In the middle of space, a large circular spaceship drifted silently, its size resembling that of a small city. Its sleek, alien-like design might be exactly what most people would imagine an alien ship to look like. The ship had been orbiting a planet for some time now, keeping a steady, unchanging path without any closer approach to the mysterious world below.
Inside the ship, in the spacious commander's hall, Graham stood still with his hands locked behind his back. His gaze was fixed on the planet outside—a world shrouded in thick clouds, mysterious and unexplored. The faint, eerie glow from the planet reflected on the glass in front of him.
After a few quiet moments, he heard footsteps echoing down the metal hall. Graham turned to see Stan approaching him, his expression calm yet focused.
"You took longer than I expected," Graham said in a friendly tone. "For a moment, I thought you might have changed your mind."
Stan shook his head and replied, "Not at all. I was just making sure everything was in order back at the base." He moved to stand beside Graham, his eyes also settling on the strange planet outside, lost in thought.
"I'm quite certain this whole arrangement has something to do with that Alex boy," Graham said, raising an eyebrow as he spoke. "Tell me, how did you come across such a young, talented kid?"
Stan gave him a sharp look but didn't respond. Instead, he turned and started walking toward the door with determined steps. "I'm not here to discuss that," Stan replied firmly. "Get everything ready; we're heading out now."
Without a word, Graham grabbed the telecom on his console. He held it to his mouth and began issuing orders with a steady, commanding tone.
Meanwhile, Stan stepped into a vast hall filled with large, metal crates stacked against the walls and scattered across the floor. He wasn't dressed as usual this time—he wore a tight, black suit that hugged his form, almost like a space suit. A helmet dangled by his side, held firmly in his left hand.
Graham joined him, looking around at the crates. "I see you're well-prepared," Stan commented, glancing over at Graham.
Graham nodded but kept his face serious. "This is the least of our concerns right now," he replied, his voice low but focused.
He turned to face Stan directly and began explaining. "Even though we haven't seen much movement from the planet, we're certain that there are living beings down there. They might be beasts, maybe powerful ones, or perhaps an entire race we haven't encountered before."
Stan listened carefully, his expression unreadable as Graham continued.
"Our main objective," Graham said, gesturing to the equipment around them, "is to break through whatever barrier has been stopping us. Once we get inside, we'll be able to explore every corner with the equipment we've brought."
Stan's grip tightened around his helmet as he nodded in silent agreement, preparing himself for what lay ahead.
Not too long ago, members of the Dragon Roar Faction discovered a strange planet. Ever since, they had been trying to explore it, but they kept running into obstacles. Whenever they sent robots down to investigate, the signal would suddenly cut off, leaving the robots lost. And when they tried sending humans, an unknown force would push them right back up before they could even touch the surface.
Now, Stan was determined to confront whatever mysterious barrier was causing this and, if possible, break through it once and for all.
After listening to Graham's detailed explanations, Stan took a deep breath and prepared himself. With a steady grip, he placed his helmet on his head, securing it tightly, and then walked into a tall, clear glass tube in the center of the launch area.
"This tube will launch you with enough force to get you directly into the planet's atmosphere," Graham explained, raising his voice slightly over the hum of the machinery around them. "Brace yourself for the impact."
Stan nodded, gripping the interior handles on each side of the tube to steady himself. Suddenly, there was a loud, explosive bang, and the tube fired downward with immense power. In a split second, Stan was gone, propelled through the tube and into the vast emptiness toward the planet below.
"Alright, everyone, get the ship moving and follow him!" Graham barked, turning to his crew as the sound of hurried footsteps and machinery filled the room. "We don't know how long the barrier will stay open after this attempt," he added, urgency clear in his tone.
The crew snapped into action, each member moving quickly to their stations, adjusting controls and powering up the engines. The ship began to hum, vibrating as it prepared for the descent, while onlookers watched the view screens to track Stan's rapid descent.
As Stan was launched from the ship, he shot downward toward the planet with incredible force. The ship was already fairly close to the planet, so in just moments, he began to approach the surface below.
The descent, however, was far from clear. Thick clouds stretched across the sky, blocking his view in every direction as he dropped lower and lower. Stan strained to see anything beyond the dense clouds, but visibility was nearly zero. Despite this, he kept his focus, watching for any sign of the planet's surface below.
Then, something unusual happened. He started to feel himself slowing down. His descent, once fast and steady, was gradually coming to a halt. Stan felt a strange resistance, as if an invisible force was pushing against him, holding him back from reaching the ground.
"This planet is larger than Earth," he thought to himself, his mind racing, "so it should have a stronger gravitational pull. But instead of pulling me down, it's pushing me up, almost like a reverse gravity." He quickly realized, "This must be the barrier everyone was talking about."
Eventually, Stan's descent completely stopped, leaving him floating among the thick, swirling clouds. He looked around, taking in the strange sensation of being suspended in mid-air, unable to move forward. He expected that any second now, he would be pushed back up toward space, just like the other faction members who had tried to approach the planet.
