Multiversal Manifestation System

As the audience dispersed, only those with considerable influence remained in the virtual colosseum.

Among them were the awakener academy representatives, the principals of various schools, and a select few, like Alexander Nedeir, who remained by virtue of his uncle Ray's standing.

The awakener recruiters stepped forward, their collective demeanor serious but welcoming. A woman with a commanding presence, dressed in an ornate academy robe adorned with symbols of mana affinities, took the lead to deliver a speech.

"Congratulations to all of you," she began, her voice clear and resonating through the quiet colosseum.

"You have participated in one of the most rigorous competitions in the federation. Your rankings today represent only a fraction of what this competition is about. The rankings are but a formality, a measure of your performance here. What we, as recruiters from the top academies, truly seek is potential. The ability to adapt, grow, and innovate under pressure."

She paused, letting the weight of her words settle before continuing.

"The real reward lies not in your rank but in the opportunity to join one of our academies, to train under the best mentors, to be equipped with the finest resources, and to become the protectors and pioneers humanity so desperately needs. This competition is only the beginning of your journey."

The students nodded, some quietly inspired while others looked visibly relieved. The recruiter smiled faintly before shifting to the next topic.

"Before we proceed with recruitment, we must address a critical issue." Her expression turned grave.

"The Dome. As you are all aware, something highly unusual occurred during the competition. For the safety of all involved, we require your accounts of what happened inside."

The students murmured amongst themselves. Wang Zi, standing towards the back, remained silent.

His arms were crossed, his expression neutral, though Bea couldn't help but cast frequent glances his way, her gaze lingering.

One by one, the students spoke.

Lucius stepped forward, his calm demeanor unwavering.

"There was a gray mist. It seemed to affect the beasts, making them frenzied and stronger. I didn't encounter many issues, but it was… odd. The mist lingered, and after killing some beasts, I noticed that their corpses decayed faster than usual."

Other students chimed in.

"The plants we collected withered," Other students chimed in.

"It was as if something was draining their vitality," another added. "Even the ores we gathered became brittle, full of holes like they'd been eaten away."

The recruiters exchanged concerned glances.

Finally, Xian Mei stepped forward. The students turned to her, curious about what she might add.

Her voice was calm yet carried a note of hesitation. "In the deeper parts of the Dome, there was… a pyramid-like structure. It seemed out of place, ancient, and it emitted strange energy. I didn't enter it, but from the outside, I could feel something powerful coming from within."

Wang Zi, who had remained silent, met Xian Mei's eyes.

She glanced his way briefly but said nothing more. Wang Zi gave her a subtle nod, appreciating her discretion.

The recruiters absorbed this information carefully, murmuring amongst themselves. One of them, a tall, stern man with a silver beard, whispered to another,

"Could this be related to the Silent Ones?" The woman who had spoken earlier gave a nearly imperceptible nod, her gaze darkening.

The interrogation concluded, and just as the recruiters prepared to move on, Lulu stepped forward, her presence immediately commanding attention. Dressed in a sharp purple-black psychic's uniform adorned with subtle engravings, she strode confidently towards Xian Mei.

"So, you're the psychic prodigy I've heard about," Lulu said, her voice smooth and tinged with authority.

"Xian Mei, is it?"

Xian Mei nodded, her expression composed though her eyes held a flicker of recognition.

"I know of you. Lulu… the Renowned Psychic of the Federation."

"And now, you will be my disciple." Lulu smiled, clearly pleased. 

The declaration left the room buzzing. Other students, both awed and envious, whispered amongst themselves.

To be chosen by Lulu was no small feat, it was an acknowledgment of Xian Mei's extraordinary potential.

Xian Mei hesitated only briefly before bowing slightly. "I would be honored to learn from you."

"Good. We'll begin your training soon. I have high expectations of you." Lulu's smile widened. 

As Lulu turned to walk back to the recruiters, she cast a brief glance at Wang Zi, as if to size him up.

But seeing his calm expression and unassuming stance, she moved on without a word.

