His shriveled hands were dirty, but they embraced the mud. They shuddered but they held onto the shovel. His eyes were lifeless, but he dug.

After finishing his pit, he grabbed a corpse. Looking at the handsome young face, unknown to any blemishes, he choked. His withered neck moved.

Closing his eyes, he dropped the body into the pit.

Sealing the pit, he walked away, the shovel dragging behind him. Only his shadow laid witness to the decrepit visage of an old, tired man.

After he departed the graveyard, two men in black blocked his path.

“Can you bring him back?” The old man asked.

“Yes, but your help is needed.” One of the men replied.

“I have to participate in the experiment?”

“Correct.”

“What if I refuse?”

“We’ll send you to your grandson.” A cruel glint flashed past the bulky man's eyes. His muscles bulged under his suit, threatening to rip it apart.

The old man hesitated. He looked back to the graveyard.

“…Lead the way.” A tired sigh escaped his mouth.

A community hall.

Many people gathered in this plain white room. Paintings of beautiful flowers decorated the white wall. However, the hearts of the people were polar opposites of this beautiful wall. They were in despair.

“How long will this continue?”

“I don’t know. No one knows. But, we cannot falter. There is hope.”

“Hope? I don’t need hope! I want my beach home! They promised me a life of luxury.”

“…You’ll get it. Wait.”

“I’ve been waiting for months! I cannot wait anymore!” A skinny man shouted. He banged the walls, screaming until his vocal cords surrendered, “Let me out! I want to speak to the Lord! He knows me! Ple-*cough*”

An old man sat in a corner of this hall, watching the others battle with despair and hope. Unlike them, he knew the truth. It wasn’t just him. The old man was confident that the clever ones had already inferred the truth. However, being clever, they would keep it to themselves.

“Grandpa! Had breakfast?” A cheerful voice uprooted the old man away from his contemplation. He never expected to find such an uplifting voice in this cage of despair. However, seeing the owner of the voice, his expression dulled.

“You again? Go play with the kids of your age. And for the nth time… I’m not your grandpa!”

The child pouted. He sat beside the old man in a show of defiance.

“Others are boring. Either crying or complaining. It’s so desperc... dipers…” The boy frowned.

“Depressing.”

“Right, depsersing. Grandpa is different.” The boy smiled. The old man envied that smile.

“Work on your vocabulary. You aren’t a local?”

“No, I’m traveler.”

“What is a young traveler doing in this hell?”

“Hell? Grandpa, you wrong! This is my opprahtuknity! I will become owner of Bloodline Skill!” The boy grinned, unabashedly revealing a set of yellow teeth.

“A Bloodline Skill? Why that in particular?” The old man wanted to ask how he learned to pronounce ‘bloodline skill’ so fluently, but he quashed that thought. He saw the glitter in the boy’s eyes when he mentioned the word and that answered his question.

The boy’s expression fell. He drew circles on the ground and said, “I don’t have taki… takent for Arts. Bloodline skill is my…”

“Only choice? That's a weird dream for a human. By the way, it’s talent.” The old man smiled wryly.

“Yes! Zirztoms can change my bloodline, give me bloodline skill!” The boy cheered.

The old man hesitated. He couldn’t bring himself to crush the young boy’s dreams. In this colorful hell, hope was more valuable than life.

“Grandpa, what did Zortoms promise you?”

“…” The old man closed his eyes. The visage of a young flawless man appeared in his vision.

‘Pol, will I ever see you? Can I even come to the Afterlife? Agreeing to join this place was my greatest mistake.’ The old man's head plunged, and his breathing weakened.

“Grandpa? Grandpa?” Noticing no reply, the boy shook the old man. His face paled as his voice increased a couple of decibels, “Grandpa? Grandpa!! HELP!”

A faint smile crept up the old man’s face.

‘Kel, may your optimism take you to the end of this tribulation. Unfortunately, I can’t…’ The old man collapsed. His chest had stopped moving.

Ren woke up in a daze. The three illuminated doors surrounded him. He had returned to the entry place of the trial world.

‘What a weird dream! Who was that old ma-’

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!” A nerve-sundering pain struck him at once. An unnatural force ripped apart his soul, slowly and painfully. The pain felt like someone was tearing his limbs. He rolled on the black water, pleading for it to stop, lest he loses his sanity.

He spasmed. Even his inhuman tolerance for pain failed to help him in this moment of disaster. Fortunately, the terrifying pain lasted for a mere few seconds. Nevertheless, even after the pain faded, he didn’t dare to move.

“Ha… ha… Is this… the consequence… of failure?” Ren panted. The pain had gone but its memory would never leave.

'Never, never die in this place. This is worse than death...' Ren sprawled on the ground. The pain forced him to contemplate his mistakes.

‘The clone played an elaborate act, and I fell into its trap. My hesitation cost me my life.’

