The Sky Opens
There was no warning.No tremor.Only an inaudible whisper that traversed the soul of the entire world.
[STAGE 2 INITIATED: EXTINCTION TRIAL][PLANETARY SURVIVAL LEVEL: INSUFFICIENT][ACTIVATING TRIAL ENTITIES: SS+ RANK]
And then… the sky opened.
New York – The Fire That BreathesFrom the clouds burst a column of blood-red light. The temperature in Manhattan rose by 200 degrees in less than 40 seconds. Concrete began to melt. Steel groaned. The very atmosphere caught fire.And from that rift, a colossal being fell—engulfed in living flames, with three superimposed skulls and spiral limbs. It had no face… only incandescent furnaces as eyes.With its first breath… it evaporated Central Park entirely.
Cairo – The Sand That Swallows LifeIn Egypt, the air turned to dust before anyone could react. From deep within the desert, a creature composed of living dunes and bones of lost civilizations emerged. With each step, it reduced structures to ruins… and then to nothing.The Cairo bastion attempted evacuation. It did not succeed.
Osaka – The Reflection That KillsOver Japan, a crystalline figure descended slowly. Seemingly fragile, it floated with eerie grace… until an A+ Rank Guardian launched a beam directly at its chest.The beam rebounded.And killed ten Guardians standing beside him.The creature smiled. Its surface was made of mirrored energy, and its eyes glowed with intelligence.A dragon with no mouth… but with tactical memory.
Kenya – The Root of CorruptionIn the Rift Valley, black roots erupted from the ground. A beast resembling a towering spider-tree began to crawl, releasing a toxin that mutated animals and plants in seconds.Guardians approaching the area suffered hallucinations, spasms… and self-destruction.The earth itself had become the enemy.
Norway – The White AbyssIn the Lofoten Islands, temperatures plunged to -90°C. The sea split. A leviathan of ice and emptiness emerged from the waters, sending out psychic waves that nullified all perception of reality.Guardians screamed, unaware of why. They died, never knowing what struck them.And in the north… humanity vanished without leaving an echo.
The World BreaksIn less than an hour, five regions across the planet were in total collapse.Survival System sensors began to emit a message never before recorded:
[GLOBAL SURVIVAL AT CRITICAL RISK][WITHOUT INTERVENTION FROM SUPERIOR ENTITIES, PLANETARY COLLAPSE WILL OCCUR IN 7 DAYS]
Transmissions froze on the faces of weeping leaders, screaming Guardians, kneeling civilians.And in a high platform in La Paz, Rob watched it all unfold with a steady gaze. Unmoving.Beside him, Thea barely whispered:—It has begun…Rob closed his eyes.—The second trial.
Those Who Answer the Call
The main command hall in La Paz filled in less than five minutes.No one was summoned.No one was forced.Everyone came… because they knew it had begun.
Rob stood before the global map. The red zones pulsed with ever-increasing intensity.Five epicenters.Five trials.
—There are no more warnings —he said, voice steady—. This time… there will be no second chances for anyone.
No one interrupted. The world had already seen him rise beyond any human expectation.But it wasn't just his power that commanded respect—It was his conviction.
The Deployment of the Chosen
Rob pointed to each of the flashing regions on the map.
—I'm going to New York. That creature consumes cities with just a breath. If I don't stop it within the hour… the entire East Coast will disappear.
—Thea, Nikolav —he continued—. I need you in Norway. If that thing sinks into the glacial core, Europe will fall into eternal winter.
—Alex, you're facing the impossible —he said, locking eyes with his old friend—. The crystal dragon in Osaka can't be attacked without consequences. But if anyone can craft weapons faster than its reflection… it's you.
—Hana, Ali… Cairo needs you. That sand creature erases both history and life. You'll need to seal it and isolate the zone.
—Lee Ming, Mohammed. Kenya is now a biological hell. That thing is corrupting the land. Fire and resilience will be your weapons.
No one objected.No one hesitated.They all simply nodded.
Final Warning
Victoria appeared at the end of the corridor.She walked up to Rob, looked at him without speaking, and placed her hand on his chest—right where the SSS power now slumbered.
—Be careful. You're not just Rob anymore… —she whispered—. You're what they need to believe in.
He nodded solemnly.
—Then I can't afford to fail.
A Transmission to the World
Minutes later, Rob activated the global broadcast signal.It was the first time he addressed the entire planet since his ascension.His voice echoed, even in places where the networks had already collapsed.
—Humanity is facing its true trial. The creatures you see… are not punishments.They are doors.If we leave them open… everything ends.
His sword floated beside him, resonating with power.
—But we are not alone. Not this time.We are not weak.We are not broken.—Because now… we know who we are.And because I am here… and I will never give up.
He cut the transmission.And leapt into the sky.
The God That Burned
New York no longer existed.Only pillars of incandescent smoke remained, structures warped by heat, and bodies disintegrated by the infernal radiation the beast exhaled.The sky burned red.And at the center of it all…the stellar fire creature kept walking—slowly, as if it knew the world had no way to stop it.
Until something fell from the sky.
The Guardian's Impact
The ground trembled with a single blow.Flames parted.The air stabilized—if only for an instant.
Rob emerged from the crater he had created upon landing.
He said nothing.
He simply raised his black sword, streaked with crimson veins…And the world changed.
The First Roar
The creature, three magma skulls atop a body of pure energy, turned toward Rob.Its presence distorted reality. Pavement melted, buildings shrank, physical laws broke.And yet, Rob took a step forward—And the ground healed in his wake.
—You're not the end —he said—.You're the perfect excuse to prove that I am the beginning.
He activated his ability.
