Reborn: Apocalypse - Volume 2

The room around him had become disheveled, transforming into a mess. The bed he had been sitting on had its sheets ruffled and thrown about, leaving only a mattress. The pillow was now in the sink, resting haphazardly. His breakthrough had disturbed the air around him, making it look like a tornado had struck.

"Status." Micheal ignored the mess as he uttered the mental command, calling up the information in his head.

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— - Status — -

Name: Micheal Care

Points: 31,289

Race: Human

Physique: 1 Star

Soul Quality: 1 Star

Age: 18

- Stats -

Strength - 60 -> 80

Endurance - 45 -> 56

Recovery - 43 -> 55

Soul - 23 -> 25

Abilities - (5/7)

Life Orb Master

Ki Cultivator (Earth Tier - Early)

Grandmaster Sword Mastery (1/5)

Impact Release

Ceaseless Mind

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"80 Strength!" Micheal clenched his fists, his muscles bulging as he grinned. He could feel the increase in Strength, a huge jump.

He could now lift something that weighed 1,000 pounds (450 kg) with just a bit of focus. His body contained a ma.s.sive amount of raw power that had only become larger, his muscles densifying almost like steel.

His Endurance stat was hard to really track noticeable changes, but Micheal could feel that his organs and bones had become tougher. This made his body better able to handle his own explosive strength, including the stress he placed on himself when using his powerful Sword Mastery.

Likewise, his Recovery stat was even harder to actively track, but Micheal welcomed the increase. He would now regenerate from injuries at 4 to 5 times the pace of a regular human. It wasn"t anything crazy, but every step he took forward in his stats was significant.

His Soul stat saw only a moderate increase, but Micheal wasn"t displeased. A 2 point increase was already a solid gain for the lowest Tier breakthrough.

"Going by raw stats... this breakthrough gave me results that were around 10% better than my breakthrough the first time around." Micheal noticed the change keenly, able to zero in on his exact stat changes from the past.

"That must be because of my 1 Star Physique." He wasn"t able to upgrade himself to a 2 Star Physique on the First Layer.

Higher Starred Physiques gained more stats for each Ki Tier upgrade. If Micheal could upgrade his Physique to a higher Star, he would be able to make those increased gains as well, but only going forward.

However, from the experience Micheal gained after training for so long and gaining a 1 Star Physique artificially, Micheal realized that as long as one was willing to go through h.e.l.lish, muscle-collapsing training, it was fully possible to fully make up for any missed potential.

It would be time-consuming and extremely painful, requiring great determination and even greater healing capabilities, but Micheal just so happened to possess both qualities in excess. His Life Orb Master Ability would make rejuvenation a cinch, and his own powerful will and obsession with becoming strong would rectify the rest.

Micheal looked away from his status, the smile on his face dimming.

He sighed as memories of the Heart Trial washed over him. He sat on the bed for a long moment, unmoving. Several minutes pa.s.sed as he struggled with the swarm of memories, almost overwhelmed.

He then stood up, determination flas.h.i.+ng in his eyes as he pushed them aside.

It was time to leave. He couldn"t afford to rest, there was far too much he needed to do.

Without hesitating further, Micheal left the room he"d made his breakthrough in. He slipped through the hallway, up the stairs, and then out onto the roof.

He glanced around as he reached the rooftop, noting the evening light. The sun had long since started its inevitable descent. Nighttime in the Main Cl.u.s.ter was usually more dangerous than the day, but Micheal didn"t let that bother him as he set off, traversing through the Main Cl.u.s.ter for one particular destination.

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Sophia walked back and forth with the slightest bit of apprehension. She was currently standing in a random bedroom, tucked away safely while General Pedro tended to his wife and daughter. There were several guards standing outside her door, leaving her in here alone.

The man may have felt she was trustworthy, but that didn"t mean he would let her anywhere near his loved ones.

The journey to their destination had, as the man said, taken only a couple of hours. As it turned out, they weren"t actually traveling all the way to the headquarters of the Old Airwing Military Alliance, but instead to a smaller permanent branch, guarded by several A Rankers.

They"d run into a group of Morenkai on the way, one that got easily demolished by the elite guards. Every fighter that had joined them was a professional soldier with a plethora of experience. They moved with such great coordination and skill that it impressed Sophia to her core.

