Chapter 3: The Weight of the Deep

The ocean floor groaned.

Down in the trench, beneath crushing pressure and eternal dark, the young Leviathan drifted among bones older than time. He could feel it—this place was not just a graveyard. It was sacred. A tomb of titans.

[Deep Pulse] activated.

Surrounding terrain mapped. Artifacts detected. Danger: Dormant entity nearby.

You have discovered: "The Thronefall Rift" – Forbidden Zone of Ancient Leviathans.

His body curled slowly as the data flowed across his mind like ice. Each sonar wave painted the world in sound. Pillars of fossilized bone rose like cathedrals around him. The currents whispered of wars long past, and blood that never washed away.

And far below, something stirred.

System Notice:

Ancient Essence Detected. Leviathan Core Fragment.

Warning: Interference from Divine Watcher detected. Intermittent surveillance active. Recommend using stealth.

He snarled, a sound so low it sent ripples through the trench. Even here, they watched. From above the clouds, beyond the sky—the gods' gaze was unrelenting.

He had no time to mourn. No time to rest.

Only to grow.

He coiled around a cluster of deepsea crystal, feeding off the echoing resonance. Creatures of shadow approached—drawn to his warmth, to his pulse. Beasts of teeth and ink. Hunters in the dark.

Combat Initiated.

Targets: Abyssal Shrikes (x4)

Skill Unlocked: [Hunger Frenzy Lv.1] – Boost damage and devour rate when wounded.

The shrikes dove, razor fins cutting through water like blades. He let them come. Let them slash into his armored hide. Then he struck—massive jaws snapping sideways, crushing bone and spirit alike.

Devour successful. +89 XP

Trait acquired: Bio-Electric Flash (uncommon)

Level Up: 2 → 4

It wasn't enough. Not yet.

But the taste of growth was addictive.

Hours passed. Maybe days. Time lost meaning in the trench. He fed. He fought. He avoided celestial detection, but just barely. The system pulsed with new data each time he consumed.

Level 4 → 7

New Skill: [Tidal Shift] – Temporarily manipulate local water pressure to create bursts of movement or crush enemies.

Trait Mutation: Abyssal Hide → Abyssal Carapace (Greater Resistance)

His body changed. Scales hardened into a blackened armor. Fins grew serrated. His mass expanded to the size of a war fortress, yet still he felt small compared to what he used to be.

He remembered his final moments—so much bigger, so much more powerful. And yet, the gods had brought him down.

He would need more.

Then, he felt it.

Not a pulse, not a sonar ping—a song.

From deep beneath him, in the sunken cathedral of Leviathan bones, a single note echoed.

Low. Agonized. Ancient.

It called him.

And he answered.