Sam stood before the three floating panels, his eyes locked on the glowing words before him.
[True Primordial]
[Eternally Forsaken]
[Determined One]
Each of them resonated with power. Each of them represented sothing that was undeniably part of who he was.
He stared at them for several long seconds, unsure which one to choose.
They all sounded good. Maybe too good.
But the Scales of Judgnt demanded only one.
And whichever one he selected would define the reward he’d receive—sothing that could completely change his path.
He couldn’t afford to choose carelessly.
’Eternally Forsaken sounds powerful,’ he thought, frowning slightly. ’But... it’s probably not as good as the others.’
That one he could cross out.
He exhaled slowly, the golden light from the panels reflecting in his crimson eyes.
That left two. [True Primordial] and [Determined One].
He crossed his arms, standing motionless on the scale, lost in thought.
’I keep being called the [True Primordial],’ Sam thought, ’probably because I’m the last one alive. It makes sense. But [Determined One]... that’s sothing else entirely.’
His eyes narrowed.
One title was given to him because of what he was born as.
The other, because of what he had beco.
The difference mattered.
He stayed silent for a while, the faint hum of the Scales echoing in the stillness around him.
Then, after a long pause, he nodded to himself.
’Alright. I got it.’
He extended his arm and, without another thought, chose [Determined One].
The other panels faded away, leaving only golden light swirling around him.
It was true that he was the [True Primordial]. That would never change.
But that title existed because of circumstance.
[Determined One], though... that was his essence. His resolve. His soul.
He had clawed his way through countless trials, endured endless pain, and refused to break when any other being would have shattered.
Determination was what made him who he was.
It was the core of everything he had done since the beginning.
Ding!
[You have selected "Determined One"]
[Verdict: Determination]
A low vibration shook through the scale.
Golden light flared beneath Sam’s feet as an aura erupted outward, washing across the field like a storm.
’Hm.’
The weight of power pressed against his body, and for a brief mont, the air itself seed to stop moving.
[Jump from the scale and await your judgnt (reward)]
Without hesitation, Sam leaped down, landing on the corrupted soil below.
The massive black scale shuddered, then began to glow from within as golden veins spread across its surface.
Boom!
The light exploded outward, forming a pillar that shot into the sky.
The energy struck him a mont later, rushing through his veins and fusing into his very soul.
Sam’s eyes turned entirely golden, his aura flaring bright enough to cast long shadows across the ground.
It was warm, but heavy. Powerful, but calm.
And when the last of it seeped into him—
Ding!
[You have gained the "Determination Intuition" Class Skill.]
Sam blinked.
’Wait... [Class Skill]?’
He hadn’t expected that.
A class skill wasn’t just another ability. It was sothing much rarer, sothing unique.
Until now, the only class skills he’d acquired ca from his affinities: things like [Stars of Hatred], [Dinsion of Ti], and [Blood Verdict].
Those skills had all been ga-changers in their own way.
So the fact that this new ability was labeled a class skill... ant it had to be powerful.
Or, at least, important. He imdiately pulled up the description to read it.
---
[Determination Intuition]
[Description: If Determination is everything in this world, then having the highest amount shall place us above all.]
[This skill allows the primordial to sense the determination of others, to judge how far their will can carry them, and how strong it truly is.]
[You may also sense your own determination, seeing how long you can keep going before your resolve collapses.]
---
’Hm...’
It wasn’t exactly what he expected. It wasn’t destructive, nor defensive.
But it was sothing deeper.
’So it lets feel the determination of others... and my own.’
He rubbed his chin.
’Maybe it doesn’t sound powerful, but... it might be.’
After all, determination often defined the difference between victory and death.
And knowing how much soone had could be far more useful than it appeared.
He closed the panel.
The massive Scales of Judgnt dissolved into glittering particles of light, fading into the darkness of the [Fifth Zone].
Once again, he stood alone.
He looked toward the distance, where the enormous wall of black fla lood.
The [Fifth Barrier]. It burned with silent intensity, its fire twisting like liquid shadows under the pressure of his aura.
Sam’s gaze hardened.
