Puzzled at the translucent blue boxes, Warren reached his hand out to try to touch them. However, when he moved his hand to them, his hand simply passed right through, it was as if they weren’t there. If Warren didn't experience this himself, he would not have believed what was happening. This was all simply too strange for him. After five more minutes of trying to interact with the boxes with no success, Warren finally decides to try another method.
Thinking back to when he was following the green light from his mother’s pendant, he remembered no matter how long or far he ran, he could not get any closer.
“Maybe this is has something to do with that green light that I saw and I can only interact with it through my mind.” Warren mutter to himself.
But as soon as he thought of that, his entire body shuddered. He was reminded of the massive amount of pain he felt when his mind had reached out to the green orb.
One thing he knew for sure was he did not want to feel that pain ever again!
Torn between the experience of the stabbing pain and his curiosity, he was momentarily lost at what to do. On the one hand, the torment was unbearable for the 13-year-old boy, but on the other hand, this could be a mystery that has been left behind from his pendant. And that pendant was the only connection he had with his mother.
It took him all but a minute to make up his mind. He had sworn to himself that he would move heaven and earth to help his family out of the situation they were in. This mysterious power might just help him accomplish that. And in the deepest part of his heart, he hoped that the boxes would also provide a clue to where his mother was.
Gritting his teeth and closing his eyes he willed the boxes to come closer to him. Only after several seconds of waiting and not feeling anything off did he open his eyes. Surprisingly, the boxes were now hovering only mere inches away from him. A little frightened at how close they were now, he quickly tried to move back on his bed. But they boxes kept following him.
Taking a second to collect his thoughts, he willed the boxes to move to an arm's length from his face, and they obeyed. It felt natural and easy to him; it was almost like the boxes were an extension of him.
Next, he willed the three stacked boxes to separate from each other.
Although many kids in the slums did not know how to read, Warren wasn't one of them. He and his siblings had gone to school since they were four. In fact, Warren was often praised as the smartest student in the class, often placing first in many subject. It was only after his father had gotten ill did he and his siblings stop attending.
Now, Warren was able to read what each box had to say.
[Congratulations! The skill "Equipment Enhancement" has been successfully integrated with your soul.]
[Congratulations! The skill "Basic Analyze" has been successfully integrated with your soul]
[Due to the low level of your soul and understanding of the natural laws, you can only Enhance Lesser Common to Lesser Uncommon grade equipment]
Reading through the three messages, Warren had a vague understanding of what it meant. At the same time, he felt his fate would be a changed from today onwards by these little boxes.
It would seem to him that he had acquired two "skills" called "Equipment Enhancement" and "Basic Analyze" and because his "understanding of natural laws" was lacking he, the skills were limited in what they could do.
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Grabbing the nearest object from him, he thought "Basic Analyze!"
A new box appeared out of no wear, and the following message was neatly written on it:
---
[1 Unit of Chi Force(UCF) Used]
[7/8 UCF Remaining]
[Analyzing...]
[Analysis Complete]
[Item Grade: Lesser Common]
[Enhancement Level: 0]
[Item Name: Blanket Rag]
[Attack: 0]
[Defense: 0.5]
[Durability: 2/5]
[Description: A poorly-made, worn-down blanket that can barely keep one person warm]
[Enhancement Requirements: 5 UCF]
--
This sudden appearance of the fourth box had startled Warren, causing him to drop the blanket back on to the bed.
After taking a minute to calm his nerves, he took a deep breath and read through the message. Absorbing the information, Warren couldn't help but let out a self-deprecating chuckle. The skill he just used told him that the blanket could barely keep one person warm and yet this was the only blanket the family had. At night they would all share this one blanket.
"It would seem like I would need to use my chi force to perform the "Basic Analyze" skill and it would take even more chi force to use the Equipment Enhancement skill. " Warren mused to himself.
"Hum, I still have 7 UCF left, I should just use the "Equipment Enhancement" skill to see what happens."
Picking the blanket back up, Warren thought "Equipment Enhancement" to himself.
---
[5 (UCF) Used]
[2/8 UCF Remaining]
[Enhancing...]
[Enhancement Successful]
--
This time, he noticed something leaving his body and covering the blanket. It was only a short instance, but Warren saw the blanket glowed a light green hue.
"This must be how using CH feel like. The first time when I used "Basic Analyze", I only used 1 UCF, and therefore I didn't feel anything, but now the using "Equipment Enhancement", I could clearly feel the majority of my CF leaving my body."
Noticing that those were the only messages that he will get he couldn't help but roll his eyes.
"It would seem like I need to spend more another CH to use Basic Analyze."
--
[1 UCF Used]
[1/8 UCF Remaining]
[Analyzing...]
[Analysis Complete]
[Item Grade: Lesser Common]
[Enhancement Level: +1]
[Item Name: Blanket Rag]
[Attack: 0]
[Defense: 1]
[Durability: 3/6]
[Description: A poorly-made, worn-down blanket that can barely keep one person warm]
[Enhancement Requirement: 6 UCF]
--
Seeing and reading the content of the new box that just appeared, Warren was overjoyed. He ran his hand through the blanket, and he could just barely notice a difference with the blanket, nevertheless, it was there.
"It seems like after enhancing the blanket one level, it's defense actually went up by .5 and durability also went up by 1, however, the Enhancement Requirement also increased by 1. Is it a coincidence that the Enhancement Requirement matched the full Durability of the item?"
--
Looking around the room, Warren wondered what he could use his last UFC on. Catching a glint the in the corner of the room, he saw a reflection of himself in the mirror. With a spark of excitement, he thought "Basic Analyze" on himself.
After a long second of waiting, a new box finally appeared in front of him.
--
[1 UCF Used]
[0/8 UCF Remaining]
[Analyzing...]
[Analysis Complete]
[Name: Warren Long]
[Cultivation Talent: Common]
[Cultivation Level: NA]
[Health: 6/6]
[Stamina: 2/7]
[CF: 0/8]
[Description: A 13-year-old boy that lives in the slums with his family. He was lucky enough to obtain the skill "Basic Analyze" and "Equipment Enhancement" by chance.]
---
Although slightly disappointed at what he saw, he was expecting as much. He knew he wasn't special and would not amount to much, but now he had these "skills", his future was in his hands.
---
As soon as he finished reading through the new information, the door opened, and his father and siblings came in.
End of Chapter 3