The golden light on the horizon grew brighter with every passing hour.
William and the old man continued their journey through a vast valley hidden between colossal mountain ranges.
The air felt different here.
Heavier.
Ancient.
As though the very laws governing the world had become more profound.
Neither of them spoke for a long time.
William's mind remained occupied by everything he had learned over the past months.
The ocean.
The volcanoes.
The desert.
The forest.
The summit of Everest.
The invisible world of atoms.
And finally...
The Candidates' Tournament.
The gathering of the universe's greatest prodigies.
The battlefield where future rulers would be chosen.
For the first time since hearing about it, William felt something unusual.
Expectation.
Not because of the competition itself.
But because he knew what awaited him there.
Other candidates.
Other geniuses.
Other bearers of extraordinary physiques.
And perhaps...
Other candidates of the Immortal Body.
The very thought caused his blood to boil.
Eventually, they reached the deepest part of the valley.
Towering cliffs surrounded them from every direction.
The sky above narrowed into a thin strip of blue.
Silence dominated the landscape.
Then the old man finally stopped.
William looked around.
Nothing seemed special.
No ruins.
No temples.
No cities.
Just bare stone.
"What are we doing here?"
The old man smiled.
"Leaving."
Before William could ask another question, the old man raised his hand.
The surrounding space trembled.
A deep humming sound echoed throughout the valley.
William's eyes widened.
The air itself appeared to crack.
Thin silver fractures spread through empty space.
Like shattered glass.
The cracks expanded.
Twisted.
Connected.
Until a massive circular gateway formed before them.
Beyond it was darkness.
Endless darkness.
William stared.
Even after everything he had witnessed, the sight left him speechless.
A portal.
Not an illusion.
Not energy.
A genuine tear in space itself.
The old man stepped toward it.
William followed.
Then suddenly remembered something.
"Wait."
The old man paused.
William frowned.
"You never told me when the tournament begins."
The old man chuckled.
"You're worried about that now?"
"I'd like to know."
The old man nodded.
"Fair enough."
Then he gave an answer William never expected.
"Ten years."
William blinked.
"...Ten years?"
The old man nodded calmly.
"The tournament begins in ten years."
William stared at him.
"Ten years?!"
The old man laughed.
To him, the reaction seemed amusing.
To William, it was absurd.
"Why would anyone wait ten years for a tournament?"
The old man's smile slowly faded.
"Because the reward is worth far more than ten years."
William crossed his arms.
"What reward?"
For the first time since opening the portal, the old man's expression became serious.
"The winner gains the opportunity to awaken their physique."
William's eyes narrowed.
"My physique is already awakened."
"No."
The old man immediately shook his head.
"What you possess now is merely an incomplete awakening."
William froze.
The old man continued.
"You've touched the surface."
"You've tasted a fragment of its power."
"But you haven't truly awakened the Immortal Body."
A chill ran down William's spine.
The old man pointed toward him.
"Do you think your ability to manipulate atoms is the full potential of a physique capable of competing for the Cosmic Throne?"
William remained silent.
The answer was obvious.
No.
Of course not.
The old man nodded.
"Most candidates spend their entire lives trying to fully synchronize with their physique."
"Most fail."
"Many never even come close."
The wind howled softly through the valley.
"The tournament exists because it offers a shortcut."
William frowned.
"A shortcut?"
The old man nodded.
"The champion receives a blessing capable of accelerating the awakening process."
His gaze sharpened.
"Something that normally requires centuries can be accomplished in a fraction of that time."
William finally understood.
No wonder the entire universe cared.
No wonder every great power paid attention.
Such a reward was priceless.
The old man smiled.
"And for someone carrying an Immortal Body..."
His smile widened.
"It is even more valuable."
Without another word, the old man stepped through the portal.
William followed.
The instant he crossed the threshold—
Reality changed.
Pain exploded throughout his body.
His vision blurred.
His lungs collapsed.
His skin ruptured.
Bones cracked.
Blood burst from countless wounds.
William couldn't even scream.
Everything happened too fast.
One moment he was alive.
The next—
His body was being torn apart.
His knees hit the ground.
His flesh split open.
Entire sections of skin peeled away.
Muscles ruptured.
His heartbeat became erratic.
Pure agony consumed him.
