[Core of Evolution]

"What is going on?" Arohan asked in confusion after waking up.

He was sleeping on a hospital bed while there were several doctors around the bed.

"You are awake!"

A shocked voice rang not long after as a middle-aged woman entered the room.

Arohan recognized the voice but the appearance didn't match.

"Who are you?" He asked in confusion after not being able to remember.

"I am Vanya."

Arohan felt an explosion in his head and he couldn't believe that. The next moment, he looked at his hands and saw his wrinkly skin. It was as if he were a man in his fifties.

"BRING ME A MIRROR!"

A nurse hurriedly brought the mirror. The hospital in which Arohan was being treated was owned by his family, so in a sense, the man angrily shouting was her boss.

Arohan almost fell unconscious again when he saw his wrinkly appearance in the mirror. His handsome appearance was nowhere to be present and was replaced by an old man.

The doctors had to keep him still and it took every ounce of their efforts, but suddenly all his struggles disappeared when he heard an unfamiliar voice.

"Dad, you are awake!"

A young man who looked to be a copy of young Arohan walked into the room and spoke excitedly when he saw Arohan.

"Agastya?"

Arohan's voice didn't seem calm but had a hint of guilt as if he was doing something wrong.

***

Arohan was sitting on his lawn and was looking up at the sky. He didn't know what to do at all after learning that he had been in a coma for twenty years, and at the same time, the horrific memory he remembered last turned out to be a lie.

No such situation has ever taken place in the world at all. According to Agastya and Vanya, Arohan on his 27th birthday suddenly started acting strange while playing with Agastya. He then fell unconscious and then into a coma for twenty years.

"Was that all a lie?"

Arohan sighed. He didn't know what to feel about that.

He was grateful that that was just the figment of his imagination, but also sad that all the sacrifices he thought he had made turned out to be just a dream.

"I am the Core of Evolution, the spark of boundless potential. Granted by the ancient one who sculpted the stars, I exist to awaken the strength within you, Arohan. Through trials and victories, our bond shall deepen, and together we shall unlock powers that defy mortality."

A familiar yet unfamiliar voice suddenly rang in his ears, surprising him. He looked around in shock and confusion as he could finally feel where the sense of familiarity came from.

The next moment, his right hand stretched on its own with his palm facing the sky. Following that, his veins began to pop up across his skin like he was doing some intense workout.

When the veins reached his palm, a blinding light suddenly emerged in the center of his palm, and after that, an orb appeared out of nowhere, landing gently in his palm.

Arohan jumped up in shock as the orb was the same as what had saved him and his family in that dream of his.

'Was it not just my dream?' He couldn't help but think in his heart.

Suddenly finding himself an old man was already too great of a shock to him, so he didn't act much shocked with the scene before him.

"What are you?" He couldn't help but ask.

"I am the Core of Evolution, the spark of boundless potential. Granted by the ancient one who sculpted the stars, I exist to awaken the strength within you, Arohan. Through trials and victories, our bond shall deepen, and together, we shall unlock powers that defy mortality."

The next moment, the same statement as earlier rang in his ears. This time, the statement wasn't alone but followed by a projected screen.

The fonts on the screen were something he had never seen before and looked more like living beings than letters.

But for some reason, he easily understood what was there on the projected screen.

[Artifact Name: Core of Evolution

Type: Natural Artifact

Current Level: 1

Affinity: Growth and Transformation

Abilities:

Adaptive Growth (Passive)

Effect: Permanently boost your physical strength, speed, and perception slightly with each victory over foes.

Progress: +0.25% increase after every victory against the same level opponent

Current Boost: 0%

Evolutionary Pulse (Active)

Effect: Releases a blast of life energy, granting a temporary surge in strength and endurance to allies while weakening nearby enemies for 10 seconds.

Cooldown: 1 day

Divine Insight (Passive)

Effect: Grants you an instinctual understanding of an opponent's critical weaknesses for a short time.]

"Together, we shall transcend limitations. Challenge the divine, and with my help, you shall ascend beyond mortal constraints."

[Do you want to accept the bond with [Core of Evolution]?]

