For several minutes, I silently sat cross-legged atop the bone mountain with the blue-eyed Soul Eater snake's core clenched tightly in my right hand and the worn-out White rank reward—Demonic Qi Tempering manual—in my left.
My face remained solemn and silent as I drifted into a world of my thoughts.
"It's... been a while since that 'System Screen' disappeared..." Subconsciously, words slipped out, my voice soft yet equally cold—echoing in the damp, lit cave where I sat.
My eyes, lifeless, silently gazed into the shadowed corner of the cave, staring continuously as if I were seeing something else.
'Was it... even real?'
'What if it wasn't?'
'What will I do if all of this is nothing more than a dream?'
'Do I really have the courage to face him... face them...?'
A never-ending series of questions ravaged my unstable mind with the chisel of self-doubt and the hammer of guilt.
It had already been a day since I lost my everything.
Belief. Promises. Family. Wealth. Strength. Trust.
Everything that I had managed to build over decades of struggle and self-torment all fell apart in front of my eyes within a matter of seconds.
Practically speaking, a single day was nowhere near enough for one to have taken control over such dense, painful remorse.
But I had no other choice but to try to suppress my violent emotions. At least, for the sake of my revenge.
I had felt countless different emotions—worlds apart yet strikingly correlated—in such a short while that it left a deep impression on my soul.
My sanity nearly crumbled apart, while 'I' could not remain the same.
Now, with the system's silent disappearance, my suppressed emotions began to stir havoc in my mind.
I unknowingly started to doubt the reality as if it were nothing more than a dream that my dying body so desperately wanted to live.
Getting saved by an unknown entity in the face of death, reawakening the memories of a past life that seemed to be different yet eerily familiar. Awakening an unknown system that promises to treat the impossible—it all seemed too good to be true.
Then suddenly, my eyes widened and pupils shook. Something had changed.
*Ding!*
Amidst the muffled roars in my mind, a single sound stood out.
It was a short, almost instant, alert sound, loud enough for me to recognize in a cacophony where each sound held the potential to chip away at my mind.
---
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[#~System Notification~#]
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[The necessary preparations have been made.]
[Please put the respective beast core on top of the system screen.]
---
A black-colored system screen materialized right in front of my eyes, adding a layer of dark hue in the already darkened cave.
On top, a faint cerulean glow shimmered in a small spherical shape. It hovered at an inch's distance from the system screen.
Stunned by the system's appearance, I snapped out of my misery and put an end to my useless thoughts.
I raised my right hand and slowly put the Beast core in the glowing cerulean patch.
At first, I doubted if a marble-sized pocket could hold a fist-sized core.
But as the energy stretched, it coated the entire orb in a new light.
A bright cerulean glow, spreading out of the orb in a slow, elegant spiral, lighting the entire cave in a soft, humid glow once again.
Hesitant at first, I slowly let go of the core as I felt a strange force keeping it stable mid-air.
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———————————————————
[#~System Notification~#]
———————————————————
[Analyzing the Submitted Core...]
[...]
---
A new screen formed over the previous one almost immediately, as if it held information of far more importance.
Bright red letters violently blinked over the screen, spelling danger in every sense.
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———————————————————
[#~System Notification~#]
———————————————————
[#_WARNING!_#]
[Upon analysis, the system has deemed the submitted core unusable!]
[The submitted core has been determined to be that of a mythical beast; thus, its core has evolved and aged with time alongside the beast itself.]
[The process of 'Reconstructing the Qi Paths' is extremely dangerous and painful.]
[The stronger the core is, the stronger one's body will become; however, the process would become equally dangerous and painful as well.]
[With a core so strong, System has calculated the host's survival chances to be 0.0058% at best.]
[The system recommends the host find another suitable beast core.]
---
Upon reading the system's warning, my demeanor did not change. My facial expressions remained the same as my voice coldly echoed in the cave.
"Proceed with it."
It was a command meant for the system to obey.
It wasn't just a mere impulsive decision made over excessive thoughts, but a well-thought-out, calculated move.
I had realized that even though the risk had increased, so did the reward. All I had to do to claim my reward was to endure the pain.
No doubt, it was barbaric; however, to someone who desperately wished to regain his powers, it was a choice that made total sense.
The system, on the other hand, having received a request from me, could not help but proceed with the process.
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———————————————————
[#~System Notification~#]
———————————————————
[Understood.]
[Initiating the process...]
---