A week had passed.
Adam sat cross-legged in the center of his room, eyes closed, his breathing steady. Sweat and grime slid down his pale skin as the air grew heavy with a tense pressure. Suddenly, the wind shifted ever so slightly. His eyes snapped open, and he shouted:
"Break!"
A surge of dense mana erupted from his body, rippling outward like waves and sweeping away the stagnant air in the room. The sweat and grime were blasted off as if his very body had been cleansed anew.
"It's done…" Adam exhaled, a restrained smile tugging at his lips as joy flickered in his eyes.
He could feel it clearly now—the "gates" inside him swinging open one by one.
"Fifteen… finally."
They were the thresholds of mana—the "Mana Gates." In this world, each gate opened marked a leap in power. And now, he had opened fifteen out of a hundred.
"Status!" he muttered.
Lines of pale-blue light unfolded in front of his eyes:
[Status]
Base Stats:
• Strength: 30
• Physique: 40
• Speed: 25
