Bloodbound Codex: I Grow Stronger in Secret

Meanwhile, every ruler, including the Ancients, had already gone ”Outside” and begun the process of regressing back to the lowest stage of cultivation. They had no choice but to completely remove the Spirit Energy from their bodies and abandon their previous cultivation systems.

If they were going to face beings whose weakest members could kill their strongest individuals without any difficulty, then they needed to adapt to the new environment as quickly as possible. Remaining attached to their previous strength would only leave them unable to survive against the enemies that existed beyond Eliomor.

Thus, they had decided to regress first and then begin cultivating with Aether just outside Eliomor, in the vast empty space surrounding the world. When they had first arrived ”Outside,” every one of them had been left speechless by what they saw.

Countless stars filled the darkness, each one emitting energy at a level that their combined energy couldn’t even begin to compare with, while enormous planets moved around those stars according to movements they had never witnessed before.

They had spent their entire lives believing that Eliomor was an enormous world, yet standing Outside for the first time made them realize how small their world truly was.

Massive chunks of stone, or in simple terms Asteroids, floated through the empty space in every direction. The sheer number of these objects had overwhelmed their senses because there seemed to be no end to the things existing beyond their world.

For the first time in his life, even Zaakrax had realized that all the insight he had accumulated throughout his existence was nothing more than a tiny fragment compared to the vastness of reality.

It was an uncomfortable realization, but none of them had the time to dwell on it for long.

They had come to terms with that truth quite quickly because they had more important matters to deal with. They had immediately begun preparing for their cultivation, and by the third day, when Atlas was absent, everyone except those four old friends of his and Solaris had started the process.

The cultivators at the Astral World Rank had to destroy their Spirit Cores first, which caused unimaginable pain for the Ancients who had spent countless years developing those cores.

Zaakrax was the only exception because Atlas had permanently altered the Logic connected to his pain, allowing him to destroy his Spirit Core and abandon Spirit Energy without experiencing the same suffering.

After regressing back to the lowest stage, everyone could finally feel the Aether surrounding them directly. Until then, they had been using their defensive abilities to prevent Aether from coming into direct contact with the Spirit Energy inside their bodies, since the two energies repelled one another.

Now that Spirit Energy had been completely removed, Aether began touching their bodies naturally. Its quality was so much higher than the energy they had been using throughout their lives that they initially couldn’t believe something this pure could even exist.

After getting past their initial shock, they finally began cultivating in the true sense. As they absorbed Aether into their bodies, they slowly started understanding aspects of cultivation and energy that they had never been able to perceive before.

The process was still unfamiliar to them, but the difference in quality between Aether and Spirit Energy was enough to make them realize that they had entered an entirely different stage of existence.

...

Atlas could be seen sitting inside the Rosaria Villa while Solaris relayed all the information to him.

After taking Seraphiel to that realm himself and leaving her with Aurelis, he had returned to the villa, where Melina had already been waiting for him as he had ordered her to do. Atlas nodded toward Solaris after hearing everything she had explained before turning his attention toward Melina.

He had previously instructed Melina to explain everything she knew about the World Will and World Core to Solaris, and surprisingly, Solaris had also explained the current situation of their world to Melina before Atlas arrived, making it much easier for him to continue the conversation.

”Now do you understand the situation this world is in?” Melina nodded before answering, ”Yes, Sir Atlas. I understand what is going on now. From everything I heard from her, your world is very unique.”

Atlas tilted his head slightly in confusion. ”How so?”

Melina immediately explained, ”It is because this world has these ’Ruins.’ They not only emit a completely different energy, but they also contain endless resources inside them. In any other world, something like these ’Ruins’ doesn’t even exist.”

The moment Atlas heard that, he remembered what Eliomor had previously explained about the Eternals and their desire to conquer Eliomor rather than simply destroy it. The existence of the Ruins had always been one of the most important reasons behind that decision, and Melina’s words only confirmed that their existence was something extremely unusual within the Galaxy.

”Hmm, I see but we are already taking measures to completely remove this Spirit Energy from the world and adapt to Aether, which is much purer and is spread throughout the Galaxy. Do you think that is a good decision?”

Melina nodded without hesitation. ”Yes, Sir Atlas. It is a good decision. If this world has been hiding from the rest of the Galaxy all this time, then it will definitely attract immediate attention if that different energy continues to exist within it.”

She stared at Atlas for a moment before turning her gaze toward Solaris. ’How can such weak beings exist in the same place where this monster is living? Is he the only monster here while everyone else is normal?’

She had initially wondered what kind of terrifying world she was entering when she first learned about Atlas, but after arriving here, she had discovered that almost everyone around him was extremely weak compared to him.

She had also finally understood why Atlas had been unaware of so many basic things about the Galaxy. He had simply never needed to learn about them because he had spent his entire life inside a world that had been isolated from the rest of the Galaxy.

She turned back toward Atlas and continued, ”Sir Atlas, the Aether energy will help all these weak individuals become somewhat capable. I suggest you continue with exactly the measures you have already taken.”

Atlas nodded at her statement. He was already planning to cultivate with Aether himself once he finished dealing with everything else, but that wasn’t the only thing occupying his mind. He lowered his head slightly as another thought appeared in his mind, ’I need to practice more applications of my Logic Alteration ability. It could become one of my biggest wild cards against stronger opponents.’

He then looked toward Melina again and asked the question he had been wondering about for a while, ”How does the power hierarchy work in the Galaxy?”

Melina exhaled softly before beginning to explain in her usual calm voice. ”If you are asking about the rankings of power, then they go from Emperor to Awakening Rank.”

”Emperor Rank is the starting point for galactical beings. After that comes Sovereign, Transcendent, Nexus, and finally a mysterious rank known as Awakening.”

Atlas nodded as he listened, but another thought immediately surfaced in his mind, causing him to ask, ”And which rank would you place yourself in?”

He had already fought Melina himself and experienced the difference between their physical abilities. ’Her raw strength is still higher than mine by a large margin. There is no doubt about that.’

Melina remained silent for a moment before answering, ”Before I answer, you should know something very important, Sir Atlas.” Atlas immediately turned toward her, wondering what she meant.

Melina continued, ”There are five sub-stages between each major rank, starting from the First Stage and ending at the Fifth Stage.”

Atlas finally understood what she was referring to and nodded slightly.

”I am only at the First Stage of the Emperor Rank.”