The next morning in Sector S4–NX arrived wrapped in a quiet, almost suffocating tension, like the stillness before a storm that had yet to reveal its true scale. The air itself felt heavier, not physically, but emotionally, as if the universe was holding its breath in anticipation. Michael had barely settled into his thoughts, still carrying the weight of everything he had learned and experienced, when a familiar presence entered the space. It wasn't loud, nor did it shake the surroundings it was something far more commanding. The air shifted subtly, bending around a calm, overwhelming authority that only one person carried.
Lin.
He stepped into Sector S4–NX as though it naturally belonged to him, his presence instantly drawing the attention of everyone there. Michael, Arata, and Kyra were already gathered, their conversation dying the moment he appeared. Their eyes locked onto him not out of fear, but recognition. This wasn't a casual visit. It never was with Lin.
Michael spoke first, his tone steady but edged with curiosity. "You're back again. What's the purpose this time?"
Kyra crossed her arms, her expression skeptical, though her eyes remained sharp. "Don't tell me you came all the way here just to check on us."
Arata said nothing. She didn't need to. Her gaze alone was enough focused, observant, already reading between the lines. She could feel it. Something was about to change.
Lin looked at the three of them, his expression calm, but there was a depth behind his eyes that hinted at something far more serious. "I'm here to prepare you… for the Primordial Rise Bracket."
The words didn't just land they settled, heavy and undeniable, pressing into the space between them.
Lin stepped forward slightly, his voice steady, commanding their full attention. "Listen carefully. Once the Primordial Rise Bracket begins, the first five months will operate under one strict rule no fights between individuals."
Michael frowned immediately, confusion flashing across his face. "No fights?"
Lin nodded once. "The Covenant doesn't want you wasting time clashing with each other. Those five months are designed for one purpose hunting beasts and sharpening your combat instincts. Growth is controlled during this period. There is a limit placed on all of you, and you are not allowed to cross it prematurely."
Kyra tilted her head slightly, processing. "So we just hunt beasts for five months?"
Lin shook his head slowly, his gaze sharpening. "No. Not you three."
That single sentence shifted everything.
All three of them straightened slightly, their attention narrowing.
"I don't want the Obsidian Star Legion hunting beasts during that time."
Michael stepped forward, his brows tightening. "Then what exactly are we supposed to do?"
Lin's eyes locked onto his, sharp and unwavering. "You will focus on gathering cosmic energy… and awakening something far more important."
Arata's expression shifted, just slightly, her brows narrowing as she began to understand where this was going.
Kyra spoke again, this time more serious. "That doesn't make sense. Summoning a contracted beast isn't possible unless you reach the Stellar level."
Lin looked at her… and then, faintly, he smiled.
"I summoned mine when I was still a Sky Walker."
Silence followed instantly.
Michael's eyes widened just a fraction, the weight of that statement sinking in.
"That is why I'm here," Lin continued, his tone returning to calm authority. "Now… stop questioning and move."
Without giving them time to argue, he turned and gestured outward. Moments later, the Voidrunner-7 descended from above, its obsidian-black frame slicing through the air like a falling blade. The ship hovered briefly before lowering its access ramp, its sleek design radiating quiet power.
"Get in."
This time, none of them hesitated.
The moment they entered, the ship launched.
There was no gradual acceleration only a violent surge forward as the Voidrunner-7 blasted into motion, reaching speeds of two thousand times the speed of light almost instantly. The stars outside stretched into endless streaks, reality itself blurring as they tore through space. Even time felt unstable, elongated, distorted by the sheer velocity.
Two full days passed within that journey.
When the ship finally began to slow, Michael leaned forward, his eyes fixed on the viewport. What he saw forced a quiet breath from his lips.
Helionfall is really that big…"
Lin stood behind him, arms relaxed, gaze forward. "It's the largest planetary body in the entire Umbrilion Expanse."
Below them stretched an impossible sight Helionfall in its true scale. Four massive planetary layers fused into a single divine construct, each layer vast enough to be its own world, yet bound together into one overwhelming existence.
But where they were heading… was different.
The Voidrunner-7 angled downward, descending toward a region that felt unstable even from a distance. The space ahead looked fractured, as though reality itself had been torn and imperfectly stitched back together.
Floating currents of energy twisted violently through the air.
Lin's voice came, quieter now.
"This place… I call it the Nexus of Trinary Ruin."
The ship stopped at a safe distance, hovering at the edge of the disturbance.
The moment Michael, Arata, and Kyra stepped out
They felt it.
Three overwhelming forces descended upon them instantly.
The first was the Law of Celestial Pressure a pale-gold force that bent the air itself. Their bodies grew heavy, as if existence was pressing down on them, testing their limits, demanding resistance.
Then came the Law of Rift Echoes a flowing current of silver and crimson energy that brushed against their minds. Whispers filled their thoughts, fragments of memories that weren't theirs, glimpses of futures that hadn't yet happened, echoes of time itself breaking apart.
And finally
The Law of Umbra Genesis.
A dark-blue haze spread through the space around them, curling like smoke, distorting perception. Shadows flickered unnaturally. Reflections shifted without cause. Illusions formed at the edges of their vision and disappeared just as quickly.
The three laws did not remain separate.
They collided.
And at the point of collision
A vortex was born.
