Chapter 301 System Space II
Although the set of moves on the fourth page looked so much like the flow of qi in the body, what he was staring at could very well be advanced meditation techniques for the mind!
The first three pages were physical and required a lot of thrusting and movement but the fourth pages was much more serene.
Three pages for the body and one for the mind! It was all about the balance between the body and the mind. Strength and Mental Fortitude went hand in hand.
If you were strong physically but weak mentally then, overall, you were still weak and vice versa!
Excitement coursed through He Yuan's bones as he put away the [[Strongest Martial Arts]] manual, distributed his Attribute points and clicked on refresh.
[Name: He Yuan]
[Age: 28]
[Level: Intermediate]
[Experience Points: 420,000]
[Soul Energy: 2890]
[Intelligence: 755]
[Strength: 655]
[Luck: 165 (+20)]
[Charisma: 610]
[Mental Fortitude: 755 (+30)]
[Merit Points: 1000]
[Belief: 6,000]
[Acquired Skills: Entry Level Medical Practitioner, Amateur At The [Strongest Martial Arts].]
[Halos: Halo Of The Undead, Halo Of The Sword Ancestor, Halo Of The Benevolent Benefactor.]
Once that was done, He Yuan crossed his arms as he waited patiently for his System -the major indication of his excitement being his foot that stamped a steady rhythm on the ground.
.
.
.
When 888 finally reached the dorm, what greeted him was an incredibly handsome man, 188cm tall, grinning happily at him like a child in a candy store. A smile subconsciously tugged at the corners of his lips but he quickly reined it in as he walked closer to his host. "You got the manual?"
He Yuan stood to his full height and stared down at his system with a wolfish grin, all his earlier troubles gone in the face of his excitement. "Even better! Here me out..." As they both walked inside, he gave 888 a summary of his findings and the System nodded along in interest.
As soon as they arrived at the System space, He Yuan took out the [[Strongest Martial Arts]] and fingered the edges of the manual with his eyes trained on the door of the inner room before looking back to his system. "I'll try it and see if it works?"
888 adjusted his glasses and nodded. "Okay." As soon as his host's figure disappeared into the inner room, he felt a slight shiver run up his spine. With lightly furrowed brows and pursed lips, his eyes darted around the System space sharply.
After a while, he relaxed his shoulders with a sigh. Although he'd gotten some information from He Xin, it wasn't much. Just some surface information that made him even more confused.
For some reason, he strongly felt that the key to regaining his memories lied in the knowledge of what First generation systems were.
With another sigh, 888 took a step towards the inner room but then reconsidered and walked over to the sofa to sit. It was better to give He Yuan space to concerntrate.
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In the inner room, the smell of soul incense filled He Yuan's nostrils as he focused on meditation. He felt nothing but that did not stop him from trying harder.
At first, he'd had a problem following the set of moves on the fourth page of the [[Strongest Martial Arts]] because, unlike the Task realms, the Soul realm did not have qi.
What it did have, though, was Source energy which was a much purer version of Soul energy. After trying for a while, he realized he wasn't capable of harnessing the source energy so what he did was circulate his own Soul energy around his meridians.
At some point, and unbeknownst to He Yuan, blue streaks of light began to light up his Soul and an influx of energy rushed to his head. It felt so good that he let out a contented groan.
If a person were to walk into the inner room, what they would see was a translucent Soul covered in numerous blue lines traveling through his veins and converging at the centre of his forehead -where a tiny star flickered.
From that moment on, streak after streak of Soul energy flowed to his head and He Yuan's mindspace began to transform. At the centre of the metalic void, where the soul thread of the leaser usually resided, the root of a tree took shape and a tiny stem shot up from the obsidian ground.
Next, a strong wave of energy shot out from He Yuan and spread throughout the System Space.
In the outer room, 888 was calmly going through one of He Yuan's books when he felt the wave of energy. Without his knowledge, a tiny star flickered on his forehead before dissipating.
He stood up and was about to move forward when a warm sensation spread throughout his body. He subconsciously closed his eyes, slowly cocked his head to the side and involuntarily hummed in satisfaction. It felt so good~
The very next second, 888 opened his eyes with a confused frown. What was that about? He narrowed his eyes at the door of the inner room. Since when did He Yuan's soul energy have such an effect on him?
He ran a hand through his long hair and advanced towards the inner room.
.
.
.
After the energy left him, the blue streaks all over his body died down and He Yuan opened his eyes to see the [[Strongest Martial Arts]] manual floating before him.
Once he closed the book and returned it to his storage space, 888 walked in. He gave his system a bright smile. "Hey."
888 looked around the room before flipping his hair with one hand and furrowing his brows at his host. It should be noted that He Yuan's Soul appeared to have increased in density but aside from that, everything else looked normal so... "What just happened?"
He Yuan poked the inside of his cheek with his tongue. "I'm not too sure." His head felt very cool and serene whilst his soul seemed firmer. He'd done what he felt was right but he wasn't too sure of its exact effects.
