Neo could spend a decade in Shadow World and only an hour would’ve gone by in the real world.
“The opposite is also true.
“I can spend an hour here, and a decade might’ve passed in the real world.
“The time flow between different worlds is uneven, so I won’t know how much time passed in the real world until I get out.”
He clicked his tongue.
‘I guess I don’t need to worry about time.’
‘The Shadow Supreme can manipulate the time flow between worlds to some extent.’
‘If I pass the trial and impress him, he will make sure only a short amount of time had gone by in the real world.’
It was a chance for Neo.
He could use his time here to train himself.
“First thing first, I need to know where I am.”
Neo looked through the place for anything that would reveal his location.
He found he was in Oran, a city in Algeria.
After knowing his location, Neo planned his next move.
He decided on three objectives.
“Search for Jack.
“Search for Child of Mana.
“Train myself.”
His brows creased.
He tried to think of a solution to complete his objectives.
“Looking for Jack isn’t easy.
“I don’t know if he is in the same trial, or a different one.
“Even if he’s in the same one, he could be anywhere. A different city. A different country. Or a different continent.”
He scratched his temple.
“Child of Mana…
“Thankfully I know what a child of mana is, but this makes things more complicated.
“Those beings are rarer than Gods.
“Common people wouldn’t even know what a Child of Mana is.
“If I want to search for one, my only clue is powerful organizations like Titans and the Awakener Association.”
Awakener Association was the name of the resistance in the current era.
Joining either of the organizations wasn’t easy.
Not only were their entrance requirements strict, Neo was suspicious from their point of view.
He was a powerful demigod – awakener – who suddenly popped into existence.
“There is a high chance they will think I’m a monster.
“I can solve this issue by hiding my strength, but they wouldn’t recruit me if I’m weak.”
He wanted to sigh.
“I need to train too.”
He roamed the place while thinking of a solution.
An idea came to him when he was stargazing at midnight.
“This should work?”
The plan he came up with was simple.
“I need to spread my fame.
“If my name spreads far and wide, Jack can find me easily.
“Titans and the Awakener Association would also scout me if they hear of my strength instead of me going directly to them.”
He jumped down from the building and landed on the ground.
Spider-like cracks appeared beneath his feet.
“Rescuing people is the best way to spread my fame in this era,” he muttered.
Neo took a random direction and started walking.
There was no need to rush.
It would only tire him.
Besides, the age of gods was filled with bizarre monsters and anomalies.
He had to be careful.
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It took him two days to come across a survivor.
The old man, brown hair, had scars on his face and a bushy beard.
He sat on the roadside, his back resting against the broken supermarket wall.
He held his bleeding torso, breathing heavily.
The man tensed up when he noticed someone approached him.
“Ah… a human…”
He relaxed after realizing Neo was a human.
“Wh-what are you doing here?” the man questioned.
Neo stared at him silently.
‘This era didn’t have a unified language…’
‘Countries had different languages each.’
‘Yet, I can understand him even though he is talking in a language I don’t know about.’
A grace from the Shadow Supreme, perhaps?
“I’m a wanderer,” Neo answered.
The man’s eyes widened.
“Wanderer… Are you perhaps an Awakener?”
“…”
“Only Awakeners can roam cities without dying to monsters.”
Tears started to slip from the man’s eyes.
“F-finally, my prayers were answered.”
“…?”
Before Neo could question the weird words of the old man, he heard an explosion.
Turning his head, he found something approaching them at a fast pace.
“A naked statue?” Neo muttered. “Why is it running like a marathon runner?”
The statue’s eyes had been fixed straight ahead when suddenly its gaze moved creepily and stared at the old man.
“You saw my face! You saw my face!” the running statue shouted. “You need to die! Anyone who sees my precious face is not allowed to live!”
The monster ran through the obstacles, pushing everything in its path aside.
Its body remained unharmed.
At the last spurt, the statue jumped high in the air.
It landed next to Neo and the old man gracefully.
Then, it pulled its one leg back, as if preparing to kick a football, and aimed at the old man’s head.
“Eeeik!”
The old man tried to run away.
But the statue monster was faster.
Just as the attack almost hit the old man, Neo grabbed the statue’s leg.
A shockwave, powerful enough to throw away the old man, erupted.
The statue’s eyes moved creepily.
It stared Neo in the eye.
“You saw my face! You saw my face! Blasphemer!”
The statue leaped into the air.
Using the leg Neo had grabbed as leverage, it swung its other leg toward his head in a vicious kick.
Neo caught the second leg mid-attack.
Before the statue could react, he ripped its body apart as if it was a sheet of paper.
Darkness bloomed from within his Shadow.
It devoured the monster.
‘Hmm… no stats. I didn’t recover an ounce of Divine Energy either.’
‘Seems like I can’t recover Divine Energy by eating devouring objects.’
‘The only option would be gaining Divine Energy stat. But with my luck, I’d rather not depend on it.’
Neo turned to the old man after completing his short experiment.
“You alright?”
“Y-yeah…” The old man’s eyes sparkled like a child. “Thank you for saving me. Can I know your name?”
“Neo Hargraves,” Neo pursed his lips, forcing the next words out of them. “I’m called Divine Ruler.”
“Right! That name matches with your majestic strength!”
Neo winced at the praise.
‘Keep it together. Jack will know it’s me if he hears Divine Ruler’s name.’
‘This is the best way to find him.’
He crouched next to the old man.
“Let me look at your wounds.”
“It’s fine. I… I don’t have much time left.”
The old man tried to smile but failed miserably.
“I’m happy enough that I can die like a human, and not at the hands of a monster.”
Neo could tell it at a glance.
‘He has no will to live.’
He frowned.
‘Is this how people in this era were? Devoid of hope and will to live?’