Kaelthar realized he had no choice but to trust the system, so he took the syringe containing the Ultimate Blacklight virus, hesitated for a brief moment, then clenched his teeth and drove the needle into his arm, he felt a slight sting as the metal pierced his skin, but the horrifying reaction he expected did not come, he blinked and stared at his arm for a few seconds, waiting, "I hope I didn't need to find a vein…" he muttered, curling his lips slightly, "otherwise I'm screwed,"
The moment the substance was injected into his body, a few seconds passed and nothing happened, no burning sensation, no immediate change, Kaelthar frowned, just as he was about to complain…
An unbearable pain suddenly exploded in his heart, as if something inside his chest was forcefully awakening and spreading through his veins, his eyes widened instantly, his breath stopped and his legs gave out, he collapsed heavily onto the ground, his hands clutched his chest as his fingers twitched uncontrollably, his body began to tremble violently, the pain was no longer confined to his heart, within seconds it spread throughout his entire body, his bones ached, his muscles felt as if they were tearing apart, but the most terrifying part… was the internal change, as if his body no longer belonged to him.
[Transformation has begun, you are being forcibly put into a deep sleep]
As the system message echoed in his mind, Kaelthar's consciousness rapidly faded, he tried to resist but his eyelids grew heavy, his muscles relaxed and within seconds he was swallowed by darkness.
Time lost its meaning
For hours, Kaelthar's body underwent a silent yet violent transformation, the black substance flowing through his veins moved like a living entity, tearing apart his cells and reconstructing them, muscle fibers were rewritten, bone structure became denser, his nervous system grew faster and more precise, everything became stronger, more efficient and more… perfect
His facial features slowly changed, becoming sharper, more symmetrical and more attractive, his skin smoothed out, taking on a pale yet faintly luminous tone, his hair lengthened and changed color, turning into a deep platinum-black shade that seemed to both absorb and reflect light, as if caught between darkness and radiance, his physique also developed, his previously frail appearance was replaced by a balanced, lean yet powerful build, he no longer looked like a 16-year-old boy, but rather like a physically matured young man of around 18
Throughout this process, Kaelthar was completely unaware
[Congratulations Host, innate Charm, Intelligence, Soul and other related attributes have increased by 10 points]
The system message echoed within his mind, but Kaelthar did not hear it, the transformation was still ongoing, before the Blacklight virus fully settled into his body, it was rewriting him from the very foundation, this was only the beginning.
This process continued for an entire day without interruption, time completely lost its meaning for Kaelthar, his body was being rewritten every second, each of his cells torn apart and reconstructed into a more perfect form, from the outside he appeared like nothing more than a motionless body, yet within him a violent and limitless transformation was taking place, as if something beyond human was being born
[Congratulations Host, you have successfully evolved]
Beep…
[You have obtained]
[Vitality: 1000+]
[Strength: 300+]
[Speed: 300+]
[Defense: 300+]
[Endurance: 300+]
[Mana: 10+]
[Low-Mid Level Regeneration]
[Biological Absorption]
[Adaptation]
[Limited Immortality]
[Shapeshifting]
[Body Manipulation]
[Low-Level Disease and Virus Manipulation]
[Continuous Evolution]
The system messages echoed one after another in his mind, yet Kaelthar could not fully comprehend any of them, his consciousness was slowly rising from deep sleep, drifting back from the darkness, his eyelids were heavy but eventually trembled slightly and opened
However, what he saw was not what he expected.
He was no longer in the gray fog-covered wasteland, instead he found himself inside a narrow, enclosed and dark space, his hands and legs were tightly bound, as he tried to move he felt the ropes digging into his skin, he was inside an old wooden cage, the planks were cracked and worn, yet still sturdy enough to keep him trapped
As he slightly raised his head, he noticed someone standing right in front of the cage
The man looked rough, his clothes dirty, his weapon rusted yet dangerous, his posture relaxed but his eyes… empty, there was no light in them, only the remnants of something that had long been extinguished, Kaelthar recognized that gaze, in this world it had only one name
Tarnished
The man grinned, his teeth yellowed and uneven, as if he found amusement in Kaelthar's state, then he spoke in a mocking tone.
"Finally, Sleeping Beauty wakes up," his voice was rough and unsettling.
