The training hall echoed with the rhythmic sounds of fists striking reinforced targets, boots sliding across composite flooring, and synchronized shouts that rose and fell like waves. Dozens of youths practiced in tight formations, their movements rigid yet disciplined.
Each group followed a leader who barked corrections while demonstrating the precise angle of a punch or the proper stance for channeling strength through the hips. Their uniforms were identical, gray sleeveless jackets tied with narrow belts, sweat darkening the fabric across their backs.
Not everyone trained in groups.
Scattered around the outer perimeter stood several lone practitioners. They moved without instruction, their techniques sharper and far more refined. Their fists cut through the air with a faint whistling sound, and every strike ended with a subtle tremor that traveled into the reinforced wall panels.
Their garments were different as well. Instead of the common gray jackets, they wore black sleeveless coats with silver stitching along the shoulders. The material looked lighter, yet it clung to their bodies with a tailored fit. Anyone could tell they were more advanced.
Some of the grouped students occasionally stole glances at them, their expressions a mixture of envy and determination.
The air smelled of sweat, disinfectant, and the metallic scent of training equipment heating under constant impact. Overhead lights reflected off the polished floor, turning the moving figures into blurred shadows that crossed and recrossed one another.
Ten minutes passed like this.
Then the main doors slid open with a heavy mechanical hiss.
Every sound stopped.
Even the lone practitioners lowered their fists.
A burly man walked inside with slow, measured steps. His shoulders were broad enough to make the doorway appear smaller. His arms were thick like reinforced pillars, veins visible beneath the dark skin. A sleeveless coat hung loosely over his torso, exposing a chest that looked like carved stone. His hair was cropped short, and a faint scar ran from his left eyebrow down to his cheek.
The students immediately straightened.
"Greetings, Master Richard."
They bowed in unison.
Richard nodded once, his gaze sweeping across the hall. His eyes lingered briefly on the lone practitioners, then shifted to the grouped students. The pressure in the room seemed to increase simply from his presence.
"In one month," Richard said, his voice deep and cold, "the spaceship will depart for Xerox Planet."
The name alone caused subtle ripples among the students. Some swallowed nervously. Others clenched their fists.
"If you cannot reach the mastery level of the Iron Fist technique before departure," Richard continued, "you will lose your chance to become a Gene Warrior for another year."
His gaze hardened.
"And those already seventeen years old," he added, "this is your last opportunity."
A few faces paled.
"Our Iron Fist Martial Hall has only two candidates who reached the requirement," Richard said with visible dissatisfaction. "The Silver Skin Martial Hall has three. The Thunder Sword Martial Hall has six."
He paused, letting the comparison sink in.
"This time, our town has fifteen seats on the spaceship. Do you not want to seize this chance?"
"Yes, sir! We do!"
The students roared together, their voices echoing off the walls.
"Very well," Richard said. "You have twenty nine days to prove your worth."
He turned and walked out without another word.
The doors slid shut behind him.
The hall remained silent for several seconds before the tension began to ease.
Among the seventeen year olds stood a particularly handsome young man. His features were sharp, his hair slightly messy, and his expression… extremely confused.
"Where am I?" he muttered under his breath. "Did that truck bastard just hit me?"
The odor of sweat entered his nose.
His face twisted.
"Yaak. Am I in hell?" he whispered. "I knew it. I shouldn't have pressed Fatty's boobs even though he was annoyed. Now I'm in hell. Buhuuu."
His eyes grew moist.
"Victor, what happened to you?" someone nearby asked.
Victor froze.
"Huh?" He looked around in alarm. "Am I famous in hell already? They know my name? I am finished. Now they will cook me in the oil."
His panic intensified.
Before anyone could respond, a sudden wave of pain exploded inside his head. A massive flood of memories poured into his mind like a broken dam. Images, voices, and unfamiliar experiences overlapped violently.
Victor staggered.
"Fuck—"
He collapsed onto the floor.
Inside his fading consciousness, two mechanical voices rang clearly.
[Ding!Primordial Sign-In System Activated.]
[Ding! Primordial Evolution System Activated.]
