Awakening: Reincarnating With the SSS-Level Extraction Talent

Alex leapt into the hole without hesitation.

No fear showed on his face, no doubt lingered in his eyes.

The opening in the middle of the [Nightmare Temple] had appeared like a maw, ready to devour him whole, but Alex dove straight in, wings tucked, body focused, soul ready.

He had passed the trial of the [Depths], defeating each of his nightmares, one by one, no hesitation, no mercy.

But even with their deaths confirmed and the [Nightmare Echoes] in hand, Alex knew it wasn't the end.

The final trial was about to start.

As he fell, his senses confirmed what his instincts whispered, he was plunging deeper, far deeper than before.

His body cut through the darkness like a falling star, yet the scenery remained the same, nothing.

Just an endless stretch of black void.

He glanced upward. Nothing there either.

The ceiling he had fallen through was already gone.

The lightless sky offered no answers.

This continued for minutes, longer than it should have.

Just a straight, uninterrupted drop.

No obstacles, no attacks, no change.

Just endless falling. And then.

[Warning! Floor incoming!]

His instincts screamed at him just in time.

Alex quickly shifted his posture mid-air, angling his legs beneath him and tightening his muscles, ready to take the impact.

BOOM!

He landed with a thunderous crash that cracked the ground below.

His knees hit first, the shock surging through his legs, but he tanked it.

Just tension, released all at once.

The moment his boots stabilized against the surface, Alex rose.

Eyes sharp, body still crackling faintly with the aftermath of impact.

Darkness. Complete and total.

This wasn't just the bottom of the tower, it was the root, the foundation of the [God of Nightmares]' domain.

The true [Depths].

No sky, no floor, no walls.

Only him. And silence.

"What's the challenge?!" Alex shouted into the void, his voice echoing in every direction.

Challenge... Challenge...

The answer came only in the form of echoes, no presence replying.

But he was used to that now.

The [Tower of Destiny] had presented him a defined boss fight.

He had fought under Kaelios's gaze and proved himself.

The [Tower of Wrath] had a guardian too, though that one had simply yielded the token after acknowledging Alex's resolve.

This tower, though.

The [God of Nightmares] hadn't shown up once.

That could only mean one thing.

He was the final challenge. Or, at least, what the god had left behind.

Alex took a cautious step forward, scanning his surroundings.

FWISH! BOOM!

Suddenly, a massive shockwave exploded in the distance.

"..."

Without needing to be told, Alex took a stance immediately, eyes narrowed.

Whatever that was, it wasn't random.

Something had just awakened.

[Unfortunately, the God of Nightmares is currently busy, so he won't be able to assist with this challenge.]

'Of course he is,' Alex thought dryly.

The gods and their chosen ones were all preparing for the [Chosen Games], doing their final training.

He was likely the only one still fighting through the towers, pushing himself to the limit for a greater goal.

That didn't mean he'd stop.

He stepped forward, heading toward the source of the explosion, but before he could get far.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

More explosions ripped through the silence, each one closer than the last.

And then, something changed.

Purple cracks began to appear across the ground.

"Huh?"

Alex squinted.

They looked identical to the cracks he had seen outside the tower.

But now, they were here, inside the [Depths].

The cracks spread rapidly.

First along the floor, then outward, and up.

Not just on the ground but into the air, until even the "sky", the unseen ceiling above him, was filled with branching, glowing purple fissures.

They pulsed like veins, like something ancient was waking up.

'Oh shit.'

Too late to react.

The entire realm was covered now, walls, ground, horizon, everything painted in that eerie glow. And then.

FWISH!

The massive eye opened.

That same single eye with the glowing purple pupil, the one that had stared at him when he was outside the tower.

The one that had judged him without words.

It had been hiding in the void all this time.

Alex raised his head to meet its gaze.

The eye was enormous, the size of a boulder, staring directly at him.

Tracking his every movement. It blinked.

[Final Nightmare: "Guardian of Nightmares"]

'There it is.'

Alex had expected this.

Whether or not the god himself was present, the trial would continue.

The system never left a challenge unfinished.

And this, this was the true end.

The eye finally spoke.

[FateBreaker, you are one of the few who have cleared the "Depths". I recognize your strength.]

"..."

[But.]

The eye blinked once, slower this time.

[That is not enough.]

Alex didn't argue. He already knew this wouldn't be easy.

This tower would never make it that way.

This guardian wasn't going to back down.

In fact, it seemed eager to prove itself.

[When the God of Nightmares is away, I take over,] it continued, voice calm yet immense, [And I assure you, my trial is even harder than his.]

The confidence in its tone was unmistakable.

And then, the pupil began to shift, swirling, expanding, turning into a vortex of raw power.

The aura alone caused the space around them to rumble and distort, as if the entire layer of the tower was cracking under pressure.

[Let's get this over with. You will die here like the rest. No one will ever complete this tower.]

The space around Alex shattered like glass.

He flared his six wings out, energy crackling across them as he immediately called forth the [Universal Orbs].

They formed around him, orbiting his body in tight patterns.

The tower's usual restrictions were gone.

[You are allowed to use ANY of your abilities here. No holding back.]

Alex gave a faint nod.

That confirmed it.

The [Depths] weren't suppressing anything anymore.

This would be the most direct fight yet.

He activated his [Wings of Hatred], feeling the immense burst of strength and aura they brought.

No delay.

No limits.

The eye twitched slightly.

[Interesting.] Its power continued to surge, crackling purple aura surrounding it.

[But that will never be enough. No one has passed this trial. No one ever will.]

Its words felt absolute.

But just as it finished speaking.

[Truth.]

Alex's [Cursed Eyes of Truth] reacted.

And what they revealed, confirmed something strange.

The eye wasn't bluffing.

It truly believed what it said.

Not a shred of doubt existed in its mind.

Whatever had happened before, whoever had challenged it before, they had all failed.

And the eye genuinely thought Alex would fail too.

There had to be a reason for that level of confidence.

But Alex didn't care to find out.

Instead, he flapped his wings and surged forward.

His [Bleeding Dragon Claws] materialized around his arms, already sharpened and glowing, aimed directly for the eye.

He shot straight toward it, aiming for the pupil.

Yet right before contact.

BOOM!

A massive pulse of purple light erupted from the eye.

Alex was blasted backward instantly.

His claws scraped against the ground, trying to find traction, sparks flying as he slid across the floor.

He dug in and stopped himself.

The moment he regained balance, a message appeared.

[Goal: Kill the "Guardian of Nightmares"]

Of course. This was it.

He looked up, prepared to try again, when the smoke and purple light began to fade.

And what he saw caused his breath to catch.

His body froze. Mind staggered.

Because standing in front of him wasn't the eye anymore.

It was, him. Literally.

A version of him shrouded in nightmarish energy, skin pale with cracks of glowing red lining his arms and face.

His six wings were still there, but tainted, the feathers dark and ragged.

His eyes glowed with a twisted version of his own determination, and every ounce of his aura felt suffocatingly familiar.

A reflection of everything he had become, and everything he feared becoming.

[Alex Rogue/FateBreaker - Nightmare]