Yet, despite waiting, he wasn't being pushed back. Stan continued to hover, held in place, but not repelled. He frowned, puzzled by this strange turn of events. "Why am I not being sent back?" he wondered.
Just as the thought crossed his mind, he sensed a faint shift in the atmosphere.
Inside him, Stan felt a strange movement. Quickly, he focused inward and entered his sea of consciousness, looking to understand what was happening.
In this inner space, Stan saw thick mists swirling around, flowing in all directions. It filled his entire sea of consciousness, moving slowly but steadily.
"If this planet really contains peace energy, maybe that's why it didn't push me back," he thought, trying to make sense of it all. The mist seemed to gather right where he was floating, almost as if it recognized him.
"If this keeps up, I won't be able to move any further down," he realized. "And I can't let the others get through either if this energy reacts like this."
Resolving to take action, Stan moved to the center of his sea of consciousness, where his bloodline core pulsed with a dim glow. He knew he'd have to be cautious with what he was about to do.
"I can't use too much of my energy," he murmured to himself, aware that too much power would draw attention.
Meanwhile, outside, Stan raised his hands, gathering a small amount of red energy at his fingertips. The energy crackled and glowed, contained and ready.
"Just one shot should do it," he muttered. His focus sharpened, and he aimed carefully—one finger pointing up toward the sky, the other aimed downward.
In a split second, two narrow beams of energy shot out from his fingertips. The beam heading up sliced through the thick atmosphere above, while the other shot downward, aiming toward the planet's surface.
As the beams moved through the dense clouds, they created a path, pushing the mist aside and leaving an open space in their wake. The clouds shifted, forming a wide, deep tunnel-like gap, almost like a well reaching both above and below him.
Stan felt the force holding him firmly as he continued to fall deeper into the planet's atmosphere. He could feel the energy surrounding him, keeping him suspended yet slowly letting him descend.
After what felt like a long drop, Stan finally noticed something below. Shapes and shadows began to emerge through the thick clouds.
"I better call that energy back now," Stan muttered to himself. He stretched out both hands, one pointing upward and the other downward, focusing carefully.
The energy beams he had sent out earlier responded, turning back toward him. He could see the red light piercing through the clouds, returning in his direction. He held steady as the energy he controlled came back to him, merging again with his fingertips.
---
Meanwhile, Graham and his team waited just above the planet's atmosphere. Suddenly, a flash of red light shot out from the sea of clouds below. The beam didn't linger; it moved quickly, diving back into the clouds, this time widening the space around it even further.
"There it is! That's Stan's energy! Hurry, follow it in before the barrier closes!" Graham shouted, his voice urgent. The team reacted instantly, steering the ship forward. With a flash, their ship disappeared into the clouds, vanishing inside the planet's atmosphere just as the clouds began to close up again.
---
Not long after, a circular golden glow appeared out in space, shimmering like a portal. From it, a figure stepped out, scanning the area.
"Just now... I was sure I felt that energy around here," the person murmured, eyes narrowing. Turning to face the planet in front of him, he studied it closely, as though sensing something hidden deep within.
"What planet is this? What's going on down there?" the figure murmured, still watching the planet closely from his position in space.
---
Meanwhile, Stan waited as the red energy he had shot downward returned to his body. He held out his other hand, still waiting for the remaining energy to come back to him.
As he waited, Stan realized he needed to focus on his landing. Though he was a high-stage Paragon, this planet was unfamiliar and strange, with an energy barrier he didn't fully understand. He couldn't risk drawing unnecessary attention to himself.
He pressed a button on his suit, and a bubble of air surrounded him. As he neared the ground, this air cushion slowed his descent, allowing him to land smoothly without impact.
The moment he touched down, the red energy burst through the clouds, returning to him like a bright streak in the sky. Stan stretched out his hand, collecting the energy as it merged back with him.
But as he scanned the clouds above, he grew tense. "Come on, Graham… where are you?" he muttered, clenching his teeth. He knew the space he'd created in the clouds wouldn't stay open forever, and he could already see the thick, heavy clouds starting to close up, gradually blocking out the gap he'd made.
Just as the opening was about to seal entirely, a massive ship burst through with an intense force, slicing through the clouds and heading straight toward the ground. The ship hit the ground hard, sending dirt and dust flying in all directions as it finally came to a rough landing.
Stan sighed in relief, watching the ship settle amid the cloud of dust. "Well… looks like we all made it in safely," he said, a slight smile crossing his face. He started walking toward the ship, eager to regroup with the team.
---
However, what neither Stan nor Graham realized was that their entry hadn't gone unnoticed. Somewhere in the distance, two creatures sensed their presence. Alerted by the disturbance, the creatures began moving through the thick forests of the planet, heading directly for the newcomers.