With that, the creaking sound of the door echoed as two more people entered the room, even their footsteps carried unease, their worn armor and dirty clothes made it clear they had been surviving in these decaying lands for a long time, their eyes were just like the first man's, empty, the light of Grace long gone from them, they were all Tarnished
One of them looked at Kaelthar and curled his lips into a smirk, "Finally woke up, little bastard," he said in a mocking and harsh tone, the other stepped closer to the cage, his eyes scanning Kaelthar carefully, lingering on his face for a few seconds as if evaluating something
"Not bad," he muttered, "decent face… this might be useful," then he turned to the others, "If he's from the right family, we could get a ransom,"
The first man grunted, leaned closer to Kaelthar and tapped the cage with his fingers, "Hey," he said, his voice more threatening now, "Start talking, which family are you from?" he paused briefly, narrowing his eyes, "You don't have anything valuable on you, but your face… hm, smells like noble blood.
One of the others laughed, "Or just a lucky beggar," he said carelessly, though his gaze remained sharp, "If he's useless, we can at least sell him as meat,"
The first man turned back to Kaelthar, his tone now impatient, "Talk, what's your name, where are you from, who would pay for you?" he knocked on the cage lightly, "If you're useful, you live, if not…" he left the sentence unfinished, but the look in his eyes made the rest very clear.
Kaelthar narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked at the men in front of him, there was clear disgust in his gaze, and the feeling rising within him was completely different from his usual cold, indifferent calm, whether it was because of the Blacklight flowing through his veins or not, an uncontrollable anger was boiling inside him, his heart beat heavier, his mind felt sharper and their movements seemed painfully slow to him, normally both the old and the new Kaelthar were calm and indifferent in situations like this
But now… it was different
He slightly tilted his head, his voice low yet sharp, "I'll give you five seconds," he said, his words clear and cold, "you will untie me willingly, set me free and hand over everything you have as an apology," a brief pause followed, and a dark glint appeared in his eyes,
"Or…"
He deliberately left the sentence unfinished
The Tarnished were silent for a second after hearing this, then suddenly burst into laughter, mocking, dismissive and completely unserious, one of them threw his head back laughing while another knocked on the cage,
"Did you hear that?" one said, still laughing, "he says five seconds!"
"He's gone crazy," another added, "or still thinks he's something,"
Kaelthar didn't close his eyes, he watched them laugh, showing no reaction at all, he simply started counting
"Five," he said calmly
The first Tarnished spoke, still grinning, "I see… so you're abandoned," he shrugged, "then we might as well sell you as meat,"
"Four,"
Kaelthar continued counting, his tone unchanged, still carrying the same coldness, as if the existence of the men in front of him didn't matter at all, and that made them even more uneasy, one of them narrowed his eyes slightly, beginning to notice something strange in his demeanor, yet his pride didn't allow him to step back.
"Two…" Kaelthar said, his voice still carrying the same cold tone, his eyes showing no hesitation, "and… one,"
There was a brief silence, then he slightly raised his head and looked at the men in front of him, his face now almost completely expressionless
"You've used your last chance," he said flatly, "from this point on, no one can save you,"
One of the Tarnished opened his mouth, clearly about to mock him again, but at that moment… everything changed
Kaelthar's body moved instantly, at a speed far beyond human limits, the tight ropes around his wrists stretched like paper and snapped in an instant, his muscles tensed for a brief moment before his right hand shot forward, the wooden cage shattered in a single strike, splinters flying everywhere
He didn't stop.
His right hand pierced directly into the first Tarnished's chest, bone, flesh and armor… nothing could stop him, the man's eyes widened instantly, unable to even comprehend what had happened before Kaelthar's hand reached his heart
Kaelthar could clearly feel the beating heart in his palm
He didn't hesitate for even a moment
His fingers closed
The heart was crushed effortlessly
The man's body went limp, but that wasn't the end, at that exact moment Kaelthar felt something strange, the corpse began to dissolve, as if it had no solid form, turning into a liquid-like substance that flowed directly into Kaelthar's arm, warm, dense and alive, it wasn't just flesh… it was power, memories, reflexes, instincts, all merging into his body.
[You have consumed a Tarnished, everything is now yours]
[Vitality: 30+]
[Strength: 11+]
[Speed: 9+]
[Defense: 10+]
[Endurance: 10+]
[Mana: 3+]
[Soul: 0.1+]
[Intelligence: 1+]
[Charm: 0.4+]
[Luck: 0.3+]
[Comprehension: 0.2+]
[Sword Mastery (Experienced)]
[Survival (Experienced)]
[Trade Knowledge (Experienced)]
As the system messages echoed in his mind, Kaelthar's eyes narrowed slightly, he could immediately feel the surge of power within his body, his muscles were heavier, denser, more controllable, foreign yet usable knowledge appeared in his mind, as if he had been wielding a sword for years.
The remaining two Tarnished… stood completely frozen
Their eyes widened, their breathing halted, they didn't even have time to understand what had just happened, the boy they had mocked just moments ago… was no longer what stood before them.