_ [SSS ABILITY ACTIVATED: WORLD DEVOURER] __ [USAGE TIME: UNLIMITED. PROGRESSIVE REALITY CONSUMPTION: AUTHORIZED] _
His sword became cloaked in living darkness.Each slash devoured not just matter—But the very concept of what it touched.
The Clash
The creature surged forward, launching a stream of flame that spread five kilometers.The fire swallowed rivers.Crushed buildings.Melted steel.
But Rob cut it.
He cut the fire itself.
And the fire… disappeared.It didn't dissipate.It didn't extinguish.It was devoured.
—Your world ends here! —Rob shouted, launching himself forward.
The first slash severed one of the creature's legs. It didn't fall—It howled, a roar that collapsed the last remaining skyscrapers.
The second slash tore off one of its skulls.
And the Survival System momentarily crashed.
Global Reaction
The live feeds linked to the Alliance's network showed the battle in real time.In the still-functioning bastions, Guardians, civilians, and children watched—as if witnessing a myth unfold.
—He's winning! —cried a child in India.
—He's real… he can stop them! —they shouted in Norway.
—The Guardian of Humanity… is devouring the end of the world!
The phrase went viral in seconds:"He's devouring the end of the world!"
Now Rob flew through ruins and fire.Not to flee.But to gain momentum.
Because his next strike wasn't just an attack…It was a sentence.
And the world knew it.Felt it.And for the first time since the beasts had emerged…It had hope.
Light in the Midst of Collapse
The fire titan whipped its incandescent arm like a magma lash, trying to strike Rob from three directions at once.The air shattered.The city vanished.
But Rob…was no longer bound by that space.
He activated his second ability.
_ [JUMP – S+ RANK: ACTIVATED] _
He vanished.
And reappeared directly above the creature,at the precise point where the three cores of its body converged.
—This is for every life I swore to protect.
He raised his sword.
And this time, he didn't slash in a straight line.
He slashed in a spiral, creating a vortex of black energy that devoured the creature from within.
The End of a Titan
The stellar beast screamed.Not with sound…but with torn reality.
It was consumed completely.
No explosion.No corpse.Just the void left behind.
Rob landed at the center of a scorched street.
Around him…the world knelt.
Broadcasts in Shock
Operators at the UN headquarters couldn't form words.
—Do we confirm...?
—The SS+ beast in New York has been eliminated… by a single person!
In South America, survivors of the Alliance of Light erupted in applause.
In Asia, Alex and Hana paused for a second, watching the transmission on their visors.
—He did it —whispered Alex, gripping his sword—.Rob… did it.
The Deep Impact
The phrase "He's devouring the end of the world!" became a symbol.
Children screamed it.Guardians repeated it.Civilians painted it on shattered walls.
And with it… a new title was born:The Devourer of the Inevitable.
Rob didn't celebrate.
He only looked at the sky.
The Voice in the Darkness
Far away, in a plane beyond Earth, the faceless figure stirred.
Now it watched—not with mockery—but with caution.
—So… this is your true face…
—You've become something I can't ignore.
It touched the air, and the resulting wave of destruction split asteroids millions of kilometers away.
—Let's see how much you can devour…Before your soul is the one consumed.
Rob walked through the ruins of New York.Fires extinguished as he passed.
And across the planet, amid the chaos, people understood that the end of the world could be stopped.
Because at the heart of that hell…stood a man.A sword.And a will that could not be broken.
The trial had begun.
But so had…hope.
The Abyss Responds
Even though the fire colossus had fallen in New York, the world still burned.
Five battles. Five open fronts.
And Rob's victory was only a beam of light in the middle of a storm that kept growing.
Fragments of War
Osaka, Japan
Alex moved through the ruins, generating weapons at impossible speeds.Each projectile struck the crystal dragon… but each hit returned with double the force.
—I can't hurt it without hurting myself! —he growled.Then he smirked.—Perfect. Then let's fight through pain.
Kenya, East Africa
Lee Ming surrounded the arboreal beast with living rings of fire.Mohammed, bleeding, used all his arms to hold back the roots trying to devour the continent.
—This isn't a creature! It's a plague with will!
—Then we'll rip it out! —shouted Mohammed, smashing a black node with his thousand fists.
Cairo, EgyptAli invoked ancestral essences while Hana channeled purified water over the poisoned sands.The sand creature roared, shaping towers of death and cursed sphinxes.
—It's making us fight against history itself! —said Hana.
—Then let's remind it how we won before, —replied Ali, activating a solar seal.
Norway, Lofoten Islands
Thea could barely maintain her focus. The void distorted the senses.Nikolav advanced blindly, guided only by instinct.
—I can't see it, Thea… but I know it's here.
—Then fight like Rob would, —she whispered—With your eyes closed… but your heart open.
The Broken Plane
Meanwhile, in a place where reality grew thin, a crack opened.
A humanoid figure descended through it.It had no face… but it had form.And for the first time, it set foot on the earthly plane.
No one saw it.No one sensed it.
Only Rob… shuddered.
The Gaze of the Colossus
From the top of a ruined skyscraper, Rob looked up.
The atmosphere trembled.
There was nothing there.But he felt it.
—You've arrived… —he murmured.
He didn't know if the enemy was observing…or if it was already there.
Epilogue
All over the world, people continued watching the transmissions from the other battles.Some cried.Others prayed.Some simply… watched.
But they all felt the same thing:
"As long as he's out there… we have a chance."
And so, as the sun set over a planet in flames, the war had only just begun.
Because although the Guardian of Humanity had devoured the end of the world once…
…the world still didn't know what new abyss was about to open.
[End of Chapter 36 – The Second Trial]