Jade floated peacefully within the endless darkness.
For the first time in what felt like forever, there were no monsters.
No battles.
No blood.
No screams.
No desperate struggle for survival.
Only silence.
Only peace.
His body drifted through the void as if he were sleeping upon calm waters.
After spending more than a year and a half inside the trial, such rest was something Jade had almost forgotten existed.
The exhaustion accumulated within his mind and soul could not be described with words.
Every battle.
Every wound.
Every loss.
Every moment where death had nearly claimed him.
All of it had piled upon his shoulders.
And now, finally, he was resting.
For a while, Jade remained asleep.
The darkness around him was strangely comforting.
It felt warm.
Safe.
As though the void itself had embraced him.
Time passed quietly.
Minutes.
Perhaps an hour.
Then suddenly—
The void trembled.
A faint ripple spread through the darkness.
The peaceful silence broke.
A familiar voice echoed throughout the endless expanse.
The System.
Its mechanical whisper sounded distant yet clear.
"Welcome to your Soul Sea."
The voice paused briefly.
Then it continued.
"Your Soul Sea will be formed in a few seconds."
Jade slowly opened his eyes.
The first thing he felt was confusion.
The second was surprise.
He sat up slowly.
The endless darkness remained around him.
Yet something felt different.
Something was changing.
Jade rubbed his eyes before looking around.
Then he noticed a familiar figure nearby.
Aviana.
The girl was sitting cross-legged in the darkness.
Her black-and-gold hair fluttered slightly despite there being no wind.
The moment she noticed Jade awake, a smile appeared on her face.
"You finally woke up."
Jade yawned loudly.
His body still felt tired.
"I was sleeping."
Aviana rolled her eyes.
"You were practically dead."
Jade chuckled.
"That's because I spent a year and a half fighting."
"Fair point."
The two sat quietly for a moment.
Then Aviana tilted her head.
"I think it's time for your appraisal, isn't it?"
Jade stretched his arms lazily.
His bones cracked.
"I think so."
He wasn't particularly excited.
Right now he simply wanted to rest.
Yet curiosity slowly began to replace his exhaustion.
An appraisal.
That meant he would finally know what he had gained from the trial.
Before either of them could continue speaking—
The void moved.
Not figuratively.
Literally.
The darkness itself began to change.
The transformation started beneath Jade's feet.
Ripples spread throughout the emptiness.
Then crimson liquid emerged from nowhere.
At first it looked like a small puddle.
Then it expanded.
And expanded.
And expanded.
Soon an enormous ocean stretched endlessly before them.
Its waters were deep red.
Not ordinary water.
Blood.
An ocean of blood.
The sight was magnificent.
And terrifying.
Jade instinctively understood what it was.
His essence.
The source of his power.
The foundation of his existence.
Everything he possessed was gathered there.
The blood ocean continued expanding until it reached its natural limits.
Though vast, it was not endless.
Jade could somehow sense every drop within it.
He could feel its flow.
Its movement.
Its power.
For the first time, Jade truly understood what essence felt like.
It wasn't simply energy.
It was part of him.
An extension of his own existence.
Then the transformation continued.
The darkness beneath the blood ocean shifted.
Golden sand emerged.
A coastline formed.
Soon an endless beach stretched across the Soul Sea.
The sand glittered faintly beneath the crimson sky.
Jade stepped onto it.
His feet sank slightly.
It felt real.
Completely real.
He looked around in amazement.
"This is my Soul Sea?"
Aviana nodded.
"It's beautiful."
Jade had to admit she was right.
Then he looked upward.
The sky itself was changing.
The darkness split apart.
Crimson light flooded the heavens.
The sky turned blood-red.
Dark crimson clouds drifted overhead.
The entire world resembled a battlefield frozen in time.
Beautiful.
Ancient.
And somehow lonely.
Jade stood silently.
For a moment he simply admired the scenery.
Then something caught his attention.
Far away.
At the edge of his vision.
A dark shape.
No.
Thousands of dark shapes.
Jade frowned.
Slowly, he turned toward the distant horizon.
And froze.
His heartbeat skipped.
The sight before him was enough to make even him shudder.
An army.
A massive army.
Thousands upon thousands of figures stood silently in perfect formation.
None moved.
None spoke.
None breathed.
They simply stood there.
Like statues.
Like soldiers awaiting orders.
The sight stretched beyond the horizon.
Jade could not even estimate their number.
His instincts immediately became alert.
He took several steps forward.
Aviana noticed his reaction.
"What is it?"
Jade didn't answer.
His eyes remained fixed on the army.
Slowly, he approached.
The closer he got, the clearer the figures became.
Then Jade saw the first familiar face.
Divine Vine Wrath.
The monstrous creature stood at the front.
Its enormous body remained motionless.
Its vines were stained crimson.
Its appearance had changed.
It looked less like a living creature.
And more like a bloody monument carved from flesh.
Jade stared.
Then he looked beyond it.
More creatures.
Thousands more.
Every shape imaginable.
Beasts.
Demons.
Monsters.
Abominations.
Nightmares.
Some small.
Some gigantic.
Some familiar.
Some barely remembered.
Then realization struck him.
His eyes widened.
"No way..."
He walked deeper into the silent army.
The more he looked—
The more certain he became.
Every creature here had one thing in common.
He had killed them.
Every single one.
With his own hands.
The creatures he had slain throughout the trial.
The creatures whose blood had stained his sword.
The creatures whose lives had ended beneath his strikes.
They were all here.
Standing silently within his Soul Sea.
An endless graveyard army.
Jade felt a chill run through his body.
The sight was both magnificent and horrifying.
Aviana arrived beside him.
Even she seemed shocked.
"What are they?"
Jade spoke quietly.
"I think..."
His voice trailed off.
Then he finished.
"I killed them."
Silence followed.
Neither knew what to say.
Jade stared at the countless dead creatures.
The army remained perfectly still.
Eventually, curiosity got the better of him.
He stepped closer to Divine Vine Wrath.
Then he snapped his fingers.
Nothing happened.
The creature didn't move.
Jade frowned.
He tried again.
Still nothing.
The giant remained frozen.
Then Jade raised his voice.
"Move."
Silence.
No reaction.
Jade narrowed his eyes.
He pointed forward.
"Attack."
Nothing.
The army remained motionless.
Not a single creature obeyed.
Not a single head turned.
Not a single finger twitched.
They simply stood there.
Watching nothing.
Waiting for nothing.
Jade exchanged a glance with Aviana.
"Well."
"I guess they aren't my army."
Aviana laughed softly.
"That would've been terrifying."
Jade nodded.
"Agreed."
He continued staring at the silent legion.
Questions filled his mind.
Why were they here?
What purpose did they serve?
Why had his Soul Sea created them?
The answers remained hidden.
Yet Jade felt instinctively that these creatures weren't meaningless.
There was a reason for their existence.
A reason he simply hadn't discovered yet.
Before he could investigate further—
The System spoke once more.
Its voice echoed across the blood ocean.
Across the crimson sky.
Across the endless army of the dead.
The mechanical whisper carried unusual weight.
Almost as if something important was about to happen.
"Prepare for your appraisal."