Then everything went dark.
—
Time passed.
Victor slowly opened his eyes. The hard training floor pressed against his cheek. His head throbbed as if someone had hammered nails into his skull. He winced and sat up with difficulty.
His vision gradually cleared.
He had transmigrated.
This was still Earth, but five hundred years in the future.
Three hundred years ago, a Shura spaceship invaded the planet. Humanity fought desperately, throwing everything they had at the alien vessel. However, the spaceship was protected by an impenetrable forcefield. Conventional weapons were useless. Cities were destroyed like sandcastles. Millions died.
Finally, humanity used their nuclear arsenal.
The combined blasts shattered the forcefield. The spaceship was destroyed.
Victory came at a terrible price.
The Shura weapons wiped out hundreds of cities. The nuclear detonations altered Earth's atmosphere. Radiation storms, climate collapse, and ecological disasters followed. Earth became barely habitable.
But this disaster also marked the beginning of the cosmic era.
Humanity recovered fragments of technology from the wreckage. They studied Shura corpses and discovered biological similarities. The Shura resembled humans except for horns on their foreheads. However their genetic structures were far more advanced than humans.
Beside they found a vial of gene fluid and martial techniques alongside some data in a secured chamber of the space ships.
Humans did research throughly on them.
Humanity created wormhole capable spacecraft. They learned about countless alien races. Some entities possessed power capable of destroying planets with a single strike.
The era of gene warriors also began a few years later.
Two hundred years passed after that.
Humanity colonized ten solar systems. The wealthy and powerful left Earth. Only the poor remained behind. Mutated monsters appeared due to radiation. Fifty years ago, an unknown cosmic anomaly entered Earth. After that, mutated beasts evolved rapidly, some capable of fighting second or even third transformation Gene Warriors.
Victor slowly digested everything.
"Damn," he muttered. "The truck really has transmigration powers. I asked my old man to buy a truck before, but he beat me violently. Now I have proof.", Victor snorted.
"Victor, are you alright man?" a voice interrupted.
Victor looked up.
A young man stood nearby. He had short brown hair and a concerned expression.
"You almost frightened us," he said. "We wanted to take you to the hospital, but a beast invaded the town. We couldn't leave."
Victor blinked.
"I'm alright," he said. "Tell me about the beast."
"It was an elite tier pangolin," Alex replied. "Warriors dealt with it, but there were injuries."
Victor nodded slowly.
Then he remembered something.
He had a family in this world as well.
His heart tightened. This Victor had a mother and a younger sister. His father died years ago.
He quickly grabbed his phone.
"Don't worry," Alex said. "Aunty and Luna are safe. I called them earlier. I didn't mention what happened to you."
Victor relaxed and smiled.
"Thanks, Alex," he said. Then his expression turned smug. "But if Luna doesn't like you, you bastard won't get your hands on her."
Alex's face darkened.
"Bastard," he snapped. "Maybe I should've pummeled you while you were unconscious. How can I think about your sister?"
Victor maintained his disdainful expression.
"Yeah, yeah. Now get your daddy a glass of water. I'm thirsty."
Alex snorted but walked away.
Only after he left did Victor's expression change.
"I definitely heard two voices," he muttered. "Was that hallucination?"
He whispered, "System? Are you there?"
[Hello Host. I am the Sign-In System.]
[Hello Host. I am the Evolution System.]
Victor's eyes widened.
"What the? Two systems?"
Then he burst into laughter.
"Hahahaha! Those pathetic protagonists barely get anything, and I get two systems. Face slapping and beautiful girls are only a step away."
"What are you laughing at, you creepy bastard?" Alex returned holding water. "You're giving me goosebumps. Don't scare the girls."
Victor looked at him with exaggerated disdain.
"You just lost five points. I thought I'd let you hug my thick thigh after I ascend, but now you'll have to settle for my shoe."
Alex stared.
"What nonsense are you saying? Drink the water and go to the hospital. Want me to come?"
"No need," Victor said, finishing the water. "Go practice."
Alex shook his head and left.
Victor leaned back.
"Systems," he said quietly. "State your identities."