Awakening the Nexus

Lyrien closed his eyes, feeling the warmth of the energy radiating around him. It was an almost tangible force, humming with the promise of power. As he took a deep breath, the air around him crackled with anticipation, a faint whisper echoing in the depths of his mind, urging him to awaken the Nexus.

Suddenly, the darkness before him shifted, coalescing into an intricate interface. The screen was black, a stark contrast to the shimmering silver characters that illuminated the words like stars against the night sky. It was beautiful and intimidating, filled with symbols and information that flowed like a river of light.

WELCOME, CHOSEN ONE. 

AWAKEN YOUR TRUE POTENTIAL.

The words echoed through his mind, resonating with the very core of his being. As he focused on the screen, more details emerged, revealing the paths he could take, the powers he could wield. 

NEXUS SYSTEM ACTIVATED. 

ANALYZING USER…* 

USER IDENTIFIED: LYRIEN VALTOR 

AGE: 20 

HEIGHT: 6.5 FEET 

"What?" Lyrien muttered in disbelief. He blinked, feeling the weight of the changes wash over him. He was no longer the powerful master he had been. Instead, he was now a younger version of himself, stripped of the years that had shaped him into a skilled warrior. Panic clawed at him, but he pushed it aside, focusing on the system.

YOUR INITIAL QUEST:

FIND YOUR DISCIPLE, XULIOS.

OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE IN THIS NEW WORLD AND UNCOVER THE REALITIES OF THE WATCHERS.

Lyrien's heart raced. Xulios? The thought of his disciple filled him with a mixture of determination and desperation. He couldn't let anything happen to him again. He needed to find him—before it was too late. 

WARNING: APOTHEOSIS IN PROGRESS. 

The words flashed before his eyes, and the landscape around him began to shift violently. The serene training grounds of his previous life faded away, replaced by a chaotic urban landscape filled with smoke and shadows. The distant echoes of chaos filled the air—screams, the clash of metal, and the guttural roars of monstrous beings. 

Lyrien stumbled back, his instincts kicking in. He had to move. 

He took stock of his surroundings. The streets were littered with debris, remnants of a world that had succumbed to darkness. Buildings stood partially collapsed, their structures twisted and scarred by battle. As he stepped forward, he could feel the ground shake beneath him, reverberating with the energy of the chaos around him.

A sudden roar broke the silence, and he turned just in time to see a massive creature—a grotesque fusion of animal and machine—charging towards him. Adrenaline surged through him, and he instinctively reached for his weapons, only to find empty hands. Panic threatened to seize him, but he remembered the words of the system.

INITIAL WEAPONS: UNAVAILABLE. ACCESS TO PATHS REQUIRED. 

COMMENCING COMBAT TRAINING.

"Training?" Lyrien whispered, bewildered.

He felt a rush of energy coursing through him, igniting a dormant fire within. His body responded as if guided by an unseen force, muscles coiling and stretching, ready for combat. 

As the creature lunged, Lyrien sidestepped, drawing on the instincts honed through years of training. He felt a surge of power flow through him, allowing him to move with incredible speed and agility. He ducked and rolled, avoiding the creature's massive claws that sliced through the air where he had just stood.

COMBAT SKILLS UNLOCKED.

BASIC COMBAT TECHNIQUE ENABLED.

The system's voice echoed in his mind, and Lyrien felt the flow of energy guide his movements. He struck out, delivering a swift kick to the creature's side, staggering it. It roared in fury, pivoting to face him.

As he engaged, Lyrien tapped into the essence of his path. He could feel the pulse of the Watchers within him, intertwining with the raw energy of the modern world. Drawing on that connection, he manifested a shield of shimmering energy that absorbed the creature's next attack. 

With a swift motion, Lyrien followed up with a combination of punches and kicks, channeling the energy into every strike. The creature howled in pain, and he could sense its weakening resolve.

ENEMY WEAKNESS DETECTED. 

TARGET: HEART OF THE BEAST.

Taking a deep breath, Lyrien focused, feeling the energy coalesce around his fist. He launched himself forward, his hand glowing with a silver light, striking the beast's chest with incredible force. 

The creature let out a final roar before collapsing, disintegrating into a cloud of dark energy that dissipated into the air. Lyrien stood there, panting, heart racing, a sense of exhilaration coursing through him. 

COMBAT SUCCESSFUL. 

REWARD: 100 EXP. 

LEVEL UP: LEVEL 1 → LEVEL 2. 

"Level up?" he murmured, still trying to comprehend the enormity of the situation. 

QUEST UPDATES: 

SURVIVE IN THE APOCALYPSE: COMPLETE. 

FIND XULIOS: IN PROGRESS. 

UNLOCK PATHS AND POWERS: IN PROGRESS. 

Lyrien's mind raced as he processed the implications. This was not just a new beginning—it was reality. And it hit him hard when he realized. All what he had experienced was his past life or something like that. His disciple, his power, his village, everything was just a past vision. The environment he was seeing now and the one he saw in his vision were vastly different and strangely he had memories of both worlds. This world was 100 years in the future as compared to his old world. Coincidentally, it was the same world, but more advanced and evolved.

Humans had evolved amidst the chaos and made great strides in technology, created strongholds amidst many more. With the evolution came different abilities—people gained special abilities and powers depending on how they evolved and their experiences. They were known as Evolved.

