Civilization: Beyond Two Worlds

Kang De had a dream.

A very, very terrifying nightmare.

He dreamed that one day in the future, he would finally disperse the white fog surrounding the district. When he returned home with excitement and joy, he discovered even greater despair.

The world outside was also empty.

There was only one human left on Earth.

His body suddenly twitched and he opened his eyes in fear.

His body was already soaked in a cold sweat.

Below him was a cold rock. What he saw was the top of the cave that was emitting light. It was a completely unfamiliar scene. He did not know where he was.

Kang De immediately rolled to the side and squatted down. He pulled out a short knife from his waist.

There was no one around.

In the huge underground space, on the floor of the stone wall that emitted light, he looked at these glowing words and murals. He could not understand them, but he felt a trace of familiarity and… sorrow.

"What is this place…"

He shouted, "Gorilla! Kangaroo! Pigeon!"

No one replied.

He shook his head, remembering what had happened. Tina had been captured by the animals. He had gone to contact the people of the other world. The natives had ambushed him, shouted at him, used knives and guns, and almost killed him. Therefore, they fought. Then, with starlight shining on Tina, she had done something…

Therefore, he understood the language of the other world.

Moreover, his body had also changed…

He subconsciously looked at the knife in his hand and was suddenly stunned.

After calming down, he discovered that the world was different.

The knife seemed to have… changed.

No, it was not the knife that had changed. It seemed to be him…

This knife was found in the contraband storage room of the police station. It was a controlled weapon, sharp, and bloody. It was forged from modern steel and was extremely sharp and lethal.

He looked at the sharp blade and his thoughts could not help but scatter. He felt his thoughts expand like a vine, covering the sharp blade like a net. He felt that he "recognized" this sharp blade light. For some reason, he spat out words that he felt unfamiliar with.

"Element… Extraction…"

The hard and sharp blade turned into starlight.

Under Kang De's surprised gaze, the blade of this saber continuously disintegrated into thin air until it disappeared without a trace. There was no residue left as if it had completely disappeared from this world.

In its place were balls of light of various colors.

There were large and small, clear and blurry. These floating balls of light stopped at the location of the blade. They intertwined and interacted, but they also existed independently.

Looking at these balls of light, an unfamiliar foreign term flashed through Kang De's mind.

He muttered, "Elements…"

He slowly stretched out his hand and stretched out to the gathering of light balls that were continuously circling. He stretched out to the brightest and most eye-catching light ball. It was the largest and slowest.

Touch.

The white ball of light touched Kang De's fingertip and entered his body. He instantly felt a sharp pain. Without the balance of this ball of light, the entangled balls of light quickly dissipated and floated between heaven and earth.

Kang De looked at his left hand.

He could sense that the ball of light he had absorbed was floating in the flesh of his palm.

This "element"…

He muttered to himself, "Sharpness…"

As if on cue, he raised the hilt of his right hand.

Only the steel blade disappeared.

He pressed the tip of his left index finger on the hilt and wiped it. The absorbed ball of light flowed out.

A metal-like coldness attached to the hilt of the cloth.

Kang De was deep in thought. He held the hilt and gently drew a line in the palm of his left hand.

With a slight sting, he cut open the skin of his palm.

His tough body which had been strengthened by the black beast crystals was easily cut by the cloth that was wrapped around the hilt and used to absorb sweat.

Kang De grabbed the hilt and cut his tactical vest.

He could easily see the broken thread and clear cut.

He pulled out the fire axe and knocked the axe blade against the hilt.

There was an ear-piercing metallic clang.

He saw a small gap appear in the solid fire axe blade. Immediately, the handle shattered as if it had been hit by a sledgehammer. It had already reached the limit of its endurance.

Kang De was stunned for a moment. He threw the axe aside and took out a nail from his waist pouch.

A nail for the nail gun.

He focused and used Element Extraction on it.

The steel nail disintegrated, and even smaller balls of light appeared. However, the quantity was clearly fewer than the blade.

Moreover, a few of the balls of light were very familiar and similar.

He held his breath and focused, choosing one of them.

"Penetrate…"

He thought for a moment, took the fire axe, and used his nails to pull off a small wooden spike from the handle.

His finger brushed past and attached the element.

He pinched the wooden spike, squatted down, and stabbed at the ground.

With a bang, the wooden spike shattered, but Kang De saw that the tip of the wooden spike had already broken through the solid stone and stabbed into the ground.

He muttered, "It's effective, but the hardness is not enough…"

Hardness.

He used Element Extraction on the second nail.

The ball of light was similar to the one in the steel knife.

Element, steel.

The third nail was extracted too.

Element, penetration.

Two balls of elements were attached to another wooden spike.

Kang De tried again. This time, the brittle wooden spikes were embedded in the ground like nails.

Then, it disintegrated.

"The quality of the material…" Kang De muttered to himself, "Ordinary wood is small and can't endure two enchantments…"

He did not realize that there was an inexplicable seriousness… and joy hidden in his tone.

It was the feeling of having strength.

He did not stop trying.

He pulled off a piece of cloth from his body, opened the stopper of the Molotov cocktail, and poured out a little liquid.

He lit it.

The flames leaped, illuminating his face.

"It can break down physical objects, but the intangible fire…"

His mental perception extended and his heart palpitated.

He gritted his teeth and reached out to touch the rising flames.

