Ah You woke up to the sound of his neighbor's rooster crowing.
Which was weird, because his neighbor didn't have a rooster. Mrs. Lim next door had three cats and constantly complained about noise. She'd lose her shit if someone brought a rooster into the building.
He opened his eyes slowly. His head was pounding like someone had used it as a drum. Every muscle in his body ached. His mouth tasted like he'd been licking rust.
The ceiling fan above him spun lazily, the same fan that had been making that annoying clicking sound for six months. He kept meaning to fix it but never got around to it.
He was in his room. His shitty little room with the water-stained walls and the window that didn't close properly.
How did he get here?
The last thing he remembered was... the street. The lamp post. The ring burning his hand. That weird floating text...
"What the hell..."
He sat up too quickly and immediately regretted it. The room spun. He pressed his palm against his forehead, trying to make the world stop tilting.
His work clothes were still on – the white shirt and black pants, now completely ruined with mud stains and... was that blood? There was a scrape on his elbow that he didn't remember getting. His shoes were by the door, caked in dried mud.
"Did I... did I walk home like this?"
No memory of it. Nothing. Just a big black hole where the last twelve hours should be.
He looked down at his hand. The ring was still there, sitting on his middle finger. But it wasn't burning anymore. It felt... normal. Room temperature. Like it had always been there.
"Maybe I'm losing my mind," he muttered. "Finally cracked. Too much stress. That's it. I'm going crazy."
He needed water. His throat felt like sandpaper.
Ah You stumbled to the kitchen – if you could call it that. It was really just a corner of the room with a hot plate, a mini fridge, and a plastic basin that served as a sink. He filled a cup with water from the filter and drank it in one go. Then another. Then another.
That's when he noticed the cactus.
It was sitting on the windowsill where it had been for the past eight months – a sad little thing in a plastic pot that the previous tenant had left behind. Ah You had never watered it. Never even looked at it, really. He'd assumed it was already dead.
But now...
Now it looked different. Greener. Fuller. Like it had somehow gotten healthier overnight.
He walked closer, squinting at it.
And then he heard – no, not heard. Felt. Sensed? – something.
It was like... like a whisper at the very edge of his consciousness. Not words exactly. More like... feelings. Emotions that weren't his own.
Thirsty. Need water. Roots dry. But... better now. Better than yesterday. Something changed. Something helped.
"What the fuck..."
Ah You stumbled backward, knocking over the cup. Water spilled across the counter.
He stared at the cactus.
The cactus didn't move, obviously. It was a plant. Plants don't move.
But he could feel it. Could sense its... its what? Its mood? Its needs?
"I'm losing it. Definitely losing it. This is what happens when you don't sleep for three days."
He rubbed his eyes hard, trying to clear his head. When he opened them again, there was something floating in his vision.
A translucent blue screen. Like something out of a video game. Just... hanging there in the air in front of him.
[SARAWAK ESPER SYSTEM]
[HOST: Li Ah You]
[LEVEL: 1 (Awakened)]
[BLOODLINE: Rainforest Guardian (108th Generation)]
[CURRENT ABILITY: Nature Sense LV1]
[ESPER POINTS: 0]
Ah You waved his hand through the screen. It didn't disappear. He blinked hard. It was still there.
He backed up until he hit the wall.
"Okay. Okay. I'm either dreaming, or I'm having a mental breakdown, or..." He swallowed hard. "Or this is real."
The screen flickered slightly, as if responding to his thoughts.
He reached out carefully and touched it. His finger went through – but the screen reacted, like a touchscreen interface. He could actually interact with it.
With shaking hands, he tapped on [CURRENT ABILITY: Nature Sense LV1].
A new window popped up:
[NATURE SENSE LV1]
[DESCRIPTION: Host can sense the condition, emotions, and needs of plant life within a 10-meter radius. Communication is one-way (receiving only).]
[UPGRADE REQUIREMENTS: 100 Esper Points OR significant combat experience]
[NOTE: This is a basic foundational ability. Higher levels unlock active control and communication.]
Ah You read it three times.
