The air inside the aircraft had shifted.
It started with a light pressure in the chest — subtle, almost ignorable. But within seconds, it turned into something far worse. The gravity around them thickened unnaturally, like invisible chains were pulling down on every cell of their body.
Moon clenched the armrest tightly, his jaw locked.
Kai's fingers twitched. His breath grew shallow.
Someone behind them groaned. Another person vomited on the floor.
A young girl began sobbing. "I can't breathe—I can't—"
The ship's metallic walls began creaking, not from damage, but as if the space around them was warping.
"Do not resist the gravity pull."
The pilot's voice echoed again — calm, cold, laced with spiritual authority.
But no amount of preparation could ease what came next.
Kai gasped. "Moon… I—"
Before he could finish, his vision darkened.
Moon's last image before blacking out was of the window — outside it, the swirling chaos of a black hole, lightning frozen in the vacuum of space, and a tunnel of distorted light pulling everything inward.
Then, silence.
---
One Week Later
A dull light flickered.
Kai groaned, his eyes twitching open to an unfamiliar white ceiling. A soft hum filled the air — mechanical, sterile, alive. His head pounded like a drum inside his skull.
Where am I…?
He sat up slowly, finding himself on a soft bed in a small white room. Sleek furniture. Curved walls. No windows.
Just then, a faint chime rang in his ears, and a glowing screen floated into view — like a projection burned into reality.
> Welcome to Shifting Expanse
•••••••○○○○○○ Your Details ○○○○•••••
Name – Kai
Clan – Alhuwalia Clan
Race – Human
● Strength – 2
● Speed – 1
● Agility – 1
● Endurance – 0.8
● Stamina – 3
● Charm – 5
Elemental Affinity:
[Primary] — Hydro 🌊
{Secondary} — Not Gained
(Tertiary) — Not Gained
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Kai stared at it. "System…?" he whispered.
His charm was five?
"Damn. I really am hot."
---
On the other side of the room, Moon stirred.
He sat up with a loud breath, eyes scanning quickly — old instincts, always alert. He saw Kai across the room and relaxed. "Bro… you alive?"
Kai nodded. "Barely."
Moon blinked as the same chime echoed in his ears.
Another panel opened up in glowing text.
> Welcome to Shifting Expanse
•••••••○○○○○○ Your Details ○○○○•••••
Name – Moon
Clan – Alhuwalia Clan
Race – Human
● Strength – 1
● Speed – 1.2
● Agility – 1.3
● Endurance – 1.8
● Stamina – 3
● Charm – 2
Elemental Affinity:
[Primary] — Electro ⚡
{Secondary} — Not Gained
(Tertiary) — Not Gained
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Moon froze for a second. "Electro... huh."
He had expected this. The Cultivation Association had already briefed them on elemental affinities and how the system operated — but seeing it live still hit different.
Kai looked up. "You got your stats too?"
Moon nodded. "Yeah. Show me yours."
Kai turned his screen toward Moon.
Moon glanced at it — and paused.
"Five charm?"
His eyebrow twitched. "Damn bro, what are you? A walking shampoo ad?"
Kai smirked, fixing his hair with mock elegance. "Guess looks do kill."
"Hey, don't be jealous. You got endurance. That's good for, you know… running away."
"…I hate you."
---
The brothers stood up and went to the side lockers.
Moon pulled out his signature outfit — a jet-black shirt, black pants, and crisp white shoes.
Kai did the same — white shirt, black pants, black shoes.
No matter how wild the world became, their sense of style remained formal and clean.
"Ready?" Moon asked.
Kai buttoned his cuff. "Always."
They walked out the sliding door.
---
Human Base #12072008
The corridor opened to a grand balcony — and beyond it, the city came into view.
A sprawling metropolis of silver towers, floating highways, and glowing spires under a triple-moon sky. Flying cars zipped through magnetic rails. Artificial rivers curved around bio-domes and energy gardens.
> Welcome to Human Base #12072008
The system echoed in their minds.
It would've been breathtaking… if they hadn't seen cities like Elysium Prime or Lunaris Omega back on Earth.
Moon raised a brow. "Looks nice. But… kinda basic."
Kai nodded. "For our timeline, this is decent. But for the Expanse? It's probably a mid-tier base."
A hovering drone zipped by, whispering:
> "Essence energy detected. Please proceed to Cultivation Registration."
Kai opened the system's Base Map.
The Human Cultivation Association was marked just five blocks away.
---
Registration Office
They reached the entrance easily — the path was clear, but once inside…
They sighed.
A long-ass line.
At least fifty people stood ahead — all ages, races, and builds. Some wore ragged clothes, others looked like mercenaries or scholars.
Moon looked around. "Do we have VIP pass or something?"
Kai shrugged. "Nope. Back to peasant mode."
They stood in line.
An hour passed.
At last, they reached the counter. A bored-looking staff officer raised his head. "Next."
Kai stepped up and held out his system panel.
The officer's screen buzzed.
> Scanning… Complete.
Welcome, Rookie-Class Applicants.
The system displayed:
> Current Power Level – Planetary
Stage – Rookie (1st Stage)
The officer explained flatly, "System gives stats in numbers. But for tracking and promotions, we use the 7-tier system."
He tapped a screen and pointed to a chart.
---
🌌 Official Power Levels:
1. Planetary
2. Stellar
3. Galactic
4. Universal
5. Domain Master
6. Multiversal
7. Gods
Each level has 5 stages:
Rookie
Fighter
Professional
King
Saint
Each power level has its own dimension, Moon and Kai are currently inside
Shifting Expanse:planetary level
---
"You two are at Planetary level, Rookie stage," the officer said.
Moon tilted his head. "So the bottom of the food chain."
"Exactly."
Kai smiled faintly. "Then there's only one way to go."
Moon cracked his knuckles. "Up."
---
To be continued...
---