It worked.

His mental strength enveloped this ball of flames. The hot flames gradually extinguished. Elements soared. There were many, but just like the solar system, the small elements were only orbiting planets. The star in the center had the greatest light and heat, the most conspicuous and clear.

Element, flame…

Crimson light surged into Kang De's body.

He took out the fourth nail.

With the element attached, the steel nail changed color as if a scarlet light was circulating inside.

This time, he only used half of it… He carefully felt the upper limit of the steel nail.

In the end, this nail was only the most ordinary product in the modern industrial system. The material was inferior.

If there was better steel and better production technology to forge…

He placed this nail in the nail gun and fired.

Red flames shot out like a small line of fire and shot into the distance.

Kang De took out his Swiss Army knife again. The other half of the flame elements flowed into the folding knife and cut the flashlight. With a light slash, the plastic shell melted at a visible speed.

He was in a daze for a moment.

"What's this?" he muttered to himself and even smiled, "Enchantment?"

Just like the enchantment mechanic in Western games and fantasy novels, he could attach the power of various attributes to ordinary objects, causing them to have stronger performance and more magical functions.

Was that so?

He instinctively felt that it was not that simple.

Ever since he woke up, he discovered that everything in his eyes seemed to have changed.

They became simpler, clearer, and more… fragile.

He pulled out his phone.

If he used Element Extraction on this thing, what elements would there be?

His mind spread out and enveloped this modern technological product of humanity.

"…Uh."

Then, he felt a little dizzy. Kang De felt his mental strength envelop the shell of the phone. When he went deeper, he came into contact with a large number of electronic components and strange materials. It was not only that. Those were only material-related, and there were even more illusory things.

He had a feeling that even if he forcefully activated this mysterious power, the phone would only break into an extremely complicated mixture of elements, or even thousands of them. It was impossible to absorb and recognize.

There were too many elements.

In the future… perhaps?

However, what should he do?

And…

If the element of objects and even flames could be extracted, then… what about living creatures?

What would it extract?

Thinking of this, Kang De suddenly shivered.

This "extraction" was not a gentle method. The extraction of an element extraction was built on the foundation of being disintegrated… In other words, if it was a human…

Disintegration.

They would disintegrate into nothingness.

Kang De suddenly stood up and his body suddenly trembled.

Outside the cave.

The sky had already darkened, but the animals were still guarding here.

The knight advised, "Your Highness, why don't you return to the camp to rest?"

Tina shook her head stubbornly. "Please forgive me for being stubborn. Let's camp here. I want to make sure that after Mr. Kang De comes out, we can see him immediately to show our sincerity."

The knight frowned and said, "But…"

He swallowed the words he was about to say because of the princess's gaze.

"…As you wish."

He looked at the entrance of the cave, "How long will the ritual last for that Cathayan?"

"This depends on his aptitude and the nature of the inheritance."

The princess replied, "In theory, the awakening ritual will last for three days, but it won't actually be that long. The power inheritance of every ancient hero is an understanding of the law of the world. After receiving the inheritance, the inheritor will sleep until the law of this world acknowledge him. Then, he will wake up… Generally speaking, when he wakes up, the inheritance will end."

The knight acutely grasped a phrase.

Her Highness had always been very serious with her words.

"Generally speaking?"

"Yes."

Tina nodded. "There are special circumstances. Generally speaking, if the person wakes up, it means that the corresponding power of the law of this world has already acknowledged him. This process has been completed, so there's no benefit in staying any longer. However, the inheritance ceremony will still last for three days. In other words…"

She saw the knight's confused gaze and shook her head with a smile. "Let me give you an example."

"The human hero of the Terra Era, Abyss Walker Stella. After receiving the hero's inheritance and obtaining the approval of the killing law of this plane, he immediately opened the Abyss Gate and rushed into the Demon World to continue his hero's inheritance in endless slaughter."

"Because the inheritance ritual lasts for three days and the person can resonate with the power of the world during this period, Stella was also recognized by the killing law of the Abyss. In other words, he had two sets of power in the killing law. The two supreme powers converge and produce an extremely terrifying mutation…"

She said, "Do you understand this?"

"I understand."

Knight Cleveland nodded.

However, this was meaningless.

Unexpectedly, he suddenly said, "Such a situation will not happen to the Cathayan."

"I've said it before. How can there be a hero altar in such a forbidden place sealed by the gods?"

"Even if there is, it's because the gods pity Goethe. It's this Cathayan who got lucky. Moreover, in such a desolate and sealed place, even if there's a hero altar, it won't be a powerful ancient hero, let alone connect to another world. How can it be so easy to find an otherworldly gate?"

The knight spoke rapidly without stopping.

"Moreover, that Cathayan looks ordinary. How can he wake up so quickly? He'll most likely sleep for three days and barely accept the inheritance. Even if he really wakes up, if there's really a door to an alternate plane, it's most likely a weak plane. How can it compare to the Abyss that's filled with slaughter and eternal madness? Even if he can really obtain the approval of the second law, he won't be too strong."

The princess looked at the chattering knight in surprise. Then she suddenly smiled.

"Knight Cleveland, why would you say such a thing?" She smiled and said, "Could it be that you're actually trying to…"

Cleveland turned around and gritted his teeth. "Hmph, those ridiculous rumors about me… can't be trusted!!"

…