In the midst of a heated battle. at the outer border of the Azure City.
*Boom*
*Rumble*
Klein Beak and the other Martial Artists had been defending Azure City from the outbreak of beasts for the past few days.
They had fought tirelessly, using all of their abilities to take down the beasts that threatened the safety of the city.
But as the sun began to set on the fourth day, Klein found himself the only one left standing.
He stood in the outer border of the city, surrounded by the bodies of the fallen beasts and his comrades as he looked at the rest of the endless sea of beasts in front of him with his cold eyes.
*Menacingly*
…
Klein Beak was a man who addicted to VR games. He had been playing them since he was a kid and continued to play them as an adult.
He was always on the lookout for new games that could provide him with the thrill and excitement he craved.
One day, the government launched a new game called 'Martial Evolution'.
It was a game that allowed players to awaken and evolve their Martial Beasts, creatures that represented a person's fighting spirit, into powerful divine beings. It quickly became one of the most popular games in the world.
Klein was one of the players in the game. He was a solo player and had managed to evolve his Martial Beast into a Rare Tier 5 Devorath Komodo Dragon.
However, the game became a reality when a wormhole suddenly appeared in the skies of every country.
Then, a mystical phenomenon occurred in the skies as a mysterious energy poured out from within the wormhole, covering the entire world and reconstructing the foundation of the Earth. The researchers called this mysterious energy as "Mana" according to what was written in the ancient book from the game, since it has similar backgrounds and functions.
As a result of this transformation, the Earth began to expand by ten times from its original size, and humans who played the game started to awaken their Martial Beasts and were able to start cultivating. The game quickly changed the era of humans all at once.
However, with the rise of the humans, there was also the rise of beasts that had evolved and started rampaging in human cities.
The world became a dangerous place, and it was up to the Martial Artists to protect the humanity.
ten years after the wormhole appeared, the Great Outbreak of Beasts appeared, nearly wiping out all of humanity by reducing 20 percent of the human population.
The world was saved by the 4 Great Heroes who had reached the rank of Demi-god. Back then, the battles were devastating as humanity had to sacrifice an entire continent to survive.
The government of every country came together to form a federation in order to protect humanity from the outbreak of the beasts. They called it the S.A.G.E federation, which stood for the names of the guilds belonging to the 4 Great Heroes.
[Sovereign Phoenix]
[Azure Dragon]
[Guardian Tortoise]
[Escanor Lion]
Since then, the world had stabilized, and the outbreaks were kept under control by the S.A.G.E federation.
…
Right now, Klein could feel his exhaustion weighing heavily on him, but he refused to let it show. The citizen had been evacuated, but Klein refused to abandon it to the beasts, and even if he wanted to, he wasn't sure that he would be able to escape with the injuries he had sustained.
*Stomp! Stomp! Stomp! Stomp!*
And then he saw it. A Tier 5 Great Beast, Spacertile Chameleon with the size of a small mountain, had arrived.
Klein Beak's heart sank as he realized that he might not be able to defeat it alone. But he knew he had to try.
*Boom*
*Crack Crack*
Without hesitation, Klein Beak activated his Tier 5 skill, [Tier 5 Skill: Devorath Komodo Dragon Avatar]. He felt his body transform as his Martial Beast's form enveloped him, turning him into a gigantic demi-human with the power of a Tier 5 Great Beast.
*ROAR*
With a roar, Klein unleashed his [Devorath Komodo Dragon Roar], his still body contorting and changing as he tapped into the full power of his Martial Beast.
He felt his strength and speed increase tenfold, his senses sharpening as his battle power increased tremendously.
*Hisss*
The Spacertile Chameleon hissed as it sized up Klein Beak's new form. It's beast instinct knew it was facing a formidable opponent.
*Lash*
With a flick of its tongue, it attacked.
[Tier 1 Skill: Komodo Claw]
*Slash!*
Klein intercept it with all his might, as he unleashes his sharp claws to slash the incoming tongue.
*Boom*
[Tier 1 Skill: Komodo Tail Whip]
And then Klein continued by unleashing his tail, his Devorath Komodo's scales shone as he weaved through the horde, striking them with precision.
*Boom! Boom!*
The chameleon seemed taken aback by the aggressive attacks from Klein, but it quickly recovered and launched a fierce counterattack with its space-time claws attack.
*Swoosh Swoosh*
The Spacertile Chameleon had the ability to manipulate space and time, making it an incredibly formidable opponent for Klein.
Klein dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the chameleon's space-time claws attack.
He retaliated with his [Tier 4 skill: Devouring Bite], but the chameleon quickly teleported away, leaving Klein to bite at thin air.
*Swoosh* *Swoosh*
The battle raged on, with the chameleon constantly warping the space around them and launching attacks from afar.
Klein used his Tier 1 skills, Komodo Claws and Komodo Eyes, to try and close the distance and strike at the chameleon, but to no avail.
Despite Klein's best efforts, the chameleon's long-range attacks kept him at bay.
He was forced to rely on his [Tier 2 Skill: Komodo Hardening Scale], to protect himself from the chameleon's onslaught.
As the battle wore on, Klein's Avatar began to weaken. He had sustained too many injuries and was nearing his limit.
*Roar!*
With a mighty roar, Klein charged towards the chameleon in a final desperate move, shrugging off its attacks forcefully.
[Tier 4 skill: Komodo Dragon Stomps]
*Stomp! Stomp!*
*Crash*
He finally managed to land a devastating blow with it, sending the chameleon crashing to the ground.
*Chomp*
Klein followed up with another Tier 4 skill, [Tier 4 skill: Devouring Bite], and this time he managed to sink his teeth into the chameleon's flesh.
As the chameleon lay motionless on the ground, Klein collapsed from his injuries. But as his consciousness began to fade, he felt a strange sensation, as if his mind was being pulled through a different space.
he started to see memories flashing before his eyes.
…
He saw himself as a baby, growing up with his parents and siblings.
…
He saw himself as a child, playing with his friends and discovering his love for video games.
…
He saw himself as a teenager, discovering his love for VR games and spending countless hours playing them.
…
He then saw the memory of the day 'Martial Evolution' was launched. He remembered how excited he was to play it and how he had spent hours exploring the game world and evolving his Martial Beast.
He also remembered how he had regretted not being able to evolve it further, as he had always played solo and was unable to gain the necessary materials and knowledge to evolve his Martial Beast to a Divine Beast, due to the fierce competition from major guilds to collect high-level evolution materials.
As he continued to see his memories, he felt a deep sense of regret. He wished he could start over, to have another chance to evolve his Martial Beast to its full potential and become one of the strongest in the world.
...
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, he woke up in a room that he felt familiar.
He looked around and realized he was in his old room that he used to live in when he was living in his parents' house 12 years ago.
He had traveled back in time!!
Klein was stunned. He couldn't believe what had happened. He got up and walked around his old room, feeling nostalgic. He looked at his old gaming capsule, remembering the countless hours he had spent playing VR games.
He realized that he had been given a second chance, a chance to change his life. He knew that this time, he had to take advantage of this opportunity and start over.
"Three months before the game is released… Let's do it properly this time!" said Klein Beak excitedly.