1: Chapter 1: F-Rank Talent!! The Intent of the Northern Darkness

Consciousness was dragged back from the void by a searing pain.

Every breath pulled at his chest with a burning pain. Li Yuan inhaled a breath filled with the smell of gunpowder and charred flesh, along with a sickly sweet metallic scent—the smell of dried blood.

He struggled to open his eyes. There was no familiar office, only twisted and blackened metal frames. Outside the roof, which had a gaping hole, the sky was a dark red, with occasional objects trailing green light streaking across like dying insects.

Shards of unfamiliar memories pierced his mind—

"Edge 7." An insignificant outpost planet on the front lines. The Zerg had arrived. The city had fallen. Flight. Explosions. Then, darkness.

He was Li Yuan, a programmer from Earth who had died from overwork.

He was also Li Yuan, a newly-adult reservist in this interstellar era. On his way to the "Awakening Ceremony," he had been hit by Zerg stray fire and was dying.

Two souls were crammed into one broken body, tearing at each other, the pain so intense he nearly blacked out.

"I can't die here..." Driven by the instinct to survive, he gritted his teeth and crawled out bit by bit from under the metal shards and concrete blocks.

The sight before him made his heart turn cold.

In the distance, Zerg warships as large as mountains floated slowly, their shadows casting a suffocating weight. The sounds of explosions, the shrieks of energy weapons, and the bone-scraping hisses of the insects drifted over continuously.

"Everyone who can still move! Repeat! Assemble at the Central Square immediately! The Awakening Ceremony will be forcibly initiated within the protective shield! This is your last chance! Repeating once more..." The broadcast was intermittent, crackling with static as it drifted over the ruins.

Awakening Ceremony?

Memories told him: after the Zerg attacked, the Destiny System descended. Adults had to awaken talents, ranked from F to SSS. His original self had braved the hail of bullets to rush here for this, only to... halfway through...

Li Yuan took a deep breath of the foul air, identified the direction of the broadcast, and stumbled toward the place called "Central Square."

As he drew closer to the square, scattered figures gradually increased. They were all as disheveled as he was, faces smeared with soot and blood, eyes filled with fear, confusion, and a hint of hope sparked by the broadcast. No one spoke; with every distant explosion, the crowd shuddered and then surged forward even faster.

He finally saw the square.

It looked like a temporary foothold cleared on the foundation of a starport. A blue-glowing energy barrier covered the perimeter, separating the inside from the outside. Ripples occasionally shimmered on the barrier, traces of stray bullets or small insects crashing into it.

At the only entrance, about a hundred soldiers in heavy armor, carrying rugged rifles, were lined up in three rows, their eyes scanning the crowd like scanners.

"Line up! Enter in order! Undergo testing! Troublemakers will be treated as spies and shot on the spot!" An officer shouted from a high platform, his voice hoarse and carrying an unquestionable ruthlessness. Blackened blood stained his epaulets, and his left arm hung limply, clearly injured as well.

Li Yuan silently joined the end of the line. The long queue moved forward slowly. Through the barrier, he saw the interior: a glowing crystal instrument floated in the center, operated by several people in white coats, along with the shouting officer.

Each time the crystal lit up, a line of text would appear, accompanied by the emotionless count of the white coats.

"Number 734, Zhang Tao. Talent: Muscle Fiber Strengthening, D-rank! Go to the Third Defense Group and collect your equipment!"

"Number 735, Li Sha. Talent: Weak Elemental Induction, Wood-type, E-rank! Go to the medical station to help!"

"Number 736, Chen Gang. Talent: Thermal Energy Focusing, Elementary, C-rank! Confirmed! Take him to the A-rank Reserve Area to wait!"

Most were D or E-rank; occasionally, a C-rank would appear, causing a slight commotion, and the officer's expression would soften slightly. The awakened were separated by rank. Those C-rank and above were led toward the hangar area, where several of the most intact-looking small spaceships were parked.

