[Godscion offer has been rejected.]

As soon as he clicked it, another prompt replaced it, its text glowing with an intense, fiery red.

[Do you wish to enter Heaven’s domain, or do you want to battle one last time to advance your Talent to the highest rank talent: EX-Rank?]

Andrew’s eyes flashed. His heart skipped a beat. ’There’s a rank after SSS-Rank? And it’s called EX?’

He had absolutely no idea there was a rank above the famed SSS-rank. SSS was supposed to be the limit, the end of the line. He stared at the skies, then looked around him at the ruined arena, his mind racing.

Suddenly, a wild, confident smile curled his lips.

He had two Origin Bloodlines, one Ancient bloodline, an SS-Rank talent, and now an SSS-Rank talent. His body was practically overflowing with top-tier power.

Surely, the EX-Rank battle wouldn’t be something he couldn’t handle. He was practically a one-man army now!

Just as he was about to hit accept, another notification popped up right in his line of sight, blocking the button.

[Ding! ’Saintess Of Reversal’ sent a message. Do you wish to open?]

Andrew frowned slightly, his good mood dampening.

A direct message from a Saint? That was rare. But he nodded his head and swiped the screen open.

[Saintess Of Reversal: Your rejection truly disappoints me. So, I shall invade the First Heaven, find you, suck out your soul, and torture you for a thousand years...]

Andrew’s face instantly turned pale. The blood drained from his cheeks so fast he thought he was going to pass out.

He knew the Saints were petty, but he didn’t think they were petty to this extent! Was she really going to destroy him just because he said no?

He broke into a cold sweat, his finger hovering over the ’Enter Heaven’ button to escape.

But just as he was about to panic, his eyes caught the next line of the letter.

[Saintess Of Reversal: Hahaha. I can predict your face turning pale as I’m typing this letter. Sigh, I know you didn’t reject because you don’t want an ordinary Saint as your Patron. It’s more than that, right? You don’t want to be a slave.]

Andrew blinked, reading the words again. She was messing with him!

[Saintess Of Reversal: How about this? Become a Forsaken. It’s like a Godscion in name only. You have none of my powers inside you, and I can’t see through your eyes or read your thoughts. But you can evoke my name, and I will hear you. If you are in a truly desperate situation, I can help out if you Invoke me by calling me thrice by my true name: Elyndra]

[You must be skeptical, so I will tell you the truth. I’m interested in your future potential. I have a sixth sense about underdogs. You are going to shake the very foundations of this multiverse, and I want to be on your good side when you do.]

Andrew blinked his eyes and read the message one more time.

A Forsaken?

It was a completely one-sided deal in his favor.

She was basically offering him a lifeline without the chains.

There would be nothing binding them as well as no forced servitude, nor any loss of privacy. It benefited only him and not her.

It was suspicious, sure. But in a world where Saints could crush you like a bug, having one owe you a favor, or at least being on friendly terms, was an opportunity he couldn’t pass up.

Andrew shrugged his shoulders. What did he have to lose?

He mentally clicked ’Accept’.

[Ding! You’ve become a ’Forsaken’!]

[Ding! You’ve gained the title ’Forsaken Godscion’ (Transcendent)!]

[+1 to all stats]

Andrew didn’t have time to check the title description.

The system wasn’t going to wait for him forever. The countdown for his choice had reached its final seconds.

"Enter the next battle!" Andrew shouted, his voice echoing across the empty arena.

[System: Choice confirmed.]

[Player Andrew has elected to participate in the EX-Rank Culling Game.]

[Initializing Culling Game Protocol...]

[Opponent matched.]

[Arena Generation: Commencing.]

[Transfer to Culling Game Arena in 10... 9... 8...]

[3... 2... 1...]

[Transfer complete.]

[Welcome to the Culling Game Arena, Player Andrew.]

•••

[System: The streaming mode has been disabled for this battle as it is for all EX-Rank battles. Goodluck.]

Andrew opened his eyes and saw he was in a completely different place.

The surroundings were filled with peace and life.

He was standing on a ground covered entirely in water. The land stretched out for more than a kilometer in every direction, a massive, shallow lake. But strangely, the water didn’t even pass his ankle. It was perfectly clear, reflecting the sky above like a massive mirror.

A gentle breeze blew across the surface, creating small ripples around his feet.

He looked around, his eyes scanning the horizon, but he didn’t see any opponent.

There were no trees, no rocks, no place for an enemy to hide. It was just him and the endless shallow water.

Just as he was starting to get creeped out, a notification popped up before him.

[System: The EX-Rank Trial is completely different from other trials. You have battled others and have conquered. But the best way to truly conquer is to conquer oneself.]

Andrew frowned, his face scrunching up in confusion. He read the message again, but it still didn’t make sense.

"Conquer oneself?" he muttered, scratching his head. "What does the system mean by that? Do I have to kill myself to pass this stage?"

He looked down at the GodSlayer Blade in his hand, then pointed the tip at his own chest.

Just when Andrew was seriously contemplating stabbing himself to see if that would trigger a win, the water underneath him surged.

He looked downward quickly, his eyes locking onto his reflection staring back at him from the clear water.

At first, Andrew didn’t notice anything strange. He blinked. You can’t catch yourself blinking in a mirror, right? It was basic logic.

Andrew chuckled, feeling a bit silly for being so jumpy.

He reached up and scratched his cheek, laughing at himself for almost stabbing his own heart.

But then he felt something was wrong with his reflection, he was laughing but the damned reflection wasn’t.

"Fuck!"

Andrew leapt backwards in fear, water splashing wildly around his ankles as he jumped away.

In the next second, the water bubbled upwards like a broken tap. The liquid rose high into the air, forming a towering column that was 2-meters tall. The water started to swirl and shift, taking shape.

In just a second, the water had formed a perfect, three-dimensional image of Andrew. It had the same weapons, the same aura, and the same body. It was an exact, watery replica of himself, down to the smallest detail.

The water-clone opened its eyes, which glowed with a faint blue light.

Andrew stared at the clone, then let out a long, tired sigh.

"Well... Fuck me."