Chapter 3
Lucas sat slumped in a lavish yet eerily silent manor, his face pale as if he'd just seen a ghost which, considering his circumstances, wasn't too far from the truth.
His body trembled, not out of fear, but due to the overwhelming strain placed upon him.
Awakening his Mana Eyes had taken a toll, leaving him weak and barely able to sit upright.
Yet, despite his current state, a triumphant smile stretched across his lips.
'It actually worked…'
He had successfully awakened his eyes, but the process had been anything but smooth.
The very planet's guardian, the Great Sage a being of immense power who perished before even the rise of the Mercenary Empires had existed.
That ancient relic of a being had intervened, attempting to snuff out his existence.
Lucas had read about this in the novel before his death, a legend of sorts, where the Great Sage acted as a celestial gatekeeper.
However, the Giant Mana Eye had defied the Sage's influence, sacrificing the last remnants of its energy to sever the connection and forcefully awaken Lucas from his near-death state.
The mere thought of it made Lucas clench his fists in frustration.
'That bastard actually killed me… well, almost. But in doing so, he also handed me a gift. His interference was a problem, but he can't do much since he's dead and violating universal law just to mess with me. His power is severely restricted.'
Still, losing the Giant Mana Eye even temporarily was a major setback.
However, Lucas had already begun analyzing its nature and had devised a method to regain it.
By continuously infusing his ocular power into the remnants, he could accelerate its reawakening.
It was only a matter of time.
But then there was another, even more pressing matter.
Elijah.
A Saint-Class powerhouse who had betrayed the Empire far earlier than expected.
In the novel, Elijah was always destined to betray them, but it was supposed to happen much later just before the protagonist was born.
His premature betrayal sent a ripple through the timeline, and Lucas couldn't help but curse under his breath.
'This wasn't supposed to happen yet… Damn it. The hidden city of Sky is going to suffer a major blow way ahead of schedule.'
His mind raced as he pieced together the future events.
The Hidden City of Sky was already walking a tightrope, but this betrayal meant the situation would spiral much sooner than anticipated.
And at the center of it all was the Mana Beast.
A being composed entirely of energy, the Mana Beast was a creature the Hidden Cities used as tools, bound by the bloodline of their wielders.
In the novel, on the day of the protagonist's birth, the Hidden City of Sky planned to pass the Mana Beast onto him, sealing it within the child to ensure unwavering loyalty.
But then The Abyssal Moon interfered.
That shadowy organization had only emerged in the final acts of the novel, yet their influence ran deep.
Their interference resulted in the Mana Beast going berserk, slaughtering Elite cultivators before the Sky King himself managed to seal it away inside the newborn protagonist.
The Hidden City of Sky suffered a devastating loss that day, which in turn set off a domino effect of chaos.
Lucas exhaled sharply. 'Am I going to stop it?' He scoffed. 'Hell no. In fact, I'm planning on leaving the Hidden City of Sky during that exact period. Why stick around for the storm when I can walk away and return when it's over?'
He had time six months to be exact. The protagonist was only three months in the womb right now.
For the moment, there were more immediate concerns. His body.
He could feel it his strength surging, his mana core expanding at a ridiculous rate.
Just yesterday, he had been at the peak of the Copper Stage, but now he had shattered that barrier, stepping firmly into the Bronze Stage.
Normally, progress like this took longer for people without talent like him.
Yet, here he was, advancing by sheer force of will and a bit of cosmic interference.
'The stronger the mana core, the stronger the spells, the greater the techniques. I'm breaking past my limits far faster than I expected.'
Then there was the other matter.
The Black Ops.
The Empire's secret enforcers.
They were here.
Lucas could sense them silent phantoms lurking in the shadows, observing him from the corners of the manor.
His sensitivity to mana had skyrocketed, making it impossible for them to remain truly hidden from him.
They had seen his deteriorated state and assumed that he was merely another victim of the mysterious affliction plaguing his clan.
It was this mistaken assumption that had saved him.
If they had suspected the truth that he was rapidly evolving then torture and interrogation would have been inevitable.
Instead, they deemed him too sick to be a threat.
Good.
The first stage of awakening was still ongoing.
His Mana Eyes weren't done evolving.
Unlike in the novel, where they had been largely glossed over, Lucas was now experiencing the full force of their transformation firsthand.
He was becoming one with mana itself, a sensation that was both exhilarating and terrifying.
'This feeling… it's unreal. I can feel the flow of mana in the air, in the earth, in my own bloodstream. If this keeps up…'
He smirked, his eyes remaining shut as he basked in the overwhelming growth.
This time, instead of running from death, he would face it head-on.
He wouldn't let the novel dictate his fate.
He would control it bend it to his will.
To do that, he needed absolute power.
Power beyond anything this world had ever seen.
Even beyond the Great Sage.
'That old ghost is the only one capable of stopping me. If I'm going to defy fate, I need to reach a level even he couldn't.'
And for that, he needed to master all six elements:
Fire, Water,Earth,Wind,Lightning,Yang.
He already possessed the Yin element, thanks to his bloodline.
That was his advantage, his foundation.
Now, he just needed the others.
A daunting task?
Perhaps.
But Lucas wasn't afraid.
He was done playing along with the script.
From now on, he was writing his own story.