Endless Evolution: Last Star

Chapter 21: Thousand

The Transmutator had accomplished its task, creating Adam's first neutral gene. He could use it to increase his knowledge of any monster, at least partially, but now he had a more important task before him.

Adam made his way to the Evolution Tree, majestic and resilient - the base of his power. He touched the snow-white bark, and the tree trembled.

[Use 1 neutral gene to gain access to Lock!]

Adam heard the harsh voice and smiled slightly.

"Sure, that's what I came here for. It's time to see what I have to put up with to become stronger."

Then, a gray sphere flew into the Evolution Tree at his will. In fact, it was only a drop in the ocean or rather a lone star in the entire universe that Adam was to conquer.

However, even the greatest flame was ignited by a single spark, weak and fleeting, giving birth to something momentous.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

The Evolution Tree shuddered, grew a little taller, just a millimeter, and under the ring surrounding the Initial Gene, something began to appear.

A triangular mark with elongated ends and arched ribs slightly drawn inward was carved into the bark of the tree.

It was a Lock.

Then, three keyholes appeared, one for each end. Keys were needed to open them, but that wasn't the first obstacle in Adam's path. Before that, he needed to get rid of something else.

Whooooooooosh.

A multitude of black chains, tied around the trunk of the Evolution Tree, blocked off the keyholes. In the center of the Lock, a vortex pattern appeared, dark and deep like the lowlands of the ocean.

[Release your Lock: 0/1,000 neutral genes.]

"Shit... Though I read about it in the document, seeing it in person is actually intimidating. However, it's not the biggest problem yet, is it?" Adam muttered looking at the vortex.

He wasn't the first Phantom in history, so he knew the others.

Adam glanced at the vortex, smiled bitterly, and returned to the real world. His eyes stopped shining brightly as he met his gaze with Silvana.

"How did it go?" Silvana asked protractedly.

Adam smiled slightly, "I was able to summon the Transmutator, it's something incredible, though I now know how to get neutral genes, even if I'm afraid it will take me months to get the 1,000 to remove the chains."

Silvana shook her head, "It's not as much as it may seem, though it will definitely take work to get it."

"Hmm?" Adam gave her a questioning look.

"The different Threat Levels exist for a reason, everything in our world is elaborate. So, with the Transmutator, you can turn 1 green threat level gene into 10 neutral genes. So you need to kill 100 Green Threat Level monsters or 10 Blue Threat Level monsters." Silvana explained.

"Wait... Doesn't that mean I can kill a Prime Blue Threat Level monster and immediately get 1,000 neutral genes?"

Silvana nodded.

"You got it right because 1 blue gene = 100 neutral ones. Then, you'll come to the next and final stage of unlocking the castle."

"Sure, you already mentioned that." Adam nodded.

In order to gain access to the keyholes and begin creating the Keys, the Phantom had to go through the final ordeal dubbed - Beginning Monster.

Lock, through the vortex, would signal Phantom where the right monster was, which was the catalyst for releasing all the energy through the vortex and destroying the chains. Lock needed the gene for that particular monster, and each Phantom had a different Beginning Monster.

The problem with this mission was that, in most cases, the Beginning Monsters were rather strong and dangerous creatures, often resulting in the death of the Phantoms.

But, that wasn't the main problem, but the fact that the Phantom had to kill its Beginning Monster alone. More precisely, the military or Harvesters could help, but not other Phantoms, otherwise, the Evolution Trees would destabilize the monster's gene.

"When you collect enough neutral genes and defeat your Beginning Monster, then you will become stronger, it will be a new step in your evolution." Silvana explained, "Then, you will be a K1 First Rank Phantom."

"K1? What does that mean?" Adam tilted his head in confusion. The document he'd read hadn't mentioned it.

"Well, monsters have their own threat level, type, and book grade. Missions have a difficulty level of V, Artifacts have a rarity level, obviously Phantoms have something like that too. You probably remember the man who destroyed the lizard in Scorching Desert when you joined Fire Fox Squad, right?" Sivana asked in a serious voice.

Adam nodded. He remained deeply impressed with Damien's power.

"You still have a long way to go to get to that level, but getting K1 will be the first step. Phantoms get that prefix in the system when they unchain Lock and defeat their Beginning Monster.

Then, comes K2, K3 and K4 accordingly. Nothing complicated here, each promotion is for one key. When you pass the final challenge on your way to Second Circle, you will officially become a Second Rank Phantom.

For your information, only 5% of all Phantoms manage to pass all the trials and collect enough genes. The rest either give up or die, although the latter is more common." Silvana explained with a slight wave of her hand.

Adam nodded deeply, what Silvana said made sense and sounded logical.

"You said it would be listed in the system, like V1 or V2 on missions, but what about Prime? I mean, are there any other special prefixes that a Phantom can get?"

Silvana smirked - a very rare emotion for her.

"Just open your NEP and you'll see for yourself."

Adam was puzzled, but he did as Silvana said. To access his profile he had to click on his ID, in the corner of the screen.

[Adam Vinter, First Rank Phantom, EX]

"Ex...? What the hell does that mean?" Adam raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Extra or a special designation for Phantoms who can defeat opponents much stronger than their level. You haven't even revealed your Lock yet, so technically you're K0-Level, but you were able to defeat a Prime Stone Goliath, it didn't go unnoticed." Silvana said contentedly. This was a result that both Phantom and Operator could be proud of.

"Oh... I see... It's unexpected, but it's nice to have someone appreciate your achievements at face value. That was dangerous and my best fight so far." Adam muttered in a daze.

There was silence.

After a short pause, Silvana said, "I think that's enough talking for today, it's time for practice, and then we'll head to the Forge!"

"Forge?" Adam tilted his head, then his eyes went wide.

"Right... I have to do my Nexus today! Let's go! We don't have a minute to lose!"