Lyrien or this world's Lyrien was also an evolved but of the lowest caliber and level, the F rank. All he had was heightened senses and heat vision. These abilities would have given him a good paying job in the upper sectors regardless of rank. He could be a night guard or something but unfortunately, reality was very bias towards him. He lived in the lowest of the lower sectors where every day was a battle of survival against fierce beasts. He lived alone and worked alone before he fell in battle to the Grade E Cyber-Leopard he killed recently. That was where he witnessed his past life, and he woke up where he supposedly "died" to the notifications of the Nexus System.

Looking at the floating screen in front of him, he figured out some things. One; the first quest was completed rather quickly, probably because of how he had been surviving all this time. The second quest meant, his disciple was also somewhere in this world, even close by. The third was most likely the power he sought from the Watchers in his previous life, but the words of the system told him that there was more to it and the destruction of the world. Fortunately, this world was still intact after 100 years, so there was a chance it could be saved. 

He picked himself up and surveyed his surroundings once more, his now grey eyes glowing with a dull red color. His vision changed, turning the world into a world of different colors. He spotted beasts in the distance and some humans as his vision zoomed in on them. Thankfully, his position was secure for the time being.

Turning of his eyes, he turned around and headed towards a dark alley. There he came to meet a sleek but ragged motorbike with a small backpack on it. He took out some snacks to eat then a small knife and went back to where he killed the Cyber-Leopard. He worked fast, cutting pieces of meat from where there was some, but it seemed it was the end of the line for the knife as it broke on his 5th cut.

He snorted in frustration as he looked around for something to cut more meat.

GRADE E CYBER-LEOPARD IDENTIFIED!

DOES HOST WISH TO REFINE BEAST?

METAL PARTS OF THE BEAST CAN BE USED TO EXCHANGE FOR WEAPONS FROM THE SYSTEM SHOP.

"That is really possible? Then yes, it is." Lyrien shouted in surprise forgetting he could say it in his mind. True to its words, the huge 7 feet tall beast was separated into meat and metal nicely. 

Lyrien with shock still on his face quickly stored the small hill of meat in a small white box. It was a mini refrigerator with a space of 73 cm. Normally, he wouldn't be able to afford it but thankfully, a stupid and rich kid dropped it when he went looking for Grade C Gartilum-Beetles. He's probably dead as those beasts are very dangerous and they also move in colonies. After storing the meat which would last him a month, he proceeded to store the metal parts of the beast.

GRADE E UNREFINED MITHRIL IDENTIFIED!

DOES HOST WISH TO EXCHANGE FOR ITEMS IN THE SYSTEM STORE?

'Yes!'

The floating screen in front of him shifted, revealing a new screen with rows and rows of items, some greyed out. He stared in awe at the images of weapons, clothes, armor, etc. Things he could only dream and wish for. They were now in his grasp, and he felt like crying but the system dropped cold water on him.

GRADE E UNREFINED MYTHRIL CAN ONLY BE EXCHANGED FOR AT MOST TWO ITEMS IN THE STORE. PLEASE CHOOSE WISELY.

'You got to be kidding me.'

THE SYSTEM DOESN'T HAVE THE LEISURE TO PLAY PRANKS.

'Sorry. By the way why are some items grey?'

ANSWERING HOST...

THOSE ITEMS ARE EITHER ITEMS YOU CANNOT AFFORD WITH YOUR CURRENT EXCHANGE ITEM OR ARE UNAVAILABLE, MOSTLY THE FIRST ONE.

'So, in other words, I'm poor.'

YES.

'I know. You didn't have to make it that obvious.'

'Can you give me the items which I can get currently?'

OKAY.

With that the screen shifted again and a new screen appeared, showcasing 6 items–a sleek black long dagger with jagged edges and a sharp blade, a black backpack, a pair of gloves, a bottle of water, a pillow and a pair of boxer shorts. Lyrien stared blankly at the latter items, questioning whether the system was messing with him or what.

'Give me the dagger and backpack. I'm in need of those two at the moment.'

OKAY. GRADE E CYBER-LEOPARD FANG DAGGER AND GRADE E CYBER-LEOPARD METALLIC HIDE IN EXCHANGE FOR GRADE E UNREFINED MYTHRIL.

YES/NO.

'Yes!'

INITIATING EQUIVALENT EXCHANGE!

EQUIVALENT EXCHANGE COMPLETED!

In front of Lyrien, the hill of mithril vanished, getting replaced by two items. A long dagger, almost as long as a rapier in a black sheath and a beautiful shiny black backpack. Lyrien quickly picked them up as their information came up.

GRADE E CYBER-LEOPARD FANG DAGGER: CRAFTED FROM THE FANGS OF A CYBER-LEOPARD. IT IS VERY SHARP AND DURABLE. 

GRADE E CYBER-LEOPARD METALLIC HIDE: A BACKPACK CRAFTED FROM THE METALLIC HIDE OF A CYBER-LEOPARD. VERY DURABLE AND POSSESSES A SPACE OF 2 CUBIC METERS. IT CAN ALSO WITHSTAND ATTACKS FROM GRADE F TO D BEASTS.

'Now this is jackpot. Let's get out of here first.' Lyrien said as he sensed presences approaching his position. He quickly went back to his motorbike and pushed it further down the alley. Then he quickly swapped his things into the new backpack. He strapped the dagger to his back with the help of the backpack. It seemed it also came with a compartment to keep weapons, very convenient. Afterwards, he started his vehicle and headed North.