CHAPTER 580: PRICE OF A MIRACLE

It really did.

While temptation was everywhere, Luca had long decided to tighten his belt.

Even when they had managed to pass the ten million mark, the little penny pincher still deferred the level 4 dungeon upgrade.

And his reasoning?

Emergencies.

Also, after careful observation, Luca knew there was always a chance the expense would not stop with just the upfront cost.

Then there was the very real possibility that increasing the dungeon’s size would affect the spiritual energy distribution.

What if they failed to provide the required energy crystals?

The dungeon owner didn’t want to know. So he made a contingency plan: he would only upgrade once he had enough CP stashed away, but not so late that they missed the benefits. After all, upgrades usually brought massive improvements to everyone, especially to D-29.

He just didn’t expect the wait to collide with so many other things.

It all began to snowball when Luca purchased the most expensive single-use item he had ever bought in his life.

They all wanted to see it. Not just because it was costly, but because they wanted to know how on Solaris could something justify that kind of price tag.

But when he held up the so-called reconstitution seed, it didn’t glow, hum, or start singing praises. It didn’t even look impressive. It looked exactly like a plain, ordinary chestnut seed.

And yet, when he handed it to the elders—who were all gripping each other like they might keel over—it was as if they had been given something more valuable than their own lives.

Because it was true.

This was not just a second chance at living, but a gift of unconditional affection from someone so young and generous.

Who would’ve thought they would be the ones to be granted with something like this when they’ve always been doing the granting?

It seems they really were the lucky ones.

They looked at the seed with reverence, almost as if it were the gateway to paying it all back.

"Elders, is this really the right seed?" asked Ollie, who thought anyone could easily mistake it for a snack and roast it over a fire.

"Yes, child. And it’s likely for a purpose," Elder Feng murmured.

And sure enough, how deceptive it was. Because the moment the seed was placed in the sternum, the cadets swore they understood exactly why it cost that much.

Luca had already been amazed that this world’s modern technology could regenerate limbs and treat once problematic ailments. It wasn’t instant, but it was still leagues beyond what was possible back in Tesseris.

But this... this reconstitution wasn’t just limb regeneration. This was something else entirely.

It was horrifying and awe-inspiring at the same time.

He was thankful for having the foresight to prepare spiritual water and energy crystals because even the elders hadn’t been sure how the process would work.

Then came the sound, wet and deliberate, as sinew and muscle wrapped themselves over bare bone. Veins slid into place like threads being stitched through cloth. A faint pulse appeared in the chest, then grew stronger until the water in the tanks began to tremble.

The spiritual water vanished in shimmering waves, pulled into the forming bodies. Energy crystals cracked and dissolved into dust, as if the bodies themselves were hungry for them.

Skin knit together in thin layers, pale and almost transparent at first, before color slowly returned. Hair grew strand by strand, eyelashes formed, and nails took shape with a faint shine.

When the process reached its height, the bodies lifted into the air, surrounded by a bright, blinding light that forced everyone to turn away. It was the kind of light that seared into your eyes and made you wonder if you were meant to see it at all.

They had been told the elders would likely seclude themselves for three dungeon-space days after the process, and Luca figured he understood why now. Because they were like walking lights, and even now, they hadn’t seen what the elders finally looked like.

But before they could finish processing what they had just witnessed, the oddest thing happened.

D-29 suddenly announced an unusual weather change outside the dungeon space.

Huh?

Back on Planet Nova, the soldiers manning their posts at the military headquarters had no idea why the weather outside the dome had gone from calm to "end-of-days" in under a minute.

First came the sky. It went from a pale blue to an ominous black so fast that one poor soldier thought he had blinked too long and missed an entire afternoon.

Then the lightning started. Not polite flashes in the distance, but vicious spears of light that struck with such force the entire dome shuddered. The storm wasn’t moving either. It was sitting right on top of them, hammering away like it had a grudge.

Inside the command center, a junior officer shouted, "Possible bombardment from orbit!"

A senior officer squinted at the monitor and muttered, "That’s not how bombardments look."

Another voice piped in nervously, "Sir... what if it’s... an alien weapon? Or what if the Federation developed something new?"

They all stared at the feed of the lightning rods outside, taking blow after blow. Bolts so thick they made the reinforced barrier flash white as they grounded harmlessly into the metal. The rods sparked, hissed, and spat arcs across their network, but still stood tall.

In the back, a comms operator muttered under his breath, "What kind of attack is this? Or are they trying to give us a new energy source?"

Meanwhile, far away in the dungeon space, the air was warm and still. Birds sang. Water trickled softly in the background. Four elders floated in bright light as their bodies reformed, the glow around them so pure it felt like the space itself was holding its breath.

It was serene.

It was beautiful.

It was also apparently the reason the entire military district of Planet Nova looked like it was being personally smited by the heavens.

No wonder the lightning came with extras. Who wouldn’t be furious when none of their strikes were getting through?

Well, definitely not the people of House Kyros, who were busy with births, rebirths, and hospitalizations.