As Alice had thought, the Trial came. The ceiling didn’t stop it. It crossed it as if it had never been there. The same happened to her clothes. It struck her, and she didn’t even get a chance to prepare. The last thing she could muster was to cross her hands in front of her. The lightning struck her, and it left a mark on her hand. Blood dripped from the wound, but the wound was too small. It was just a little more than a scratch. It healed quickly after the strike.
Alice had never thought that the Trial would bypass the ceiling. She thought that just like it vanished after falling on the Palace in the Emperor’s case, it would also not reach her. But it seemed she had confused the vanishing of the lightning. It didn’t disappear because it hit the Palace; it likely entered the Palace.
Alice quickly cleared her mind. It was not time to think about this. She wanted to know her ability, but before she could check her ability, her strength, which was clearly increasing, suddenly started dropping. Alice panicked.
What is happening with me? I cleared the Trial, and I also followed all the steps correctly.
Alice was starting to lose her calm. She checked her ability, and it was also missing. She felt like a normal Organ Transformation Will Awakened.
KNOCK!
A knocking sound came from outside. Alice quickly opened the door. A beautiful lady with silver hair was standing in front of her. She had a crown on her head. She looked at Alice with a smile.
Alice didn’t seem to be in the mood to talk and was about to tell Victoria that she was busy, but Victoria spoke even before she could.
"Don’t panic. I just came here to tell you that your strength will return when Earth evolves to the Lower Zone. So, there is no problem with you."
After hearing what Victoria said, Alice calmed down. Seeing that Alice was no longer panicking, Victoria continued.
"Congratulations on your breakthrough."
Victoria turned to leave, not expecting a reply from Alice. She knew that Alice had little trust in the Monarchs after what happened to her brother, but reality proved her wrong.
"Thanks," Alice replied.
Victoria turned back, smiled at Alice, and left.
She came here at the request of Silas. Now that her work was done, she wanted to focus once again on her breakthrough.
Although Victoria had reassured Alice, she couldn’t help wondering what it meant for her strength to return only after Earth evolved. She had successfully completed the Trial and reached Sea Master Rank, yet the False Universe had suppressed her power just as it had suppressed Silas’s. The difference was that she had not expected this consequence. Still, knowing that her condition was temporary helped her put aside her worries and concentrate on the coming evolution. There would be time to understand the details once Earth entered the Lower Zone.
Eight months remained until the evolution, and still only Silas and Alice were Sea Masters. Although their strength was restrained, they were still at the peak of Awakened Rank. After achieving Organ Transformation, they could now clearly see outer space. The atmosphere didn’t restrict their eyes, and this ability would only increase when they reached Sea Master Rank in the Lower Zone. This ability, along with the ability to fly, made Sea Master the first rank at which people could fight and travel in space. All other lower-rank fights were fought inside Planets.
One more month passed, and this time Qi Feng achieved the Sea Master Rank. He also crossed his Trial without any problem. Everyone came together to congratulate Qi Feng, and then once again, all rushed toward the next rank.
Next to break through was Victoria. Then came Roan, who tried to block the lightning with his sword. After him, Chris achieved the breakthrough. Then Cassian also achieved the breakthrough. Following Cassian, George also achieved the breakthrough. The last to achieve the breakthrough was Paul.
As each Monarch completed the breakthrough, the pressure surrounding the coming evolution grew heavier. They had spent months preparing their armies, strengthening their people, and making sure their empires were ready for whatever awaited them. Yet none of those preparations could reveal exactly what would happen when Earth crossed into the Lower Zone. Their new rank gave them confidence, but it also reminded them how much remained beyond their understanding. For now, they could only continue preparing and trust that the work they had done would be enough.
After they broke through to Sea Master, they once again focused on the army and civilians. The evolution was nearing them. Just one month remained.
Victor and Albert were trying their hardest to achieve the breakthrough in this one month. They knew their difficulty would increase if they didn’t achieve it in this last month. Albert abandoned all his experiments to actively absorb Spiritual Energy.
Their hard work paid off when they both achieved the breakthrough just a week before the ascension. Albert didn’t make a grand announcement or celebration for his breakthrough. He quickly ran to his lab.
With only a week left, every hour became valuable. Albert prepared his equipment and records, determined not to miss even the smallest change during the evolution. Victor, meanwhile, concentrated on the information his team could gather before their arrival in the Lower Zone.
They made different plans to quickly infiltrate the empires so that their empire would know whom they were fighting.
Neither man could afford to waste time celebrating his breakthrough. Their strength had finally caught up with the other Monarchs, but the challenges ahead would demand more than strength alone. They needed information, preparation, and the ability to react quickly when the unknown became reality.
Silas also did not remain idle. He checked all of Earth again and again with Era to see if there was any problem left. The week passed, but the tension only increased.
They were just an hour away from evolution now.