After he read the details on the screen, a new message rang in his ears, and not long after a choice.

The screen was like those game screens he used to play, so he easily understood what the orb was, but he still had many questions like what was an artifact and a natural artifact at that.

[Do you want to accept the bond with [Core of Evolution]?]

Arohan was confused when the voice rang once again, and he could sense urgency despite it being an emotionless voice. He didn't know whether it was his illusion, but he did sense it.

The next moment, a sense of panic engulfed his heart as if he would die if he didn't answer quickly.

When the voice rang for the third time, the sense of panic reached the extreme and he immediately accepted to bond with the orb.

The sense of panic only got stronger when he saw that his wrinkles were getting even more wrinkly at the speed of naked eye.

"What is happening?" He asked in confusion, but his voice had become hoarse like a man on his deathbed.

The next moment, a gem appeared out of nowhere and began to be sucked into the orb resting in his palm.

Immediately after that, a new verse rang in the area, and this time, it was heard by every single being in the world.

"As his breath faded to whispers, the Core stirred, bound to him in an unbreakable oath. 'Not yet,' it murmured to the abyss, 'for you are mine to strengthen, not to consume.' And with grace beyond mortal knowing, it drew from the artifact's lifeblood and returned it to him, a quiet fire in fragile bones, and his life was rekindled by the mercy of its bond."— Revelation 1:2

The next moment, Arohan could see the wrinkles on his hands disappearing at a rapid rate. At the same time, he felt himself getting stronger rapidly.

In no time, he reached his peak strength, and it continued to grow.

It only stopped when Arohan reached how he looked when he was 18 years old. He could also feel that there was no human stronger than him. He could kill even the strongest of the man with a single punch.

At the same time, a shocking phenomenon was taking place all over the world.

Every single being irrespective of their race heard the verse and felt the majesty in it.

Those who were religious immediately knelt down with pious expressions while atheists and agnostics were confused by what was happening.

Unaware of what was happening, Arohan was confused and shocked. He not only had the orb in his hand, but there was also a gem that looked like an eye floating in the air.

He sensed some familiarity from it but wasn't certain of the source. He immediately associated the gem with that eye, but the difference between the two was so far that he immediately shot that idea down.

[This world can't hold your existence. Prepare for the travel!]

Arohan was confused by what the orb meant by all of that, but before he could speak anything, a new verse sounded again.

"And the Core gazed upon the artifact, now spent yet thrumming with echoes of distant realms. With effortless command, it reached into the remnant power and shaped a path to realms untouched by Arohan's world. In its whisper, the boundaries parted, and a gateway lay open before him. 'Walk now,' the Core declared, 'into the lands where power flows as rivers, and you may drink deeply of its endless waters.' Thus, with the lightest touch, the world was split, and the path to transcendence unfurled."— Revelation 1:3

As the verse said, a gateway appeared before Arohan, and a voice asked him to walk into it.

For Arohan, the gateway was only the size of him, but for everyone else in the world, it seemed that the world had been broken into two. Irrespective of where they were, they could see an endless gateway.

Humans, animals, birds, fishes, and all other living creatures saw that scene and understood it. Even religious people couldn't act pious anymore, everyone had faces of horror as they looked at that.

Those who weren't considered religious began to think whether they would be going to hell, while the religious ones had the same question. Only a few humans in the world could say that they have been true to their religions and hadn't made even a small mistake which could be considered a sin.

Unfortunately for the people of the world, they didn't matter at all. The gateway closed not long after it appeared, and the phenomenon was later called Arohan's Ascension.

Arohan wasn't a common name, so it didn't take long for people to find which Arohan was the one being mentioned in the verse.

***

A/N: Now let's move on from earth. It's role was only till this point.

Being in coma for twenty years made Arohan alienated to his son, but before leaving, he transferred all his wealth to Agastya and Vanya. The story would span for numerous years so Vanya and Agastya can't play any role in the story. They were just here to establish how someone selfish like Arohan immediately tried to save the two of them when the world was falling.

If you have comments about the story, and want to give me suggestions about the artifacts and other things, please comment. I will be sure to add it into the story.