After looting the three dead Mad Hounds, Jay quickly assessed what they had to offer before making his way toward the safety of his tree hideout. He obtained 20 Looted Stats from the fallen creatures, a minor boost but valuable nonetheless.
He inspected the skills they possessed, recognizing the typical common-grade ones like ║Bite║,║Auditory Sense║, and║Olfactory Sense║. None of those stood out, as he already owned higher-leveled versions. There was little point in wasting time or effort on them.
However, one skill caught his attention: Lv.3║Madness║⧼Common⧽. He hadn't come across a similar skill before, and it immediately piqued his curiosity.
According to its description, the skill drove the user into a frenzied state, attacking any living creature in sight without considering the opponent's strength or abilities. Additionally,║Madness║ reduced the pain a user felt during combat, allowing them to push through injuries.
Yet, after reading the description, Jay immediately dismissed the idea of taking it. "It would be stupid to choose such a skill," he thought, reflecting on the behavior of the Mad Hounds.
If they hadn't possessed the║Madness║skill, they might have realized how outmatched they were and fled. Instead, they recklessly charged at him, even though he was far more powerful than them. The lack of self-preservation had led them to their deaths.
Jay knew that taking on such a skill could put him in the same reckless position. If he were to lose his ability to assess a situation properly, he could end up attacking a far stronger opponent—a Tier-3 or even Tier-4 monster—without thinking.
The result would likely be fatal. The inability to weigh the odds of a fight was a path to certain defeat, and he valued his strategic mindset far more than any short-term advantage that║Madness║might offer.
He reflected on a previous encounter with the Grey Wolves, where his decisions had been forced by circumstance. With his stamina dangerously low, he hadn't had the luxury of running away. His movements had slowed to the point where even using║Hydraulic Leap║had been a desperate measure to avoid being caught.
The wolves had pressed on, relentless in their pursuit, and ultimately, Jay had been forced into a fight. If he had more stamina, he might have chosen a different course—escaping rather than engaging. But in that moment, he had no choice.
The incident with the Grey Wolves reinforced his belief that║Madness║would do more harm than good. Jay knew that raw power alone wasn't enough to survive the Trial Program. Knowing when to fight and when to retreat was equally important.
Jay made the conscious decision not to choose that skill. The moment he opted out, the notification offering him skill selections vanished, despite not having picked a single one.
However, he was granted a portion of the Mad Hounds' Stats. It became clear that if he chose not to loot a skill, he could still obtain 10% of the target's Stats—a valuable realization. That was a safeguard for future situations where looting a skill might prove detrimental, as in the case of║Madness║, which could negatively impact his survival.
The 20* Looted Stats were distributed evenly across his five main Attributes in║LOOTED STATUS║, with 4* Stats added to each Attribute.
The uniform boost brought all five Attributes in his║LOOTED STATUS║to 62* Stats. As the surge of power coursed through him, his body adapted seamlessly, thanks to the stabilizing effects of║Harmony║. The enhanced stats felt natural, and his movements, senses, and strength flowed in perfect sync with the increased capabilities.
After a few moments, Jay reached his tree hideout. Along the way, he had finished consuming the entire High Vitality Fruit , which was about the size of an apple. As he ate the last bite, he noticed a change in his║STATUS║, his Vitality Attribute permanently increased by 10 Stats.
Yet, despite the significant boost, Jay didn't feel any immediate effects. The reason was simple—he was still in║INVERSE║mode, where his Vitality Attribute in║LOOTED STATUS║had already reached 62* Stats, far surpassing the increase in his║STATUS║.
With only 9 minutes remaining before Day 1 ended, Jay quickly climbed into his tree hideout and concealed the entrance with some carefully arranged bushes. The cover would provide enough safety while he began the Tier-2 Evolution process.
Once settled, he finally accepted the prompt to proceed with his evolution. Almost immediately, another notification appeared before him, signaling the beginning of a transformative process that would take him to the next level of power.
╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮
﴾ The Overall Stats of a standard Lv.10 Tier-1 life form is 100, excluding Luck Attribute. ﴿
The estimated time of Tier-2 Evolution for a standard Lv.10 Tier-1 life form is 12 hours. However, with your Overall Stats reaching 310*, matching those of a standard Lv.25 Tier-2 life form, the duration of your Tier-2 Evolution process is reduced by 99%. The estimated completion time is now just 7 minutes and 12 seconds.
﴾ Warning! Evolution is a painful process ﴿
﴾ Tier-2 Evolution starts in 3...2...1... ﴿
╰── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╯
As soon as the three-second countdown ended, a brilliant Shiny Crystal Orb formed around Jay, enveloping him in its radiant light. His body began to hover within the orb, suspended in midair.
His surroundings shifted in an instant, transforming into a vast expanse of Pitch Black Space, illuminated only by countless stars in various colors. The stars twinkled and shimmered around him, casting a surreal glow on the cosmic void.
﴾ Time left for completion of Tier-2 Evolution: 00:07:12 ⧼hr:min:sec⧽ ﴿
The timer for the Tier-2 Evolution process began to tick down, and as it did, the stars from the dark space started to merge with Jay's body. The fusion initiated deep, fundamental changes within him.