"She accepted a disciple huh. That's rare for someone like her." Alexander, watching from his spot next to Ray, leaned closer to his uncle. 

Ray nodded. "Indeed, but psychics are a rarity after all. And what of your other interest? Wang Zi?"

Alexander smirked and showed his uncle the message on his holo-watch, ready to send to Wang Zi. "Patience. We'll have our conversation soon enough."

As the students stood in silence, one of them hesitantly raised their hand. It was a boy from the Aetherion Institute, his voice shaky.

"Does this… does this have something to do with the Silent Ones?" he asked, his tone betraying a mix of fear and curiosity.

The woman on the podium paused for a moment, her expression unreadable.

She glanced toward the other representatives from the Awakeners Academies and the principals. A series of subtle nods and exchanged glances passed among them, their faces grim.

After a heavy pause, the woman sighed, her shoulders sagging slightly.

"Yes," she said at last. "It most likely does."

The room tensed, whispers breaking out among the students. The woman raised her hand to silence them before continuing, her tone now somber.

"Do you know," she began, "why, despite the Silent Ones being the universal enemy of all sentient life, none of you have ever seen them or heard concrete details about their true forms? Why you've only ever encountered or studied their minions?"

The question hung in the air. A few students from influential families seemed to glance at each other knowingly but said nothing, their silence speaking for itself.

Most others, including Wang Zi, were genuinely puzzled.

Wang Zi closed his eyes in thought.

He had paid attention during his lessons at Nexus Academy, but the Silent Ones had always been mentioned in passing, as distant threats with little elaboration.

"I wonder why..." He thought.

The woman sighed again, this time deeper, and gestured with her hand. A large hologram materialized above her, drawing gasps from the crowd.

"This," she said, her voice carrying a weight that silenced the whispers, "is a Silent One."

The hologram revealed a figure that immediately sent chills through the room. Its alien visage struck at something in every observer. She took a deep breath and began to describe it.

The figure that appeared was an amalgamation of fear-inducing features.

It stood tall, its height exaggerated by unnervingly long, spindly limbs that seemed to bend unnaturally. Its head was smooth and featureless, except for faint indentations where eyes and a mouth might be. The skin was ashen and slick, giving it an unnatural, otherworldly sheen, almost like wet stone.

From its back sprouted countless tendrils, undulating and shifting, as though alive. These tendrils seemed to grow from the creature itself, made of the same material as its body, and their tips emitted a faint, pulsating glow.

They were not merely appendages but extensions of its will, moving with an eerie sentience, capable of piercing through anything and feeding on the life force of their victims.

Its torso was gaunt and skeletal, with exposed ribs that almost seemed to shift in and out of sight, like a mirage.

The lower half of its body was like that of a nightmare beast. Its legs were powerful, ending in sharp, talon-like appendages that left deep gouges in whatever it walked on. When it moved, it did so with a fluidity that was both graceful and horrifying, each step silent and calculated, yet brimming with menace.

And then, there were its mouths. Yes, mouths, plural. When it opened what should have been its face, it split apart like a blooming flower, revealing layers of jagged, interlocking teeth, with a long, serpentine tongue writhing within.

The students stared in stunned silence, unable to look away. But the most terrifying aspect wasn't its appearance, it was its effect on the mind.

As she spoke, the room grew increasingly tense. Gasps and murmurs spread as the students processed the unsettling revelation.

"And now," the woman continued, "let me explain the reason they remain such an enigma."

She gestured again, and the hologram zoomed in on the featureless face of the Silent One.

"They possess an ability unlike anything we've ever encountered. The moment you break eye contact with them, all memory of their existence is wiped clean from your mind. It's as if they never existed. Even physical traces, marks, records, residual mana signatures, fade or vanish entirely."

"Only those who remain locked in battle with them retain any awareness. Once the fight ends… it's gone."

This time, the gasps were louder, disbelief spreading through the room like wildfire.

"We have no way to counteract this ability as of now," she said, her voice grim.