Then he looked at the cactus again.
Water good. Soil dry but okay. Sunlight needed. Happy for now. Strange human looking at me...
"Jesus Christ," he whispered.
He could actually sense what the plant was feeling.
His legs felt weak. He slid down the wall until he was sitting on the floor, staring at his hands.
The ring on his finger looked completely ordinary now. Dull copper. Old carvings. Nothing special.
But something had changed. Something fundamental.
His phone rang, nearly giving him a heart attack. He fumbled for it.
Zhang Jie.
Shit. Work. What time was it?
He looked at the screen: 8:47 AM.
He was supposed to be at the restaurant at 8:00.
"Hello?"
"AH YOU! Where are you?! You didn't even call to say you're late! You think this is your grandfather's restaurant ah?!"
"Sorry, Zhang Jie, I... I'm not feeling well. I think maybe I got food poisoning or something..."
"Food poisoning?! Yesterday you were fine! You think I'm stupid?! You come in right now or don't bother coming at all!"
The line went dead.
Ah You sat there, phone in hand, trying to process everything.
He could sense plants. There was a video game screen floating in his vision. He had apparently blacked out for half the night and didn't remember how he got home.
And now he might lose his job.
"This day just keeps getting better," he muttered.
That's when the system screen flickered again. A new message appeared:
[BEGINNER QUEST ACTIVATED]
[QUEST NAME: Prove Your Worth]
[OBJECTIVE: Use your ability to increase Golden Phoenix Restaurant's revenue by 50% or more in a single day]
[TIME LIMIT: 12 Hours]
[REWARDS: 50 Esper Points, Mystery Box x1, Skill Upgrade Token x1]
[FAILURE PENALTY: System permanently deactivated, ability locked forever]
[NOTICE: This is a mandatory quest. Refusal or failure will result in loss of all awakened powers.]
Ah You stared at the screen.
Increase revenue by fifty percent? In one day?
The restaurant usually made somewhere between five and eight thousand ringgit on a weekday. Fifty percent more would be...
He did the math in his head. At least two and a half thousand extra. Probably closer to four thousand if it was a busy day.
How the hell was he supposed to do that?
And if he failed... the system would deactivate. He'd lose this power. This strange, impossible power that he didn't even understand yet.
Part of him wanted to laugh. This was insane. Absolutely insane.
But another part of him – the part that was tired of being broke, tired of being looked down on, tired of being powerless – that part was interested.
Very interested.
He pulled himself to his feet, legs still a bit shaky.
"Alright," he said to the empty room. "Alright. Let's see what this thing can actually do."
Forty minutes later, Ah You was on the bus to work.
He'd showered, changed into clean clothes, and tried to make himself look presentable. The scrape on his elbow was still there, but he'd covered it with a long-sleeved shirt.
The system screen was still visible – apparently only to him, since nobody on the bus seemed to notice him staring at thin air and tapping on invisible buttons.
He'd spent twenty minutes exploring the interface. It was surprisingly detailed:
[STATUS]
HP: 100/100 MP: 50/50 (Mana/Energy Points) Strength: 8 Agility: 7 Intelligence: 12 Perception: 15 (boosted by Nature Sense)
[SKILLS]
Nature Sense LV1 (Active)
[INVENTORY]
Empty
[SHOP]
Locked (Requires Level 5)
[QUESTS]
Beginner Quest: Prove Your Worth (Active)
The bus hit a pothole and Ah You grabbed the overhead handle to steady himself. An old Iban lady sitting nearby gave him a suspicious look, probably wondering why he kept moving his hands around like he was swatting at invisible flies.
He minimized the screen with a thought – apparently it was controlled by his mind, not just touch – and stared out the window at the passing streets of Kuching.
Same shops. Same coffee shops with old uncles reading newspapers. Same construction sites where migrant workers toiled in the heat.
But everything felt different now.
He could sense the potted plants in front of the shops. The trees lining the road. Even the grass growing in the cracks of the sidewalk. It was like suddenly being able to hear a radio frequency that had always been there but that he'd never been able to tune into before.
