The open sky vanished like a dream, replaced by a white void that stretched endlessly in all directions.
Chris stood at the center, surrounded by a crowd of survivors. Faces he recognized from the Tower—scarred, traumatized, silent. There were no screams here, no monsters, no blood. Only the quiet hum of power.
A voice boomed from above, calm and ancient.
"Initial Tower Trial: Complete."
Chris turned, searching for the source, but found only light.
"Conduit confirmed. World: Earth. Result: Survival."
Then one by one, the others began to vanish.
Their faces twisted—not in pain, but confusion—as they blinked out of existence. The Tower's voice offered no explanation.
"They… didn't make it?" Chris whispered.
"They survived," the voice echoed, "but did not complete. Only completion grants protection."
Chris clenched his fists. They'd been inches from the end. He could still see the terror in their eyes, still feel the weight of that final chamber. And yet… they were gone.
But Earth remained.
"By completing the trial, your world is spared—for now."
The words didn't bring comfort. They felt like a knife.
Was it luck? Was it fate? Or had his selfish desire to escape his boring life endangered billions?
He didn't have time to spiral. The voice continued.
"Bonus Reward: Elimination of foreign vermin—Reward: Mana Control."
A rush of heat surged into his limbs. His nerves crackled. His skin tingled.
He fell to one knee, gasping. He felt… energized. Empowered. As if he could command the very essence of magic—though he didn't understand how yet.
"And for completion of the Tower: Reward—Party Control."
> [Party Control: You may share a portion of your stats with chosen allies.]
The message blinked in the air.
Chris didn't feel comforted.
Even with the system's growing list of rewards, something in his chest twisted with guilt.
He'd made it out.
But was that worth the risk of sacrificing Earth?
---
As the light began to fade, Chris muttered, "Open status."
Nothing happened.
He was about to try again when a screen flickered into view—faint, glitchy.
> [SoulForge System v0.1 – Syncing...]
It was like the Tower itself hesitated to let him in.
When it finally loaded, only one core feature was available:
> [Skill Upgrade: Available]
> [Resources Detected: 450 Lesser Souls, 1 Great Soul]
> [Would you like to upgrade a skill?]
He selected [Echolocation].
> [Upgrade Cost: 5 Lesser Souls]
> [Upgrade Successful: Grade - Extreme]
> [Next Upgrade Cost: 25 Lesser Souls]
The sensation was immediate. His senses bloomed outward. Air shifted, heat moved, faint vibrations from unseen sources filled his mind like sonar. The world had edges now. Curves. Distance.
Then came a second prompt.
> [Skill Perfection: 1 Great Soul Required]
Chris instinctively chose Echolocation again.
His vision darkened for a moment as power surged through him. The chaos, the noise—reduced. Clean. Pure. No more disorientation. The pain was gone. The skill had been perfected.
But he hadn't noticed the message that flickered beneath the surface:
> [Core Echo Sync Detected – Skill Merged]
Deep inside the system, hidden from view, something smiled.
The god fragment, still embedded like a virus, consumed the same data. It merged the perfected skill with its own shadowy counterpart. No warning. No alert. Just hunger.
Chris would never know. Not yet.
---
While he received his rewards, his soul-bound sword had not been idle.
On the floor of the god's chamber, while his consciousness drifted through the Tower's light, the blade had danced through the remains of the demon army. It moved like a shadow, possessed by the last remnants of the Sword God's will.
By the time Chris returned to himself, over a hundred lesser demons had fallen.
Their souls flooded into him.
> [Soul Count: 445 Lesser Souls]
> [Warning: Soul reserves grant passive benefits. Spending too freely reduces resilience.]
The system's voice spoke again.
"Integration complete. You are now bound to your homeworld. Further trials will extend beyond the Tower."
Chris frowned. "What do you mean?"
The response was... different. Mechanical. And vast.
"Your planet has entered the godhood selection protocol."
> [Explanation Unlocked]
A new screen unfolded.
> "Earth is the only habitable planet in your solar system."
> "To produce a God, one must conquer every life-sustaining planet in their system."
> "Systems with hundreds of planets receive leniency. Trials are adjusted for fairness."
> "Your system has only you."
> "As such, all trials will be deadly."
Chris's chest tightened.
> "First Trial – MARS."
> "Estimated Time of Departure: 2 weeks."
> "Transfer Frequency: Monthly."
> "You may return to the Tower between trials to gather souls or train."
> "Victory on each planet brings your system closer to Godhood."
> "Failure results in your world's consumption."
Chris couldn't breathe.
It wasn't over.
The Tower was just the beginning.
> "To upgrade the SoulForge to version 1.0, conquer 4 planets."
> "Doing so will unlock the Skill Market."
> "With each conquest, your planet will begin producing powered beings, based on temperament and luck."
> "No one may surpass the Conduit's power—unless they kill you."
The system didn't elaborate.
Chris could barely process it.
> "SoulForge is now fully integrated. Welcome, Conduit."
---
And just like that… he vanished.
The white void crumbled.
---
Chris awoke in a classroom filled with fire.
But this time, he wasn't the victim.
The flames kissed his skin but didn't burn. His fire resistance still held strong. He rose to his feet, eyes scanning through the smoke.
Two teens—both barely alive—were pinned beneath collapsed debris.
Chris didn't hesitate. He sprinted forward, the flames roaring around him.
He yanked at the wreckage, his arms enhanced by the soul energy within him. The wood cracked. The boys scrambled free, eyes wide.
"Chris?!" one of them gasped.
"Get out. Follow the smoke trail. Don't stop."
They did.
Chris followed after, but as the hallway collapsed, he used his sword—summoned instantly from within—to cleave through burning support beams and carve an exit.
Once outside, he vanished before the fire department arrived.
Not a hero.
Not a god.
Just a boy with a secret, standing on the edge of something greater.
And within him, the system whispered:
> [Conquest begins soon.]
> [Survive, and ascend.]
> [Or fall, and lose everything.]