When dawn rose, the world didn't look the same anymore.
The mountains shimmered faintly — the air thick with invisible threads of mana. Birds glowed with residual aura. Even the sunlight felt alive, humming against my skin.
Something had changed since the "World Ranking System" revealed itself.
The entire planet was evolving.
And I could feel it in my veins.
> [System Notification: Level Cap Lifted.]
[Celestial Synchronization in Progress...]
[Warning: Rank Undefined. Bypass Mode Activated.]
The ground beneath me cracked open as waves of light surged from my body.
Lyra, Arden, and Amara turned toward me — eyes wide as the air vibrated like thunder.
"What's happening to you, Kael?" Amara shouted.
"I don't know!" I yelled back, gripping my chest as the light burst outward.
My system interface expanded, flooding my mind with data.
---
[Kael — System Analysis]
Rank: Undefined
Current Level: 49 → 72
Stats:
Strength: 2200 → 5800
Speed: 1900 → 4900
Mana Core: 2100 → 6200
Intelligence: 1700 → 4500
Endurance: 1800 → 5200
[Skill Evolution Triggered.]
["Void Manipulation" → "Celestial Flux."]
["Chrono Pulse" → "Time Break."]
The power coursing through me was unbearable. Every heartbeat felt like it could split time itself.
Lyra tried to approach, but I lifted a hand. The wind surged outward in a circular shockwave, forcing everyone back. My aura was tearing the landscape apart.
And then, just as suddenly as it began, the energy stabilized.
The world grew silent.
I opened my eyes. The iris of my right eye now glowed a faint gold, shaped like a celestial sigil.
> [Celestial Gene: Partially Awakened.]
A voice whispered through the wind — not Tan's this time.
It was something older. Deeper.
> "Heir of Balance… awaken to your duty."
My mind went blank for a second.
Then visions poured in — too fast, too bright.
The Vision
I saw the cosmos burning.
Planets crumbled like dust, entire civilizations erased by divine hands.
Massive beings cloaked in light descended through the stars, their eyes filled with cold judgment. They didn't look like gods of peace. They were executioners.
Behind them was a sigil — the same golden mark that burned within my eye.
A single phrase echoed across eternity:
> "Purge the mortal plane."
My heart stopped.
Then I saw something else — a barrier, shimmering across the mortal world, holding the gods back. At its center stood a lone figure surrounded by both light and shadow.
That figure looked just like… me.
---
The vision faded. My body trembled.
I fell to my knees, gasping for air. "It… it wasn't random," I whispered. "This whole thing — the Celestial Heir title, the system, the tests… it's all connected."
Arden rushed toward me. "Kael! What did you see?"
I looked up at him, voice shaking. "The gods. They're coming here — not to guide us, but to destroy everything."
Lyra's face went pale. "Destroy—? Why?"
"Because humanity evolved too fast," I said. "We've started touching powers they consider forbidden. The systems, the awakenings — they're all fragments of divine technology."
Amara clenched her fists. "Then what's your role in all this?"
I looked at her, the words forming naturally — as if I had always known.
> "The Celestial Heir exists to protect the living from the gods."
The camp went silent. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
Amara whispered, "Then you're…"
I nodded. "The bridge wasn't created to balance systems. It was created to shield existence."
---
> [System Response: Celestial Protocol Confirmed.]
[Mission Priority Updated — Protect All Sentient Life.]
[Celestial Duty Activated.]
A glowing mark appeared on my hand — the same sigil from the vision.
Golden energy pulsed outward, spreading across the camp.
Lyra gasped as her aura ignited.
> [Lyra — Rank Up: D → C.]
Arden's sword burst with runes.
> [Arden — Rank Up: C → B.]
Amara's entire body glowed with divine light. Her staff floated beside her.
> [Amara — Rank Up: B → A.]
Their faces were full of awe and disbelief.
But mine… mine was quiet.
Because while their ranks climbed, mine stayed the same.
> [Kael — Rank: Undefined.]
I gritted my teeth. "So even after all that… I still don't move."
The system's cold voice answered immediately:
> [You are not meant to ascend.]
[Your power scales infinitely within the undefined domain.]
"Meaning?" I asked aloud.
> [Meaning you cannot rise. You only expand.]
I exhaled. Infinite growth without rank.
That explained the leveling surge. I was never going to reach the next "letter." I was outside it.
---
We tested our powers the rest of the day.
Lyra's speed doubled; her energy blades could slice through boulders.
Arden could summon storms with his blade alone.
Amara's spells radiated celestial fire — enough to level entire valleys.
And me? I barely understood what I'd become.
When I moved, the air bent. My punches created sonic cracks in the ground. But no rank label could contain it. It was raw, formless — undefined, just like the system said.
---
That night, I stood at the edge of the ridge again, looking at the sky.
For the first time, I could see the divine presence beyond the clouds — distant silhouettes moving like stars with intent. The gods were watching us. Waiting.
I clenched my fists.
"They're coming for this world," I said under my breath. "But not while I'm still breathing."
The wind carried a faint reply — maybe from the system, maybe from the stars themselves.
> "Then rise, Heir of Balance. For the war of worlds begins soon."