None of the other forces she"d seen had this same level of maneuverability. Most of their guards were B Rankers, all of them with Earth Tier Ki Cultivation.

According to Pedro, these were his Earth Knight Guards, his own private army that he had personally put together over the past few years.

The General had told Sophia he was going to verify the medicine she"d given him and then stuck her up in this room, asking her to be patient for a bit. He hadn"t given her an exact time frame, but the man"s excited state didn"t give her a chance to ask before he left.

She had now been stuck here for the past 15 minutes, nervously waiting to hear back.

"Micheal personally made that medicine… if he said they would work, they will work." She kept repeating that to herself, yet she couldn"t help but feel a strand of nervousness. The General was taking a long time.

Abruptly, Sophia spun around, her hand instinctively reaching for her Spatial Ring only to realize it was still back at the base, as she detected the presence of someone else in the room. Her eyes flashed with light and the temperature around her cooled as she prepared to defend herself.

"Woah, settle down, Sofanado, it"s just me."

In the corner of the room, perched up on the bed, was a rather familiar blond haired man, giving her a friendly wave. The man had appeared from nowhere, leaning back as he rested languidly.

Sophia sighed and then took a few steps forward, dropping her voice to a hushed whisper,

"s.h.i.+n! Are you alright?" Micheal"s friend might be a bit annoying, but he was an ally none-the-less. He"d proven to be nothing but mostly courteous to her the past few days. Mostly.

s.h.i.+n nodded,

"Yeah, I didn"t run into too much trouble. I just kept warping from building to building, following you guys. I waited till I felt the coast was clear to teleport in, no one knows I"m here." He nodded as he spoke.

After ascertaining that he was alright, Sophia walked up to him and smacked him on the leg.

"What if there were cameras here! You need to be more cautious about things!" As she spoke, she unconsciously imitated Micheal"s cool, calm, and collected speaking manner. The man measured everything he did with exactness, rather the opposite of s.h.i.+n"s hotheaded att.i.tude.

"Well… are there?" s.h.i.+n shrugged casually as he rubbed his leg, giving her a reproachful glare.

Sophia glared back at him but then sighed,

"No, not that I can tell…"

s.h.i.+n smirked.

"But that is beside the point." She hadn"t found anything of the sort when she searched the room a few minutes after being here. There wasn"t any real reason for them to watch her in the first place, and she strongly doubted they"d have someone monitoring her room using an Ability.

A few moments pa.s.sed as she quickly filled him in on everything that had occurred.

Before s.h.i.+n could ask any further questions or talk more, footsteps from the hallway caught both of their attention.

s.h.i.+n"s body vanished as he teleported away, while Sophia sprinted back to where she had been standing, maintaining a casual pose.

Not a moment later, the door to her waiting room was opened, revealing a pair of armed soldiers dressed in grey camouflage. One of them looked to be in his late 60s, while the younger of the two looked to be in his 40s. Both were white, with grey hair, weathered skin, and hardened appearances.

"The General will see you now." The younger of the duo took the lead, escorting her out of the room. Sophia followed quietly as they led her through the building, up the stairs, and all the way up to the entry shed on the roof.

She noted that the guards seemed to be in a very good mood, practically dancing on their toes as they walked.

She didn"t spot any other guards along the way, but that didn"t feel unusual. The only veterans guarding the place, as far as she was aware, were stationed on the rooftop and in the middle area of the skysc.r.a.per, where the general"s family was located. The in-between areas were left empty.

She forced herself not to look around for s.h.i.+n as she was escorted upward.

Once they reached the entry shed, the two guards turned around and left, instead of escorting her forward. The only direction they gave her was a motion to go out onto the roof.

Sophia hesitated for a moment before she opened the door.

The skysc.r.a.per they were in didn"t look very special. It had a single entry shed, a simple, white tile roof, and a small railing that wrapped around it, the only unique part. Most skysc.r.a.pers had no railing at all.

As she walked out onto the roof, Sophia noted that all the guards were nowhere to be seen. Instead, General Pedro"s figure could be seen standing a dozen meters away from her, looking out at the last traces of evening.

Sophia walked forward after taking a deep breath, forcing away any nervousness.

