Death: Genesis

Zeke Blackwood dies donating a kidney to his brother. Eons later, after Earth's destruction, he is reborn in the Radiant Isles — a magical realm at war between good and evil. Guided by the deity Oberon, he battles through troll-infested caverns, gaining superhuman abilities with each victory, and finds companions in archer Abby and a soul-bonded dire bear cub named Pudge.

Two years of brutal combat in the Radiant Isles have forged Zeke into a formidable warrior. Now, quests to protect the defenseless have drawn the attention of the Crystal Spiders — a kidnapping assassins' guild. When a powerful monk summons Zeke for a rescue mission into the zombie-infested domain of Abraham Micayne, Lord of the Dead, nothing can fully prepare him for what waits there.

One of the deadliest warriors in the Radiant Isles, Zeke has run afoul of the realm's demigod elite — beings who treat the population as pawns. Now a dangerous warlock threatens to tear open a portal to a demon-filled dimension. Zeke's party must cross a perilous desert to stop him, even as raw magical energies threaten to increase his power — or kill him.

A confrontation with the demon realm leaves Zeke transformed and shattered, now a cambion standing between Heaven and Hell. As Abraham Micayne unleashes hordes of undead upon the living, Zeke concludes the Isles' apocalypse cannot be fought from within — and sets his sights on the Portal of Ascension, a gateway out of the mortal realm entirely.

With the Radiant Isles lost, Zeke and companions ascend to the Eternal Realm — scattered and transformed by the crossing. Zeke awakens enslaved by a remnant dwarven civilization, forced through kobold-infested tunnels and gladiatorial games, testing untapped powers while planning escape and reunion with his friends.

Still enslaved in Min Ferilik's dwarven mines, Zeke continues to grow more powerful through hard labor, arena combat, and dangerous expeditions. A journey to the Sea of Corruption puts him in contact with the bound spirit of a demon succubus named Eveline — and with her comes the power to command an army of kobolds and golems, enough to start a revolution.

A half-human, half-demon legend in the Eternal Realm, Zeke leads an army of freed kobolds while his scattered companions navigate their own trials. Talia Nightingale investigates brutal murders among the undead. Abby, guilt-ridden from a betrayal, has fallen into the service of the Radiant Host — and Zeke may be their eventual target.

Zeke's growing coalition — beastkin, kobolds, centaurs, elves — rallies around him as he wages war against the enslaving Knights of Adontis. With every victory, his power grows and his demonic mana threatens to corrupt his soul. Torn between just ruler and merciless tyrant, he edges toward something beyond either: godhood.

Journeying through the Kingdom of El'Kireth, Zeke finds civil war between vampires and an empire determined to turn all living beings into undead. Old companion Talia Nightingale leads the resistance — and needs Zeke's help. Together, they must brave a dungeon to find the Seed of Life and Death, where the greatest dangers come from within their own souls.

Zeke's ascension looms, but his kingdom of beastkin, kobolds, centaurs, and elves still needs protecting from the fascist Imperium. The Imperium's zealot arm, the Radiant Host, is led by none other than Abby Summers — once Zeke's companion and lover. His armies tear through one stronghold after another. Even Abby will not be spared.

To obtain the power needed to wage war against universe-threatening evil, Zeke must enter Hell and journey through its circles. The physical torment is manageable. The emotional suffering — confronting his own history of violence and the toll it has taken — is another matter entirely.

The fate of all existence depends on a god of incomprehensible power—and the soul of a human—in the epic conclusion to this dark fantasy adventure series. At long last Zeke Blackwood has become a primordial. He wields mana powerful enough to combat the gods of the Ethereal Realm and prevent the destruction of the universe. The quest has taken many lifetimes. He's fought in countless battles, claimed more lives than he can remember, and sacrificed his humanity. Empathy and compassion have been lost as he's traveled this bloody, violent path, hollowing out any feelings he once had for his friends and loved ones. Beyond mortal concerns and untethered from emotional bonds, Zeke prepares his armies to march against the greater gods of sea, earth, and sun in what will inevitably be a massacre of soldiers, innocents, and anything else that stands in their way. Driven by rage and zealous bloodlust, he won't stop until all the gods have fallen and he's obtained their knowledge of the very nature of reality—and how to control it. But no one being was ever meant to dominate the cosmos. The terrible truth behind existence is a burden no human should have to bear. Now, with destiny firmly in his grasp, Zeke must choose between his godhood and his heart . . . The twelfth volume of the hit LitRPG fantasy series—with more than 700,000 views on Royal Road—now available in paperback, ebook, and audiobook!