After the INVERSE mode ended, Jay bid farewell to Dante, who had gained invaluable insights from the threads of fate tied to such a powerful being. Dante went off to reflect and digest the knowledge he had comprehended.
Jay returned to his towering residence and resumed his cultivation. Completing another cycle brought his total refined cycles to a major threshold: 50 cycles. This triggered a transformative, evolution-like experience that enhanced the quality of his internal organs, external defenses, and all his senses. The breakthrough provided an additional 150 stats, increasing his overall stat count to 1456.
As before, the refinement expelled a layer of black, sticky residue from his body. Jay, now accustomed to this process, didn't mind the inconvenience and took yet another bath—his third in the past six hours. The repeated cleansing didn't bother him in the slightest, as each bath signified tangible progress.
Eager to continue, Jay resumed his cultivation for another four hours before heading back to the closed Training Ground and re-entered INVERSE mode. He once again used║Temporal Relapse║while simultaneously cultivating. The synergy between the two activities was proving to be one of his greatest advantages.
The key benefit of spamming║Temporal Relapse║was it preserves the 25-minute duration of INVERSE mode. While the saved time might not seem like much at first glance, it effectively granted him an additional two hours each day—time he could use to grow stronger.
With three hours remaining before the end of Day 19, Jay completed 100 cycles of refinement and met the requirements to upgrade his Origin Physique to 2-star.
Origin Physique ⧼2-star⧽
For every unit of Origin Energy your body is Refined with, two Looted Stats are integrated into every attribute.
Complete 1000 cycles of Refinement
Attain at least a 3% mastery over Origin Energy
Each cycle of refinement now integrated two looted stats into all five of Jay's main attributes, effectively doubling the benefits of his efforts. Additionally, his maximum immunity capacity rose from 10% to 20%, though achieving that increase required 100 cycles to gain just 1% immunity. Despite the steep requirements, the potential advantages were clear.
Curious about the practical implications, Jay asked MJ to test his immunity, and the results were both surprising and enlightening. The distinction between Resistance and Immunity became strikingly evident.
Resistance, even at 100%, didn't render someone invulnerable to an element. For instance, a person with 100% resistance to Fire would still be affected, though the burns and heat damage would be significantly reduced. In contrast, 100% Fire Immunity provided complete invulnerability, rendering the individual entirely unharmed by fire-based attacks.
With his current 10% immunity, Jay was protected against 10% of any attack that wasn't purely physical. This small percentage might seem negligible, but in a full-fledged battle, it could provide a crucial edge. The higher his immunity, the more difficult it would be for enemies to exploit non-physical damage against him.
Jay checked his Primary Status and saw his stats had risen to an impressive 1956, translating to nearly 6000 in his Secondary Status. In INVERSE mode, this growth made him a towering 18 meters tall.
Unfortunately, his║Size Alteration║skill could no longer shrink him to his usual size, as it had reached the limits of what an Uncommon-grade skill could handle. This presented a potential problem, as his massive stature could prove disadvantageous in certain scenarios, making him an easy target during battles in INVERSE mode.
Jay resolved to address this issue and turned his attention to the Achievement Point Store, which offered potential solutions. With 2300 Universe Points at his disposal, he was eager to make purchases that would enhance his abilities and overcome his current limitations.
However, MJ suggested a strategic approach: undergo Tier-3 Evolution first. Completing the evolution would unlock opportunities to earn additional Universe Points through Universe-level achievements, maximizing the benefits of his purchases.
Jay agreed with MJ's logic. With his current stats, he believed the Tier-3 evolution process wouldn't take long, just as his previous evolution had been swift. With his decision made, he initiated the evolution. Moments later, a popup appeared before him.
﴾ The Overall Stats of a standard Lv.25 Tier-1 life form is 300, excluding Luck Attribute. ﴿
The estimated time of Tier-3 Evolution for a standard Lv.25 Tier-2 life form is 12 hours. However, with your Overall Stats reaching 1956, matching those of a standard High-Phase Tier-4 life form, the duration of your Tier-3 Evolution process is reduced by 99%. The estimated completion time is now just 7 minutes and 12 seconds.
﴾ Warning! Evolution is a painful process ﴿
﴾ Tier-2 Evolution starts in 3...2...1... ﴿
Just as before, the Tier-3 Evolution process underwent a dramatic reduction in duration, shortened by 99% to mere minutes. When the three-second countdown concluded, a radiant, Shiny Crystal Orb materialized around Jay, enveloping him in brilliant light. His body was lifted into the air, hovering weightlessly within the glowing sphere.
In an instant, his surroundings transformed into a boundless expanse of pitch-black space, illuminated by a wide range of vibrant, multicolored stars. The stars shimmered and danced, casting an ethereal glow across the cosmic void, creating a surreal yet tranquil scene.
﴾ Time left for completion of Tier-2 Evolution: 00:07:12 ⧼hr:min:sec⧽ ﴿
The timer for the evolution process began ticking down, marking the minutes remaining. As it did, the stars scattered across the dark expanse started converging, their lights merging with Jay's form. This cosmic energy triggered profound and fundamental changes within him.
His internal organs underwent a significant overhaul, growing stronger, more efficient, and vastly more durable. Although the transformation was accompanied by sharp waves of discomfort, the pain was noticeably less intense than what he endured when activating INVERSE mode.
As the process advanced, dark impurities oozed through his skin, staining the crystalline glow momentarily. This purging of toxins, a hallmark of evolution, left his body increasingly refined with each passing second.
Curious about the extent of his transformation, Jay opened his║STATUS║tab mid-evolution. He watched as his stats climbed steadily with each pulse of cosmic energy. Strength, Agility, Endurance, Vitality, and Spirit—all his main attributes except for Luck—rose incrementally.
By the time the Tier-3 Evolution process concluded, Jay's overall stats had risen by 150 points, bringing his total to 2106 stats. With this increase, he now held 375 Undistributed stats, a result of the vast reserves of Life Energy he had accumulated—more than enough to propel him directly to Lv.50, the pinnacle of Tier-3.
Instead of allocating all the points at once, Jay strategically added just four points to balance his five main attributes, ensuring they were equal. This activated the state of Harmony, which allowed him greater control over the surge in his stats.
However, as a Rare-Grade skill,║Harmony║was beginning to show its limitations. Its effectiveness had waned compared to before, providing only subpar control over his newly improved stats. Jay realized he would need to upgrade the skill's grade soon, especially as his stats were bound to grow even more in the near future.
As these thoughts swirled in his mind, a notification flashed before his eyes, pulling his attention toward an expected reward.
﴾ Congratulations! You are the 158th Existence in the entire Universe to complete the Tier-3 Evolution process under 10 minutes ﴿
Due to causing a Universe Level Achievement, you will receive a random grade reward that will be most useful to you at the present moment, or you may choose to convert this reward into Universe Points.
Jay chose to convert the reward into Universe Points without hesitation. He quickly checked his updated total and immediately opened the Achievement Point Store, instructing MJ to comb through the options for anything that could bolster his strength or prepare him for Day-20.
Exclusive artwork for every free chapter is now available on my PATRE0N page! You can find the link in my Discord server.
I'm thrilled to share that I'm taking a big leap forward! Alongside Earth's Alpha Prime, I've launched the first sub-book for EAP.
ALTER REALITY: Online
The first ten to comment for new chapter releases will get '1 ADVANCED CHAPTER' for free on Earth Alpha Prime's Discord server.
In the discord server, I opened a private channel for those Top 10 candidates, where I posted the respective Advanced Chapter.
Discord Link for 'Earth's Alpha Prime' :