Zen didn't waste much time at his Domain. He just pretended to listen to whatever they were yapping about. It wasn't any of his concern; all he wanted to do was test out his spells on some powerful monsters or foes—anyone would do.
During his time playing Azurpomax, he had memorized some areas that were filled with powerful monsters. One of these places was a ghost town. It was very convenient since it was located at the outskirts of Skon.
Just as the name suggests, he was prepared to kill some ghosts. After running and sprinting for some minutes, he arrived at the town. It looked different from the game; it was usually desolate, ghosts wandering, and a freakishly unnerving echo that gave most players goosebumps.
"Was this place always like this?" he thought. No, it wasn't. Zen, try to care a little, will you?
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
"Here it comes. It must be a big o—" He was absolutely stunned by what he saw. A crimson red lizard-like creature with bat wings came at him speedily. "What the heck is that?" He crouched against the floor.
"Well, it's not like it matters." He drew his sword and grasped it tightly. The lizard was just about in front of him. The ground cracked, followed by a gust. It fell into multiple pieces.
Zen moved so fast that it didn't comprehend when it was killed. "Weak!" He swung his sword, splashing red, mucky blood on the floor. "It seems there are more where that came from." A horde of crimson red lizard-like creatures filled the dark sky; they were all ready to pounce on him.
"I'm far enough from the capital, so I don't have to worry about destroying anything valuable." He grinned heavily. "9th tier spell." A flaming dragon formed around the creatures. "Hell…Burn." The dragon burst, and its flames skewered the creatures alive.
"That wasn't bad." He flicked his wrist. "But I feel I could do better."
Mana was the primal energy of this world. All things, living or dead, contain mana no matter how minute or small. Individuals that could manipulate it were called spell casters. Spells are divided into tiers. A spell caster cannot use a spell above the tier of their mana reserve; it would either lead to mana overload or nothing at all.
"This is weird, I'm pretty sure there were supposed to be ghosts here. What's with these unsightly creatures?" His eyes swept over the town. "Could it be that this world is different from the game?" Finally, it dawned on him that this world might actually not be Azurpomax.
Clack….
"Hey, you. What are you doing here?" A female clad in a black hood attacked Zen out of the blue. He blocked the attack. "Answer me?" She pressed harder against his sword from above. "And who gave you the right to command me?" He swung his sword, pushing her backwards. "I didn't expect this location to be found by anyone."
She slid backwards on the ground. "I must admit you are strong, but now that you have found this place, I cannot allow you to leave alive." She gripped her daggers and thrusted forward with blazing speed.
"What the fuck is this bitch talking about?" he thought. He continued to parry her attacks. "Location? I won't be allowed to leave alive? She must be an escaped psychiatric patient." He couldn't help but wonder what was going on. "But no matter, this would make for great practice." He flipped upwards.
"Great practice? Sorry to burst your bubble, mystery guy, but you are up against a tier nine assassin. There's no way you could survive." She crouched against the ground. "So I would suggest you give this your all, though you would—" Her left arm came flying off.
"When did he—" Before she could take a breath, another attack came from behind. She blocked it, but the impact threw her into a building. "I am under—uckkk." The blood pouring from her mouth disrupted her speech before she could finish.
She rose up from beneath the rubble, staggering. Blood dripped profusely from the laceration on her stomach. She blocked a heavy downward attack from Zen. She barely could maintain her position; he kept pushing downwards. The ground beneath began to crack. "You really are something." She fell onto her knees.
"10th tier spell: Overdrive Burst." He lunged downwards at her with increased strength. "He is heavier now, I can no—" She was thrust deep into the ground. The impact from the attack created a huge crater in the middle of the ground. A gust blew the roofs of some buildings that were close by.
"Uckkkk," she stood shakily, blood dripping from her mouth. "Are you still alive?" Zen slid down the crater. She brought out a syringe filled with a red, mucky substance from her pocket. "I will make you regret mocking me." She stabbed herself in the neck. "Hagrahhhhhh."
Her arms and legs twisted, eyes turning bright red. Her hood fell off her head as a horn emerged.
"Hahahaha, I can feel the power surging through me!" She lunged forward at him.
"Haaah." He sighed in disappointment.
"Just when it was getting fun." Her moves had become sloppy. There was no technique behind her fighting; it was just brute force.
"But no matter! That doesn't stop me from ending this match grandly." He took up his sword. Purple mana spread from beneath his feet all around the crater. "I am going to kill yo—" She leaped towards him, but a gust blew her back into the ground.
"Long ago, there was a man who wished to stop a nuclear missile, but due to the fragility that came with being human, he simply couldn't." His gaze fell upon the mutated assassin. "He then discovered that the only way to stop a nuclear missile was to become something that transcends life."
Zen began to chant. "I AM"
"THE"
"NEVERENDING" Threads of mana twisted around him.
"FI—" The purple light retracted back to his sword.
"NALITY." Purple mana erupted from the ground upwards, illuminating the entire area.
Individuals and entities from afar gazed upon the light. "Mother, mother, look." A little boy pulled his mother's finger.
"Well, well, well, it seems there's another powerful entity here apart from me." A man with a long nose adjusted his glasses.
The purple light dispersed. The girl evaporated into nothingness. The crater became deeper, and the ground underneath his feet cracked, and he fell into some kind of abandoned lab. Strange creatures were placed inside capsules.
"What the hell is this?" Zen rubbed his temples.