The Alpha Orbs kept shattering, and system notifications continued to flood Essim and Aisha's panels.
[Congratulations, Sovereign level increased to 17. +100 Empty Attribute]
[Congratulations, Sovereign level increased to 18. +100 Empty Attribute]
...
[Congratulations, Sovereign level increased to 20. +100 Empty Attribute]
A new notification appeared on their system panels, marking the end of their experience gain:
[A Sovereign level has reached the Tier-1 limit. Please proceed with promotion.]
Both had reached the maximum level for Tier-1 Sovereigns—level 20—but there were still many Alpha Orbs left untouched.
Essim glanced at one of the remaining orbs.
[Alpha Orb]
Remaining energy: 37,213
The orbs' energy continued to drain quickly, but the two of them were now beyond the point of benefiting from their destruction.
"Brother… what if we shared these with old man Takulani and Efan?" Aisha suggested, her voice cautious yet hopeful.
Essim shook his head. "No… we've already discussed this. We have to be careful with the abilities we show others. Understand?"
Aisha sighed softly, disappointed but realizing her brother was right. If people knew they had access to so many Alpha Orbs, it could invite greed, suspicion, and danger.
With the core of the rock island emptied of anything valuable, Essim and Aisha left and returned to Essim's floating island.
Back on the main island, Essim immediately opened his system panel to review the requirements for his next promotion.
[Tier-2 Promotion Mission]
Silver Badge - Sacred Human Race (Cultivator)
100,000 Energy Crystals
Level 20 Monster Heart - Commander Rank
"Cultivator?" Essim muttered to himself, puzzled by the term. He recalled the old man and the middle-aged man with the crown he had encountered during his Tier-1 promotion. Could they have been cultivators too? And if so, why did the crowned man seem to know so much about systems?
He frowned.
"Aisha," Essim called, turning to his sister. "In your promotion mission, is the Nature Elf race classified as Cultivators too?"
Aisha nodded, looking just as confused. She didn't have any more information than he did.
Essim could not blindly risk to promote right now and meet more powerful people that might see through his EX-Skill without preparations.
"Let's not rush into the promotion mission for now," Essim decided. "We'll focus on finishing the Void Monster Invasion Event first."
Priorities set, Essim opened the event leaderboard to check his ranking.
[Event Ranking]
William Anderson - 211,400
Bai Qi - 208,129
Vladimir Nova - 200,488
Kim Un - 193,331
...
Wiko Suryo - 167,684
Elena - 167,076
Essim glanced at his own points and couldn't help but smile wryly. He hadn't focused on killing monsters for the last three hours. Instead, he had been busy harvesting Alpha Orbs on the void monster island, which was massive, stretching over 1,000 by 1,000 meters.
Essim - 89,087
Cute Cat - 86,361
His score was only half of what the top ten players had, but he wasn't discouraged. Now that he had reached level 20, his confidence had surged.
He checked his status:
[STATUS]
Name: Essim
Level: 20 (1%)
Attributes: STR 632, AGI 520, INT 479, RES 408
Profession: Swordsman
Skills: (Divine Slash Shadow), (Sky Shattering Slash), (Area of Light)
Equipment: (Divine Sword), (Windlau Shoes), (Heart Cloak), (Adhesive Gloves), (Green Flame Helmet)
Talent: (Infinity Duplicate EX)
Features: Market, Chat, Friends
Rising from level 10 to 20 had given him a total of 1,000 empty attribute points to allocate. On top of that, his equipment had been upgraded to white grade, granting a 5% attack bonus.
Materials weren't an issue either. He still had plenty of unopened silver chests, a key reason for his confidence in founding the World Market Alliance. The resources he had stored were vast.
Essim and Aisha didn't waste time. After a brief rest, they resumed hunting points, targeting every passing stone island.
"Feel this!"
A young woman, bowstring drawn to its maximum, loosed an arrow at a black-winged monster bird. The arrow flew true, striking the bird's forehead and shattering its head into fragments, scattering like gravel in the wind.
Nearby, a young man wielding a glowing sword danced through the throng of monsters, every swing of his blade cleaving through his enemies, leaving a trail of bisected creatures in his wake.
Gruuuu... gru...
Suddenly, a tree monster at the rear of the horde roared in fury, shaking its branches violently. Leaves fell like rain but then hovered in the air, transforming into a storm of projectiles, each as sharp as a blade. They flew towards the young man like a swarm of angry bees.
As the first few leaves struck nearby werewolf warriors and ant soldiers, they exploded, sending shockwaves that expanded up to 10 meters in every direction. The devastation would be catastrophic if all the leaves detonated at once.
Essim noticed the approaching danger. His eyes narrowed as he addressed the tree monster from afar.
"Hmmm, I thought you'd stay hidden until all your minions were dead," he said calmly, his grip tightening on his sword.
With both hands, he swung his blade from behind him, channeling his power. A brilliant light shot forth from the golden sword, extending 100 meters ahead.
Without hesitation, Essim swung the blade forward, cutting through the incoming leaves with a single stroke.
Swoosh... whoosh... crack...
The sword's energy beam sliced clean through the deadly storm of leaves, cutting through the horde of monsters, and ultimately striking the tree monster itself.
Rghhh...
The tree monster let out a low, resigned groan. Its eyes went vacant, its last thought one of disbelief: How could a human wield such overwhelming power?
"Your sword light is truly powerful," Aisha called out, her voice full of admiration as she observed her brother's display of strength.
Together, they continued their relentless assault on the void monster islands until dusk. Their combined points surged to over 800,000, firmly placing them within the top 20 rankings.
"Phew…" Essim wiped his brow, panting slightly. "Aisha, let's take a break."
After finishing off the last few monsters, they returned to their camp.
As usual, Essim and Aisha set up a small camp outside the main city, preferring the tranquility of the open air. The lush green grass beneath their feet and the nearby trees, some bearing fruit, gave them a sense of living in harmony with nature.
Aisha had planted several fruit trees and flowers around the island, fulfilling her childhood dream of creating a beautiful, serene space—even though they were no longer on Earth. For Aisha, the island had become her personal sanctuary, a symbol of her life as a princess.
"Brother," Aisha began as they relaxed, "Old Man Takulani and Efan's islands will arrive tomorrow." She sat beside him, eager to discuss the progress of the World Market Alliance. "I've already instructed them to start selling items under the World Market Alliance name in the system shop. Right now, they're only listing basic items."
She paused, glancing at Essim to ensure he was following. "And I've also asked them to recruit new members who want to join. If anyone wants to trade luxury items, they'll have to come to our island directly."
Aisha continued her update, explaining the steps she had taken to expand the alliance's influence.
"Good work, Aisha," Essim praised her, nodding approvingly. "Everything is going according to plan. Soon, this city will be much livelier."
The alliance had been Essim's idea, and though Aisha handled the operations, she always deferred to her older brother's wisdom. Essim, more mature than her, had been a guiding figure for her since their childhood, and Aisha never questioned his decisions.
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