Raven was standing in the void, puzzled about the information the orbit had given him. He didn't know much about this world because of his lacking education, but that was going to change. He had promised himself that he would learn more about this world after passing the trial.
The familiar voice continued.
Prism: [Infinity Orchestra.]
Prism rank: [Singularity.]
Prism description: [You are the beloved of the constellation of infinity, chosen to orchestrate its spatial and swift principles.]
Innate Ability: [Position Control.]
Innate Ability description: [You can manipulate one aspect of space itself. With a thought, you can lock a target's position within your line of sight, freezing it in place regardless of inertia or force. You can also instantly change a target's position, teleporting it to a new location.]
That was too much to digest.
But Raven was already smiling like a fool; even his heart was beating faster. It felt like all the suffering and the near-death experiences he went through were all being paid off in the end. A spatial ability and a high-ranked Prism—he didn't know how high the rank was, but it was definitely higher than "spectral" because of how cool it sounded.
"Singularity... it must be rank 5 or 6 at least," he thought.
Raven was looking at the screen-like runes in front of him. "Position Control" sounded awesome, but he knew he couldn't just teleport back to his world just like that. Most people who passed the first trial couldn't use their abilities much because of Neula essence and limitations placed on them by their bodies. Stargazers who passed their first trial didn't have much Neula essence in their Neula cores.
Their stamina would run out after a few uses of their abilities, and if they overused them, they would pass out directly, leaving them vulnerable to any attacks. So, they trained to find out their limitations and strategize their uses cautiously. There would be other things as well that Raven didn't know of, but he was going to find those things out after he returned to the real world.
Raven planned to find out his limitations after his appraisal was done.
[The First Soul Seal is broken.]
[Awakening Stargazer power....]
Inside his chest, he felt something forming. He screamed; there was a pulsing pain in his chest. He crouched down, rolled up like a ball, and held his chest with both hands. Raven realized he didn't feel any pain at all—it was something else. It was like nothing he had ever experienced. It felt like his whole being was rippling and being shaken from the center of his chest.
Suddenly, a cold flow of energy started from his chest. It started rapidly spinning in his chest. Raven clenched his teeth and started pressing his chest; his whole being was rippling faster than before. He let out a cry. Then, the cold flow of energy filled every fiber of his being.
Raven felt his emotions clearing and becoming sharper. Then his body began to change, too. He felt a miniature star pulsing in his chest, waves of heat spreading from it, slowly reaching his heart and shoulders, then his hands and feet, filling his whole body.
Under that heat, his bones, muscles, organs, and blood vessels were being rebuilt and revitalized. Raven felt like he was being reborn. He was becoming stronger, faster, and healthier.
With each second, his transformation was becoming more profound. Raven felt more and more confident with each passing second. He was not weak anymore. With his powers awakened and his will tempered by the horrors of the First Trial, he was now someone you would not want to cross.
After some time had passed, the star burning in his chest finally cooled down. The heat was replaced with a soothing coldness. That coldness washed over Raven's body, taking away all the aches and impurities that had been accumulated there over the years. Then it moved up, reaching his brain and, finally, his eyes.
His vision became sharper.
He could still see the void populated by an endless pattern of stars. But he could also see something else:
A silent black void illuminated by a bright star in the sky.
From his knowledge, he knew this was the void of the soul, which was used to store and summon artifacts.
The star hanging above the void was the visual representation of his Neula Core. It was supposed to be brighter, but seeing how he hadn't absorbed any Neula shards, he wasn't disappointed.
The more Neula shards he absorbed, the bigger his Neula essence capacity would be in his Neula Core. Since he hadn't absorbed any Neula shards in the Trial, his Neula Core was a bit dim rather than a bright sun.
However, Raven's soul was a black void instead of a white void.
"That's strange," he thought.
He took a look at the bright star. On closer examination, it actually turned out to be transparent. It was just that with no other major source of light around, the star appeared to be a bright star.
Also, no one was supposed to be here except for him. It was his soul, after all! Not wishing to waste any more time on this right now, Raven spotted a sphere of light orbiting around the star, as though caught in the Neula Core's gravity well. A subtle smirk appeared on his face.
This was his artifact: Reaping Blade. It was the only artifact he had received. Later, there would be dozens of such spheres here, if he was lucky.
The familiar voice pulled him out of his soul void.
[Awakening Prism Ability...]
"This is it. Let it be a powerful ability," he thought.
His immediate future still depended on the first Prism ability he would receive. His role in the Singularity Realm would be based on its characteristics. If it was a combat ability, he would be most useful on the front lines of the bloody battles against the Orbit Creatures.
If it was something having to do with utility, he would be a vitally important part of the behind-the-scenes workings of the Singularity Realm. Utility abilities were also extremely valued in the real world, where Orbiters performed many tasks that kept it going.
Of course, seeing his innate ability had to do with positions, he expected a spatial ability.
[Prism Ability acquired.]
[Prism Ability Name: Blitz.]
Raven hurriedly summoned the runes. He wanted to go to the description of his new ability right away, but then decided to give his overall information a look first.
Name: Raven Scott.
Title: Wandering Blasphemer.
Rank: Stargazer.
Neula Core: Stargazer.
Neula fragments: [12/1000]
Star fragments: [0/200]
Artefacts: [Reaping blade]
Attributes: [Otherworlder], [Mark of Infinity], [Eye of Stars].
Prism: [Infinity Orchestra]
Prism rank: [Singularity]
Innate ability: [Position control]
Prism abilities: [Blitz]
"What are 'star fragments'?" Raven thought with a puzzled expression.
Then he focused on the [Blitz] ability description.
Prism Ability Description: [Your body enters a state where time slows down.]
"Whaat..." Raven was flabbergasted.