Formless Ascension: My Affinity Is Limitless

Uhtred stepped out into the open.

He was immediately hit by the full, deafening roar of the cheering crowd. The blinding glare of spotlights beat down on his eyes, forcing him to squint for a fraction of a second before his sight adjusted to the sheer scale of the arena.

Around him was a staggering, impossibly vast amphitheater that curved upward into a near-perfect sphere. Every level was packed with alien races of every imaginable shape, size, and form.

The floor beneath his feet was constructed from an exquisite glass resembling a midnight sky, pitch-black, yet shimmering with starlight.

Uhtred’s eyes naturally shifted toward the Host standing at the center of the platform, and a flicker of surprise crossed his mind.

The Host was a six-foot-tall humanoid of some sort. He was dressed glamorously in a well-fitted purple robe tailored like a royal garment, yet subtle enough that it prioritized function alongside extravagance.

He was striking, but his glamour deliberately left room for his interviewees to shine too.

For some reason, as Uhtred watched him approach with an easy smile, he couldn’t help but draw a correlation between the Host and Perfection. There was that same unnerving, effortless polish to his demeanor.

He felt less like a terrifying multiversal entity and more like an elevated, flawless human.

Whether the Host was truly a humanoid species by nature or he simply possessed the ability to change his physical form like Handler Roy, Uhtred couldn’t say for sure. But that was the least of his concerns right now.

He strode forward with steady confidence as the Host continued hyping him up to the arena:

It would seem the humans from planet Earth are very straightforward yet exquisitely beautiful people, confident in their own skin!!

I love this confidence!! They both came out without overly glamorous attires, yet that didn’t dull their presence in the slightest!!

Folks! Give it up for Uhtred once again!!!

The crowd erupted in a louder wave of cheers just as Uhtred stopped beside the Host.

He offered a slight smile and a wave to the crowd, though he could barely make out individual faces through the blinding glare of the surrounding spotlights.

At the back of his mind, he wondered whether these people were real at all, but from what he could see of them, they looked no less real than the Host himself.

Which then begged the question... Why were they all so excited to see him when they didn’t even know him?

Uhtred didn’t let any of these thoughts show on his face. He maintained a calm, confident expression, assuming an air of easy grace as he shook the Host’s hand firmly.

There were no chairs or sofas on stage. Instead, the Host drew him closer like a long-time friend. He projected a natural warmth that put one at ease immediately.

Looking at his face up close again, the Host was just too humanoid-looking. If not for his dark gray skin, his black eyes, and the glaring third eye at the center of his head, he would have passed off fully as a human.

The rest of his build was exactly the same as every other human: two arms, two legs, two ears, and no other protrusions from any part of his body. Even his hair was a simple lustrous black.

He produced an object that looked surprisingly like a microphone from pre-integration Earth, as if to make Uhtred feel even more at home.

The Host placed a friendly hand on Uhtred’s shoulder, leaning back slightly to take a good look at him.

Wow! Wow, you really are strong, Uhtred. For a second there, I thought you were going to crush my hand!

The crowd burst into light laughter, and Uhtred smiled gently. He hadn’t applied much force during their handshake, and he had felt the Host meet his strength with equal firmness — but the joke served as a smooth icebreaker.

So tell me, how the hell are you so strong? A Level 47 Nascent Realm ascender, for crying out loud. It’s only been a year in your world, hasn’t it?

Uhtred shrugged, his smile widening. "Ah, well, what can I say? I just keep smashing my opponents, that’s all. It’s not my fault they end up not surviving."

The arena exploded into hearty laughter, the Host chuckling along loudly.

Would you look at this guy?

The Host said, turning to the audience to build on Uhtred’s casual remark.

Folks, don’t fall for his humble words! You’re looking at a natural-born talent for slaughter!

No prior experience in battle before the integration, yet he was the first to reach Level 10 on his planet... first to kill a beast five levels above himself... first to clear a regional dungeon in his world... first to solo kill one thousand dungeon beasts... first to kill an otherworlder...

