Primordial Awakening: I Can Evolve My Skills Infinitely

"…Is the Primordial really that bad?"

The moment those words left Seraphine's mouth, silence fell like a stone.

All ten elven leaders seated around the long, wooden table turned their eyes toward her, stunned.

No one spoke at first. It wasn't anger she saw on their faces, it was disbelief.

Even her father, Duskaar, stood slowly from his seat, brows furrowed.

"You…" His voice came low and strained. "Why would you ask that?"

Seraphine blinked. She hadn't expected that kind of reaction. "I—"

Duskaar's eyes locked onto hers, sharp and serious.

His usual calm was gone, replaced with something Seraphine rarely saw from him: fear.

For as long as she could remember, her father had always been strong.

He was a pillar of Sylvarae, one of those who had walked through the sixth layer of the [Forsaken] realm and returned alive.

She had watched him stand tall against beasts that could level cities.

But now… he looked shaken.

"Seraphine," Duskaar said, voice steady but cold. "We don't know exactly who or where the Primordial is. But if you ever think you've seen him, if you ever feel even the faintest trace of his presence…"

He paused, then stepped toward her.

"…Run, or fight."

Seraphine took a step back, confused and suddenly frustrated.

"Why?" she asked, more sharply than she intended. "Why are all of you treating him like he's some kind of walking catastrophe?"

Duskaar tilted his head slightly, surprised. "What do you mean?"

"You've never even met him," she said, her voice rising. "So how would you know what he's like?"

For a moment, Duskaar said nothing. Then, with a sigh, he snapped his fingers.

In the middle of the table, the glowing holographic panel flickered back to life. The image it projected was grim.

An entire city, engulfed in flames.

Ash rained from the skies. The streets were littered with rubble, buildings torn apart.

People screamed, but their voices were quickly drowned out by thunder and collapsing stone.

"This…" Duskaar gestured to the scene. "This is what a Primordial did."

Seraphine stared, wide-eyed.

"I—"

"They were all wiped out," Duskaar said firmly. "Every person in that city. Gone. And that wasn't even the full power of the Primordials. That was just one of them."

He turned to face her again.

"All of them are dead now. Or so we thought. But according to the prophecy…" he paused, "…one still remains."

"The last of his kind," whispered Malina, another guild leader.

Seraphine still didn't understand. Something didn't feel right.

"But how do we even know he's the same?" she asked. "What if he's different?"

Lucan, a quiet man standing near the edge of the room, finally spoke. "He is different," he said, adjusting his glasses. "That's exactly the problem."

Everyone turned to him as he stepped forward.

"I know you read the prophecy already, but... the last Primordial," he continued, "Is said to carry the rage and resentment of all the others who fell. Their hatred. Their grief. Their wrath. It's all concentrated in him."

"No matter what," Malina said softly, "we can't allow him to live."

"I know you," she added, looking at Seraphine. "You always try to see the good in people. But some things… some things are just meant to be destroyed."

"There is no good in that being," Duskaar said harshly, his voice firm.

His hands clenched at his sides. "Even the dragons, angels, and demons, all of them, far stronger than us, are afraid. They have hundreds, thousands of peak [Forsaken]-rank awakeners… yet they still treat this being like he could kill them all."

Seraphine felt her stomach twist.

"What…?" she whispered. "All of them?"

"Yes," Duskaar said. "Even they don't dare take the Primordial lightly. That tells us more than any vision or prophecy ever could."

Seraphine looked down, her mind spinning.

How could someone be so powerful that even the oldest and strongest races were afraid?

Yet even with all the fear and warnings, she couldn't shake the memory of that man in the [Battle Realm].

She had only glimpsed him once… a human. Ordinary on the surface.

But something about him had felt off.

His aura… his presence… it all carried weight.

And now, that feeling wouldn't go away.

Duskaar stepped forward and gently placed a hand on her shoulder.

"That being is twisted," he said quietly. "He is the end of everything. If he's still out there… all we can do is pray he disappears before we ever meet him."

With that, he turned away and returned to his seat, the glow of the panel casting harsh shadows on the tense faces of the room.

Seraphine stood frozen, lost in thought.

'Sam Walker…' she thought, 'Are you… really it?'

She didn't know. Not for sure. But if he was the Primordial, then everything had just changed.

Still, something inside her refused to accept what everyone else said.

'I'll decide when I see it for myself.'

And so, she sat back down, face calm once more, mind made up.

She would grow stronger, no matter what truths lay ahead.

...

Meanwhile, far away on Earth…

Sam was already moving again.

He sprinted across the plains of the second [Outer Ring], dust kicking up beneath his shoes.

'I guess it's time,' he thought. 'The fifth and sixth layers can only be accessed from the third ring anyway…'

It was going to be a longer trip than usual, but he didn't mind. He had nothing else to focus on.

And so, without hesitation, he pushed forward.

The third [Outer Ring] was the last line of defense between humanity and the outside world.

Beyond it lay the [Outside], a wasteland of high-level monsters, beasts that were all above level 60, even touching into the [Forsaken] rank.

Most people would never dare approach that border.

Fwish! Slash!

---

[Outer Bear]

[Level: 47]

[Description: A bear species that roams the lands between the second and third rings.]

---

[Roaring Bird]

[Level: 49]

[Description: Black birds that emit paralyzing soundwaves to freeze their prey.]

---

Monsters leapt from the forest line, trying to intercept him. Too slow.

Slash! Slash!

Each one was cut down instantly.

[Proceed.]

None of them stood a chance. Either they were sliced in one blow, or turned away at the first sign of his aura.

It took over an hour of running, but eventually, Sam saw it: a shimmering wall of energy stretching across the horizon.

And above him was the massive ring.

Ding!

[You have entered the final layer of protection for humanity.]

[Any further will result in you entering the "Outside" zone.]

Sam raised an eyebrow.

"Hm."

He didn't care about the warning.

His eyes turned to the sky, still marked with the countdown that threatened the end of the world.

The digits ticked slowly downward, each second drawing humanity closer to destruction.

But Sam didn't react. He closed his eyes. It didn't matter.

He just needed to keep growing stronger. And to do that, there was only one path left: enter the [Fifth Layer].

Ding!

---

[Which Layer do you wish to enter?]

[→ Third]

[→ Fourth]

[→ Fifth]

---

Sam didn't hesitate.

'No need to waste time,' he thought, his energy already rising.

As his aura flared, he extended his hand toward the [Fifth] option.

The moment he tapped it, a strange sound echoed around him.

Fsshhhhh...

Another white panel appeared, larger this time.

Cards floated around it, spinning slowly. And in the center, that familiar symbol appeared again: a mask, half smiling, half weeping.

[Ah~ I knew you'd come eventually, child.]

[Come to me, then~]

Sam frowned but said nothing. He ignored the message.

A portal began forming in front of him, white light pulsing at its edges, flickering with power.

Cards circled it in slow orbit, the air trembling with pressure.

He stepped toward it, eyes narrowing.

"…Damn."