Primordial Awakening: I Can Evolve My Skills Infinitely

Another global announcement rang out as Sam killed Asmodeus.

[Congratulations to "Sam Walker" for being the first human in history to complete the "Fourth Layer" and killing the Layer Boss: Asmodeus.]

Sam stood over the corpse, catching his breath.

"I guess that's done with," he muttered, sighing as he wiped some blood from his lip. "Fuck, that was close."

He had barely made it out alive.

His [Eternal Barrier] had shattered, and at one point, he genuinely thought he'd die.

But at the very least, he hadn't needed to use [I Always Come Back].

Sam lifted his [Primordial Sword], and a single black tendril extended from the blade.

It pierced Asmodeus' chest, digging into the remains of the Forsaken Lord's heart.

With a sudden pull, the tendril yanked out the core of Asmodeus, still pulsing faintly with power, and absorbed it into the blade.

Immediately, Sam felt the effect.

His body recovered in an instant. Every wound sealed. His soul and stamina returned to full. It was like he hadn't even fought at all.

"…That's better," he exhaled, flexing his fingers and rolling his shoulders.

His attention turned to the three items lying next to Asmodeus' corpse.

'Three drops,' Sam thought. 'Makes sense.'

He slowly approached, knowing full well the value of what lay before him.

Items dropped from the Forsaken Lords weren't just rare, they were unique.

'I don't think items of this rarity and power will be given a fair price at this point,' Sam thought to himself.

Earlier layers had already been explored and looted, so prices there were balanced.

But the fourth layer items' were still extremely rare and unknown.

Of course, as more awakeners entered this layer, the items here would flood the market eventually, but right now, they were mysteries.

Especially items from Asmodeus, who could well be worth millions each.

'For now, I'll just keep them. Maybe they're useful. If not, I'll figure something out later.'

Sam crouched beside the body.

One of Asmodeus' wings was severed, half his chest was burned open, and a gaping hole remained where his core had once been.

Sam ignored the scene and inspected the loot.

---

[Skill Book: Underworld Flames]

[Rank: Legendary]

[Description: Grants the skill to summon Asmodeus' flames in battle.]

[Hell-Mode Analysis: We've already seen it, our flames are superior. No need to rely on this.]

---

[Demon Wings]

[Rank: Legendary]

[Description: If compatible, allows the user to learn the 'Fly' skill.]

[Hell-Mode Analysis: You cannot use this, but you'll get something else later.]

---

'Second time it tells me I'll get something else, the first was with the [Art of Necromancy] book,' Sam noticed, 'I guess I'll have to see...'

He put those away too, then reached for the last item, the one he was most curious about.

---

[Asmodeus' Trident]

[Rank: Forsaken]

[Description: An item that proves someone has beaten "Asmodeus". Keep it as an artifact. It's the fourth of the six.]

Sam smiled. "Bingo."

He slid it into his [Spatial Inventory] along with the rest.

Now, he had two skill books: one from the [Roaring Dragon], [Draconic Flames], and now this new one, [Underworld Flames].

Neither had been used yet.

'Might give them to someone. Or maybe I can fuse them with my current flame skills in the future.'

With the items stored away, he turned his gaze toward the far edge of the platform.

A flaming portal had appeared, his exit from the fourth sub-layer.

Sam walked toward it calmly, opening his [Hatred Bar] panel mid-step.

[Hatred Bar: 51%]

"Over halfway," he mumbled, "but still not enough."

He had learned by now that the only way to increase his [Hatred Bar] was to feel some kind of anger/hatred toward his opponent.

But even in the middle of the fight against Asmodeus, his bar barely went up.

Only when he'd been cornered, or when Asmodeus spoke about the other Primordials with such disgust, did Sam really feel it.

Yet even then, all that struggle only brought him to just over 50%.

In addition to that...

"Does [Stars of Hatred] even work at this rate...?" he groaned to himself.

He opened the class skill panel again, double-checking everything.

---

[Stars of Hatred]

[Description: Your hatred for all of those who stand in your way empowers you and grants you more power.]

[In battle, the more you are hit or under pressure, the more hatred you will build up for that being, summoning the "Stars of Hatred" (up to a maximum of 5), each star has a special use.]

[Hell-Mode Analysis: As said before, those stars are actually kind of hard to get, your hatred is strong, but not enough.]

---

He stared at the [Hell-Mode Analysis] for a long moment.

After all, it told him since the beginning that even a single one of these stars would be difficult to get.

Still, that only meant they were powerful, as each affinity's class skill was the best in its own domain.

He didn't know what they did yet, but something told him they'd matter. A lot.

For now, all he could do was keep building the bar.

Without hesitation, Sam stepped into the flame portal and left the fourth sub-layer behind.

As he passed through, he felt the shift, just like always.

Sam realized it as he jumped into the portal, but each time he left a sub-layer, it basically meant he would never come back to this place.

And he would also never meet the [Forsaken Lords] he had killed in that place. A strange thought.

But even as he remembered them all: the [Abyssal King], [Zorath, The Black Sun], the [Roaring Titan], and now [Asmodeus], he couldn't feel anything more than a quiet curiosity.

Why did they all want him dead so badly?

The portal dropped him back onto the cold ground of the [Second Outer Ring].

Sam landed silently, then stood up.

'There's nothing else I can do now,' He glanced down at his hands.

Crimson aura flickered around his fists, stronger than ever.

'I need to grow stronger. Raise the [Hatred Bar]. That's the only thing that matters.'

He could probably head to the [Fifth Layer] right now.

The portal was unlocked, and Asmodeus no longer stood in his way.

But then, Sam remembered.

That panel. The one with the floating cards. The masked symbol, half smiling, half crying.

Just thinking about it gave him chills.

'If Asmodeus was that strong…'

The [Fifth Forsaken Lord] would be far worse.

If they wanted to, Sam knew they could probably destroy entire regions. Wipe out cities. Kill thousands.

The further he went, the stronger the monsters and especially [Forsaken Lords].

Plus, would Sam be able to kill the monsters in there?

After all, the [Fifth Layer] was only recommended for those that were at least at [Ascendant] rank.

And knowing his role in this world, the layer would be twisted to have full level monsters, meaning level 60.

That meant the peak of [Ascendant] rank. Sam wasn't there yet.

Not even close.

'I'd get torn apart...' He clenched his fists, 'I need more power. Much more.'

"I'm the last Primordial," he reminded himself aloud. "I don't get to slow down, my determination can't falter."

He turned back, ready to head back to [Ashbourne City].

He had to level up, prepare, train, and find ways to survive what was ahead.

But as he was about to move, another panel appeared right in front of him.

[Oh? So you don't come visit me right away? That makes me feel so sad~]

Sam froze. His eyes narrowed.

The panel had floating cards spinning around it, just like the one from before.

But this time, he also noticed a symbol on the panel, as well as the back of each card.

It was some sort of mask. One half smiling, the other half crying.

"You're..."

[Oh, don't worry. It's fine~]

[I'll be waiting. And when you enter my domain...]

[Well... we'll see what happens then, won't we?]

[Enjoy your time for now, Primordial~]

The panels vanished, just like that. Sam stood still.

"...Fuck you," he muttered with a tired sigh.

These beings, whatever they were, were getting bolder. Stronger. More invasive.

The further he progressed, the more they seemed to crawl out of the shadows.

[Hatred Bar: 63%]

At least that had gone up.

Sam rolled his shoulders, shook his head, and started walking again, heading straight for the station.

He didn't know what would come next.

He didn't know how much time he had left.

But one thing was certain. He would be ready. No matter what.