Heretic Trainer: The Gym Is My Cultivation Method

Chapter 554: Now The Real Game Begins

Above the sea, right where Garion’s ship had been just moments ago, the air twisted.

Space warped, folding in on itself like it couldn’t quite hold together.

Then, without warning, someone appeared.

He stood there in silence, unmoving at first, his gaze sweeping slowly across the horizon. His expression tightened, just a little.

"...Strange."

Confusion flickered in his eyes. He closed them briefly and extended his senses, stretching them outward, far beyond the sea, beyond the land, blanketing the entire world in an instant.

A pause.

Then his brows drew together.

"Those energies..." he muttered under his breath. "They were just here. Not one... but three."

His gaze sharpened. "Three gods... born at once?"

He looked around again, more carefully this time, as if the answer might be hiding in plain sight. "That shouldn’t be possible in a world this low..."

His senses swept the world again, slower now, more deliberate. Nothing escaped him, every city, every mountain, every living presence.

"There aren’t even a hundred who’ve reached the Awakening Realm," he said quietly, almost scoffing.

A low world... and yet it had just held the presence of beings far beyond it. He exhaled, the tension leaving him in a quiet sigh.

"Too late, huh..." he murmured. "Those three must’ve already taken whatever treasure was here and left."

For a moment, his gaze lingered on the empty stretch of sea where Garion had vanished. "What a waste..."

Another sigh.

And just like that, he disappeared, his presence fading so completely it was as if he had never been there at all.

"...If it were allowed," his voice echoed faintly, barely more than a whisper, "I’d erase this entire world and search it properly."

Silence followed.

He already knew he wouldn’t.

Destroying a world, even one this insignificant, was forbidden.

---

Garion frowned the moment the space around him finally stabilized. He scanned the unfamiliar void, eyes sharp, senses stretching out.

Rachel and the others were there, but all of them were unconscious, their bodies suspended slightly above the ground, completely still.

His gaze shifted, and he paused. "...What?"

It wasn’t just them.

His entire God Island was here.

The core members of God Gym too, every single one of them, all pulled into this strange space.

Garion exhaled slowly, then looked up.

"Atlas..." His voice carried a bit of edge. "What the hell happened?"

[An accident occurred.]

Garion’s brows pulled together. "An accident?"

[Yes. The moment the three of you awakened your God Physique... it produced a unique aura.]

He narrowed his eyes. "An aura?"

There was a brief pause.

[A god noticed it.]

Garion froze.

"...A god?" He let out a short breath, almost like a dry laugh. "You mean an actual god?"

[Yes.]

That single word made the space feel heavier.

[You’ve just been born as a god. The difference in power between you and an established one is immeasurable.]

Garion lowered his gaze slightly, letting that sink in. His fists tightened, then loosened again.

"Still," he said after a moment, voice calmer now, "why run? Are gods just hostile to each other or what?"

[Not exactly.]

Atlas paused, as if choosing the words carefully.

[But in your case, you are weak. To them, that makes you prey. Arrogant gods may kill you just to take what you have.]

Garion clicked his tongue softly. "...Figures."

[That is why I forcibly teleported all of you. That world is no longer safe.]

Silence fell for a second.

Garion let out a slow breath, some of the tension leaving his shoulders, though his expression stayed serious. "...Alright. I get it."

He glanced around again, at the sleeping figures, his island, his people, and then back up.

"But I still don’t fully understand what just happened," he said. "And more importantly... what do we do now?"

A brief pause.

Then...

[Don’t worry. I’ll explain everything.]

---

Garion crossed his arms, frowning. "Alright... start from the very beginning."

[Sure. I’ll let you know this first. The world you were in before was just a low-grade world.]

Garion blinked. "A... low-grade world?"

[Yeah. Worlds are divided into three tiers: low, intermediate, and high-grade.]

He stayed quiet, listening carefully as the voice continued.

[And there’s something else you need to understand. What you called the Perfection Realm... is actually just the second stage in the vast universe.]

Garion’s eyes widened. "Second stage...?"

[That’s right. It’s commonly known as the Awakening Realm. As for the Domain, Mana Core, and Mana Pool realms... those are all part of the Mortal Realm.]

For a moment, Garion didn’t respond. The weight of it all hit him at once.

"So everything we fought for..." he muttered. "Everything we thought was the peak... wasn’t even close."

[Yeah. But honestly, you should’ve realized that the moment you discovered your god physique could surpass it.]

Garion let out a slow sigh. "I mean... I had a feeling. I just didn’t expect the gap to be this big."

He paused, then frowned slightly. "Then what about that god?"

[Ignore him for now. Just know this... he’s far beyond the Awakening Realm.]

Garion nodded slowly. "I see..."

Silence stretched between them for a moment before he spoke again. "So... where are we going now?"

[To the real civilization.]

Garion blinked. "...Real civilization?"

[Yes. A place where your current level is only the starting line.]

He stared ahead, trying to picture it. "What’s it going to look like?"

[You’ll understand once you arrive. For now, rest. The teleportation used a lot of your power.]

Right after that, Garion finally noticed it... the exhaustion creeping through his body.

"Yeah... I can feel that," he murmured, rubbing the back of his neck.

Still, a grin slowly spread across his face.

"A new civilization, huh..." he said under his breath. "This could get interesting."

But then something clicked.

Garion’s expression shifted, and he slowly turned his gaze toward Atlas.

"Now that we’re in this situation..." he said, his voice steady but probing. "This should be the moment you tell me... who exactly are you?"

[Heh... I see. So it’s finally time, huh?]

Garion didn’t respond, just waited.

[From the very beginning, I told you I didn’t know much. I was ’born’ the moment I was bound to you.]

He narrowed his eyes slightly. "Yeah... you did say that."

[But there is one thing I can tell you.]

Garion leaned forward just a little. "I’m listening."

[The higher being who gave me to you... is waiting for you.]

Garion froze. "Waiting... for me?"

[You could say she’s the one who want you as her PT. But at the time... you were just a mortal.]

He let out a quiet breath, trying to process it.

[That’s why she gave me to you, to help you grow... to push you, shape you, and turn you into a god. All to see if you can actually become her PT.]

Garion looked down for a second, then chuckled softly. "I see... so that’s why all of this is happening."

He lifted his head again, eyes sharper now, filled with a new kind of curiosity. "...This is really starting to get interesting."