Ranks were clearly distinguished in this small area.

Li Yuan's heart sank bit by bit. His original self's conditions were mediocre. Although human talent awakening had the greatest variables within the Ten Thousand Races Alliance, F and E-ranks made up the majority. He had a bad premonition.

The wait became agonizing. The battle in the sky grew more intense. The barrier shook more violently, blue light flashing chaotically. The crowd began to grow restless, and the formation started to break.

"Quiet!" the officer on the platform roared, raising his hand and firing a shot into the sky. The blinding beam temporarily stabilized the situation. "If you want to live, follow the rules! This is your last chance!"

Right then—

It was a girl's turn ahead. When she placed her hand on the crystal...

In an instant, the world changed color!

[Number 737, Elia. Talent: Moonlight Condensing Ice, Law Prototype, S-rank!]

The voice of the white coat carried an unbelievable ecstasy.

The entire square fell deathly silent.

S-rank!

It was actually an S-rank Law Prototype!

On this doomed frontier planet, an S-rank who could touch the edge of cosmic laws had appeared!

The next second, ecstasy and the thrill of survival after a desperate situation flooded everyone like a tsunami!

"S-rank! It's an S-rank!"

"A Law Prototype! We're saved!"

"There's hope!"

In their impressions, S-rank awakeners were all world-shattering and powerful; no one remembered she was just a young girl who had just awakened.

Suddenly, the officer, whose face had been grim all along, rushed in front of the girl named Elia: "Activate the 'Ark Protocol'! Get Miss Elia on the ship! Highest priority! At all costs!"

A squad of elite guards, who had been on standby, immediately surrounded the dazed Elia, who was emitting a cold aura. They walked quickly toward the "Ark" command ship, its engines already roaring.

Just as Elia stepped onto the gangway, she suddenly turned around.

A set of exquisite and magnificent ice armor instantly enveloped her.

The Frost Valkyrie has descended!

"I have power now! I can fight! Let me stay!" She wanted to hold the line with this land and these desperate people!

The officer's expression changed drastically: "Miss Elia! Disarm immediately! That's an order!"

"What you see is only the Zerg vanguard!" the officer roared, pointing toward the horizon. "If you stay here, you'll perish with this planet! Your value lies in growing up to fight the Zerg Overlord on a larger battlefield! This is war, not a time for showing off!"

Elia froze, gradually overwhelmed by helplessness and sadness. The cold aura and ice armor around her began to flicker unstably.

In the moment Elia's mind wavered, the experienced captain of the guards moved, cutting in from the side and striking the back of Elia's neck.

Her body went limp. Before the resentment and sadness in her eyes could fade, she lost consciousness and fell forward.

The captain quickly caught her limp body, scooped her up, and strode toward the Ark ship, whose engine noise was growing louder.

"Close the doors! Take off immediately! Maximum speed, exit the battlefield!"

The Ark ship carrying the S-rank genius spewed dazzling blue tail flames, shooting into the sky like a sharp arrow and disappearing into the sea of stars.

The crowd stirred briefly, but it didn't cause much of a commotion... they all understood.

"The ceremony continues! Speed it up! We're running out of time!"

Survival, it seemed, belonged only to a tiny minority.

Soon, it was Li Yuan's turn. He did as those before him and placed his hand on the crystal.

The sensation was cold and piercing.

His consciousness seemed to be dragged into a boundless, dark cosmic deep. It was the endless Great Abyss of the Northern Darkness, where countless nebulae were swallowed, embraced, dissolved, and assimilated. The majestic intent of inclusion, absorption, and assimilation drew the surrounding energy toward him, creating a slight effect of energy convergence.

And the crystal... only flickered weakly, emitting a nearly invisible, chaotic gray light.

[Number 738, Li Yuan. Talent: Intent of the Northern Darkness, Energy Affinity Tendency, F-rank intensity.]