He was utterly shocked: “Then... then what are you hesitating for? Hurry up and get that hidden class, hahaha, from now on, we might have to rely on you to live the good life!”

“Mm.”

……

I forced myself to calm down, then took out the Asura Codex from my inventory. After confirming its use, a blood-red beam of light shot up from the ground, instantly enveloping my entire body and making me vanish from everyone’s sight in a flash. They didn’t even get to see our names before we disappeared into thin air.

The next moment, a heavy sensation pressed down on my body, as if something was weighing me down, making it even hard to breathe.

“Ding!”

System prompt: Congratulations, you have obtained the hidden race—Asura!

“Ding!”

System prompt: Please note, you are currently in the initial awakening state of the Asura bloodline. As you continue to cultivate, your physique will keep strengthening!

“Ugh...”

I couldn’t care about all that right now. I swung my arms with all my might, struggling upward to break free from whatever was pressing on me. Finally, with a “plop,” I crawled out from the dirt, finding myself in a very dim cave.

“Huh?”

The surroundings were indescribably eerie. Wisps of ghostly fire floated in the cave, and right beside me were several bulging mounds—graves. I had just crawled out of one of them. Looking down, I was shocked to find my hands had disappeared, replaced by a pair of bony, skeletal arms. My clothes were tattered, my underwear completely rotted away, exposing my sexy pelvis.

“Damn...”

I was stunned for a moment. What’s this? Weren’t they supposed to give me the Asura bloodline? How come the initial stage of the Asura bloodline is a skeleton? That’s way too different from what I expected. Aren’t Asuras supposed to be beings close to gods? Why do I look like this!?

At the same time, a character interface appeared in the lower right corner. I waved my hand to open it, and my personal panel appeared before my eyes—

【July Blaze】 (Undead Attendant)

Level: None

Attack: 5–10

Defense: 6

HP: 100

Critical: 0

Comprehension: 94

Charisma: 0

Soul Stars: 0

Contribution: 0

Combat Power: 23

……

The stats were miserable—other than the Comprehension stat, there was nothing worth looking at. But this Comprehension... how is it measured? Does it test player IQ, or is it something brought by the hidden race bloodline?

So, I asked out loud: “Little Flynn, how much Comprehension do you have on your personal panel?”

“25 points, why?”

“Nothing, just keep leveling up.”

“Alright!”

Poor Little Flynn, already cluelessly fighting hard in the newbie village.

I took a deep breath and scanned everything in the cave. There were lairs everywhere, and a few grave mounds were loosening, with undead about to break through the surface. A strong, putrid stench filled the air, making it unbearable, but now that I was one of the undead, there was nothing to complain about—I couldn’t look down on my own kind.

Next, I had to figure out how to “develop” in a place like this. That was the top priority.

Just then, a figure that had been motionless ahead slowly turned around. A pair of hollow eyes looked at me, with an expression that was hard to describe.

He was also a skeleton, but different from the rest. He wore a flowing robe, his long silver hair tied up in a topknot, one hand behind his back, exuding an indescribable immortal aura. He looked at me calmly and said, “Little one, you’re finally awake. In this land filled with deathly silence, at last, there is some new presence.”

“You are...”

“No need to ask who I am.”

He looked at me intently and said, “Do you know where this is?”

“No idea...” I shook my head.

“This is the Black Castle, the boundary between death and rebirth, a place where all beings struggle to survive and fight against fate. We are all the dead, but our wish to change our destiny and see through life and death never fades. The fact that you were born here means you are someone chosen by fate. Whether you can break your shackles and achieve a transcendent destiny depends entirely on your own choices.”

My expression grew serious, and I couldn’t help but say, “Then... I should call you ‘senior.’ I just arrived here and don’t know anything. Please take care of me.”

He smiled faintly, picked up a mottled bone sword beside him, and said, “No need, little one. Now that the gate to the other world has opened, countless warriors are entering this world. The Illusory Moon Continent is about to fall into chaos. But in such troubled times, there is also great opportunity. You possess an extraordinary bloodline. As long as you press forward bravely, you will surely carve out a place for yourself in this era of strife and achieve remarkable glory!”

He seemed even more imposing to me, so I followed him to the cave entrance and asked, “Senior, what is your name?”

“I told you, no need to call me ‘senior.’”

He looked at me with deep eyes and said, “If we get along, you can just call me Old Bro.”

“Alright, Old Bro!”

I nodded vigorously. “Old Bro, what’s your name?”

“My name is Brian Lane!”