The deep frost of the northern high-level zones crunched beneath Ren’s boots as she moved deeper into the desolate Abyss of Rime. Around her, the environment was a volatile landscape of Level 63 and 64 monsters—ancient ice behemoths and spectral wraiths that would have vaporized a standard human raid group. But to Ren, they were merely fuel for her ascension. She glided between them, her silver silhouette blurring beneath the dim aurora borealis. With every fluid draw of Asuka, a wave of white-hot, sacred fox-fire cut through the blinding blizzards, instantly turning the high-tier monsters to cold, drifting ash.
[Target Eliminated. Exp Received: 45,000!]
[Target Eliminated. Exp Received: 48,000!]
[Current Status: Level 38... Level 39... Level 41]
Her level bars filled rapidly, but her focus remained split. While her body executed a flawless, rhythmic dance of slaughter, her divine consciousness remained tethered to the newly deployed global system grid.
Across the planet, the introduction of the Age of Ascension had triggered an absolute frenzy. Inside the newly formed demi-plane dungeon portals, humanity was grinding with an unhinged, desperate ferocity. Guilds were collapsing and reforming in a matter of hours. Elven Wizards were hunting in packs to out-level one another, and Goliath Juggernauts were throwing themselves into the deepest rifts to claim the defensive throne before anyone else.
But as the world's newly awakened class-holders aggressively scanned the massive, golden holographic ledger of available divine thrones, a sudden collective shock paralyzed the global chat networks.
Under the grand list of racial deities, every single entry—from God of Elves and Deity of the Goliaths to Sovereign of the Dragonborn—was marked with a flashing, vacant silver slot, waiting to be claimed by the first mortal to reach the apex. Except for one.
At the very bottom of the ledger, the entry for the Kitsune Race was completely locked. It didn't have an empty slot. Instead, it burned with an unquenchable, blood-red divine flame, emblazoned with a single, absolute name: Ren.
The global chat log immediately exploded into an entirely new tier of panic and realization:
* User_VanguardX: "Look at the racial ledger! The Kitsune slot is already locked out! It’s completely grayed out for everyone else!"
* GuildMaster_Kael: "Of course it's locked. She didn't just build the system—she is the system. The Kitsune race belongs to her entirely."
* Wasteland_Oracle: "Think about the Shrine Maidens... any guy or girl who chooses to awaken into a Kitsune Shrine Maiden is essentially signing up to be her direct subordinate forever. You can never overthrow her. She is the eternal goddess of that bloodline."
* Central_Command_Official: "She didn't leave a vacancy. She sits above the pantheon before the race has even begun."
Ren watched the frantic text stream past her vision, a faint, predatory smile gracing her flawless porcelain face. Her three magnificent silver tails flared outward, melting the falling snow before a single flake could touch her white-and-crimson vestments.
"Did you truly think I would leave my own lineage open to the ambitions of mortals?" Ren whispered to the empty, freezing winds. Her silver fox ears twitched as she detected a massive spike in high-level energy deeper within the glacial valley ahead. "The thrones I offered you are the crumbs from my table. Fight for them. Bleed for them. The stronger you become, the more your devotion fuels my own path."
She gripped the hilt of Asuka, her crimson eyes locking onto a towering, Level 65 Ancient Frost-Hydra emerging from the frozen mist. The monster roared, its five heads crackling with absolute zero energy, but Ren didn't slow her pace. Her level was rising, her passive Karma was swelling from the city shrines, and she could already feel the faint, burning warmth of her fourth tail beginning to stir at the base of her spine. She wasn't anywhere near her peak yet, but the world was finally moving exactly how she intended.