Primordial Awakening: I Can Evolve My Skills Infinitely
Chapter 102: Ticking Timer, How to Feel Hatred

Chapter 102: Ticking Timer, How to Feel Hatred

[1 day left.]

Sam spent the entire day moving from one rift to the next, clearing all the hardest [Expert]-rank rifts the Association had given him.

Twelve full rifts. Thousands of monsters.

Each rift would be considered brutal for the average awakener.

Swarms of corrupted beasts, cursed ruins, long-forgotten prisons, forests twisted by the [Forsaken] realm.

But nothing gave him what he needed. And once the last rift was cleared... He checked the panel again.

[Hatred Bar: 0%]

"...Tch."

He hadn’t even gone home. He thought staying out, using every second of his time, might help him raise the bar.

Maybe a surprise trigger. Maybe something hidden. But it was all for nothing.

He didn’t gain any level, nor power. And the [Hatred Bar] hadn’t moved even a single percent.

Sam’s shoulders dropped as he sighed, the irritation clear on his face.

"...Great. Waste of time."

There was nothing left to do out here. And though he didn’t want to admit it, rest might be the only thing he could still get before the fight.

So he turned around and started heading back toward the first [Outer Ring].

[The time is near, Primordial.]

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Sam muttered under his breath.

It wasn’t like he needed the reminder. Every second was a countdown in his head already.

As he moved through the winding paths toward the train station that connected back to the city, his thoughts were heavy.

He was going to have to fight Asmodeus head-on.

’There’s nothing else I can do,’ he told himself. ’I just have to win.’

His jaw tightened. Determination burned in his chest.

There was no new strategy to come up with. No plan left to make.

Only one thing remained: Fight. And win. Or his story ended here.

[Proceed.]

He nodded without a word. Of course he would.

Even if the other [Forsaken Lords] beyond Asmodeus were ten times stronger... even if entire other races were standing in his way...

It didn’t matter. He was going forward anyway.

And strangely, that thought made him feel stronger.

Like he had something anchoring him now. Something heavier than resolve.

’These beings,’ Sam gritted his teeth, ’All of them... I’ll crush them all...’

Asmodeus was the very enemy he actually was starting to hate a little since he came to this world.

Previously, even against the other [Forsaken Lords], he could actually put up with it, his determination fueling his being, but now... he needed more.

He didn’t know exactly when it started.

Maybe it was all the reminders that he was the enemy of this world. That he didn’t belong.

But now... that small amount of hatred was alive. Real.

He walked into his apartment, shut the door behind him, and turned to check the system panel.

What he saw made his eyes go wide.

[Hatred Bar: 18%]

[Your hatred is strong... but not enough. Keep going.]

’!!!’

His heart pounded. So this was it. This was how the [Hatred Bar] actually worked.

He stood there, frozen for a few seconds as the pieces clicked together.

For the [Hatred Bar] to increase, as well as for the [Stars of Hatred], there was not any kind of "way", he simply... needed to feel hatred.

And now just hatred that he could make on the spot, but TRUE hatred.

That was why nothing had worked before. Killing corrupted monsters didn’t do anything. They weren’t his enemies. He didn’t care about them.

[A Primordial’s power is drawn from their determination... and their affinities.]

’Then the others...’ Sam thought, ’did they have the same kind of thing?’

He didn’t know any of the old Primordials. Didn’t even know how many of them there were.

But if they had powers like this, and they all still died... how far had they gotten? What had killed them?

He felt a strange connection to them, strangers he’d never met, but who shared the same cursed bloodline.

Ding!

A message notification popped up on his phone, snapping him out of his thoughts.

---

[David Union:] Congratulations on reaching the top 15, kid. That’s a feat not many can claim.

[Sam Walker:] Thank you.

[David Union:] A bunch of guilds are teaming up to try and clear the Fifth Layer. And I’m guessing since you survived the "Battle Realm", you already know how far behind humanity is...

[Sam Walker:] Yeah. Everyone except the Beastkin has cleared the initial stage of the [Forsaken] Realm. But we’ll figure it out. Just gotta keep moving.

[David Union:] That’s the spirit. Good luck.

---

The exchange was short, but it lit something inside Sam.

A little spark of motivation. He wasn’t fighting alone, not completely.

Then he remembered something he wanted to ask.

---

[Sam Walker:] Oh, by the way, I faced Cerberus. How’d you manage to get past the "Doom" effect?

[David Union:] You fought Cerberus alone...?! Yeah, that thing nearly wiped us. The only way we got through it was by avoiding its gaze, and we all had gear that made us totally deaf.

[Sam Walker:] Deaf?

[David Union:] Yes. You can avoid "Doom" if you don’t hear the roar or look it in the eyes. Took us dozens of tries to figure that out.

[Sam Walker:] Good for you.

[David Union:]Wait, hold on, if you beat it too... how the hell did you survive the effect?!

[Sam Walker:] ¯\(ツ)/¯

---

Sam didn’t give him an answer. He wasn’t sure he could explain it anyway.

But the conversation made him smile.

After all, the fact you need to find this sort of method to win truly made it seem like they were in a video game, forcing you to adapt.

It reminded him that even in a world like this... some rules could be bent.

And just like that, the final day passed.

Sam had already cleared every [Expert]-level rift worth doing. There was nothing left now except to wait.

He exchanged a few quick messages with Lily, Chloe, and Alicia too.

They’d all heard about the Fourth Layer, and each of them was preparing to lead their guilds into expeditions soon.

That was good. Everyone was moving forward.

And with that thought, Sam went to sleep.

...

The next morning, when he opened his eyes, a panel greeted him:

[Today is the day.]

His expression darkened.

’Here we go.’

He could’ve gone yesterday, but he held off. Just in case the [Hatred Bar] rose a little more.

He checked it again.

[Hatred Bar: 24%]

It had ticked up. Barely.

But it wasn’t enough.

Which meant if he really wanted the skill the [Hatred] affinity offered, he’d need more.

The catch, though, was obvious now: hatred didn’t grow in safe places.

The system wanted him to feel something real. Which meant fighting strong enemies.

The stronger they were, the more he’d hate them, and the more power he could unlock.

[You have an overwhelmingly bad feeling about this.]

"...Hm."

Sam didn’t reply. He just grabbed his jacket and headed out.

He caught the early train to the first [Outer Ring].

’Maybe I should figure out a way to teleport directly into these places,’ he thought. ’Could save hours.’

It didn’t matter now though. Within an hour and a half, he was in the Second [Outer Ring], standing in front of the panel.

---

[Which Layer do you wish to enter?]

[→ Third]

[→ Fourth]

[→ Fifth]

---

His finger hovered over the [Fourth], ready to enter and face Asmodeus.

But then he noticed the [Fifth] was available. A thought crossed his mind.

’Wait... what if I clear the Fifth Layer first? It might raise my [Hatred Bar] more, or give me more strength.’

He stared at it. It made sense.

He didn’t have to fight Asmodeus right this second, after all, today was the day, but he probably had until midnight.

Just as he was about to tap on the [Fifth]... The system cut him off.

[Do not even try, child.]

Sam’s body froze. A wave of cold ran down his spine.

It wasn’t Asmodeus who said it. The message came from something else, a different presence.

It was a white panel, one surrounded by floating cards.

He didn’t need to guess who it was.

’Shit,’ Sam muttered under his breath. ’They’re watching me... They’re not letting me skip anything.’

This realm truly hated him.

They wouldn’t let him gain any advantage.

So, with a heavy breath, Sam raised his hand again.

’Fourth Layer,’ he whispered.

And just like that, the portal of dark flame opened in front of him.

He stepped forward.