“Buddy, let’s not rush things here!” Peter waved his hands, suddenly alarmed, his tired mind making a quick judgment call. Having powers allowing him to hunt monsters for money: good. Being someone’s champion and getting into quests and shit: bad. “Thanks, but no thanks. I just want a quiet life.”
“Not interested. Please leave my head and find somebody else."
There was silence for half a minute, making Peter hope the System was gone. Then, the voice returned.
“I’m not sure…” Peter frowned. “I've read books, you know. A System Apocalypse would be worse than the Cultivators.”
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All of a sudden, a torrent of images assaulted Peter's mind. Mithril mines, with majestic and well-lit tunnels, are tens of miles deep, reaching the mantle and extracting geothermal energy in the process. Somehow, he knew that. Trees, hundreds of feet tall, with art-nouveau-style houses woven between them, and people drinking mead on terraces. Floating airships, some technological, some more on the blimp and sails side. It was beautiful.
"This is how the Multiverse looks?" Peter asked in awe.
"So, no killing ninety-nine percent of the population by spawning monsters?"
"Oh, goodness…" Peter sighed. There was a long silence, holding over a minute, after which he had no chance but to ask: "So… what now?"
The reply was silence, and it held for a while.
“Geez, can’t you say baby steps in less than ten words?”
<—until circumstances become clearer. Regarding separating this entity from the subject, it is estimated that a full installment of the System on Earth or traveling to a System World could achieve Peter’s wish.>
"Fuck…"
“Bad. The opposite of good is called bad.”
“Rephrasing. The situation is not so bad. The Main Galactic System works on a grand scale. Entity Peter could wait for years, even decades, before making up his mind. Meanwhile, this unit inquires whether Peter is interested in gaining additional capabilities.>
"You mean powers?" Peter asked, his interest rising. That didn’t sound so bad and fit his plans. His spatial storage was filled with precious monster parts—he could see an inventory if he concentrated on that. And monster parts meant money.
“Err… how does that work?”
“Yeah, please do,” Peter sighed, closing his eyes and leaning back, massaging his forehead. He felt this was a most important choice and didn’t want to screw it up.
“It’s all is fair in war and love, and it was nothing like that,” Peter objected despite feeling his cheeks flushing.
“It’s either befuddled or confused.”
Dimplowhat? “OK…” Peter said, unsure if he was interested in any option. He had almost completed his business studies before the Awakening, so he considered himself a trader already. “What next?”
“All for the better,” Peter nodded. “The army is not my thing.”
“Hunter, huh?” Peter said. So far, it was the best choice. If he could learn to sneak and take down monsters easily, that opened the path to earning good money. “Is that all?”
"What the heck does it mean?" Peter asked.
“Why should I pick a class that is not a class but a code fragment?” Peter complained.
"It’s Diplomat. How come I can access that mythical stuff?"
"I don't even know her name," Peter confessed. “She hangs up with the snobs. You know, popular girl, cheerleader stuff… Never mind… Let’s go for Impulse, then.”
Name: Peter Hillden. Age: 24. Lvl. 5 Main Class: Impulse (Bespoke)
Physical: 22 Mental: 15 Mystical: 14
Skills and Abilities: Impulse (Mythical), Influence (Rare), Multiple Weapons Proficiency (Uncommon), Sneak (Uncommon), Loot (Uncommon), various skills and knowledge sets of civilian use (Common and Uncommon).
"Why?"
“Wait, wait, wait,” Peter blurted. “What do you mean by unfavorable situations?”
“What the fuck, FAQ! That’s the first thing you should have mentioned!”
“You better be right… I have no wish to discontinue my existence,” Peter hissed.
“Can’t it wait until to— Of course… What did I even bother asking?” Peter complained because the System had ignored him and continued.
A bright light slammed into Peter’s eyes, making him jerk back and push against the bench. A distinguished gentleman with long gray hair tied in a ponytail and a beard appeared in his vision, walking back and forth on a terrace overlooking a sea of trees from great heights. He was evidently an elf, with pointy ears ornated with earrings.
"Greetings, adventurer," the man said, pausing to look at Peter. "If you see this message, you're a System user in a hostile Cultivator world. I commend your dedication to the cause."
“Like I had a choice,” Peter sneered.
"No matter your powers, a simple technique will allow you to conceal them, appearing as a low-level cultivator or an instinctive Magic user. Even better, whenever you use your powers, you can deceive your rivals into thinking you have different abilities.
"But first, we must address the most important question: What is Mana?” The man paused as if expecting an answer from Peter.
“I have no idea,” Peter turned his hands heavenward. The Cultivators’ definition, something about a universal force, also named Aether and Qi, was confusing, to say the least.
“Correct answer,” the elf nodded. “Few know the truth.”
the System interjected, pausing the image for a second, then letting the recording run again.
“Mana is a form of Dark Matter, an elementary particle that behaves both as a boson and a fermion. When observed, it doesn’t only change its state from wave to particle but also interacts with the observer.”
“Honestly, I was fine with the qi stuff,” Peter sighed and sagged his shoulders. He had expected all but that from an elf. Where was the tree-hugging? He felt cheated.
“Now, about stats, which are divided into three categories. The first is about observing Mana, often called the Mental stat. There can be no magic without it. And yes, it means that even plants have some Mental abilities, even if they are below sentience as we define it. The second is about the easiness of using Mana for spells. It is called Mystical. The third, the Physical aspect, concerns your body's capacity to store Mana in its cells and atoms. Our System lists them in the order you understand them better for practical purposes.
"Now, close your eyes, focus on my voice, and breathe deeply. Inhale through your mouth, exhale through your nose."
“The heck? Am I supposed to cultivate? This is meditation!” Peter exclaimed.
the System said coldly, while the man’s image froze again.
Peter growled but remained with his eyes shut, breathing as told. Ten cycles later, the video continued.
“Relaxation,” the man continued, “has nothing to do with Meditation and, most of all, with cycling your Mana. If anything, never cycle or focus on your Mana. Cycling is like calling a friend to visit and sending them away before you talk. Mana should be like your family, always there, everywhere… Allow it to enter your body and become a part of you… Let it complete your every cell… Think of nothing…”
May the Force be with you, Peter thought involuntarily but forced himself to continue the exercise. Soon, there were tinglings in his body, countless tiny needles. His muscles contracted by themselves, and his senses—mostly his hearing but also his smell—started to paint a vision of the surrounding forest in his mind. Night birds were making noises, a soft wind bending the tips of the branches, and the pines’ resin smelling stronger.
“Ouch,” Peter mumbled as the sensation intensified, becoming a burning, then disappeared.
“Congratulations, fellow System Champion,” the man said. “You just unlocked your Mana Body. This is an exceptional feat, only reserved for the Mythical classes. Repeat this exercise as often as you can. Enjoy your new Awakened status. We will see each other again when you are ready for the next training session. Until then, safe travels.”
With that, the image disappeared, and the darkness returned thicker. Peter felt every muscle in his body limp and almost fainted.
Because you developed your Mana Body, you have reached level 6. 6 Free Attribute Points are available.
It was well over midnight when Peter returned to his room. He found his best pair of sports shoes half-eaten and the warg snoring happily, belly up. Sighing, he went to sleep.
