SSS-Rank Talent: Super Upgrade System-Chapter 147: A Lesson In Humility

Daniel listened politely, though he remained doubtful of the Principal’s true power.

Alistair Finch spoke with the gentle warmth of a grandfather recalling his youth, hardly the tone one would expect from a man powerful enough to command the unwavering respect of four Vice-Principals, each capable of leveling a small city.

Daniel’s own S-Grade [Aura Sense+], which could taste the power of S-Grade beasts and the oppressive energy of ancient artifacts, registered the Principal as... quiet.

He carried a deep, calm energy, but it lacked the overwhelming force of the Golden-Armored Blue Ape or even the controlled intensity of Travis Standen.

"I know what you’re thinking, young man," Alistair said, his ancient eyes twinkling as if he could read Daniel’s thoughts.

"You’re probably thinking, This old man talks a lot, but his aura feels no stronger than a still pond. What could he possibly teach me that a fight with an S-Grade beast wouldn’t?"

Daniel’s calm expression didn’t change, but inside, he was startled. The Principal’s insight was disturbingly accurate.

Alistair chuckled, a soft, dry sound like rustling leaves.

"Power is not always loud, Daniel. The most terrifying storms are often preceded by the quietest calms. You have immense power, yes. You have faced down beasts that would have turned seasoned Vanguard Captains into terrified children.

Your fists can shatter adamantium, and your speed can outrun the wind itself. But you are a child playing with cannons, with no real understanding of the fundamental forces you wield."

He reached into the pocket of his simple white robes and produced a small, unassuming object.

It was a jade tile, no bigger than Daniel’s palm, smooth and cool to the touch, with a single, complex rune carved into its surface.

It radiated no energy, no heat, no cold. It gave off no energy or temperature, just a finely crafted piece of stone.

"Take this," Alistair said, offering it to Daniel.

"And don’t just feel it with your senses. Reach out to it with your very soul. Try to understand what it is."

Daniel, his curiosity now fully stirred, accepted the jade tile.

He held it in his hand, its surface cool and smooth against the A-Grade material of his Kinetic Void Gauntlets.

He closed his eyes, extending his will, his SSS-Rank [Soul Assimilation] talent reaching out not to absorb, but to perceive.

He sent a delicate thread of his consciousness towards the tile, expecting to find... nothing.

The moment his mind touched the jade tile, the universe broke.

It wasn’t a physical feeling, it was a profound mental shock.

The cozy workshop dissolved, giving way to an endless, soundless void.

He felt a pressure so immense and absolute that the weight of the Abyssal Maw Leviathan seemed like a mild summer breeze in comparison.

This wasn’t the raw, chaotic power of a beast. It felt like standing before the source code of reality, with the terrifying realization that it could erase his existence at any moment.

He saw not with his eyes, but with his soul.

He saw the fundamental laws of physics bending like soft clay.

"BOOM!"

The sound hit him like a silent explosion, a wave of terrifying clarity that sent him reeling in the real world, his hand snapping away from the jade tile as if it had been scorched by a sun.

He fell to one knee, gasping for breath, his heart hammering against his ribs, a cold sweat breaking out across his entire body.

His A-Grade [Voidwalk] triggered instinctively, trying to pull him into a shadow that didn’t exist, while his S-Grade skills flared briefly before failing, powerless against this abstract terror.

"What... what was that?" Daniel wheezed, his voice trembling for the first time since he had awakened his talent.

He stared at the simple jade tile, now resting innocently back in the Principal’s hand, with a new, profound fear.

"That, my boy," Alistair said gently, his expression one of paternal kindness, "was a mere trace of what we call nomological power.

The power of law. The rules that govern this universe, and every other.

It is the power that true gods wield. And what you felt... was less than a single drop of water from an infinite ocean."

He put the tile away. "You must never grow arrogant, Daniel.

You must never believe you have reached the peak. For a creature like you, who can grow so quickly, arrogance is the deadliest poison.

Power is like sand, the tighter you squeeze, the faster it slips away.

There are always, always, higher levels of power in the Verge.

Beings whose very thoughts are weapons, whose fleeting desires can unmake stars.

You are a titan among mortals, yes. But in the grand cosmic scheme, you are still just a child taking his first steps."

Daniel slowly got to his feet, the terror receding, replaced by a humbling, awe-inspiring clarity.

He finally understood.

"This is why you’ve brought me here," Daniel said, his voice now steady, filled with a newfound respect.

"My foundation... it’s strong, but it’s not perfect, is it?"

Alistair nodded, his kindly smile returning.

"Precisely. Your [Soul Assimilation] is a wondrous, terrifying thing. It has allowed you to build a skyscraper of power in a matter of weeks.

But you built it on sand, Daniel.

Your foundation is a patchwork of assimilated souls, of borrowed strength, of chaotic energies forced together.

It is strong, yes, but it is impure. It lacks a true, solid core. As you climb higher, as you encounter beings who wield nomological power, that imperfect foundation will crack.

It will limit your ultimate potential."

He gestured around the cozy workshop, the artifacts humming gently.

"But we can fix that. We can re-temper you. We can forge a perfect foundation for you, from the ground up.

One that is pure, stable, and capable of holding not just the power you have now, but the power you are destined to wield." freeweɓnovēl.coɱ

"And what would that allow me to do?" Daniel asked, his mind reeling with the possibilities.

The Principal’s ancient eyes seemed to look past Daniel, past the walls of the workshop, into the very heart of the Verge itself.

"A perfect foundation would allow you to cultivate the superior, even divine, elements.

It would open the door for you to touch the laws of Time and Space. It would grant you a future with no limits, a path to true, undeniable godhood."

Daniel stared at the old man, his heart pounding with a burning, all-consuming ambition.

A path with no limits. That was the ultimate prize!

"What do I have to do?" he asked, his voice firm, his earlier skepticism completely gone, replaced by an unshakeable resolve.

Principal Alistair Finch smiled.

It was the smile of a master who had found his most promising, and most dangerous, student.

"The path will be difficult. It will test you in ways you cannot imagine.

It will require you to abandon the very power you have come to rely on.

But if you succeed..." He didn’t need to finish the sentence.

The promise of a limitless future lingered in the air, more tempting than any treasure, more potent than any skill.

The real training was about to begin.

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