Mythical Monster Evolution

A frown found its way onto Kai's face when he read the Magical Artifact's description. The first thing that took him aback was the fact it was from the God of Monsters, the one who had given him his system. The second thing that made his eyes widen was the Artifact's ranking.

It was Divine. Kai didn't know if it was the highest possible rank, but based on the previous games he had played in the past, it was definitely up there as one of the best possible ranks. However, the best part about the item was its description. Inside this ring was incredibly valuable knowledge, and Kai couldn't wait to find out what was inside.

Isla, who had been a few meters away from Kai, couldn't see the screen that had appeared in front of him. "Is something wrong? Is the artifact cursed?"

Kai came out of his stupor and smiled in her direction. "No, not at all. This item…it's Divine-Ranked. Not only that, but it comes from His Highness, as you call him."

Isla flew so fast that Kai wasn't even able to see her appear before him. She landed on Kai's hand, staring at the ring with intense curiosity. "An artifact from His Highness in the first realm…you better not be playing with me."

She closed her eyes as if scared to touch the artifact. However, after some time, she finally made contact with it as a similar panel of information appeared before her.

Isla didn't say anything at first. She simply read through everything multiple times as she didn't want to miss the slightest detail regarding this precious artifact. "Mhm…the artifact was sealed thousands of years ago. We need something to decrypt it; otherwise, it's simply a normal ring."

"Can't you undo the seal?" Kai asked, his voice tinged with hope.

Isla got closer to the ring and placed both of her minuscule hands onto it, seemingly trying to find a way to undo the seal. "I can only weaken it slightly." She sighed. "The seal installed by His Highness is far too powerful for this weak being to destroy. Nonetheless, I can make it possible for you to access around 5 to 10% of the information inserted inside the ring."

"Then, what are you waiting for?!"

Isla nodded and took a deep breath. She knew just how dangerous it would be if she made even the slightest mistake. The ring could potentially be wiped of all its content if it realized what she was attempting. Nonetheless, it was the only way for her to weaken the seal.

A few moments went by since Isla had closed her eyes, with both of her hands on the gold ring. In fact, nothing happened for a few minutes apart from some sweat forming on Isla's forehead. Suddenly, a golden stream of light began to appear from the ring. Kai watched as the stream of golden light grew in the air, fluttering around briefly before heading for Kai's body.

He watched as the light made contact with him, not feeling any sort of threat or danger. As it did so, a warm feeling of energy flooded into his chest, right beside his Monster Core. He also felt a small amount of knowledge entering his mind, containing a short message. His eyes closed on their own as he was thrown into pure darkness, a voice talking to him.

***

"To whoever receives this, know that Fate has decided you to be the bearer of my final goal, to form the strongest being the world has ever seen. I am Varkul. Depending on the time you're receiving this artifact, you might know me as the God of Monsters. However, my name doesn't matter. Just know that you bear the weight of my greatest creation, the Mythical Evolution System. With it, you should be able to become the strongest being the world has ever seen."

"Alas, I would have liked to see your growth and final evolution. But, as you may have already guessed, I am dead…betrayed by fellow, greedy brothers. They feared my growth, and killed me as a result. However, knowing that my death was inevitable, I left the ninth realm and hid this artifact here for my successor to obtain it in the future."

"The rest of the seal will only be unlocked as you become stronger, when you need help the most. Inside this object, I have inserted certain answers to some of your questions and certain artifacts which will help you in the future as you reach certain bottlenecks over your progression."

"I would have liked to help you as much as possible. But alas, I can't. Nevertheless, to help you become as strong as possible, I will give you the answer to one of the most crucial questions as a new being that not even my assistant, Isla, knows of. The question is: How does one increase the rank of its Monster Core without killing other beasts?"

"The answer to that question lies in Cultivation Techniques. Normally, it wouldn't be possible for monsters to cultivate, a privilege only given to humans and the like. However, if everything went according to my plan, you aren't supposed to be a 'normal' monster. In fact, you aren't a monster at all. Um... never mind. Once you open your eyes again, a book should be placed on your chest. It will contain all the information regarding a Cultivation Technique that I have made years ago."

"That's all. Now, good luck, see you soon."

***

The message finished, and Kai's vision returned. However, Kai didn't move a single muscle, left with a sense of wonder. There was so much information inside that small message that he simply blinked without moving a single muscle. There were so many things he ignored about this world, which, for some reason, seemed more and more real the more time he spent inside it.

There were simply too many elements for it to be a video game. That was Kai's main argument. However, he still hadn't gotten to the other answer to that question: If this isn't a video game…then what is it? That's where he had been completely stuck.

As thoughts ran wild in his mind, Isla's voice made Kai come out of his stupor. "What happened? You suddenly fell to the ground, and your eyes closed. Did His Highness talk to you personally?"

Kai shook his head. "No, it was a programmed message. From what he said, Varkul had anticipated his death and hid this artifact for the being who would obtain his greatest creation."

Isla's eyes widened. "Amazing. Master left his will inside this ring. What else did he tell you? Is it related to that book?"

Questions suddenly kept coming out of Isla's mouth as she wanted to know more about her deceased Master.

"He told me that the seal put on the ring would weaken every time I would truly need it, guiding me toward the path of greatness. As for this book, it should contain a Cultivation Technique to improve one's Monster Core without fighting other beings."

"Cultivating? But that's impossible for monst—" Halfway through her sentence, she suddenly started laughing as if she had finally understood her master's intentions. "I was right! His Highness never makes mistakes! I was simply too shallow and couldn't see far enough into the future."

Isla kept praising Varkul, just like a fan girl would. While that happened, Kai focused once more on the book that sat on his chest. The book was certainly very ancient, as the pages were now yellow, and its cover was on the verge of completely cracking. Nevertheless, the intricate gold and silver inlays made one realize its worth. At the very top of the book was the title: [Varkul's Cultivation Technique].

A panel of information similar to the one that had appeared with the ring appeared once again.

[Varkul's Cultivation Technique] 

[Rank: Divine] 

[Description: There are nine stages for Varkul's Cultivation Technique. Each new stage will unlock a new ability.] 

Kai couldn't wait any longer as he opened the book. An even stronger light than before came out of it, heading for his mind, inserting knowledge without any rest for minutes. Isla panicked when she noticed Kai, but she didn't touch him, knowing that her master would never harm his protégé.

After a few minutes, the light finally stopped, and a message appeared before Kai.

[You have learned the First Stage of Varkul's Cultivation Technique.]

[First Stage: Absorb 1 Monster Energy from the ambient air every fifteen seconds.]

Another announcement was once more sent to every player within the game except for Kai.

[Player Notamonster has become the world's first player to have learned a Divine-Ranked Cultivation Technique.]

The game forums went even wilder this time around. In less than a day, a player had managed to evolve, obtain a Divine Artifact, and learn a Divine-Ranked Cultivation Technique.

Cheating allegations started getting thrown around without any mercy.