After a full day's baptism in the Spirit River, even those with previously ordinary physiques experienced a significant, almost forced, enhancement, basically achieving the physical prowess of a common special forces soldier.
The price for this, however, was that the emergency rations prepared for several days were completely depleted in a single day—or more accurately, devoured in a single meal.
Many adventurers who found their provisions insufficient regretted only bringing such a small amount of food, now forced to waste precious rest time returning to the commercial district to buy more.
Of course, no one was foolish enough to resort to plundering others' food; after all, this wasn't an apocalypse where survival depended on violence. A trip back to the city center was only about an hour's drive.
As night deepened, Bruce Pan, the first to awaken an ability, began to reflect on why he had chosen to charge forward recklessly that day.
He recalled the day's events one by one, until he remembered seeing a lone figure enduring in the Spirit River. The section of the river where that person stood was far more tumultuous with spirit tides than any place Bruce Pan had managed to reach before.
Before awakening his ability, he had once tried to jump directly into that very spot, only to be swept away by the surging spirit tide within one or two seconds. It was this feeling of unwillingness that drove him to run upstream from the very bottom, determined to prove that he could do it too.
Only later did he realize that even after growing stronger, he could only endure for an extra two or three seconds against the spirit tide in that location, yet that person had simply stood there the entire time...
During the day, the adventurers, caught up in the frenzied atmosphere, had pushed Bai Mo's presence to the back of their minds. But as evening fell and they each tended to themselves, lost in thought, many finally perceived the strangeness of the day's events. After recalling that figure, they quietly wondered just how powerful the person who could endure the spirit tide far beyond their limits truly was.
A few individuals, recalling Bai Mo's formidable strength and filled with curiosity, quietly made their way to the spot where they remembered Bai Mo entering the river earlier that day, as the night deepened.
Bathed in moonlight, their somewhat enhanced vision allowed them to see what appeared to be an unyielding "reef" still stubbornly resisting in the surging spirit tide. And in their perception, the spirit tide seemed to have weakened slightly compared to the morning.
After soaking in the Spirit River for an entire day, Bai Mo, despite his various enhancements, found that he couldn't hold on for much longer. He decided to make one final push, to see if charging further upstream into the Spirit River's headwaters would grant his abilities another leap forward.
Having witnessed the Spirit River granting initial "superpowers" to ordinary people that day, he held a similar expectation for himself.
Habitually taking a deep breath before exerting himself, Bai Mo, who had remained unmoving in the spirit tide for an entire day, shook his head and unleashed all his power. The surging Spirit Energy within him even began to seep slightly from his absorptive skin.
To the onlookers on the bank, it appeared as if a faint light had suddenly shone from an abrupt stone in the Spirit River, then miraculously began moving upstream against the current.
By his current position, the Spirit River's current was already terrifyingly fast, but Bai Mo, to advance further, had to continue pushing upstream.
With every step, he felt as though he was struggling against the entire world; an unparalleled immense force made his progress incredibly difficult.
Yet, recalling the frenzy of the crowd he'd seen downstream earlier that day—the madness they displayed at the sight of hope for power—and remembering his own past dreams of transcendence, Bai Mo gritted his teeth and persevered.
After trudging for twenty or thirty meters with immense difficulty, he faintly perceived a barrier. A voice in his mind seemed to tell him that with just two more steps forward, he could break through this barrier and propel his abilities to another leap.
However, at this point, he felt his entire body was operating at supercritical levels. If he were to squeeze out any more power, there was a constant risk of exploding at any moment.
"I need a greater first-mover advantage!" He pondered for a long time before finally placing his bet, hardening his resolve. He gambled with his life, betting that he could endure long enough, and took a step forward, heedless of the consequences.
This was completely different from his previous experience of being swept away by the largest spirit tide near the volcano; that time, he had felt utterly defenseless, struggling for only a second before being carried off, essentially not enduring any prolonged impact.
This time, however, he had persevered step by step, accumulating damage along the way. His body was constantly being destroyed, then reassembled once more with the help of the Spirit Qi.
After taking a step, Bai Mo felt a large portion of the barrier crumble, but his body now seemed to have reached its absolute limit. His repeatedly reinforced absorptive skin also appeared unable to withstand such pressure, constantly developing cracks.
He no longer had the energy to concern himself with these matters; his only remaining thought was that since the dice had been cast, he had to see the gamble through to the end. Bai Mo took the next step almost without hesitation.
After taking that step, the barrier Bai Mo perceived shattered... and in reality, an immense, sky-piercing light erupted from his location. A colossal amount of Spirit Energy within him burst forth like a volcanic eruption, and the attracted Spirit Qi tides once again altered a part of his brain's structure.
His ability underwent a terrifying evolution. His divine sense, which previously could only "see," transformed into an ability very similar to telekinesis.
The towering white light startled the sleeping Hawaii and stunned the group observing from the bank. At this moment, they realized they had witnessed something extraordinary, and understanding that curiosity might indeed kill the cat, they each covered their mouths and dispersed.
"Finally, I have a truly offensive ability. The ability to see through things is really not suitable for thriving in this new era where strength reigns supreme." At this moment, he already had a premonition that in the future, individual power would very likely supersede societal power.
Bai Mo's entire body was riddled with injuries, covered in small and large wounds of all kinds. Using his divine sense to inspect himself internally, he discovered a significant number of internal injuries caused by the sheer force of resisting the spirit tide.
The subsequent intense pain made Bai Mo, who only a few months ago was but an ordinary person with no battle-hardened nerves, almost want to writhe on the ground. However, remembering that his entire body was covered in open wounds, he forcibly suppressed the urge to roll.
He knew the sky-piercing white light he emitted during his ability's evolution must have alarmed many people on Hawaii. This was already a sensitive period; any disturbance related to Spirit Qi was bound to attract significant attention.
The secret that rushing into the Spirit River and enduring the Spirit Qi tide could potentially awaken superpowers was also highly likely to be exposed worldwide as more people learned about it. At that point, it wouldn't just be a few dozen individuals who knew; once more people became aware, the world would undoubtedly descend into further chaos.
Moreover, his currently scarred and battered self was in an unprecedented state of weakness, desperately needing a safe place to recuperate. Pain had already taken over most of his thoughts.