As the heads of the academy arrived, their faces set in determined expressions, they quickly began the ritual to seal Ryo within an unbreakable barrier. Their eyes were filled with the belief that they had finally trapped him. But they were gravely mistaken.
Unknown to them, Ryo had unlocked a powerful skill during his intense training: Barrier Rejection. It was a passive ability that made him immune to any form of physical or magical imprisonment. The barrier, glowing with an otherworldly light, began to crack under Ryo's will, the cracks growing larger by the second.
Before anyone could react, time froze.
Ryo stood amidst the frozen scene, the shattered remnants of the barrier hovering in the air around him. He felt the familiar presence of the system.
The system's voice echoed, smooth and unaffected by the chaos around him: "[Rewards finalized. Distributing now.]"
Ryo could feel his entire being shifting, as though something monumental was unfolding. The system continued, "[Would you like to see the memory fragments?]"
Ryo, already feeling the weight of what was about to come, shook his head, speaking in a calm but firm voice, "I don't have time for that."
"[Understood,]" the system replied without pause, then proceeded with its task. "[Distributing rewards obtained.]"
A glowing interface appeared before Ryo, revealing a massive influx of energy, knowledge, and power. The system's voice rang out as the flow of rewards began: "[??? Egg obtained, Storage Ability unlocked. The rewards will be sent there.]"
Level up... Level up... Level up...
The sound of Ryo's level increasing became incessant, a relentless rhythm that seemed to echo through the frozen moment in time. It continued for what felt like an eternity—an hour and a half of continuous leveling. His body surged with power, and his sense of self seemed to blur as the system kept counting.
Level 9998 reached.
His abilities, powers, and traits began to evolve rapidly, each upgrade sending waves of energy coursing through his body. The system's voice was clinical as it continued the announcements:
"[Infinite Ether obtained. Infinite Divine/Hole Power unlocked.]"
But the transformation didn't stop there. The dormant traits and abilities that had been sealed deep within Ryo began to surface.
"[Other dormant traits and abilities which were sealed inside the user are being selected for unlocking,]" the system continued, its tone matter-of-fact. "[Selection complete. The correct abilities and traits for the user at his current level are being unlocked.]"
Ryo's body tensed as a surge of agony shot through him. Every cell felt as though it was being rewritten, remade, and reborn. He gritted his teeth, his hands shaking, but he couldn't stop the process. The pain was overwhelming, as though he were being torn apart from the inside out.
And then, the system's voice grew distorted, filled with error messages.
"[Error. Error. Error. Unavailable to unlock immortality and other abilities/traits.]"
The system paused, recalculating, then continued, "[Providing the abilities and traits which are able to be unlocked.]"
The flood of notifications didn't cease. Ryo felt as if his mind was on the verge of exploding from the sheer magnitude of the information bombarding him. His thoughts blurred as his body screamed in pain from the immense pressure.
The system, almost apologetic, informed him: "[User wouldn't be able to see status for some time. It will take time to organize all new abilities and traits. 848 new traits and abilities have been unlocked. However, they will remain hidden until the user gains two more levels.]"
Ryo's vision swam as the final notifications flashed before his eyes. He had surpassed every limit he thought he had. And yet, there was still more to come.
The last thing he felt before the time resumed was an overwhelming sense of power—of something greater than himself awakening.
Author's note:
looks like this time it was me who misheard the system 848 abilities???????????