In the vacuum of space, sound did not travel.
The cosmic vastness was a place impossible for living beings to inhabit. Without oxygen and with temperatures reaching -270°C, it was an inevitable death zone. For an ordinary human, or even for those who had reached high echelons of power, survival there would be unthinkable.
However, Daniel wandered through the immensity with the naturalness of someone walking through their own backyard.
After achieving the Supreme Peak of the Martial Arts of "Void Traversal," he had become an energy-based being, reaching the Half-Transcendent stage. This was one of the greatest virtues of these Martial Arts: the transition from a natural organism to a transcendent one. Everyone who reached the apex became this way; as long as there was internal flow, the body would sustain itself. Clearly, the advantages were numerous, but few succeeded in climbing such a steep mountain.
In the Murim World, there were only ten individuals at this level, and perhaps a hundred in the Unfettered Realm situated just below. Reaching the Harmonious Realm was the goal of many, for the three superior levels were unreachable without exceptional talent and vast resources. Fortunate encounters could help, but such strokes of luck were rarities.
Above the Supreme Peak came the "Heaven," as the main practitioners of Murim called it, though it was much better known by the masses as the Transcendent Realm. This was Daniel's current stage; a barrier that, unfortunately, he had not yet been able to break. His isolated martial strength was comparable to Rank SSS, a level he also attained through the System via the sacrifice of his disciples. By unifying both sources, he consolidated himself as an absolute powerhouse of the Transcendent Realm—even though he had not yet crossed into that Realm, his strength was already comparable.
However, Daniel was aware that even with this vigor, he could not face those who had surpassed the Heaven Realm. Above this level, a qualitative change in energy and an existential fusion occurred; at that point, they ceased to be mortals—they began to master laws—it was the little he had discovered about it. It was not something surmountable by brute force alone; it was a transmutation of the very existential essence. It was something entirely new and elevated beyond this dimension.
Adult dragons, for example, occupied this level of power. That was why he could do nothing against them. In the Murim World, two "old monsters" of such magnitude remained—enemies that needed to be decimated at all costs, as they were the primary ones responsible for the enslavement of the human race.
After the sacrifice of his disciples, Daniel's power was elevated directly by the System, and his vital energy ended up fully restored. The age of his physical body had regressed to twenty, granting him enough time to prepare. His pupils had truly planned every detail. With his current vigor, knowledge, and Supreme Physique, he believed that by pushing himself to the limit, he would have a 60% chance of winning if he faced them individually, since he did not understand the legendary Laws.
"Fortunately, there are only two of them left," he reflected.
Not counting the two old monsters, Daniel had once considered himself powerful. It was only upon meeting the terrifying draconian race that he realized how limited his vision was. Those creatures were terrifying beyond comprehension.
The System that assisted humanity was also corrupted by a superior and unknown force. There were several restrictions, the main one being the limitation of growth. His most talented disciples, for example, were stuck at Rank S. Others barely reached B or A, while the vast majority of the population did not pass Rank D or C. Because of this, it was a Herculean task to resist the constant onslaughts of the various invading races.
Martial Arts proved to be more useful, yet even they suffered limitations imposed by the System: if someone awakened as a "user," they became incapable of learning martial arts. It was necessary to cultivate a Ki core before the awakening. Daniel guided his pupils diligently, as he knew most would gain useless powers via the System.
It was only later that it was discovered a being of a lineage superior to the dragons was interfering with the defense mechanisms of several worlds. The System offered a spark of initial hope, only for the crushing reality to plunge humanity into despair. Daniel knew the bitterness of impotence well.
Each race possessed a type of support. The human race, strangely, was the only one with an interface that resembled games: "Status, titles, skills, classes."
The Murim World held Martial Arts; the Runic World possessed its runes; and the Eragon Empire mixed ancestral techniques of souls, swordsmanship, spears, and magic. As for the origin of the dimensional rifts that connected these worlds, bringing chaos and war... he suspected the influence of the superior race behind the scenes, but still harbored doubts. Earth was not the only victim; all realms suffered, though the others were in a slightly better situation.
There was much to discover. Daniel knew the journey would be long. Although his disciples had departed wishing for him to be happy, he could not remain static. He would not allow everything to be destroyed again.
At NASA's space observation center, the atmosphere was one of feverish excitement. Theories emerged every second. Some suggested it was the body of a missing astronaut orbiting the Moon, but others refuted the idea: the figure floated upright, arms crossed and with an imposing gaze, without any sign of rigor mortis. Moreover, without atmospheric pressure, the other party's body should have been bloated.
Alisha watched in silence. The Marshal and Admiral maintained the same enigmatic posture. President George displayed a neutral face, while his mind worked at an accelerated pace. The concern of the trio, however, fell upon Michel, the CIA director, who was making long-distance calls with a suggestive smile.
— "Hmph! I don't understand how this psychopath reached that position!" Alisha muttered, biting her lips in contempt.
She had competed for the position with Michel, but his influence with the occult powers of the USA had been an insurmountable obstacle. In her investigations, Alisha had discovered atrocities: he was a lunatic who performed human dissections and fusion experiments with animals. Crimes enough for hundreds of death penalties, and yet, there he was, in one of the nation's most powerful seats.
— "Kyaa! He... disappeared!"
The scream of an employee made everyone turn their attention back to the main screen. The figure had vanished. Soon, Admiral Thomas's powerful voice echoed through the room as he noticed something unusual:
— "Look at the observation module's screen!"
A deathly silence dominated the room. That man, completely naked, was standing before the satellite's glass dome. Inside the structure, three American astronauts watched, paralyzed by shock, that stranger floating in the vacuum without any suit or oxygen supply.
The man waved in a friendly manner—a gesture that, given the physical impossibility of the situation, left them even more terrified. He smiled and made a sign, appearing to request permission to enter. The astronauts backed away, breaking into a cold sweat before that overwhelming presence that defied all natural laws.
Daniel had turned on the shower and was taking a bath.
Because of the level his body had reached, there was no need for cleaning. He did not sweat, and his internal energy served as an additional layer over his skin, preventing anything from making him dirty.
Even so, whenever he had the chance, he took a nice bath; this was a small pleasure he would not give up. Be it eating, drinking, or bathing—these things that were not physiological necessities, he refused to abandon entirely. Despite everything, they were activities that made him remember he was human.
As the water ran down his well-built body, with muscles distributed in a harmonious and beautiful way, Daniel ended up overhearing the conversation occurring outside. At first, he felt irritated; however, it reminded him of some of his disciples and, because of that, he decided to let it slide this time.
Earlier, Daniel had been in front of the dome of this satellite, and there were three astronauts, "one man and two women."
At first, he thought it was a bit strange, but upon analyzing the man with his spiritual sense, he noticed something interesting. Regarding the women... Daniel did not have a good impression of those two. Especially the one who acted shy, as he had known someone who played that part just like her. That disciple of his always looked at him with a very intense gaze that gave him many shivers.