Sitting atop a worn-down building, Lucian continuously tapped on the cracked screen of his old phone.
"It's still off..." He muttered disappointingly, frowning as he slid the phone back into his pocket.
Then, he tilted his head slightly back and looked straight into the sky. "And that's still the same... even after two days."
"Well, time sure does fly quickly." His gaze drifted below, looking at the countless, grouped hordes of people, which, from afar, resembled secluded colonies of ants.
'It has been two days since the system's announcement, and well, two days since the world started to change.' He swiftly put his hands on the floor and closed his eyes, drifting into a world of his own.
Two days ago, right after the system's announcement, all the monsters that had inexplicably appeared over the face of the world vanished into thin air, leaving behind cruel traces of sheer massacre.
Of course, some stood against such forces to save themselves and others who sought protection behind their backs. But even so, deaths occurred nevertheless. Despite having some ability to take on a few of the lowest-ranked monsters, variables such as fear and shock could not be compensated physically.
Within hours of the monster's disappearance, all the satellite networks were restored to some extent. Although for some reason, electronics such as phones did not work, things like radios and walkie-talkies had become accessible due to their lower frequency requirement.
Without a doubt, the world government had been completely shaken. Yet, they stabilized themselves and, with the help of civilians, announced a worldwide search operation.
And the next day, the results shocked the world a second time. Almost one-third of the world's population had vanished from the face of the earth.
The numbers weren't something to scoff at, since such a widespread massacre had never occurred once, even in history's most brutal wars.
"Well, I wasn't really expecting so many deaths, but nevertheless, that's the last thing people are concerned about right now." His gaze reached out to the sky, still crimson with a pair of ominously glowing moons.
Since that day, the sky had never changed, nor had the moon disappeared. In fact, they had only complemented the sky's eeriness further as a bloody hue was painted over the world.
"But that"—his gaze shifted, sharpening as they focused towards the gap in between the moons.
A soft overglow, foreign to both the moon and sky, could be seen. It was a gigantic system screen, transparent to the point that it was hard for anyone to actually notice it unless they tried hard enough.
On its surface, a countdown could be seen ticking down.
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[Time remaining until update synchronization—15:00:59 hours]
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Several news channels had already covered the news regarding its existence while the government urged the people to believe in the military, fearing that their rule might be over.
Though, nobody seemed to respect or even listen to their desperate words. Although the monsters had only been there for a few hours, a giant chunk of people had died, and the military was nearly crushed—as such, everyone had grown doubtful. Fearful of each other.
"In the last two days, I thought about the situation in detail. Not once but countless times. That too, from all the different angles that could or did exist. Still, I couldn't figure out why... Just why did it all feel so familiar yet distant?" He let out a deep, long sigh in frustration.
Not having been able to find any conclusion, the questions had been taking a toll on his mind.
But then, all of a sudden, a familiar sound rang in his mind after two days of silence.
*[Ding!]*
Almost instantly, a bright light appeared before his eyes, expanding into a translucent screen—its bright cerulean glow reflecting in his eyes.
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[The system update has been finished.]
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The words flickered on the screen in a strange gray hue. It was unlike anything Lucian had ever seen before.
For once, it glowed dark like a sunless night, then the next second, it illuminated in a serene white hue. Mysterious, one could say. But Lucian found it rather amusing, or perhaps, he knew its intentions.
Before he could think any further, the bright lights began to expand, pulsing all the way to the edges.
*Crack!*
Loud crackling sounds came out of the screen, and then, with a last noise, it all crumbled apart. The broken pieces began to fall towards the ground as a white smoke leaked from their broken parts. Within seconds, before any of the pieces reached the ground, they shrank and dissipated into the air.
Lucian sat still—smiling—as he looked confidently in the same direction. Just like he had anticipated, another notification alert resounded through his mind.
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[Booting...]
[Successful!]
[Congratulations!]
[Your system has successfully evolved into a unique system—the Infinite Cultivation System!]
[Please provide a sample of your blood to bind the system to your existence.]
---
A system screen glistening with a gray hue appeared before his eyes. There wasn't anything different from before, except the color.
Lucian read through the message and quickly pulled out one of his daggers from his pocket. Then, he slid its edge over the thumb of his other hand, slicing it just enough for the blood to seep out.
He raised his hand towards the system window and held it slightly above it. There, he simply waited for the blood to seep out and drop on its own. Not long after the blood droplet fell onto the screen, a dark crimson hue pulsed from the center, spreading all the way to the edges as new texts appeared over the screen.
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[Analyzing the Sample...]
[Congratulations! The Unique system has successfully been bound to the player—Lucian Cross.]
[Beginning the selection of Power Systems!]
[Lucian Cross, as the host of a brand new and the very first unique system, you are being given a choice to select your own path.]
[You may now choose the path of your own liking.]
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Then, a pair of new system windows formed over the previous one. Both windows lit in a cerulean hue, contrasting with the dark crimson from before.
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[Mana]
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...
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[Qi]
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On both screens, only a single word was written, as each signified an endless path that fundamentally opposed the other.
"Hmm..." Lucian raised one of his brows and jumped into the world of his thoughts since this very choice would shape his future.
'While the mana as a whole may be flexible, it fails in terms of strength. If that wasn't enough, its own paths split into countless and decreased the potential by leaps. Its foundations are supported through imagination, and thus, it is safer to handle.'
'While Qi, on the other hand, stands at the peak of strength and power. A group of paths that interconnect with each other continuously, forming an intricate network of paths that all combine into one at some point and lead to the endless path of Dao.'
Thinking about the two power systems, he smirked widely and burst into laughter, falling to the floor with his arms stretched wide on both sides.
"Haha... Why am I even thinking so much about it?" He said, cackling and gasping for breath. The next second,
"I choose 'Qi.'" He let out a deep breath, calming down as he decided on his path.
The system followed instantly, as a new screen appeared before his eyes.
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[Understood.]
[The "Qi" has been chosen as your respective path.]
[Integrating...]
[Congratulations! You have been rewarded with a Unique Authority—Infinite Qi!]
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