The Ascension Age

Aire hastily used his ID to enter the Refraction Room to check it. In the end, it was as one would imagine when they heard the word refraction. Aire could see himself being reflected everywhere. At the top of the room, there was a small opening from where he could see the sky. The part he couldn't see was the enormous dome that redirected the energy into the room outside.

The room was round inside, including the door that closed behind him. By the door's side, there was a small display from which Aire could initiate the accumulation of Stellar Energy. Sure enough, Aire checked it and pressed start before sitting at the center of the room. 

'Hmm...? Is it broken?' Aire was puzzled since he couldn't see any difference in the Stellar Energy in his surroundings. However, that situation only lasted a few seconds when suddenly, the mirrors around him turned somewhat gray. After some time, Aire felt the enormous burst of Stellar Energy charging into his body from all sides!

'Great! Now that's what I'm talking about,' Stella said from the Mind World. 'Aire, quickly! Start absorbing it! The Energy Blood Flow Assistance is always active, so don't hesitate and go all out!'

Aire nodded and immediately started to absorb the Stellar Energy. However, as soon as he took a little into his body, he understood why Sera said it was impure. The energy itself was making his body hurt as if it was trying to destroy his cells. 'No wonder Sera said that it could bring problems to one's body if not treated correctly.'

However, Aire wasn't worried. That's because his body processed that impure energy into something completely clean. With Energy Blood Flow Assistance, the process was even faster! By the time the energy reached the necessary areas of his body, it couldn't cause any harm anymore. 'Now that I think about it, do I really need to endure this pain all the time? I don't wanna!'

Stella tried to cheer him up from the Mind World, telling him, 'What's a little bit of pain compared to our deaths? Go, go, Aire! You can do it! For the sake of your seed spreading!'

'To hell with your seed spreading! Can't you just forget that?' Aire, obviously, couldn't think of something worse at the moment.

However, Stella only smiled in the Mind World, saying, 'See? You already forgot the pain. I told you you can do it, didn't I?'

Aire's mouth twitched in response. However, he had to admit that Stella's drivel made him forget his discomfort a little. 'Fine, I'll bear with it, okay?'

Although each second felt like an eternity, time passed nevertheless. Thirty minutes into the program, Aire finally saw the opportunity he was waiting for before he tried the breakthrough. His Stellar Bones Stage finally finished reinforcing his bones, which made the Stellar Energy rush into his organs. 

Seeing that, Stella smiled, telling him, 'Good! Don't worry. You have absolutely no issues with the breakthrough. As long as your body accumulates enough energy, it will reach the next stage naturally. Go for it, Aire!'

As if hearing Stella's words, Aire's organ cells began to change at fast speeds. Although the appearance didn't change when compared to normal organs, it was completely different when compared to his organs a minute ago. From now on, they would start to evolve like his bones and blood. After some time, a burst of Stellar Energy came out of Aire's body, completing the breakthrough.

"Holy shit, it hurt even more during the breakthrough!" Aire couldn't help but complain. Well, that couldn't be helped. After all, there's indeed a lot more Stellar Energy rushing into one's body during that moment. Naturally, the more impure Stellar Energy, the more pain.

'Hahaha! This room is great, Aire!' Stella, on the other hand, was jubilant. 'From my calculations, one low-grade Stellar Crystal would only be enough for you to enter the Stellar Organs Stage. However, you only used half of your time in the Refraction Room, and you already obtained the same amount. It's decided! We're going to buy all the time possible for the Refraction Room from now on.'

"What?! Do we really need to?" Aire didn't like the sound of that, though.

'Stop complaining. It's not like you'll stay here every hour of the day. It's only an hour for each low-grade Stellar Crystal, remember?' Stella tried to look on the positive side as always.

Well, Aire knew that it was a good thing. He just complained to vent some of his frustration about the pain he would feel in the future. "Whatever, let's continue."

Aire then spent the rest of his time begrudgingly absorbing as much Stellar Energy as he could. When he finally left the room, his body felt sore all over. "I need a shower and some sleep. I don't wanna hear about any more tasks for today."

Stella nodded, responding, 'No problem. Although your body can purify the energy, it still takes a toll. Come back tomorrow after you do your things in the Stellar Smith Faction. Of course, you still have your classes to take before you do that.' One must remember that Aire also took normal classes in the Ascension Age School because...it is a school, obviously.

Aire couldn't help but feel even worse, muttering, "I wish you haven't reminded me that." In any case, if he didn't go, things would be worse, so he did take the classes that afternoon.

Later at dusk, Aire returned to his room first. Altina and the others would usually stay longer out and pass by their own factions to work. Aire then took his shower and fell on his bed. Sure enough, that Refraction Room took a toll on his body, so much so that he fell asleep in less than a minute.

At night, Altina was the first one to come back and notice the surprise. At the Stellar Manipulation Level, she now could spread her own Stellar Energy to a certain distance. Seeing how Aire was already sleeping so early, she used it to check his condition. After all, Aire didn't usually sleep at that time. "Holy shit! He's already in the Stellar Organs Stage!"

From the looks of it, Aire had a lot to explain the next morning.