Ivan observed the plain, barren terrain that seemed to stretch for miles.
'How do I level up?' Ivan mused, a question forming in his mind.
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Do you want to level up to Base-rank now?
Levelling up to Base-rank will cost you 1000 exp and 10 mana rocks.
'Hmm, it's cheaper than I expected. I thought my entire experience points would be expended on levelling up. Perhaps it's too soon to draw conclusions,' Ivan reflected on the information presented to him.
Ivan then stated, "Yes, I want to level up now."
Immediately, Ivan felt a strong vibration emanating from his kit bag.
"What in the world!" Ivan cursed aloud, startled.
The mana rocks flew out of the bag with violent force, ripping the fabric of the kit bag.
"Damn it! It tore my kit bag!" Ivan exclaimed, a genuine pang of pain in his voice.
The mana rocks floated several inches above Ivan's head. They began to swirl, starting at a slow pace and gradually accelerating into a rapid, furious rotation.
Ivan felt his body calmly and gradually transition into a violent vibration. The intense state of his body disoriented his thoughts, making him unable to keep track of time or his own existence. The swirling rocks transformed into a luminous green vortex. If one gazed into the vortex, they would discern a mass quickly approaching, poised to exit. This mass proved to be a concentrated green bolt of raw energy.
The green bolt of energy burst from the vortex and struck Ivan with immense force.
"Arrgh!" Ivan yelled, an agonised cry.
The bolt formed a pulsating bridge between the vortex and Ivan's head. Energy continuously flowed in powerful waves through this ethereal bridge, from the vortex directly into Ivan's body. Ivan felt his very being being ripped apart, molecule by molecule. It was, without doubt, the worst experience in his entire lifetime.
BOOM! A voluminous amount of raw energy was abruptly dispelled from Ivan's body. It was as if the entropy of his physical form had suddenly surged, releasing a tremendous, uncontrolled burst of power. This violent event was a necessary part of the levelling-up process—nature rebuilding a player's constitution to ascend their power rank.
Five minutes of excruciating pain and relentless torture slowly passed. The green tinge of the vortex began to rapidly diminish until the vortex became colourless. Instantly, the vortex collapsed into dust, and Ivan was finally free from the torment.
Ivan collapsed onto his knees, hyperventilating. His thoughts had not yet fully registered that he was free. He still felt the lingering, phantom sensations of pain coursing throughout his body.
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Congratulations!
You have levelled up to Base-rank!
You are now a special character.
Mission Complete.
Upgrade to Base-rank in power level.
Reward: 2000 exp.
The appearance of the information bar dragged back some semblance of sanity into Ivan's mind. His vision focused on the figures displayed on the information bar, but he couldn't quite comprehend them. It didn't bother him that he couldn't understand the numbers, as he still couldn't think properly. The sheer pain from levelling up had truly taken its toll on him.
Since you are now a special character, you have to choose an avatar name.
Note: An avatar name cannot be the same as your name.
Insert avatar name.
Something inside Ivan's kit bag vibrated. This time it was Black Riot, the black longsword that formerly belonged to humanity's legendary Pillar of Calamity-rank character, Merlin_13. Due to his disoriented state of mind, he failed to notice the vibration.
Your Sword, Black Riot, has resonated with your power.
Black Riot has 100% acknowledged you as its new owner.
Throughout the Torn Indigo game, an announcement appeared in the sky, instantly attracting the attention of every player, both special and regular characters.
"The S-rank weapon, Black Riot, has acknowledged its new owner."
"The S-rank weapon, Black Riot, has acknowledged its new owner."
"The S-rank weapon, Black Riot, has acknowledged its new owner."
The announcement sparked widespread discussion among people. Many questioned, "Is the new owner the same person who possessed it yesterday, or has another individual claimed the sword?" This ignited fervent rumours that Merlin_13 wasn't truly dead and had faked his demise to escape something. He had supposedly returned through a secret medium and repossessed his mighty S-rank weapon, Black Riot.
Meanwhile, the surveillance crew at the gaming hub where Ivan was currently visiting were contemplating intervening to help Ivan revive from his dazed state.
Rodrygo, one of three people in the crew handling the hub's surveillance, laughed heartily, amused by the dramatic scene unfolding before him. "Let him revive by his own might."
Tony, a concerned colleague, said, "What if he dies?"
Rodrygo replied confidently, "He won't die. He is already awake; he is just temporarily overwhelmed by the residual pain."
'Black Riot? Resonate with my power? Where am I? What is going on?' Ivan questioned himself, his reasoning gradually returning to its peak.
The first thing he did was to pull up his system info.
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System Info
Character Name: Nnamani Ivan
Avatar Name: Pending (Player is yet to insert an avatar name)
Power Rank: Base-rank
Weapon: Sword
Weapon Name: Black Riot
Type: Unique
Weapon Power: S-rank
Inventory: Player lacks an inventory
'I'm Base-rank now?' Ivan was genuinely taken aback by what he saw.
He observed his surroundings. It felt utterly strange to him, and he had expected to be in his familiar apartment.
'What am I doing here?' Ivan almost panicked, a cold dread creeping in.
Suddenly, vivid past memories from a few moments ago flooded back to him.
"Oh my word." Ivan facepalmed with both hands. He couldn't believe he had forgotten what had happened mere minutes ago.
'That was one heck of an experience. I just hope levelling up to subsequent levels won't be as painful as that,' Ivan mused, a shiver running down his spine.
He then read the other information bars that had popped up before he pulled up his system information.
Ivan thought to himself, 'Insert Avatar name? What name should I choose? Ah, why is this so difficult for me?'
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Avatar name inserted.
Avatar Name: Black_Riot 79: Reborn
Ivan had chosen Black_Riot 79: Reborn because that was the name of the Pillar of Calamity-rank monster Merlin_13 had defeated to obtain Black Riot. Actually, the monster's original name was Black_Riot 79. The monster was known to be incredibly powerful, and it would typically require the collaboration of forty Awakened Transcendent-ranked characters to take down such a formidable beast.
The name sounded cool to Ivan, and he truly admired the raw strength the monster had exhibited. That was the primary reason he chose the name.
The monster had been severely injured after running riot among the Awakened Transcendent-rank characters, causing them to flee in disarray. Merlin_13 had seized this opportune moment to battle the beast in its weakened state, ultimately defeating it and accomplishing the final requirement for him to ascend from the Awakened Transcendent rank to the coveted Pillar of Calamity rank.