Chapter 150: Caelestia

One moment, Eden was standing inside the temple.

The next, everything around him had changed.

He opened his eyes.

And found himself standing in the middle of a magnificent city.

For several seconds, he simply stared.

The buildings around him were unlike anything he had ever seen. Towering structures of white marble and golden stone rose into the sky, their surfaces decorated with elaborate carvings and delicate arches. Bridges connected buildings suspended high above the streets, while enormous fountains sent streams of sparkling water into the air.

Light poured down from a brilliant sky.

The streets were clean.

The buildings were immaculate.

And everywhere he looked, people were smiling.

Merchants stood beside colorful stalls, selling strange fruits and objects that shimmered with faint magical energy. Children ran through open plazas, laughing as they chased one another. Groups of people gathered beneath ornate awnings, talking animatedly while enjoying meals and drinks.

There was no visible suffering.

No poverty.

No desperation.

No one seemed hungry, frightened, or exhausted.

It was a city that looked as though it had been designed to embody the very idea of happiness.

Eden slowly turned in place.

"...Where the hell am I?"

He looked down at himself.

And immediately noticed something was wrong.

His black armor was gone.

The robes covering his body were silver and gold, with intricate patterns embroidered along the sleeves and collar. The fabric was light and elegant, flowing naturally with his movements. Golden ornaments adorned his waist, while a faint silver sheen shimmered across the material whenever it caught the sunlight.

He raised his hands.

They looked like his own.

At least, at first glance.

But the sleeves concealed much of his skin, and something about the proportions felt subtly unfamiliar.

Eden frowned.

He immediately tried to reach Sylvia.

’Sylvia?’

No response.

He tried again.

’Hey. Sylvia, can you hear me?’

Silence.

Eden’s expression hardened.

He couldn’t feel her presence.

He couldn’t sense Obsidian.

Even his usual connection to Dark Matter seemed to have vanished.

Whatever had happened when he approached the crystal, it had severed him from everything he normally relied upon.

He looked around once more.

The city continued its daily activities, entirely indifferent to his confusion.

Eden considered his options.

He could panic.

He could start shouting questions at strangers.

Or he could do what he always did when he found himself in an unfamiliar situation.

Gather information.

"Fine," he muttered. "Let’s figure out where I am first."

He began walking.

The city was enormous.

Its streets wound through districts filled with luxurious residences, bustling markets, and vast public squares. Some buildings were so large that they resembled palaces, while others appeared to float several meters above the ground without any visible support.

Strange symbols were engraved into the roads, glowing faintly beneath the feet of passersby.

Every so often, Eden noticed something that made him pause.

A young child lifted a fallen stone with one hand, barely seeming to exert any effort.

A woman carrying a basket of fruit casually conjured a small flame to warm her tea.

None of them appeared to be Awakened using skills in the conventional sense.

Yet each possessed an unmistakable presence.

An abundance of energy that made them feel fundamentally different from ordinary humans.

Even the children.

Eden’s eyes narrowed.

’Everyone here feels like an Awakened.’

’No.’

’That isn’t quite right.’

’The people in this city don’t merely possess Essence. Their very existence seems... intertwined with it, as though power were as natural to them as breathing.’

He watched a group of children playing in a plaza.

One of them jumped several meters into the air, landing on a stone wall without any apparent effort. Another created a small sphere of light between his palms, causing the others to cheer.

Their parents barely reacted.

To them, this was ordinary.

Eden continued walking, growing increasingly uneasy.

’This is without a doubt the Upper realm.’

’There exists no place inside the abyss or on earth that resembles this.’

If so, why was he here?

And why did he feel as though he had stepped into a memory that didn’t belong to him?

He looked toward the distant horizon.

A massive white-and-gold structure rose above the surrounding buildings, its towering spires reaching toward the sky. Unlike the other buildings, it seemed to dominate the entire district around it.

A church.

Or perhaps something more.

Eden decided to investigate.

It took him nearly an hour to reach the structure.

Along the way, he passed through several districts, crossed bridges adorned with golden statues, and walked through a garden filled with flowers that emitted soft, musical tones whenever the wind brushed against them.

The longer he stayed, the more he noticed the absence of anything unpleasant. No arguments. No visible conflicts. No signs of fear.

Even the beggars and desperate souls he would have expected to find in a city of this size were nowhere to be seen.

It was as though the very concept of misery had been erased from the place.

Eden didn’t know whether to admire it or distrust it.

He eventually arrived at the church’s entrance.

Two men stood beside the enormous doors.

Both wore white-and-gold armor, with long spears held upright at their sides. Their postures were disciplined, their expressions stern, and the faint energy surrounding them suggested that they were far stronger than ordinary guards.

Eden approached.

He had barely taken a few steps toward them when both men stiffened.

Their eyes widened.

A bead of sweat rolled down one guard’s temple.

The other immediately lowered his spear and bowed so deeply that Eden wondered whether he was about to injure his back.

"Your Excellency!"

The first guard followed suit.

"Please forgive us! We failed to recognize you immediately!"

Eden stopped.

"...Huh?"

The guards remained bowed.

Neither dared to look up.

"Please forgive our negligence," the second man continued, his voice trembling slightly. "We would never have presumed to obstruct your passage had we recognized you."

Eden stared at them.

Then he glanced over his shoulder.

There was nobody behind him.

He looked back at the guards.

"You’re talking to me?"