"Not even the Consortium can claim to understand it. The only reason we even know they exist is because of the rare instances when their minions slip through or from recordings left by advanced civilizations, civilizations that were wiped out before they could warn anyone else."

The image shifted, showing a scene of devastation, an entire city reduced to rubble.

"What you're seeing here is what's left of a civilization that fell to the Silent Ones. We only know this because we found recordings from the planet's machines, recordings made by devices specifically designed to resist their effects. Without those, the Silent Ones would have been nothing more than a rumor, their existence a mere tale."

"And that… is why even though we know they are our enemies, we know so little about them. Their minions - beasts, monsters, and constructs like what you faced in the Dome - are all we've ever been able to study. But the masterminds themselves? They remain a mystery we are no closer to solving."

"This is the reality of our universe. And why you, the next generation, are so critical to our survival. Someday, one of you might be the key to overcoming their curse. And when that day comes, humanity may finally have a chance to turn the tide."

The room remained silent, the weight of her words sinking in. Wang Zi narrowed his eyes, processing everything he'd just learned.

"Annoying ability... But they don't seem that strong by themselves. Could there be something else?" Wang Zi thought to himself.

These things were a puzzle even the strongest couldn't solve. Yet.

As the woman turned off the projection of the Silent One's appearance, an unsettling silence filled the room.

The students blinked, their expressions ranging from confusion to alarm. Many instinctively tried to recall what they had just seen, only to find their minds eerily blank.

Wang Zi, despite his exceptional memory and his Rinnegan, found himself in the same predicament.

He clutched his forehead, trying to force the image back into his mind, but it was like trying to grasp water with his fingers.

All he knew was that they had been shown something, a creature, something alien, but its appearance was completely gone from his mind.

Not even a fragment remained.

"Wait… what did we just see?" one student whispered, their voice trembling.

"It was something important, wasn't it?" another muttered, their brows furrowing in frustration.

"I... I can't remember," someone else admitted, panic creeping into their voice.

A low murmur spread through the students as they exchanged bewildered looks, each trying and failing to describe what they had just witnessed.

"Damn it." Wang Zi frowned deeply, his hands clenching into fists.

This was worse than he had imagined. He could deal with powerful enemies, but how was he supposed to fight something he couldn't even remember?

His unease only grew as a chilling thought crossed his mind: he could have already seen one of them, maybe even inside the pyramid, and he wouldn't have a clue.

"Troublesome," he muttered under his breath, his usually confident demeanor replaced by a rare seriousness.

His mind raced. He needed to find a way to counter this ability. The Rinnegan was powerful, but clearly not infallible.

"I have to get stronger," he resolved, his gaze hardening. "Much stronger."

The representatives from the Awakener Academies stood calmly at the edges of the room, their expressions neutral but not surprised. It was clear that they had expected this outcome.

"Every time," one of them murmured to another, their voice low.

"Nothing new," another replied, crossing their arms. "Not even the most advanced minds in the Consortium have managed to retain their image. The younger generation was never going to do any better."

Lulu, standing with Xian Mei at her side, seemed unfazed, though her sharp eyes scanned the room, observing each student's reaction.

"A valuable lesson," she remarked to no one in particular. "Let them feel the weight of the unknown. It will either motivate them or break them."

Principal Wanderer, standing among the other school leaders, sighed deeply.

"They're lucky they only saw an image and not the real thing," he said, stroking his beard. "If this little taste shook them, they're not ready for what's out there."

Alexander, watching the chaos unfold, leaned toward his uncle.

"That's what we're up against?" he asked quietly, a rare hint of unease in his voice.

"You can see now why information on them is so scarce. They don't leave witnesses, Alexander. They leave nothing." Ray Nedeir nodded solemnly. 

The atmosphere in the room was heavy, the weight of what they had just experienced pressing down on everyone. For the students, it was a harsh reminder of how much they still had to learn and how far they had to go.

For the academies, it was a confirmation of the gigantic task that lay ahead.