Endless Evolution: Last Star

Chapter 665: Black But Not Blue

”What is that...?” Adam muttered, staring intently at the bright, tiny star.

Refesa’s corners of her lips went up.

”We call it Operator’s Star, but don’t take it as a serious term, as it’s only a beginning, but that doesn’t mean it’s not an important thing.”

Then, she pointed the star at Adam as well.

”The Operator’s Star has an essential use - it will change one of your abilities, as decided by your Evolution Tree.”

Adam’s eyes went wide for a moment, as he frowned sharply.

”What? Why by its decision? Shouldn’t it be me who controls my inner space and so on?”

”Hah, it seems like you and your Evolution Tree don’t rarely argue, right? Well, that’s nothing new, you’re not the only one, I assure you.”

Her gaze grew deeper, stopping on Adam for a long moment.

’A strong Phantom has a strong Evolution Tree. Most people don’t even realize what the Evolution Trees of truly strong Phantoms look like. It’s like monsters towering over other monsters.’

Refesa shook her head and continued:

”The Evolution Tree makes a choice because you will make a decision based on your will, following your desires, but the Evolution Tree will follow the necessities of your inner space. All in all, the situation is quite similar as with the Two Walls.”

”I see...” Adam nodded deeply before turning to Silvana.

The star was still hovering between her hands, waiting for someone to take the humble gift.

Step. Step. Step.

Adam walked over to Silvana, a faint smile appearing on her face as she looked at the tiny star with admiration.

”I hope so...” Silvana murmured, ”It’ll be enough... even though it’s all I can give you.”

Tap.

His hand gently lifted her chin, causing their gazes to meet.

”Sure, I couldn’t even hope for this, but Operator’s Star isn’t the most important treasure I got from you.”

Tap.

Adam poked Silvana in the chest, with a kind look, giving Silvana a silent reply.

Silvana blushed but didn’t look away despite her embarrassment.

Then, Adam took Silvana’s hands in his and slowly squeezed them until the tiny star disappeared.

Whoooooooooooooosh.

The Operator’s Star turned into a bright flash, traveling down Adam’s arms, toward his chest before ending up in his inner space.

Adam’s and Silvana’s eyes shone brightly, for until Evolution Tree made its move, the procedure would not end.

...

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

The Evolution Tree shuddered as if chuckling like an old man watching a lost but brave youth.

The white star hovered amidst the vast darkness, looking around but not about to flee in fear. Experience more content on .Côm

Compared to Evolution Tree, the star was nothing more than a lone spark in front of the great fire that long ago had its consciousness.

[Don’t worry little one... You and I... Let’s make these two fools stronger... Let’s start with my one... right?]

The star didn’t reply anything, it only trembled slightly in fear of Evolution Tree’s powerful voice.

[Silent...? Right, how foolish of me... Not all answers require words... You are so young... yet already wise...]

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

The Evolution Tree’s roots quivered before heading towards the star, at the end, the huge roots fused, leaving only the tip splitting into many paths for the star.

[Choose... First, you’ll see the same things as me... and then... go where you want to go...]

Full of uncertainty, the star headed forward, touching the sharp tip of the great root.

Whoooooooosh.

In a heartbeat, the star turned into a flash, sweeping across all the roots like a pulse along the nerves. It happened quickly, even in inner space, in the real world, not even five seconds had passed yet.

As fast as lightning, the star swept through the roots and the entire Evolution Tree, absorbing all available information about both Adam and Silvana.

While the Two Walls was created based on Adam’s history, Operator’s Star took Silvana’s path into account as well, considering the events in the White Cube.

This led Star to one particular place, something that hadn’t yet managed to become a full-fledged part of the Evolution Tree but was long ago in Adam’s inner space.

...

At the same moment, just seconds after the process began, the light in Adam’s eyes changed from white to black.

Refesa frowned as she quickly got behind Silvana and pulled her aside, away from Adam. She hadn’t expected the star to choose that particular one.

Electric shocks traveled all over Adam’s body, but... they weren’t blue, they were black as if they came from the depths of the abyss.

However, this time the lightnings had a clear purpose, they weren’t just going to roam Adam’s body, filling it with power, they wanted to take a shape.

Whoooooooosh.

The lightning bolts headed for Adam’s left arm, turning into thick chains tied around his arm, intertwining in an X-shape, from shoulder to wrist. The chains ended at his wrist, becoming a sturdy bracelet, lying like a fetter.

Adam wasn’t wearing his gauntlets now, but it was his ability, which meant it would have full compatibility with his Nexus.

”What? What is that...?”

Adam’s eyes went wide, looking at his left hand. For a moment it reminded him of his past Second Order.

Refesa narrowed her eyes, staring intently at Adam.

”Your artifact was changed through Operator’s Star. And... most likely your energy is already wanting to break free, isn’t it?”

Adam nodded slowly, Refesa wasn’t wrong, he could feel the electrical discharges running through his chains, bringing with them short bursts of pain.

It irritated him slightly, like an area of skin scratching vigorously after an insect bite, he wanted to get rid of the feeling as soon as possible.

”Alright, just hurry up, get somewhere safe.”

Refesa waved her hand with a confident smirk.

”Hah, don’t worry. The artifacts will absorb any damage. K2-Phantom is incapable of causing damage to the White Cube!”

Doubt was visible in Adam’s gaze, but in the end, he nodded, deeply and turned away towards the far wall.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

The chains shuddered, releasing thick electrical discharges, all the energy channeled in a single stream to Adam’s hand, coursing through his two fingers folded together.

Silvana’s eyes went wide, something similar she saw from Talna in her illusion.

Adam, with a calm face, stretched his hand forward and swept sharply to the right, leaving a short line of heavy black lightning in the air.

Whooooooooooooosh.

In a heartbeat, the electric blade swept forward, becoming several times wider.

Cutting through the wind currents, the electric blade slammed into the wall before Silvana could notice anything, for her, it was instantaneous.

Then...

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

Dozens of artifacts activated, causing the White Cube to shake vigorously, releasing dense energy from beneath the wide slabs.