A tide of vibrant colors flooded Zeke's vision.
His heart had stopped beating.
Life continued regardless.
A lonely wind whistled across the barren wasteland where a thriving forest had once stood.
As if responding to the rhythm of the night itself, the Blood Sanctum finally dispersed.
The last traces of its crimson glow faded into nothingness.
No longer bound to the world he had inhabited for over a century, Zeke's body remained motionless at the center of the ruined landscape.
Then a miniature black hole appeared.
In an instant, it swallowed him whole.
Reality unraveled.
Space collapsed.
Existence itself seemed to break apart before rebuilding again and again in an endless cycle.
Consciousness drifted in and out.
Zeke felt himself being carried away by a vast river of light.
His life flashed before him.
Memories surfaced one after another before dissolving into the current.
The mystery of how Stephen had transmigrated from modern-day Earth after slipping into a coma from an overdose still remained unanswered.
Yet compared to everything else, it no longer seemed important.
The years spent as Zeke Samus had long since become his true life.
The exhilaration of cultivation.
The terror of his first kill.
The countless betrayals.
The friendships.
The victories.
The regrets.
Everything flowed past him like scenes projected onto a screen.
Gradually, his thoughts became hazy.
The deeper he drifted into the river, the more his sense of self began to dissolve.
Time lost meaning.
Identity became meaningless.
His existence slowly expanded into the current itself.
The process felt strangely comforting.
Peaceful.
For the first time in decades, the burden resting upon his shoulders began to fade.
'Maybe this isn't so bad.'
The thought surfaced naturally.
'After everything I've endured... perhaps it's finally time to rest.'
The current pulled him deeper.
His memories continued slipping away.
'Wait...'
His thoughts slowed.
'What exactly did I endure?'
The question felt distant.
Unimportant.
'Who am I?'
Silence followed.
The answer failed to come.
'Maybe it doesn't matter.'
His consciousness drifted lower.
'Maybe it never mattered at all.'
Then everything changed.
A new memory surfaced.
One he had buried beneath decades of pain.
A woman.
A smile.
A future that never came to pass.
The brutal murder of both her and their unborn child.
The grief struck like a blade through his soul.
The peace vanished.
Rage took its place.
An overwhelming hatred erupted from the depths of his being.
The river trembled.
Then another face appeared.
Lord Samus.
Smiling.
Watching.
Mocking.
The fury inside Zeke exploded.
'No.'
The thought thundered through his mind.
'How could I forget?'
The river churned violently.
'No.'
His soul trembled.
'I could never forget.'
The current that sought to erase him suddenly met resistance.
'I refuse.'
The words became a roar.
'I will have my revenge.'
The river twisted.
Violent waves erupted in every direction.
'I will make every one of them pay.'
Light and darkness collided.
'I will rise beyond mortality itself.'
His presence stabilized.
'I will become immortal.'
The river lost its hold over him.
'And no one will ever look down upon me again.'
The moment his resolve fully returned, enlightenment struck.
Without consciously realizing it, Zeke completed the final step of Self-Return.
The river disappeared.
Darkness consumed everything.
....
"...Where am I?"
Zeke slowly opened his eyes.
The first thing he felt was stone beneath his back.
The second was confusion.
Pushing himself upright, he struggled to gather his thoughts.
His head felt clouded.
The events leading up to his awakening remained frustratingly unclear.
A faint light eventually caught his attention.
Several torches flickered in the distance.
Following them, he stepped forward through what appeared to be a cave.
The sound of shallow water echoed beneath his feet.
Then he noticed his reflection.
The dim surface barely revealed the face staring back at him.
Zeke froze.
Golden eyes.
Bronze skin.
Short black hair.
A youthful face he hadn't seen in over a century.
His adolescent self.
"..."
For several moments, he simply stared.
The realization slowly settled in.
He had regressed.
Not reincarnated.
Not transmigrated.
Regressed.
His initial shock soon gave way to contemplation.
When he first created Self-Return, his goal had been simple.
Return to Earth.
Return to being Stephen.
However, time possessed a strange way of reshaping a person's desires.
A bitter smile formed on his face.
'Hmph.'
'What am I even hesitating for?'
He shook his head.
'When I first arrived in this world, I desperately wanted to go home.'
The reflection remained still.
'But that dream died a long time ago.'
His eyes hardened.
'Stephen died the day he fell into that coma.'
The cave suddenly felt quieter.
'I'm Zeke.'
The answer felt natural.
Absolute.
'And this time...'
A cold glint flashed through his eyes.
'I'm going to finish what I started.'
Before he could think further, a translucent blue screen appeared before him.
[Immortal System]
---- A warm welcome and congratulations are in order for being one of the few individuals to successfully unlock the Immortal System ----
Zeke blinked.
For several seconds, he simply stared.
The concept wasn't entirely foreign to him.
Back on Earth, Stephen had read countless novels involving systems.
More importantly, during his previous life in this world, he had encountered several transmigrators who possessed one.
Including Jin-Jo.
Unlike them, however, Zeke had never received such a blessing.
For years, he assumed some unknown error had occurred.
The possibility of finally obtaining one now was both surprising and suspicious.
Before he could investigate further, distant voices echoed through the cave.
"What was this poor bastard's name again?"
"Who cares? His head will be decorating a pike soon enough."
"Hah! Serves him right."
Their laughter grew closer.
Zeke immediately tensed.
'Damn it.'
His gaze narrowed.
'Something's wrong.'
None of this had happened in my previous life.
Grabbing a nearby torch, he quickly retreated.
Moments later, he discovered the area where he had awakened was a dead end.
Searching frantically, he found a narrow ledge hidden within the shadows.
Without hesitation, he climbed into the cramped crevice.
Extinguishing the torch, he crouched silently.
One hand gripped a loose stone.
The other steadied his breathing.
Then the Immortal System appeared once more.
[Immortal System]
---- Two men approach with killing intent. How will you choose to handle this situation? ----
---- You will be graded S, A, B, C, D, or F based on your performance. Difficulty levels are ranked Diamond, Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze. ----
Difficulty: Silver
Rewards:
S = TBD
A = Recover Memory + B
B = Full Heal
C = N/A
D = N/A
F = Death
---- Good luck :) ----