His internal organs underwent significant improvements in quality and function, becoming more resilient, efficient, and powerful. However, the transformation came at a price—the pain was sharp and intense, even with the 50% physical pain reduction from his skill. Still, compared to the agony he had endured while entering║INVERSE║mode, that was manageable, though far from pleasant.
As the process continued, dark impurities began to seep through the pores of Jay's skin, manifesting as a sticky, black substance that oozed out and dripped away, purging his body of unwanted toxins.
Even the scars that he had accumulated over the years had slowly faded, leaving his skin smooth and unblemished. The evolution was refining not only his strength but also his body, ridding him of every imperfection.
Curious to track the transformation, Jay opened his║STATUS║tab during the evolution process. While there was no noticeable change in the║LOOTED STATUS║tab, he saw a steady stat increase in his║STATUS║.
Every few seconds, his five main Attributes—Strength, Agility, Endurance, Vitality, and Spirit—rose as the Tier-2 Evolution progressed.
Suddenly, when he was about halfway through the process, a notification resounded in his mind. Its presence was forceful, similar to the colossal announcement that had filled the sky earlier.
Though Jay couldn't see the notification physically in the sky this time, the information it contained was directly transmitted into his mind, as if the system itself wanted to ensure that he received the message during his transformation.
╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮
﴾# Trial World Announcement # ﴿
Drogor, the Alpha Chosen of Planet 'Mogret,' successfully underwent Tier-2 Evolution, achieving Tier-2 status within the very first day of the Milky Way Galaxy Trial Program.Congratulations to Drogor for becoming the 2nd Alpha Chosen among the elite Alpha Chosen from 1,000,000 Life Planets selected by the System for the Milky Way Galaxy's Trial Program!
╰── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╯
In just a few short minutes, another Alpha Chosen had ascended to Tier-2. The name that resounded in Jay's mind was Drogor, joining Regaz as one of the first to complete the evolution.
As Jay thought about the standard time required for a typical Lv.10 Tier-1 participant to undergo Tier-2 Evolution, he realized that both Regaz and Drogor must have started their transformations at least 12 hours earlier. The process typically took that long, meaning their progress had been steady.
However, Jay's situation was rather unordinary. Since he was in║INVERSE║mode, the System had mistakenly calculated his overall stats from his║LOOTED STATUS║, believing them to be his actual attribute stats.
That miscalculation had significantly accelerated his evolution. What would have taken the usual 12 hours had been condensed into a fraction of the time. If not for that error, Jay knew he would have followed the standard time required like any other Alpha Chosen.
As the evolution continued, Jay shifted his focus back to the ongoing transformations occurring within his body. His once-bulkier muscles, which had grown larger due to the heightened Strength Attribute in║INVERSE║mode, began to shrink.
His overall body size scaled down, returning to a more compact form. After a minute, the muscular build returned to what it had been when he was first teleported here. Yet, there was a key difference—his body had a shredded, lean appearance. His muscles were refined to perfection, with his body fat reduced to an incredibly low 7%.
Following that, the minute irregularities in his skin—the tiny imperfections that most would never notice—began to fade. In another minute, his skin had become flawless, not a single mole or birthmark remaining.
The evolution process was purging every minor defect, leaving him in peak physical form. It wasn't just his strength or speed that had increased; his very body had become a refined version of itself.
Finally, as the last few moments of the evolution passed, the Shiny Crystal Orb that had enclosed him dissolved, and Jay felt his feet touch the ground once again. He glanced up at the transparent notification that appeared before him:
﴾ Alpha Program | Day-1 | 23:58:37 ﴿
With less than a minute left before the first day of the Alpha Program concluded, a familiar sound echoed in his mind. It was the same tone that had signaled earlier notifications of major events.
Stepping outside of his tree hideout, Jay raised his eyes toward the sky, where another colossal notification dominated the heavens.
With still a minute before the end of Day-1, I heard a familiar sound resounded within my mind.
Then, I stepped outside of the Tree hideout and looked at the new gigantic notification in the sky.
╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮
﴾# Trial World Announcement # ﴿
Jay, the Alpha Chosen of Planet 'Earth,' successfully underwent Tier-2 Evolution, achieving Tier-2 status within the very first day of the Milky Way Galaxy Trial Program.Congratulations to Jay for becoming the 3rd Alpha Chosen among the Alpha Chosen from 1,000,000 Life Planets selected by the System for the Milky Way Galaxy's Trial Program! With the emergence of the top three Tier-2 Alpha Chosen, a new function, the║Trial World Alpha Leaderboard║, has been unlocked for all Alpha Chosen participating in the Milky Way Trial Program.
╰── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╯
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Author Note:
I'm thrilled to share that I'm taking a big leap forward! Alongside Earth's Alpha Prime, I've launched the first sub-book for EAP.
ALTER REALITY: Online (Full-Dive VR LITRPG)
The book is now published on Royal Road with just the first chapter available, and I'll be releasing new chapters at a rate of 3 per week (Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday). Do check it out!
Chapter Release Rate: 3 Chs/Week.
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