THE SKILL TREE

Right above him, the massive chunk of the wall was suspended in mid-air. It was frozen as if time itself had stopped. The gigantic piece hung there, impossibly still as a colossal wave of sand and stone, inches away from crushing him.

Rave's mind went blank, his thoughts stumbling over themselves. How was this even possible? He stared, his eyes wide with shock, his heart thundering.

"What... is going on?" he whispered, his voice barely audible over the eerie silence.

While Rave was staring at the suspended wall in disbelief, he suddenly heard a voice behind him. It was calm but commanding, filled with power and an underlying sense of terror oming from it.

"Are you Rave?" the voice asked, firm yet oddly gentle.

Rave's body went cold. He didn't dare turn around, his heart pounding in his chest. But the voice continued, answering its own question, "Yes, you are Rave."

Before he could react, a strange energy, swirling in blue and green, wrapped around his body. It felt warm yet heavy at same time, it was like holding him in place. Rave still didn't turn around, his body frozen in fear. But from the voice's tone, he felt this person wasn't a threat... at least not yet.

"How does he know my name? Was he waiting for me till now? But... how? I'm not even from this world," Rave thought, his mind spinning.

The energy around him began to lift him off the ground, gently turning him to face the source of the voice. As he floated in mid-air, he finally saw the figure standing before him.

The person was about 5 feet 10 inches tall, with dark skin that seemed to absorb the surrounding light. His eyes were mesmerizing—one gleamed a deep blue, the other a vivid green, both locked on Rave with an intense gaze. Yet, there was no malice in them, only curiosity peeking at Rave.

But what truly stunned Rave were his facial features—sharp, elegant, almost otherworldly. It took him a moment to realize... "Dark Elf," he muttered, his eyes widening in shock. This was his first time seeing another person in this world, and it was nothing like he had imagined.

The Dark Elf wore ancient white robes, decorated with the image of a peacock, just like the ones from Rave's home world. A powerful aura radiated from him, making the air feel heavy.

Rave swallowed hard, his body still floating. "Y-Yes," he finally managed to say, trying his best to hide his fear and confusion. But the Dark Elf must have seen right through him, so, he burst into laughter, his deep voice echoing around them.

"Ha ha ha! You're trying to act brave, but your face says everything!" he laughed, his eyes gleaming with amusement.

Rave felt his face burn in embarrassment. He opened his mouth to defend himself, but the Dark Elf spoke again, his tone shifting to something more serious. "I saved your life just now. You're in debt to me."

Rave's eyes widened. He realized the wall had stopped falling because of this man's power.

The Dark Elf continued, his gaze never leaving Rave's face, "One day, I'll need your help. Don't forget that, Rave."

With a casual wave of his hand, a bright white light shot out from his palm, illuminating the dark area around them. The light revealed a massive stone chamber, ancient and majestic, made entirely of stone bricks. At the center stood a stone platform, carved with mysterious symbols that seemed to glow faintly.

Rave's jaw dropped. "What... What kind of power is this?" he whispered, unable to hold back his amazement.

The Dark Elf laughed again, his voice deep and echoing. Rave stared, confused by his laughter. "Why is he laughing?" he wondered.

Then, the Dark Elf's laughter faded, his eyes twinkling with mischief. "Alright then. I'll see you next time, Rave."

Before Rave could even respond, the Dark Elf vanished. No flash of light, no swirling portal, nothing. One moment he was there, and the next... he was gone.

Rave stared at the empty spot where the Dark Elf had stood, his mind blank with shock. "What... just happened?" he whispered, his body trembling as he was slowly lowered back to the ground.

Rave's mind was spinning with questions. Who was that person? Why did he help him? What was his true identity? One thought after another raced through his head and it started aching now. He shook his head, forcing himself to focus on present situation.

"No, no... I need to stay in the present. The future is the future. I should be ready for the worst," he muttered, taking a deep breath to clear his mind.

He looked up and found himself standing before the ancient stone platform. It was massive, carved with intricate symbols that seemed to hum with energy. He wondered what he should do next when suddenly, a bright prompt flashed before him:

[Quest Completed.]

Reward: Domain of Upgrader

Golden words appeared, glowing so brightly that Rave had to shield his eyes. "Agh! My eyes!" he shouted, squinting as the blinding light finally dimmed. When he opened his eyes again, he noticed a new tab had appeared on his skill tree panel: Domain of Upgrader.

Curious, he tapped the tab, and a new screen opened. On it was a symbol, unfamiliar and mysterious, resembling the symbols for his skills, Swift Steps and Vital Surge. It looked like an ancient language twisted into a magical emblem. Next to it, detailed information appeared:

Domain of Upgrader: An unknown Tier skill that grants the user ownership of the Upgrader Rift—a supreme special-class rift. The user gains the title of Upgrader. To unlock more functions, the rift must be upgraded to higher tiers.

Upgrade Criteria: 200 Greater Beast Cores.

First Function:

Portal [Tier 3 Skill] – Can open a gateway to the Upgrader Rift and the outer world, with a range of 10 km.

Rave's jaw dropped. "Is... is this the treasure from the quest?" he whispered, his fingers trembling as he read the details.

His heart raced with excitement. He had just gained a god-class artifact at the very beginning of his journey! He knew about things like this from the novels he used to read—rifts that could grow and evolve, even turning into entire worlds with enough resources. Just the thought of it filled him with bubbling excitement.

But his joy was mixed with frustration. "What? 200 Greater Beast Cores?! This system has more demands than I've ever seen... in both of my lives," he groaned, feeling a headache coming on. He wanted to shout, but he quickly calmed himself. "No... with enough time and the help of the system, it's not impossible to gather them," he convinced himself, setting the worry aside for now.

Turning his attention to the Portal skill, he tapped on the symbol. Instantly, the air around him changed. A cold wind swept through the chamber, swirling towards the stone platform. Rave's eyes widened in shock as he felt a strange energy in the air.

Instinctively, he activated Vital Surge, his body humming with power as his senses sharpened. He could see the energy particles now, tiny specks of light flowing towards the platform and spinning in a circle. The air grew colder as the particles merged, forming a glowing portal on the platform. It shimmered like liquid silver, swirling in a mesmerizing pattern.

A wide grin spread across Rave's face. "It's... it's a portal," he whispered in awe, his heart thumping with excitement. He knew this was just the beginning. This portal wasn't just a gateway—it was the start of his true journey in this world.

He took a deep breath, his eyes gleaming with determination. "It's time to begin the real adventure." Without another second of hesitation, Rave sprinted forward and leaped into the portal, disappearing into its swirling depths.