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Saying that might sound bold, but nothing in this world comes without a price. If something seems too good to be true, do yourself a favor—look down, check your pockets, and make sure your kidneys are still intact.
That said, for Harry, this wasn't something difficult to accept. Sure, being called a "tool" wasn't exactly flattering—it carried the connotation of being disposable, sent to the front lines to die when needed and cast aside when not—but there was no denying that this particular "tool" came with some serious perks.
Even as someone who barely qualified as a half-baked Awakener, Harry could confidently say that by the time he graduated, neither Dumbledore nor Grindelwald would pose a real threat to him. In fact, surpassing the legendary black-and-white duo of Europe's magical world at their peak wasn't out of the question.
If he didn't care about fighting them "fairly" and instead relied on trickier, more underhanded methods, he might even have a shot at taking them down outright. No one could confidently claim that at twenty, they could defeat legendary figures who had honed their magic, stamina, experience, and battle instincts over fifty years. These two were once-in-a-century, possibly once-in-several-centuries, prodigies. But Harry, with the legacy left behind by his demigod mother, had the audacity to say he could.
And if he accepted Seti's offer? He wouldn't necessarily ascend to godhood or gain divine-level abilities, but one thing was certain—he'd be strong enough to utterly crush his past self.
It had only been a few hours since his match against Li Jiannan, yet the image of that overwhelming platinum sword remained vivid in Harry's mind. His desire to grow stronger had never wavered. In this vast and ever-changing world, the greatest reliance one could have wasn't on others—it was on their own strength, the kind that could shatter all obstacles.
"Can you explain it to me in detail?"
Harry didn't agree immediately. He already knew his answer, but before making such a monumental decision, he wanted to understand everything clearly.
"What do you want to know?"
Seti wasn't in a hurry. Having lived over a century, he could easily read Harry's thoughts.
"Li Jiannan... how strong is he exactly?"
"He possesses about one-fourth of the power of a fully realized Awakener—though, among all the Ascension Sequence candidates, his integration rate is the highest. If we put it in percentage terms, the top candidate, Anan, has a 25% integration, while the second place barely reaches 10%. Most people's upper limit is around that range. The key difference between Awakeners and regular mages lies in their magic power. Whether their integration is 10% or even just 1%, as long as they cross that threshold, they can crush ordinary mages to some extent."
"Of course, I mean within reasonable limits. Even with just a 1% integration, a person can confidently claim a top-ten ranking among their peers. The world is vast, and so-called geniuses appear every year. But some individuals… their monstrous talent is on another level entirely."
At this point, Seti paused briefly before pressing his index fingers together and pulling them apart, as if parting a curtain. In that instant, a distant scene unfolded before them, as though viewed through an open window.
It was the battlefield of the Young Sorcerers' Duel Championship's melee round. The match had begun after Harry and the others left. What Seti wanted to show him was the contestant who had previously placed third—the one who had lost to both Harry and Li Jiannan in the individual duels.
The massive battlefield, spanning ten kilometers in length and width, was eerily silent when viewed from above. The true bloodbath would begin once the "circle shrank," forcing all participants toward the center. Yet, even in the early stages, the earth had already begun to tremble violently.
Magically enhanced plants tore through rock and soil, releasing paralyzing, hallucinogenic, and even highly toxic spores in dense, sandstorm-like waves. Amid this toxic mist, enormous, serpent-like vines and roots writhed, their vast forms coiling like a dragon in flight. These botanical monstrosities had genuine wings, resembling intricate leaf veins, and their multicolored toxic leaves formed a dazzling coat of feather-like scales.
Within the ruins of an ancient Olmec temple, the feathered serpent god depicted on the timeworn murals had seemingly come to life. For Harry, such a grandiose technique wouldn't pose much of a threat. But for the other contestants, it was an unstoppable force, wiping them out before they even had a chance to fight back.
After just ten minutes of preparation and another ten minutes of cautious buildup, the caster from the Castrobuschean School of Magical Botany had single-handedly upended the battlefield in under half an hour.
One of the few contestants capable of resisting the devastation was Lu Chuan, who had previously lost to Harry. As he soared into the sky, he created the only "safe zone" amid the chaos—a pocket of land untouched by spores or entangling vines. Within this oasis, there were no obstructing plants, only relentless, thunderous explosions and the rising smoke of burning destruction.
"These individuals are potential candidates for the Ascension Sequence," Seti remarked. "But unfortunately, Awakener power isn't something that integrates easily. Most Awakeners are incredibly picky about who can inherit their power. After all, Awakeners are the most extreme beings in existence—the purer their beliefs, the stronger their abilities. Every top-tier Awakener is a terrifyingly obsessed lunatic in some way."
"Only a rare few possess magic power that is relatively gentle. These Awakeners may not be the strongest, but even the slightest breakthrough is enough to create a profound transformation. A small qualitative change can lead to immense overall improvement."