Most of it was just... noise. Background static. Plants didn't think in words or complex thoughts. Just basic needs and sensations.
Thirsty. Not thirsty. Too hot. Good soil. Bad soil. Need sunlight. Too much sunlight.
Simple. Primal.
But what if he could use this?
The restaurant had plants. The boss's wife loved decorating the place with potted ferns and lucky bamboo and those weird money trees. The kitchen had fresh vegetables and herbs.
What if...
An idea started forming in his mind.
It was crazy. Absolutely batshit crazy.
But he didn't have a lot of options right now.
The bus pulled up to his stop. Ah You got off and walked the last two blocks to Golden Phoenix Restaurant.
Zhang Jie was waiting for him at the staff entrance, arms crossed, face like thunder.
"You're lucky we're not busy yet," she snapped. "Get changed. You're on kitchen prep until lunch service."
"Yes, Zhang Jie."
He hurried past her to the changing room, his mind already racing.
Twelve hours to increase revenue by fifty percent.
Time to see if this crazy power was actually worth something.
The kitchen at Golden Phoenix was chaos even on a slow day.
Three cooks worked the wok stations, flames roaring as they tossed ingredients with practiced precision. Two prep cooks chopped vegetables at lightning speed. The dishwasher – an old Bidayuh uncle named Pak Ahmad – worked in the back, steam rising from the industrial sinks.
Ah You was assigned to prep work: washing vegetables, cutting garnishes, organizing ingredients.
Perfect.
He started with the vegetables that had just been delivered that morning. Bok choy, kai lan, long beans, bean sprouts, spring onions, chilies, ginger, garlic.
He picked up a bundle of kai lan and activated his Nature Sense, focusing on it.
Information flooded his mind:
Fresh. Picked this morning. Good quality. Slightly stressed from transport. Wants water. Slight bitterness in stems. Leaves very tender.
Ah You blinked. He could actually... read the vegetable?
He moved to the bok choy:
Three days old. Still fresh but starting to wilt. Stems getting woody. Should be used today or tomorrow.
The spring onions:
Very fresh. Strong flavor. High oil content. Excellent quality.
Holy shit.
He could tell which ingredients were at their peak, which ones were starting to decline, which ones had the best flavor.
This was...
This was actually useful.
"Eh! Ah You! Stop daydreaming and finish the prep!" One of the cooks yelled at him.
"Yes, chef!"
He worked quickly, but now with purpose. As he sorted through the ingredients, he started making mental notes. The freshest vegetables, the ones with the best flavor profiles – he set those aside.
Then he moved to the dried goods and spices.
The restaurant had jars and jars of dried ingredients: dried chilies, Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, cinnamon, dried mushrooms.
He focused his sense on them.
Some were old, flavor faded. But others...
He found a jar of dried shiitake mushrooms that had been pushed to the back of the shelf. They were from a premium supplier – expensive stuff that the boss had probably bought for a special event and then forgotten about.
Ah You held the jar, sensing it.
Strong umami. Deep forest flavor. Complex. Rich. These are exceptional.
An idea clicked into place.
"Chef!" He called out to the head cook, Uncle Tan.
"What?"
"These dried mushrooms – they're really high quality. What if we made a special soup today? Mushroom broth with the good kai lan?"
Uncle Tan walked over, frowning. He opened the jar, sniffed it, then looked at Ah You with surprise.
"Wah, these are the Japanese ones. Very expensive. Boss bought them last year for some VIP dinner." He scratched his chin. "But yeah, can make soup. Waste if we don't use them soon anyway."
"And chef – the spring onions today are really fresh. Extra strong. Maybe we use more for garnish? Make the dishes look and smell better?"
Uncle Tan gave him an odd look. "Since when you know so much about vegetables?"
"I... my grandmother taught me. She grows vegetables."
Uncle Tan grunted. "Okay lah. Make sense. You do the soup prep then. I'll adjust the menu."
[QUEST PROGRESS: 5%]
The notification popped up in Ah You's vision.
It was working.
[To Be Continued]