I do not know how long I have been swimming downwards, but my muscles were sore and my senses numb. I couldn't even tell I was in water as I could breathe without a problem.

  But I was at a point of no return. So I kept going, swimming indefinitely. And it scared me.

  Will I be able to go back? And what if I am stuck here? Will I die? What should I do?

  Even then, I persevered. I had to.

  But every part of my body was screaming at me to stop. My arms felt like stone, legs lost all sensations, my lungs burned; I was tired.

  It hurt. Will this ever end..?

  Without me noticing it, I was already slowing down. And as though a dark veil had shrouded my mind, I stopped thinking.

  I want to give up.

  ...

  I felt empty. The silent whispers convincing me to stop, to rest, wait for this to end.

  I could envision myself being stuck here forever, my body decaying.

  I could see myself changing course and swimming upwards, only to be met with demise.

  I could feel myself losing all hope, drowning from the void.

  So I...

  ...

  I kept going.

  I persisted. Hanging on to the last shred of consciousness I had.

  Pouring all my remaining forces into moving my body, I squeezed all the energy left in me.

  I disregarded all my feelings, focusing only forward.

  Then... as if rewarding me, light shone from the bottom of the abyss. It didn't blind me, it was bright and relaxing, contrasting with the previous suffocating emptiness.

  My body lightly fell down, feet finally meeting the hard ground. I felt refreshed.

  Glancing at my surroundings, the place seemed heavenly. Soft grass brushing my naked ankles, a meadow of flowers brightening the place. And, at the center of it all, a tall tree rested peacefully.

  Calling me with a soothing voice, it drew me in. I let it control my body, my mind already bewitched by its charms.

  This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

  I took a step forward, soon followed by another then another, and before I knew it, I stood right in front of it.

  I stopped, the world stood still. Then slowly, a branch slowly stretched towards me. No, more like it grew in real time.

  The branch curved and twisted, and at its tip a tiny bead appeared, a seed, that soon germinated. A small red fruit was birthed, then slowly, it expanded itself, before finally stopping at the size of an apple. Shining with a golden light, it appeased my mind.

  I took it, but I didn't need to rip it off, as soon as I touched it, the fruit disconnected with the tree and gently rested onto my opened palms.

  I admired it for a whole minute, before finally opening my mouth, I took a bite. It was at once soft and sweet, yet sour and hard. The fruit then entirely dissolved inside me, before I knew it, I had already eaten it all.

  And soon, a change occurred in my body, like a transformation. It wasn't painful, but nor was it pleasant. It didn't take long before that uncomfortable feeling disappeared, and I felt renewed, invigorated.

  Then the change was followed by a low chime ringing inside my head.

  _ _ _

  [Consumed Seed of Life: One random active gene has evolved.]

  _ _ _

  [Game Status]

  Race : Chimera

  Soul(s) : Earthling / Nebularian

  Current identities : Louis Reis / Louis Belladone/ Test subject C-126

  Level : 1

  Strength : 6

  Dexterity : 4

  Vitality : 4

  Magic Power : 12

  Mental Fortitude : 10

  Gene(s) : Fairy (2/4) / ...

  ...

  _ _ _

  My stats went up by a fair notch and...

  My fairy gene just got upgraded?

  Then immediately, the world turned black, and I felt like I was being forcibly moved away.

  ***

  Splash!

  A wet squishing sound echoed through the dead forest as I crushed the red serpent's head under my foot, its body dissipating into a thin black mist.

  That should be the fourth one...

  So far, I've managed to kill four snakes already, all of different colors: The first one yellow, the second green, then violet, and now red. I don't really know what it means but I hope there aren't too many remaining, it's quite tiring to find them while disposing of all the maddened animals, and my mental state is worsening by the minute. Last I checked, my sanity was at 50%... Fortunately, except for the increased numbness in my emotions and slightly dulled thinking, there isn't much effect. Well, I think..?

  Anyway, the fact that I didn't have much time left still holds true so without wasting a moment, I left this site and searched for the next one.

  I was proceeding somewhat at random at this point. I've already cleared about ten places where madness was taking over, but only four of them had a snake. Plus, the place was quite big so it took a bit more than 15 hours to do all that, and coupled with the temperature being extremely hot, I could already feel my will to continue vanishing.

  Then suddenly— the ground shook tremendously, almost making me fall over. I tried maintaining my balance by holding onto a nearby tree, only to trip over a hole I failed to notice, thus hitting my face hard on the ground, which almost burned me in the process.

  This earthquake was way stronger than anything that could have happened on Earth, easily magnitude 20, I'd say! Trying to stand up again was not an option as simply staying sat was already challenging, thus I leaned onto the tree next to me.

  The rumble lasted for 5 whole minutes before gradually calming down.

  And that calmness was followed by the ground being even further torn apart.

  Lava spilled strongly from the ground, the dead trees started falling apart— Then, dark clouds slowly gathering in the sky, droplets fell.

  It wasn't water, nor blood, but rather a slimy black liquid. It fell, squelching and squishy, on the hot ground. A pitch black mass rapidly spreading like ink— profusely and dangerously. The floor soon was covered by this viscous liquid. And then... everything stood still. The world stopped crumbling, the fire stopped burning; and there it moved. Gathering, consolidating, the black mass formerly formless, took shape. One creature arose, then a second, a third... atrocious giant monsters were summoned from the still ground. All a deep black, four thick legs, spherical bodies covered with countless mouths and tentacles, and as tall as the tallest trees... the definition of monstrosity.

  And I watched it all.

  They screeched and they howled, they wailed and they shrieked. Awful noises tormenting my mind, like a parasite feeding of my sanity. Every step they took made the land scream. All living beings forgot their madness and followed their primary instincts: to flee as far away as possible.

  And I heard it all.

  Initiating their death march, crushing dozens of lives with each step. All chaos converged, and there was the Apocalypse.

  __ __ __

  Did you enjoy reading? Because, I enjoyed writing this chapter. By the way did you notice the not-so-hidden information that I hid in this chapter? I am not sure you know what I am talking about so I'll give you a small hint: It's on Louis' status…

  Welp. I hope you'll continue enjoying!