Harry nodded in agreement. Even without considering combat prowess, just breaking through that threshold would grant one the ability to Apparate freely, ignoring nearly all magical barriers. That alone was a ridiculously overpowered advantage—if you couldn't win a fight, you could always escape. With such mobility, survival was practically guaranteed.
"Seti, you mentioned the Ascension Sequence. Does that mean there are a lot of people involved?"
"Of course. Although preparations for dealing with the Abyssal upheaval officially began fifteen years ago, research on Awakener inheritance has been ongoing for over five centuries. The problem is, because of how few Awakeners there are, progress has been slow. Ordinary mages can't contribute much since most can't even perceive the color of raw magic."
Seti sighed. "Despite wielding power that surpasses ordinary beings—one could even say demigod-tier abilities—strength alone can't solve every problem. And besides raw strength, we Awakeners tend to be incredibly single-minded. Our extreme personalities, while the source of our power, also hinder our research efforts. A researcher obsessed with a single idea often refuses to acknowledge dead ends, even when they slam headfirst into them."
"We've taken many detours," he admitted, shaking his head. "If the Hammer hadn't been so impatient, he wouldn't have spent nearly two centuries in a daze. But ironically, because of that, he ended up being the longest-lived Awakener. At the very least… he achieved a proper lifespan befitting his power and physical abilities."
Harry tilted his head slightly, curiosity flashing in his eyes. But before he could ask, Seti held up a single finger.
"At least a thousand years. He had already reached the pinnacle of Awakener power, and with sheer physical strength alone, he could tear an adult fire dragon in half."
"Hand-tear?!" Σ(⊙▽⊙"a
Seeing Harry's exaggerated expression—practically an anime reaction—the senior uncles on the sidelines, who had been casually munching on sunflower seeds, pursed their lips to suppress their laughter. They didn't want to risk choking or spitting out their tea mid-sip.
"Wait a minute," Harry rubbed his face, pushing his metaphorically unhinged jaw back into place. "Didn't Daenerys tell me that Awakened bodies are the most magically attuned in the world…?"
"Exactly. And because of that, the way magic strengthens our bodies is also the most extreme."
This time, it wasn't Sett who answered, but a girl who looked incredibly young. Her soft, sweet voice carried a gentle warmth, and judging by her face alone, she seemed no older than fifteen or sixteen. But if one were to consider her figure… well, unless she had the metabolism of a teenager and the diet of a queen, she was certainly well past her adolescent years.
Though Harry firmly believed in the sacredness of legal lolis, he made sure to keep his thoughts in check.
"This is Mei. She's from the northernmost Inuit tribes," Sett introduced casually. "The first time the Taishi Celestial Empire conducted a nationwide screening during its education reform, they discovered her. She had no idea what a spellcaster even was at the time, yet she had already begun to awaken her abilities. Maybe in the undisturbed solitude of the Arctic ice fields, a simple life makes it easier for Awakened ones to find their true essence."
"I told you already, Sett, don't call me 'Mei'..." The girl—whose face had turned a shade of pink—whined softly. She dipped her head slightly, her tone taking on a tinge of shyness. "Melina is such a pretty name, yet you won't use it…"
Her voice trailed off for a moment before she suddenly lifted her head, her gaze flashing with an unexpected sharpness. In an icy, yet deceptively light tone, she murmured, "Or… do you want to become my prey?"
The charming, fanged smile she revealed sent a chill through the air, as though the Arctic winds had swept into the room. Unintentionally, her magic leaked out, pulling everyone's consciousness into an illusion—one of a vast, snow-covered tundra. Somewhere within the blizzard, an unseen hunter lay in wait, silent and deadly, poised to strike.
"Enough scaring the kids," Sett chuckled, breaking the illusion with ease. His rough, weathered hand reached out to ruffle Melina's hair. "You still need a couple more meditation lessons. You haven't fully mastered controlling your magic, have you?"
"I-I have!" Melina's bravado instantly crumbled, and in the blink of an eye, the ruthless huntress was gone, replaced by a sulking little kitten. She hugged her knees and mumbled under her breath, "I'm not a kid anymore… I don't wanna take more lessons..."
"Controlling emotional fluctuations is tough, I get it. But if you don't learn to restrain your power, you'll keep growing stronger unchecked—"
As the oldest among them, and the one closest to death, Sett had developed a tendency to nag. He had his reasons, though. An accident, combined with his own failure to rein in his power growth, had left him staring down the end of his lifespan far too soon. He didn't want the others repeating his mistakes.
Through Sett's rambling, Harry also learned that despite Melina's cutesy appearance, she wasn't some preserved relic from centuries past—she was actually only twenty-five. Just twelve years older than him.
However, when it came to power… this sweet, adorable girl gave Harry an eye-opening lesson on just how vast the gap between individuals could be. Sometimes, the difference between two people was bigger than the difference between a person and a protozoa.
"Look, Harry, I get that 'hand-tearing a dragon' sounds exaggerated." Melina held out her soft, slightly chubby hand and spread her fingers wide in front of him. "But breaking one of its bones with a single punch—"
She suddenly curled her fingers into a fist.
