Enlightenment

Carnage followed what happened next. The giant burst into a sprint, releasing a shockwave that shattered the remaining carriages which had yet to enter. Sensing the commotion, Jayde looked back to see the carriages turning to smithereens, different pieces of equipment flying out of them. One carriage in particular had a glowing tablet in it, which was also blown away by the shockwave unleashed by the colossal giant. But Jayde himself was experiencing true terror as he had his eyes trained on the phenomenon behind the giant's head.

Three gigantic pentagon-shaped runes pulsed faintly, shining brilliantly as though they branded themselves onto the air. They hung behind the giant, floating. Sweat matted Jayde's back as he further increased his speed, breaking through his limits. The phenomenon cast by the giant was one that experts who had stepped into the planer realm mentally could do, and it was called visualization—a realm where you can project the energy runes imprinted in your mind into reality.

Jayde couldn't believe that these ancient beings seemed to progress a little bit too fast. After all, it was barely a month since the sequence began on Earth, and these guys already had beings on the planer level. As though the one inside guarding the portal wasn't enough, another just had to be outside. What Jayde didn't know was that thanks to him, humans also now had nine planer beings, not just any bunch but all Savants. There were even two titled Savants among them. If the ancient civilization knew of this, they would stop at nothing to destroy Jayde and his upcoming crew. Well, whether he'd be able to suppress them and make them submit was also another question, but for now, Jayde was unaware of this.

All that was on his mind right now was to escape imminent death. His heart throbbed, his veins pumped full of adrenaline. His black hair swayed in the wind, his body emitted a shadow-like aura, evidence that he was bolstered by his comprehension. But still, he could feel the presence of the giant looming in. Finally, he stepped into the dense foliage of the forest. The abundance of shadows benefited him, further enhancing him.

Bursting through the horizon, there it was. Finally, the gate back to Earth was in sight. But he could still feel the incoming danger; the rumbling in the distance seemed to be getting closer. He quickly went through the portal. He didn't go far, knowing he couldn't outrun his colossal hunter. He quickly made up his mind, choosing a nearby henge, and went behind it, urging the shadows to conceal him.

But this time, they didn't listen to him as they felt the looming presence of a colossal shadow. The shadows trembled in fear. Jayde didn't have time for this. He tried to communicate as he usually did, but this time, the shadows were giving him a deaf ear. Though he was concealed in the shadows, it wasn't enough. The giant would sense him for sure, and what would follow would be a quick and gruesome death.

With the shadows not listening to him, Jayde was at a loss on what to do. The pressure of the looming giant weighed on his mind as his brain quickly processed other options. Seconds passed, and now he could literally feel the shadow of the incoming giant, its pressure bearing down on his soul.

Jayde's thoughts were in disarray, a strong will to live surging into his very being. In this state, his mind and soul were at their limit. It was then that something clicked in Jayde's head as he seemed to enter an ethereal-like state. Everything became silent except for the cries and whispers of the shadows, which sounded in disarray and scattered. Well, that was until suddenly, Jayde's figure rapidly emitted a suction force, directed towards the ether in the atmosphere.

Faint images of rapidly forming circles could be vaguely seen shimmering on his spinal bone. They quickly amounted to nine in number, fusing and forming a pentagon-like pattern, branding itself onto the back of his neck. With that, all the fabrics on him shattered as his body shone, reflecting a resplendent light.

As though in tow, his mental intent surged like raging waves, surging into his surroundings. A runic pentagon energy pattern came into light, branding itself into the atmosphere. Everything went silent as his intent shot out, taking control of all the shadows in the surrounding area. His senses blended and merged with them, his eyes shone as he thought, *'I see, so it's this way.'*

The moment that thought set in, his body dissolved, blending with the shadows themselves.

Though this series of events seemed slow, in fact, from the moment Jayde got his enlightenment till now, barely a second had passed. As though in tow, the giant burst out of the portal. It stood, three pentagon runes gallantly behind it like three gigantic stars. The giant's mental intent surged, flowing through every corner of the island, searching for Jayde.

One could imagine the sheer quantity of the giant's mental intent as it baptized the whole island. A frown formed on its massive face, its eyes roamed around in speed. A resounding roar rang out, expressing the giant's anger at Jayde's escape. As though it gave up, it turned back, walking into the portal. As it left, the wind howled, trees swayed, and everything looked normal. But a few minutes later, the wind surged back into the portal as the giant retrieved its mental intent, finally sincerely giving up. As its intent retreated, the atmosphere shook, space warped, and ether surged as the gate flickered. After a resounding bang, the gate vanished, the Stonehenge that guided it shattering into dust.

Finally, after a few more minutes, the shadows surged, revealing Jayde, who released deep breaths, clearly exhausted. He then collapsed onto the cold embrace of the earth, naked, his mind still reeling from the series of events that had just taken place. A single thought in his mind: *'That was close!'*

He lay there, weak, his body totally spent, but his sight was trained on the vast expanse of space. He was gazing at his status screen.

[Name: Jayde Bane]

[Race: Human]

[Talent: Darkness Wield (DD)]

[Lineage: Darkness God (Legendary)]

[Physical: First Plane]

[Mental: First Plane]

[Comprehension:]

[Shadows (21%)]

[Items:]

[First Page of Primordial Darkness Chronicle (??), Lineage Legacy Key(??)]

Evidently, his stats had skyrocketed. His comprehension had gone through the roof back then when he merged his mental intent with the shadows. His understanding of the element grew in leaps and bounds, which in turn caused his comprehension to grow. Now, not only could he sense shadows, but he could also manipulate them to an extent, and now he could step into the shadow realm, using shadows as gates.

There was also the obvious increase in both his mental and physical stats. It seemed enlightenment brought a lot of benefits, as he had finally stepped into the planer realm once more.

But among all these, there was a particular notification that drew Jayde's attention the most.

[Your improvement has been favoured by the shadows…]

[You have been bestowed the title Shadow-Mancer.]

[Do you accept the title? Y/N]

The reason this attracted his attention wasn't because of the title itself. After all, with his accomplishments so far, if the sequence still didn't bestow him a title, he would find it strange. What surprised him was the fact that it gave him an option. From his knowledge in his previous life, this had never happened before. The sequence always just gave one a title without a choice to refuse. This was why he was so taken aback.

As he focused on the title, the description came to light. As he read it, he understood right away why he was given an option.