NOVEL NEXT Chapter 286: Amun Ra Part 2
"Of course, it doesn't do this out of gratitude or kindness. Have you ever wondered why there are so many life-and-death trials, especially early on? The system's true goal is to breed powerful gods. Now, you're probably wondering why it would want to do that. To put it bluntly, the system is nothing more than a slaughterhouse, and we are the pigs being fattened until the time comes. Or, in another analogy. A greenhouse, and we are the sprouts."
"Wait a moment. What did I just hear?" Thalion thought, panic and exhaustion battling for control in his mind.
"An enormous empire built and now controls the system. After an extremely long period, the system will harvest itself, killing you in the process. This empire is ruled by incredibly powerful gods, and resources are scarce. They use the system and us, to obtain high-rarity resources without putting in much effort. I, of course, was among the first to realize what was happening and tried to escape. But our souls are marked."
"The system is shielded. No powerful entity born outside of it can enter. And likewise, once you reach a certain power level, you can no longer leave. The further you evolve, the more complex the seal on your soul becomes. It's a mark only visible to oneself, and no one else can help you remove it. I suspect the only real chance to break it is early on. I couldn't destroy mine, and I doubt any other god can. I wasn't even close to freeing myself from the system."
Amun's projection dimmed slightly, after those words.
Thalion stood silently in front of the projection, eyes wide, body frozen in shock. This had to be a joke, right? And yet... it made an awful lot of sense. Why would the system give something for free? When he had traveled to the Golden Palace, he'd noticed some kind of barrier inscribed with runes when he left the system, so that definitely fit.
"How can I destroy or even see the seal on my soul?" Thalion asked, his voice hoarse. The exhaustion from the fight was hitting him hard now. He would have liked nothing more than to lie down and sleep, but some ancient pinnacle god was currently delivering possibly the most important information he'd ever hear. So, better to listen.
Unfortunately, the god did not answer his question. It was probably just a recording after all. The fact that this guy had managed to embed such a recording into his disciple's soul was pretty insane.
"Soon, war will erupt. I have injured myself trying to break the seal, and the other gods will see their chance to kill me and take what's mine. I hope you'll manage what I could not. The best advice I can give you is this: take as much time as possible before evolving. The higher the rarity of your class, the better your chances. Just in case you didn't know. When you reach divine rarity in your class or race, the system grants you eternal life, like a god. But the seal will still be as weak as any being of that rank. That's your only real chance of breaking free from the system. Of course, there is one other option...
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Running away."
"You can learn to create portals that lead outside the system to other dimensions. The problem is, it requires a great deal of power to open such a portal, if you want leave with your whole body. You either need to conquer a large territory or get help from someone strong. There's one potential issue I can't confirm: the seal might still bind you to the system. When the harvest begins, it may pull you back in, just like all the others, no matter where you are.
Be aware that even A- and S-grade individuals cannot leave the system. You must act before that time if you want to live a long life. Also, know this: the status screen disappears once you're outside the system. If you want to survive out there, you'll need to learn how to cast your skills without it. That can take a very long time depending on the skill, but it's entirely possible. Outside the system, everyone does it and the key to achieving that is actually hidden within the skills themselves."
Amun-Ra paused again. The image dimmed even further. The next few sentences would likely be his last.
What he said about being unable to use skills outside the system was true, so the chances that the rest of it was also true were high.
Man, life really sucked sometimes.
Thalion seriously needed to reconsider his evolution. His goal had always been to become a god and live forever but if the system planned to kill him, that clearly wasn't going to happen.
Also, the voice of the system had mentioned that even if he gained less experience per kill, it would still count toward his evolution as if there were never an EXP malus in the first place. So if he ever had a good chance to reach a divine class... it was now, right?
His attention snapped back to Amun's fading image as the god began to speak again.
Would he really have gone through all this trouble if he'd known only Thalion would hear this speech, buried deep within some ancient catacomb?
The thought was oddly amusing to Thalion, whose mind was still foggy from the battle.
"Now that I think about it, when the harvest draws closer, the system might start blocking C-grades and late-stage D-grades as well. Be careful. I went through great lengths to give you this information, so please spread it far and wide. I hope your dreams come true and that you can one day break the shackles of the system. Good luck and may Sergas watch over you."
With those final words, the image of Amun-Ra disappeared, as if he had never existed, leaving a dazed and surprised Thalion behind, slowly starting to realize that this was all... a bit much to take in right now.