‘Two things I must not forget. Don’t hesitate. Trust my instincts.’ Ren repeated these rules. He reinforced these rules with his fear of the dreadful pain.

‘Nez was right. I have one year. There’s no reason to hurry.’

A few minutes passed. After enough contemplation, he decided to shun the ‘Door of Eclipse’ until he completed the other doors.

Ren traipsed towards the second door. Drawings of animals and mythical beasts decorated the door and a green orb glowed at its center. As he approached the door, the left gargoyle came to life. Its grating voice brought no joy to Ren.

“Welcome to the Door of Growth. Survive, grow and surpass. Exit a stronger challenger. You have 1 year.” The gargoyle returned to silence.

‘Is that it?’ Ren frowned over the short explanation.

‘Growth? Is this a place for training? Isn't that a little too convenient?’ Even though his mind was thinking, his hands had already pushed the green orb. His body already began to follow his new rules.

Thud!

Upon his entry, the door suddenly shut. A clone guarded the exit.

Ren instantly went on guard, prepared for a deathmatch. Fortunately, the expected battle did not begin as the clone displayed no hostility. It silently guarded the door.

‘I have to beat it to clear this door? Oh, so this must be the ‘surpass’ part! That means this clone is at least equal to me in strength. Fighting it in my present would be unwise.'

Ren’s gaze fell upon the four new white doors within this dark space.

'That must be the other part of this challenge. Is it the ‘survive’ part, or the ‘grow’ part?’ He examined the doors.

None of them had any orbs on them. Instead, the orbs were replaced by glowing engravings. Ren approached the leftmost door and examined it.

The door possessed a single engraving; an engraving of a man mounted on a wolf.

‘Doesn’t this look like- 4 doors!’ Ren gasped.

‘Are these related to the 4 clones in the ‘Door of Eclipse’? That must be it! Damn it! I should’ve checked the other clones. I’ll go check now!’ Ren paused and groaned. He glared at the soulless protector of the exit.

‘There might be a chance.’ He tiptoed to the exit door, his gaze stuck on the motionless clone.

‘Please don’t notice me.’ Ren extended his arm. He hoped to open the door and retreat before the clone could notice.

Unfortunately, the clone caught onto his actions. Its empty eyes seemed to warn Ren.

“Don’t attack! I have no ill-intent!” Ren instantly backed away until the clone closed its eerie eyes.

“Hey, can we make a deal? I’ll go check on your friends and return in a moment. It won’t take long. As recompense, I can promise to spare you once I grow stronger.” Ren tried the 'softer' approach. However, the clone didn’t budge. It stuck to its sole duty, protecting the door with its life on the line.

‘Damn you! I swear I’ll make you pay.’ Sighing, he returned to the four doors.

Ren stood before the second door. It possessed a single complex inscription. The inscription looked like an intricate amalgam of countless strokes. As time passed, his head ached, and he was forced to shift his gaze.

‘This inscription… it resembles those complex symbols on the teleportation circle. This door is related to magic?’

He wanted to enter, but he curbed his urges and checked the next door. This time, the door had 5 different engravings. The engravings portrayed different postures of a man holding a sword.

‘Swords? It could be that Honing thing. Is the next door an Elemental Conversion Technique? A Bloodline Skill would also be great!’ Excited, he rushed to the last door.

The last door held a weird painting. It showed the silhouette of a man amid a series of swirling lines.

‘Physical Arts? No! That doesn’t seem right. This engraving is vague. Maybe Forbidden Skills or an Elemental Conversion Technique? It doesn’t look like a Bloodline Skill.’ Ren frowned, slightly disappointed. Unlike the other doors, the last door provided little to no clues. If he wasn't provided any context, he might've even doubted if the image was of a man relaxing in a breeze.

Even so, it attracted him much like how a lavender seduces bees. He was torn between the various choices.

His logic preferred the door with magic. With one year of training, it might provide enough time to master the basics.

He vividly remembered Kana’s powerful spells. In might, they had surpassed Azen’s Elemental Conversion Technique. It wasn't every day that he saw Azen fleeing like a beaten dog.

Other than magic, he also felt hopeful of the first door with the wolf. A powerful companion could save his life in many circumstances and accentuate his combat power by innumerable folds.

However, his instincts rejected all the doors except for the last one. Although he couldn’t quantify his instincts, he knew that something was wrong when he struggled to shift his gaze from the last door.

A feeling deep within his heart tugged at him to pick the last door. It was like a starved animal drooling over a piece of fresh, luscious meat.

This set him into a dilemma. To follow his instincts or his logic? To keep or break his newly created rule? He knew that this decision would alter his fate. It could either tremendously boost his strength or cripple him for the remainder of his life.

He closed his eyes for a few moments and made his decision. And indeed, this decision would alter everything.