With each title the Host listed, his tone grew more energetic, and the audience responded with roaring applause.

...I could keep going on and on! So many firsts for this guy since his integration began! So don’t let his humility fool you!

The Host laughed, and Uhtred offered a quiet nod, maintaining his calm, grounded demeanor. But behind his calm eyes, he was already analyzing:

So the Host can read my titles? In that case, can he see my class as well?

The System had always presented status details — classes, attributes, titles, and personal prompts — as private information accessible only to the ascender.

Yet, ever since entering the Tower, two people had already bypassed that restriction.

The first was Handler Roy, whom Uhtred was very certain could see his class. And now, the Host, who had just called out many of his titles.

Of course, it could simply be that the Host could only see his titles alone to understand who he was and to build hype as much as possible, just like he was doing right now.

Actually, now that Uhtred thought about it, the more likely it seemed that the Host couldn’t see his class. If he could, then what was the use of this interview?

Handler Roy had explicitly warned him that the Host would attempt to probe for details regarding his abilities, his Elemental Manifestation, and very likely even his class...

If the Host already knew so much about him, then he wouldn’t need to ask.

But then again, this was the Tower, where basically everything was orchestrated for the entertainment of the Multiverse.

The Host’s booming voice pulled Uhtred’s focus back to the present.

...Even right now, he has gone and done something that is the first in this Tower Trial!

The Host paused for dramatic effect, his voice becoming low.

A Manifestation folks... An Elemental Manifestation of not just one, two, three, but four different elements!!

Murmurs filled the crowd immediately.

The Host turned his attention to Uhtred, staring him straight in the eye with a deeply curious look.

You may not know it Uhtred, but that is a feat reserved only for those of the Awakened Realm and beyond...

This isn’t the same as achieving a resonance... or creating a sub-core at the Mortal Realm, Uhtred.

A Manifestation is something that stumps so many talents across the multiverse during the threshold to cross from the Nascent to the Awakened Realm...

Achieving it now means your path forward is wide open. Crossing into the Awakened Realm will be as easy as breathing when you eventually reach that level.

Uhtred nodded, maintaining a look of polite appreciation, though internally he wondered how this really differed from creating sub-cores in the Mortal Realm.

As if reading his thoughts, the Host continued:

Now, that alone, while a mighty difficult feat, isn’t enough to make the audience so deeply curious about you...

You are the first to achieve a manifestation, but other prodigies of your universe will surely do the same before they reach the threshold of the Nascent Realm...

No. What makes you special, Uhtred, is the fact that you achieved this at Level 47. Twenty-eight whole levels before reaching the required threshold!

His voice began to rise with vigor and intrigue, his eyes full of wonder at Uhtred.

Not just that, but you achieved a manifestation in four different elements without harming your core...

Uhtred. This is impossible.

You have done the impossible.

The Host’s eyes trembled as they bored into Uhtred’s.

So, tell us... what’s your secret?

The drone of the crowd hushed, all of them going silent as the host pulled Uhtred closer, wrapping his arm around his shoulder more tightly.

He pointed the mic towards Uhtred, looking down at him with a curious air.

Everyone in the arena, the millions present, and the billions, perhaps trillions of multiversal viewers watching, kept silent, waiting for him to speak.

Uhtred paused for several seconds, before he finally spoke:

"Unfortunately, I’ll have to disappoint the audience," he said, letting out a soft sigh. "...there is no secret."

The crowd burst into murmurs, their words droning over each other, alien tongues of all kinds that Uhtred could hardly understand, if not for his translation tool.

Truly?

The Host asked again, raising a brow in surprise.

No sudden fortuitous encounters? No secret technique? No secret about your class?

The questions were framed casually, but each carried a sharp, probing edge.

Uhtred looked the Host dead in the eye, his expression steady.

"None at all. I just do my thing, and in the heat of the moment, insights occur naturally."

Mesmerizing!

Would you look at that, folks? The young human isn’t just a combat talent, but a natural-born prodigy of comprehension and insight!

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