The Rebirth of Humanity

In the ancient, darkened hall...

Fafnir sat silently upon his throne.

The only sound was the faint hum filling the vast chamber, while strands of pure cosmic energy flowed around his body.

This energy was fundamentally different from ordinary cultivation energy.

Pure.

Profound.

And saturated with immense cosmic power.

The System continuously extracted it from the cosmic treasures and weapons Fafnir had collected, purifying it before transforming it into energy suitable for healing his body.

Slowly...

His ancient injuries were receding.

The body that had suffered a fatal wound five thousand years ago was gradually recovering its vitality.

Several minutes passed.

Then...

The flow of energy ceased.

Fafnir slowly opened his eyelids.

His deep, pitch-black eyes emerged.

Their darkness resembled a starless sky, while a faint crimson glow burned within their depths, making his gaze appear even more mysterious and intimidating.

In the next instant...

A pulse of aura erupted from his body.

BOOM!

It swept through the hall like a raging hurricane.

The ancient stone pillars trembled.

Dust scattered from the ground.

The flames hanging upon the walls flickered violently before dimming for a moment beneath the pressure of his aura.

Then...

Everything fell silent once more.

Fafnir slowly exhaled.

He raised his hand before his eyes and studied it for several moments.

He could feel the difference.

His body was no longer the same.

His vitality had increased dramatically.

His skin had become smoother and clearer.

His hair had grown even darker, black as the night, flowing around his face and accentuating the sharpness of his features.

As for his face...

It had become far more handsome than before—almost difficult to describe.

It was not ordinary human handsomeness.

There was something demonic about his features.

Something that gave his beauty an inexplicable sense of danger.

His features had become sharper.

The contours of his face more defined.

His eyes deeper.

Even his calm expression carried a frightening allure.

As for his body...

It had drawn even closer to perfection.

Every muscle.

Every bone.

Every part of his body appeared as though it had been meticulously refined.

A sinister smile appeared upon his face.

Then he spoke within his mind.

"System."

[Command.]

"Open my status."

Information appeared before him instantly.

[Body Status]

[Recovery Rate: 87%]

[Recovery Level: High]

[Current Usable Power: Equivalent to the Early Stages of the True Immortal Realm]

Fafnir's eyes remained fixed upon the final line.

Then...

His eyes widened slightly.

The corners of his lips rose.

And in the next moment...

His handsome face twisted into a terrifying expression.

His smile was dark.

Sinister.

And filled with a joy he could no longer conceal.

"True Immortal..."

His voice emerged in a low murmur.

Yet the entire hall seemed to tremble beneath the weight of those words.

Five thousand years.

Five thousand years of weakness.

Five thousand years of being unable to wield his true power.

And now...

He had finally begun to reclaim it.

He still could not unleash his full strength.

But merely possessing the ability to wield power equivalent to the early stages of the True Immortal Realm was enough to create an enormous difference compared to the past.

Fafnir raised his head.

The smile gradually disappeared.

Then he said,

"The time is near."

He fell silent for a moment.

"System."

[Yes?]

"Summon the Four Pillars."

[Command acknowledged.]

In different parts of Zeta...

The four figures stopped almost simultaneously.

The signal had reached them.

Come to the Sovereign Palace.

None of them hesitated.

Not long afterward...

Thorinn, Valor, Morgana, and Eleanor arrived at the ancient hall.

The four entered together.

Then stopped before the throne.

They bowed respectfully.

"My Sovereign."

Fafnir raised his head.

And the moment their eyes fell upon him...

All four froze.

None moved.

None spoke.

Even Thorinn, who had grown accustomed to seeing Fafnir and had developed exceptional control over his expressions throughout the decades, was unable to conceal his astonishment for several moments.

As for Valor...

His eyes widened slightly.

He had seen Fafnir countless times throughout the past decades.

But he had never seen him like this.

He had changed.

Not subtly.

The transformation was obvious to anyone.

Fafnir's face had become far more handsome.

A beauty carrying an unmistakably demonic quality.

His flawless skin.

His hair, black as the night.

His sharp features.

And his pitch-black eyes, within whose depths a faint crimson light glowed.

His appearance was mesmerizing...

And frightening at the same time.

But the two most affected by the sight were Morgana and Eleanor.

Morgana's eyes widened.

For the first time in many years...

She lost her composure for several moments.

She suddenly felt warmth rise to her face.

Her cheeks flushed before she could stop it.

She quickly lowered her gaze, as though attempting to conceal her expression.

Eleanor was in much the same state.

She froze where she stood.

Her eyes remained upon Fafnir for a moment longer than they should have.

Then she realized what she was doing.

Her face turned bright red.

She immediately lowered her gaze.

She tried to regain her composure.

But it was not easy.

Thorinn and Valor noticed.

They exchanged a brief glance.

Then both returned their attention forward as though they had seen nothing.

As for Fafnir...

He had certainly noticed.

Yet his expression did not change.

Instead, a faint smile appeared upon his lips.

