could not be granted to foreign entities, only to beings born in that world.

  Grandmaster Orion also mentioned that if a civilization or individual stronger than Numan World entered this world, newly entering the Origin Era, they would not receive the Origin Blessing and would likely face suppression of their power.

  In Numan World's historical records, Grandmaster Orion found references to a mysterious figure who occasionally appeared in the world, aiding Numan World in gaining a deeper understanding of the Origin Era and sharing their knowledge.

  Grandmaster Orion further noted that the Origin Era belonged to the beings native to the world and that external entities could not claim it.

  Based on this explanation, Grandmaster Orion concluded that the Origin Blessing would not enhance the Seed of Chaos, as that entity was on a level far beyond the Origin Era itself.

  With this understanding, Venix decided to proceed, though he resolved only to use the Origin Blessing as a last resort.

  Venix continued moving forward, his eyes scanning every gap in the forest, but it became increasingly clear that finding a safe hiding spot was becoming harder.

  Every area he explored felt too exposed, lacking the concealment he needed.

  After searching for ten minutes, Venix grew frustrated at the seeming impossibility of finding a place untraveled by others.

  "I can only hope luck is on my side..." Venix muttered, his voice muted but tense.

  His gaze shifted quickly, as if watching every sound emanating from the forest.

  Venix scoured the area again, his eyes darting sharply in every direction, until he finally discovered a sufficiently hidden location behind a line of trees. The spot seemed modest but adequate to conceal him from passersby.

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  The place Venix chose was simple, surrounded by four trees that left enough room for him to sit.

  Seated in the middle of the space encircled by trees, Venix pulled out a scroll from his inventory. The scroll bore mysterious formation symbols painted across its surface.

  This scroll had cost him 1,000 Resource Points to bring into the real world!

  Placing the scroll before him, Venix extended his palm over it and channeled energy into the paper.

  As he infused the scroll with energy, the symbols began to glow, their light intensifying with the flow of energy. Every line and circle on the scroll seemed to come alive, shining with an almost mesmerizing hue.

  A fine white dust began to spread within a five-meter radius around Venix.

  The particles gradually coalesced, as if binding to one another.

  Five minutes later, a blue barrier emerged, enclosing Venix within it.

  Slowly, the blue hue of the barrier turned white before finally becoming invisible.

  From the outside, Venix's figure, nestled among the four trees, vanished without a trace.

  Inside the barrier, Venix could see the outside world clearly.

  "Stage one... successful?" Venix whispered, his tone filled with uncertainty.

  This scroll had been custom-made by Grandmaster Orion, who had explained that if Venix could clearly see the outside world, it meant the invisible barrier had been successfully activated, rendering Venix undetectable by the naked eye or ordinary observation techniques.

  "Stage one of the formation consumed 80% of my energy..." Venix paused, staring at the scroll before him.

  Grandmaster Orion stated that activating this formation would consume a significant amount of energy. Moreover, this was just the initial stage; there were still three more stages to go!

  The other three stages were necessary to create a strong protective barrier capable of withstanding a full-force attack from Rootbound.

  Venix was concerned that his Origin Blessing might be stronger than he had anticipated.

  After all, the Seed of Vulture had absorbed part of the Seed of Chaos’s essence, further enhancing its power.

  Venix recalled the moment when the Origin Blessing began merging with his body after he became an Awaken in the real world.

  In mere seconds, he felt a surge of overwhelming power, almost like a tornado.

  Typically, people needed several minutes to gather the energy of their Origin Blessing.

  But Venix only took seconds, almost causing a great phenomenon in the sky.

  If he had waited any longer, Venix feared the phenomenon would have been mistaken for a legendary treasure manifesting on Earth!

  In the history of the Numan World, several powerful figures who received Origin Blessings created similar grand phenomena, often misinterpreted as the emergence of legendary treasures.

  For that reason, Venix had planned everything meticulously, preparing a Crystal Teleportation device to escape in case the area became crowded with curious onlookers.

  Venix consumed an Awaken Elixir and refined the raw energy within his body, transforming it into his own energy.

  Once his energy was fully replenished, Venix directed it back into the scroll, draining it once again.

  This process took quite some time, and night began to fall.

  Finally, after exhausting his energy four times, Venix fully activated the scroll’s formation. The formation symbols on the scroll vanished, leaving behind an ordinary white parchment.

  Venix let out a deep breath, feeling a mix of relief and exhaustion from the long process.

  A faint smile crossed his face before he inhaled deeply and closed his eyes, returning his consciousness to the Virtual World.

  At the same time, his body in the real world became shielded by an invisible barrier capable of withstanding attacks from Awaken Middle-Stage enemies, consuming 200 Resource Points.

  With Earth’s weakest Seedbound level, this barrier wasn’t strong enough to resist their attacks fully. However, it was sufficient to alert Venix if anyone attempted to strike his hiding place.

  Back in the Numan World, Venix exited his meditative state and opened his eyes.