’I don’t see any reason to wait anymore,’ he thought. ’I have to keep going.’
His levels would start taking far longer to rise now, and while he wasn’t technically in a rush, sothing inside him whispered that he should move faster.
He stepped forward. Then another.
Each footstep brought him closer to the barrier, the fire’s heat brushing against his skin.
He half-expected tendrils of void or shadow to lash out like before.
He even tightened his grip on his sword, ready for it.
But nothing happened. The wall simply stood there, waiting.
Almost as if it wanted him to co in willingly.
Or maybe... it was a trap. Either way, it didn’t matter.
Sam walked straight through the flas. They didn’t burn him.
They simply parted around his body as if recognizing him.
Ding!
---
[You have entered the "Sixth Zone"]
[The corruption has spread everywhere. Escape by reaching the end. This zone is not viable to inhabit.]
[You cannot leave anymore.]
---
Sam imdiately turned and reached backward, but a transparent wall stopped him.
’So it’s not like the others,’ he thought.
Once you entered, you couldn’t leave. It made sense.
Each zone had its own mission area, like the [Tower of Fate] or the [Land of Judgnt], and once you started, you couldn’t go back.
But the difference here was clear here: the entire zone was the mission.
And that ant only two outcos existed: success or death.
He turned forward again, surveying what awaited him.
"Damn," he muttered under his breath.
Everything, absolutely everything, was drowned in darkness.
The ground was blackened and cracked. The air shimred with corruption.
Even the sky above was a deep, suffocating void, broken only by a faint white circle hanging motionless in the distance.
There was no sun, no moon, no stars. Just that pale, eternal light.
He squinted and activated Aura Radar.
A pulse rippled outward from him, illuminating faint crimson outlines in the distance.
’Three of them, within a hundred ters,’ he noted.
And he could see enormous tendrils scattered across the land, so small and twitching, others massive, coiling like serpents beneath the soil.
It was like the entire landscape was alive. Corrupted.
’I guess that’s why it’s the [Sixth Mission],’ he thought. ’This would kill almost anyone else.’
He flexed his fingers, then exhaled.
’Well. Let’s see how bad it gets.’
He crouched slightly and activated [Primordial Rush], letting his form blur into shadow.
Imdiately, he sank into the ground, his body lding with the darkness around him.
Normally, this made him almost invisible. Here, it should’ve made him untouchable.
But just as he began to move—
[Don’t do it.]
A panel appeared. Sam frowned.
Before he could even process it, the ground erupted.
Dozens of massive tendrils burst upward, thrashing violently.
They lunged straight toward where he was seeping through the darkness, aiming to drag him down and crush him beneath the corrupted soil.
"Shit!"
He shot back up to the surface, landing hard as the ground below churned and twisted.
If he had stayed down there even a second longer, he would’ve been swallowed alive.
He caught his breath, eyes narrowing.
’Holy shit...’
Another panel appeared, this one dark, its edges frad with writhing tendrils.
[There is no way to escape the corruption, Primordial.]
The panel and voice of the monarch.
[Go through my land. If you can survive, I will not interfere... yet.]
The panel vanished. Sam looked around the desolate plain.
"Yeah," he muttered, "that’s reassuring."
He didn’t wait any longer.
Primordial Wings unfurled from his back, burning with faint light as he glanced at the blackened sky.
There were faint movents up there, shapes twisting within the sky.
He could only see them because the forms aligned with the giant white circle.
’So there are enemies in the air too, huh?’ He smirked, ’Fine.’
Fwish!
He launched himself forward, wings slicing through the thick air as he pushed deeper into the corrupted land.
The darkness below rippled violently from his speed.
He could feel dozens of presences stirring beneath the ground, following his movent.
He tightened his grip on his sword.
’If this is the [Sixth Zone], then show what it’s got.’
And just then—
[Heh. I lied.]
The ssage appeared just before the world exploded.
A colossal tendril erupted from the earth, thicker than a tower, glowing with molten black energy, and a faint white outline.
It ca down fast—
BAM!
The ground split apart as it slamd directly into him.
"What—"
He didn’t even have ti to finish the word before the impact threw him through the air.
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