"CRACK—"
A piercing sonic boom exploded through the wooden cabin, reverberating off the walls. The shockwave sent sunflower seed shells and peanut husks flying through the air. Yet, as if guided by an invisible force, every last scrap of debris was neatly funneled into a nearby trash bin—without a single piece missing.
"—breaking bones like that is actually pretty easy."
After that casual display of raw power, Melina plopped down and resumed munching on sunflower seeds, slipping into a lazy, absentminded daze.
"In ancient times," Sett mused, picking up the conversation again, "Melina probably would've been worshipped as a goddess of the hunt. Her fixation on 'chasing prey' runs deep—one of her strongest obsessions."
Then, bringing things back on track, he continued, "The Awakened have been researching inheritance for over five centuries. But it was only about fifty years ago that I stumbled upon a way to properly guide power integration."
"Attempts had been made before, but none were particularly safe. Either the power was unstable, or the mental burden was too great. But once I discovered a certain soul medium, the safety of the process improved drastically."
"The cemetery initially held 3,696 burials. Over the next 1,100 years, 57 more Awakened were laid to rest here, bringing the total to 3,753. Each one left behind a crystallized essence of their spirituality."
"The Awakened are close to immortality." Sett's expression turned solemn as he spoke in a serious tone. "Their magic resists the erosion of time, and magic itself can carry both soul and memory. Even if the body withers away, their magical imprint remains. This doesn't mean an Awakened can come back to life, but as long as their imprint endures, anyone who encounters it will know they existed."
"You could say… the ancestors buried in the cemetery are still 'alive' in another form. But there's an even darker theory." Sett chuckled bitterly. "If the world were ever to face another crisis requiring the Awakened to act, these immortal seeds could rapidly cultivate a new generation of elite warriors—ultimate tools, crafted for war. Even in death, tools like us may never truly find peace."
Sett's laugh was laced with self-mockery. In a few years, he too would join the ranks of the buried, becoming yet another brick in the wall of the tombstone-lined sanctuary.
"In theory, 3,753 spiritual crystals should only be able to nurture 3,753 Ascended. But some Awakened have such extreme magical attributes that it's impossible to find a perfect match in this world. A complete fusion would place an overwhelming burden on an ordinary person. The safe method I developed involves suppressing raw power to enhance stability. As a result, the total number of Ascended is estimated to be between 15,000 and 20,000. Most of them barely cross the threshold—achieving just 1% fusion. Only a select few surpass that mark, and even those with exceptional talent are capped at 10%."
"That's about where you are now."
"M-Me?" Harry's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Yes. But I'm referring to your overall combat strength—it's only at this level." Sett nodded firmly. "They can understand and use some Awakened magic inscriptions, and their magic has undergone a qualitative transformation. However, their raw power increases by no more than 300%. Their physical enhancements? At most, about two-thirds of a Pandaren's."
"If they reach this stage, their combat prowess would increase five to tenfold at most. But that's their limit. If they weren't exceptional sorcerers to begin with, even non-Ascended spellcasters could eventually match them."
Harry immediately thought of the battle he had glimpsed through the 'window' earlier. The battlefield was pure chaos, yet some combatants stood far above the rest—like Lu Chuan, a walking artillery fortress, and Tupac, who had pulled off a literal Quetzalcoatl descent. They weren't just ten times stronger than regular wizards; they were on an entirely different plane of existence. Even if five or ten of the world's most talented wizards teamed up, they'd struggle to take down just one of them. The gap between an ordinary genius and a true prodigy was greater than the difference between a human and a dog.
For the Ascended, if their base stats were too low before the transformation, even a successful fusion wouldn't be enough to dominate the world. Sure, they could carve through cannon fodder with ease, but when it came to true high-level battles, they'd still fall short.
Harry himself… was in a rather similar predicament.
"But you're a little different," Sett continued. His gaze sharpened slightly. "Just like Anan, you're special. That's why I didn't plan on bringing you in until you passed the trial."
"Because it's dangerous."
Sett narrowed his eyes. "Your mother gave you all her power, yet you are not a true Awakened. Your very existence is a miracle of life. While you can't wield the full might of an Awakened, you also aren't bound by their limitations."
"But fortunately, you've come to understand your true self. You've undergone the same kind of spiritual awakening as the Awakened. It was only after confirming this that I extended my invitation to you."
"And now—"
Sett folded his hands in front of him, his gaze steady as he looked directly at Harry.
"Do you wish to join us? Not just as part of the Ascended sequence, but as something closer. One of us. A member of our little secluded circle—the tools of war."
Harry knew Sett hadn't told him everything yet. But what he had seen and heard so far was already enough to make his decision.
"Of course." Harry met his gaze with conviction. "Thank you, Senior Sett."
"Then—"
Sett smiled faintly.
"It's been a long time since you last saw your mother, hasn't it?"
(End of Chapter.)