Monster Integration

It was over seven hours before the core satisfied with the energies.

It had shocked me, really shocked me; the sheer amount of energy my core had consumed was really shocking.

If they were energies around the dome, I wouldn't be surprised and wanted to consume those energies for my breakthrough.

These energies came from the swirling clouds; though the energies were only from the surface, they were extremely powerful that gave enough pain that I had nearly screamed.

Now the important part of the breakthrough consolidation.

I have kept the breakthrough simple as possible; I did not want to make it overly complex and have a complication.

It is already dangerous enough, and I don't want to make it even more dangerous.

As the core stopped absorbing the energies, it slowly began to reduce its speed of spinning till it had stopped. It is currently a multicolored blob, but as it consolidates, it will become like the world again.

The process has already started; it is not just visible because it is happening very slowly.

It will take time, and even if it is faster than the other two processes, it wouldn't be complete before an hour.

This is the process over which I have no control; I could not stop even if I wanted or aid it if something went wrong.

Which made me kind of more relaxed than tense, as one might expect. Relinquishing control is liberating in its way.

Time passed, and it was fifteen minutes before I spotted any change; an extremely thin layer of solid began to appear on the core. Like thin ice appeared on the water and it is spreading across it.

I am watching it with rapt attention, how the surface is slowly solidifying.

It took more than six minutes for a thin layer of solid form across the core, and it faintly begins to look like the world, but only a cheap copy; the real thing will appear when the whole core is consolidated.

Twenty more minutes passed, and it started to look even more like the core, but the process was far from finished.

I am happy seeing the progress, as I did not see the slightest problem. There is no cracking, no instability; it truly made me relieved.

Though not fully, which I will not till my core is completely consolidated.

I watched for a few minutes before opening my eyes; I wanted to continue watching, but seeing my thoughts spiraling in the direction I didn't want to. I decided to focus on something else for a while.

There is only one thing for me to focus on, the monsters; they are waiting for me to come so that they can feast on me.

There are over ten Primary-II monsters I could see, each powerful enough to level the whole world.

Thankfully, they are above the level and, unlike intelligent beings, cannot cloak their power to enter the world.

Even if they could, they will not; while the world might be bigger, the energy density there is piss poor, not to mention the prey there is also weak enough to taste bland.

No monster would go to a place like that.

They have gathered, and even after the energy fluctuation around the dome has disappeared, they have not. They are waiting and watching and will not leave till they finish.

I will finish them, it is my only choice, and it will be difficult, but I am confident that I will be able to do it.

I looked at each of the monsters as it looked at me; all the monsters of this ruin are small, but each one packs the power to destroy the world.

As I looked at them, I couldn't help but think about the first day I had appeared here. How I had laughed at the thought of Primary-II monsters existing in this ruin, not truly believing what Rhaek had suspected.

It didn't take me long to suspect the same before finding the proof of it, and now seventeen are around me.

A few more minutes passed, and I got bored staring at the monsters and turned back to my core, where the thin layer covering it had become thicker.

An hour passed, and about 40% of the core had been solidified; I thought it would go faster than that, seeing how the first two parts of the breakthrough went faster than I had anticipated.

I do not mind being slow; I have more than enough time; the only thing I want is for it to be safe.

Another hour passed, and the progress had reached 70%; it truly began to look like the world now. More beautiful than my core before, and it is not even complete; I can't imagine how it would look when it is fully consolidated.

Time passed, and the consolidation of my core made steady progress, reaching 80%, 90%, and 95% without any problems.

I had thought there would be great pressure on my core during the consolidation due to it skipping a level. It is not easy, but it seems like it is sailing through it, and in less than half an hour, it will be finished, and I will be a Grand Lord.

The consolidation had reached 99%; there were only a few minutes before the most dangerous process of the breakthrough was completed, and I couldn't be happier.

Hun!

I was on the eighth cloud reaching for the ninth when ominous happened; it was swift and sudden compared to the slow progress of the consolidation.

Crack Crack Crack

The consolidation stopped, and the core shook before the cracks began to appear on it.

Sheer horror couldn't help but appear on my face; my core was cracking, and if it continued, then it wouldn't take more than a minute for it split apart and for me to die.

I will die; there is no question about it.

The core is my life, and if it cracks into pieces, it will take me with it, and the worse thing is, I couldn't do anything.

I am powerless.

So, I watched my end unfolding and couldn't help but feel quite grateful that it was happening fast.

I want my end to happen swiftly.

Soon more than half of it cracked, and in a couple of seconds, it would crack fully.

Hun!

I was watching it all in mirthless horror when I saw the light, literally a light. The moon revolving around my core began to shine gently and released the light on my core.

I watched in hope, but as seconds passed, no change occurred, and that hope soon turned into dread.

The dread had just filled my heart when suddenly, the hope returned.

All of sudden, the cracking had stopped and began to heal fast, fast as cracks had appeared, and in a matter of seconds, I saw every crack on my core filling up before the consolidation began.

A small smile couldn't help but appear on my sweaty face; I did not dare to smile brightly or let myself be truly happy.

I have experienced how things could change within a few seconds. So, until consolidation is truly finished, I will not feel relieved.

It took one and a half minutes for the core to consolidate, and when it happened; I smiled ear to ear as I promised myself.