"General?" She spoke tentatively as she walked up a few meters behind him.

Pedro turned around, a smile on his face. His eyes were red, as if he had just been crying. He nodded at her.

"Forgive my appearance. It"s been an emotional day." His voice rumbled out in a slow, drawling manner.

"I take it the medicine worked?" Sophia replied equally slowly.

Pedro laughed out loud, his entire body shaking with jubilance. He grinned widely at Sophia, genuine joy in his eyes.

"Yes, it worked, and it worked perfectly! Both my wife and daughter are well on the path to recovery. I can see the visible changes taking place and, according to the doctor, their full recovery should take only a few days." The General didn"t explain how the doctor could have such knowledge, but Sophia a.s.sumed it was due to some type of Ability. She doubted he would"ve fed them the medicine otherwise.

"That"s great news!" A bead of worry in Sophia"s heart vanished as she smiled back at the General.

Pedro"s smiled faded slightly as he nodded slowly,

"I truly appreciate all that you and your team have done for me. I mean this from the bottom of my heart." He began, his tone becoming stalwart.

Sophia broke in, glancing to the left and right as she replied,

"Is it safe to talk here?" Micheal had made it known that this matter needed to be kept as secretive as possible.

"Ah, don"t worry, they can"t hear us. I had the roof cleared so that we could have a private discussion. They"re all downstairs." Pedro continued to smile as he took a few steps forward until he was right next to her.

He then reached forward and gathered her up in hearty bear-hug, laughing merrily. The man" somber demeanor had vanished completely, replaced by one of good cheer.

Sophia froze up at first, blinking furiously. After a moment, she returned the hug. Pedro quickly let go, stepping back.

"Thank you so much, my friend. You have no idea how much this means to me." Pedro thumped his chest as he continued,

"No matter what request you have, as long as it is a just one, I, Pedro Almaraz, will do everything in my power to help you. That is a promise." He declared this line with bravado.

"Perfect." Sophia smiled internally as she heard this.

She had achieved Micheal"s mission!

"In that case-" Just as she was about to reply, however…

A doorway s.h.i.+mmered into existence right behind General Pedro.

This extremely odd sight caused her to freeze up, stumbling over her words. The doorway looked to be made of gla.s.s, one that was transparent and see-through. She could see the other side of the roof through the doorway, as well as various skysc.r.a.pers.

"Hmm?" The Brigadier General stared at her curiously.

A split second later…

The clear door that was set in the doorway was pushed open, revealing a stark, white room and a robed and masked figure. The masked man wore a white, enamel mask with a golden number "6" carved into it, and long black robes.

In the moment that Sophia had to observe him, she saw that his hands gleamed with red light, as if some type of energy was concentrated upon them.

The masked figure took a single, near-instant step forward, out of the doorway, and then immediately stabbed out with their right hand, aimed directly at General Pedro"s chest. He didn"t wait to make a speech or pontificate, instead directly striking.

Incredibly, despite the complete shock of such a sudden attack, General Pedro reacted in time.

The moment the man saw Sophia"s shock, the General knew something was up. He was already in the process of spinning around when the masked figure moved forward and attacked.

The Brigadier General"s body contorted as he whipped around, raising his right arm and las.h.i.+ng out behind him. Green, Earth Tier Ki Energy leaked out, covering him as he drew on a huge amount of strength at once. A grey s.h.i.+mmer of light covered his right arm as he struck, some type of powerful Ability activating.

The masked figure"s right arm was millimeters from piercing into the General"s back when Pedro"s arm knocked into it, forcing the attack to miss. Instead of stabbing into the man"s heart, the attack gouged out a line of b.l.o.o.d.y flesh on the man"s back, shooting off to the side.

However, as all of this was taking place…

A second doorway formed. This one was much smaller, one that both Sophia and Pedro missed in the heat of the moment.

This doorway formed in front of the masked figure"s left arm.

As the man"s right arm was batted away, the left arm shot through this second doorway.

And, as the man did that, a third small doorway formed, right in front of General Pedro"s chest.

This doorway burst open as the man"s left arm shot through the second doorway and flew out from this one.

And not a moment later, the masked figure"s left arm stabbed into and pierced completely through General Pedro"s chest.

All of this in a single, frantic, split second.

"No!"

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