CHAPTER 266: PROMOTION (1)

The room went silent on Adrian’s sudden declaration. Nyra wasn’t the only one shocked; Charles dropped his PAD, and even Master Von raised an eyebrow. To leave, now, just as they were establishing themselves?

Adrian sighed, running a hand through his white hair. "I won’t be gone for long," he explained calmly. "And I won’t be far. I’ll be inside the Clash. There are... objectives I need to fulfill within that system. Critical ones."

He looked around the room, meeting their eyes. "I might return at times, but my focus must be absolute. By the time I am done, I believe we will be ready to leave this place. To leave the Slums entirely."

His words caused a collective gasp. They had only just arrived here, a place known across the galaxy as a graveyard for civilizations, a trap of eternal economic slavery. To hear their leader speak of leaving, of ascending to the Heartland so soon, was mind-boggling. It was a dream they hadn’t dared to voice.

Nyra walked closer to him, her expression softening. She reached out and took his hands in hers, ignoring the crowded room.

"I won’t ask you too many questions," she said softly, her green eyes filled with trust. "You have always seen the path when we only saw walls. If you say this is necessary, then I believe your plan will be successful. Just... don’t forget us in there."

Adrian’s face softened into a genuine smile as he squeezed her hands. "Never."

"Ahem." Charles coughed politely, breaking the moment. He picked up his PAD, trying to regain his professional composure. "So... when do you plan on leaving, boss? Let’s make arrangements."

Adrian turned to him. "Right now," he said simply. "I believe you don’t need my help for anything immediately. The system is running."

"Uhm..." Charles tried to think of something, some logistical hurdle that required the Sovereign’s approval, but Adrian paused him with a raised hand.

"You’ll handle it. All of you." He turned back to Nyra. "It’ll be best if you give everyone a proper orientation before they visit the Galactic Clash. There’s a limit on how many new fighters can register per cycle, so you’ll need to organize the visits carefully. Don’t let them rush in and make mistakes."

She nodded. Adrian knew his job here was done. Without another word, he accessed his PAD, selecting the [Galactic Clash] interface. His body dissolved into pixels of white light, and he vanished from the small, grey house.

He rematerialized in a new lobby. But it wasn’t the Silver League he had visited with Grok.

This was the Bronze League Lobby, and they were just as much if not more people present.

Adrian ignored them all. He moved through the crowd like a ghost, his [Omnisense] filtering out the noise as he focused on his plan.

When he had assimilated the Info Book, one particular detail had struck him like a lightning bolt. Void Crystals.

In the same vein that Magic Crystals held mana, Void Crystals held raw, cosmic energy. But it wasn’t just energy; it was akin to the world’s own foundational power.

Adrian had deduced that they were a stable fusion of all energy types, including mana.

With those crystals, he felt he could truly create something special, something that would solve the energy bottleneck of his high-end inventions forever.

They were also the solution to his Magi-Tech problems. But the Concordat’s control was absolute. They ensured that no one from the Slums could get their hands on Void Crystals, which were harvested from the corpses of Void Beasts.

Even if a Slum dweller managed to kill one, the crystals were "appropriated" as hazardous materials.

That wasn’t a problem for Adrian. He knew the first stage was simply getting to the level where he could face Void Beasts legally. To do that, he had to climb. He had to reach the Diamond League, the tier where fighters were often contracted for deep-space hunts. That was his goal.

Without further ado, Adrian walked up to a registration booth. The queue was long, but he waited patiently, and it eventually got to his turn.

To request a "Promotion Challenge" and skip the weekly grind, one had to be in the top 100 of their current league. He wasn’t. So, he had to climb the hard way. He surfed through the list of online fighters in the Bronze League, looking for a high-ranked opponent who was currently available for a match.

He settled on one.

[FIGHTER PROFILE: Razor-Mind]

[CIVILIZATION: Xylotl (Tier-1)]

[LEAGUE: Bronze]

[RANK: 61]

[WINS: 14 | LOSSES: 10]

[KILLS: 0]

A Xylotl. A psionic. Perfect practice. He sent the challenge.

To his surprise, it was accepted almost immediately. A notification flashed: Match Confirmed. Transferring to Arena 404.

White light consumed him, and he found himself on the sands of a new arena. This one was smaller, more intimate than the Silver League coliseum, but still impressive. A holographic commentator appeared on a floating screen above the center.

"Welcome, fight fans, to a Bronze League exhibition! We have a sudden match-up! In the red corner, Rank 61, the mind-shredder... RAZOR-MIND!"

A slender, crystalline being materialized opposite him. It was small, barely four feet tall, floating a few inches off the ground. Its body was a sharp, angular shard of violet crystal that pulsed with a rhythmic, intimidating light.

"And in the blue corner... an unranked newcomer with a perfect record of 1-0... PROJECT_PROMETHEUS!"

There were very few people watching this time. The holographic stands were mostly empty, with perhaps less than a hundred idle spectators tuning in to watch a low-level bout.

~GONG!~

The match began.

The Xylotl didn’t move. It didn’t need to. Its crystal body flared with a blinding violet light as it launched a psionic assault, a mental spear designed to paralyze its opponent’s motor functions.

But before the thought could even leave its mind, Adrian was there.

He didn’t use Phantom Steps. He didn’t use his suit. He simply moved. His base stats were so far beyond the Bronze League standard that he was effectively teleporting. He crossed the arena in a fraction of a second.

The Xylotl’s internal light flickered in panic as it realized the human was already inside its guard.

~SLAP!~

It wasn’t a punch. It was a backhand. Adrian’s hand connected with the crystalline creature’s head with a sound like a cracking whip.

The force was immense. The Xylotl was sent spinning through the air like a skipped stone. It smashed into the shimmering energy barrier at the edge of the arena with a sickening crunch, sliding down the wall to land in a heap of dazed, flickering crystal.

"AND... IT’S OVER?! JUST LIKE THAT?!" the announcer shouted, stunned.

[WINNER: PROJECT_PROMETHEUS!!!]