The silence grew tense, and before Seth could press again for a reply, the entire White House groaned.
No, not only the building — the world itself rumbled furiously, with a rattling, destabilizing quake.
A flash shimmered within Seth’s sight, a screen unraveling before every living enlightened lifeform of Earth!
[Congratulations To All Earthlings!]
[Your first planetary upgrade has been completed!]
[Your world is now a Tier 1 Life Star!]
[The Earth remains bright with vigor, its potential yearns for more. Further upgrade is commencing!]
Seth subconsciously held his breath at the sight, as the worldly essence in the air seemed to grow thicker.
The fundamental laws of reality underwent finalizing boosts, spatial currents undulating with denser ripples.
Air currents flowed with more pressure, and though he wasn’t outside, if he was, he would have realized the very earth was growing more dense...
The structures of reality bore more solidified density.
Even he, as an Awakened, wouldn’t be able to damage things as easily, even if he tried.
Then came the realization... The long‑anticipated war.
The war for hegemony was here!
Seth’s heartbeat quickened, a chill settling in... He swallowed hard. He thought he was ready, convinced himself he was prepared, but now that it was here...
Now that he was aware of the bigger stakes, his heart was shaken. Panic and fear surged, disrupting his emotions.
In the end, no matter how strong or powerful he believed himself to have become, he was only human.
A human teenager at that. In the face of possible extinction of his race, Seth’s heart couldn’t remain calm.
His palms grew sweaty as his mind calculated their chances against the foreign races, and he couldn’t help but feel pessimistic about the results.
Humanity was too divided, too disjointed, and with the way things were, he couldn’t picture them lasting for the second round President Cain had just warned him of.
And even if they did, what were the chances they would overcome the next hurdle?
Unknowingly, Seth fell under the spell of pre‑performance anxiety.
Faced with such a high‑stakes event, he was suddenly having cold feet.
The President rose from his seat, taking a deep breath as though welcoming the thickened, essence‑rich air.
He glanced at Seth and chuckled. "Don’t get a panic attack, kid. Have confidence in humanity! Believe it or not, we will win this war."
The President’s gaze gleamed with blinding, reinvigorating light, his shoulders rising high, his former weary demeanor fading in a blink.
He was back to the strong, charismatic figure Seth recognized well — back to being the pillar Seth knew him to be.
Before Seth could fully collect himself, the doors to the Oval Office burst open, as an official adorned in military garments decorated with high‑rank insignias entered.
The figure glanced at Seth in surprise, as though not expecting to see him there, and Seth recognized him instantly.
It was the Secretary of Defence, Sir Billard Dorne.
Giving Seth a subtle nod in greeting, he turned to the President, saluting with aligned, disciplined gait.
"Your Excellency, the situation room has been prepped and is awaiting your presence."
Seth’s heart skipped a beat listening to this. Wasn’t this reaction a little too fast?
Almost as though they had been anticipating this?
The President waved to ease Mr. Billard from his salute, turning to Seth instead of replying right away.
"You can go. We will formulate the plan for war now. Most heads of power from various allied countries are here awaiting my presence...
You and your team should make all preparations you can, because you guys will be mobilized soon."
To this, Seth nodded solemnly. Rising to his feet, he bowed in respect to the President and turned to leave.
Staring at his back as he exited the office, the President muttered silently beneath his breath. "I see why she deemed you the sun, kid. To think you are the bearer of the Origin Soul..."
Straightening his suit, he turned to the Secretary of Defence and nodded. "Let’s move."
....
Seth plummeted from the sky in a blink. With the world fully upgraded, he didn’t need to hold back anymore.
From the shift in gravity to the sturdiness of the earth, he couldn’t impact as much damage to reality even if he tried.
The evolution of a world was far more substantial than the evolution of a lifeform. So even if the Earth was currently the equivalent of an Awakened...
Its rules became far sturdier than an Awakened being could ever be.
Seth speculated that even if he maxed out his stats — directly double that of other Awakened rank evolvers — he still wouldn’t be able to pose much of a threat to reality.
Landing before the door of their residence, his arrival barely provoked a gust of wind. He hurriedly opened the doors and rushed in.
He quickly caught sight of all five silhouettes of his friends. It seemed Elaine and Brandon had fortunately arrived from their trip before the upgrade notification.
And it seemed the Awakened Trisha had also paid them a visit.
"Big bro, you’re here..." Brandon’s pupils brightened.
Seth acknowledged him with a nod and asked right away. "Did you guys gather the materials?"
Elaine gave an assuring grin, though it still failed to hide her nervousness at the situation.
Seth exhaled in relief. His wish was to craft fully functional genetic battle suits for everyone before the war began, and now time wasn’t on their side.
Excluding Brandon, who already had a genetic battle suit, Seth would be crafting parts for Uriel, Elaine, Jack, and Trisha.
He had hoped he would have time to help out Team Alpha, but that plan had to be scrapped.
Just as the President said, they would all be mobilized very soon. Not only would Seth not have time, even if he did, there wouldn’t be enough materials.
Now the only factor missing was Kylie, but that wasn’t a problem. Seth had resolved to barge into the research facility if he had to.
As much as whatever she was working on was vital for the war, his team was also vital, and he couldn’t leave them in good conscience to go to war without all appropriate preparations.
This was war — anything could happen, and they all needed to be prepared.
Taking Brandon by the hand, they established a spatial link, and Brandon quickly channeled the gathered ores directly into his inventory.
Seth couldn’t tarry. There was no room for discussion — he had to get to work as fast as possible.
Borrowing Jack’s hammer, he instantly activated the Origin Gate.