One thing he was sure of though, was how good it made him feel. He shook his head with a thin smile and clicked on his stats panel.
[Name: He Yuan]
[Age: 28]
[Level: Intermediate]
[Experience Points: 420,000]
[Soul Energy: 2890 (+1500)]
[Intelligence: 755]
[Strength: 655 (+500)]
[Luck: 185]
[Charisma: 610]
[Mental Fortitude: 785 (+1500)]
[Merit Points: 1000]
[Belief: 6,000]
[Acquired Skills: Entry Level Medical Practitioner, Amateur At The [Strongest Martial Arts].]
[Halos: Halo Of The Undead, Halo Of The Sword Ancestor, Halo Of The Benevolent Benefactor.]
He Yuan's eyes brightened and he turned to 888 in surprise. "It really worked."
888 inwardly let out a sigh of relief. Amongst his numerous worries, He Yuan's low Mental Fortitude had been high up in the ranks. It was hard to focus on much when you had to constantly deal with fear of your host running mad.
Although he was very pleased with this situation, he lifted his chin at his host and shrugged. "Not bad."
He Yuan rolled his eyes. If he didn't know his System well enough by now, he'd think the man was somehow dissatisfied with the results. Fortunately...
His eyes went from 888's bright cerulean blue eyes behind the glasses to the upward twitch of the System's lips and then to the way the man's head tilted ever so slightly.
And then he smiled sweetly. "Hm. Not bad."
888 bit his lower lip and looked away with slightly flushed cheeks. "It's.. er.." He cleared his throat. "It's time for your next task."
Still smiling, He Yuan nodded and when the System walked out, he quickly walked over to his wardrobe and selected a formal all black outfit.
A black silk dress shirt paired with black dress slacks, black suedes and an obsidian wristwatch to top it off. He ran a hand through his hair a few times and gave himself a once over in front of his mirror.
Satisfied with his looks, he walked out of the inner room.
888 looked away nonchalantly when his host appeared but then his eyes still trailed every movement the man took from the door of the inner room over to his office desk.
He Yuan was fully aware of this and satisfaction bloomed in his heart as he took his seat but he didn't dare to be obvious about it. It wasn't news that he was very much interested in his System but the thing was...
888 gave him mixed signals.
Sometimes he felt hopeful that there was a chance and other times, everything seemed like he was the one projecting his own inclinations onto the System. He never wanted to cause 888 to feel uncomfortable around him so he constantly suppressed his feelings.
Although there were certain times, such as now, where he wished he could pry open the beautiful man's mind and see what was inside.
Preferably, after that, said man would be bent over the very desk before him.... glasses askew and skin flushed decadent red in pleasure... a complete mess as he...
He Yuan shook his head and eyed his system briefly. Seeing as 888 was completely oblivious and focused on the door, he suddenly he felt a little guilty for his stray thoughts and looked away with hot cheeks. After clearing his throat, he waved. "Let the leaser in."
888 gave a slight nod and gave the leaser access to the space.
A second later, a reserved looking young man in ancient style robes appeared in the Space but -to the surprise of both system and host and before 888 could close off access to the space- another person slipped in with bold steps.
888 immediately felt a strange sense of de ja vú when faced with this stranger and he subconsciously frowned
He Yuan's expression, on the other hand,?turned cold and he quickly stood up and pulled his System behind himself as he locked eyes with familiar dichromatic blue and black eyes.
The owner of those eyes had left a deep impression of him after their first meeting.
It was the very same Hunter who had appeared outside the Tasker's dorm the last time. For what reason would a Hunter suddenly appear in the System space of a Tasker? His gaze deepened. "What do you want?"
The Hunter eyed He Yuan's action of pulling 888 behind him and his eyes flashed dangerously. Two seconds later, he titled his head back and laughed before looking at the spot behind He Yuan with a possessive gaze and said with a deep drawl, "After being seperated for so long... this is how you react? Careful sweetheart, you just might hurt my feelings~"
888's eyes had been locked on the stranger from the very moment he appeared so the second those words left the stranger's lips though, a sharp pain tore through his head and his body trembled as confusing images steadily flashed through his mind at an unprecedented speed.
....
[A Dark Void.]
[A Burst Of Raw Energy.]
[A Bright Spectacular Hall.]
[A Row Of Figures In White.]
[A Row Of Figures In Black.]
[A Blurry Silhouette.]
[Mismatched Eyes.]
[A Moldy Cell.]
[A Deep Pool Of Blood.]
[Pain.]
[Screams.]
[A Burst Of Raw Energy.]
[A Dark Void.]
"AAAAAHHHH!"
With that raw strangled scream that alarmed all three people present, 888 raised a hand to his head and staggered backwards.
He Yuan turned around and reached out to his System with wide eyes but the very next moment, a blinding light suddenly engulfed the entire System space.
.
.
.
As soon as the light receded, 888, He Yuan, and the thoroughly confused Leaser were nowhere to be found.
.
.
.
He Yuan's head hurt as he felt a suction force pulling him down a white void. The last thing he heard was the distant sound of an angry roar before losing consciousness.