A swirling storm of gold, crimson, and deep blue energy rotated violently, expanding and collapsing in unpredictable rhythms. It felt alive. Dangerous. Capable of erasing existence itself.
Kyra instinctively stepped back, her voice low. "That thing… will kill someone."
Lin shook his head calmly. "Only if you resist it."
They turned toward him.
Lin stepped closer to the vortex, unbothered by its violent presence.
"From Awakener to Star Warrior, all of you rely on meridians," he began, his voice steady even as the vortex roared behind him. "Three core meridians exist within every warrior. Each one opens based on the amount of energy you can gather."
The vortex pulsed, reacting to his presence.
"But when you step into the Planet stages… those three meridians merge into one a Spirit Core."
Michael's focus sharpened.
Lin continued, "As you grow stronger, that Spirit Core accumulates excess energy… until it gives birth to a second core."
Arata spoke softly, her eyes narrowing. "The Beast Core…"
Lin nodded once.
"That is why Stellar Warriors can summon contracted beasts. They possess both a Spirit Core… and a Beast Core."
Kyra looked back at the vortex, her voice quieter now. "And this… accelerates that process?"
Lin turned slightly toward it.
"This place forces evolution. The collision of these three laws creates an environment overflowing with raw cosmic energy far beyond anything found in normal space."
Michael's gaze hardened. "And it's safe?"
Lin's lips curved slightly.
"If you trust yourself."
And without another word
He stepped into the vortex.
The moment he entered, the violent energy bent around him, recognizing him, accommodating his presence. He floated mid-air within the storm and closed his eyes, completely at ease.
"Come."
Michael moved first.
Then Arata.
Then Kyra.
The moment they entered
Everything changed.
The pressure slammed into their bodies, heavy and suffocating, but not enough to crush them.
The Rift Echoes grew louder, brushing against their minds, attempting to pull them into distraction, into confusion.
The Umbra Genesis flickered around them, distorting their senses, creating illusions meant to break focus.
And beneath all of it
Energy.
Pure, violent, endless cosmic energy flooded into their bodies.
Michael felt it instantly. His meridians reacted, trembling, expanding under the overwhelming force.
Arata stabilized her breathing, forcing control over the chaos.
Kyra clenched her fists as the energy surged through her veins.
The process had begun.
At first, the change was subtle.
Then it wasn't.
Michael felt a deep vibration beneath his skin, something ancient within him responding to the pressure. The energy did not enter gently it forced its way in, demanding adaptation.
Arata was the first to break that threshold.
Her three meridians glowed beneath her skin, reacting to the crushing Celestial Pressure. The golden force compressed them, forcing expansion beyond their limits. Then the Rift Echoes struck her mind, flooding her consciousness with fractured time.
Her breathing faltered.
But she did not break.
Instead
Her meridians aligned.
The three streams of energy twisted toward each other, drawn together until they collapsed into one point.
Pain surged through her entire body.
Then
A pulse.
Her Spirit Core was born.
A radiant core formed within her, spinning with controlled time energy. But the vortex did not stop.
Energy continued pouring in.
Too much.
It compressed again
And her Beast Core began to form.
Unstable at first.
Then
It awakened.
Behind her, a massive translucent entity appeared the Chronovore Titan. A colossal figure wrapped in rotating rings of time, its presence bending reality itself.
Everything stopped.
The vortex slowed.
Energy froze.
For fifteen minutes
Time itself was locked.
Then
It snapped back.
Arata collapsed instantly.
Lin moved without hesitation, pulling her out and laying her down gently.
"Rest."
Then
Kyra.
Her process was different.
The Umbra Genesis wrapped around her, merging with her affinity for darkness. Her meridians didn't collide they dissolved into each other.
Her Spirit Core formed silently.
Then her Beast Core.
Behind her rose the Nullborne Seravex, a shadow entity that distorted reality itself. Space flickered. Light bent.
Reality became unstable.
But she endured.
And stabilized.
Finally
Michael.
At first… nothing.
Then Chaos.
His meridians clashed violently, tearing at each other before forcing themselves into alignment.
His Spirit Core formed unstable, flickering.
Then the vortex reacted.
His Beast Core formed violently.
A rift tore open behind him.
And from it
The Bloodhound Leviathan emerged.
A shifting, unstable entity of light and void.
Reality cracked.
Then It stabilized.
Barely.
Michael dropped to his knees, gasping.
When they emerged
They were different.
Arata Skywalker Stage 9.
Michael Stage 7.
Kyra Stage 7.
Yet all of them radiated power far beyond their level.
Four months had passed.
Their PT remained 25.
Lin looked at them.
"Good. Now we begin."
Michael frowned. "Begin what?"
Lin pointed outward.
"Go hunt."
His voice sharpened.
"Five Stage 9 Star Warrior Beasts."
Kyra blinked. "Five?!"
Lin did not react.
"That's your entry point."
Across Helionfall, whispers had already spread.
They had disappeared.
They were forgotten.
Until now.
Projection platforms activated across the Covenant.
Three figures appeared.
Facing
The Gravemaw Tyrant.
A Stage 9 Star Warrior Beast.
Voices erupted across the realm.
"Are they insane?!"
Michael hovered, calm.
Kyra cracked her fingers.
Arata stepped forward.
The air shifted.
And the three of them moved.