  Seeing the pile of books and metal boxes in his room, Venix paused for a moment, then decided to head to the library to retrieve more books and techniques.

  \---

  A week passed quickly.

  Over the past week, Venix had delved into many aspects of Origin Formation and various Earth Origin Techniques.

  His knowledge grew richer, but the deeper he immersed himself in this realm, the more he realized he was merely a drop in the vast ocean of knowledge.

  Venix had initially thought that the more he learned and became knowledgeable, the more competent and confident he would be—someone dependable.

  However, Venix was wrong. Though he had amassed an extensive wealth of knowledge in his mind, it didn’t mean he became an all-knowing individual.

  It was like the human eye, capable of observing the world, yet it could only see in one direction and not a full 360 degrees.

  Thus, no matter how much knowledge or how many techniques Venix learned, his thoughts always narrowed to one thing he deemed most important, blinding him from seeing the entirety of his acquired knowledge.

  Aside from studying, Venix also practiced various combat techniques specifically designed for his Seed of Vulture, which had been developed by a specialized research team.

  Even so, Venix felt far from ready to face the Seed of Chaos directly.

  At this moment, Venix was meditating.

  Controlling the body of the Seed of Vulture, he observed the Seed of Chaos, calmly seated on its throne.

  Behind it, the third Origin Fragment Realm had already appeared, slowly expanding while siphoning a small portion of Venix’s energy.

  Feeling uneasy, Venix controlled the Seed of Vulture’s body to approach the third Origin Fragment Realm.

  Floating just outside the third Origin Fragment Realm’s barrier, Venix’s discomfort intensified over time.

  “It’s impossible to force an entry.” Venix gazed at the third Origin Fragment Realm and sighed.

  If he could devour the Seed Origin within it, Vulture would grow stronger, and his chances of confronting the Seed of Chaos might improve.

  “Ever since I returned to the real world, I’ve felt uneasy,” Venix remarked, his frustration evident. “Could something major be about to happen in the real world?”

  Awakens had a sharp sixth sense, and most of their instincts proved accurate.

  Shaking his bird-like head, Venix hovered outside the third Origin Fragment Realm, closed his eyes, and entered a state of deep meditation.

  Venix reflected on his experiences since the Virtual Ascension system appeared.

  At first, Venix had thought the system was just an ordinary virtual game, but he was wrong.

  He believed the Numan World was Earth in the future, but after delving deeper, he realized Earth and the Numan World were two entirely different realms.

  When he became a Pseudo-Awaken in the real world, Venix saw an aurora in the sky and realized his system was far from ordinary.

  From that moment, Venix sought more power to prepare for the coming Origin Era in the real world.

  But change came quickly. The Origin Era arrived, and Venix found himself powerless, unable even to help his own friends.

  During that period, Venix felt constantly hunted by time. Danger crept in slowly, until it ultimately killed him without warning.

  Sometimes, Venix thought he had never been given a chance to rest since becoming an Awaken.

  Reflecting on his life experiences, Venix noticed something peculiar.

  “After I died in the real world and lived in the Virtual World, I felt far more relaxed and patient,” Venix mused, piecing the puzzle together. “I never felt at ease as an Awaken, as if I were constantly being pursued by something... That feeling disappeared when my real-world body died, only to return after I came back to life in the real world.”

  Venix suddenly opened his eyes and looked down at the third Origin Fragment Realm beneath him.

  “There’s something wrong with my body in the real world!” Venix declared after analyzing everything.

  He didn’t know what was wrong with his real-world body, but he sensed a significant difference.

  The Seed of Vulture’s body began to glow as it ignited with a purple flame, launching attacks against the invisible barrier surrounding the third Origin Fragment Realm.

  Boom! Boom!

  Venix attacked relentlessly.

  The remaining energy from his strikes was quickly absorbed by the third Origin Fragment Realm.

  Venix didn’t care and continued his assault with all his strength, attempting to break through the barrier.

  Boom! Boom!

  Venix didn’t stop, undeterred.

  However, on another level, Venix was focused on something else.

  As the third Origin Fragment Realm absorbed the residual energy from his attacks, Venix noticed that the absorption rate was unusually slow, unlike before with the second Origin Fragment Realm.

  “Hahaha!” Venix laughed at this, then turned to glare at the Seed of Chaos still seated on its throne.

  “You’re alive, aren’t you? Seed of Chaos? You’re not just some ordinary Seed Origin that can’t speak, are you!?” Venix challenged, his gaze sharp.

  The Seed of Chaos ignored Venix, not even sparing him a glance.

  “If you won’t talk, I’ll force you to,” Venix declared, a defiant grin spreading across his Vulture face.

  With those words, Venix exited his meditation, returning his consciousness to his real-world body.

  As his awareness returned, Venix held a communication device in his hand and spoke a single decisive sentence.

  “I’m accelerating the formation of the third Seed Origin,” Venix announced, his resolve firm.

  Meanwhile, those outside were shocked by Venix’s sudden decision and quickly contacted Grandmaster Ardyn to intervene and make a swift judgment.