The surrounding environment was completely unfamiliar.
Darkness stretched endlessly in every direction.
No mountains.
No stars.
No planets.
Nothing.
Just an infinite black void.
A place so empty that even silence seemed absent.
Then—
A translucent barrier appeared around them.
The pressure vanished instantly.
The destruction stopped.
The old man placed a hand on William's shoulder.
A familiar energy flowed through his body.
Flesh regenerated.
Bones repaired themselves.
Blood returned.
Within moments, the damage disappeared.
William remained on one knee.
Breathing heavily.
His entire body trembled.
"What..."
He struggled to speak.
"What was that?"
The old man's answer came calmly.
"Reality."
William stared.
The old man looked around the endless darkness.
"This is what exists beyond the worlds inhabited by life."
William slowly stood.
His gaze wandered across the void.
No stars.
No planets.
No light.
Nothing.
It felt terrifyingly empty.
The old man folded his arms.
"Do you understand now?"
William shook his head.
The old man smiled faintly.
"Good."
Then he pointed toward the darkness.
"You've spent your entire life believing the universe was built from atoms."
William nodded.
"Isn't it?"
"No."
The answer came immediately.
William froze.
The old man's gaze became distant.
"Atoms are merely one layer."
His voice echoed through the emptiness.
"A useful layer."
"An important layer."
"But still only a layer."
William frowned.
The old man continued.
"Every civilization eventually discovers atoms."
"They believe they've reached the foundation of existence."
Then he shook his head.
"They're wrong."
A strange pressure filled the barrier.
"The universe is constructed from countless forms of energy and fundamental forces."
"Some create matter."
"Some create life."
"Some create dimensions."
"Some create laws."
William's eyes widened.
The old man pointed toward William's chest.
"And your physique..."
His voice lowered.
"...is capable of interacting with all of them."
Silence followed.
For several seconds, William thought he had misheard.
Then he laughed.
Not because it was funny.
Because it sounded impossible.
"All of them?"
The old man nodded.
"Potentially."
William's laughter faded.
The old man continued.
"Right now, you've barely learned to interact with atoms."
"You've taken your first step."
"Nothing more."
The endless void suddenly felt much larger.
Much colder.
Much more terrifying.
The old man walked forward.
"The Immortal Body does not reign supreme because of what it is."
He stopped.
"It reigns supreme because of what it can become."
William slowly lowered his gaze.
For the first time, he truly understood how insignificant his current strength was.
Everything he had accomplished.
Everything he had learned.
Everything he had endured.
All of it was merely the beginning.
The old man turned toward him once more.
His expression was unusually serious.
"Listen carefully."
William immediately focused.
"The reason I brought you here is because I want you to remember this feeling."
The old man spread his arms.
The endless darkness surrounded them from every direction.
"This universe is far larger than your imagination."
"Far larger than mine."
"Far larger than any civilization's."
His eyes narrowed.
"And the Immortal Body is one of the most difficult physiques ever discovered."
William listened quietly.
"Do you know why no bearer of the Immortal Body currently sits upon the Cosmic Throne?"
William shook his head.
The old man smiled bitterly.
"Because mastering it is almost impossible."
The answer surprised him.
The old man continued.
"Most candidates never reach complete control."
"Most die trying."
"Some lose themselves."
"Others spend millions of years trapped between possibilities."
A heavy silence followed.
Then the old man pointed toward the distant darkness.
"That is why you must win."
William froze.
The old man's voice became firm.
"You need the tournament."
"You need the awakening."
"You need every advantage available."
For the first time in a long while, William saw absolute certainty in the old man's eyes.
Not hope.
Not confidence.
Certainty.
"If you fail..."
The old man's voice grew quieter.
"The road ahead becomes infinitely harder."
William slowly looked into the endless void.
His reflection appeared faintly on the surface of the barrier protecting them.
A young man.
Standing at the edge of an infinite universe.
Carrying one of its greatest blessings.
And one of its greatest curses.
Then slowly...
A smile appeared on his face.
Not because the challenge seemed easy.
But because it didn't.
His eyes sharpened.
His resolve solidified.
And somewhere within the depths of the Immortal Body...
Something seemed to stir.
The tournament was still ten years away.
But from this moment onward—
William had only one goal.
Victory.