The sword in his hand pulsed. The echo within it whispered, faint but eager.
Chris didn't attack.
Not yet.
He lowered into a stance, drawing in a breath as dust coiled around his feet. He would feel this place. Taste its violence. Learn the rhythm of Martian death before leaping into it blindly.
And when he moved—
He would do so with the intent to win.
To live.
To conquer.
Mars had opened its jaws.
And Chris was about to tear through its teeth.
⸻
The red creature waiting ahead crouched like a gargoyle over the cracked path to the Martian Tower. Its body shimmered like volcanic glass and rotted muscle, steam rising in rivulets off its back. It didn't breathe. It just watched.
Then—
[Monster Detected: Res, Gatekeeper of Mars]
[Level: Unknown]
[Health: ██████████████████]
A health bar manifested above its head, flickering in jagged segments like an ancient status indicator. The system's voice echoed softly in Chris's mind:
[Warning: Divine-Linked Entity – Possesses Advanced Combat AI and Unique Traits]
[Reward: Tower Access, Rare Drop (Guaranteed), Divine Material (High Probability)]
Chris tensed. This wasn't a test fight. This was a boss.
The thing moved.
Not like a man, not like a beast. It vaulted forward in a single liquid motion, claws scraping fire across the stone as it launched toward him, twin trails of black heat spiraling in its wake.
Chris sidestepped.
Barely.
The air crackled where Res landed, the stone beneath exploding from the impact. Shards of Martian earth pelted Chris's cheek, and he threw himself backward into a roll, eyes locked on the enemy's arms.
Four claws. Two on each hand. Serrated.
The creature turned.
Its jaw cracked open, revealing a row of molten teeth. It didn't roar—it hissed, a boiling, intelligent sound. Then it dashed forward again.
Chris met it this time.
His phantom sword swung upward, carving through the air with a silver flash. The echo-enhanced blade whined as it cut, and he felt it connect—but Res twisted its body, parried the strike with a forearm spike, and countered with a sweep of its tail.
Chris barely ducked under it.
"Parry skill," he muttered, grimacing. "This thing's got rhythm."
[Notice: Enemy possesses 'Perfect Parry' — Can negate and counter direct attacks if timed precisely.]
Of course it could.
Chris dropped into a defensive stance and activated Echo Pulse.
The battlefield bloomed in his mind—sound signatures etched into his awareness like sonar. The swirl of dust. The shift of limbs. The whine of metal and muscle. He could see Res move now before it moved.
WHAM.
Res lunged again. Chris pivoted to the side and slashed at its exposed ribs—perfect angle—but again, the creature turned just in time, catching his sword with the inside of its claw and twisting.
His weapon flared. The echo pushed back, repelling the trap, but his wrist screamed from the jolt.
Res spun low and kicked out, and Chris's boots skidded across the stone. A hit would have broken ribs.
This wasn't just a beast. It learned.
He wiped blood from the corner of his mouth. "Alright, then. Let's learn together."
He dropped a lesser soul into his system and triggered a boost.
[Temporary Buff: Reaction Speed +15% for 30 seconds]
Res struck again, a flurry of brutal jabs and slashes, but this time Chris moved cleaner—rolling beneath an arc, ducking two wild strikes, and slamming his blade into Res's shoulder.
[Critical Hit – Weak Spot Located]
[Health: ████████████████▒▒▒▒]
Black-red ichor spilled, sizzled, and hit the earth like acid. The creature hissed in pain for the first time, stumbling back.
Chris pressed forward.
He shifted his grip on the sword, channeling another Echo Pulse into the blade itself. The hilt pulsed. A whistle hummed through the red air, and he brought it down—
Only to meet a perfect parry again.
The strike bounced harmlessly off Res's armored arm, and a knee slammed into Chris's gut, lifting him off the ground. He crashed down, gasping, heat blooming through his ribs.
Res loomed overhead.
It raised both claws to finish the fight.
But Chris grinned through blood.
"Too slow."
He reached into his Inventory with his mind—something new, something useful—and grabbed a recently dropped item:
[Item Used: Unstable Sunstone Vial]
He crushed it in his hand.
The potion burst into flame—then into him.
A solar surge swept through his veins, and the system reacted immediately:
[Temporary Buff: Attack Speed +20%, Fire Resistance +25%, Duration: 60 Seconds]
Chris vanished.
Or so it seemed.
To Res, he became a blur of fire and pressure. His first strike tore through the creature's midsection, scattering molten fragments. His second cut into the opposite shoulder. The third pierced its thigh.
[Health: ██████████▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒]
The creature screamed now.
But it was too late.
Chris moved behind it, whispering a breath into the wind—and drove his blade through its spine.
[Monster Defeated: Res, Gatekeeper of Mars]
[Soul Acquired: Divine Lesser Core (x1)]
[Drop Acquired: Cracked Crimson Horn, Martian Bone Fragment, Gatekeeper's Vial (Rare)]
The red body collapsed.
Smoke rose from its wounds, swirling into the air like incense to forgotten gods.
Chris fell to one knee, panting.
His sword dimmed.
But the path ahead glowed.
The massive stone gate—previously inert—lit up with runes of gold and blood, shifting and spinning slowly as if recognizing his triumph.
[Access Granted: Mars Tower – Floor One Unlocked]
Chris looked up, breath catching in his throat.
This was only the beginning.
⸻
He stepped through the gate.
A soft pull of gravity twisted through him as the world changed again.
Mars Floor One was unlike the gate zone. No longer barren stone—it resembled a cratered temple, carved into rusted copper and ash-colored sandstone. Strange murals were etched into every surface: serpents devouring suns, humanoid beings crumbling under cosmic light, towers rising through planets.
The air was breathable but bitter.
He took a step.
A voice whispered in his ear—not the system. Something older.
"They perished… long ago… a god undone by silence… by hubris…"
He spun.
No one.
Just a flicker of heat in the air. A voice burned into the architecture.
[Notice: Hidden Lore Fragment Unlocked]
[Data: The original deity of Mars was consumed in the collapse. The Solar Throne has remained empty for eons.]
[Clue Added: Solar System Rule Hierarchy – Conquest of all planetary towers grants dominion over a system.]
Chris frowned.
"That… changes everything."
If he conquered all the planetary towers—Earth, Mars, Venus, the rest—he could become the main god of this solar system. And any other gods that entered?
Would lose their power here.
No wonder the other gods fought to escape their own universes. It was a race for dominance.
He moved further into the floor.
The air vibrated again—this time not from whispers, but from movement.
[Monsters Detected: Martian Scorchlings]
[Quantity: 3]
[Health: ██▒▒ each]
Small lizard-like creatures with glowing underbellies hissed and crept out from the cracks. Their claws sparked against the ground. Smoke spilled from their throats.
Chris readied his blade.
Unlike Res, these things were fast—but fragile.
The first lunged.
Chris sidestepped and cleaved it in two with a clean downward stroke.
The second danced left and slashed.
He blocked with the flat of his blade, then triggered a quick parry. His system clicked—[New Skill Gained: Reactive Parry (Lesser)]
He let it move toward his opening—then countered with a sharp elbow and decapitated it in one motion.
The third tried to flee.
Chris threw his sword.
It whirled through the air and struck it mid-run.
The lizard screeched once—then vanished into dust and sparks.
He retrieved his weapon, exhaling.
[Monsters Cleared: 3/3]
[Floor One Clearance: 100%]
A pulse rang through the room. A staircase of light appeared in the far wall, spiraling upward toward Floor Two.
Chris wiped sweat from his brow and took one last look at the murals.
A god had once ruled here.
Now it was his turn to rise.
One floor at a time.