He said nothing.

Which only made Morgana and Eleanor even more embarrassed.

Morgana finally spoke in a low voice.

"My... Sovereign."

She raised her eyes for a moment.

Then quickly looked away again.

"Did you summon us?"

Fafnir answered calmly.

"Yes."

His voice remained the same.

Calm.

Deep.

Yet something about his new appearance made his voice seem even more compelling.

Eleanor forced herself to focus on the reason they had been summoned.

"Has something happened?"

Fafnir looked at all four of them.

"There is something important I wish to tell you."

The traces of surprise vanished from their faces.

Their expressions became serious.

Thorinn said,

"Please speak."

Fafnir remained silent for a moment.

Then he said,

"One month from now..."

The four held their breath.

"I will lift the Absolute Seal from the continent."

Silence descended.

For a moment, none of them fully processed his words.

Then Valor's eyes widened.

"The seal..."

He repeated the word as though making certain he had heard correctly.

"The Absolute Seal?"

Fafnir nodded.

"Yes."

Thorinn stepped forward.

"My Sovereign..."

"Do you mean the borders will be opened?"

"Exactly."

The answer was calm.

Yet its impact was like a thunderclap.

Fifty years.

Fifty full years since Zeta had been sealed.

Fifty years during which no one had entered.

And no one had left.

During that time...

Humanity had built itself far from the eyes of the outside world.

And now...

That isolation would end.

Fafnir said,

"One month from now, humanity will return to the outside world."

Then he added,

"And humanity will once again participate in the affairs of Gandalia."

Silence followed.

The four had always known this day would eventually come.

But they had never expected it to arrive so soon.

Morgana asked,

"Are you certain?"

Fafnir looked at her.

"Yes."

Then he said,

"Humanity has prepared enough."

He looked toward Thorinn.

"An army."

Then toward Valor.

"A fleet."

Then toward Morgana.

"Industry."

Then toward Eleanor.

"Logistics."

His gaze returned to all four.

"Now it is time to see how the world will respond to humanity's return."

Thorinn's gaze sharpened.

He understood.

This would not be a peaceful return.

He said,

"Once the borders open..."

He paused.

"The outside powers will learn that Zeta still exists."

Fafnir answered,

"That is precisely what I want."

Valor said,

"The major powers may intervene."

"They may send envoys."

"And some may attempt to test humanity's strength."

A cold smile appeared upon Fafnir's face.

"Let them try."

A chill ran through the four.

There was no fear in Fafnir's voice.

There was something else.

Confidence.

Absolute confidence.

Then he said,

"But I do not want you to act provocatively."

"When the borders open, you will act according to my orders."

The four nodded.

"Understood."

Fafnir continued,

"During this month..."

"Prepare for everything."

"I want the army at its highest state of readiness."

"I want the fleet prepared."

"I want the supply reserves fully stocked."

"And I want every city informed of the new procedures."

Thorinn said,

"It will be done."

Valor added,

"I will begin preparations immediately."

Morgana said,

"I will increase the production of weapons and equipment."

Eleanor followed,

"And I will ensure the logistics network is fully prepared."

Fafnir nodded.

"Good."

They bowed together.

But before they could leave...

Fafnir stopped them.

"There is one more thing."

The four raised their heads.

He said,

"Do not tell anyone about my current condition."

Their expressions changed.

They immediately understood what he meant.

They had already noticed the tremendous transformation in his body.

But they did not know how far his recovery had progressed.

Valor answered,

"As you command."

The others nodded.

They turned and left the hall.

Yet Morgana and Eleanor remained behind for a moment.

Morgana glanced at Fafnir from the corner of her eye.

Then quickly looked away.

Eleanor did almost the same.

Both were trying desperately to maintain their composure.

But the image of Fafnir's transformed face remained engraved in their minds.

As they left the hall...

Morgana spoke quietly.

"Did you notice...?"

Eleanor immediately replied,

"No."

Morgana fell silent.

Then said,

"I didn't say anything."

Eleanor's face grew even redder.

"Neither did I."

They stopped for a moment.

Then continued walking as though nothing had happened.

Inside the hall...

Fafnir returned to his throne.

He sat down calmly.

Then closed his eyes.

After fifty years of silence...

Zeta was finally on the verge of opening its gates.

And once those gates opened...

Humanity would never be the same again.

It had spent half a century building.

Half a century training.

Half a century developing its army.

Half a century constructing its fleet.

Half a century preparing.

And now...

It was time to return.

But Fafnir knew one thing.

Gandalia had not waited for humanity.

The outside world had changed during those decades as well.

New powers had risen.

Others had fallen.

And the balance of power had shifted.

Perhaps...

There were already those who had begun wondering why Zeta had remained silent for so long.

Fafnir opened his eyes.

The crimson light within their depths flickered.

A cold smile appeared upon his face.

One month...

The gates would open.

And then...

all of Gandalia would learn that humanity had never been hiding.

It had been preparing.

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